Jesus spoke in Aramaic, so it's unlikely he used the uniquely Hebrew term of YHWH. In Aramaic texts found in the Dead Sea Scrolls, they switched back to the Hebrew script for YHWH. I doubt it was used colloquially in everyday Aramaic speech. He believed that YHWH was his father and that's why he always used "Father" when referring to him. I don't call my father by his name when speaking to others about him. Jesus always struck me as the kind of guy who would speak in the dialect of the masses rather than the uppity speech that the Pharisees would use.
Las Malvinas son Argentinas
JoinedPosts by Las Malvinas son Argentinas
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Did Jesus ever use the name Jehovah?
by biometrics inwhile growing up as a jw this was a question i often wondered about: did jesus ever call his heavenly father by the name jehovah?
and if he did, why wasn't it recorded.. i know there's plenty of references such as john 17:6, 26 where it says "i have made your name manifest to the men ...".
however is there anywhere in the bible where jesus used the actual word jehovah?.
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Paradise earth doctrine - did it strike anyone else as a bit odd?
by sseveninches ini have neglected to read jwfacts.org since discovering jwn a few weeks ago (remnants of the "apostate" defenses in action), but recently i decided to dive head first into it, and it has been eye-opening.
of course, some of the information i already knew through reading jwn, but one of the pages that really got my attention was the paradise earth topic under "questionable doctrine".. paradise earth caught my eye because way before i started having doubts about jw doctrine, i have always been asking questions about the topic - not to raise doubts (since i didn't have any back then), but just for my personal understanding, and to see how plausible it could be.
in the past i have asked things like:.
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Las Malvinas son Argentinas
Paradise earth always struck me as a mystical and magical place where Jehovah would lead his people by a magical wand or something. How are we going to dismantle munitions factories and nuclear facilities? Jehovah will figure something out and instruct us. Are we sending clean-up expeditions to the three largest countries in the world (Pakistan-India-China) to help the tiny group of faithful Witnesses there who survived? The only 'plausible' story I heard was that Jehovah would use some sort of zap power and vaporise much of the mess. It's a silly notion, but much better than actually planning on how teams of untrained Witnesses were to become demolition and disposal experts overnight.
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The Curious Case Of My Servant. Job
by criticalwitness inthe bible account of job is interesting to me in a lot of ways.
one job is not apart of isreal so his family and lineage cant really be traced hes just like some folk hero and how did he find out about jehovah?
and have more faith than all his people?
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Las Malvinas son Argentinas
I don't think the story of Job is meant to be taken literally. It's an allegory for the battle between good and evil. He had some really horrible things happen to him as many do, and Job was famous for having kept his faith in God despite all these travails. It then gets interpreted as a battle between God and Satan and thereafter as a ruse to get people to blame bad things on Satan, and to attribute good things to God. It provides an answer to an age old question: Why do the good suffer?
Take the heavenly scene with God and the assembled angels. Satan just walks in and accuses God to his face. It is explained that way to illustrate an ongoing and fierce dispute between the two sides. What happened to his riches and children should come as no big surprise. Plundering armies were common, and Job apparently had much that was to be desired. The house of his firstborn then collapses after a natural disaster of some kind (hurricane or tropical storm?) with all his offspring inside. Somehow I don't think the Land of Uz was known for its sound architecture back then since there's absolutely no clue today as to where Uz really was.
His wife saying what she did is no big deal. What woman would encourage her husband further in his misery when they were both homeless, all their children were dead, while at the same time being completely broke? All Job could think to do was offer praise to God. I'd have beat him over the head with a broom and told him to get his shit together and find a way to get us shelter and food. Find a job and quit feeling sorry for yourself!
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If Sparlock is wrong...
by TD in...then what else should a jw parent forbid under the same rationale?
jehovah hates magic).
i started a mental list and it boggles the mind.
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Las Malvinas son Argentinas
If Sparlock is wrong, then I don't want to be right.
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Sparlock: The Sociology of the former Jehovahs Witness community
by Las Malvinas son Argentinas inthewatchtower bible and tract society has unwittingly unleashed quite a viral sensation within the ranks of its former members.
to summarise what has happened so far:- become jehovahs friend dvd is released.
it is an animated feature aimed at children with modern computerised graphics.- the antagonist of the relatively brief cartoon is a self-described warrior wizard by the name of sparlock which was obtained by caleb, the young subject of this material.- the unnamed mother in this dvd guilt-trips young caleb into disposing of his sparlock toy.- the video goes viral within the ex-jw community, with youtube videos being posted of the video.
