an old co-worker who trained to be a jesuit priest, is very intrigued with the ex-jw movement.
we share laughs and have some off-beat phone discussions at times on theology.
yesterday was about money, religion and "wwjd" what would jesus do if he and the apostles actually returned today.. we decided he and the apostles would probably be seated around a picnic table in a park with a laptop writing a "blog", have a facebook "fan page", and make press releases...making it entirely possible for "every eye to see him".. the pope and the governing body would denouce them as heritics.
I've entertained similar humorous hypothetical scenarios surrounding what would have happened if someone turned up at the 1930s bethel HQ claiming to be one of the "ancient worthies". Even if they were speaking perfect biblical Hebrew, I very much doubt Rutherford would've handed over the keys to Beth Sarim quite so easily.
Cedars, I just needed a good laugh. Thanks. Too bad I don't have a time machine and a costume set used for biblical dramas (perhaps a HD cam as well)...
for my cong, apart from those moving in, we last had an elder appointed 16 years ago.. we last had some ms's appointed about 3 years ago.. our boe are getting old, 3 in their 80's, 1 in his 70's and three in their 60's.. they all work hard, but when their time comes, they deteriorate quickly.. splash.
DATA-DOG: well said, I agree with everything. PM sent.
i'm a sucker for heavy rock .
so long as it's good .
always have been since early 70's.. thought i'd start an entertainment thread so post your fav heavy rockers here.
in light of the latest videos to be released featuring candace conti and rick simons, i have decided to publish a new blog article on the link below:.
http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/the-girl-who-took-on-the-watchtower-candace-conti-speaks-out.
for the most part, i've written this article because i found much of what candace and rick had to say intriguing to say the least.
Thanks for writing the article. Something that has angered me was reading how the WT attorney addressed most Witnesses: "Simons also expressed his bemusement at the repeated attempts to shrug off the case with the assertion made by the Watchtower attorneys that Kendrick was “just a rank and file member”." Just a rank-and-file. It's always great to be appreciated by people. I hope they choke on their arrogance, so much for brotherly affection. Let them all drown in their hypocrisy!
Even a friend of mine, who is not a Witness made a remark about that when I showed him an article in the Huffington Post.
jehovah's witnesses refute!
nederlandse versie.
"the heart of the righteous one.
Mwahaharrr, this is funny: " It is clear that membership of the United Nations under the applicable conditions is not appropriate for the Society. As soon as the membership and its conditions became public, the brothers took steps and cancelled the membership of the Society!"
As soon as they were caught they cancelled the membership is what it should read.
at 37 years of age, i'm much to young for feeling this damn old, so apologies for sounding less than idealistic, but...... we need people who will be honest and true to themselves.
having offered jws the entire decade of my 20's while they tried to suck out my soul, i have come to appreciate how little of a desire these days i have to change the world.
which was sad at first.
King Solomon: it's absolutely ironic. Even more so, since my belief in Jesus and God hasn't changed. I feel I need to leave "the truth" to actually be a true Christian, therefore I might loose my Mother. Crazy ironic.
I wish JWs would realize how pharisaical their form of worship is, I can't stand it any longer. Jesus started a way of life and they've made it a "Law 2.0" form of worship. They fight for religious freedom but are the most strict folks out there. The Scribes and Pharisees would feel right at home. Now's the time to leave, it'll only get worse, just like it has been in the past years. I fear people like my Mother will become more extreme, just like the Society and demand you to be just like that.
at 37 years of age, i'm much to young for feeling this damn old, so apologies for sounding less than idealistic, but...... we need people who will be honest and true to themselves.
having offered jws the entire decade of my 20's while they tried to suck out my soul, i have come to appreciate how little of a desire these days i have to change the world.
which was sad at first.
Stop making so much sense, Sauerkraut. :)
King Solomon I promise, I won't be making sense for the rest of this month.
The thing to remind your Mom is that the shunning is ALL on her end: it's HER decision, and HERS alone. You're not shunning her: she is shunning YOU. She can't blame the WT for her actions....
You're right, but we all know that most don't see it that way. She doesn't think for herself, the Watchtower thinks for her. It's sad that so many have blind faith and devotion and are mislead and misguided.
You might tell her that there will ALWAYS be a "light in the window for her" in your life: she's your Mother, the one who gave you life (not the GB, the ones who want to be called Mom). If she finds the need or power to avail herself of your forgiveness, you are man enough to forgive and forget, to always have her as a part of your life (within the healthy boundaries, of course).
Thanks for the advice, I'll keep that in mind. I was going to collect some info on the true meaning of Apostasy and such things to show her, so she can see that she's not following biblical counsel but that of hard hearted and overly strict men.
