Max Divergent

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Posts by Max Divergent

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  67

  Good Netflix shows to watch

  by Simon in

  1. social
  2. entertainment

  in the long winter nights you need some good tv shows to watch while you wait for the eternity between seasons of game of thrones.. we've watched marco polo (pretty good) and have just started watching orange is the new black which is not at all what i imagined (didn't know it was funny!).

  house of cards is on the list too as we've heard good things about that.. anyone have any others that are worth seeing?.

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  Max Divergent

  Just started watching Portlandia - fabulous satire.

  Rake is fabulous too, the Australian original not the US version. It's about an off-the-rails barrister.
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  15

  List your favorite, overused scripture by JW's!

  by thedepressedsoul in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the title says it all.

  list a scripture that is way over used.. it could be a scripture that the point is completely missed by how they use it.

  it could also be one that they use so much it's as if the rest of the bible didn't exits.. my two favorite are proverbs 4:18 and ezekiel chapter 1 +a few verses.

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  Max Divergent

  They overuse the bible, actually. What they teach is only similar to some of the bible for their convenience.

  
  
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  53

  Is Watchtower's stance against education only for North American witnesses

  by wannaexit in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i was reading on a european ex jw forum where some feel that watchtower's railing against higher education is primarily for north america issue.

  this is due that many in usa and canada leave home to leave on campus.

  it was mentioned that many young european jw attend universities and its not frowned on.. i found this odd because i heard what morris and losch said about education in italy.

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  Max Divergent

  I knew a small handful in Australia who took higher education about the time I did: I studied 1997-2000 and left the JWs in 1998. I can think of about five in two congs who were studying, or had recently finished studying, when I left.

  The excuse was always that they needed to get a qualification to meet their scriptural responsibility to support their family (all male). I said the same. 
  

  I don't remember anyone being given a hard time or losing privileges as a result. I don't think any of them were very active or 'in to' being a JW, even if they were current or former E/MS/Pio, but so far as I know the others stayed in. Mostly second or third gen. I think studying was more a point of novelty than being very problematic in the cong.

  I remember publishers (not so much E/MS) quizzing me about whether the lecturers were as good public speakers as the brothers. I think it was curiosity more than anything. The few who did have an education (usually from before getting into the JWs) always seemed to be regarded as a bit special, and being the 'good elders' or whatever.

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  
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  17

  Can your pervert the meaning of scripture even more...

  by never a jw in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  for a while i have shaken my head after learning how jw's interpret (rather corrupt the meaning of) matthew 8:11. i thought it couldn't get any worse.

  i was wrong.

  the following is an extract of the march 2015 watchtower in pg 27. the writer is explaining the meaning of mathew 25:31-46. enjoy!.

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  Max Divergent

  I neither know nor care what this or any other scripture says or means, but to the JW there is no God but Jehovah and His word is inspired and true. That is where the word ‘true’ has the meaning ‘what The Watchtower has most recently written’ and ‘inspired’ has the meaning ‘whatever suits the Faithful and Discreet Slave, which is the Governing Body’.

  Or, ‘the bible means what the Writing Department most recently said it means to meet the Governing Body’s current need’. Which makes 'Governing Body' a synonym for 'Jehovah', therefore what is in The Watchtower is His word and is true per se, including as it changes from time-to-time.

  Thus this scripture is correctly explained.

  In the end I think this leads to many (most?) XJWs just giving up caring what the bible says and being unable to abide the idea of a God: they heard Him speak at conventions and didn't like Him.

  JW logic. JW reality.
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  47

  What is the point of the picture in this weeks study article ?

  by stuckinarut2 in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  i don't understand the relevance of the first picture in this weeks study article?!?!.

  wt week of december 15-21 "cherish your privilege of working with jehovah".

  can someone post the pic?.

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  Max Divergent

  What's the point to anything in The Watchtower? How did The Boomtown Rats put it?

