Posts by Pete Zahut

41

What Motivates Jehovah's Witnesses To Stay In The Religion?

by minimus in

jw
friends

i believe it is mostly guilt.

many witnesses pioneer or "reach out" in the religion because they feel guilty.. they may feel they aren't doing enough.

they may have secretly "sinned" against rules imposed by the organization.

Pete Zahut

I figure as long as my prayers are being answered, I must be where Jehovah wants me to be---with the JW's.

Wow Watcher....how nice that Jehovah is making sure you have someone to ride around with for a few hours in a comfy car while children all over the world are just one bowl of rice away from utter starvation. We wouldn't want to see you suffer by having to work alone in service or with someone you don't really like. Maybe since Jehovah is manipulating others people's lives so you get what you want, you could try praying for something that will help other people and share the blessings.

If your "service buddy" was killed in a car accident on the way to the Kingdom Hall that day, would you have blamed it on Jehovah? Or maybe it would have been your fault. After all, you pretty much said it was his answer to your prayer that made her come to the metting for service in the first place.

41

What Motivates Jehovah's Witnesses To Stay In The Religion?

by minimus in

jw
friends

i believe it is mostly guilt.

many witnesses pioneer or "reach out" in the religion because they feel guilty.. they may feel they aren't doing enough.

they may have secretly "sinned" against rules imposed by the organization.

Pete Zahut

Like a drug, it quiets the anxiety caused by life's unknowns (for a time) when they hand over their personal responsibility, to someone else who makes them feel taken care of, superior to others and who supplies a chalk board and pointer and who tells you what to do at every turn. By the time a tolerance builds up to this opium, their in it so far that their personal growth has been badly stunted and the withdrawls and rehab are too much for most folks to face.

15

German "JW's" just after WW2

by Phizzy in

when i was growing up in the religion i heard a number of times that immediately after ww2 many jw's in germany left the religion.. i was told that this was, despite their courageously opposing the nazi regime, and enduring concentration camps etc, after the war , they fell prey to "materialism".. there was much shaking of heads as to how this could happen.. whilst reading an old thread the other day, i read there that these ones who left did so because they did not agree with doctrinal changes that had gone on whilst they had been cut off by the nazis and the war, "materialism" was nothing to do with it.. is this another case of watchtower revisionist "history" ?.

does anyone know the truth about what happened at this time ?.

Pete Zahut

What I heard was they let the "anxieties of life and materialism" weigh them down and distract them. We were always told that our spirituality is kept strong by adversity and that comfort and prosperity were "our" test and it could be the undoing of all of us here in the U.S.

Had these Germans not been JW's they likely would never have been imprisioned. Once they were locked up in there, it didn't matter if they renounced their faith or stayed faithful, they were stuck and had no choice but to do all they could to survive. How disilliusioning it must have been to survive through that Hell, only to come of it and find out it wasn't even the great tribulation at all and also to realize that the leaders of the religion hadn't suffered one bit. These survivors had to start all over again and their old friend, the carrot of the New System was still there being dangled in front of them but only after the real great trubulation came first.

3

Kingdom Melodies for Kids on JW.org

by Imminent1975 in

http://www.jw.org/en/bible-teachings/family/children/become-jehovahs-friend/songs/.

wow, jw.org thinks it is now disney.

unbelievable..

Pete Zahut

I also see at the bottom of the page you can request a Bible Study. Makes me think if you sent them your address and or phone number, you could be prepared to ask them some hard to answer questions.

18

The Memorial campaign: What question from a householder would have made you think?

by Faithful Witness in

i know that soon, the jws in our area will be out in full force, on their hit and run campaign with invitations to the memorial.

.

did you ever encounter a householder during this campaign, that made you stop and think about what you were doing?

Pete Zahut

Luke 22:15

15 And He said to them, "I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; 16 for I say to you, I shall never again eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God." 17 And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He said, "Take this and share it among yourselves;…for I say to you, I shall never again eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God." 17 And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He said, "Take this and share it among yourselves; 18 for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes."…

Does this mean that Jesus will actually eat a passover meal and drink wine in heaven ? If not, how much of this celebration and it's continuance to our day, was meant to be taken literally?

