regarding the unique preaching of the kingdom by wt (new creation, heavenly kings, priests and judges, restoration of paradise on earth etc.).
the scriptures seem to back up wts interpretation.
so, although there are a million reasons to become inactive, how can our conscience allow us not to become active in the work described at matt.
Colossians 1:13 - He rescued us from the authority of the darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son.
Are you referring to preaching about a kingdom that was established in 1914 and will be ruled mostly by white 21st century American men from heaven over the earth?
It seems that Paul believed that the kingdom was already present in his time. Notice "transferred" is in the past tense.
My conscience wouldn't allow me to preach wt doctrine.
i came across this blog - it is one of the evilest things i've ever read.. http://dismythed.blogspot.com/2016/02/flip-side-news-opposers-want-ex.html.
you might not want to click on it because a) you'll give it more traffic and b) it will make you mad.
in summary it states that since only 11-17% of molesters are repeat offenders, witnesses guilty of abuse should be dealt with inside the congregation as long as they confess.
Thanks LostGeneration. It serves as an example of how people can justify action (or non-action) in their minds cognitively.
I also wanted to add that it is understandable why it's sometimes not reported, but not wanting 'to cause distress to the abuser's family' sounds like a terrible reason to me.
i came across this blog - it is one of the evilest things i've ever read.. http://dismythed.blogspot.com/2016/02/flip-side-news-opposers-want-ex.html.
you might not want to click on it because a) you'll give it more traffic and b) it will make you mad.
in summary it states that since only 11-17% of molesters are repeat offenders, witnesses guilty of abuse should be dealt with inside the congregation as long as they confess.
I came across this blog - it is one of the evilest things I've ever read.
http://dismythed.blogspot.com/2016/02/flip-side-news-opposers-want-ex.html
You might not want to click on it because A) you'll give it more traffic and B) it will make you mad. In summary it states that since only 11-17% of molesters are repeat offenders, witnesses guilty of abuse should be dealt with inside the congregation as long as they confess. (The report the writer references actually states it's a 35% repeat rate within 15 years). The writer also claims to be a victim of sexual abuse by someone he knows who has never been reported to authorities - AND THE WRITER LIKES IT THAT WAY - because it would 'cause distress to the abuser's family.'
follow case it may change judicial comittees
do you think it is easier for an elder to wake up to the wtbts because of the position he is in which gives him access to info that the rank & file would not be privy to, or do you think it would be harder for him to wake up because of all the prestige/power/admiration he receives as a result of being an elder, or does it come down to something else entirely?.
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/jehovahs-witnesses-ordered-destruction-notes-10848053.
jehovah's witnesses 'ordered destruction' of notes which could have been used during child sexual abuse inquiry.
06:21, 7 feb 2016. by huw silk.
I appreciate the caution by some on this thread. And I'm all for accurate information. But I read the posted letter and I see this:
"Correspondence relating to a case of child molestation should be sent to the branch office in one of our special blue envelopes with a covering letter of explanation. Material should be retained by the congregation only if directed by the branch office."
"Only" was bolded in the letter.
Let's suppose you are an elder in the UK. You have sent the info out in one of the blue envelopes. You receive no direction to "retain" the "material." What do you do? What's the opposite of retain? Destroy.
I'm not sure if I'm misunderstanding something here but it seems there is doublespeak and conflicting information in that letter.
we have several examples in the forum showing that president knorr was not a loving and caring person; one that impressed me was the one about the elderly bethelite that was put out on the streets until his death due to a disagreement with knorr.
i bring to your attention an incident that happened in the country of honduras back in the 50s, it has to do with immoral conduct by a branch overseer and his subsequent disfellowshiping.
i am not critical of the end result of his conduct but rather the salacious and detailed report of this matter putting in the open the details for the whole world to see.
I heard a story from a missionary (who has since passed away) about a Gilead student who was suffering from a mental disorder back in Knorr's day. She would become disoriented at night and was known to strip naked and do other strange things. Knorr apparently wanted her back in her home country - and as cheap as possible. He sent her back alone on some sort of cargo ship. She had one of her episodes and jumped overboard, lost at sea.
He supposedly had a reputation of spending as little as possible on missionaries and basically not giving a damn but would spend liberally in updating commodities at h.q.
Update: Turns out this story was mentioned on this forum years ago!
http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/235355/who-gilead-student-that-jumped-overboard
so as some are probably aware the january study edition has two articles on the anointed.
one basically discouraging people from believing they are anointed and another about how ones should view partakers.
this photo is from the second article:.
"Soon, VERY SOON, the whole world will know I AM the true king of the north! The rivers will run RED with the blood of all the SINNERS!"
i stopped attending meetings all together in january 2015. before that my attendance was irregular at best.
my husband followed suit a few months ago after months of research, agony, and indecision on his part.
from the very beginning i laid low and did not share with anyone what i found out about the witnesses because i did not want to be df'd.
Remember the definition of lying from Insight On the Scriptures:
"Lying generally involves saying something false to a person who is entitled to know the truth."
Are those two men who came to your door entitled to know exactly what happened?
Lying is obviously not good. But when it comes to dealing with a situation like this, you have to use their rules and their semantics to deal with it. Theocratic warfare!
http://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2016/02/free-exercise-penance-and-delaware-court.
free exercise, penance, and delaware court.
by john m. grondelski february 9, 2016. regular first things readers know that the late father richard john neuhaus never tired of arguing that the first amendment contains not two religion clauses but one: “no establishment” and “free exercise” are not two free-floating provisions at occasional loggerheads with each other but one.
Thanks for posting this.
Here are the dilemmas involved for the witnesses:
1. The victim reports the wrongdoing to the elders, not the wrongdoer. This is not like a criminal confessing his sins to a priest. This is a victim reporting abuse.
2. The elders report what they hear to the c.o., possibly other elders and to the branch, breaking the confidentiality that would exist between a priest and a confessor. Yet they don't tell authorities.
It's a stretch to say they are protected by priest penitent privledge.
