latest news from a source (missionary in foreign land):.
no more missionary homes anywhere in the world.. all missionaries presently in missionary homes must vacate.
must get housing on your own / from the locals.. circuit and district overseers have moved into many of these former missionary homes.. reasons: liability, cost savings, real estate to be sold or used for other purposes.. needless to say, many of these longtime servants are very unsettled.
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“Even selling property is a one shot deal rather than an annual source of cash.”
My gut tells me Watchtower has a chip in the futures of at least some of its Brooklyn properties. I would not surprise me one bit if Watchtower held a financial stake in some of the companies purchasing Watchtower properties. It would also not surprise me if some of the contracts included language about revenue sharing based on future use.
Marvin Shilmer
i just finished reading this book, by our terry, and i thorougly enjoyed it.
terry has an amazing gift for words and expression - as most of you already know - and he lured me in from the very start.
reading this book is an actual experience... and i don't want to say much more than that, because i don't want to color your experience as you read for yourself.. .
Terry,
Thanks for writing this book. It testifies to details other writers have overlooked. Keep up the good work!
Marvin Shilmer
here is a link to the pdf.... http://www.jw.org/download/?issue=201312&output=html&pub=g&fileformat=pdf&alllangs=0&langwritten=e&txtcmslang=e&isbible=0.
some interesting quotes.... while it is wise not to believe everything we read in the news, it does not follow that there is nothing we can trust.
the key may be to have a healthy skepticism, while keeping an open mind.tone: when the tone of a news item is angry, spiteful, or highly critical, it suggests that an attack is under way and not a reasoned argument.sources: is there evidence of thorough research?
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It’s embarrassing to see Watchtower write claptrap like that when its own writers have been known to publish flat-out falsehoods. Watchtower is guilty of every violation it cites!
See more of Watchtower’s shameless self-promotion in Accuracy and Watchtower's Writing Department available at: http://marvinshilmer.blogspot.com/2013/03/accuracy-and-watchtowers-writing.html
Marvin Shilmer
from 1967 to early 1980, the watchtower stated that organ transplants were tantamount to "cannibalism.
" then, suddenly, the position was changed to organ transplants being a "conscience matter.
" so, my question, why the change?
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“They thoroughly understand the mistake they have made with blood and realized they were doing it again. They're not stupid, just heartless.”
TD could not have said it more accurately.
The Watchtower organization had a growing epidemic of death on its hands. Public relations was about to become uncontrollable.
JW patients were dying by the thousands over the blood issue. More JW patients were dying over the organ transplant issue. Worse, lots of children were dying, and mothers the result of childbirth complications.
The number of deaths was always staggering. But because these deaths were scattered rather evenly throughout the world the statistic was not realized for what it represented. In effect, the numbers were hidden from plain view. But the numbers were growing and growing fast.
So what did Watchtower do?
Under the guise of “minor components” and, later on, “fractions” the Watchtower organization began allowing more and more blood products to be accepted by JWs. The effect was to reduce the number and rate of deaths, or at the very least to shift blame for deaths from Watchtower to the individual JW who Watchtower had granted more latitude for personal decision.
Watchtower got rid of its organ transplant taboo at the same time. Again, to reduce the number and rate of deaths due to its teaching and doctrinal position.
All this was done to reduce exposure and make it more palatable for Watchtower representatives to inform the medical and legal community of its doctrinal position, and to reduce risk of backlash due to the public waking up to the numbers of JWs needlessly suffering premature death. When organ transplantation crept from experimental to clinical practice it became indefensible to claim transplantation was “eating” an organ. So Watchtower got rid of this absurd idea in relation to solid organ transplants.
I’ve written a little about this subject at my blog. (See Watchtower on Taking In Meatavailable at: http://marvinshilmer.blogspot.com/2012/12/watchtower-on-taking-in-meat.html
My menu of future articles includes sharing more documented research on why Watchtower dismantled its pre-1980 teaching against organ transplantation.
