Anders Andersen

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Posts by Anders Andersen

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  119

  Do I have to believe in Jesus to be saved?

  by unsure in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  do i have to believe in jesus to be saved?.

  i was raised as a jehovah's witness.

  i was born in.

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  Anders Andersen

  @unsure,

  What the (i)F ;-)
  

  In this thread you have mentioned several times that you 'what-if' everything until you exhaust yourself.

  But do you really? And should you?

  As for the first question, I assume you really don't what-if everything until exhaustion.

  • What if Zeus and his homies really exist?
    
  • What if Jehovah is the deceptive and evil one who has labelled the True God as Satan and makes Him look bad?
  • What if the spirits of my ancestors will get mad at me for not offering them food?
  • What if leprechauns can really give me a pot of gold?
  • What if the Thetans are really? Should I join Scientology?

  My guess is that there are enough topics where you don't what-if too much at all, but reject the claims as baseless or nonsense quite quickly.

  It looks like you're hung up on the Biblical/Christian what-ifs. Imagine you were raised in a strict Muslim cult, you'd be having the what-ifs on Quran/Muhammad. It's your background and past that give an air of credibility and validity to your many what-ifs. Change the topic to Mormonism, Islam or Scientology and you're quickly done what-iffing.

  Now to the second question: Should you what-if ad nauseam?

  Of course you can, but it's a waste of time and energy.

  What can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence.

  We do this all the time. Doing the opposite would be unworkable. So up to and until you have seen some credible evidence wrt the foundations of your what-ifs, there is no (logical) need to entertain them. But it may be a psychological process that helps you break free from the Watchtower chains....

  Good luck!
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  119

  Do I have to believe in Jesus to be saved?

  by unsure in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  do i have to believe in jesus to be saved?.

  i was raised as a jehovah's witness.

  i was born in.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Anders Andersen

  @Unsure

  Lately I've been reading a bit about communication, and (the difference between) abusive and healthy relationships.

  Except sometimes I think, what if this draw I have to Christianity is Gods way of drawing me to them? That God, Jesus love me, you know the same tired explanations you hear all the time. What if?

  You ever tried to be in a relationship with someone who didn't straight up made clear what they wanted by telling you, but tried to make you do it by 'giving hints'? Or worse, they became grumpy or gave you the silent treatment without you even knowing why?
  
  It doesn't work, does it?

  Why would an intelligent, loving God use freakin' hints (like 'drawing you with a feeling') and get angry when you don't get it? Doesn't sound like a healthy relationship to me!

  Yes it doesn't make sense, but what if the same old tired explanation of Divine Will cannot be understood by imperfect minds is true? My issue is that I always "what if" each side.

  Well if we are incapable of understanding God's will, it would be quite unfair if he would hold that against us, wouldn't it? Like punishing a two year old child for failing to pass for a college exam.
  
  Or maybe God should try harder at explaining his will to us?

  It's really not that hard for him. Write it in the sky. Or make everyone hear his voice at the same time. Whatever. As long as the message is clear and available to everyone.

  Imagine you'd communicate with your colleagues the same way God supposedly communicates with humans. You'd be fired within a week.

  Hopefully, if there is a God, they do not fault me for not ignoring my own logic.
  

  If he would, he wouldn't be worth worshiping anyway. And the very fact that you have no idea whether any gods actually exist, nor what they want, and may or may not punish you for being you...shows that either they don't exist at all, or don't really care what you do and think, or they do but won't punish you for it. Or maybe they would because they're like any other abuser: fault you for breaking rules they never even told you about.

  Ah well, my religious feelings are long gone. They were probably already gone when I was still a JW. I never 'felt' God either. Maybe I'm the defective one :-D But at least I'm not doubting, feeling guilt nor anxious. And if whatever type of god wants to have a conversation, my conscience is clear.
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  119

  Do I have to believe in Jesus to be saved?

  by unsure in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  do i have to believe in jesus to be saved?.

  i was raised as a jehovah's witness.

  i was born in.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Anders Andersen

  The fact that you are even having these questions may be an indication in itself.
  If those questions were really, really important - say a matter of eternal life and death - shouldn't the answers have been made abundantly clear to everyone millennia ago?

  Would any loving God leave people in doubt about if the answers made the difference between 'salvation' and 'destruction'?
  

  Do the many people in countries with a non-Christian culture (like China, India, etc.etc.) have any chance a finding these questions, let alone the answers? They may never even meet a Christian or see a Bible in their lifetime...

  Or...what if it's the Christians who are mistaken, asking the wrong questions - about Jesus - therefore never finding the true way to salvation?

  So many questions, and the lack of answers from above is both overwhelming and convincing...(at least to me)
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  11

  We are like pet dogs that run off with wild dogs...

  by dubstepped in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  ...and need a bullet to the head.

  my wife found a post on instagram where some jw nutter claims that either lett or morris said this in a talk.

  any confirmation or video of such?

