the scoop of humanity at one khall, the anointed ones" were a mixed group.. one bro, h. had been in for eons.
he was df for adultery, back in the day when they would announce your sin openly from the platform to everyone.
he just kept on coming and partaking until he was reinstated.
When I was a kid we had two in our cong. One was a single lady with two kids (both of them now DF'd). She would literally scream at them all the time.
The other was an old guy who lived in a caravan. He was known to exagerate almost every story he told.
i have just been going over the candace conti case and it struck me that one of the things i'd like to see come out of this case is that jehovahs witnesses stop involving children in the door to door work.
so what would you say to them to make them re-think this issue..
It'd probably come under obeying parents.
i've been officially accused of "thinking too much".. i've tried to quit thinking, but i'm hoplessly addicted to it.i just can't seem to turn my brain off.. at times duing my school years i was accused of not thinking enough.
now i'm guilty of thinking too much!.
the brother even went on to say "could you imagine what the witness organisation if everyone was thinking independently like you do"?
I've been officially accused of "thinking too much".
I've tried to quit thinking, but I'm hoplessly addicted to it.I just can't seem to turn my brain off.
At times duing my school years I was accused of not thinking enough. Now I'm guilty of thinking too much!
The brother even went on to say "could you imagine what the Witness Organisation if everyone was thinking independently like you do"? I had to reply that I couldn't imagine what that would be like.
He finished with "Jehovah's organisation is made of up doers, not thinkers". and "It's more important to be doing the will of Jehovah than endlessly thinking about it".
http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/19/showbiz/james-gandolfini-obituary/index.html.
My neighbour looks exactly like Tony Soprano, he's even the same age. People ask him all the time if he's Tony Soprano or "That guy from TV". I swear he could have filled in for his body double and fooled a lot of people.
i had this logical fallicy tactic used on me by my wife.
see: argument from authority on wikipedia.
brother x is a [scientist, university lecturer, doctor, banker, judge ... i.e.
Thanks Martin.
Every time I've had/seen a JW use this argument, the authority figure was not an expert in the field.
Also it's often been used for no specific argument other than "They're intelligent, they beleive 'the truth', that should be enough reason for you too" type arguments.
i had this logical fallicy tactic used on me by my wife.
see: argument from authority on wikipedia.
brother x is a [scientist, university lecturer, doctor, banker, judge ... i.e.
I had this logical fallicy tactic used on me by my wife. See: Argument from Authority on Wikipedia
You know how it goes. Brother X is a [scientist, university lecturer, doctor, banker, judge ... i.e. someone more intelligent than you are] and he believes that 1914 is the correct date, so it must be true. Obviously these weren't the exact words, but that was the gist of the conversation.
Now when I think back this very same tatic has been used by the Watchtower for many years, in talks, and in publications. I've seen it often used in experiences where one of the authority figures is converted by an uneducated JW.
When you think about it it's kind of absurd of them to use this logical fallicy considering the Watchtower's past/current stance on higher education. And their aguments for why laymen wrote the NWT.
On one hand they shun "wordly" knowledge and education. Yet on the other hand they use "worldy" educated scollars to add credibility to aspects of their faith.
well, i'm back on jwn so i may as well start a new thread!.
this story caught my eye on sky news recently.... http://news.sky.com/story/1104007/google-balloon-project-gets-off-the-ground.
it's basically a new initiative from google to bring the internet to far flung parts of the earth including parts of africa that are simply not wired up to the internet yet.. i'm not sure how the accessibility will work in terms of subscriptions etc, but google seem serious about it and early tests have been positive.. so, the question raised in my mind was, could this turn the tide against the watchtower?
Information is what topples dictators
Disinformation empowers current leaders.
The problem is discerning between information and disinformation.
The USA is a classic example. Arguably the leader in the information age, yet the people are not united. Some of the official lies the majority believe is very concerning.
so i haven't been to a meeting since last december.
the elders recently have come over to my house at random times of day and during the week and one weekends.
just to let you know, i have only had one visit since december.
After you miss a few memorials they get the message.
Just before the 2013 memorial I had three elders personally come to my house to deliver an invite. When I didn't show another elder came over a few days later to tell me my absence was an affrontment to Jehovah and the brothers.
We then discussed the memorial. I asked questions like:
If Christ told his disciples to do it until he returns, and he returned invisibly in 1914, why is the memorial still held?
Were there any "other sheep" attending the first memorial with Christ?
If Jesus instructed the 144,000 class to "keep doing this as a rememberance of me", why do the "other sheep" need to attend?
This went on for 30 minutes until he left.
Haven't heard from them since.
a number of years back i heard a story of a young girl in a congregation ( i have some good friends in this hall ) who had an amazing field service experience.
it was so amazing that it was retold in the 2007 yearbook!.
it is retold in the highlight of the past year section.
In my opinion most JW experiences are like the game of Chinese whispers.
Fact: Girl places invite, someone attends meeting.
JW Fiction: Girl witnesses. Guy threatens to quit job because boss won't give him time off to attend meeting. In the meantime he's been witnessing himself (despite having to work) and brings 35 other 'interested' people.
Personally I have a hard time beleiving someone actually attended a JW meeting after receiving an invite.
Growing up we were always told about how well received the "truth" was in other (less developed) countries. How pioneers would literally get mobbed by groups of intersted people. How they were treated like rock stars. They'd need to start a new congregation every few blocks (I kidd you not).
I bet the reality of poineering in a less developed country was much different.
is that for real?
i swear i read it in a magazine article directed towards teenagers.
it was a while back, maybe a year or two.
My conversation with an elder regarding independent thinking (which I was accused of doing).
Q. Didn't Charles Taze Russell have independent thinking when he broke from traditional Christian teachings?
A. No he was guided by holy spirit.
Q. How do you know it was holy spirt that guided his thoughts?
A. Because he was sincerly seeking truth. And he had the right heart condition. Unlike Chrisendom of that time, who were corrupt.
Q. What about all the CTR teachings that were unbiblical. For example his books on pyramidology. Were they independent thoughts?
A. Um ... let me think about that one. I'll do some research for you.
Q. What about all those brothers in the first century who gave up their Jewish faith to follow Jesus. They obviously had independent thought?
A. Look brother <biometrics> what are you trying to prove? Have you been reading any apostate material? Because those people have an axe to grind.
End of conversation.
