Half banana

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Posts by Half banana

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  9

  Governing Body

  by Acer21 in

  1. social
  2. humour

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  Half banana

  There is no proof for anything which Jehovah's Witnesses teach.

  Being "anointed" is just as much a fiction as being one of the "other sheep".
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  18

  Interesting piece about Stephen Lett and family: property developers

  by Diogenesister in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  another very well researched programme by the blue envelope exploring stephen lett's bio and his family interest in property.

  interestingly his parents were pioneering until the new service year 1975 , when they immediately changed tack and began investing in properties along the gulf coast.

  once again, highly recommended veiwing.. https://youtu.be/9qh0jbvsdrc.

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  Half banana

  Yep, it's interesting Diog. I think the lesson is to emulate the Lett parents who on realising that the Watchtower never delivers its promises, do something practical and enjoyable instead.
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  16

  What is the benefit of God's Kingdom?

  by Half banana in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  what is the benefit of god's kingdom?.

  the watchtower said when it started out in 1879 that god's kingdom had already arrived in heaven in 1874 and that its work would be complete by 1914. .

  with heroic slogans of "destroying the kings of the earth" and "all enemies of christ the king" etc by 1914, "god fearing" humankind was to have been restored to prelapsarian innocence and the earth to a global edenic paradise.

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  Half banana

  I'm not Bk9 and I don't hear the mystical wind that you might! But interesting thoughts Bobcat.

  I noted Wm Barclays Classical text references of the Greek parousia defining the de facto ruling 'presence' of the emperor (which translates into Latin as adventus or advent). The Christ sects would have used this same Koine Greek word with the same meanings. The doctrinal implication was that Christ began ruling after the fall of Jerusalem in 70 CE.

  One has to ask then where is the evidence and what the significance? Are we not still hobbled by the invisibility trick? The Christ was not seen ruling.....

  The messianic hopes of the Jewish Christians were not rewarded and neither was there any glorification, deliverance or kingly rule evident in the early churches.

  It appears to me to be rhetoric playing on the susceptibility of the downtrodden to Deus ex machina salvation promises. (that is: -- divine interventions at the last minute to resolve un-resolvable problems)
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  3

  Child Baptism - March 2020 monthly program

  by neat blue dog in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the march 2020 monthly program of jw broadcasting mentions child baptism a couple of times.. the first was in an interview with an 80-something jw who said that after he was baptized he prayed 'you can bring the end any time now jehovah', admitting that his likely reason was that he thought the end was imminent and he would die otherwise.

  but then he goes on to recommend child baptism, saying it should be "for as young as they can possibly make it".. then regarding some large recent conventions, they mention that at one where almost a thousand were baptized, are large portion (no exact number given) were children..

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  Half banana

  The 80 year old interviewed is transparently in the religion for personal gain, worse still he equated baptism with salvation. To connect this with his offhand comment on the earlier the age for baptism, the better it is, is truly pathetic.

  However, scraping of the barrel quotes like this fulfil the aim of the GB to have as many baptised as possible. Baptism numbers appear to validate the GB.

  Note also that this quote was included to sow the seed-idea that "baptism equals salvation". They will deny this is true but it is nevertheless implied.

  A very useful tool in cult propaganda.

  If there ever was, there is no backbone left in the JW cult.
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  9

  Quotes from 3/8/2020 WT study

  by neat blue dog in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  here's just a few random observations from tomorrow's wt study:.

  jesus’ command to make disciples was not limited to christians living in the first century.

  jesus concluded his instructions to his followers with the words: “i am with you all the days until the conclusion of the system of things.” (matt.

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  Half banana

  Damnation! I missed out on guiding my Bible studies towards the wonderful privilege of contributing financially to the cult.

  I'm sure they would have been more than thrilled not only wasting their time listening to my indoctrination sessions but they could have lost their hard earned cash as well! It would have been the icing on the cake.

  And let's not forget, the JW org. is so hard up what with astronomical lawyers bills and court fines to pay -- and it is such a deserving charity after all.

