Phizzy

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Posts by Phizzy

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  6

  What "message" does the J.W Org. have to offer that will attract new members ?

  by Phizzy in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the message they have been pushing for 150 years or so is "the end is near !"..

  in the educated, civilised world, people think " yea ?

  maybe because of economic meltdown exacerbated by climate change, but not from some intervention by a non-existent god".. "would you like a free bible study ?

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  Phizzy

  The message they have been pushing for 150 years or so is "The End is near !".

  In the educated, civilised world, people think " Yea ? maybe because of economic meltdown exacerbated by climate change, but not from some intervention by a non-existent god".

  "Would you like a Free Bible Study ? ", " No thanks, that is just a book of fairy stories, myths, lies and legends. "

  That is the reaction of all young people in the educated free world, which excludes the USA of course, which is neither free nor educated, and is stuck in some 19th Century time warp, and is a virtual Theocracy.

  But elsewhere in the world, respect for the religion, and the Bible, is gone.

  In the third world, which has little education or Internet access, they have some success, but only usually with very poor people over 40.

  So as well as dwindling numbers, they have at present a Cash Flow problem, which can only get larger.

  The J.W Org. days are numbered, and they will soon be an even more insignificant little cult, that is withering away fast.
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  12

  3 Changes The Watchtower Made on Babylon The Great in the Last 6 Months

  by raymond frantz in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  https://youtu.be/vpws6ncqpla?si=dqnf7-hupfr4pdta.

  for decades, jehovah’s witnesses have been banging on about babylon the great—the so-called world empire of false religion—being on the brink of collapse.

  any day now, they assured us, churches would empty out, priests would be left twiddling their thumbs, and humanity would collectively bin organised religion.

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  Phizzy

  " Could this be a strategic move to appear more respectable and mainstream? "

  That is EXACTLY what they are doing now with EVERY move they make.

  In Rutherford's day and later, being "different" was an advantage, they could say "We are not like False Religion".

  Their having seen the growing success of the religions they label as "false", ( as if theirs is true LOL), has prompted them to run after and try to leap on the Bandwagon, far too late as usual of course.

  What the G.B and their advisors have not grasped is that in the Educated World that has good Internet access, ALL organised religion is withering away, people no longer see a need for it in their daily or weekly lives. But the very narrow, parochial view, from deep within the USA, that the G.B has ,prevents them from seeing that.

  They are trying to get a slice of a dried up, and getting ever smaller Cake, they will not succeed.
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  10

  First Time Ever..

  by blondie in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i received a phone call from a jw inviting me to the "special talk.

  " in 25 years out, never happened, don't know them, phone # nowhere near me and it was like she was reading from a script.

  i hung up... any one else?.

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  Phizzy

  Yes, "massaging" the numbers goes on, and it always did, so a comparison of two sets of fiddled numbers would still be revealing.

  But I learned only yesterday that both the Congregations I mentioned have had an influx, but it is strange, unless you know the Congregations well, the "new" members are all J.W''s from elsewhere, many who had moved away years ago, and moved back, especially once they had retired. One Elder was disfellowshipped a couple of decades ago for adultery with his now wife, he has two kids now too. Another "dodgy" couple have joined, he was never baptised, but got a young sister to live with him for a few years. He is now married to someone else.

  So, if I did get the figures, and they matched or even slightly exceeded those of two or so decades ago, it would really show a situation in real terms of " no growth".

  I think it is evident that no Real growth comes from the public in the western World at least, only from children growing up in it.
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  22

  Re: Russell's connection to Masons and Secret Societies

  by Enlightened1 in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  our history is not what we have been taught.

  the golden dawn history.

  we see that russell was involved with freemasonry and used freemasonry symbols on his earlier magazines.

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  Phizzy

  Russel's connection is extremely tenuous, by extension so is that of Rutherford and the org. since, until this day.

  There is no Record of Russell being a member of any Lodge, and their would be had he been a member.

  Chas. Russell's Uncle, IIRC, was a member, but so what ? so were many in those days, more than now.

  Russell no doubt thought it expedient to get the Masons to look favorably upon his movement, and maybe then buy some of his Publications, and so he used Masonic expressions, but we all do that in everyday speech, we speak of people being " on the Level" etc. etc.