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Las Malvinas son Argentinas
We all have our symbols to take away from that train wreck we just hobbled out of. My symbol more than anything was Jesus coming at me with a drawn sword (Book of Bible Stories) and that my father served Satan, hated me, and was going to die a deservedly horrible death at Armageddon. The more I read into the history of the JWs, the more spiteful I become toward the people responsible for this rubbish. I find even the most degrading and filthy producers of pornography more excusable than this. At least they are filling a 'need' somewhere, be it lonely old men, sexually charged couples, or young voyeurs. This religion fills no such need. It's a parasite which feeds on your money and your life, and leaves you with very little of either by the time it is through with you.
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Sparlock: The Sociology of the former Jehovahs Witness community
by Las Malvinas son Argentinas inthewatchtower bible and tract society has unwittingly unleashed quite a viral sensation within the ranks of its former members.
to summarise what has happened so far:- become jehovahs friend dvd is released.
it is an animated feature aimed at children with modern computerised graphics.- the antagonist of the relatively brief cartoon is a self-described warrior wizard by the name of sparlock which was obtained by caleb, the young subject of this material.- the unnamed mother in this dvd guilt-trips young caleb into disposing of his sparlock toy.- the video goes viral within the ex-jw community, with youtube videos being posted of the video.
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Las Malvinas son Argentinas
DT: You brought up a point I had not considered. A good portion of JWs haven’t even been exposed to this material yet. We can all speculate on what the ultimate reaction will be. I would imagine that families with young children would dutifully pass on this material to their children to watch. Most Witnesses have already been sternly warned about anything to do with magic and the supernatural, so I don’t see the masses drawing anything new out of this, which is why I think this video will be ultimately disregarded by most and added to the increasing pile of rubbish they already have in their collections. For example, I can’t see my mother watching this personally more than once, if even that, and she’s one of the most indoctrinated members that I know. She’ll have a copy, but will tell herself that this isn’t for her and stick it next to her old bound volumes. This will be disseminated within the minds of children, and most JWs wouldn’t immediately make the ‘Sparlock’ connection. They’ll know that there was a lesson involved, but their minds are already dulled to the point where I suspect that much information passes through their thought processes without retaining much of anything new.
NC: I get the whole ‘Sparlock as a symbol’. Part of the reason for my post was to analyse what makes it a symbol, even though the lesson given is a rather minor one when compared to other Witness doctrine. You’ll get thrown out immediately for having a cigarette or being alone in the same room with a member of the opposite sex. I’m not even sure what they’d do to you if you owned a Sparlock-type toy other than privately insist that you get rid of it. The true lesson of Sparlock I would imagine is that it illustrates perfectly how petty and aloof the Society is. People are having trouble supporting themselves financially in this day and age, women and children are being abused, but they want to make absolutely certain that members don’t have anything to do with fictional magic characters.
dgp: Naturally I am concerned about the children and what effect it will have on them. It’s yet another example of why this religion is especially not suited for children. What else can they possibly do to make their young despise the religion which was forced on them? Can’t they just be satisfied that these children will become peddlers of their literature door-to-door for free? What harm does a magic toy really do? Are they going to start believing in Sparlock over Jehovah? The only explanation is mind-control. If they could get away with banning all forms of entertainment, I’m certain that they would. They want as little distractions as possible from getting people in their full-time service. Vacation pioneering? Why not? The real magic toys are their own literature and the aura of the organization. I knew someone who thought demons were coming into her home, so she placed WTs all around the house to ward them off. Another told me that if she were ever in danger of being raped, she would run to the nearest Kingdom Hall as soon as possible. You can’t fix this religion. It’s rotten throughout, and has always been so.
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Sparlock: The Sociology of the former Jehovahs Witness community
by Las Malvinas son Argentinas inthewatchtower bible and tract society has unwittingly unleashed quite a viral sensation within the ranks of its former members.
to summarise what has happened so far:- become jehovahs friend dvd is released.
it is an animated feature aimed at children with modern computerised graphics.- the antagonist of the relatively brief cartoon is a self-described warrior wizard by the name of sparlock which was obtained by caleb, the young subject of this material.- the unnamed mother in this dvd guilt-trips young caleb into disposing of his sparlock toy.- the video goes viral within the ex-jw community, with youtube videos being posted of the video.
