Neutrality is a mythical concept used in an attempt to avoid conflict. Those who stay out of a conflict are basically saying,"I support whomever wins."
truth_b_known
JoinedPosts by truth_b_known
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21
Jehovah's Witness bogus NEUTRALITY claims during war examined
by Terry inthis detailed article presents a large number of give and take propositions, suppositions and conjectures.. it challenges ray franz chapter in crises of conscience on jw policy for mexico/malawi, et al.. http://settingtherecordstraight.wordpress.com/category/ray-franzs-conscience-not-really-in-crisis/.
the important fact missing from the consideration and analysis is that the watchtower society privately advised draft age brothers who were facing draft problems.
i was personally taken aside, for example, by the congregation overseer and his assistant to the kingdom hall library.
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untitled
by myusername inthis is just my personal opinion and maybe there's a grain of truth in it.
it's my opinion that many ex-jws focus too much on how corrupt the religion is.
it is corrup but there are always going to be organizations like that.
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truth_b_known
My father became a Witness in his late 20's and my mother is a born. As such, I was raised in the religion along with my siblings. I take no great joy in pointing out the flaws of the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses or any other religion. I am pretty much an athiest, now, but I have no problem with people being part of a religion.
My issue is with the fact that there is no respectible way out of the religion. You are either in and in all the way or you are out. If you are out that means all who are in are to shun you.
I realize if you are aware of the shunning aspect of the religion prior to joining that it's on you. However, how does a born-in child whose parents force them into dedication/baptism deal with this? I was a high school sophomore when my father told our congregation presiding overseer that I wanted to get baptised. What was I supposed to say when the presiding overseer asked me if that were true?
I've been inactive for about 6 years and out for the last 3 to 4 years. My parents and sister shun me. If I tell them my reasonning behind why I chose to opt out I will be labelled as an apostate and they will refuse to speak to me.
Why did I join? The word I would best use to answer that question would be "duress". The minute I graguated from high school I would have been kicked to the streets by my parents if I had not joined as a child.
If would be different if the "Truth" were the truth and I just wanted to follow my sinful heart and to hell with the consequences. The point is, it's not "the Truth" or even the truth. I've lost my relationship with my parents and sister because of it.
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How many JWs does it take...
by TheWanderer in...to change a light bulb?
actually.... ...i have no idea.
what's your best punchline for it?.
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truth_b_known
None. They'll all wait in the dark for Watch Tower to screw in their new light.
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Anointed Asinine
by cptkirk inso what was the point of the anointed again?
the gb does not keep track of them (their opinions), they have no extra knowledge (in many cases they have less knowledge, not to mention sanity), they serve no extra role..... how many times are the flock told about "new light"?
proper food at the proper time....if being anointed serves absolutely 0 immediate purposes...what was the point of it?
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truth_b_known
For the past 30+ years there has been a secret war by the Christian Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses and the WTB&TS against those Witnesses who profess to be of the annointed. There are Circuit Overseers who have made it a hobby to travel around, target annointed, and work to get them disfellowshipped.
The idea is promoted that if someone was truly of the annointed the would be at Bethel and in charge of something. The reason for promoting this idea is that it helps validate attacks against those who profess to be of the annointed. Elders in prestigious positions who are not of the annointed often feel their position is threatened by those who are.
The WTB&TS turns a blind eye to it all because they have been systematically engineer things to move themselves in the position of total authority on earth. The Governing Body is becoming the Popes of Brooklyn and headquarters in New York is their Vatican. If someone asks the question, "Who is the faithful and discreet slave" be very careful how you answer.
At my father professes to be of the annointed. He was brought before a judicial committee of 3 elders, all of the "Other Sheep". They asked him who he believed the faithful and discreet slave was. He answered, "Those annointed who are still living on earth". They asked him if he thought he was part of the faithful and discreet slave. He answered, "Yes".
He was disfellowshipped with no reason given. He was reinstated about a year later, but then we had a new District Overseer come through who told the congregation elders that he was not to be called on to answer or used in anyway. That lasted until we got a new District Overseer.
The bottomline is the same as it is with anything else. A minority will always play second fiddle to the majority. You have a group of men who feel they have godlike powers inside the Kingdom Hall and want no one or nothing to interfere with it. This is because the moment they walk outside the Kingdom Hall they turn back into window washers and toilet scrubbers.
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Armageddon Part II
by LostGeneration inone of the things that bothered me as a jw growing up was the idea that there would be a second armageddon.
they don't phrase it that way, but what else could it be when you read stuff like this from the 3/15 wt.. "obedient humans will gradually be set free from enslavement to corruption.
if they remain faithful to jehovah throughout the millennium and during the final test that will come at the end of it, their names will be permanently written in the scroll of life.
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truth_b_known
"Paradise" as defined by Jehovah's Witnesses is: Preaching to people for 1,000 years.
Yes! After you give up all personal pursuits or any joy in this "old system of things" for a life of preaching an unpopular message to your neighbors you are rewarded by being spared at Armageddon. In addition to being spared, you get to preach that same message, but for an additional 1,000 years.
