Separation of Powers

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Posts by Separation of Powers

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  12

  Are All Christians Appointed as a Watchman?

  by Chris Tann in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  this is a question i have been trying to answer.

  at the branch visit yesterday, morris discussed eze.33,about ,how if we do not preach we are bloodguilty.

  i would like very much people who are well informed on this topic to show me a thorough scriptual answer.

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  Separation of Powers

  Ask some of the old timer bethelites on this site about the watchmen at bethel and how they used to carry weapons.....
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  35

  Overlap what???

  by dugout in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  just out of the blue i asked my wife whos been a jw for some 30 odd years can she explain the overlapping doctrine.

  she said to me she never heard of this and said she will have to look it up.

  i thought oh s#^%!.

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  Separation of Powers

  @ Apognophos

  I did, in fact, respond to his question. But, that wasn't the point of my post. His response sums up what every hard core witness now believes and that is....whatever the ORG says. If the ORG says "tight pants" are bad and that is the most important thing to know, then the hardcore says, "That's right!"

  As for the response that I might have "wanted," well, to tell you the truth, it was the response I was expecting. No argument, no matter how well presented or planned can break through the dissonance of one so engaged.
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  8

  can someone give me thier opinion on matt 11 11?

  by sowhatnow in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  i dont get it.. who is being spoken about?

  first of all wouldnt moses be greater that john the baptist?

  and yet im greater than john?

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  Separation of Powers

  Not difficult.....John was the precursor, the announcer of Jesus, the messiah. So, he was a BIG DEAL in the fulfillment of messianic prophecy. As great as he was, though, he was still simply gonna be another recipient of salvation and eternal reward. If you notice the context of Matthew, there are those that approach Jesus, sent by John. John was a BIG DEAL to them. He was their teacher, much in the same way as Jesus had his followers. So, they ask him a question and that question originated with John, in other words, JOHN wanted to know, "Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect another?"(Matt 11:3) You see, as much as John knew about Jesus, he wasn't sure...

  Jesus, then, in order to solildfy his Messiahship and help those followers of John, said what he said in Matthew 11:11. In essence Jesus is saying, "John, as great as he is to you guys and in the fulfillment of my messiahship, he is still no greater than any one of you who accept the kingdom. In fact, he will be the least...."

  As much as the ORG tries to paint the picture that he will be part of those that get resurrected to earth and thus lower than anyone in heaven, the New Testament does not speak of any such thing. If you are a Christian there is one hope....go to heaven that's it.
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  39

  why didnt God just do this?

  by sowhatnow in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  for one thing, i cant get past genesis, but no matter.. when god told adam and eve if you eat from the tree youll die.

  so why did he not simple let them die and not allow the offspring to?.

  you see, if i was a god, and i told two people that, id let them die , .

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  Separation of Powers

  There was no adam and eve.......it is a story....the baseline story to distinguish the Jewish nation...... it is a myth...
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  41

  What really woke me up: I started noticing most JWS are weirdos..

  by kneehighmiah in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  thankfully my parents are converts so they aren't wierd.

  seemed pretty popular by all accounts.

  they are "popular" jws even now.

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  Separation of Powers

  I agree with Blondie and several of the others, there are wierdos everywhere. However, I do agree that there are A LOT of wierdos in the ORG. That is mainly because they find people that are susceptible to their indoctrination. People on the margins, people on the fringe, people suffering loss or loneliness....You take that kind of a person susceptible to molding, then you mold them into a drone... and drones are wierd
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  35

  Overlap what???

  by dugout in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  just out of the blue i asked my wife whos been a jw for some 30 odd years can she explain the overlapping doctrine.

  she said to me she never heard of this and said she will have to look it up.

  i thought oh s#^%!.

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  Separation of Powers

  Back in the 60's early 70's we had the idea that you should be able to "defend" the good news, as absurd an idea as that was. A group of us used to get together to debate doctrine. We were sharp. So sharp, in fact, that we would relish the opportunity to be invited to an apostate sympathizer gathering and pummel the non-believer. Even with some of the outrageous doctrine that we had back in the '70's, and yes,,,there was some really off-the-wall stuff, WE KNEW WHAT WE BELIEVED. That is why many of my generation, the humble ones at least, are scratching their heads at why a lot of this stuff is simply accepted as new light. It is balderdash! Most do not know what they believe in the organization now. They simply nod their heads.