  There is simply no irrefutable proof of any direct connection. And we rightly expect quite a bit of proof, had there been a connection.
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  124

  The point of existence and how it refutes the Trinity

  by slimboyfat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  rowan williams, the former archbishop of canterbury gave an interesting answer to the somewhat stark question, what’s the point of us existing?

  as a christian, my starting point is that we exist because the most fundamental form of activity, energy, call it what you like, that is there, is love.

  that is, it’s a willingness that the other should be.

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  Phizzy

  Spot on Kaleb !

  Just because someone believes something it does NOT make it True !

  Truth is only that which has Irrefutable Evidence , no religious claims have that quality of Evidence, and so cannot be True.
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  10

  First Time Ever..

  by blondie in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i received a phone call from a jw inviting me to the "special talk.

  " in 25 years out, never happened, don't know them, phone # nowhere near me and it was like she was reading from a script.

  i hung up... any one else?.

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  Phizzy

  " so D2D is still alive here ", possibly it was a special push at Memorial time, their attendance must be down for both the "Special" Talk and the Memorial. Compared to when I was "in" all those years ago.

  I would love to know the total attendance for the now two Congregations that have come from the one I was in.

  Back then, up until the early 2,000's the combined attendance IIRC was close to 220 for the one Congregation as it was, and just over that when it split in to two, by about 30 or so.

  Would anyone like to hazard a guess as to what it will be on the 12th ?

  I may just find out..... perhaps.
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  20

  1/2 of the Jehovah’s witnesses have gone

  by hoser in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  there are 1/2 of the jehovah’s witnesses that there were 30 years ago in my area.

  some have left but i think that many have died and none of their kids stayed being jehovah’s witnesses.

  7 congregations have been dissolved over the years.

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  Phizzy

  Vaccines are not harmful, they prevent disease, which PROLONGS the life, especially of the elderly.

  They will hang on for decades, but with dwindling numbers.
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  20

  1/2 of the Jehovah’s witnesses have gone

  by hoser in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  there are 1/2 of the jehovah’s witnesses that there were 30 years ago in my area.

  some have left but i think that many have died and none of their kids stayed being jehovah’s witnesses.

  7 congregations have been dissolved over the years.

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  Phizzy

  " The borg must really love those sprawling JW dynasties.". I am sure the Borg. does love them, as they give a vague, but actually baseless, kind of credibility to the "religion".

  Thinking about those dynasties that I know of personally, few of them now have younger ones, under 60 say, that fully believe, they may still attend meetings, even go out in F.S, but they are PIMO, I know that because several of these people have told me so !

  The dynasties do not have many years before they are no longer made up of J.W's.

  The Org. is withering away, the G.B do not care, it will "see them out", they will live their life of Luxury and ease, it will be the ones who come along in the next few years to fill the gaps as today's G.B dies off, who will oversee the final expiration of the Org.
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  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.

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  Phizzy

  " I assume that it just doesn't matter much in their lives anymore."

  That has been the case for many decades here in Europe, with the result that the offspring of those who were not indoctrinated, are unaffected by, and uninterested in organised religion.

  Organised religion is withering and dying here in the U.K and most of Europe, and the same will happen in the USA.
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  20

  1/2 of the Jehovah’s witnesses have gone

  by hoser in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  there are 1/2 of the jehovah’s witnesses that there were 30 years ago in my area.

  some have left but i think that many have died and none of their kids stayed being jehovah’s witnesses.

  7 congregations have been dissolved over the years.

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  Phizzy

  " The fact that 1/2 are still there is what amazes me! "

  I have felt that way for years, but particularly since the unbelievably ridiculous Overlapping Generation thing came in, how can anyone not see what nonsense that is ??

  And yet thinking back, a lot of J.W's over 50 years ago, when the Org. came out with something that deified logic, reason and fact etc. would simply say " Oh that's all too deep for me"., and carry on regardless.

  They trusted that the Org. must have it right.

  There "faith" is in a few old men who twist and misuse Scripture, a blind faith if ever there was one.

  With the bleeding of numbers it is plain the Org. has lost even that grip they once had, and of that "half" that remain, I would wager only a miniscule percentage are really of the old 100% believing kind that used to be a majority in the Org.

  Over 90% of those that remain I guess are there for other reasons than belief, the Org. is now more of a Social Club than a religion.