Do the JWs use the insight books any more? Or are they "discredited"?
Spiral
JoinedPosts by Spiral
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14
When exactly did Jesus become king? The Insight Book tells us.
by The Fall Guy init-2 pp.
61-62 jesus christ - "they [1st century christians] recognized him as their lord........because of his kingly position and authority.
it was in the full regal as well as priestly authority represented by jesus’ name that his followers preached.....to the “name” of this divinely commissioned king, the lord jesus christ.
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Sunday's W.T angered me + I found an ironic scripture
by Isambard Crater induring the "do you love me more than these" watchtower study on sunday, i got so angry on many occasions, hearing people make comments like "if you enjoy your job, you're an enemy of jehovah" and "the only reason we're here is to preach.
work and relaxation only exist to help us to preach".. the paragraph talking about the "do more!
" attitude in the world getting people down really got me down just reading it, as it applies so much to the borg.. i also found the ecclesiastes scripture quoted to be ironic, as the rest of the article tells is that nothing is better or more of a priority than to preach;.
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Spiral
@ToesUp, not just your family. I've seen a definite pattern going on, in our family and also where I'm located. So few have money, and they seem to think it's okay to lean in on family to help them out. This strange idea that you can "live simply" with a low paying job is having some long term consequences, and not just the obvious ones. It's creating a really weird unbalanced view of money and paying your own way amongst the JWs.
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Sunday's W.T angered me + I found an ironic scripture
by Isambard Crater induring the "do you love me more than these" watchtower study on sunday, i got so angry on many occasions, hearing people make comments like "if you enjoy your job, you're an enemy of jehovah" and "the only reason we're here is to preach.
work and relaxation only exist to help us to preach".. the paragraph talking about the "do more!
" attitude in the world getting people down really got me down just reading it, as it applies so much to the borg.. i also found the ecclesiastes scripture quoted to be ironic, as the rest of the article tells is that nothing is better or more of a priority than to preach;.
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Spiral
@Phoebe: Good for you! And you did right by your kids!
Apparently, the GB thinks that our generation can also support our elderly parents on low wage jobs. And, when our generation (note correct use of that term) gets old, the next generation of JWs who also have low wage jobs can support us.
I can understand how the elderly ones don't leave the bOrg, it's all they know. But why anyone younger would stay in and labor under that burden, I just don't get it.
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Spiral
Powerful.
ShirleyW, previously I would have said the same thing based on my growing up in the bOrg. But two years ago there was a couple here that had to kick out their (baptised) 18 year old because he came out as gay. So much drama they moved away (60 miles or so). Father lost his status as an elder. Family traumatized. I hope they let him back in after they moved away, but I don't know.
I was shocked, but that seems to be the "new light" truth of it.
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Sunday's W.T angered me + I found an ironic scripture
by Isambard Crater induring the "do you love me more than these" watchtower study on sunday, i got so angry on many occasions, hearing people make comments like "if you enjoy your job, you're an enemy of jehovah" and "the only reason we're here is to preach.
work and relaxation only exist to help us to preach".. the paragraph talking about the "do more!
" attitude in the world getting people down really got me down just reading it, as it applies so much to the borg.. i also found the ecclesiastes scripture quoted to be ironic, as the rest of the article tells is that nothing is better or more of a priority than to preach;.
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Spiral
LongHairGal, it is just breaking my heart to see this. I also was never "special" enough for anything, ever! lol! No regrets there!
purrpurr, I know, that drama is just ridiculous. I think it's unconscionable how they keep pushing that idea. My mom laps it up, but wait..... she has all that money from worldly family. She doesn't have to worry.
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Sunday's W.T angered me + I found an ironic scripture
by Isambard Crater induring the "do you love me more than these" watchtower study on sunday, i got so angry on many occasions, hearing people make comments like "if you enjoy your job, you're an enemy of jehovah" and "the only reason we're here is to preach.
work and relaxation only exist to help us to preach".. the paragraph talking about the "do more!
" attitude in the world getting people down really got me down just reading it, as it applies so much to the borg.. i also found the ecclesiastes scripture quoted to be ironic, as the rest of the article tells is that nothing is better or more of a priority than to preach;.
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Spiral
Isambard Crater, this WT really irked me too. I couldn't even make a pretense of listening (remotely).
Because, as LongHairGal points out:
If everybody was preaching like robots morning, noon and night, how would the business of life go on? Not to mention how would a person take proper care of themselves and/or their family?
