Posts by slimboyfat

70

Witness Carts - A Vehicle for Significant Decline

by slimboyfat in

i was stalking to a jw today about her recent experience on the carts and with being a jw generally.

until this conversation i considered the carts as just an ineffective preaching method and a harmless waste of time.

but now i wonder if the effect of the carts might be to produce noticeable decline in jw numbers.

slimboyfat

jwleaks I'm not sure I understand. You what me to summarise the article, or you're objecting to me attributing the views of one sociologist to sociologists in general?

147

in response to the 37 threads in my evolution is a fact series - see bottom of op for links - perry posted a link to an article "44 reasons why evolution isn't true".. i offered him a challenge on the thread and by pm.

predictably he is totally ignoring it, so i am offering the challenge to any evolution-denier who thinks they have evidence to support their position.. please present one specific piece of evidence for creationism.. my task will be to refute it with evidence within 24 hours.. then i will present one piece of evidence for evolution and your challenge will be the same.. all posts must be as succinct as reasonably possible.

entirely in your own words, without copy-paste, videos or links.. please post your interest to take part and we will set it up before the first actual post in the exchange.

slimboyfat

I'm not a theist. I'm somebody who thinks dogmatism is ridiculous in all its forms. A couple of years ago I might have said I was agnostic or atheist. Now I think it's more agnostic 50/50 could go either way. I can't explain how we can understand our world if there is no being beyond being to explain how minds that can contemplate themselves arose. I'm about 99% sure evolution is a better explanation of life than creationism. But I've changed my mind about a lot of things.

Never say never again!

For me the lesson of my encounter with JW certaintism is not to replace it with another, but to embrace uncertainty, diversity, and the double edged persistent threat/possibility of being wrong.

37

How Long Does This Religion Have Left?

by pale.emperor in

the generation that will be no means pass away have passed away.. the 144,000 were sealed up in 1935, oh, no wait, we got that wrong, we still have some.. russel is the faithful and wise servant... oh, no he wasn't it was me, rutherford... no, actually, we got that wrong it's knorr... erm, no we mean the governing body.. shunning is pagan, true christians would never do that (1946)... oh, actually, we should do that too.. the revelation book has been re-written.. the un is the satan's visible organisation.. wtbs signs up for fellowship with the un in 1991.. exposed in the guardian newspaper so ends it's fellowship in 2001.. the greatest man book is now obsolete and replaced with another jesus book.. the mags are reduced in pages.. encouraged to use tablets instead of actual books to save paper (money).

halls being sold off.. congregations sharing halls.. society owned buildings being sold off.. video pertitioning for money only last year to fund a new building.. bethelites reduced.. missionaries sent back home.. young members leaving.. long time members discovering the history and leaving.. how long do you think this religion has left?

i cant see it being here in another 100 years.

slimboyfat

I think it will start declining within 5 years, but may take a couple of hundred years to fold completely. It's neither a new religion in the making nor will it collapse very soon. We're looking at long term gradual decline. Like the Christian Scientists except even longer.

147

Challenge to Creationists

by cofty in

in response to the 37 threads in my evolution is a fact series - see bottom of op for links - perry posted a link to an article "44 reasons why evolution isn't true".. i offered him a challenge on the thread and by pm.

predictably he is totally ignoring it, so i am offering the challenge to any evolution-denier who thinks they have evidence to support their position.. please present one specific piece of evidence for creationism.. my task will be to refute it with evidence within 24 hours.. then i will present one piece of evidence for evolution and your challenge will be the same.. all posts must be as succinct as reasonably possible.

entirely in your own words, without copy-paste, videos or links.. please post your interest to take part and we will set it up before the first actual post in the exchange.

slimboyfat

Is that a fact or your opinion?

70

Witness Carts - A Vehicle for Significant Decline

by slimboyfat in

i was stalking to a jw today about her recent experience on the carts and with being a jw generally.

until this conversation i considered the carts as just an ineffective preaching method and a harmless waste of time.

but now i wonder if the effect of the carts might be to produce noticeable decline in jw numbers.

slimboyfat

Lol you're a bloody pest!

50

Does the governing body know what they are doing?

by Gefangene in

what do you guys think?.

are they only some uber religious zealots or do they pursue hidden agendas beyond religiosity?.

slimboyfat

They clearly don't know what the hell they are doing. Knorr knew how to run an efficient organisation. And Franz knew how to construct a wacky but somehow coherent and compelling end times theology. Of the current GB, none of them appear to have either skill.

70

Witness Carts - A Vehicle for Significant Decline

by slimboyfat in

i was stalking to a jw today about her recent experience on the carts and with being a jw generally.

until this conversation i considered the carts as just an ineffective preaching method and a harmless waste of time.

but now i wonder if the effect of the carts might be to produce noticeable decline in jw numbers.

slimboyfat

My main point was that the WT may be playing with fire here. Boring and ineffective as door to door ministry is, it has been a tried and tested method for keeping JWs active in the faith for over a hundred years. Sociologists have argued that the function of JW door to door ministry is more about maintaining commitment of existing members than about recruiting new members. See: Munters, Q. T. “Recruitment as a Vocation: The Case of Jehovah's Witnesses.” Sociologica Nearlandica 7 (1971): 88-100.

So by substituting cart witnessing for traditional door to door preaching the leadership might not only fail to gain new members. They may lower the morale and eventually the numbers of current JWs who are willing to preach and remain active. They may have underestimated how important traditional door to door ministry has been in structuring JW life, self-understanding and commitment. Over emphasis of cart witnessing threatens to undermine that.

42

Feeling Sad After Uncovering TTATT

by pale.emperor in

my initial pangs of unease and doubt led me to research some things.

well, a lot of things really.

i've never felt comfortable using the bible to try to calculate dates (1914).

slimboyfat

I can relate to that!

147

Challenge to Creationists

by cofty in

in response to the 37 threads in my evolution is a fact series - see bottom of op for links - perry posted a link to an article "44 reasons why evolution isn't true".. i offered him a challenge on the thread and by pm.

predictably he is totally ignoring it, so i am offering the challenge to any evolution-denier who thinks they have evidence to support their position.. please present one specific piece of evidence for creationism.. my task will be to refute it with evidence within 24 hours.. then i will present one piece of evidence for evolution and your challenge will be the same.. all posts must be as succinct as reasonably possible.

entirely in your own words, without copy-paste, videos or links.. please post your interest to take part and we will set it up before the first actual post in the exchange.

slimboyfat

So there we have it.

70

Witness Carts - A Vehicle for Significant Decline

by slimboyfat in

i was stalking to a jw today about her recent experience on the carts and with being a jw generally.

until this conversation i considered the carts as just an ineffective preaching method and a harmless waste of time.

but now i wonder if the effect of the carts might be to produce noticeable decline in jw numbers.

slimboyfat

Sit in cars watching carts, wow never heard of that one.