under_believer

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Posts by under_believer

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  19

  WTF weird JW videos on YouTube

  by under_believer in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i can't even explain it.

  this first one involves superman.

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxcbcwad6k8.

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  under_believer

  I "love" the message of the second one
  
  "The only people who listen to us are kids who are too ignorant to recognize a religious scam when they see it."
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  19

  WTF weird JW videos on YouTube

  by under_believer in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i can't even explain it.

  this first one involves superman.

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxcbcwad6k8.

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  under_believer

  I can't even explain it. This first one involves Superman
  
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxcbCWad6k8
  
  This one is just retarded
  
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcPiSa2OGnM
  
  Enjoy.... I guess? I'm sorry.
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  6

  Gilead

  by ALEX_2003 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i would like to know more about gilead .

  i always had a lot of curiosity on gilead..... .

  which is the " disciplines " (study course ) that they have?!

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  under_believer

  TRANSLATION
  
  I would like to know more about Gilead. Can anybody who knows about Gilead help answer my questions? I have always had a lot of curiosity about it.
  
  * What subjects are on the curriculum?
  * How long does class run each day?
  * Is there a special Gilead study book, like the special books that Pioneers get at Pioneer school, or like the elder manual?
  * Do they read the Bible at all at Gilead?
  * I have heard that Gilead students receive new publications before they are released at the assemblies. Is this true?
  * Does the study course include tests? If so, are these tests graded? Can you flunk out of Gilead based on these tests?
  * Are there any people here who have gone to Gilead, and if so, can they answer some of my questions?
  
  Thank you in advance for your comments.
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  113

  Is the USA Government Imperialistic? Is this what leads the invasion of Ira

  by frankiespeakin in

  1. social
  2. current

  is the us government imperialistic?

  is this why they have invaded iraq?

  who will be the next victim nation?.

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  under_believer

  I don't think that the US Government is "imperialistic".
  
  I think that rich people throughout history have always been rich because of the existence of a large number of poor people--and that population of poor people must be maintained for this situation to last. There's always an example of this at any given point in human history. I think that is what is going on with the West (including Britain and Europe) vs the rest of the world.
  
  I doubt they're deliberately imperialist. I think it just happens that way naturally. Also imperialism today has a lot more to do with corporations and globalization than it does the actions of specific nations or governments.
  
  I think this is one of the central paradoxes of human existence and that we'd be a long way towards enlightenment if we could solve this problem.
  
  Who's the next victim nation? Are we starting a pool? I say that if another country gets invaded by the US it will be Iran. However I think this is extremely unlikely. How would the US pay for it? They're stretched as thin as they can go already.
  
  As I already stated, though, we don't need to invade a country with armies to make it our bitch. All we have to do is build some Nike factories and maybe a Wal-Mart or two.
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  19

  What is Hell

  by Mrs Smith in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  is the jw teaching on hell correct or is there a real hell fire?

  has anyone done some research on this.

  this is one bible topic i just can't get my head around.

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  under_believer

  Heaven: carrot
  Hell: stick
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  33

  OTHERS WITH YOUR SAME NAME. CHECK IT OUT.

  by Outaservice in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  do you think your name is unique?

  you might be surprised!.

  put in your first and last name and see how many people in the united states have your same name.. http://ww2.howmanyofme.com/.

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  under_believer

  FIRST NAME
  
  * There are 1,090,386 people in the U.S. with the first name REDACTED.
  * Statistically the REDACTEDth most popular first name. (tied with 2 other first names)
  * 99.72 percent of people with the first name REDACTED are male.
  * Names similar to REDACTED:
  o REDACTED
  
  LAST NAME
  
  * There are 554,942 people in the U.S. with the last name REDACTED.
  * Statistically the REDACTEDth most popular last name.
  * Famous people with the last name REDACTED:
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  o REDACTED
  
  FULL NAME
  * There are 2,017 people in the U.S. named REDACTED REDACTED.
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  4

  Response From My PBS Affiliate, re: Knocking

  by Madame Quixote in

  1. social
  2. current

  http://pbsmail.org/unctv/join.html?r=2day2d61mpjye.

  >[ http://ajwrb.org/whatsnew/church_state.shtml.

  >see: [ http://www.silentlambs.org/ ]http://www.silentlambs.org to find.

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  under_believer

  >I wonder, how much money did the Watchtower Bible And Tract Society have
  >to infuse into PBS, via this show, and its director to promote themselves
  >on PBS? And how desperately must PBS need their money?
  
  While I sympathize with your feelings about not wanting Knocking to be shown, the quote above was ignorant.
  
  That's not how PBS or any other public broadcasting network operates. They aren't paid to show things, like a commercial network selling advertising time. On the contrary, they pay for content. Then they sell it to member stations in various markets (in Oregon, it's Oregon Public Broadcasting). Each member station has a great deal of latitude about which programs they purchase and broadcast; which means that the decision to show or not show Knocking is made on a market-by-market, city-by-city basis.
  
  60-70% of funds in the public broadcasting system come from private donations from listeners and viewers. These days a pittance comes from public funds (it used to be a lot more), and the rest is from various corporate and charity donors, like Volkswagen or GE, or the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, all of whom are eager to be mentioned as donors on the air.
  
  I think including that nasty, ill-informed little dig probably decreased the value of the rest of your message, which was important and correct.
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  10

  Independent thinking

  by under_believer in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  those of us who are still attending meetings for one reason or another often hear the phrase "independent thinking" bandied about, from the platform, from the society's literature, and from comments from other witnesses.

  independent thinking, we're told, is a snare.

  it's dangerous.

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  under_believer

  Now that I'm rereading that post, I'm trying to figure out why I put Galileo in there. I don't think the Witnesses owe their existence to Galileo.
  
