No, I don't think the cancellation of the large stadiums and the transfer to small assembly halls has anything to do with the pedo investigation. It is due to shortage of money. It is a small fraction of the greater consolidation and shrinking procedure. In my country (with no investigations going on) the same has happened: almost not one RC takes place in rented locations, but only in WT-owned assembly halls.
Posts by Syme
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24AUSTRALIA - All large JW Regional Conventions cancelled for 2015
by jwleaks innow we know why the governing body of jehovah's witnesses cancelled all the major regional conventions of jehovah's witnesses for 2015 and are only holding smaller conventions at the jw assembly halls.
"imitate jesus" convention series australia schedule .
interestingly the first round of regional conventions are due this weekend in the jw assembly halls in sydney (new south wales), melbourne (victoria), and brisbane (queensland).
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Just wrote my DA letter....
by dubstepped inmy wife and i planned on fading but the elders now want a shepherding call and we are just done.
i know that many play the game to try to stay in, but i'm not a game player and neither is my wife.
our families already shun us because we reached out to a disfellowshipped family member.
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Syme
@dubstepped,
I completely share your point of view.
DA instead of fading may be an extreme solution, but sometimes the extreme solution is the only solution.
The announcement of the DA will not take long, the policy says it can be done in the very next service meeting. (Only when there's a DFing decision a 7-day space is given, in case one wants to appeal, but in the DA the appeal does not apply, obviously.)
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Inside the famous Denisova cave in Siberia
by fulltimestudent inwhen our ancestors first migrated out of africa around 60,000 years ago, they were not alone.
at that time, at least two other species of hominid cousins walked the eurasian landmassneanderthals and denisovans.
as our modern human ancestors migrated through eurasia, they encountered the neanderthals and interbred.
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Syme
I've done a DNA sequence, and I have 2.7% of Neanderthal DNA in my body, which is the average for a person of European ancestry.
Next time you see a typically white American creationist (jw or not), tell them that they carry the evidence for evolution (and for Neanderthal relation) in their own bodies, and the only way to get rid of it is, you know, get rid of their own bodies.
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Can a video involving a christien having sex be viewed and used by elders?
by StephaneLaliberte inlets say someone has a sexual encounter and a third party video taps it.
in canada, it would be illegal for the one that taped the video to show it to the elders as this would be "invasion of privacy".
what i am wondering however is if any legal action can be done against the elders and the wt if they view this video and take it into account in a judicial comity.
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Syme
I don't know about the legal issues involved in that country, but according to WT policy, the only 2 things capable of forming a JC are confession and 2 human witnesses, nothing else. So, videotape is *not* typically capable of forming a JC, unless it leads the alleged "sinner" to confess. If the accused does not confess even in front of a videotape, a JC cannot be formed. -
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To DA or not to DA, that is the question?
by dubstepped inlet me preface this by saying that i don't expect anyone here to make my decision for me.
i do however note that like the bible says, in the multitude of counselors there is wisdom, and this is a huge decision, so i wanted to put it out there for discussion.
i really appreciate your words of wisdom, as this affects not just me but my wife also, as we find ourselves in the same boat.
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Syme
@dubstepped
I think that there's more chance of helping some waking up if you DA, and not by just fading. If you just fade, most will think that there are various personal reasons for you to leave, like guilt, bitterness, something emotional; some could think that it is "doubt", but doubt is something j-dubs are used to; they will assume that you may have "doubts" but are not completely unbelieving. Having "doubts" is not sufficient to make a j-dub wake up.
On the other hand, a clean-cut DA will send the message that you have no "doubts", but have rejected the WTS completely. That fact is going to leave a strong impression to anyone who knows you, positive or negative, it doesn't matter. One needs something strong to wake up. Sure, some may harden their fanaticism and see you as a Devil's child at least, but a few (who are already thinking) will think more, and it is almost certain that some (even a very few) will approach you secretly after you DA, violating the society's orders. Those are the people that you will help.
Besides, you cannot really help someone wake up when you're on the inside officially; since anything "heretical" you say will very possibly get to the elders, making the forming of a JC almost certain; which will force you to either face a JC or DA in a haste.
That's all IMHO, of course :-)
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Where are all these New Anointed Ones Coming from?
by John Aquila inback in the early 70s, right before 1975 we had about 7 or 8 thousand professed anointed.
cant remember the exact number.
but at every convention we were told that the end is close ---because---the number of anointed is getting smaller and smaller.
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Syme
It is quite possible that they indeed believe it; after all, think just how many millions (or, better, billions) of religious men and women all around the world believe that they will go to heaven after they die.
So, why all the fuss? Religious belief in impossible scenarios (to the point of delusion) is, alas, the rule in humans, not the exception.
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I disfellowshipped my parents this week..
by fulano ini just wrote them a mail, telling them to not contact me any more under any circumstances, illness or death (79 and 83 years old).
unless they leave the cult and would apologize for our f*'.ed-up upbringing which ruined our whole life.
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Syme
If my parents shun me after I make the DA step, it is possible that I will shun them back.
It is also possible that I will not help them when they are in need, if they persist on the shun rule. I think this is fair.
But, I will NOT request them to leave their cult/religion. It is their right. And we (as former jws, having suffered discrimination, persecution etc.) are supposed to have a heart for personal human rights. If they want to live in their delusions, let them do so. That is completely different from my requesting them to drop the shun rule.
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Google: most accurate bible in the world
by enigma1863 ini just googled "most accurate bible in the world" and got new world translation as the answer.
comments?
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Syme
If you type "most accurate bible in the world" it says NWT.
If you type "most accurate bible" it says KJV.
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If you were put in charge of the Governing Body tomorrow...
by FusionTheism inif you were somehow magically put in-charge of the governing body tomorrow, by jesus, with the rules being, you could not teach anything that would be considered outright apostasy and you could not teach anything that would be considered to cause doubt about god's existence... (so as not to arouse suspicion).
what "new light" or "clarified understandings" would you introduce first?.
and which later on?.
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Syme
I'd issue a letter to all congregations that would explain that: a) evolution is true, b) Adam never existed, there's no ransom, c) the Abrahamic deity is a myth as all other tribal end ethnic deities are, d) this is the only life you'll ever have and e) the FDS & WTS is dissolved.
With concluding words: "Live your life. You are free now".
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"Your Inner Fish" with Neil Shubin on BBC TV
by cofty ina 3 part documentary based on neil shubin's work and narrated by him is currently being shown on bbc 4.. part 1 is on i-player now and part 2 is live right now.. 180 minutes of clearly presented evidence for evolution including the discovery of tiktaalik.
outstanding!.
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Syme
The book, especially, is excellent.