Posts by Magnum

12

Millions Now Living Have Never Lived So Well

by Bob_NC in

that's right, millions now living are living during the best of times for humanity.

but aren't these critical times hard to deal with?

aren't these the last days of a dying wicked system of things.

Magnum

I've been saying that for years. A year or so ago I told two elders that I didn't understand how we could say these are the most critical times in all human history. I said that if I had to choose any time to be alive, it would be now. They looked at each and laughed as if they knew exactly what I was talking about.

There's a documentary on the History Channel or one of the other similar channels about the Little Ice Age (beginning around 1350). Life was horrible and bleak - all about just surviving. Most babies didn't live long. Adults lived half as long as we live today. There was rampant starvation, sickness, injustice, pain, horror, misery, etc.

Think of all the horror of the plagues. Think of the time when there was no local pharmacy or Walmart. No aspirin. No relief for toothaches (which can be excruciating), no relief for the misery of itching, etc.

Imagine getting a minor infection on the foot, and instead of swallowing a few readily available antibiotic tablets, watching the infection slowly spread up your leg and cause your body to stink and fester until it kills you.

Imagine the wars back then - close quarters hacking, stabbing, and chopping - with no medical or pain relief for the injured survivors - survivors with gashes, punctures, etc.

Imagnine the horrible tortures employed back then; I cannot even comprehend how humans could do such things.

And yet, we now are living in the worst time of all??? I wonder how many JWs who say that would like to swap conditions now for the those existing back then.

5

help from the savants regarding the gentile times

by never a jw in

jw
friends

i find it interesting that the wt is boasting about the 100 year anniversary of the kingdom in 2014, but i have never seen an explanation on how they calculate it.

i know how to get to 1914 using the bible (ezekiel, revelation, daniel, jeremiah).

in fact, i know all the messy stuff behind it, such as 606 bce, 537 bce, mishandling of no-zero year in the calendar, 536 bce instead of 539 bce, etc.. what i am wondering is when was the last time the wt wrote an article in the wt magazine to explain in the weekly meeting how to calculate 1914. if this year is so important, one would expect an explanation in a regular basis, but i have not seen it yet.

Magnum

It seems to me that they don't include the details of the calculation in the Watchtower study anymore. The last exaplanation I remember is in the appendix to the book What Does the Bible Really Teach? beginning page 215. In Watchtower Studies, they just refer, usually in a footnote, to the book.

13

New Article: Jehovah's Witnesses and Chosen Ignorance

by daringhart13 in

would love your feedback.

thanks gang!.

http://darrinhart.hubpages.com/hub/jehovahs-witnesses-and-the-chosen-path-of-ignorance .

Magnum

Totally agree. I used to tell people in the ministry "I know more about your religion than you do". That may have been true, but I now realize that I didn't know that much about my own religion's history.

It burns me up now observing the vast ignorance among JWs including the following:

ignorance of the Bible as a book - where it came from, how certain books were chosen to become the Bible, etc.
ignorance of Bible content
ignorance of JW doctrine
ignorance of JW history
ignorance of JW policy
just plain old ignorance in general

We have two girls in one of the local congs, both about 19. They comment a lot, bounce around after the meetings, supposedly go out in service a lot, act like spiritual bigshots, etc. I swear they are clueless. My wife told me that one of them didn't know who Abraham was. If you told them to put Noah, Abraham, Jeremiah, and Jesus in the order in which they lived, they would be clueless. I honestly don't think they could tell you whether Jesus came before Noah. Yet these girls are going out "teaching" the Bible to others.

We had an elder who went to the past annual meeting during which the 'GB = FDS' change was made. It went over his head. I swear I think he still doesn't know that the GB = the FDS.

I could give many other specific examples of JW ignorance. It's infuriating to think that they think that they are the light of the world when they're clueless and ignorant.

80

My Experience and how I finally let myself see the truth

by OneEyedJoe in

first off - for those lurkers who feel guilty just for being on this site and reading this (even if you don't read any further, as it is your right to choose that course) i want you to know that you're not alone in what you're going through or in what you are feeling.

if you read on, i hope my experience may be of some small help to you.. this may be long, but i'll try to organize it in a way that doesn't make it painful to read.

to start, i feel it is most beneficial if i'm upfront and honest with my goals from posting this, which are (in order of the degree to which they motivated me):.

Magnum

I noticed the "rampant logical fallacy" for years and excused them for it until I could no more.

if it was the truth you shouldn't need to resort to flawed logic to convey it.

I wondered the same thing.

I found myself wondering "If this is the truth, wouldn't any apostate claims about our beliefs or the organization be easily disproven?"

For years I couldn't understand what we were supposed to be so scared of. I thought the truth should have been powerful and should have easily been able to overtake any false apostate claims.

"humans are so complex that they must have a designer" fell off when you consider that designer must have been still more complex, therefore he must himself have a designer.