  How heartless and unthinking was I, to have missed out on this fine theocratic opportunity.
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  24

  Ask current Jehovah's Witnesses if they KNOW what happened in 1954 (SHOCKING)

  by Terry in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  (referred to below: watchtower bible and tract society presidents: russell, rutherford, knorr, franz )did you know that from 1879 until 1954 ... ... the writings of c.t.russell, j.f.rutherford, nathan knorr, and the watchtower's own charter... ... agreed ... that jesus christ was to be worshiped?this fact has been cleverly and dramatically hidden by manipulation of older quotations.

  ______________________________________________________________________pastor charles taze russell answers the question for us.

  see below zion’s watch tower 1898 jul 15 p.216“question: the fact that our lord received worship is claimed by some to be an evidence that while on earth he was god the father disguised in a body of flesh and not really a man.

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  Half banana

  Good point Terry but funny how JWs aren't that interested in anything which might undermine their faith?

  It is interesting to reflect that it was not as if Russell, Rutherford and Knorr (who happened to be born in a town called Bethlehem) had the exclusive rights to "true religion" before 1954. But since the "Jehovah" brand was selling like hot cakes after the War: forget the second raters like Jesus.

  Because of its suppressed pagan origins, Christianity suffers from an intractable ambiguity in the relationship between the Father and the Son.

  The tedious arguments fill tomes of theological gobbledegook going back to the seminal convocations of the fourth and fifth centuries. Fostered earlier by Tertullian (d.prob.220 CE), who incidentally couldn't make up his own mind on the ranking of Father and Son, the Church demanded a mystical resolution in formulating the doctrine of the Trinity. This was fully accepted among the Catholic faithful by the end of fourth century.

  You need a torniquet on your brain to believe that an invisible god and his invisible son have a third co-equal, co-eternal invisible partner called Holy Spirit.

  By this time in history (fourth cent.) because of the absence of concrete facts at the central focus of the religion they condemned logic and demanded that the way forward for followers of Christ was by putting faith in the wisdom of the Catholic governing body called the Magisterium. After all its head was the Pontiff or Pontifex Maximus, the 'great bridge maker' who could connect between the earthly and the spirit realm.

  Faith was to be valued above mere human reason.This obedience came with extravagant, exhibitionist and often fatal displays. What was desired was to be with Christ -- and therefore God. It was sought by death in an arena with heavenward eyes and a smug smile on ones face whilst being eaten by a lion. Great propaganda for the Church but was it worth it for the individual?

  Can anyone tell me what on earth is the point of worshipping anything?
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  30

  Will you attend the Memorial 2020 ? - Covid-19 (Coronavirus)

  by bats in the belfry in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  ... or rather listen to the advice on their jw news website:.

  show love to others.

  while we all know the importance of attending christian meetings and participating in the public ministry, if you are sick, it is best to stay home to avoid infecting others.

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  Half banana

  Any low memorial attendances due to avoiding the corona virus will be given as a sign of the last days to reassure the wobblers that despite wonderful improvements these are absolutely dreadful times to live in.

  OK, the new virus is a serious world problem but unlike the plagues of former times we have the technology to respond and curb the beast by scientific understanding and humanitarian measures. In the past it was down to "God's will".

  As for your question, who wouldn't want to attend the programmed disappointment called the Memorial? You'd be mad to miss it!
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  16

  What is the benefit of God's Kingdom?

  by Half banana in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  what is the benefit of god's kingdom?.

  the watchtower said when it started out in 1879 that god's kingdom had already arrived in heaven in 1874 and that its work would be complete by 1914. .

  with heroic slogans of "destroying the kings of the earth" and "all enemies of christ the king" etc by 1914, "god fearing" humankind was to have been restored to prelapsarian innocence and the earth to a global edenic paradise.

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  Half banana

  Blubberyk9 You have extremely well explained the believer's viewpoint. You expressed that "spritual realities" are not subject to evidence. This implies another world of being.
  

  We all experience this because we have our own mind with an inner discourse which is not subject to external rules or regulations. However this spiritual reality often in practice is enlarged in its domain by a shared community reinforcement we call a culture or religion.Today religion is breaking down as the spirit of the time is one of liberty and individualism. Why do we need others to tell us how to believe?

  By discussing faith we are getting to the root problem with religious belief: that it boils down to the fact of dealing with invisible people and invisible events.

