gingerbread

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Posts by gingerbread

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  65

  New Jehovah

  by LostGeneration in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible
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  gingerbread

  They left out three VERY important parts of the organization:

  1. Legal Department

  2. Real Estate Acquisitions and Sales

  3. Regional Building Committees
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  184

  A picture so outrageous, it deserves its own thread...

  by cedars in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i mean no disrespect to sd-7 or his fine thread on which this picture has already featured, but i think it is just so ridiculous that it deserves a thread all of its own.. lurkers and apologists, this is how your precious organization views itself.... behold the madness.... .

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  cedars.

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  gingerbread

  The WT Society has used pictures and illustrations as object lessons since it's inception - see Photo Drama of Creation. They understand the power of pictures and invest heavily in this area. The cost for the Photo Drama was $300,000 in 1912 ( abt. 7 million in current US dollars). The production costs for current videos are now doubt just as astronomical.

  Today every image is carefully orchestrated - down to the last detail - to give a "message". The art department is deliberate in everything it produces. And the publishers in every congregation that I've been involved with are well aware of this fact. Just attend the WT study - illustrations and their implied message are always discussed.
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  21

  SkyGreen is no longer one of Jehovahs Witnesses... Why?

  by SkyGreen in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  wow it felt good to type that heading, if only it were officially true!.

  i guess i dont want to dwell on "ttatt" too much, though i am now an inactive jw now, and will be forever, i dont want to be defined by that.

  but i will certainly keep an eye on this forum, contribute where i feel i can, and i must say thankyou to those who moderate it and keep it running.

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  gingerbread

  Thanks for sharing! I too have been - and continue to be - in the process of deconstructing the beliefs once held to be absolute. As a part of the JW culture - active yet pessimistic - for forty years, it has been a challenge to face the facts. If you don't want to be labeled a full blown "apostate" it's best to quietly go about your business. I too have come to the conclusion that family and real friends are more important that ones religion.

  A scenario that I've rolled around in my mind has been to imagine that I was born in the Middle East (no fault of my own), have a family and career, never heard of the Witnesses, never read the Bible, had no exposure to Christianity. Just a regular guy. Yet (unknown to me) the clock was ticking on a complete extermination of me, my family, friends, neighbors... And - to really make this situation really weird - there were 7+ million people working as hard as they can preaching about (not to me) and anxiously anticipating this divine destruction?? Just doesn't add up...
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  29

  My Story

  by nolongerconfused in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  well...where do i start.... i was raised in the truth...always knowing that there was nothing better out there besides the wt...however, recently i have a made a determination to not go "anywhere"...in all of my almost 35 years of being part of this "organization" i can honestly say i never read the bible as i do today...my "personal" study of the bible has more meaning today than it ever did...after reading the bible i have found many inconsistencies in the wt organization...i hold no grudges or hard feelings towards anyone in the organization, including the so called governing body...i just believe that human imperfection has taken it's toll on this organization...however, that is no excuse to act as a false prophet or assume things that only belong jehovah and his son...the bible is the truth, and jesus said such truth will set us free...i served as a pioneer all of my youth, and served as a ms...as of today i don't partake in that kind of manmade "service"... i'm truly against monthly time reports, special titles of service, asking for donations, judicial committees, among other things...some people may ask why?...well, none of these things are biblical!...some have told me, well the gb is now the faithful and discreet slave...and i say, as determined by who?...nowhere in my personal reading of the bible does it say that there was or there would ever be a gb...this group of men was self appointed...anything self appointed or self made up is definitely not discreet or faithful...jesus never ever appointed such a group.... a family member of mine passed away 2 years ago...he was never a "witness"...but i did preach to him once in a while so he "knew" about god...he just never wanted to be part of this organization...yet, when he passed away i was told repeatedly by the brothers and resurrection publications that i will see him in paradise... i thought to myself, but jehovah is the only one that determines or says who will resurrect (weather heavenly or earth)...i always thought...we as men are nobody to classify or determine that being part of a certain "organization" is the only way to salvation...jesus never said such thing...yet some may say that jehovah has always used an organization giving an moses and the israelite "organization" as an example...but then i say, well jesus is the end of the old covenant...we don't need an organization to be our mediator between us and the true god...jesus is the only mediator.... i could just say so many other things, but i felt like sharing this with all of you...as i cannot share this with any family members or brothers since i would be considered an apostate...i truly believe god is the only judge and i will hold myself accountable to him and no one else.... thanks for reading.... .

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  gingerbread

  Thanks for the post! I share many of the same things that you've expressed and experienced. A couple of years ago I took the WT's advice to examine the society's history ("our spiritual heritage") and to read the bible daily....and it really rattled my cage! I searched the history of the org and it's leaders through the WT library cd and wikipedia...then to many other sources. It's an ongoing process that foregrounds self examination and honesty!