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Las Malvinas son Argentinas
NC and cofty: What bothered me more about the video besides the blatant attempt at throwing guilt and shame at the young boy, was the portrayal of Caleb’s mom. She undoubtedly is the Society’s idealised JW mother. Scrubbing the floor when she could have been better portrayed making dinner, exercising, or reading a book. Then she changes into a skirt for the family study. But I digress. Perhaps Sparlock is the defining moment of the material after all, like a famous line from a movie. All I can do is describe how I interpreted the video on a personal level.
sd-7: I’m not even sure this video will go down that well even within the JW community. Some will think that it’s for kids and not pay as close attention as the Society would normally want them to. As for the children to whom this is directed to, they have plenty of more entertaining things to watch. What this effectively does is force parents to throw out the Pokemon and Harry Potter type material (if they even had it in the first place) and replace it with more vanilla forms of entertainment.
cedars – Have your fun. This was my take and contribution on the Sparlock phenomenon. Some may agree, and some may disagree. I was just hoping that Sparlock himself would do me the honour of commenting on my thread. Who says I don’t have any sense of humour in this? Do pass the word onto ‘him’, though!
wasblind – I’ve been cut off to ‘protect’ the integrity of the organisation, so that’s how I feel. In hindsight, I probably should have switched pronouns on that one from the collective ‘we’ to the individual ‘I’. The JWs cut off everyone as if they were a diseased body part, when in reality the disease is within. The amputated limbs represent only a simplified analogy, and not any part of an extended allegorical philosophy.
jookbeard: I knew the Anglo-American world power beast as described in the Society’s Revelation books had substance! The Malvinistas, Hollywood activists, and Sinn Fein must have their own composite symbol in Revelation. I think I’ll read those materials more closely now.
mindseye: Yes, sometimes you must be absurd to prove an absurd point. We certainly have no shortage of that.
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Sparlock: The Sociology of the former Jehovahs Witness community
by Las Malvinas son Argentinas inthewatchtower bible and tract society has unwittingly unleashed quite a viral sensation within the ranks of its former members.
to summarise what has happened so far:- become jehovahs friend dvd is released.
it is an animated feature aimed at children with modern computerised graphics.- the antagonist of the relatively brief cartoon is a self-described warrior wizard by the name of sparlock which was obtained by caleb, the young subject of this material.- the unnamed mother in this dvd guilt-trips young caleb into disposing of his sparlock toy.- the video goes viral within the ex-jw community, with youtube videos being posted of the video.
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Las Malvinas son Argentinas
The W atchtower Bible and Tract Society has unwittingly unleashed quite a viral sensation within the ranks of its former members. To summarise what has happened so far: - “Become Jehovah’s Friend” DVD is released. It is an animated feature aimed at children with modern computerised graphics. - The antagonist of the relatively brief cartoon is a self-described “warrior wizard” by the name of ‘Sparlock’ which was obtained by ‘Caleb’, the young subject of this material. - The unnamed mother in this DVD guilt-trips young Caleb into disposing of his Sparlock toy. - The video goes viral within the ex-JW community, with youtube videos being posted of the video. The WTBTS Society claims copyright violations and the videos are removed by youtube almost as fast as they are posted. - Sparlock is satirised both on ex-JW forums and spoof videos are posted on youtube. The “Become Jehovah’s Friend” DVD release is notable due to it being the first animated feature released by the WTBTS. It s content is correctly seen by many as bringing shame and guilt upon young Witnesses by forcing them to eschew ‘worldly’ influences. Sparlock seems to be a composite character stemming from the Smurfs in the 80’s, Pokémon in the 90’s, Harry Potter in the 00’s, and the vampire craze of Twilight and True Blood movies and serials of the new decade. Put simply, Sparlock is the WTBTS’s composite answer to these sinful pleasures. I have shown the Sparlock online videos to non-JW friends with always the same result. 