truth_b_known

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Posts by truth_b_known

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  7

  ex mormon learning a little about JW

  by curious777 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  hello friends.

  i am an ex mormon who got a little bit obsessed with cults and how they work, after leaving the church.. recently i have been very interested in learning about the structure of jw because i find it very similar in some ways to how the mormon church is organized, except with different names for everything.. i have some questions:.

  does the love bomb stop the moment you get baptized?

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  truth_b_known

  Curious777:

  There was a time about 30 to 40 years ago where an entire congregation would be encouraged to love bomb a newly interested person. My father forced me to do so while I was growing up. This often made me feel uncomfortable. Things did change. It did get to the point that the love bombing circle shrank just to the person who was studying with the newly interest person.

  You are also correct - once that new person is baptized they often soon found themselves alone. They might be able to engage in conversation before or after the weekly meetings at the Kingdom Hall. They invites to people's homes or other social events would soon disappear after baptism.

  I do recall many new converts disappearing within a year of baptism. What do you expect when they are told to cut all ties with non-Witnesses and then they are starved for social interaction after baptism?
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  27

  What aspects do you view most favorably about the WT and/or its religion?

  by Disillusioned JW in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  even if you disapprove of much about the wt and/or its religion, what aspects do you view most favorably about the wt and/or its religion?

  for me one of the things i view most favorably about the wt and its religion is its extremely strong insistence that jws never intentionally kill another human being.

  i especially appreciate that regarding those who have been born, but i think some abortions of human embryos might be justifiable.

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  truth_b_known

  I suspected that Romans 13:4 (and the rest of the first part of chapter 13) was spurious (or I at least wondered if it was and I hoped it was).

  That is refreshing DisillusionedJW. There are three criteria that be apart of any philosophy/belief system/religion -

  • Faith
  • Doubt
  • Determination

  First, we must have faith. This is not a clinging to belief and ignoring contrary ideas or facts. Rather it is accepting truth as we experience it. We first must accept something to be truth.

  Second, we must doubt what we accept as truth. This is not skepticism. Rather, it is the refusal to accept something without evidence.

  Third, we must be determined to seek evidence about what we have faith in.

  I have a lot of doubt in the writings of Paul. Honestly, I doubt he was ever sent by Jesus. I think Paul was that type of person that is easy to believe based on how he presents himself.
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  7

  The Rise of Skywalker (2019) - how much crack was JJ Abrams smoking when he made this? lol (spoilers)

  by LoveUniHateExams in

  1. social
  2. entertainment

  i saw the rise of skywalker (2019) a few weeks ago.. and it is totally crazy, lol, it has everything but the kitchen sink.. i can somewhat feel for writer/director jj abrams because rian johnson went f**k up in the previous film.. e.g.

  in the force awakens (2015), abrams introduced snoke, but then in the last jedi (2017) johnson killed him off, the same thing happened to luke.. but that doesn't really hide hollywood hack abrams from criticism of this movie.

  bringing back emperor palpatine - i mean, really?.

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  truth_b_known

  People forget to give credit where credit is due for the original Star Wars (now Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope) film. Science Fiction author Alan Dean Foster was brought in to develop the final script. The script treatments up to the point were not as good (though I did like the original one that mirrored Akira Kurosawa's Hidden Fortress).

  20th Century Fox had more control back then because they held the purse strings.

  The Abrams trilogy lacked story. It was like one of those weird film deals where they have to make a movie or lose the right to the property. Much like all the Fantastic Four films to date.
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  7

  The Rise of Skywalker (2019) - how much crack was JJ Abrams smoking when he made this? lol (spoilers)

  by LoveUniHateExams in

  1. social
  2. entertainment

  i saw the rise of skywalker (2019) a few weeks ago.. and it is totally crazy, lol, it has everything but the kitchen sink.. i can somewhat feel for writer/director jj abrams because rian johnson went f**k up in the previous film.. e.g.

  in the force awakens (2015), abrams introduced snoke, but then in the last jedi (2017) johnson killed him off, the same thing happened to luke.. but that doesn't really hide hollywood hack abrams from criticism of this movie.

  bringing back emperor palpatine - i mean, really?.

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  truth_b_known

  The whole trilogy is a train wreck. As if millions of childhoods cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened.

  The return of Palpatine was used in popular comic book miniseries entitled Star Wars: Dark Empire, which I thought was pretty good. It was definitely better than the Abrams Star Wars movies.
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  27

  What aspects do you view most favorably about the WT and/or its religion?

  by Disillusioned JW in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  even if you disapprove of much about the wt and/or its religion, what aspects do you view most favorably about the wt and/or its religion?

  for me one of the things i view most favorably about the wt and its religion is its extremely strong insistence that jws never intentionally kill another human being.

  i especially appreciate that regarding those who have been born, but i think some abortions of human embryos might be justifiable.

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  truth_b_known

  Using the logic of the WT, God would have to appoint people to specifically violate his laws in order to fulfill the governmental ministry He called them to!