  And he can see no reasons
  'Cause there are no reasons
  What reason do you need to be shown?

  ...

  And the lesson today is how to die.
  And then the bullhorn crackles,
  And the captain crackles,
  With the problems and the how's and why's.
  And he can see no reasons
  'Cause there are no reasons
  What reason do you need to die?

  ...

  And daddy doesn't understand it,
  He always said she was as good as gold.
  And he can see no reasons
  'Cause there are no reasons
  What reason do you need to be shown?

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Kobdb37Cwc
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  15

  If you are having problems or lacking joy, then the flow of Holy Spirit in your life is lacking!

  by stuckinarut2 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  yes, this comment was just made by the speaker today!:.

  "if you find that you are lacking in joy or experiencing problems in life, this is evidence that jehovah's spirit is lacking or being blocked in your life".

  i sat there thinking "are you kidding me brother?...

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  Max Divergent

  This is evidence that Jehovah's spirit is upon me.

  No, that's the devil's joy. But the joy he (He?) gives is shortlived and minor in comparison to the joy Jehovah gives, even if what Jah gives looks and feels like abject misery at the time. That's roughly what I remember them writing somewhere.
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  21

  Leaving with Dignity - a sample document

  by Ajax in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  we live in democratic, not theocratic times.. churches no longer imprison, torture or execute.. cults have absolutely no authority over non members.

  we don't have to obey.

  we don't have to subject our selves.

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  Max Divergent

  I've never really understood the urge to honour them with a resignation (unless it's to stop harassment).

  I just decided it was me who determined my religious status, no one else. So I just stopped going and cut them off. I did step down first ('health'), I thought that was the right thing to do. I never went back after it was announced. I didn't bother myself or them with anything written. In time they got the idea.
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  15

  If you are having problems or lacking joy, then the flow of Holy Spirit in your life is lacking!

  by stuckinarut2 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  yes, this comment was just made by the speaker today!:.

  "if you find that you are lacking in joy or experiencing problems in life, this is evidence that jehovah's spirit is lacking or being blocked in your life".

  i sat there thinking "are you kidding me brother?...

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  Max Divergent

  Spirits usually take away problems and give joy. Until the hangover in the morning...
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  40

  How Long Have You Been Here?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  12 years for me and before i actually became a member, i looked at this site (jwd) for a few months..

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  Max Divergent

  [Apart from Simon who's been rightly disqualified...] according the the date joined on this thread so far, only Mouthy's been here longer than me! And that's only by two days! LOL! Me 24 November 2001, her 22 November.

  The rest of you are mere newbies! :-)

  I probably am a contestant for the slowest poster ever though: by my calculaton it's 0.1 of a post per day for 13 years and one month! :-) (ie: 479 posts in 4777 days).

  But I have spent so many hours reading this place. Too many. Thank you Simon.
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  76

  From 1 to 10, how do you rate the value of the Internet in your awakening?

  by Hidden-Window in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as we all know, the internet is a real game-changer in allowing us to know the truth about the watch tower and its history.

  i always had doubts and it was the internet that presented me with the ever-growing number of individuals who were going through a similar struggle.. i give the internet a 9 in my awakening.

  what about you?.

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  Max Divergent

  I started down the road out through disatisfaction with the JW life and the actions of elders about 1994 or 1995: that was nothng to do with the internet which I hadn't used then.

  When I gathered up enough unhappiness, I wanted to find out about 'that book' written by 'Fred Franz relative'. That was around 1996 or 1997 just as the internet was becoming popular and accessible and useful. I found Crisis in a libary after getting the title etc via the internet (as I recall). After a few pages I knew I couldn't stay a JW. Then I found H2O, and I was really going out of the JWs fast. I remember my heart racing doing all that for the first time!

  So, the internet didn't start the slide, but it heped push me along the slope to getting out.

  5 for getting out.

  10 for being the right tool at the right time for everything JW related since then.