'How stupid!' I agree with the notion that you cannot fully understand the surreal nature of the Sparlock phenomenon without being fully inside the exclusive circle of the Jehovah’s Witnesses at one point or another in your life. It’s an inside joke; something which perhaps is not meant to be completely understood outside of this isolated universe. With that said, why the extensive overkill and analyses of what is at heart a facile tool of an intellectually bankrupt and widely discredited American religion? Is this some sort of penultimate endeavour that this loosely organised movement we belong to has built up to? Unrelenting satire of a passing reference and teaching tool in a 15 minute religious and indoctrination DVD? I do admit to some sense of schadenfreude in regards to a religion that has had such a negative effect on my life and which has so literally rejected and shunned me. But the feeling lasted for but 5 minutes upon my consciousness. The stark reality of my own existence and life’s ever present challenges quickly overshadows any thoughts of Sparlock. I’d much rather discuss the background and modus operandi of the organisation which conceived of this tool designed for simple minds, rather than the tool itself. Do they really think their brethren are this provincially minded and dim-witted to accept this lesson precisely as taught? Have we as former members been so psychologically damaged that all we can think about is ridiculing the messenger rather than the overall message? The message has been made abundantly clear. Sparlock could just have as easily been a metaphor for higher education or extracurricular activity that to WTBTS so despises. Nothing distresses me more when I think about what I just came out of. It lies in direct contradiction of basic human principles and humanity in general. When I read about how this movement we once belonged to sprang originally out of the fantasies of a Pennsylvanian eccentric, refined by a sexually deprived and eternally bitter Missourian, and theologically defined by an awkward Kentuckian, it surprises me to no great length. The FDS principle was thus founded and carefully passed down to what is known today as the Governing Body. Anthony Morris III is but one of seven. Sparlock most likely originated in the extremely limited and doctrinally challenged mental thought processes of one of the Society’s anonymous writers. Sparlock in of itself is of no great consequence. The sub-culture that produced such a dull tool for the masses is of more concern to me. They can release more and more of this drivel, and it will make little further impression upon me. This religion is a lie, and is based upon faulty predictions and prophecy. The indoctrination process is as extensive as it is pervading. It is mankind’s own viral infection. We are all the amputated limbs of such a diseased body. Karl Marx is famous for saying that religion is the opium of the people. I say that the Jehovah’s Witness religion is the HIV virus of modern times. It invades and violates the safety and security of the human family. It then weakens the immune system to the point of complete mental breakdown and mindless conformity. We all suffer from it from our own unique backgrounds and experiences. As much as we would like to think we are truly free, there is always the burden of our past lives and connections to this religion. Sparlock is a symptom. The JW disease is pervasive and ever present. Emilie
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"_____ Is No Longer One Of Jehovah's Witnesses."
by BroMac inim not exactly sure when this change came in, but when i was a kid i remember it either being.
"____ has been disfellowshipped or dissasociated".
if someone has been announced to the congregation as no longer a jw then they are the same as any other non-jw.
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Las Malvinas son Argentinas
Not too long ago I was disfellowshipped. I was sitting in the back, knowing full well what was going to happen. To let them disfellowship me in absentia was to conveniently let them ignore what they were about to do to me on a real and personal level. I made certain that I made some casual conversation to several members beforehand just so they would know what they were being forced to do after the meeting. The announcement was made, and a few whispers were audible. I gathered my things, stood up, and left the building. My mother later admonished me for trying to make a scene, but I was just making a silent protest. The terminology is cute because I'd much rather be known as not one of Jehovah's Witnesses. 'Disfellowshipped' implies you are to have nothing to do with me. I suppose that they do this for legal reasons so that they can weasel their way out of court hearings and insist that they do not absolutely require people to shun others who have been expelled.
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Field Service meetings?
by JWOP ini'm just curious: since the wts did away with book studies in members homes, how does the field service meetings go now?
do people still meet in members homes, or are all fs meetings now at the kingdom hall every day?
or do they now have some other arrangement?.
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Las Malvinas son Argentinas
Most of the time we met at the Hall. In the city, sometimes the elder coordinating it had everyone meet at a conveniently located café. The branch found out about this somehow and put an end to it since we were in an inappropriate place for prayer and daily text reading. If you have people actually willing to go on the street for you and advertise your product, I think you ought to be thankful for that and let them do it the way they find most convenient. But this is not an organisation that values ad hoc arrangements.