Guess what, at least here, they don't. This is the poorest, most educationally and financially challenged congregation I've ever been in. It wasn't that way 30 years ago, but now it's mostly people of retirement age with NOTHING. And I mean NOTHING. They've given their all to the bOrg, and now they are poor, sick, on food stamps, can't go anywhere because they have a broken down car, are in public housing or living in an old trailer, it's just a mess.
Will they never learn? No! A new (albeit, much smaller) generation here is experiencing even more financial distress and struggling to provide for their children. Waiting for the paradise "just around the corner". Ugh.
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honesty
by midnight inregarding the recent 1975 video at the convention it hit me !.
when reasoning with people about the inspiration of the bible we used the bible writers candor ie/ there honesty when recording bible accounts about there personal mistakes .. how come the governing body despite its claims to be spirit directed are not honest about there mistakes ?.
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Jehovah's people are not happy people
by Phoebe ini finally stopped attending the meetings about 4 months go.
i won't be going back - ever.. but i've decided the best reply to the watchtower is to be happy and i do try to be happy every day even thought i wasted my entire life on this religion.
i cherish every day, practice mindfulness and do my best to be content with the life i have.. it is only now that i see that most jws i know are deeply unhappy people.
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Spiral
I can agree with all the above observations, and I've personally never been better since I quit going and quit worrying about everything.
Meanwhile, most of our JW relatives are all on some sort of medication due to being depressed, anxious, poor, unable to "adult" in an effective way. Most seem to have just given up. It is very sad.
But I would say this, they know it, and they don't argue with us (very much). They won't admit it, which is why they don't interact with us much. They occasionally try to be righteous about that (since we're inactive) but the reality is they just don't have any wind in their sails to put up an argument.
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Watchtower says: if your unbelieving relatives think you are in a cult, try to see things from their point of view
by cognisonance in12 have empathy for unbelieving relatives.
while we may be overjoyed about the bible truths we have learned, our relatives may mistakenly believe that we have been tricked or have become part of a cult.
we should show empathy by trying to see things from their viewpoint and by listening carefully to discern their real concerns.
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Spiral
steve2
There's nothing quite like a member of a cult being told by their leaders to behave like they are not in a cult. Nice, smiling faces, "tolerant" and patronising view of those who believe it is really a cult, etc. And never open-minded enough to realise those who believe it is a cult could be correct.
Despite the Watchtower's archly unrealistic admonition (acting school anyone?), i have yet to meet a JW anywhere who could carry out this type of lame-minded charade.
Oh boy....... this is really something. I don't recall this issue - to cult, or not to cult- being written about so openly, but then I haven't been reading anything WT for the last decade. But, in its screwball way, it does show that the GB are aware that people think the JWs are a cult (duh.....) and in their hamfisted way they need to deal with it. Kinda like Nixon (and soon Trump) saying "I am not a crook! I am not a crook!"
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Clapping and singing in Conventions... like the evangelicals??
by ILoveTTATT2 inhttps://www.facebook.com/traslapados/videos/1470101566382318/?hc_ref=otherwhat do you think of this video?.
do you think they're imitating evangelicals?is this happening in other places?
?.
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Spiral
Pete Zahut
I think it's a nice change myself and it would have been nice if things were this way for those of us who grew up as JW's. The only thing that bothers me is that they used to say this kind of thing was inappropriate and they could show you scriptures to show the importance of being "serious minded" and "reverent" in our worship to Jehovah.
It also bothers me that they make these changes but never apologize for having spoiled our fun and for condemning other religions for doing this very thing. They never even mention the fact that these things were frowned upon in the past.
LIke so much of my life as a JW in the past, it's as if it never happened....never even mattered.
I could not agree more! Outpourings of "spirit" were looked down upon by the JWs in the 60s and 70s, I remember many people thought the Pentecostals were demonized. ANYTHING you could think of to brighten up the meeting was forbidden.
I remember when it was decided all weddings could only have (canned) kingdom songs played, ugh, it was just so sad. Also any kind of larger party (say, a costume or themed party) also became forbidden. A large group was over 10 people (in some elders' minds). Things just got so depressing.
BUT - the JWs were so smug and superior, being so much better than those other churches. And having anything on TV was also straight from Satan, JWs were above that.
And now, it's as if it never happened.
@PeteZaHut, but why do you think the JWs in the 40 plus age group don't see the irony of it all? (I know why, but still!)