The quote function on this board is rather strange.
SauerKraut, Once you disassociate yourself, you may no longer able to help your mother learning the truth about the truth. I wonder you shold hold on the DA letter for now. You will be label as an apostate. Are you ready for that? I would send copies of a DA letter to your mother and people in the congregation if you decide to go for it. (I apologize to OP if you feel I am hijecking your thread.)
Blindnomore the letter isn't finished yet. I'll let it be for a few days and take another look at it, but most likely will send it within the next ten days. It may sound harsh, but I can't help my mother. She's blind and she'll just refuse to face anything that doesn't fit her worldview, that is a very strong tendency of hers. I've had discussions and she has no inclination at all to face facts, she's been very accusing, to protect myself I've stopped speaking about my doubts, observations and what I found out. There's a lot of pressure building up inside and I don't want to pretend to be the good witness, fading is not an option for me, I'm under a lot of scrutiny. Besides that I don't want to be part of the Society much longer. If I'll be branded as an Apostate, I can't help it. We have to stand for what's true. The longer I pretend, the more my Mother will feel I'll be back to normal some day that I'll "snap out of it" and everything will be okay. It reminds me of pulling a tooth out, don't mess around, just get it done and be done with the pain sooner rather than later.
Once I send the letter I'll give a copy to my Mother and a few close friends, so they understand what happened, why I'm doing this. Kind of a "witnessing letter".
AllTimeJeff, sorry for the hijack, I hope it's okay with you.
at 37 years of age, i'm much to young for feeling this damn old, so apologies for sounding less than idealistic, but...... we need people who will be honest and true to themselves.
having offered jws the entire decade of my 20's while they tried to suck out my soul, i have come to appreciate how little of a desire these days i have to change the world.
which was sad at first.
I think if you really feel the need to change the world, you're going to have to go down that road. But you don't need to change the world to make a difference. By being honest, you can save a few people out there worth saving, starting with yourself.
Saving yourself is a good start. That's what I'm doing right now. Today I started writing my letter of disassociation, six pages long. It's still weird that I'm doing this, feels somewhat unreal, but I won't back down or go back. It'll cost me greatly though, I don't have close friendships with JWs anymore, but was raised by a Single Mom, so our relationship is pretty close. I know that she'll hurt badly and being the typical mindless follower she'll end up shunning me, because she thinks she must do so.
recently.
a pioneer said to me: " i can't wait to be persecuted!!!".
that kind of thinking is absolutely fanatical.
What if the persecution comes in the form of the most beautiful human male on this earth, who happens to catch her while she's about to fall and she looks into his eyes and her heart melts... and she realizes he's not a Brother and all the pain that causes... I bet she won't be that happy about persecution then.
i had a bit of chat with my wife last night after she was worried that i was less than enthusiastic about the ministry this morning.
i expressed that i was slightly confused about the generations and how it's kept changing despite 1914 etc.
being a core doctrine.
@00DAD:
Except there is no F&DS. It is only the WT leadership which is ostensibly the Governing Body, but also likely a team of lawyers, accountants and other highly influential individuals at the helm of this thing. Then there is the trickle down effect: District Overseers, Circuit Overseers, local Elders ....
No matter what or who is really leading this ship, the question could also be phrased "Whether WT/JW 'Theology' is wrong or not is a crucial question."
If it's wrong, we shouldn't believe it. We certainly shouldn't pretend to believe it when we don't and no one should be sactioned for saying that don't believe something that is wrong or cannot be proved true. This is the real problem with WT/JW Policies, Rules and Practices: JWs are forced to believe or pretend to believe falsehoods or be disfellowshipped. It's ridiculous! It should be criminal.
You are correct. There is no FDS and it's used, overused actually, to promote a silly notion. That's what started my investigations and led me to believe that the "truth" is not what I thought it to be.
It's important to clarify your thinking on this point. This is a common error on the part of JWs that is deliberately confused by the WT leadership to create confusion, anxiety and a false sense of loyalty to the organization rather than to Jesus. Carefully re-read what Peter actually said:
“Lord, whom shall we go away to? You have sayings of everlasting life; and we have believed and come to know that you are the Holy One of God.” – John 6:68-69
Notice Peter said "whom" not "where". If you want to follow Jesus, then follow Jesus. The "organization" is unnecessary.
My post was badly phrased. What I meant to say is that Peter addressed Jesus himself as the focal point, the key, not any kind of organization. That this scripture is applied to the organization is another silly notion, which should be easily noticed, but isn't. Took me long enough as well. What gets me so angry regarding the Governing Body is how the mislead and usurp Christ's authority. In a way, if you use the parable of the faithful slave, they try to keep the master out and become master themselves.
