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I Would Like To Know Exactly What JWs Believe Or Not Believe In
by minimus 24 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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Cold Steel
As an outsider who has known and spoken to various and sundry Pioneers and even some Elders over the years, the greatest change has been that back in the 70s and 80s, most of the ones I met and knew were far more reliant on the Bible. They were always quick to give me the magazines, but their Bibles were well worn, and if I ever needed a NWT Bible, I could usually get one by giving the reps a dollar twenty-five. They'd actually have one with them. They were green, smelled like cheap ink and the paper seemed made out of rice (very thin). Now the Pioneers just want to stuff a magazine in my hand and be off. Very few actually seem to want to come back. Most are black in a mostly white neighborhood. Many are also with their kids and just want to hit the Denny's and go home. And, again, most don't seem to know anything about the Bible. If I ask them a question, they are more apt to bring me a magazine than to cite a scripture. They just weren't like that a few decades ago. Oh, and one more thing. They seem to have lost their passion about Armageddon. I reckon even a horse with a carrot dangling in front of them eventually learns it can never actually get to the carrot. It will always be before them. Sad, really.
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factfinder
Very good comments.
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Band on the Run
I was a minor and confused Roman Catholic and JW belief in my mind. JW.org and individual Witnesses I encounter are dropping cult terms. This may be more dangerous. It was easier to tell their beliefs were whacky. I've read portions of JW. org carefully. To a newcomer, it sounds so sane and normal. It is my personal belief that the GB hired a sophisticated marketing agency to write JW. org. If you look at the text carefully, the actual text may not be a lie or set off alarms. It is only my personal experience that lets me know they are lying on a greater scale than ever before.
I could never understand why converts who blatantly violated WT rules were shocked to be disfellowshiped and booted out. People here told me they never were told or understood b/c of the love bombing. I saw good people being kicked out the door frequently. I suggest this is far, far more dangerous.
I hope and pray that apostates can learn to battle on this new front. They are more sophisticated. It won't be so easy to find blatant distortionsand prove it to present Witnesses or newcomers. The cult language itself could be so funny if you were in a certain mood. Someone there actually has a brain and savvy. It is a far scarier WT.
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minimus
Si rarely see JWs looking for converts. They used to pride themselves as bible scholars. Now, they seldom talk about explanations. All they know is whatever the GB tells them is all they need. You don't have to understand things, just follow the leaders.