  It takes time. If you are still in "good standing" be very careful about sharing your new found insights...
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  73

  How many decades/centuries before 1914 becomes irrelevant?

  by jwfacts in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  how long do you think the watchtower can speak about 1914 and have followers think it relevant?

  i think for people born in the 1900's, it feels like an acceptable year.

  but what about those born since 2000, will 1914 seem like a year of relevance?

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  gingerbread

  Perhaps the "admission" of giving incorrect dates for the end - in the current public WT - is the start of a distancing from 1914...?
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  73

  How many decades/centuries before 1914 becomes irrelevant?

  by jwfacts in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  how long do you think the watchtower can speak about 1914 and have followers think it relevant?

  i think for people born in the 1900's, it feels like an acceptable year.

  but what about those born since 2000, will 1914 seem like a year of relevance?

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  gingerbread

  1914 is seen as a pivotal date in history - both on the earth ( the start of the first world war ) and universally ( Christ's enthronment ). The significance of this year won't evaporate in JW teachings. The events of 1914 are connected with the "beginning of pangs of distress". The unfolding of events in connection with this year could go on for many years. The extention of the generational timeline - almost 20 years ago - pushes the finality of the last days into the indefinite future. And, we are taught that a day for Jehovah is literally - and exactly - 1000 years.
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  13

  Mistakes about Dates for the End

  by Bob_NC in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  who has read a recent wt article consenting that "expectations" about the end have not proven to be true?

  the article goes on to say that this has not dampened our hope for when the end does come.

  the article quotes habbakuk about jehovah's day not being late.

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  gingerbread

  I wasn't suprised by this "admission". The Watchtower Society is in full damage control mode. As the figures presented in the 2013 Yearbook show, active publisher numbers are only holding steady or shrinking in many parts of the world.

  The quote by Macmillan is subtly pulled out of context. His comment was in reference to the Bible Students anticipation of the rapture in 1914. For the previous forty years, C.T. Russell and the Watchtower preached that they would be going to heaven on this date. At a convention in September of that year, Macmillan said "this is probably the last public address I shall ever deliver because we [the Bible Students] shall be going home soon".

  People "new in the truth" will read the current Watchtower's statement as proof of the Society's honesty...
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  9

  Celestial chariot or broken down cart? Judging the agility of the organization...

  by cedars in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i've just uploaded an "end of year" article to my blog.

  you can read it on the link below.... http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/why-is-gods-earthly-organization-so-slow.

  in my article i explain how 2012 has taught me something i didn't know previously about the watch tower society - that it is painfully slow at responding to important developments.. i cite examples of three recent developments where the society has been slow to respond, or get word out.... the candace conti verdict - media blackout for six days following the judgmentthe appointment of mark sanderson - no official confirmation for months after the appointment was announced at morning worshipthe "new light" on the faithful slave - over a month before officially confirmed on jw.org, and a further month before the information was available in other languagesi then go on to look at the recent video about the watchtower sign and make the argument that, far from being comparable with a lightning-fast celestial chariot, the society has grown slow and cumbersome in responding to developments because it is essentially in love with itself - as per the greek mythological character narcissus.. anyway, take a look at the article when you get a moment, and let me know what you think!.

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  gingerbread

  Thanks you, Cedars. Your work is champion!
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  42

  Looking Back, Did You Notice Many JWs Had Drinking, Drug or Mental Issues?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as an elder, i saw many people that were affected by booze, drugs and mental health issues.

  a lot of witnesses fought depression and turned to other things when they realized they couldn't keep up the pace and find inner happiness with what they did do..

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  gingerbread

  Anxieties about ones personal future and regret over past mistakes is an environment that encourages destructive behaviors : co-dependancy, alchoholism and drug abuse. The US branch is well aware of these ongoing problems. Prescription drug use for depression and anxiety is widespread. Unfortunatly, the organizations solution for folks with these issues is disfellowshipping - not professional therapy, rehabilitation or spiritual support.
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  32

  New Here

  by confusedteenager in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hey,.

  i've been lurking on this website for a few years now and finally made an account.

  i have serious doubts about the organization in general and still have not made up my mind about what to believe.

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  gingerbread

  The Society encourages the brothers and sisters to learn about it's history and to read the Bible. I encourage you to do the same.

  You will come to find that the major beliefs we hold close to the heart and makes us so "different" originated not with the Charles Russell and the Bible Students but with other 18th and 19th century religious thinkers - Adventists in particular. Reading the Bible without Watchtower commentary intervening is nearly impossible at the beginning. Just take some time and quietly educate yourself.