Sea Breeze

Joined

• started 264 topics
• posted 3,350 times   see topics posted on
• send a message

Posts by Sea Breeze

• 
  5

  Ebion

  by peacefulpete in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  early christianity was every bit, if not more, diverse than christianity today.

  one of the very early sects was named the ebionites.

  we have unfortunately nothing left of their own writings apart from a few quotes from what epiphanius believed was their recension of matthew.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Sea Breeze

  Early Christianity was every bit, if not more, plagued by heretics as it is today. Fortunately, we have thosands pages of wrtings from the foremost Christian leaders (then and now) naming who they are, how they got started, and the specific teachings that made them abberant.

  
  
• 
  22

  What is the current Watchtower "rent charge per publisher" for Kingdom Halls in the USA???

  by Balaamsass2 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i was following a few threads in reddit from current pimo jws complaining about local announcements regarding halls being short on their per publisher "rent payments".

  third gen and i have been out pomo for a while...so how much is this charge now?

  could this be part of the recent push to get people to "come back" or get re-instated...if it even is online and 15 minutes of service per month?

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Sea Breeze

  "Pay us money every month and we will let your old "friends" and family talk to you again !"

  Cults sell you things you already have, but never noticed.
• 
  47

  What does God eat ?

  by stan livedeath in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  beans ?

  ( human beans ).

  to those of you that believe in god: do you all believe the same thing ?.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Sea Breeze

  Fish
• 
  19

  The Share of Religious Americans will continue to decline- New York Times. Why? New Pew Study

  by Balaamsass2 in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  locally, in northern california i have seen/heard a drop in jw and mainstream church attendance especially in person attendance.

  (exception: a new creepy local new-age charismatic/pentecostal group: "bethel church" 11,000 and growing mega church(kundalini yoga/sex combined with prosperity gospel, trumpism, guns, rock music, dancing, glitter, speaking in tongues, and faith healing).. for me this paragraph sums it up regarding jehovah's witnesses: " ...smith described organized religion to me as having become a “polluted” idea in the american mainstream, because of the publicity around sex abuse scandals and financial malfeasance in many different faiths in the ’80s and ’90s as millennials came of age.

  “the scandals violated most of the virtues believed to make religion good,” smith wrote.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Sea Breeze

  Looks like the Spaghetti monster church has been declinng too.

  On July 24, 2013, CNS News reported: "Atheism is in decline worldwide, with the number of atheists falling from 4.5% of the world’s population in 1970 to 2.0% in 2010 and projected to drop to 1.8% by 2020, according to a new report by the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, Mass.

  On September 27, 2014 in a blog post entitled The Atheist Disillusionment, the prominent atheist PZ Myers declared:

  “

  "I will make a prediction, right here and now.... The number of people identifying as atheists will stagnate or even shrink, because organized atheism is happily in the process of destroying itself with regressive social attitudes, scandals, and their bizarre focus on irrelevant metaphysical differences that don’t help people...Unless we change. I don’t know that we can". Atheists as a percentage of the world's population have declined since 1970 and global atheism is expected to face long term decline. On March 15, 2024, Frontier Partners International reported concerning global atheism: "Simultaneously, atheism, which once saw a peak around 1970 with 165 million adherents, is on the decline. The current growth trend for atheism is -0.12 percent, with their number falling from 147 million in 2020 to 146 million in 2024.
• 
  10

  The Apostles Creed vs. Watchtower

  by Sea Breeze in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the apostles creed could be recited in less than a minute in latin.

  it was like an ancient youtube video clip: christianity in less than a minute.

  it is very ancient, reaching back to the 200's.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Sea Breeze

  @ SBF

  I have never heard a Jehovah's Witness say the words: "I believe in Jesus our Lord", except when challenged by Christians they are encountering.

  When JW's talk among themselves, it's all Jehovah, Jehovah, Jehovah, Jehovah.

  "He descended into hell".

  JW's would NEVER say this. His tomb was above ground. There was nothing to descend into according to WT indoctrinated JW's.

  I couldn't help but notice how you forgot the most important point that applies to us:

  10. the forgiveness of sins,

  Wt. teaches that since 1935 new believers are not justified (no forgiveness of sins).

  JW's believe in working for their Salvation and reject the New Covenant for the forgiveness of sins, like you.

  I have asked you many times to justify your personal rejection of the new covenant "for the forgiveness of sins" Jesus offered in Mt. 26: 27-28. But you refuse to defend your position. Why?

  Why not just come out and say that you believe in another way of Salvation other than the new covenant, the one that carries the blood value of God's only-begotten?

