Posts by Ireneus

46

What is the most troubling or disturbing biblical passage you ever had to rationalise when a Jw?

by stuckinarut2 in

now that we have stepped away from the jw faith, how do you feel about the bible itself?.

what about those awkward sections of scripture?

how did you rationalise or justify those sections?.

Ireneus

God authorizing genocide yet asking young women to be spared. Obviously a human thought.

19

Diminishing glory of JWs, confusions are at the root

by Ireneus in

when the world shuns jws because of difference of opinion, it is described as the action of satan.. when jws shun others because of difference of opinion, it is described as theocratic action.. such confused mind is at the root of getting wrong teachings.

jws shun anything what anyone would rate as the best of the bible or christian traditions:.

1)cross (with a longer descending arm) is the symbol of controlling the less powerful (“acts of the flesh”) with the more powerful (“spirit” within)—galatians 5:17, 19, 25.

Ireneus

When the world shuns JWs because of difference of opinion, it is described as the action of Satan.

When JWs shun others because of difference of opinion, it is described as theocratic action.

Such confused mind is at the root of getting wrong teachings. JWs shun anything what anyone would rate as the best of the Bible or Christian traditions:

1)Cross (with a longer descending arm) is the symbol of controlling the less powerful (“acts of the flesh”) with the more powerful (“spirit” within)—Galatians 5:17, 19, 25

2)They removed Biblical portion that says Jesus told the prostitute 'sin no more' (John 8:1-11)

3) They declare Veronica as a mythical character. In fact Veronica is more than reality as there were “many woman” who displayed the spirit of Veronica (Mathew 27:55) Veronica was moved with sympathy when she saw Jesus carrying his cross to Golgotha and gave him her veil that he might wipe his forehead. Veronica, from Latin vera(true) and Greek eikon (image) was a symbol of "Truth Icon" because she was not around Jesus during his triumphs and victories, or to benefit from his supernatural abilities, but appeared when Jesus was too tired, in real need of some help, which is the very essence of spirituality/Christianity (Mathew 5:44-48)

4)They also got something no one would get from the Bible (Proverbs 27:11) where they find that it is God of the Universe who is begging help from his fallen/weak children so that God Almighty may be empowered to give an answer to the taunt of Satan.

14

Will The Governing Body's Shunning Policy Backfire On Them Eventually?

by Brokeback Watchtower in

we all can agree that the disfellowshipping arrangement benefits the wt corporation by keeping the indoctrinated in servitude, make members afraid to doubt the corporation's teachings and explanations because they can be disfellowshipped for saying anything negative about the corporation or it's ceos or not agreeing with some new light.. but what about negative effects caused by the harsh use of disfellowshipping to the corporation, what could they be?

it's a two edged sword..

Ireneus

My experience is that action and reaction are inseparable, hence JWs have no escape.

7

JWS, The GB and Conglomeration Of Various Beliefs

by HiddlesWife in

i was watching this particular you tube video=> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quzdbzspsqu .

this above moved me to question: did russell (and maybe including, rutherford, gb1.0/2.0) research plus take bits and pieces from other religions/belief systems, preaching that events like these are leading mankind to "end of the world" and combine those together for the jw r&f to believe?

(i hope some of posters/members understand what i am asking.

Ireneus

That means no religion can claim that they are the chosen ones and others are pagan.

5

The 1st Church of Discount sins.

by James Mixon in

my church will set you free.

our special for tonight, two for one adultery.

if you are in a sinful relationship but you got your eye on someone else, you can be forgiven for both for only $99.95.

Ireneus

That is what all religions say. Amount of donation only varies--some charge more, others less.

16

Time to remind JWs of this famous quote from CT Russell!

by stuckinarut2 in

with the ever present issue of the society seeming to run out of money, and constantly asking the flock for more donations, maybe it is time to revive this quote!.

the leaked financial dept videos that have done the rounds, clearly show the society is in desperate trouble financially.. so, where is the "almighty's hand"?

where is his ability to provide funds?

Ireneus

Russell is correct at least in this prophecy of his own

6

Jehovah is not the God of Jehovah’s Witnesses

by Ireneus in

in exodus 23:4 jehovah established this law: “if you come across your enemy's ox or donkey wandering off, be sure to take it back to him.”.

if jws were really his people, jehovah would have ensured they never go wrong in their teaching which is in effect much more than mere “wandering.” if jehovah is concerned about wandering animals of enemies of his chosen people, much more concern should have been shown by him towards his modern-day chosen people.. yet the changes they have made are too many.

(https://docs.google.com/document/d/1urjfnby6jlz8lsibve7vsrgihtxkwqbrluzihlgfh-e/edit).

Ireneus

In Exodus 23:4 Jehovah established this law: “If you come across your enemy's ox or donkey wandering off, be sure to take it back to him.”

If JWs were really His people, Jehovah would have ensured they never go wrong in their teaching which is in effect much more than mere “wandering.” If Jehovah is concerned about wandering animals of enemies of His chosen people, much more concern should have been shown by Him towards His modern-day chosen people.