There will be no time for personal pursuits. You will have even less personal freedom as you won't even get to decide were you will live while conducting this 1,000 year preaching work. When you are not preaching you will be working tirelessly with stoneage technology to provide food and shelter for yourself.
Why waste your life pursuing anything in this temporary life and run the danger of losing out on this grand future that awaits us?
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He's the Reason for the Seasoning
by OnTheWayOut inout of respect to those that don't appreciate secular christmas or festivus or [logical conjecture based on overwhelming observable evidence] but still keep the traditions of the religious holidays (any of them- christmas, hanukkah, any of them), i have not posted this until the religious part of those festivities have largely passed.
in no offensive way whatsoever, i wish each one of you the best in whatever you celebrate: merry christmas, happy hanukkah, festive festivus, joyous kwanzaa, or (i suppose trying to put a similar muslim holiday in would be offensives so...) have a safe islamic pilgrimage.
and of course, our asian friends who don't celebrate secular christmas are also wished well this season.
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truth_b_known
This is a most excellent post.
I was pleasantly surprised to see a favorite internet personality of mine post a photo of her "Yule Tree." Her Yule Tree had a viking helmet on the top instead of an angel or a star. I had to give her a happy "Blessed Yule" and a hearty "Hail Odin Allfather".
This year was the first year I went all out and truly celebrated Christmas. I did have fun with it, though. If someone said, "Merry Christmas" to me I would return the greating with, "Merry Christmas and Blessed Yule to you." I even added a "Hail Thor!" to a few greeting if I was particularly close to that person.
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What "Unwritten Rules" Did Your Congregation Have?
by minimus ini knew of a hall that allowed only white shirted speakers on the platform for sunday public talks!
when a visiting speaker did not wear the official white shirt he was either told that he couldn't give the talk or he could change shirts,as the hall kept a variety of sizes, just in case of an emergency!!!
i don't make this up.
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truth_b_known
As a Ministerial Servant I went from being the Sound Servant, to the Magazine Servant, to the Literature Servant. I got called into the backroom once by the elders because, as the Literature Servant, I should be placing more books than magazines. I was commended on all other areas of field service.
So, I guess the Sound Servant has to answer the most at the meetings. The Magazine Servant has to place the most magazines. The Accounts Servant has to donate the most money. The Territory Servant has to work the most terroritories.
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What were the "anointed" doing from John to Russell?
by Ding inin watchtower teaching, what were the "anointed remnant" doing between the death of the apostle john and the coming of pastor russell?.
during all those centuries, there was no visible organization publishing watchtower literature so as to enable people to understand the bible.
there was no organized worldwide door-to-door preaching work being done (who assigned territories and kept track of time records, for example?).
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truth_b_known
This question is a very good one, but it is too dangerous for Jehovah's Witnesses to answer. The Watch Tower tells people that Charles Taze Russell was the first true christian since the first century congregations. This implies that for some 1,800 years there were no true christians acceptable to Jehovah.
To say that there were christians acceptable to Jehovah between these two time periods is to imply that Jehovah found non-Witnesses acceptable. This would further imply that you could be acceptable to Jehovah without being one of Jehovah's Witnesses or being part of an earthly organization. So, this question presents a catch-22 scenario.
The Watch Tower Society usually sees such questions as a "trap" to be avoided because, what ever the answer is, it will expose their false teachings. So, rather than answer it, they will make a statement like: "Isn't more important to considered what we need to do now to gain salvation?" It's a smoke-and-mirrors approach to the bait-and-switch.
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Open Letter To The Jehovah's Witnesses
by Bangalore inopen letter to the jehovah's witnesses.. http://coldfusion-guy.blogspot.com/2011/12/open-letter-to-jehovahs-witnesses.html.
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bangalore.
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truth_b_known
I think most people are irritated by Jehovah's Witnesses knocking on their door on any given morning. The fact that it is Christmas day would only intensify negative feelings. This is turn makes the practice a "bad witness".
I have gone out in the door-to-door ministry on Thanksgiving and Christmas mornings. I stopped before I stopped being a Witness. I just felt it unloving and counter-productive.
I know the party line is,"The end is near. Would you refuse to knock on your neighbor's door to tell them their house is on fire simply because you didn't want to interrupt their pagan holidays?" Well, according to the Watch Tower, their house has been on fire since 1914. The sense of urgency died out a long time ago.
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Cigars And Jehovahs Witnesses
by Bangalore incigars and jehovah's witnesses.. http://drschiffman.wordpress.com/2011/12/23/cigars-and-jehovahs-witnesses/.
bangalore.
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truth_b_known
Great post and link. I love the comment left on that website from the former JW. He brings up a point that I have said for some time now, which is that the Watch Tower reasoning on smoking applies to food and obesity.
Why is it a disfellowshipping offense to defile one's flesh with tobacco, but it is ok to defile the flesh with cheeseburgers?