  Isn't that an accurate evualation of your position?
• 
  26

  What are some of the more exceptional self-authenticating claims made by Jehovah’s Witnesses?

  by Vanderhoven7 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  let's start the ball rolling with two connected claims.. the religion of jehovah’s witnesses is the one true religion.

  all other religions are satanic, including all the churches of christendom..

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Sea Breeze

  JW's are the only church who claim they were specifically named in scripture: THE Faithful and Discreet Salve.
  
  
  
• 
  4

  JWs and the Lord's Prayer

  by punkofnice in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  how often do you hear the lord's prayer at the meetings or in jw homes?.

  i don't know if they revised their stance with the new leaders in america, but i don't recall it having much weight when i were a wee'un.. i think the nwt said, 'pray then, this way....'.

  so, jesus gave instructions on how to pray, as in actual words to say.......so the jws don't?

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Sea Breeze

  They stop when they get to the part that says "let your kingdom come". Then they start berating Christians for not recognizing the Watchtower as the physical manifestation of the kingdom of God on earth.

  JW's are apalled that others do not recognize the "clear evidence" that Jesus has appointed them as rulers over all the earth in his stead. Their message is: now you have to do business with us, not Jesus if you want life..... just exactly as Jesus predicted.

  Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray. - Mark 13: 6
• 
  10

  The Apostles Creed vs. Watchtower

  by Sea Breeze in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the apostles creed could be recited in less than a minute in latin.

  it was like an ancient youtube video clip: christianity in less than a minute.

  it is very ancient, reaching back to the 200's.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Sea Breeze

  The Apostles Creed could be recited in less than a minute in Latin. It was like an ancient YouTube video clip: Christianity in less than a minute. It is very ancient, reaching back to the 200's. But, Watchtower would have a problem with most of it.

  1. I believe in God the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.

  Right off the bat, there is a problem. Wt would never use the phrase God the father

  2. I believe in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord.

  Wt. is uneasy about referring to Jesus as "our Lord".

  3. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary.

  This one OK

  4. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.

  Wt doesn't like the word "crucified" or cross

  5. He descended into hell. On the third day he rose again.

  Wt. would never accept that Jesus went to hell after he died.

  6. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.

  Wt believes only a spirit creature who looks like Jesus went to heaven - Michael the Archangel

  7. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.

  Wt. teaches that the dead atone for themselves and will not be judged for their sins.

  8. I believe in the Holy Spirit,

  Wt. believes the Holy Spirit is like electricity

  9. the holy catholic (universal) Church, the communion of saints,

  Wt. would never accept the concept of a universal body of believers known only to Christ.

  10. the forgiveness of sins,

  Wt. teaches that since 1935 new believers are not justified (forgiveness of sins)

  11. the resurrection of the body,

  Wt. teaches that people are not resurrected in their body, but are recreated as spirits.

  12. and the life everlasting.

  Wt teaches "life everlasting" is postponed until after you have been good for 1000 years if you wre lucky enough to survive Armageddon.

  Amen.

  Wt is at odds with the Apostles Creed, which was a pity statement of faith regarding what it meant to be a Christian.
• 
  21

  Examples of Watchtower flawed interpretation of Bible passages?

  by Vanderhoven7 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  asking jehovah’s witnesses to interpret specific passages is a great way to demonstrate their interpretive abuse.

  got any clear examples?.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Sea Breeze

  Could the "slave" be illustrative of a group? Perhaps, but that does not mean it's them.

  @Journeyman

  In the King James Version, which is what Witchtower used for over 75 years, the indefinte article was used - "Who really is a faithful and wise servant"?

  It was a general rhetorical question. To try and make it sound specific, the WT zeroed in on the next sentence what contained the phrase "that servant". Then, they would pull out some mumbo jumbo about how the facts show that Charles Rusell is "THAT SERVANT". (repeat over and over)

  Later when they printed their own bible, and after Rusell died, they added the definite article "the" to the question to make it appear specific.
  
  "Who really is the faithful and discrete slave". They then pull the same gimmick and say something like all available evidence points the the governing body of JW's as the composite faithful and discreed slave , yada, yada, yada.
  
  Lots of uneducated, unsaved people fall for these word scams.

  A simple question meant for self introspection for believers, was turned into a wild goose chase after a false christ. People are very easily deceived.
  
  "It is easier to fool someone than to convince someone they have been fooled" - Mark Twain
• 
  1

  Why Did God Become Man?

  by Sea Breeze in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gy2ptaan9pc&ab_channel=theslothmonkey.

  .

  do you think the explanation by paul harvey is plausible?.

  1. 
• 

  Sea Breeze

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gY2pTAAn9pc&ab_channel=theslothmonkey

  Do you think the explanation by Paul Harvey is plausible?