shepherdless

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Posts by shepherdless

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  8

  Trustworthy JW Lawyers????

  by Uzzah in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  i will reserve comment but mr. pole has regularly represented the canadian branch of the jws'.

  he is their go to lawyer when needing non-direct society representation.. disappointed at how slimy he has become.

  he and i used to be friends.

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  shepherdless

  Looks like that happened around 3 years ago. I would hope that that lawyer was struck off or severely punished.
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  36

  Article from Jamaica: Jehovah's Witnesses' properties for sale - Rising costs force religious group to go small

  by AndersonsInfo in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20160410/jehovahs-witnesses-properties-sale-rising-costs-force-religious-group-go-small jehovah's witnesses' properties for sale - rising costs force religious group to go small.

  sunday | april 10, 2016 | 12:00 am by erica virtue.

  norman grindley.

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  shepherdless

  Since this thread is still going...

  The reference to "temples" in the news article was probably just the reporter not knowing the correct terminology.

  After I first commented on the article, I did a brief bit of research. It appears that the result of the 2011 census was as follows (I could only find percentages on wikipedia, not actual numbers):

  Protestant 64.8%, comprising : Seventh Day, Adventist 12.0%, Pentecostal 11.0%, Other Church of God 9.2%, New Testament Church of God 7.2%, Baptist 6.7%, Church of God in Jamaica 4.8%, Church of God of Prophecy 4.5%, Anglican 2.8%, United Church 2.1%, Methodist 1.6%, Revived 1.4%, Brethren 0.9%, Moravian 0.7%;

  Roman Catholic 2.2%;

  Jehovah's Witness 1.9%;

  Rastafarian 1.1%;

  other 6.5%;

  none 21.3%;

  unspecified 2.3%.

  
  

  I did find the census form on the following website (bottom left corner):

  http://statinja.gov.jm/Popcensus.aspx

  
  

  I suspect that the reason the census suggested that 1.9% of the population were JW's (instead of around 0.6%) is a combination of the following:

  (1) Jehovahs Witnesses are high on the list of religions to choose on the census form.

  (2) Most people chose a religion on the census (nearly 80%) despite "no religion" being a clear option on the form, and I suspect there is a social tendency to associate with a religion, if only in name.

  (3) The country has a literacy rate of 88%, which is one of the worst in the world outside of Africa.
  
  

  I think a similar explanation applies to a number of other surprising percentages and absences in the list above. Every religion listed above, was specifically on the census form. The absence of Mormons (for example) is probably because they were not specifically listed as an option.

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  Separately, I think the substance of the article indicates that Watchtower is still cost cutting and selling assets wherever possible, even after sending home all those bethelites and releasing those special pioneers. Watchtower must still be under some cashflow stress.
  
  
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  36

  Article from Jamaica: Jehovah's Witnesses' properties for sale - Rising costs force religious group to go small

  by AndersonsInfo in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20160410/jehovahs-witnesses-properties-sale-rising-costs-force-religious-group-go-small jehovah's witnesses' properties for sale - rising costs force religious group to go small.

  sunday | april 10, 2016 | 12:00 am by erica virtue.

  norman grindley.

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  shepherdless

  At the last check, in 2011, Jamaica recorded 50,849 Jehovah's Witnesses, up from 44,203 10 years earlier.

  But according to the last Yearbook, there were 11,815 average publishers (down from 11,889) spread across 188 congregations, and 37,111 memorial attendees.
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  36

  Article from Jamaica: Jehovah's Witnesses' properties for sale - Rising costs force religious group to go small

  by AndersonsInfo in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20160410/jehovahs-witnesses-properties-sale-rising-costs-force-religious-group-go-small jehovah's witnesses' properties for sale - rising costs force religious group to go small.

  sunday | april 10, 2016 | 12:00 am by erica virtue.

  norman grindley.

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  shepherdless

  I assume that $45 million sale price quoted in the article is Jamaican dollars, which is equivalent to around US$370,000. (At least according to a currency converter on the net.)
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  21

  Tell me what you think.

  by Aroq in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  ok, i'm willing, and thinking about going to the meetings, but there is a catch.

  i'm not, nor ever be a jw.

  i know too much about their beliefs.