  Oh well. It's been a long week (and it's only Wednesday.)
• 
  10

  Independent thinking

  by under_believer in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  those of us who are still attending meetings for one reason or another often hear the phrase "independent thinking" bandied about, from the platform, from the society's literature, and from comments from other witnesses.

  independent thinking, we're told, is a snare.

  it's dangerous.

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  under_believer

  Those of us who are still attending meetings for one reason or another often hear the phrase "INDEPENDENT THINKING" bandied about, from the platform, from the Society's literature, and from comments from other Witnesses. Independent thinking, we're told, is a snare. It's dangerous. Rather than indulging or falling victim to the trap of independent thinking, we should "wait on Jehovah" and show loyalty to His "Faithful and Discreet Slave". Otherwise, we may end up falling away and losing out on the rich blessings Jehovah has in store for us.
  
  I'd like to take this opportunity to examine where independent thinking has gotten humanity, and for that matter Jehovah's Witnesses themselves, so far.
  
  INDEPENDENT THINKING led Jesus to defy the established authority structure of his day, God's organization of the time. It caused him to start a whole new religion, one which wasn't obsessed with cleanliness, styles and manners of dress, yearly festivals, dietary restrictions, weekly gatherings, and which could only come to God through one specific class of people.
  
  INDEPENDENT THINKING led the Apostle Paul to reject the authority of the "apostles and older men in Jerusalem" to command him and compel his actions for fourteen years, while still recognizing their merit and holding esteem for their wisdom. It led him to witness to the nations, using politics and the legal system to give a testimony at the highest level of government. It resulted in Christianity's spread to the Gentiles, something that wouldn't have happened without Paul.
  
  INDEPENDENT THINKING led William Tyndale to reject the Catholic ban on translating the Bible into the language of the common man, a language linguists now refer to as Early Modern English. He saw the value of the new medium, print, and used it to spread the Bible far and wide. It led him to say to a corrupt Church official: "If God spare my life, ere many years I will cause a boy that driveth the plough to know more of the Scripture than thou dost." Independent thinking allowed Tyndale to coin the word "Jehovah". For his "sins," the Catholic Church called him a treasonous heretic, and strangled him, and burnt him at the stake. His final words were "Oh Lord, open the King of England's eyes."
  
  INDEPENDENT THINKING led Galileo to trumpet his discoveries to the world in the face of church persecution. It led him to endure house arrest for LIFE, because he wouldn't recant the truth: that the Earth revolves around the Sun. It led him to defy the Pope. And yet--it was the truth. Without independent thinking, the father of modern astronomy would have been just another nameless philosopher.
  
  INDEPENDENT THINKING, on August 2, 1776, led 56 Americans to sign a document that declared that the Thirteen United Colonies "are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to Great Britain." It led to the birth of modern democracy, and to the formation of a country that holds as ideals freedom of religion, freedom of assembly, and freedom of speech. And while that great nation, being of, by, and for imperfect humans, often fails in its abdication of those declarations, it still remains one of the shining lights of freedom in this darkened world.
  
  INDEPENDENT THINKING caused a young man in Philadelphia in the late 1800's to question the Presbyterianism he'd been taught all his life. It caused him to question the religion of his youth. It caused him to fall out of what his family had always considered the truth. It caused him, in 1870, to attend a presentation by a prominent Adventist, Jonas Wendell. In 1879, it caused him to found the religious journal Zion's Watch Tower and Herald of Christ's Presence, which is still in continuous publication down to this very day. Charles Taze Russell, the founder of the religion now known as Jehovah's Witnesses, was as guilty of independent thinking as any of the visionaries mentioned before. Agree or disagree with his religion, but it's impossible to deny that he practiced independent thinking.
  
  What do all of these independent thinkers have in common?
  
  Without them, Jehovah's Witnesses would not exist today.
  
  Why does the Watch Tower Society deny to its members this hallowed, God-given, sacred, basic human right? When its very existence is built on the blood, sweat, and tears of generations of independent thinkers, both famous and obscure? How can any Witness sit in their Kingdom Hall and nod their head in vacuous agreement when the Circuit Overseer condemns this practice? When the Watchtower Study decries it? When the elders discourage it?
  
  I'll let you meditate on the answer to that question.
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  144

  The New World Translation is a Mess

  by Amazing in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the new world translation (nwt) contains thousands of serious errors.

  the following regarding john 1:1, one of the most noteworthy verses to jehovah's witness and ex-jehovah's witnesses alike, provides a case example of how and why the nwt cannot be trusted.

  there some few scholars that translate the word was "a god" or "a god" or "divine" but they are in the very low percentages.. in greek john 1:1 says: "en arche en ho logos, kai ho logos en pros ton theon, kai theos en ho logos.

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  under_believer

  Yes, those are things which I, being the good little JW true believer, glossed past and accepted as perfectly reasonable "adjustments" to the scared text. However, those are, from the beginning, clearly delineated in the NWT as being just what they are: insertions, not translations.

  I find that argument to be disingenuous. When you were a Witness, did you think about how the NWT was translated? Whether "Jehovah" in the New Testament was an insertion or a translation? Whether this was acceptable to you? Perhaps you can honestly say you did, but how many of your Witness peers did the same? For 99% of these folks, the NWT is simply the Word of God, and they see "Jehovah" in the NT as being in the original text. The Society's honesty on this matter is irrelevant given the weight the translation is given elsewhere and how little attention is called to that particular method of translation.

  Even though the Society admits the facts of the matter in the Divine Name brochure, many Witnesses are unaware of this fact and will actually argue it until it's pointed out to them. I've personally experienced this on a number of occasions.