TweetieBird

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Posts by TweetieBird

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  14

  US Service Report - May 2004

  by truthseeker in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  it seems as if the year text theme for this year, "keep on the watch" is having little effect on the jws in north america.

  here are the figures for may 2004. spl pioneers: 260. pioneers: 90, 751. aux.

  pios: 61, 673. publishers: 839, 095. total: 991, 779. .

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  TweetieBird

  Can someone post figures from May 2003?
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  66

  September 1,2004 WT Beware The Voice of Strangers

  by Wolfy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i managed to get my scanner working on another pc.

  i'm not sure about the policy about posting scans of watchtowers here so if you want me to send you the scans let me know.

  the scans are in a zip file which is password protected.

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  TweetieBird

  I have a question...if the JW's supported Hitler, then why were they thrown in the concentration camps and persecuted?
• 
  12

  For those who still attend meetings

  by TweetieBird in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've noticed that there are quite a few on this board like me that still go to meetings, probably for the same reason i do.

  i look around the kh and wonder if anyone else in my congregation has the same feelings i do about "the truth.

  " i wish there was a secret buzz word or sign that would signal another defector in the hall, kind of like in the highlander when another mortal was approaching.

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  TweetieBird

  I've noticed that there are quite a few on this board like me that still go to meetings, probably for the same reason I do. I look around the KH and wonder if anyone else in my congregation has the same feelings I do about "the truth." I wish there was a secret buzz word or sign that would signal another defector in the hall, kind of like in the Highlander when another mortal was approaching.
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  22

  Catholic church filing bankruptcy

  by TweetieBird in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/a/archdiocese_bankruptcy?site=nytro&section=home

  jul 6, 2:25 pm edt

  portland archdiocese filing chapter 11

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  TweetieBird

  http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/ARCHDIOCESE_BANKRUPTCY?SITE=NYTRO&SECTION=HOME

  Jul 6, 2:25 PM EDT
  

  Portland Archdiocese Filing Chapter 11

  By AVIVA L. BRANDT
  Associated Press Writer

  PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- The Portland Archdiocese said Tuesday that it will file for bankruptcy because it can't afford to pay the potential cost of sex abuse lawsuits, becoming the first Roman Catholic diocese in the nation to seek such court relief.

  The Chapter 11 bankruptcy action, planned for Tuesday afternoon, freezes the start of a priest abuse civil trial involving the late Rev. Maurice Grammond, who was accused of molesting more than 50 boys in the 1980s. Grammond died in 2002.

  Plaintiffs in two lawsuits involving Grammond have sought a total of more than $160 million. The archdiocese and its insurers already have paid more than $53 million to settle more than 130 claims by people who say they were abused by priests.

  Dozens of other claims are pending, and at Tuesday's news conference, church officials said they could not afford what the plaintiffs are asking.

  "The pot of gold is pretty much empty right now," Archbishop John Vlazny said, who warned parishioners last year in a letter that the archdiocese might go bankrupt.

  James Devereaux, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit that had been scheduled to go to trial Tuesday, vowed that in spite of the announcement, "We will continue our fight to finally get the archdiocese to accept the sin of its crimes."

  David Slader, a plaintiffs' attorney, said the church was simply trying to avoid the details of the lawsuit coming out in court. "The bishop hasn't begun to touch his pot. He is lying," Slader told reporters.

  No other U.S. diocese has ever declared bankruptcy, according to Fred J. Naffziger, a business law professor at Indiana University.

  Tom Stilley, the attorney handling the archdiocese's bankruptcy filing, also said it was the first such case, but added other dioceses are considering the same step.

  Chapter 11 bankruptcy frees an organization from the threat of creditors' lawsuits while it reorganizes. However, it could also open church records to public scrutiny, and could require church leaders to cede some control to the courts.

  The Archdiocese of Boston, which was flooded with civil lawsuits after the clergy sex abuse crisis erupted there, considered bankruptcy, but opted to sell church real estate worth millions to settle the claims. The Diocese of Tucson, Ariz., last month said it was considering filing for bankruptcy to resolve pending lawsuits.

  Latest News Court OKs Exit Financing for Adelphia Interactive Roman Catholic Church Latest News Clergy Abuse Cases Highlight Cardinal Prosecutors Drop Paul Shanley Accuser Bishop'Frustrated' by Vatican's Pace Nun Settles Sexual Abuse Allegations '; get_ad2 += ''; get_ad2 += ''; document.writeln(get_ad2); self.focus(); } //-->

  In the 1990s, the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, N.M., was brought to the brink of bankruptcy, and had to borrow from parish savings accounts to pay millions of dollars in abuse cases.

  Nationwide, abuse cases are known to have cost the church more than $650 million since 1950.