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  Anders Andersen

  We could easily change the narrative just a little bit and get a completely different situation:

  A slave owner had a slave....
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  7

  June 27, 2017 TO ALL CONGREGATIONS Re: Donations to Regional Conventions Using jw.org

  by wifibandit in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  june 27, 2017 to all congregations in britain and northern ireland re: donations to regional conventions using jw.org.

  june 27, 2017 to all congregations in ireland re: donations to regional conventions using jw.org.

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  Anders Andersen

  How is Watchtower assuming the JW want to hand over their money a 'provision'?

  These guys have no idea what words mean....
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  8

  June 28, 2017 TO ALL BODIES OF ELDERS Re: Important Reminder—Volunteers

  by wifibandit in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  june 28, 2017 to all bodies of elders re: important reminder—volunteers.

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  Anders Andersen

  Dear brothers,

  Apparently the Holy Spirit doesn't make sure the godless, unclean and unqualified (I.e. didn't write enough service hours) are not used to move Holy Furniture. (Do the have the Ark of the Covenant in there?).

  So please cover for the Holy Spirit and update the privacy-sensitive data we have collected on our cult members in a timely fashion.

  Cheers!
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  34

  Oct 2017 WT again shunning instructions

  by Daniel1555 in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

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  Anders Andersen

  Well at least Watchtower acknowledges that their behavior is anything but normal.
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  37

  Watchtower teaches that Jesus dying on the stake is no longer certain

  by Listener in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the watchtower has held for many years that jesus died on a stake and held strongly to this teaching.

  w 1951 3/15 the above agrees with the new world translation of the christian greek scriptures in its appendix, page 769, in saying that the instrument upon which jesus was nailed was a stake without a crossbeam, and not the religiously represented “cross”; and that the greek word used for that instrument in ancient time meant a “stake” and not the conventional religious cross.

  they are no longer certain on this point.

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  Anders Andersen

  @Vanderhoven

  https://www.jw.org/en/bible-teachings/questions/did-jesus-die-on-cross/
  
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  53

  The saddest song of all time?

  by Bad_Wolf in

  1. social
  2. entertainment

  i would pick this one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=th2w6oxx0kq.

  i don't know how so many are happy or fine if thinking this life is it.

  haven't lost parents yet, but when with them, sometimes i'll think of this song.

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  Anders Andersen

  St. James Infirmary. Somehow I'm always identifying with the man making that sad, lone, fearsome walk.

  There are many versions but I know the one by Van Morrison best: https://youtu.be/s_Tc08tIBR4

  And then there is Anywhere I lay my head by Tom Waits. The feeling of both abandonment, loneliness and acceptance that anywhere can (or must) be home. I guess it appeals to me as I've been known to say (when abroad) that as long as my wife (and now my daughter too) are with me, I wouldn't really care if my whole country and everyone I know suddenly disappeared. Probably that is what also made me have less issue with losing all JW friends. That country just disappeared and I don't care too much.

  https://youtu.be/mPT1sjbGYNg
  

  
  

  I heard this song the first time in an acapella version, and I like it much better. Somehow Tom Waits' voice distracts me from the song. Unfortunately that acapella version isn't online (except a tiny sample here http://www.montezuma.nl/sites/default/files/Anywhere%20I%20Lay%20My%20Head.mp3?uuid=5955511dce3e3 ) Somehow it's much sadder like that.
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  28

  Dutch conventions organized like circuits

  by Gorbatchov in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  here in holland jw.org is organizing for the first time the yearly conventions like circuits.

  the whole summer the new convention hall is used for small group conventions instead of 10.000 seat external halls.. it keeps the money in the organization.

  not renting external buildings.. the 29.000 witnesses here are divided now into 2.000 seat audience.. g..

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  Anders Andersen

  From the Borg's perspective:

  Upsides:

  • Charge fee per publisher and grab money instead of paying money to 3rd party venue.
  • Easier to hide dwindling attendance numbers: rearrange a bit, go from 10 conventions to 9, and everyone suddenly experiences an attendance increase while overall numbers are actually down!
  • Less journalists and film crews visiting and asking hard questions. They might come for a 10k cult fest in a big venue; 2k in a church building isn't extraordinary as there are more than a handful mega churches with that number of visitors each week.
  • More brothers who can be made to feel important because more speakers are needed, and with non-assignments like parking duty.

  Downsides:

  • No very big events to show we're The One True Religion. All big meetings are equally bland and boring. Easier for people to stay away.
  • More speakers needed = speaker quality goes down = less indoctrination power.
  • Even harder for youngsters to find a fuckbuddy mate spiritual healthty partner --> more 'unevenly yoked' marriages -> more people leaving.

  Well money is their first and only priority anyways....