i've been out a while and have only put in a rare appearance at a memorial or brief visit at a convention/assembly to keep people off my back, so i haven't kept up on the songbook.
but one thing i've noticed that the org.
has been doing that they never did when i was in is all these "supplemental songs" that keep appearing.
Wasnt there some kind of scandal over the lewd pictures on the songbook?
I guess that would have been the art department and not the music department but it did seem to highlight a lot of things changing in a short amount of time.
When you stop to think that all these talented musicians are blindly following a "conductor" whose delusion is that he is annointed by God himself, it helps to explain why it is all so "off" in a musical sense.
my congregation had four elders who had different personalities.you would see a little friction among themselves.. #1 self-righteous and the 800 pound gorilla.he would push everyone around in the congregation and even some fellow elders.. # 2 elder was around 80 years old and looked like he stuck around a little too long.it looked like he was around because he never decided to give up the position.his duty became very light as he aged.. # 3 elder was in his early 30's and newly elected.he made no waves and whatever was asked of him in the congregation he would do.easy to push around like a little puppy dog.. #4 elder (who everyone liked ) was easy to get along with and had a family who everyone loved.
he didn't like elder # 1. they had a power struggle amongst each other which everyone observed while the meetings were in session.. here are 2 small verbal fights that i observed while the congregation meetings were in session:.
while elder # 1 was giving a talk ( heavy rain storms are brewing outside with loud thunder and lightning ) the microphones and lights are knocked out.we lost all power and could barely see.
Johny Franco, you nailed it!
As the daughter of, sister of, wife of, mother of ELDER(s) at various points in my life I have seen it exactly as you laid it out in your post.
for whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that through patience and through comfort of the scriptures we might have hope.- romans 15:4. ever consider that paul wasn't referencing his own letters to the congregations?
and he certainly wasn't referring to the gospels which hadn't even been written yet.
anybody else ever notice this?.
Proverbs 4:18
The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn that grows brighter until the full light of day.
The JW concept of getting "new light" is completely an organizational idea NOT a scriptural one.
If they applied the scripture accurately they would have to stick with a doctrine and then watch it get clearer and clearer (or brighter and brighter).
The scriptue uses the illustration of a dawn. When you are observing a sunrise objects do not turn in to the opposite of themselves as the sun rises. Its just the details of said objects that get clearer.
The fact that they hijack this simple, illustrated scripture does not inspire confidence in their ability to look in to deeper scriptures.
source.
pdf.
december 4, 2015. to all congregations in the united states branch territory .
It almost makes the "offer for the month" sound like a secondary thought.
Doesnt sound front and center anymore at all.
in the last 5/6 years, i've read many threads, some made me laugh , others sad such is life , but was a very pleasant experience.
so i though it was time to introduce myself a bit.. im portuguese although living in the u.k. atm.
im from a (now) jw family and i have 2 sisters.
Welcome kick50r,
Your story is so heartwarming and encouraging to read.
You said:
"They may find it difficult , those who have taken authority as the truth rather than the truth as the authority"
That is it exactly isnt it?
Really glad you are here!
the hague court has made this ruling ......... i searched, and no topic showed up, so hope this is not 'old news'.. if a cult loses its tax-free status, does anybody care?well, yeah!
*pumps fist in the air*.
it's about time.
i mean this with all due respect, i would like to hear from genuine people who think jw have it wrong and then what is the truth?.
im not talking about silly little quibbles here and there.. is jehovah real?
the the bible is word?
Amazing post COntrOl3r.
no, not because of the message of deluding yourself into seeing the hand of god working in mundane wt activities.
that is to be expected from this org.
what really bothered me was the quote in paragraph one.
How about that paragraph that talks about all the victories the Org has won since 2000?
I wonder if they can really back that statement up with proof?
from a story in the jewish press:.
quote: "the city of david excavations of the jerusalem hebrew university on mount ophel, at the foot of the southern wall of the temple mount compound, have yielded a sensational discovery: a seal (bulla) with the name of king hezekiah (727-698 bce).".
"king hezekiahs bulla was discovered in a garbage heap that was dumped during or shortly after hezekiahs time, from a royal building that was used to store food.
respectful_observer
Can't wait to see the excitement of the discovery over on jwtalk, followed quickly with the excuses and rationalization of presence of the Ankh symbol...best running theory?:
LOL, I bet NO ONE will be commenting on the commonalities between old king Hezekiah and C.T. Russells artwork.
i mean this with all due respect, i would like to hear from genuine people who think jw have it wrong and then what is the truth?.
im not talking about silly little quibbles here and there.. is jehovah real?
the the bible is word?
Formerbrother
Is Jehovah real? The the Bible is word? If not whats the alternative? I cant see how any thinking person can believe evolution.
No one can say for sure. That is the torture of it and the beauty of it. Its a peculiarly scary thought to believe one is on ones own for any length of time. Its much nicer to think that we know the answers to the big questions.
Its been said that religions purpose (one of them) is to explain the unexplainable (or scary).
Then couldnt that be said of any belief system, even a non religious one?
I think that the best gift we can give ourselves on learning that JWs have feet of clay is to not rush towards another belief system. No matter how authoritatively it is presented, no matter how "safe" it makes us feel.
There is truth in time. Time resolves a lot of the issues humans have argued over down through the ages. Every Witness should give themselves the gift of time. Time to listen inside the vacuum created upon learning Jehovahs Witnesses dont have the market cornered on "truth". No one does.
Question for you FormerBrother, do you see any way that some of the organic and chemical reactions that have occurred over time that are clumped together under the term "evolution" could have really happened - only they happened under the direction of a Creator?
This is not a question with a right/wrong answer, I am genuinely interested in hearing your thoughts.
I think the process of awakening to what we can believe/not believe is every bit as important as where we end up and should be treated with respect and care so I promise not to ridicule your answer or dismiss it. It is your answer and it is completely relevant to the process at hand.
