Posts by Nicholaus Kopernicus

45

What has been your own personal experience of shunning?

by UnshackleTheChains in

i am interested in finding out on a small scale the extent of which shunning has impacted on you personally.. my own experience is that when i faded about 12 years ago.

the woman whose house the book study was held at (and who was virtually a neighbour) walked right past me in my own street.

i remember it so well.

Nicholaus Kopernicus

I am still regarded as a JW. I am irregular at meetings and participation in "ministry". I have given answers in WT study which the BoE disliked such that I was approached on the matter. Since that time I have been silent, withdrawn from all "privileges", and haven't given WT money for over 3 years. I have refused BoE shepherding visit, encouragement visit, coffee and brotherly chat visit. Showing them that I know a thing or two about shunning as well!

I am now shunned by most. That suits me fine. When I do occasionally attend I arrive just before meeting starts and leave immediately after.

So contrary to the forthcoming convention theme, I am giving up. However it has been the untoward BoE conduct, appaling governance of the governing body, and the indiscretion of the F&D slave which caused me to embark upon withdrawal. They are simply incompetent!

47

What did you regrettably not do because you were a Jehovah's Witness ?

by minimus in

jw
friends

jehovah's witnesses cannot do a lot of things.

i remember pioneers having to quit their jobs because they could not work in a convenience store and sell cigarettes.

i know of a young man who was offered a scholarship to any college or university if he wanted to go to because of his football abilities.

Nicholaus Kopernicus

I didn't donate blood to the NHS via blood.co.uk. However I will do so this weekend. I believe this would put me in line for disfellowshiping if discovered. In a previous WT the GB stated that God's people would not donate blood. No scriptural reference of course. The edicts of the GB no longer sway me. Hitherto, I was in a mental battle to preserve respect for the GB. Now I hold them in the utmost contempt. Mmm! I sound like an apostate!

27

A Beard Maverick

by EyesOpenHeartBroken in

so i went to the kh for the first time in a month, and the first brother in our congregation has grown a full beard.

i am in a western u.s. semi-rural area in a cong with an extremely conservative and controlling elder body.

oddly enough, it seemed like people were going out of their way to converse with him and act like they didn't notice the beard or they complimented the beard.

Nicholaus Kopernicus

Yes Phizzy "childish nonsense"! Parochialism! Sectarianism! Last WT on subject alluded to beards being problematic in some cultures! Only culture I've come across wherein beards are problematic is that of JWs! I blogged about this over a year ago....

https://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/5678288265543680/wtbts-partial-distinctions-james-3-17

27

"Don't listen to apostates!!"

by Schnufti in

next time a jw says that to me, i will ask him to read the following from "what does the bible really teach":.

watchtower itself uses this illustration.

so why is it that they throw apostates out of the congregation?.

Nicholaus Kopernicus

The GB's demand that JW's desist from listening to apostates is a camouflaged way of demanding Ostrich like behaviour - sticking the head in the sand. As so many others point out, why shy away from anyone if you really do have "the truth"?

Some "apostates" today are still Christians. They therefore challenge the GB and JW hierarchy just as Jesus challenged the ecclesiastical authorites (Pharisees) in his time on earth. Nothing wrong with that. The responses if the GBoJW is very wrong however! Difficult to see anything right about them mind you!

5

Not the "Faithful & Discreet Slave" after all!

by Nicholaus Kopernicus in

"1 god, who long ago spoke on many occasions and in many ways to our forefathers by means of the prophets, 2 has at the end of these days spoken to us by means of a son, whom he appointed heir of all things..." hebrews 1:1,2. the wtbts/gbojw avoid reference to this scripture.

could be due to it undermining their claim to fds status?

maybe a good reasoning point with jw's?

Nicholaus Kopernicus

"1 God, who long ago spoke on many occasions and in many ways to our forefathers by means of the prophets, 2 has at the end of these days spoken to us by means of a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things..." Hebrews 1:1,2

The WTBTS/GBoJW avoid reference to this scripture. Could be due to it undermining their claim to FDS status? Maybe a good reasoning point with JW's?

32

Britain in the doldrums!

by Nicholaus Kopernicus in

the 2014 - 2015 jw statistics showed a peak publisher decline of 884 with the average publisher tally showing a gain of 183. .

the 2017 yearbook is now available via jw.org and the statistics for britain show a 2016 peak publisher increase of 630 and an average publisher increase of a paltry 26!.

nothing to shout about on the part of the followers of caiaphas in the britain branch.

Nicholaus Kopernicus

It is now quite obvious that the numbers of JWs in Britain is shrinking. That having been said it is likely that those who remain abstain from contributing £s to the Britain branch.

I sincerely hope that these problems are magnified as time goes on.

30

How to reply when someone asks about your spiritual health

by RodrigoGuerreiro in

first of all, sorry if i cannot correctly express the original expression used in my native language to ask for the "spiritual condition".. a few years ago some member of the family asks my wife directly how is her "spiritual health" (for me it's one of the many strange vocabulary used by jw like "the slave says...").

she was catched by surprise with the direct question and says that everything is ok... and luckily someone call them for lunch.. my question is: do you have any good answers for that question?

you can be ironic/use some humor because the question is a little bit anecdotical .

Nicholaus Kopernicus

"Jehovah is my shepherd, I shall lack nothing." Psalm 23:1

36

Walking away will get you D/Fed

by Drifting Away in

jw
friends

someone just told my wife, that those who are just leaving organization or not going anymore will be dfed, has anyone read that or heard of that?

i have seen nothing of that, and according to jackson at royal commission, we are free to go as we please...

Nicholaus Kopernicus

The WT of course, doesn't publish the numbers of faded ones. Cong secretaries mark their publisher record cards as "inactive" however and the numbers could easily be collated. If I remember correctly, I think the CO forwards a tally of "inactive" ones to the branch as part of his report. It's not for nothing therefore that guilt tripping is increasing - "Loyalty.... Don't Give Up" etc.

So the numbers of those faded or in the process are likely "a large army" in all probability and the encroaching of the enemy upon their peace (via JCs) could move that army to action - yes indeed. I would find a JC quite counter productive for "the organisation".

36

Walking away will get you D/Fed

by Drifting Away in

jw
friends

someone just told my wife, that those who are just leaving organization or not going anymore will be dfed, has anyone read that or heard of that?

i have seen nothing of that, and according to jackson at royal commission, we are free to go as we please...

Nicholaus Kopernicus

Just now I have reason to be quiet and let things be. Were I to be pursued by a JC and DFd then the breaks would be off. I would never be "repentant" but would feel free to be active. So the BoE/Cong would meet with a significant "response cost"!

32

Britain in the doldrums!

by Nicholaus Kopernicus in

the 2014 - 2015 jw statistics showed a peak publisher decline of 884 with the average publisher tally showing a gain of 183. .

the 2017 yearbook is now available via jw.org and the statistics for britain show a 2016 peak publisher increase of 630 and an average publisher increase of a paltry 26!.

nothing to shout about on the part of the followers of caiaphas in the britain branch.

Nicholaus Kopernicus

Breathtaking numbers! British decline well and truly emasculated. Read on another thread that JW numbers in Poland down by 2% or so. Suspect that Polish emigration is a contributory factor.

Foreign language COs have more than enough to keep themselves occupied! The followers of Caiaphas want these folks to be adequately ~~policed~~ supported!