Posts by Listener

7

philip brumley wt 7/2025 experience

by andr in

how encouraging one finds the experience of a liar.

https://www.jw.org/en/library/magazines/watchtower-study-july-2025/the-battle-belongs-to-jehovah/.

philip brumley is a legal counsel associated with the jehovah's witnesses organization, having worked for about 40 years at their world headquarters' legal department.

Listener

From the article -

In 1986 when I was 30, I was appointed as the overseer of the Legal Department… I qualified as an attorney in 1988, but I was dangerously unaware of what I had allowed this accomplishment to do to my spirituality. Higher education can nurture a desire for self-promotion and foster the notion that having specialized knowledge elevates a person above others who do not have a similar education.

This is a problem that the Watchtower has mentioned before in its discouragement towards higher education but it is disingenuous. It’s been serious enough for the Watchtower to stop funding Bethelites higher education. It’s not the knowledge that is a potential problem.

In Bromley’s situation it sounds like it was his recognition for having the qualities to make it worthwhile to send to Uni and then his appointment as Overseer of the Legal Department that would have caused his self absorption.

Which raises more issues. When the Watchtower promotes Bethelites to various positions, there is always going to be an ego trip for some of them. It’s not about how much education they have, other than the fact that it would sometimes influence their promotions.

26

Green Handshakes - Taxable income in Australia

by Listener in

i was doing some research on the taxable status of money being gifted to co’s and travelling missionaries and was surprised with what i found.

i had assumed that it was not taxable income in australia.. it is taxable income in australia and it‘s likely that the same rules apply in some other countries.. a registered religious institution only receives tax free status on donations because they have been endorsed by the australian tax office.

travelling overseas and missionaries are not in this category.. there’s a tax ruling that goes into great detail.

Listener

Fulani, it wouldn’t surprise me. I guess the Watchtower doesn’t assist them in the matter of taxes either. Their motto is to get out of the Government every advantage that you can and to go looking for them, regardless of whether they become a burden to society.

26

Green Handshakes - Taxable income in Australia

by Listener in

i was doing some research on the taxable status of money being gifted to co’s and travelling missionaries and was surprised with what i found.

i had assumed that it was not taxable income in australia.. it is taxable income in australia and it‘s likely that the same rules apply in some other countries.. a registered religious institution only receives tax free status on donations because they have been endorsed by the australian tax office.

travelling overseas and missionaries are not in this category.. there’s a tax ruling that goes into great detail.

Listener

I was doing some research on the taxable status of money being gifted to CO’s and travelling missionaries and was surprised with what I found. I had assumed that it was not taxable income in Australia.

It is taxable income in Australia and it‘s likely that the same rules apply in some other Countries.

A registered religious institution only receives tax free status on donations because they have been endorsed by the Australian Tax Office. Travelling Overseas and missionaries are not in this category.

There’s a Tax Ruling that goes into great detail. It’s called IT 2674 and the following is an excerpt

IT 2674 Income tax: gifts to missionaries, ministers of religion and other church workers - are the gifts income?

”36. Matthew is a visiting evangelist who receives voluntary unsolicited gifts of money and gifts in kind called 'love offerings' when he addresses a gathering of worshippers. These gifts are received because those attending are spiritually move to make the gifts. Matthew is not in any way motivated by the prospect of receiving gifts. Rather, he is motivated only by a genuine commitment to his religious beliefs. The gifts are assessable income and should be included in Matthew's tax return for the year of income in which he receives them.”

https://www.ato.gov.au/law/view/print?DocID=ITR%2FIT2674%2FNAT%2FATO%2F00001&PiT=99991231235958

Whether they are declaring it or not is another question.

Surely in the USA it would be similar to a person receiving tips and similar laws would apply?

27

God’s wisdom in allowing bearded JWs July 25 Watchtower

by Listener in

the july 2025 watchtower has a paragraph that claims that it was the superior power and wisdom of jehovah that guided the gb into allowing jws to grow beards.. the study article is ‘can you still learn from basic bible teachings?’ under the subheading ‘jehovah is the creator’ paragraph 7 states-.

“ 7. what did rahela do to accept a change in direction?.

your answer.

Listener

Fedupjw “All the JW males (I refuse to call them MEN) seem to now be sporting beards, no matter how unkempt and ragged looking they are.”

They see this as a problem and they have mentioned it before. They require beards to be groomed and neat but it’s still not happening. In this article, they go to the extreme and show four Elders sporting extremely short beards, closer to a stubble than a beard. I’ve seen elderly JWs at carts that look like Santa Clause.

JWs haven’t heard the end of it.

Another excuse used by the GB in laying down rules is to train JWs to obey in even the ‘little things’ so they will easily survive/be faithful when tested on the bigger things.

27

God’s wisdom in allowing bearded JWs July 25 Watchtower

by Listener in

the july 2025 watchtower has a paragraph that claims that it was the superior power and wisdom of jehovah that guided the gb into allowing jws to grow beards.. the study article is ‘can you still learn from basic bible teachings?’ under the subheading ‘jehovah is the creator’ paragraph 7 states-.

“ 7. what did rahela do to accept a change in direction?.

your answer.

Listener

The July 2025 Watchtower has a paragraph that claims that it was the superior power and wisdom of Jehovah that guided the GB into allowing jws to grow beards.