  Case in point, I ran into an old friend on Sunday after they had their Regional BRAG fest. He is one of those long time pioneers, used at every assembly, really well-known and respected for toting the party line.

  He says, "Hey how bout that Meeting, huh?"

  To which I said, "Yeah, good old Morris really dropped the bomb on us didn't he?"

  "What do you mean?"

  "Well," I said, "I was just amazed that for the first time in the ORG's history, we had over a million people present to be taught at the table of Jehovah and what does he talk about? Tight pants and Spanxx. I mean, with all the issues that we face as an ORG, don't you think he could have spoken about something substantial?"

  His comment....and this blows me away..... "Like what?"

  There it is in a nutshell.
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  29

  wow, shaking my head

  by Hortensia in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  my neighbor told me she had been talking about me recently.

  "i was saying to carrie in the office i just don't see how anyone can deny the existence of a higher power.

  she needed some q-tips, and found a box of them on the free table by the office.

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  Separation of Powers

  I am surprised she is impressed by Q-tips....

  Ask her to pray for something like winning the lottery.....
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  10

  Guilt, Regret or Denial

  by game1914over in

  1. watchtower
  2. medical

  in your time of being a witness, have you witnessed a jw experience death of a loved one due to refusal of a blood transfusion?

  i know this is an extremely sensitive subject and can reopen deep emotional wounds.

  if you're willing to share, i am interested.

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  Separation of Powers

  Like Absalom, I am angry...I feel no guilt, nor regret, nor denial...those have morphed over the years to anger plain and simple....I have seen many die due to not taking blood...for the majority it was their choice. However, there were a few young ones where that decision was made by their parents after considerable "encouragement" from the elders. I recall the Awake! magazine from May 22 1994, entitled, "Youths who put God first" This magazine featured the death of 3 young witnesses who needed transfusions. They "chose" to abstain. All three died. Now, no one knows if a transfusion would have helped or not...who could tell? The reality though is that these were kids, plain and simple, kids who should not have been allowed to make a life and death decision like that due to the fact that they were "encouraged" by people whose lives were not on the line. Their loss angers me. They lost their lives because someone told them "GOD" expected them to make that decision or else lose out on eternal life. Angry? I am downright enraged!!

  At this moment in my life, I do not believe in the hereafter, or the next life, or heaven, or eternal life in paradise. If it exists, then I hope that God, if there is one, recognizes that I have been as sincere in life as I could. I have tried to help more than harm. I have loved deeply those who are my own. That should count for something. I am sure he understands my anger.

  As for the brother who commented on "a few days," well, he thought he was being a comfort...turns out he may well have fulfilled the proverb on "expectation postponed makes the heart sick." Can't blame him for touting the party line....
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  49

  Lowering the standards: The sign of a cult struggling for survival

  by Hidden-Window in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  many of the recent changes in the jehovah's witness organization are a clear sign of a cult that is struggling for survival.

  the internet has change the scenario in a very dramatic way.

  many of us who for years struggled alone with doubts and cognitive dissonance thinking that we were the only ones, that we, as individuals were the issue, now know that there is a large community of individuals who see the organization as what it is, a mind controlling cult that is not only false, but also dangerous.. the governing body clearly understands the consequences of this awakening.

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  Separation of Powers

  I think you are correct. However, I would say, they are lowering the standards of time required to visibly participate while ramping up the rancor as to what the GB require.
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  17

  My Yoke is Kindly and My load is Light! What did this scripture mean to you as a JW?

  by BU2B in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  jesus said that "my yoke is kindly and my load is light" what did this scripture mean to you when you were mentally in?

  did you feel the jw load was kindly and light?

  if not, what was the point in him uttering those words?

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  Separation of Powers

  It meant nothing to me as a witness. The fact is, I was, along with most here, bombarded with the sense that I was simply NEVER DOING ENOUGH. As the Pharisees piled on burdens for the jewish believer, so too, the organization with its GB piles on more and more so that people are always in a state of spiritual panic. Their assemblies are filled with "examine your circumstances" while the husband with the five children and wife who is on dialysis gives his experience of full-time pioneering while holding down two jobs and being the Coordinator of the Body of Elders and a volunteer fire fighter for his small town while simultaneously working with Doctors without Borders to help bring the Ebola crisis under control. No, I was never able to meet the minimum.

  You know what's really funny.....the commission to preach, if you are a Witness believer, was never given to the "other sheep." The ORG says that the Bible was written for, and particularly the New Testament, the anointed. It is THEIR responsibility. So, why should I even fret?