Journeyman

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Posts by Journeyman

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  56

  Annual Meeting live updates

  by ukpimo in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i have obtained the live link for the annual meeting tomorrow:.

  annual meeting live link.

  the meeting will begin at 9:45am eastern time, for those of us in the uk, that will be 2:45pm.

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  Journeyman

  the destruction of Babylon the Great will be all countries willingly giving power to UN....I thought Babylon the Great was the Empire of False Religion what was going to be destroyed. Maybe I will see a clip somewhere for context of the statement because from where I am sitting "all countries" and "world empire of false religions" are two different animals so to speak.

  Good point. That was my understanding too - that they already implicitly taught that all the nations will give their support to the UN to destroy Babylon the Great, although they tended to keep the explicit statement about nations coming together for the bit after BTG is destroyed and they turn on the JWs who are left. But it's surely always been implicit in the teaching of the destruction of "the harlot" that all the nations will unite to attack "her", so this is not really a new teaching, unless there is more detail in the talk that's not been stated.

  Interesting about the two new GB members, and the seemingly softened stance over rising partaker numbers. It really does sound like this could be a prelude to changing ideas about the 144,000 in the near future, if they're willing to accept larger numbers now.

  And it does sound like maybe they're aiming to get back to 12 GB members, since that number is scripturally significant.
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  31

  October Elder's Letter Delayed- Big Announcement at Annual Meeting

  by Newly Enlightened in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  https://youtu.be/93h5zpbil6k?si=ffatfxjuxmj_na9i.

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  Journeyman

  Anony Mous: True, although some of their 'new' songs also either sound like Disney or other creations, not truly 'original'. There's one that sounds like a Christmas carol and I keep wanting to break into the carol's chorus when I hear it! 🤣
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  167

  How did JWs arrive at a clearer understanding of what the Bible teaches than other Christian denominations?

  by slimboyfat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  for jws who believe that jehovah had a hand in reviving the truth in the nineteenth century this is enough explanation for how jws managed to achieve a closer approximation to early christian beliefs and practices than other groups.

  but is there an explanation for this phenomenon that doesn’t rely on supernatural intervention?

  new testament scholar james dunn explains the difficulty of interpreting the biblical texts in this way:.

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  Journeyman

  Broadly, I agree with slim that the JW org have rightly avoided slavishly following the dogmas set by the early church fathers, many of which were inspired by pagan ideas, and this has helped them break free of the kind mental traps and pseudo-philosophical gymnastics we see when we look - for example - at threads on here about the Trinity, where some individuals can go on for pages and pages trying to justify what is plainly not supported in Scripture by quoting numerous supposed church 'scholars'.

  The problem - common to all mankind as Jeremiah 10:23 states - is that in doing so, they have instead established their own dogmas over the 120+ years of their existence, and it is their unwillingness to recognise there may be error in any of these and their increasing inflexibility in those areas, that is likely to be their downfall. The most obvious of these is the whole reliance on Matthew 24:45 and certain key dates such as 1914 and 1919 to assert their own (exclusive) authority from God, and doubling down on it by excluding the rest of the 144,000 from that number but claiming it represents only today's GB (but every single one of them), to whom everyone must be unquestioningly obedient.

  In my opinion, the modern-day Org especially is drawing the displeasure of Jehovah by measures like this (including rigidly refusing to significantly modify policies around CSA, disfellowshipping, etc) so though it may be possible that He views them as closer to "truth" than other churches and organisations, like the nation of Israel and even some congregations and individuals of the first-century Christian arrangement, they are certainly not wholly correct and fully obedient to God. The Org still tends towards being more hard-hearted and less humble and merciful than Jehovah and Jesus require (as evidenced by slippery behaviour like at the ARC and many recent court cases), and so are facing a shock in the near future when they receive divine discipline (and in fact may already be doing so, as seen by the "drying up" of their numbers, their confused doctrinal and organisational changes, their growing financial difficulties, and so on).
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  31

  October Elder's Letter Delayed- Big Announcement at Annual Meeting

  by Newly Enlightened in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  https://youtu.be/93h5zpbil6k?si=ffatfxjuxmj_na9i.

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  Journeyman

  Sing Out Joyfully will extend the number of songs to 200 (it says songs 1 to 200), which is ironic because the whole point of the first revised songbook in 2009 was to avoid having too many songs to sing.

  Yes, this has already been announced to congregations. I agree this is odd for the reason stated, and most of the songs in the old brown "Sign Praises" book (I think there were 225) were better than their 'updated' replacements. Presumably it was just an excuse to have a clear-out and add in all the (awful) 'modern' 'original compositions' the org has been churning out since JW Broadcasting went live. More of an ego boost to the current music department, rather than anything else.
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  2952

  It's been a long 9 years Lloyd Evans / John Cedars (continued)

  by Simon in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  uh oh, looks like the mega thread gave up the ghost, so while i investigate / fix it just continue the discussion here .... it's been a long 9 years lloyd evans / john cedars.

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  Journeyman

  I don't think he would want the children full time for 1 they would get in the way of his many holidays he takes

  And not only the holidays, but the "extra-curricular" activities he indulges in while on them, with 'ladies' of the night and with various substances. Having two kids in tow is not conducive to such 'entertainment'!
  
  
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  14

  rant about the stupidty of JW r/f

  by enoughisenough in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  putting this under beliefs,doctrine and practices because i don't see a better heading.

  here is what i have been thinking for years now and the situation with the recent storms and the devastation brings in closer to home in my thinking.

  i lived in western nc for 20 years and moved to wv in feb of this year.

