leaving_quietly

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Posts by leaving_quietly

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  67

  Good Netflix shows to watch

  by Simon in

  1. social
  2. entertainment

  in the long winter nights you need some good tv shows to watch while you wait for the eternity between seasons of game of thrones.. we've watched marco polo (pretty good) and have just started watching orange is the new black which is not at all what i imagined (didn't know it was funny!).

  house of cards is on the list too as we've heard good things about that.. anyone have any others that are worth seeing?.

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  leaving_quietly

  Arrow
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  9

  Contact me for forum issues

  by Simon in

  1. forum
  2. announcements

  i am going to switch the site over in the next hour, if you have any problems then contact me ([email protected]) and include as much information as possible about what is wrong, what you were expecting, what browser and version you are using etc... i'll also be monitoring the logs to proactively spot issues.. please be patient - i may be working on issues in preference to replying so don't get antsy if you don't get an immediate reply :).

  unless there is a catastrophic problem i'll probably try and work through any issues but if things do go pear shaped when i might switch back to the old site.

  if this happens then anything posted on the new one *may* be lost so hold off posting anything important without keeping a copy just in case.. .

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  leaving_quietly

  Hi, Simon,

  I still have a -1 next to the message envelope. Not sure why. I opened all the messages that were sent to me just in case I hadn't read one. Thought I would mention it to you.

  
  ~LQ
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  32

  2014 Watchtower Publisher Statistics

  by jwfacts in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the 2014 grand totals page has been released onto facebook.. .

  .

  i have started updating the statistics and graphs at jwfacts.com/watchtower/statistics.php, and will release highlights as i work through it during the rest of the day..

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  leaving_quietly

  Another interesting statistic is the number of congregations. It is also steadily declining in growth.

  2011-2012, an additional 2316

  2012-2013, an additional 2104

  2013-2014, an additional 1593

  I'm curious about what warrants these additional congregations in the first place. With 275,581 baptized, this amounts to an average of 2.38 additional publishers per congregation (using the 2014 number of congregations, or 2.42 using the 2013 number of congregations). This certainly isn't enough to warrant all these new congregations. It's not as if large numbers of people are being converted in a local area to the point where new congregations are being formed purely out of new converts.
  

  My speculation is that these are smaller language groups that were formed in years past and that now have been converted over to actual congregations. Other than that, I can't really account for the additional congregations.
  
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  31

  Does anyone have the 2014 stats from the 2015 Yearbook yet?

  by berrygerry in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  does anyone have the 2014 stats from the 2015 yearbook yet?.

  (isn't it usually out by now - or are they waiting to celebrate new year's day?

  ).

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  leaving_quietly

  Just for comparison to the stats for Mormons for 2013:
  

  http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/2013-statistical-report-2014-april-general-conference
  
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  31

  Does anyone have the 2014 stats from the 2015 Yearbook yet?

  by berrygerry in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  does anyone have the 2014 stats from the 2015 yearbook yet?.

  (isn't it usually out by now - or are they waiting to celebrate new year's day?

  ).

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  leaving_quietly

  Even an increase in number of hours required for one convert: now 7059.58 hours per convert, or 294 days. I think it was 261 days last year, if I recall correctly.

  One out of every ~34 bible studies becomes a JW.

  2.3 additional JWs per congregation.

  
  
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  11

  Everlasting Life on Paradise Earth - My musings of why it cannot be true

  by leaving_quietly in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  actually, just one musing.. there are a number of scriptures that wtbts uses to support their doctrine of everlasting life on paradise earth.

  the vast majority come from the hebrew scriptures.

  using just one verse, i believe i can disprove this doctrine quite soundly.. the verse is john 6:68.. simon peter answered him: lord, whom shall we go away to?

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  leaving_quietly

  Actually, just one musing.

  There are a number of scriptures that WTBTS uses to support their doctrine of everlasting life on paradise earth. The vast majority come from the Hebrew scriptures. Using just one verse, I believe I can disprove this doctrine quite soundly.

  The verse is John 6:68.

  Simon Peter answered him: “Lord, whom shall we go away to? You have sayings of everlasting life.
  

  Peter was a Jew, as were the other apostles at that time. Jesus was speaking to Jews about eating his flesh and drinking his blood. They were all shocked at the thought of it, not realizing he was speaking figuratively. So, many left. When Jesus posed the question, "You do not want to go also, do you?", Peter answered as above.

  Had Peter and the other apostles ever heard of everlasting life on a paradise earth at any previous time from any other source, he would NOT have made this statement.

  Of course, we know that Jesus never held out the hope of everlasting life on a paradise earth, contrary to what WTBTS would have us believe. The Bible simply never says that at all. Thus, regardless of what all those Hebrew scriptures seem to say, the Jews at that time NEVER understood it the way WTBTS would have us believe.

  Thoughts?
  

  
  
  
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  12

  Wisdom in "the Word of God". Really? What Watchtower got wrong at this week's Congregation "Bible" Study.

  by Island Man in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the congregation "bible" study (cbs) for the week of december 29, 2014 to january 4, 2015 was taken from draw close to jehovah, pages 179-182, paragraphs 1-8.. paragraph 3 seems to be using the ancient jew's fear of jehovah's thunderous voice to justify the wisdom of him using moses to record and transmit his laws to the people.

  but there is an implied false dichotomy here.

  since god is supposedly almighty he is most certainly capable of giving a personal revelation of his requirements to every human in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner that they can fully understand and remember - without having to use his thunderous voice.

