3rdgen

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Posts by 3rdgen

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  22

  BABYLON THE GREAT IS NOT FALLING ANYMORE? (NEW LIGHT FROM THE ANNUAL MEETING)

  by raymond frantz in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  https://youtu.be/rsbfa_7lqv4?si=muuxmgtll1n1ifad.

  the watchtower’s babylon the great: a shrinking reality?.

  so this latest annual meeting introduced a new idea about babylon the great, and here is the part from geoffrey jackson's talk we real need to dig in and consider it's ramifications..... so you’ve got to hand it to them; they know how to keep things interesting with their ever-evolving interpretations and, of course, those classic "adjustments" in understanding.

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  3rdgen

  When i read The op I had some thoughts. According to Watchtower, at least until I left:

  #1 Babylon the Great is "The WORLD Empire of False Religion". Of course this would include Judaism, Hinduism and the rest of the Asian religions, Islam, And EVERY religion in the entire world, Christian or otherwise. EVERY religious belief OTHER than WATCHTOWER.

  # 2 Babylon the Great FELL in 1919. The belief was regardless of weather or not the numbers grew or diminished, It fell because the BELIEFS held by the various religions NO LONGER HAD ANY HOLD on JEHOVAH'S PEOPLE. In that sense alone they ALL fell.

  The "RIVERS DRYING UP", was the sign that B.theG. would soon be DESTROYED .

  Falling was the past, DESTROYED was in the FUTURE.

  WT loved to say that religions are drying up because people aren't as zealous as they were in the past. Remember, this is primarily a US religion. They disregarded their OWN interpretation of B. the G. by ignoring the zeal of Islamists and other non-Christian religions. They simply wanted to point only to things that could indicate that the GT and the Destruction would be SOON.

  Of course, this whole post is how WT uses Semantics. WT splits hairs in order to wiggle out of their many false predictions and interpretations. ONLY when the passage of time reveals their beliefs to be false, do they get "New Light".

  Apparently, fewer JWs, especially the under 50s, pay attention to details given by WT. After all, most who did...already left.
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  60

  1/25 WT: Oral and Anal sex are a go - if she's ok with it

  by neat blue dog in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  he will not pressure her to engage in sexual acts that make her feel uncomfortable, that are demeaning, or that bother her conscience..... the bible does not provide details as to what sexual practices between a husband and a wife should be considered clean or unclean.

  a christian couple must make decisions that reflect their resolve to honor jehovah, to please each other, and to maintain a clean conscience.

  generally speaking, a couple would not discuss with others this intimate aspect of their marriage..

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  3rdgen

  Dagney, Preach, Sister, Preach!

  If only I would have realized every word you said as soon as you did.
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  35

  Serious sinner?

  by Gorb in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  with the statement in the study watchtower this sunday, that stop serving jehovah is a serious sin, the following:.

  - can i conclude now, that we, (i, wife and 2 children), since 2008 pomo and no longer active in any religious activity, are serious sinners for jehovahs witnesses?.

  writing this in a watchtower, a statement like that, could have big implications.. it makes me so sad.

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  3rdgen

  Count hubby and me in as being shunned by family and active JWs simply for fading. I believe this is because he had been an elder. He and I were expected to be setting the EXAMPLE as JWs and we did when we were in.

  If we we missed a meeting it was noticed. If we missed ALL the meetings... well that was completely unacceptable in their world. Just by being absent we were setting an example in their minds. (a BAD one) They couldn't let us "Get away with it". That is, without it costing us something.

  So we are shunned and I'll admit it hurt me but now that it has been going on for over a decade, I no longer miss those people and their conditional, so called, love.
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  19

  The World Today

  by peacefulpete in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've been meaning to share some recent experiences that defy the usual tropes about the 'world gone to hell' or 'people now days".. as some of you may remember i was seriously ill for a while and had to close my business and shop.

  now, as it seems i have beaten it, i put up a sign again advertising that in a limited way i'm back.. what amazes me is how many times over the past 2 years customers and even competition have written and called to express their concern and best wishes.

  just last week i had a personal visit of someone who i thought of as a rival, come in and shake my hand sincerely happy to see me up and around.

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  3rdgen

  Phizzy, You have my sincerest condolences. To be ill is bad enough but to experience a loss of someone you love dearly in addition can be devastating.

  When you get particularly sad please remember how much you are appreciated on this board and by those who know you personally. People really do want to help but often don't know how. Don't be afraid to ask your friends and family for what you need- even if it is just a bowl of soup or a hug.

  (((Phizzy)))))
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  73

  JWN, 23 years posting Blondie

  by blondie in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  can i call you friends, i think so after 23 years posting here.

  i am dismayed how jwn is being "dominated" or taken over by a few posters, peppering the comments.

  in the past, the admin did not approve of this and did remove some posters from jwn.

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  3rdgen

  @ Free TheMasons:

  Did you ever start a Bible study with someone you found in "field service" when you were a JW? I honestly want to know, because if you did you must have had a better approach than you do on this board.