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  Journeyman

  Videos used to teach the resurrected ones?
  I haven't heard that one yet

  Yes, on a recent thread we had about WT images of the paradise, someone pasted one from a 2022 WT study article which shows a resurrected person from Bible times being taught by a 21st century brother using a tablet! So obviously iOS and/or Android will still be running and patched after Armageddon...

  
  
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  7

  storm Helene-help plans?

  by enoughisenough in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  out of curiosity, i went to the jw website to see if they had posted anything about helene, it's damage, and what their relief plans may be, i any.

  i looked in the news and in video sections to see if there were any postings.

  i couldn't find anything.

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  Journeyman

  This is not unusual. For all their talk about JW News being the place to go for the "latest" information, it's really very slow.

  It takes them days to post anything significant, whether it's storms in the USA, the shooting in Germany, or earthquakes in Japan. Just compare the dates these events happen with the dates on the actual JW news articles they've posted.

  I understand the need to have accurate information and not rush to post rumours as if it were Twitter/X, but if they were truly interested and on the lookout for breaking news concerning Witnesses, they'd have someone in WT HQ assigned to post at least basic info as soon as a story breaks (at least within 8-12 hours), with relevant updates as they come in. They're supposed to be interested in making the R&F feel part of a global brotherhood and keep one another in their prayers in times of difficulty, etc.

  They're a worldwide organisation, so they could have someone on 'duty' 24/7 around the world on 'breaking news' assignment, ready to post or update articles if a major political event or natural disaster happens. Especially as this is supposed to be so close to the end, with "critical times" here.
  
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  266

  Where is Tony?

  by Athanasius in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  on february 22, 2023, anthony morris iii was officially removed from the governing body of jehovah's witnesses.

  a few months later it was revealed that the watchtower bought him a house in lumberton, north carolina.. however, and correct me if i am wrong, since leaving the gb nobody has reported seeing tony attending jw meetings or participating in field service.

  in fact nobody has reported seeing him anywhere, not even at a local liquor store.

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  Journeyman

  In the grand scheme of things, he's just not that big of a deal.

  Tonus, I think you're right.

  When you at how little impact is being felt in the Org by the loss of AMIII now, maybe he was not as influential behind the scenes as it may have seemed at the time when he was making his bombastic talks at conventions and on JW Broadcasting.

  There has been no schism, no outbreaks of dissent, no opposing voices in the ranks, or even any hints of major questions from within. On the one hand, this could be just because the Org is much more in control of messaging than ever before, but I think that if Morris had really been as influential in the hierarchy, there would still be at least some visible cracks or ripples left by his departure.

  As it is, the Org is carrying on as if he never existed, and there appear to be no major impacts from his departure, in fact it may be quite the opposite: now he has gone, the GB is more united in a particular course of action and are accelerating the plans they had in mind all along - hence there being so many changes of various kinds in the past year.
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  2952

  It's been a long 9 years Lloyd Evans / John Cedars (continued)

  by Simon in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  uh oh, looks like the mega thread gave up the ghost, so while i investigate / fix it just continue the discussion here .... it's been a long 9 years lloyd evans / john cedars.

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  Journeyman

  That’s a cop-out. Don’t fall for Lloyd’s carefully crafted BS.
  Lloyd was dialed up to 11 and if you don’t believe me, spend an evening analysing those letters he sent to his wife.

  Completely agree. His constantly blaming his upbringing in the JWs is like governments who blame the previous party in charge for everything. That might be acceptable after one year, or even five, but when the same party has been in power for ten years or more, that excuse wears thin.
  

  The same with LE - he's been out of the JWs and doing his own thing for long enough to have found his own 'balance', and he had started a new life with a loving wife, two daughters and very tolerant in-laws. Everything was potentially in his favour, but he chose to mess it all up because he wanted to "have his cake and eat it" sexually speaking.
  
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  52

  EXPLOSIVE NEW LEAKED VIDEO OF C.O. CHASTISING ELDERS

  by raymond frantz in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  https://youtu.be/np05twylal8?si=wjcdevvpxmlwxb2p.

  shame is an ancient form of control.

  shame is the mechanism used to control behaviour.

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  Journeyman

  Shepherd The Flock of God, 2024, Chapter 13, section 3 :
  Such abhorrent forms of pornography include homosexuality (sex between those of the same gender), group sex, bestiality, sadistic torture, bondage, gang rape, the brutalizing of women, or child pornography.

  Thanks for that, Earnest. Pretty much what I thought. I've never been an elder nor had to deal with any of the above, but I probably remembered that from reading a leaked copy of the Shepherd book...

  FWIW, I completely agree with this previous comment from fedup:

  The content produced by the WT—whether it's videos, books, magazines, or talks—creates a culture where individuals become so self-righteous that they abandon common sense and compassion. The fear of man outweighs the fear of God. Most elders would never admit to watching porn, and understandably so. Who wants to experience invasive questions about their personal life? This only leads to an organization filled with individuals who lead double lives, creating a community of hypocrites who believe they have the right to judge others. True friendship is extremely rare within this organization, because the WT teaches you not to be a friend.

  Changes in behaviour seem to be driven much more by fear of man (shame of others in the congregation finding out, of losing 'privileges', etc) than really improving one's moral character or standing before God and Christ. It's a situation the Org has never really tried to fix within congregations, for all the supposed warm words in literature and talks about forgiveness, living with one another's imperfections, and so on. That's been reinforced by the way 'discipline' is applied, through meetings with elders, 'reproof' (especially in public), etc.