  Only a handful of priest abuse lawsuits have actually gone to trial in the United States; most settle beforehand in an effort to avoid a public airing of testimony.

  In the case involving Grammond, Vlazny said, the diocese made "every effort to settle the cases fairly. I am committed to just compensation. These (plaintiffs') demands go beyond compensation. With 60 other claims pending, I cannot in justice and prudence pay the demands of these two plaintiffs."

  In a deposition taken before his death, Grammond said, "I'd say these children abused me. They'd dive in my lap to get sexual excitement."

  © 2004 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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  21

  The meetings are getting oh so painful!

  by TweetieBird in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  last night's meeting was sooooo boring, i was in pain.

  i have been a witness my whole life and it's the same ole thing, meeting after meeting.. listen up, governing body...if you want to keep the rank and file from leaving (by the way, our congregation is missing half of it's publishers from the meetings on a regular basis) please change the format of the meetings.

  i don't know how much more i can stand.. last sunday, we had 68 in attendance at the public talk and 3 less that i know of for the wt study (cause we left).

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  TweetieBird

  Family and close friends
• 
  21

  The meetings are getting oh so painful!

  by TweetieBird in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  last night's meeting was sooooo boring, i was in pain.

  i have been a witness my whole life and it's the same ole thing, meeting after meeting.. listen up, governing body...if you want to keep the rank and file from leaving (by the way, our congregation is missing half of it's publishers from the meetings on a regular basis) please change the format of the meetings.

  i don't know how much more i can stand.. last sunday, we had 68 in attendance at the public talk and 3 less that i know of for the wt study (cause we left).

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  TweetieBird

  Last night's meeting was sooooo boring, I was in pain. I have been a witness my whole life and it's the same ole thing, meeting after meeting.

  Listen up, governing body...if you want to keep the rank and file from leaving (by the way, our congregation is missing half of it's publishers from the meetings on a regular basis) PLEASE change the format of the meetings. I don't know how much more I can stand.

  Last Sunday, we had 68 in attendance at the Public talk and 3 less that I know of for the WT study (cause we left). We have 110 publishers.

  And while you making changes...drop the judicial committee meetings, do away with disfellowshipping and shunning, stop making people report their time, drop the meetings to 1 hour a week, and stay out of people's personal lives.

  Sorry, I had to vent.
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  108

  Sad News...

  by Sentinel in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  my mom had her valve replacement and triple by-pass surgery today.

  the operation lasted five hours, and they had just gotten her to her room at 8:00pm when she went into cardiac arrest.

  the doctor tried everything, even opening up her chest and massaging her heart.

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  TweetieBird

  I am so terribly sad for you loss.
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  2

  The Parrot

  by TweetieBird in

  1. social
  2. humour

  a guy named david received a parrot for his birthday.

  the parrot was.

  fully-grown, with a bad attitude and even worse vocabulary.

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  TweetieBird

  Thanks, I thought so.
• 
  2

  The Parrot

  by TweetieBird in

  1. social
  2. humour

  a guy named david received a parrot for his birthday.

  the parrot was.

  fully-grown, with a bad attitude and even worse vocabulary.

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  TweetieBird

  A guy named David received a parrot for his birthday. The parrot was
  fully-grown, with a bad attitude and even worse vocabulary. Every other
  word was a swear word. Those that weren't
  expletives were, to say the least, rude.
  
  David tried hard to change the bird's attitude and was constantly saying
  polite words, playing soft music, and doing anything he could think of
  to try and set a good example. Nothing worked. He yelled at the bird and
  the bird yelled back. He shook the bird and the bird just got angrier and
  ruder.
  
  Finally, in a moment of desperation, David put the parrot in the freezer.
  For a few moments he heard the bird squawk and kick and scream. Then
  suddenly there was quiet. Not a sound for half a minute. David was
  frightened that he might have hurt the bird, and quickly opened the
  freezer door.
  
  The parrot calmly stepped out onto David's extended arm and said, "I
  believe
  I may have offended you with my rude language and actions. I will
  endeavor at once to correct my behavior. I really am truly sorry and beg your
  forgiveness."
  
  David was astonished at the bird's change in attitude and was about to
  ask what had caused such a dramatic change, when the parrot continued, "May
  I ask what the chicken did?"
  
• 
  17

  Will the WTS ever drop the reporting of time?

  by TweetieBird in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  what do you think would happen if the society received "new light" and it was no longer a requirement to turn in a field service report, it is now between each publisher and jehovah what they do as far as witnessing?

  personally i don't think that will ever happen because that is the only way they can maintain control over everyone in the congregation.

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  TweetieBird

  What do you think would happen if the society received "new light" and it was no longer a requirement to turn in a field service report, it is now between each publisher and Jehovah what they do as far as witnessing? Personally I don't think that will ever happen because that is the only way they can maintain control over everyone in the congregation.