The study article is ‘Can you still learn from basic bible teachings?’ under the subheading ‘Jehovah is the Creator’ Paragraph 7 states-

“ 7. What did Rahela do to accept a change in direction?

Your answer

7 Rahela, who lives in Slovenia, has found that thinking about her Creator has helped her to accept a change in organizational direction. She admits: “Sometimes, it hasn’t been easy for me to accept decisions made by those who take the lead. For example, even after I watched the 2023 Governing Body Update #8, I was shocked the first time I saw a bearded brother giving a talk. So I prayed to Jehovah to help me adapt to this change.” Rahela recognized that as the Creator of heaven and earth, Jehovah is perfectly capable of guiding his organization in the right direction. If you find it hard to adjust to a new understanding or to accept new direction, why not humbly meditate on the superior wisdom and power of our Creator?—Rom. 11:33-36.”

It’s almost as if Jehovah is now the puppet and the GB is pulling his strings.

3121

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

by Simon in

jw
friends

uh oh, looks like the mega thread gave up the ghost, so while i investigate / fix it just continue the discussion here .... it's been a long 9 years lloyd evans / john cedars.

Listener

I must have missed something. Where’s all this “most vile and foul language” shown “often” on this thread that exwhyzee mentions?

95

Trump Tariffs started today, Some Countries Caved in early morning.

by liam in

usa politicians in charge of the economy for the past 50 years were too stupid to understand how the economy works.

this just proves my theory, that an education on the top tier universities just sucks and means nothing in the real world, unless its in the stem education.

for 50 years usa had zero tariffs on other countries.

Listener

Trump and his elite friends will be getting grossly richer by playing the stock markets on his announcements. This is probably intentional, to make up for any hurt they face by other reforms that he makes.

11

Analysis of the Property Ownership Model of Jehovah’s Witnesses

by Paul Bonanno in

jw
friends

analysis of the property ownership model of jehovah’s witnesses.

jehovah’s witnesses have developed a structured and financially efficient model for acquiring, building, and managing properties worldwide.

their approach maximizes resources contributed by members while ensuring that ownership and financial control remain centralized within the organization.

Listener

At one point they were giving congregations a loan to build the hall that the Watchtower ended up owning but still had congregations pay the loan back. Then when they must have been caught out for doing this and not being legally in a money lending business, they generously forgave all the loans. They still expected the same repayments though, just voluntarily.

26

WT June 2025: We Are Not Blind We Just Don't Know

by raymond frantz in

https://youtu.be/7xumqjq3zfc?si=ivcg96t4dtgze4ft.

so this is from the brand new watchtower study edition of june 2025 which has just been posted on jw.org .under the title: modestly accept what you do not know, a let’s read paragraphs in question 4 &5: “read matthew 24:36. we do not know when the end of this system of things will come.

even jesus, while on earth, did not know the ‘day and hour.’ he later told the apostles that jehovah, who is the great timekeeper, keeps the timing of certain events ‘in his own jurisdiction,’ or authority.

Listener

It almost seems like an apology of sorts but it is simply reactionary. They are looking at their failed date prophecy and how they can wriggle their way out of them since it’s a big issue when examining their religion.

However, it’s not sincere. They wrote this in the same article -

7. What do we know?
Your answer
7 We do well to focus on what we do know—that the last days began in 1914. Jehovah has provided Bible prophecies that not only pinpoint that year but also describe in detail the conditions that have prevailed since then. As a result, we are convinced that “the great day of Jehovah is near.” (Zeph. 1:14)

They show their stubbornness in sticking to a teaching that basically only relies on the coincidence of WW1 having occurred in this year. They claim to be able to ‘pinpoint’ that year. ‘Pinpointing’ means with the greatest of accuracy, or absolutely precise or to the finest detail’ Is the Watchtower being modest?

16

New World, New World Order, New System of Things

by blondie in

jw
friends

the wts has used to above terms, over the years, some more preferred in certain time periods.

more though, but these occurred to me first.

also the terms "new world" and "new world order" have been used by some us presidents and other leaders..

Listener

This website has some interesting information about the history of the New World Order and it goes further back than the 1950s

It states -

Anti-Semitic Roots
Many modern-day conspiracy theories – including the NWO theory – have anti-Semitic origins. Influential groups and movements from the 19th and early 20th centuries are largely to blame for the proliferation of anti-Semitic narratives. Within these narratives, Jewish people are frequently framed as the orchestrators of global events and accused of creating a supranational governing structure for nefarious purposes. These dangerous narratives are still widely promoted today...
Established throughout Europe and the United States during the 20th century, adherents of Christian Identity purport that they are the true Israelites favored by God. Over time, Christian Identity groups grew in size and embraced more explicit anti-Semitic conspiracy theories due to the publication and popularization of anti-Semitic texts. One such text was the American version of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, which falsely argues Jewish elites’ alleged plan for global domination. In conjunction with the Protocols, other conspiracy theories, such as the Zionist Occupied Government (ZOG), spread and began to be widely cited. The onset of World War II only furthered the targeting of Jews during this time period, solidifying the foundation of anti-Semitism in which modern conspiracy theories arose, including the NWO.

https://www.middlebury.edu/institute/academics/centers-initiatives/ctec/ctec-publications/new-world-order-historical-origins-dangerous

The Youtube channel 'The Watchtower History Channel' did a lot of research about their early Zionism beliefs.

The Watchtower was originally known as "Zion's Watchtower and Herald of Christ's presence from 1879.