If you examine religious literature of the 19th century, before the JW's got rolling, you find the name "Jehovah" used quite commonly; in some circles, almost as liberally as in a Watchtower publication today. I think there are two reasons you don't see "Jehovah" used quite as much today: the first is scholarship, which has concluded that "Yahweh" is probably a more accurate form of the divine name. The second reason is the reproach that the JW's have brought on the name of Jehovah with their false teachings, false prophecies, scandals and general weirdness. I think churches have shied away from using "Jehovah" as often, lest they be mistaken for the cult that has so identified itself with that name.
NeonMadman
JoinedPosts by NeonMadman
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16
I thought that witnesses were the only religion that uses this name
by man in black ini was browsing some of the businesses and schools that already closed since the big blizzard is going to hit tomorrow.. one thing caught my eye : .
jehovah lutheran school.
chicago.
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Smurf Rumors - 2 Questions
by A question inas the board no doubt knows, there was some sort of rumor in the early 1980s going around amongst the witnesses that a smurf doll came to life in the kingdom hall, or that smurfs were demonic.. 2 questions:.
1. do any not remember any such rumors though they were witnesses at the time?.
2. of those who do, did all the witnesses believe them, or otherwise, what proportion rejected the rumor as nonsense?.
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NeonMadman
BTW, I also remember the Smurfs being mentioned on a circuit assembly part as NOT being demonic, in connection with the idea that JW's should not spread unfounded rumors. The real basis of the part was the alleged subliminal pictures that had been appearing in the WT publications. In admonishing the brothers not to pass on rumors about the subliminal images, they gave the Smurfs a pass.
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Smurf Rumors - 2 Questions
by A question inas the board no doubt knows, there was some sort of rumor in the early 1980s going around amongst the witnesses that a smurf doll came to life in the kingdom hall, or that smurfs were demonic.. 2 questions:.
1. do any not remember any such rumors though they were witnesses at the time?.
2. of those who do, did all the witnesses believe them, or otherwise, what proportion rejected the rumor as nonsense?.
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NeonMadman
I heard all the rumors about Smurfs back then, and I thought they were idiotic, especially in light of all the other "magic" stories that JW's have no problem with enjoying as entertainment. I never knew any Witnesses who forbade their kids to watch The Wizard of Oz, despite the presence of evil witches. And I never knew any Witnesses who had a problem with taking their kids to the Magic Kingdom of Disney World. But Smurfs, for some reason were seen as evil. I would never have let me bother it at all, except that my (now ex-)wife was absolutely fanatical about any hint involving demons, so she made our daughter throw away everything in the house that had a Smurf on it, including a brand-new drum set that her uncle had given her. I wasn't sorry to see the drum set go, but it wasn't because of the Smurfs. It just shows the way that some Witnesses were back then (and, from what I gather, they are even more dumbed-down and fanatical now).
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Anyone from the Hudson Valley/Mid- Hudson valley (NY) Area?
by Invetigator74 inanyone from the hudson/ mid-hudson valley (ny) area?
this area is probably considered wt country (wallkill, patterson and probably monroe) lol..
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NeonMadman
I live in northern New Jersey and am up that way fairly often, since I'm a salesman and that part of NY state is part of my territory.
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NeonMadman
She'll probably sue the mall.
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Celebrating birthday: ground for disfellowshipping?
by behemot ina friend of mine (inactive) is being threatened with a judicial committee because he took his children to schoolmates' birthdays and because he celebrated his wife's birthday.. do you know if celebrating birthday is sufficient ground for setting a judicial committee?.
the ks2010 does not mention birthdays specifically, and i feel like it would be quite a stretch to make it fall under the "apostasy" category (subcategory "celebrating false religion holidays" or "idolatry").. what do you think?.
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NeonMadman
I think that a judicial committee can be convened and a person disfellowshipped for anything that 3 elders can agree that those actions should be taken for.
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Do you still know your bible?
by Newborn ini used to pioneer and all that and new the bible well and could cite scriptures backwards and forwards...(i regret i didn't have any other skills to brag abt).
today i hardly recall any scriptures...(except for matt 24:14 that may never go away though ).
since i left i haven't opened a bible ones.
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NeonMadman
Most JW's don't really know their Bibles. What they know is a list of proof texts for a variety of doctrines, many taken out of context. Ask them to defend their beliefs by a thorough exegesis of a passage of text, and they will come up scratching their heads.
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4/15/11 Watchtower--quote on ministerial servants
by sd-7 inso did anyone notice the statement on page 11, paragraph 11?
"if a brother has been baptized at least one year and to a reasonable degree meets the scriptural qualifications fo rministerial servants outlined at 1 timothy 3:8-13, he can be recommended for appointment.
" i thought paul specifically warned against appointing a "newly converted man"?
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NeonMadman
I seem to remember that it was a minimum of a year many years ago when I became a JW. They may have done away with the specific requirement at some point, but it was always intended as a minimum time to become a MS, not the norm. Not many people became MS's after only a year of baptism, but it was possible for an exceptional person. Before a year, it was out of the question, no matter how good you were. I agree that it is a fairly short time, but given that MS's are basically gophers in the JW organization and not really men with spiritual responsibilities, as deacons in a Protestant church would be, I guess it makes little difference.
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Do Ex-JWs have reason to be disgruntled?
by sabastious ineverytime i have ever told an active jw about this forum and described it's designation they all, in essence, say the same thing.. they say that we are nitpickers, that we are all just rubbed the wrong way and can't get out of the state of disgruntlement that we have allowed ourselves to enter.
some throw in supernatural elements some just stick to human imperfection and call it murmurings.. these kind of assertions highly imply that our anger is exaggerated or misguided; that we don't have all facts and are drawing highly speculative conclusions.. as participants on this forum how do you refute such a claim?.
my first thought would be to point out that "murmurings" is what created the watchtower to start with.
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NeonMadman
"Maybe I am disgruntled. Maybe I have a bad attitude. Maybe I'm also old, fat and ugly. None of that has anything to do with whether what I am telling you about your organization is true or not. It's just a form of well-poisoning, in which you believe that you can dismiss anything that I say based on my personal characteristics rather than on the merits of my argument. The question is whether you are a lover of truth. If what I say is true, it doesn't matter what sort of person I am - you should believe the truth that I am telling you. Do you want to know what the truth really is or would you rather simply swallow whole whatever the organization tells you?"
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Simplified Watchtower in English?
by munchausen inlast wed night they read an announcement that there would be an english edition of the watchtower in simplified english.
has there been a discussion on this, or has this letter been read elsewhere than the us?
i would never have guessed that the wt could be 'dumbed down' any more than it is already.
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NeonMadman
I thought the publications had always been in simplified English.