Marvin Shilmer
two elders in my congregation signed mine bc hubby couldn't bear the repercussions of either 1- saving my life by allowing the blood transfusion, which would probably lead to him being df'd, and 2- me dying bc he did not allow the blood transfusion and having my parents call him a murderer.. isn't that so nice?
when i most wanted him to represent me, he didn't have the guts, even hypothetically.... so, who signed your blood card?.
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“When querying it, the elders said I should cross out and initial that section if I didn't agree with it. LOL, I thought to myself, there would be so little original print by the time I'd I finished crossing out the parts I didn't agree with!”
I knew a ministerial servant who photoshoped his death document into a life document. Because elders never read these things they never realized they were signing a document contrary to Watchtower doctrine.
In my years I lost track of the number of elders (not to mention others) who came to me with these asinine Watchtower documents asking me how to complete the documents and what they should opt for. Each one repeated the same mantra in other words:
“I want to accept anything I can, and I want your help to make sure I’m not leaving anything out.”
How’s that for conviction?
Marvin Shilmer
told my husband to put a muzzle on my mouth over the blood dogma.
we all were driving around in field service when the topic of "which fragments would you take if you were in a car accident or cut yourself badly".
said his choice is a personal one, another sister with chronic health problems said she had no problem with the governing body's new light on taking various fragments.
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It takes guts for an active JW to ask these sorts of questions so unpleasant for Watchtower worshippers.
Watchtower does not want JWs thinking too hard about details of its blood doctrine.
Watchtower’s answer to the question of accepting blood constituents from blood donated by someone else is to admit privately that its doctrine does not prohibit JWs from donating blood strictly for the purpose of having some of its fractions segregated and transfused to another patient.
Either the CO didn’t get the memo or else he finds the answer so ludicrous he refuses to repeat it.
For more on the subject see Jehovah’s Witnesses can donate blood available at: http://marvinshilmer.blogspot.com/2012/03/jehovahs-witnesses-can-donate-blood.html
Marvin Shilmer
jws are in need of more kingdom halls in many major u.s. cities.
at this years agm where it is expected that most of the faithful will be able to listen to the meeting (being tied in by video), dont be surprised if the wts 8 gb members take part in a symposium delivering some long winded appeal, petition, plea, proposal, proposition, solicitation or otherwise hit-on the masses for $$$ in order to lighten the burden and overuse that many kingdom halls are experiencing.
an acquaintance from the west coast mentioned to me that in late august thru early september of this year that a number of pow-wows involving close to 5,000 elders from numerous areas (riverside, los angeles, ventura and orange counties) took place to drum up financial support from the 800+ (not sure) congregations in those areas.
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This whole thing is disgusting.
Disgusting!
Marvin Shilmer
why the blood ban?.
today i added a new article to my blog addressing watchtowers motivation to construct its infamous blood doctrine.
there are reports published that the reason was something other than religious conviction.
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Why the Blood Ban?
Today I added a new article to my blog addressing Watchtower’s motivation to construct its infamous blood doctrine.
There are reports published that the reason was something other than religious conviction. My blog article shares a piece of information published by Watchtower that suggests the then existence of such an ulterior motive.
My article is titled Why the Blood Ban? and is available at: http://marvinshilmer.blogspot.com/2013/09/why-blood-ban.html
Marvin Shilmer
i'm not, even a little bit and i don't understand what the outrage is all about..
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“Sorry but mimicking masturbation on stage in performance, never does go off well.”
Hey! Maybe Miley saw that Watchtower video on masturbation. Think?
Maybe one of our more gifted puter members can show us side by side video. I say it’s probably a close call.
Marvin Shilmer
i'm not, even a little bit and i don't understand what the outrage is all about..
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The only thing upsetting to me is seeing a perfectly good female making trash of herself.
“Thanking God for so many blessings tonight. Continue to pray for world peace. More love ...less hate.”—Billy Ray
Oh. Um. Right.
Marvin Shilmer