Are you a Diciple of Jesus ? If so, why don't you take part in the emblems like Jesus Disiples did?

How do we know that he only meant for those he was talking to in this scripture, to keep on doing this ?

If Jesus set up his kingdom in 1914, why do you keep on celebrating this event?

16

What is a Blessing?

by Suspicious in

being a born in, this question got me thinking.

what really is a blessing?

i read so much and hear so much about it in the kingdom halls.

Pete Zahut

I know an elderly regular Pioneer sister who's husband died young after accidently being exposed to radiation at a nuclear power plant he happened to be making a delivery at. 30 years later she got a huge settlement from the government when a bunch of wicked worldly people found her after extensive research and talked her into being part of a class action lawsuit.

"It's evident that Jehovah had a hand in this blessing because her social security was not enough to allow her to continue her Pioneering anymore"

uhhhh where was Jehovah when her Elder and soon to be Circuit Overseer Husband and thousands of others, got exposed to radiation. Maybe it was part of God's plan to kill off the husband and the others, so she'd get a nice settlement that would enable her Pioneer.

8

B.O.E. 13/01/14

by LucidChimp in

"in minnesota, a man said to his visitors: "i saw you coming, so i went to get this book.

" he held up a bible teach book and said that when he was in prison, he stole the book.

when asked if he had read it, he replied that he was going to read it on the weekend while he was fishing.

Pete Zahut

You're an ex-con ??? May I be the first to welcome you to our Kingdom Hall. Come on in....oh....but don't sit by that guy over there. We don't talk to him because he let his little boy with Hemophilia have a blood transfusion.... none of us have anything to do with him or his wife. Oh and that young couple over there, they confessed to sleeping together before they were married so we can't have anything to do with them for at least a year. Shhhh....the talk on "Showing Chrisitan Kindness" is about to start.

22

Do JWs use the Baptizmal formula?

by Hortenzie in

do the elders say: "in the name of the father, the son, and the holy spirit" when they are immersing the one being baptized?.

Pete Zahut

Hortenzie, what is the phone number that you used ? I have a few questions of my own to ask as well.

They do seem to be on the defensive much of the time but that's what happens when you set yourself up as an authority on a given subject and when you start handing out rules and punishments rather than being there to offer advice and guidance.

51

What's The Worst Scandal You Know Regarding Jehovah's Witnesses?

by minimus in

jw
friends

.....whether it be in the congregation or from "headquarters"?

Pete Zahut

Two mid twenty's couples in our KH were good friends until it was discovered that the husband of couple #1managed to set up a hidden video camera in the bathroom of couple #2 and had been secretly video taping the wife of couple #2.

All hell broke loose when couple #2 eventually discovered the camera. Both of these couples were from families with Elders for Fathers. The Elderette mother of the girl who was video taped, was out for blood. People took sides, people left the congregation, people were removed, relatives of the family left the truth entiely. Couple #2 got divorced. The Husband of couple #1 got DF'd and he and his wife moved away for a few years. They are back now and are still together. The damage that was done to everyone else is still in effect. I can't beleive this guy has the nerve to show up at the same hall. The first time I saw him after they came back was when he walked up the asile at the assembly hall during the meeting as if he hadn't a care in the world.

11

"Apostate" Letter Writing

by kneehighmiah in

jw
friends

during these cold months i need a way to keep my hours up and stay under the radar.

i'm still an ms so i can't totally fake it.

so i decided to try letter writing to avoid going out into the cold.

Pete Zahut

I understand where you're comming from with this but really, look what you've let them reduce you to. Don't give them that power. Why let them make you stoop to that level ? Do you really want to be that guy? If you can honestly recommend the JW teachings, then go out in service and turn in the correct amount of time . If you can't, don't go out in service and don't turn in time. You don't owe anyone any explainations as to why you aren't turning in time. If there is a God, surely he'd be more pleased with someone who is honest and above board. Whether there is or isn't a God, you will have more respect for yourself and that is worth a lot.