  Whether I pull the trigger or pay someone else to do it, I am still responsible for a persons death. I agree with Sea Breeze on this one. If government agents with "swords" use those swords the way they are intended they are doing God's will as He appointed them to do so.
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  28

  What’s Your Opinion On The News Media?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  do you think most of what they cover is accurate?

  do you trust the media , especially mainstream?.

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  truth_b_known

  The fact that people in the U.S. choose which cable new network to get their "news" from based on their political ideology say it all. In the U.S. you are better off watching your local station news.

  It is not just a matter of how much opinion and spin that get put on news stories. It is also a matter of what stories will be covered and those that one. Stories that do not support a particular political ideology on the surface may be outright ignored.
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  10

  Reason why fancy dress up parties were totally band!

  by Witness 007 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  we had a fancy dress up party in our congregation.

  elders special pioneers and many others came, though some came as cowboys and pirates with guns and swords which was not in line with the watchtowers "beat your swords into plough sheers.

  " some sisters were belly dancers....yes they exposed their stomachs.....shock horror!

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  truth_b_known

  For some reason pirates and cross-dressing always seems to be the straw that breaks the camel's back. Ironically, the problem with pirates has been stated as "the are known rapists." You mean like countless Witnesses you shield from local authorities?
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  41

  Why dont practicing JWS cant accept the fact that the Watchtower Corporation is a commercialized false prophet ?

  by Finkelstein in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  to the majority of people who investigate the activities of the wts from its beginning history there were obvious false proclamations and doctrines propagated by the wts.. a matter of fact the wts produced a long list of literature that posted proclamations on the front cover and went into detail of things that were suppose to happen, from jesus returning changing the world in which we live and so on.. wonderful things one might say but not factual or either theologically correct .

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  truth_b_known

  The number 1 cost of any organization is its personnel/employees. With volunteers running printing presses and food being grown on "The Farm" the overhead was extremely low.

  As a kid I remember going to the magazine counter at the Kingdom Hall and paying $0.25 per magazine. That $0.25 went directly to the Watchtower. When I sold that magazine to a householder for $0.25 I would give that money to the Watchtower as well. So now the Watchtower was getting $0.50 per magazine. This was at the same time I was paying $0.50 for a Spider-Man comic book at my local gas station. The gas station and Marvel Comics made a profit off the sale of that comic book. I promise you the employees of the gas station and Marvel Comics are not a volunteer labor force.

  Here is a bit of truth I recently learned - the human brain is wired to believe anything that is beneficial to it. Living forever in perfect health in a paradise sure sounds beneficial. People can't handle life and the can't handle the idea of dying either. Humans are the only known organism on Earth that is conscious that one day they will die.
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  24

  Will there be a sense of urgency in 30 years?

  by neat blue dog in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  it's pretty easy to see how current events would have any jw convinced the end is imminent, but i just don't see how there could be a major push for zealous service, pioneering, etc.

  decades into the future.

  even if (when) world events happen periodically that could scare the r&f, there are now countless hours of hd video of jw leaders saying how close the end is.

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  truth_b_known

  I see a valid point made by Redvip2000 and Jofi-Wofo. I remember the overlapping generations doctrine being introduced in 1995. I was in my early 20s, a Ministerial Servant, and as about as active as a Witness could get. I remember newspapers covering the doctrine change and interviewing longtime Witnesses who left over it. I just shrugged it off.

  I also agree with Road to Nowhere - the game changer is the internet. Not just the internet, but mobile internet. I have read posters on this very website who have stated they were reading posts from this forum on their mobile device in the middle of a meeting. Now that is something I would never have dreamed of while I was a Witness.

  There is no hiding the truth about the Truth anymore. The 8 Popes of Walkhill telling rank and file to ignore the man behind the curtain is like telling a child not to push the shiny, red button.

  Add to that the experience one of our regular posters shared with us recently on how his PIMI family all left at once thanks to the Watchtower's response to COVID-19 lockdowns. We are 15 months into the COVID thing in the U.S. We have had 2 virtual/Zoom Memorials and now we are getting our second virtual Regional Convention. No Witness has knocked on a door in the all-important life-saving door-to-door ministry in over a year!

  For over a century the Watchtower has told us that Jehovah would speed up the work during the time of the end. Yet, we have muppet Governing Body members telling us on JW Broadcast that we are in the final part of the final part of the last day while the religion as a whole has come to a screeching halt. You can't have it both ways!
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  21

  "Young people ask" book claims 97% youth masturbatory or seen porn...not J.W youth??

  by Witness 007 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  as a youg man this stunned me when i studied the original "youth" book 97% had done it so i thought soo that's pretty much everyone i guess the 3% were witness youth!

  also "awake" claimed 90% of students had accessed porn at some time.

  everyone is doing it i guess 10% are the witness youth...how dumb was i?.

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  truth_b_known

  Under the Radar -

  I agree 100%! Irresponsible child birth and non-supportive parents is unacceptable. That being said, I also see the damage of not letting teenagers or young adults even date simply because they cannot afford to support a family.

  This caused a huge problem with me and my marriage. I was in my mid-twenties before I even had a girlfriend. I was lost and had to learn through the school of hard knocks.