Posts by slimboyfat

15

Are there any new ideas coming from the Watchtower Society?

by RULES & REGULATIONS in

my brother ( who is an elder ) tries very hard to get me back to the meetings.

he calls me every time he and his son ( he's also an elder) give a public talk.

they send me the zoom i.d.

slimboyfat

The new study book has a different slant on Jesus’ role in creation.

Compare the comment in the Enjoy Life Forever! book (2022):

Jesus is a powerful spirit who lives in heaven. He was created by Jehovah God before everything else. For that reason, he is called “the firstborn of all creation.” The Bible refers to Jesus as God’s “only-begotten Son” because Jesus alone was directly created by Jehovah. Jesus worked closely with his Father, Jehovah, helping Him to create all other things. Jesus continues to enjoy a close relationship with Jehovah. He loyally serves as God’s spokesman, “the Word,” delivering His messages and instructions.

With the Insight book (1988):

Not a co-Creator. The Son’s share in the creative works, however, did not make him a co-Creator with his Father. The power for creation came from God through his holy spirit, or active force. And since Jehovah is the Source of all life, all animate creation, visible and invisible, owes its life to him. Rather than a co-Creator, then, the Son was the agent or instrumentality through whom Jehovah, the Creator, worked. Jesus himself credited God with the creation, as do all the Scriptures.

Is that a change or am I reading too much into it?

2

Very early Watch Tower Material

by vienne in

many of my posts ask for scans of rare watchtower relevant material.

usually that produces no result.

this time i'm showing images of some.

slimboyfat

Well I hope Atlantis gets copies at some point, because he always shares his finds for others to use in their own research. 👍

9

1936 "Riches"- How Many Versions Were There?

by Atlantis in

jw
friends

atlantis:.

how many versions of the book called riches were there?.

that was a project jerome was working on, so we will give him credit for this information.. .

slimboyfat

I’ve got two copies, unfortunately both just the boring phonograph editions

11530

It's been a long 9 years Lloyd Evans / John Cedars

by Newly Enlightened in

original reddit post (removed).

slimboyfat

Las Malvinas tell us what the detail he’s hiding is, don’t leave us hanging …

11530

It's been a long 9 years Lloyd Evans / John Cedars

by Newly Enlightened in

original reddit post (removed).

slimboyfat

but now I see it’s another attic yes you are right he has been kicked out and lives in a cheap bedsit

That would seem to be the most parsimonious explanation despite all his bluster about it being his own plan. In order to understand what he is doing it really is necessary to completely discount what he says he is doing. Any correlation between his words and his actions is purely coincidental because he says whatever is useful to himself to say in any given moment regardless of whether it is true or false, or indeed contradicts what he has already said or what is otherwise demonstrably true.

9

1936 "Riches"- How Many Versions Were There?

by Atlantis in

jw
friends

atlantis:.

how many versions of the book called riches were there?.

that was a project jerome was working on, so we will give him credit for this information.. .

slimboyfat

Fascinating!

Sometimes changes were made due to refinements of belief, other times proof reading glitches or copyright issues played a part. Sometimes what was produced caused questions to be raised.

It’s a wonder they didn’t change the picture with apparent sodomy in it. Or did they?

43

Research paper on Effects of Shunning

by peacefulpete in

after being around this site for 21 years now, i've heard many recount their stories and feelings.

many times i can immediately relate but other times they seem to have had a very different experience with the church.

i'm sure that is because not only are all of us different in personality, but congregations and family dynamics vary as well.

slimboyfat

I guess you are right, they are explicit about demanding that people do what they say. But they do seem to believe they are doing it for the ‘right reasons’, as such. In other words, I don’t think they are using religion as some sort of ‘cover’ for their wish to control people. They genuinely do believe what they teach and therefore believe it is for the best if people do as they say. There may be a few Watchtower leaders who don’t believe it or are entirely cynical power maniacs, but I think most are genuine.

People who object to the level of control the GB exercises who also believe in the Bible would have to grapple with the fact that the GB can point to many good examples in the Bible as the basis for their style of authority. (Moses and Korah, Jesus telling his followers to forsake all else and follow him, Ananias and Sapphira in Acts, Paul in his letters, and so on)

43

Research paper on Effects of Shunning

by peacefulpete in

after being around this site for 21 years now, i've heard many recount their stories and feelings.

many times i can immediately relate but other times they seem to have had a very different experience with the church.

i'm sure that is because not only are all of us different in personality, but congregations and family dynamics vary as well.

slimboyfat

I don’t think they purposely try to control people, it’s just sort of happened that way.

For example, one of their most powerful means of control is their effective stigmatisation of higher education over many years. This has contributed significantly to a compliant and ‘thriving’ religious community, compared with many other declining religions.

But did they sit down one day and say to themselves, ‘if we ban higher education then they will lack critical thinking skills and they’ll do whatever we say’? I don’t think so. I think they genuinely believe the end is near, that higher education is a waste of time and/or is corrosive of faith because of morality on campus and because of the secular ethos. I think they really believe those things. So to the extent that this apparently results in high level of control, I don’t think they are being Machiavellian about it, it’s just a natural consequence of their genuine attitude to the world and them advocating the same to Watchtower members.

43

Research paper on Effects of Shunning

by peacefulpete in

after being around this site for 21 years now, i've heard many recount their stories and feelings.

many times i can immediately relate but other times they seem to have had a very different experience with the church.

i'm sure that is because not only are all of us different in personality, but congregations and family dynamics vary as well.

slimboyfat

peacefulpete on this thread, about a research project, I noted the article by Rosie Luther, as well as others on the topic of leaving JWs/shunning. There has been a tremendous amount published on the topic in the past few years.

https://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/5804993693614080/research-project-study-designed-explore-experience-leaving-jehovahs-witnesses

On the topic of the decline of other the churches I found this interesting video and article about the Anglican Church and the United Reformed Church.

https://medium.com/inspire-believe-grow/the-decline-and-possible-extinction-of-the-united-reformed-church-in-the-uk-61f2a9807cd

https://youtu.be/Me_wTLmr3bQ

94

New GB

by XBEHERE in

jw
friends

gage fleegle.

jeffrey winder.

anyone know them?

slimboyfat

In that convoluted explanation of the “generation” that Splane gave he said the second group of anointed overlap the first group. But did he explicitly say that the second group were actually anointed while the first group were still alive? Maybe they can stretch this out by saying that, while the new GB members might not have been anointed when Fred Franz died in 1992, they were alive 1992, and that counts! 💡