  If not, we all know why.
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  73

  JWN, 23 years posting Blondie

  by blondie in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  can i call you friends, i think so after 23 years posting here.

  i am dismayed how jwn is being "dominated" or taken over by a few posters, peppering the comments.

  in the past, the admin did not approve of this and did remove some posters from jwn.

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  3rdgen

  Blondie, You took the words right out of my mouth, well, keyboard.

  These few posters should PM each other and leave the rest of us alone. It is negatively impacting JWN.

  If this board was like it is now when I stumbled across it 12 years ago I might still be an inactive JW never learning TTATT. Simply withdrawing from Watchtower is not enough to rid ourselves of the Fear Obligation and Guilt associated with it.

  It is a shame to see some have left one cult simply to join another, be it religious or Political.
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  53

  WTS 2024 Annual Business Meeting ...

  by careful in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  ... is just three weeks from this saturday.

  the org has been tight-lipped, really, successfully secret about advance info on these in recent years,.

  now that these relatively recent changes on dress and grooming, reporting fs time, judicial matters, etc.

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  3rdgen

  Kerry King,

  Just to be clear, my aunt never was asked to write for WTS nor were most of the partakers. They were Occasionally Consulted about their opinions is all. A few wrote their life stories but that's about it.

  Also, I don't know how many partakers were asked for their opinions. Were ALL of them asked or was it just the ones who partook BEFORE 1935? My guess it was only the pre 1935 ones. Since the belief was that the number144,000 was "sealed" by 1935.
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  53

  WTS 2024 Annual Business Meeting ...

  by careful in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  ... is just three weeks from this saturday.

  the org has been tight-lipped, really, successfully secret about advance info on these in recent years,.

  now that these relatively recent changes on dress and grooming, reporting fs time, judicial matters, etc.

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  3rdgen

  No zombie said "the Governing Body does not care for the thoughts and feelings of the rank and file anymore."

  Vidiot replied, "They did before?"

  Believe it or not, there was a time when the "remnant" were asked to weigh in on Bible interpretation and possibly other matters as well. Admittedly, at that time they wouldn't be considered rank and file though.
  

  I know this because my father's older sister and I were close. She was baptized in the mid 1920s as a "Bible Student" and till her death at 100 years old she always felt she had a "heavenly calling". This woman didn't just "Talk the Talk" she really "Walked the Walk", pioneered most of her life, help start at least 2 new congregations, and even arranged for an assembly hall to be built in her town.

  Throughout her JW life WTS wrote her from time to time asking her interpretation of a scripture or a belief. HOWEVER it should be noted that this was during the time that the "remnant" numbers were decreasing and they were ALL considered part of the "Faithful and Discrete Slave". She mentioned this to me around 1970ish before the shift to the 'Elder arrangement".

  At least in bygone days some of the beliefs were arrived at by consensus.
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  135

  Rumour 144,000 literal number teaching to be abandoned at Annual Meeting

  by slimboyfat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  say it ain’t so!

  .

  in one sense it’s a no brainer because the figures just don’t add up any more.. in another (negative) sense it’s a no brainer because it’s been fundamental to jws since year dot and might undermine the whole thing?

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  3rdgen

  blondiean hour ago

  "This is a discussion that seems to be caught in a time loop. Me, I'm just interested in the WTS teaching changes on this topic if any and how current jws will react if it is changed."

  I couldn't agree MORE! More and more topics are being derailed by a couple of Evangelists arguing over their personal religious beliefs (never taught by JWs.) IMHO these debates are irritating when they are off topic. Can't you guys start your own topics and leave the others alone? Or better yet, have those discussions privately?
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  21

  Do you recognize this?

  by Gorb in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  thinking sometimes about my youth days and the stories my grandfather told me about our jw congregation.

  do you recognize that your congregation was full of somehowe strange folks, very low educated, poor and simple?.

  the po was an elder with some distance, with some personality acting intelligent and following the rules strict.. there was always a kind of scandal.

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  3rdgen

  In the 1950s I was born and spent the first 7 years in the Monterey Peninsula. My overseer father and pioneer mother had previously helped form the congregation. They brought me home from the hospital to live in the apartment above the Kingdom Hall.

  Our congregation had a doctor, a female college professor, a building contractor who handcrafted violins and incredible Swedish furniture, a radio actress, a retired actual cowboy, a chiropractor, and an entrepreneur to name the ones I remember. I was the only child in the hall until I was six! Most of the ones I mentioned before were childless or their children were already grown. All were hard working or retired and lived comfortably or better.

  It was a different religion then, much worse for children with the weekly talks stressing corporal punishment and vivifying Dr Spock. Yet, it was better for the adults in that they could freely speculate and even debate certain aspects of "The Truth". And they DID in my presence.

  Most of the people were intelligent or gifted or both. They simply were disgusted with the clergy of Christendom and became JWs because they were "not a religion" and neutral to politics.

  Of course the 1960s brought huge changes to society in general but the borg exploded with growth -especially in the mid 60's to mid1970s. Many joined who were poor or uneducated looking for a way out of their miserable life or disgusted with the Vietnam War. A message of paradise coming in just a few years or even Months was too good to resist. Gradually, the free thinkers were silenced or died. The converts tended to "serve for the reward" and the rest is more history.

  i