Been saying that for decades. JWs apply their "design requires a designer" rule selectively. Their logic simply fails.

They got nothing right about 1914. The fact that WWI started then does not support them at all. I"m going to start a separate thread about that; been planning to.

27

What Are The Best Threads Here On JWN?

by minimus in

jw
friends

are there any type of threads that you especially enjoy?

.

are there any specific threads or posters that you look out for?.

Magnum

minimus:

I enjoy actual info that proves the Watchtower is wrong. i like facts. Some posters know the inner working of the Society and love insider information.

prologos:

anything that deals with the BIG Questions, the HOWS, the WHYs the cofties, Snare& Rackets.

I like what the quotes above refer to. I'm still trying to find answers to the big questions.

I like the following:

JW breaking news, latest scoop, analysis, inside info, predictions & speculations on org future, etc
JW history: Russell, Rutherford, Knorr & Freddie, Ray Franz, Ed Dunlap, etc
evolution vs creation, existence of God, etc
Bible analysis: archaeology, accuracy, doctrine, canon, etc
book recommendations like Bart Ehrman, Elaine Pagels, Ray Franz, etc

I'm extremely interested in what's going to happen to the org and its motives for doing what it does. I'm also still processing TTATT, so I like anything related to those subjects.

108

If God is real?

by suavojr in

jw
friends

if after you die you find yourself in front a god ready to judge you.

what will you say in your defense for not believing?

.

Magnum

When a non believer or doubter says he/she does not believe. It means that person does not believe in sin, does not believe we are broken and does not think we should be punished for not believing this things when we do not have hard evidence. All we have are gut feelings.

What??? How do you know what a non-believer or doubter means when he says he doesn't believe? If I just hear somebody say he doesn't believe, I assume, unless he specifies, that he means he doesn't believe in a deity. I think that's the only logical conclusion.

108

If God is real?

by suavojr in

jw
friends

if after you die you find yourself in front a god ready to judge you.

what will you say in your defense for not believing?

.

Magnum

opening post:

If after you die you find yourself in front a God ready to judge you. What will you say in your defense for not believing?

Perry:

Magnum, the OP clearly states that "if we find ourself in front of a God ready to judge you" what would be our defence in the judgment.

Personally, I don't have one. I am guilty for

1. Breaking God's laws

2. I am guilty of breaking man's laws that I have willingly agreed to live under and by

3. I am guilty of breakng my own laws, and worse.... for judging others as guilty for the same things I have given myself a pass on.

If I was to be judged BY ANY of these standards, I would be guilty and be defenseless.

Perry, I'm not trying to be mean, but I've got to be blunt. You must have poor comprehension. You're talking about judgement in general. The opening post was about judgement for "not believing". It wasn't about judgement for breaking Gods' laws or any of those things you mentioned. Maybe that's why it's easier for you to believe - maybe your intelligence level is lower. I think the evidence shows that lower intellegence correlates with greater capacity/desire to believe in deities and the supernatural.

You keep trying to tell me this post is about judgement. The judgement part of the OP is part of the "if" condition; the main point is about not believing - being judged after death for not believing. I don't know what the originator of the OP intended, but that's what his words indicate.

30

this weekend's "SPECIAL TALK"....

by stuckinarut2 in

ok, so as most know, this is the weekend of the "special talk" .... if anyone is going to the k hall, please shaer your thoughts on what makes is "so special".... i bet it will be more recycled same same.... "god loves you, he hates violence, he hates bad things happening to good people, he wants you all to be jw memebers...or he will kill you all at the big loving armageddon!!!!!!!

!.

Magnum

Yes, it is, but the talk itself, to me, seems to be indistinguishable from all the others. When you hear a former "special" talk that is now in regular rotation, you don't recognize it as being special.

108

If God is real?

by suavojr in

jw
friends

if after you die you find yourself in front a god ready to judge you.

what will you say in your defense for not believing?

.

Magnum

Magnum there is evidence everywhere. However, this thread is about God's Judgment. You must assume he exists to participate.

Actually this thread is about being judged for "not believing". So it's senseless and illogical for you to say that I "must assume he exists to participate".

The OP question is for those who don't believe, but who after death find out God does exist.

Also, you say "there is evidence everywhere"; I've never found one piece of conclusive evidence, even though I've actively searched for many years.

30

this weekend's "SPECIAL TALK"....

by stuckinarut2 in

ok, so as most know, this is the weekend of the "special talk" .... if anyone is going to the k hall, please shaer your thoughts on what makes is "so special".... i bet it will be more recycled same same.... "god loves you, he hates violence, he hates bad things happening to good people, he wants you all to be jw memebers...or he will kill you all at the big loving armageddon!!!!!!!

!.

Magnum

Could someone remind me, what is there warped reasoning in classifying a talk as being special?

Yeah, I never have understood that. Not one has ever been special. In fact, they just go into the regular talk rotation after they're given.