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  leaving_quietly

  The contrast that WTBS makes in the CBS this week is not the same as the contrast the author of Hebrews makes. Hebrews 1:1 was cited. This says:

  Long ago God spoke to our forefathers by means of the prophets on many occasions and in many ways.

  The next verse was conveniently skipped. And here's the biblical contrast:

  Now at the end of these days he has spoken to us by means of a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the systems of things
  
  There is another contrast between the Exodus account and Hebrews.This was conveniently skipped over by the writer of the material.
  

  For you have not approached something that can be felt and that has been set aflame with fire, and a dark cloud and thick darkness and a storm, 19 and the blast of a trumpet and the voice speaking words, which on hearing, the people begged that nothing further should be spoken to them. 20 For they could not bear the command: “If even a beast touches the mountain, it must be stoned.” 21 Also, the display was so terrifying that Moses said: “I am afraid and trembling.” 22 But you have approached a Mount Zion and a city of the living God, heavenly Jerusalem, and myriads of angels 23 in general assembly, and the congregation of the firstborn who have been enrolled in the heavens, and God the Judge of all, and the spiritual lives of righteous ones who have been made perfect, 24 and Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and the sprinkled blood, which speaks in a better way than Abel’s blood.
  

  The contrast here is that the Israelites were commanded to not approach the mountain, but those who are part of the new covenant are instructed to do so. The scene in the Exodus account was apparently quite terrifying and the sound quite horrifying. Not so with those in the new covenant.

  Paragraph 4 makes the point about how writing the law down solved the issue of the difficulty of having to remember so many laws. But isn't that exactly what rank and file Israelites living in Moses' day had to do? Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it true that the Law was only readily available to the priests who were charged with orally instructing the rest of the nation? Regular Israelites didn't have the luxury of consulting their own personal copy of the Law like bible owners today have.

  
  Correct. And the kings of Israel had to write their own copy and read it daily. Keep in mind that "the Law" was Genesis through Deuteronomy. It really was just a small portion of that. So, writing it down would have taken a few days (or maybe a few weeks at most).

  
  

  The entire CBS was all about comparing the JW way of worship to the Israelite way. That way was made obsolete. (Heb 8:13)
  

  
  

  
  
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  12

  research impossible

  by sowhatnow in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  so, now that nearly all of the past knowledge that jw's has had is slowly being deleted, how does anyone do any research on any subject?.

  meetings are pretty boring as it is, all they do is parrot the society's writings.. how is this going to work?

  i have to wonder , what point is the service meeting , once you know how to walk up to a door and hand someone a magazine.

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  leaving_quietly

  lol, i think you misunderstood my point, [but thats typical of my writing, people dont get me for some reason]
  

  I have all the old stuff , that isnt what i was getting at. its the irony that if someone who is a jw wants to do research, they cannot, because they cant find any 'right' answers. all the old stuff is  basically obsolete doctrine

  Sorry... yes, I missed your point.

  Actually, there is a rule of thumb among JWs: The most recent printing about a topic is still considered the truth.
  

  I have found stuff that hasn't been talked about in any publications since the 30s. Crazy as it sounds, by this rule of thumb, it's still considered truth. But, because none of that is easily available, or is so old, most JWs will consider it obsolete, as you said. Which is strange because the Bible is a whole lot older than anything JWs printed.

  Of course, using this rule of thumb, JWs are trained to ignore anything older than the most recent information on a topic.
  

  And the vast majority of JWs are kept so busy doing other things (meetings, service, family worship, JW.org, JW TV, assemblies) they don't have the time, energy or desire to actually research. So they let the organization do the research for them.
  

  
  
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  62

  Your explanation for a total contradiction in the New World Translation.

  by Johnny Brown in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  "for if you publicly declare with your mouth that jesus is lord,+ and exercise faith in your heart that god raised him up from the dead, you will be saved.

  10 for with the heart one exercises faith for righteousness, but with the mouth one makes public declaration+ for salvation.

  11 for the scripture says: no one who rests his faith on him will be disappointed.+

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  leaving_quietly

  Welcome to the forum!

  
  Most of us here are either ex-JWs or current JWs who aren't buying it anymore for a variety of reasons. Just so you are aware of your audience.

  Now, on to your question. The anonymous NWT translation committee decided to "restore" God's personal name in the Bible, including 237 times in the NT where THEY believe it should be. Part of their reasoning is that if something is quoted from the OT (as is the case of Romans 10:13... it quotes Joel 2:32) and the OT verse has God's name (represented by the Tetragrammaton, which most other translations translate as LORD in all caps) then they would use it in the NT verse. Unfortunately, this rule is violated quite often for verses in the NT that are NOT quotes from the OT. They have a habit of translating the Greek word Kyrios into Jehovah instead of Lord.

  If you have any interest in this, there is an analysis done around this that makes for an interesting read:

  http://tetragrammaton.org/divname.html
  
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  36

  urban legends

  by chirac in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  dear brothers ans sisters.

  i just received this mail in french..(thank you google to have translates it)..this mail is from a still inside brother who encourage to come back.

  do you think its a fact or an other urban legend.

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  leaving_quietly

  This was discussed a couple of years ago:

  http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/249149/brother-placed-teach-book-president-obama-wtf?page=1

  My only comment is: So what? Placing a book means nothing. Did the President become a JW? No. If he did, that would be worth reporting on.