Yet the changes they have made are too many. (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UrjfNBy6jlZ8lSibVe7VSRgihTxkwqbrLUzIHLGFH-E/edit)

7

John 1:1—a concept blindly copied from other cultures

by Ireneus in

john 1:1 is the adaptation from other cultures where it is taught that we are all gods.

if expanded, john 1:1 would read like this: “in the beginning there was only god and he created the universe out of himself.

that means you are made out of god and you are a part of god, hence you are god just as much as jesus was.

Ireneus

Hi Doug Mason, thank you for that insight into Johannine community!

When we compare all myths from around the world, we find amazing similarities. Without realizing this, most people are stuck with the details, hence miss out on the essence. If anyone wants to know the truth, he can even without any external help.

If anyone doesn’t want to know the truth, then even any amount of external help would not help.

After my comparative studies, what I have understood is this. Religious leaders wrongly assumed knowledge of God would help people to be good citizens. But it would notbecause we find people of the religions still continue to be egoistic, root of all evil. This explains why God remains unidentified.

If knowledge of God doesn’t help, then what would help? It is the knowledge about ‘Who I am’ that helps us. For this we don’t have to go anywhere as rightly understood by Carl Jung: “Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.”

See what happens when we look beyond thinking ability. “The moment you start watching the thinker, a higher level of consciousness becomes activated. You then begin to realize that there is a vast realm of intelligence beyond thought, that thought is only a tiny aspect of that intelligence. You also realize that all the things that truly matter — beauty, love, creativity, joy, inner peace — arise from beyond the mind. You begin to awaken.” (The Power of Now, Ekhart Tolle) Many scientific discoveries (such as Periodic Table, Aromatic Chemistry, Insulin …) have their roots in dreams. (http://dreamtraining.blogspot.com/2010/12/inventions-that-came-in-dreams-largest.html) Even Einstein’s great invention of Theory of Relativity is connected with two dreams he had. (Einstein: A Life by Denis Brian p.159)

In view of the above, the primary knowledge everyone should have is this: “I am a soul with vast intellectual and insightful ability to guide myself with knowledge of what is right and what is wrong.” This primary knowledge can make the difference of heaven and hell! If you remember only half truth, and say you are this transient body, you are inviting hell for you because you would then want to enjoy and accumulate as much as possible within the available period with the attitude that “let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we shall die.” Such insatiable greed has made this earth into a hell: “The world’s eight richest billionaires control the same wealth between them as the poorest half of the globe’s population” (www.theguardian.com/global-development/2017/jan/16) which may remind us the famous idiom “dog in the manger”—an attitude of accumulating excessively whereas many are deprived of the same [which is against the Bible’s command: “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same”—Luke 3:11]. In contrast, when you realize that “I am immaterial and immortal soul, and this is my body which I use as my vehicle, focus is changed from transient body onto the eternal life we already have. And it is everyone’s experience that body is activated when soul enters and becomes a corpse when it exits, and everything happens according to some unerring law, which makes a person responsible-minded. In such knowledge, there is acceptance (peace), and in peace one interacts with others lovingly result of which is joy. This is the whole essence of Christianity (Mathew 25:31-46)

169

Universal sovereignty on trial

by Factfulness in

i just had a thought of clarity regarding the jw explanation for this doctrine.

they explain that satan challenged god regarding his right to rule.

god failed to prove his right to rule.

Ireneus

Perry,

Regarding John 3:13 there are very candid Theologians (like Willian Barclay ...) who categorically say this verse has never been uttered by Jesus, but it is own words of the writer. That's the sort of theologians we want having the guts to call spade a spade.

7

John 1:1—a concept blindly copied from other cultures

by Ireneus in

john 1:1 is the adaptation from other cultures where it is taught that we are all gods.

if expanded, john 1:1 would read like this: “in the beginning there was only god and he created the universe out of himself.

that means you are made out of god and you are a part of god, hence you are god just as much as jesus was.

Ireneus

John 1:1 is the adaptation from other cultures where it is taught that we are all gods. If expanded, John 1:1 would read like this: “In the beginning there was only God and He created the universe out of Himself. That means you are made out of God and you are a part of God, hence you are God just as much as Jesus was. And everything we see in the universe is the manifestation of God.”

In the East it is taught that everyone is god, which means it is God who experiences everything as He has fragmented Himself to reside within the heart of all of His creatures. This is a god-dishonoring teaching because if God resides in everyone’s heart, or if everyone is god, then it would mean the rapist and the one who is raped would be one and the same.

Without knowing such implication, Bible writer named John adopted John 1:1. Obviously this can’t be inspired verse as it has created so much of confusion and controversies. And even after 2000 years of debate, no consensus is reached. And also, in the East, such teaching was formulated to counter the higher castes who were treating the lower castes as though worse than slaves [which means this teaching arose not as part of any divine teaching program].