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  shepherdless

  Hi Aroq,

  if your situation is vaguely like mine, I would say no. Don't go. If necessary, check jw.org clandestinely, so you have knowledge of what nonsense they are going to be told at each meeting.

  My wife is an ardent JW (and lost cause) who also takes the kids to KH. I never attend. Instead I teach my kids maths and science where possible, help them with their homework, etc. I also have made sure they have good access to books and the internet. My oldest knows heaps about evolution, dna, carbon dating, abiogenesis, quantum mechanics, multiverses, ancient history, church history, periodic table, electrical circuits and electronics etc.

  My tactic seems to be working. My kids seem to have picked up that most JW's know virtually nothing about those topics, whereas they learn a bit from me, learn a bit more at school, and learn a bit elsewhere, and it is all coherent. One of my kids (primary school age) said something the other day along the lines that Elders are uneducated people. At least 2 of my kids accept evolution is a fact.

  I don't know your situation, but I suspect that if you refuse to go, and are the one to teach your kids stuff (tiny non-controversial bits at a time) your kids will soon be thinking that daddy is not the ignorant one. You will also be teaching them that they don't have to pander to nonsense.

  Anyway, that is my 2c worth.
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  19

  The Watchtower Society’s 607 BCE Foundation Exposed

  by Doug Mason in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  the governing body and its watchtower society claims that in 1919 it was appointed by jehovah god and jesus christ to represent all of their earthly kingdom interests, to be their unique voice and sole representative towards all people on earth.

  the watchtower’s authority lives or dies with that claim..

  the society’s critical date of 1919 is calculated from the dates of events in the 6th century bce.

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  shepherdless

  Hi Doug,

  Essentially, my point is that the chronology chart on page 32 has 537 BC occurring before 539 BC (ie in between Oct 607 BC and Oct 539 BC). Either that is a mistake, or the chart can't be called a chronology.

  Cheers

  Shepherdless
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  19

  The Watchtower Society’s 607 BCE Foundation Exposed

  by Doug Mason in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  the governing body and its watchtower society claims that in 1919 it was appointed by jehovah god and jesus christ to represent all of their earthly kingdom interests, to be their unique voice and sole representative towards all people on earth.

  the watchtower’s authority lives or dies with that claim..

  the society’s critical date of 1919 is calculated from the dates of events in the 6th century bce.

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  shepherdless

  I had a quick read. I will read it a bit more thoroughly, a bit later. Well done, and well presented.

  Minor point; there appears to be an error in the summary chart on page 32.
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  26

  What was jesus doing for the first 30 years of his life?

  by atomant in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  30 years is a long time in the life of a human yet little is written about this time frame,l wonder why?

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  shepherdless

  Side question from a non-JW: What has Jesus being doing for the last 102 years?
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  6

  Religion, a part of the American way of Life.

  by Gorbatchov in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  found this picture on the twitter account and it makes a wider perspective to me.. the jw religion is so part of the american way of life, just like the other religions in the us.. in the jw growth rate country's there is a market for this "better" life.

  the religion makes it possible.. western europe had that marketing mix need after world war 2 and maybe a part of the cold war.. see the picture, and you know, the similarities with the jw religion, the change will be in details and not fundamental.. gorby.

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  shepherdless

  Further to what SBF says, quoting from page 3 of the Pew Report of 12 May 2015:

  [T]he percentage of adults (ages 18 and older) who describe themselves as Christians has dropped by nearly eight percentage points in just seven years, from 78.4% in... 2007 to 70.6% in 2014.

  
  

  So in 7 years, the number of Christians in USA dropped by 10%. It is such a major change, that I am surprised more people haven't mentioned it. If that rate were to continue, USA will have a majority of unbelievers in around 20 years.
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  17

  Evolution vs Creationism.

  by Labate in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  perhaps this has been discussed in the past, but i can't help noticing that on many posts creation vs evolution seems to equal theist vs atheist.

  granted, a creationist by defination would have to believe in a creator.

  on the other hand, believing in evolution doesn't automatically make one an atheist, a small point perhaps, but i think it would be more accurate to say believer vs nonbeliever.. just sayin'..

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  shepherdless

  Landy,

  My understanding is pretty much what Vidiot states. There was still the concept of "original sin" though, which may seem contradictory.

  I have difficulty explaining it now, because I have not believed any of it for a very long time.

  
  

  Edit: I did not see Landy's last post, before posting.