The Berean

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Posts by The Berean

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  36

  Please tell everone why you are a good person worth getting to know ....

  by The Berean in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  feel free !.

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  The Berean

  Hi Again:

  I believe all of us have certain gifts that others can benefit from. I guess sometimes a JW upbringing does not allow some to feel good about who they are. Personally, I am still looking for reasons to like other people ...
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  20

  HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH DISAPPOINTMENT ? FORGIVE OR FESTER ?

  by Sad Michael in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i'm sorry for ruffling feathers here.

  i seem to be quite good at it lately, as my wife has adopted apostate views ( you know what i mean) and seems to have found a new calling in trying to "free" all those who will listen.

  i get all the other side of the coin i can handle right here.

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  The Berean

  From another direction:

  When it comes to forgive and forget it is hard for me not to recall scriptures that set a precedent. Did God ever forgive Satan for his actions? Was not sickness and death a recurring penalty fot mankind due to Adam and Eve's choices? Then again, doesn't scripture tell us sins were passed on from one generation to another for those continuing to sin? Genesis 3: 14-15, 17-19, Exodus 20:5-6

  To me , we are trapped. The Bible says that the "wages sin pays is death" and also that everyone sins. Romans:6-23, Romans:3-20 Even though we are told that Christ erased sin I don't understand why humans still die after Christ reportedly came and went ... why must pain continue? Apparently, God wishes to continue to drive a point home ...

  Death as we know it is permanent, or at least I haven't talked to anyone yet who has avoided the sentence. Again, apparently God has limits as to how much he wil take from humans withg out lashing out. Ezekiel 33:12-13

  I guess what I am wondering is that if God doesn't simply forgive and forget and we are made "in his image," might this be be the reason it is so difficult for flawed mankind to move on without demanding long-term retribution from an accused offender ?
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  36

  Please tell everone why you are a good person worth getting to know ....

  by The Berean in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  feel free !.

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  The Berean

  Feel Free !
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  37

  Calling the Borg "Mother"

  by Iwonder17 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  hey all,.

  i have noticed many of the elders in my hall are now calling the wtbs "mother" from the stage during their talks now.

  it happens at least once per meeting.

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  The Berean

  Didn't Jim Jones chant "Mother, Mother, Mother" in Jonestown as his group committed mass suicide?
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  10

  Comments from today's meeting -- Following the Lamb!

  by Ultimate Reality in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i went today because i wanted to hear the comments on this wt article.. it did not disappoint.

  one comment that summed things up:.

  "i know i can trust the slave because everything i have ever read from the slave has been for my benefit.

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  The Berean

  " May a stranger, and not your own mouth praise you, may a foreigner, and not your own lips, do so.

  Proverbs 27:2 NWT

  Lot of horn blowing going on in KHs. Could there be some doubt???
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  6

  What it was like...

  by bazackward in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  after posting yesterday about help with the situation with my grandma, i got an idea for mother's day.

  any of you with some spare time could probably help me out.. it has to do with better understanding my own mother.

  for those of you who were born in the 50's, could you maybe take a minute or two to help me understand what it was like to grow up as a jw especially around that time frame?

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  The Berean

  Hi:

  My reccolection is that the organization was far closer to the original model of Christianity back then. It was a post-war era and protectionism was common everywhere. Until 1972 there was only a Congregation Servant and his assistant. There was no Body of Elders to hide behind each other and assassinate individuals behind closed doors. Most every male could give talks, decide who would cut the lawn, and where the money would go. The CO's lived in travel trailers and provided their own cars. Pioneers spent 100 hours in their ministry and Duncan Donuts did not even exist.There were no air-conditioned assembly halls and most often people would spend days at a convention seated in wooden folding chairs. Everyone shared everything. I remember Jws growing food and passing it out to the needy. Though sometimes hazardous, members looked out for the orphans and widows (especially the good looking babes!)

  While they still killed their wounded back then by shunning, at least everyone knew who had pulled the trigger ...and if errors were made ... heads would roll. I don't know how many agree but I believe that the political Elder arrangement destroyed any chance of equality. Today it is rank and privilege with a certain immunity from prosecution enjoyed by those appointed. Back then we admitted to and dealt with our sins regardless of who you were. Today, Jws learn how to hide character flaws by means a double life.
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  39

  How many TIMES can a JW be DF'd before the ELDERS dismiss them PERMANENTLY?

  by african GB Member in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i know a "sister" who has been df'd 10 times for adultery within a period of 15 years..... she is married....her hubby was an elder until she got df'd for the 1st time...he was then deleted....apparently the sister was not happy in the bedroom, he was always away doing cong duties, including jcs....... she keeps getting reinstated, and usually it does'nt take long for her (not the usual 6 months).....apparently she is a very good actress (she cries like a baby in the jcs )..... how many times can she keep getting df'd and reinstated like this until the elders say it is enough?.

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  african gb member.

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  The Berean

  It depends on who your family is.
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  27

  Did You "Care" About Disfellowshipped People?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as a witness, i was trained not to feel bad for "those that left us".

  if they didn't want to stay, that was their decision.

  if they decided to stop the "sweet fellowship" of the brotherhood, we needed to avoid them so that they could miss us, see the error of their way and "come back to jehovah".. when you were a jehovah's witness, did you avoid disfellowshipped ones and mentally stop caring about them?.

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  The Berean

  My problem is that knowing just how messed up I have been during my life it is unlikely that I can look down on anyone! In fact, I care about and remain in AWE of everyone making it "one more day"!
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  5

  New World, New Order, New System --- what's the latest JW jargon word?

  by journey-on in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  when i was a kid, we called it the new world.

  is that a no-no nowadays?

  what do they call it now?.

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  The Berean

  Since they are slowly selling what the file paid for in Brooklyn, I believe the rank will now use the words "Up-state New York." But, make the checks to the local coongrgation so there are no LEGAL ties!
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  6

  Can You Help me Define Love?

  by The Berean in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  sad to say, i have never loved.

  i cannot define the word except perhaps by using the term "tolerance.

  " those who have claimed they loved me did so "conditionally.".

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  The Berean

  Kinjiro;

  That makes sense to me ...

  Thanx