  With invisible things, anything goes! Anything can be asserted and no one is the wiser and no one can contradict . You just need faith Brother.....How useful is this? Very useful indeed to the authority of religious leaders and the existential comfort of those duped by them.

  A life lived with faith may give you an inner smile and a feeling of absolute certainty . . . but it’s a trick of the mind, because it can give hope just like the Watchtower does – but it never delivers.
  

  There is not the slightest testable proof that “God’s Kingdom” is a real thing, less still that it ruled from 1914 or any other date.

  It does though give evidence of the essential ingredient of the human spirit, the desire for better things, which will never go away.
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  16

  What is the benefit of God's Kingdom?

  by Half banana in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  what is the benefit of god's kingdom?.

  the watchtower said when it started out in 1879 that god's kingdom had already arrived in heaven in 1874 and that its work would be complete by 1914. .

  with heroic slogans of "destroying the kings of the earth" and "all enemies of christ the king" etc by 1914, "god fearing" humankind was to have been restored to prelapsarian innocence and the earth to a global edenic paradise.

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  Half banana

  Thank you for thoughts Joen but on the other hand where is there the evidence for your statement that "the Kingdom is a gradual process living in the hearts of the saints"?

  Admit it, it's just just religious psycho babble.
  
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  16

  What is the benefit of God's Kingdom?

  by Half banana in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  what is the benefit of god's kingdom?.

  the watchtower said when it started out in 1879 that god's kingdom had already arrived in heaven in 1874 and that its work would be complete by 1914. .

  with heroic slogans of "destroying the kings of the earth" and "all enemies of christ the king" etc by 1914, "god fearing" humankind was to have been restored to prelapsarian innocence and the earth to a global edenic paradise.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Half banana

  What is the benefit of God's Kingdom?

  The Watchtower said when it started out in 1879 that God's Kingdom had already arrived in heaven in 1874 and that its work would be complete by 1914.

  With heroic slogans of "destroying the Kings of the Earth" and "all enemies of Christ the King" etc by 1914, "God fearing" humankind was to have been restored to prelapsarian innocence and the Earth to a global Edenic paradise. How lovely......

  I need not remind you that in 1914, instead we had WW1. Could any prophecy ever be more wrong? Thank you Watchtower, another Guinness Book of Records first!

  CT Russell's prediction had been the result of a manoeuvre to rescue an already failed 1874 Adventist prophecy of the Second Coming from public shame. His method was to say that the prediction was indeed true -- but it happened invisibly -- good one Charlie!

  He moved the goal posts forward and changed the interpretations of scriptural beliefs. Well how else could Adventism survive with so many failures in USA in the 19th century? Remember Miller's 1844 "Great disappointment?" Adventism and Jehovah's Witnesses are simply a continuation of this persistent but foolish thread of underlying belief of "the Second Coming". (The focal name changes over time as the disappointments roll by).

  The Watchtower lost nearly two thirds of it membership. So in the spirit of keeping the ship afloat, the directors of the Watchtower obscured the obvious defeat and shifted the "spiritual presence" of the kingdom forward from 1874 to 1914. This they must have reasoned got them off the hook since it was the same ploy Russell had used for 1874; claiming an INVISIBLE presence.

  Now come on people who have not completely shut down your brain for religious reasons, how does one know about spiritual, invisible things? Even faith has to have some evidence!

  Where though is the evidence that 1831,1844,1874 or 1914 was the date when God's Kingdom arrived. Why stick at 1914, why not move it forward to 1975?

  Let's be generous and say that 1914 was when the Kingdom arrived invisibly in heaven. What then has been the subsequent benefits of this sublime enthronement of the son of the Creator of the universe? Surely such an event would make the most impressive changes on earth reflecting this consummate universal rule by the King of Kings?

  How would we ever know someone or some organisation is not pulling our leg? Are invisible friends real? Are sky gods real? Are invisible kingdoms real? Where's the evidence? Does the expression "building castles in the air" come to mind?

  I suggest it is a complete hoax in the long tradition of religious shysters milking the ignorant.

  Is this invisible JW kingdom worth the giving up of your time, your life, your family, your education, your conscience for?

  What are your thoughts on this invisible 1914 kingdom?