did you ever wonder that as a jw?.
if all the trouble on this planet is down to satan and the demons, why not just get rid of them and then leave humankind alone and see how we go from there?
wouldn't a god who "is love" (1 john 4:8) full of mercy and justice at least try that first?
That problem (the existence of evil) is a problem for all religions, not just WTS.
As Epicurus had said:
Why God doesn't destroy evil?
If he wants but cannot, then he is not almighty.
If he can but does not want, then he is not benevolent.
If neither does he want nor can, then why call him God?
The official doctrine of the Watchtower is that God can destroy Satan but doesn't want to, for the time being (meaning, for the past 6,000 years). So, how can he be benevolent?
they have printed a series of articles about suicide.
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So, on the one hand the unnatural living style of an active jw is such that he is highly more prone to depression than a 'worldly' one, and on the other hand they print magazines to help you with a problem that probably wouldn't be there in the first place if you weren't in the WT!
As with other teachings, the method is: first create the problem, then present our solution (to the problem we created) as a God-given gift.
they are now apostates in the eyes of the church.they are ostracized by family and friends.they have lost the privilege of confessing their sins to a priest and the blessed sacrament of the holy eucharist.just imagine and 18 yr old getting the boot from the parents to leave home.. now,the brainwashed cult member has the audacity to tell family and friends(if allowed) that the r.c.c.
lied to him/her and said that they could not read and understand the bible w/o the help of the priest.heaven forbid,if they read the publications of the watchtower,the faithful slave(gb) tells j.w.
that they cannot read the bible on their own and understand it w/o the help of the slave.it is in one ear and out the other.. r.c.c would not ostracize their members..
The R.Catholics would not ostracize? Not so long ago, the Catholic church would ostracize from the land of the living. The only reason they don't have heretics killed now is because the secular states don't allow them to. Besides, doesn't St.Paul himself (1 Cor. 5:5) instruct Christians to throw the transgressor into fire?
Whenever, and wherever, a religion has actual power over its members (not only spiritual one), has usually dissenters and transgressors killed, not just ostracized. That was the case with the Hebrews in 'biblical' times, that was the case with Christianity throughout the Middle Ages, that is the case today in Islamic states, and that would be the case with JWs if they had real power.
Again: the only reason that christian religions don't execute people anymore is because they've lost political power.
So don't be carried away. All religions, ecpecially all of monotheism (which is a fanatical idea in its basis) are potential (and often, real) killers.
i received an email from a jw that got married, but the wife never had sex with him.
they were together for a period of years.
he told the elders, but they said there was nothing that could be done.
From what I remember, there's no such concept as 'consummation' of a marriage in WT policy. It is the signing of papers by the 2 spouses in front of 2 witnesses that officially starts a marriage. *That* is the actual 'consummation'. So, whether they have sex after that or not, is irrelevant.
Suppose a spouse has an accident when they drive out of the wedding party and gets incapable of having sexual relations from that point on, before having their first night. What then, is the marriage not legitimate because they didn't sexually consummate it? Can the other spouse cancel the marriage, or have another wife? Obviously not. Technically, this is not really different from the experience you shared (it is ethically different). And as we know, when elders look up a case, their only anxiety is to be *technically* correct, i.e. in order with the various regulations. Hence, the disfellowshipping of the poor guy.
fine.
holy spirit appointed overseers to shepherd?
6:1, 2; jude 22) are these not good reasons for being obedient to those who are taking the lead?read hebrews 13:17.. .
Thanks Billy
To me the most disturbing image of that article was the 1st image (first paragraph) with the shepherd 'taking care of' a sheep. It is a very blatant image: so the elders are actual HUMANS while the rest of the JWs are quite really, SHEEP.
That image discards any claims that the elders are 'equal' or even 'servants' to the r&f...
If Jesus did the preaching work in JW/evangelical style, he would say:
-Hello, may I take a few moments to talk to you about myself?
... btw it was soooo boooorrrinnng!!!
draw close to jehovah(tm)/bookstudy:.
excruciatingly boring.
DATA-DOG,
Thanks for sharing the experience, my own from that meeting was just about the same. It is *encouraging* to see that "those things happen to more of our brothers worldwide" .
And nice idea there with the alcohol! I hadn't thought of it myself! Now, that's a good idea; and maybe necessary, for one to cope with the ordeal of the attendance...
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from the uk independent: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/politics/oxfam-warns-davos-of-pernicious-impact-of-the-widening-wealth-gap-9070714.html.
It is not just true, it is commonplace.
This is simply the system called Capitalism. If you want to have more than average, another one will have less than average. If you want to be ridiculously rich, lots of other people will have to be extremely poor. Capitalism is the system that ALLOWS you to do this very thing.
And in all this, you have the Watchtower saying that being concerned with the social problems of our planet equals to breach of neutrality. So, guess what? When you stay ''neutral'' in cases of injustice, who is the one to gain profit? The one who imposes injustice.
my facebook was "lit up" today with all the out cries about the possibility of the organization's website being banned in russia.. as many of you recall this past august a court in russia banned the website and sought to make accessing the website in russia illegal.
well tomorrow the appeal by the org will be heard in court.
if the appeal is denied, jw.org will no longer be available in that part of the world, causing endless lamentations and cries of "persecution", only to bolster the idea that they are truly hated by the world because they are true christians.
Classifying the JW religion as "extremist" may sound good; they are extremist, and we know it first hand.
But, please, remember that the Orthodox church in Russia is in pretty well standing. Now, ok, some of you may find joy in the fact that the cult that has enslaved you is being persecuted, but why leave the Orthodox in favor? Are they better?
I can't take the part of the Russian government in this, because the current government of Russia is a nationalistic, religious, exrtremely conservative government, with a president who plays the Tsar. If they want to be severe with the "snare and racket" of religion, they should do it with all religions. The greedy Orthodox priests are no better than jws to be treated like royalty.
i think the organization is worried most about how jws will stay loyal to their families even as it rejects the admonition of the gb and elders..
Apathy, I too think.
One the one hand, apathy inside the org: time is passing, more are getting too tired waiting for an ever-coming End. Humanity is not going into chaos, but getting better and better, regardless (and in contrast to) 'prophecies'.
One the other hand, apathy inside, means apathy in preaching. I see this happening worldwide (yearbook): too many wasted hours of preaching, for so few results. I see it also in my cong and town: a lot of hours in the field, with practically zero results. Preaching has been degraded to a mere distribution of brochures and magazines advertizing a website.
So I think stagnation is on the corner. Control, however, will continue to exist in the remaining 'faithfuls'. The GB has nothing to fear of people who willingly (and unwittingly) find joy in being called "sheep", and competing each other who is going to be more obedient.
