I do not think it will happen. First of all, anything that is published on cyberspace will remain there forever. They would not be able to backtrack their doctrine, steps, new light, mishaps, etc. WT is great in whitewashing their own history and twisting the truth, even deny what they had published in the past. For them is the internet dangerous tool. JW are not alone, catholic church and other denominations are very careful not to put a huge presence in cyberspace.
Posts by kaik
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14How long before they back track on the internet
by joe134cd ini was just thinking today.
how long will it be before the watchtower back tracks on its internet bashing, and finally allows it's publishers to set up internet sites.
how long before the wt joins up with the likes of face book /twitter.
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Governing Body Running Scarred and 12-13-14 "Might Be the End"?
by RottenRiley inthis went bad, i hit click before i could post my thoughts about the fear factor going through our crazy kingdom hall.
the title of this thread was aimed at asking why the governing body is becoming so afraid and demanding the elders and rank and file to put their trust in the dukes of the kingdom hall.
(pslams 146:3).. .
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kaik
Gentledawn, as far I know, people deed their properties to local branches once they came out of illegality in former Czechoslovakia. They used to have extensive villa in one the best addresses in Prague, summer cottage house in Central Bohemia, etc. All these properties were given by dying members of the organization. Last year the local JW has learned that their branch is closing down due consolidation...
Of course all the members are aging, nobody was able to stop the biological clock, it is just normal process of living where the death awaits us all. For many JW is this a huge disappointment as they believed that they will never die. I remember as a schoolboy when my JW aunt was telling me in the 1970's how the Armageddon is about to happen, and I will not need to go to school anymore. 40 years later, I am still here, and she is dead for 13 years!
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Governing Body Running Scarred and 12-13-14 "Might Be the End"?
by RottenRiley inthis went bad, i hit click before i could post my thoughts about the fear factor going through our crazy kingdom hall.
the title of this thread was aimed at asking why the governing body is becoming so afraid and demanding the elders and rank and file to put their trust in the dukes of the kingdom hall.
(pslams 146:3).. .
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kaik
I remember from the 1980's that we were told on Memorial that this could be the last one. When communism was collapsing in 1989, some JW belived that the end was imminent because it was 70 years after 1919 when Jesus had chosed his Christians. That was 25 years ago. For JW, there is some fascination with a specific date, year, number, and they think that can guess it from the Bible. The GB is certainly in a panic mode as the 1914 moved into distant history and no new year is at horizon.
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New light is fast
by why144000 injust noticed on the jw.org website under magazines.
'some updates made to digital publications may not yet appear in the printed editions.'.
talk about new light at the speed of light!.
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kaik
The truth is what is told today [but can change tomorrow].
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2014 Yearbook Stats - 7 Countries account for > 50% growth
by Westenddave ini thought i'd share the 2014 yearbook stats.
i converted the file to excel format & sorted the increase in publisher's column from largest to smallest.
as i suspected, the growth is limited to a very few # of "lands.
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kaik
Slovakia is mirroring the trend that happened in Czech Republic. Czech republic is one the most secular country in the world with extensive history of population that was religiously indifferent even in Renaissance era. Christianity as whole is decreasing since 1920 when Czechoslovakia was created. Czechs are the most agnostic to atheistic people you will run in the world and this attitude was also expanded bit into Slovakia during the common republic that ended in 1992. Slovakia is more religious especially further east, closer to Ukraine borders. JW established in Czechoslovakia around 1913 and were capturing souls that were disatisfied with a traditional christianity. Under communism, it was illegal religion, which entice a lot of people who felt to be in opposition to communist regime while having modern, americanized strucutre, and theocracy. As young man, I felt to be proud to be a member of modern religion with crosses and alley of the saints as you see throughout former Czechoslovakia. JW at the end of the communism had extensive membership, especially in Ostrava, Prague, and eastern Slovakia. The collapse of the communism had ushered a new era of freedom and work for Jehova peaked in 1989-1995 which were the most productive, and the number of JW peaked.
However, there came series of scandals and new lights that lead to almost disintegration of the JW in CZ in the 1990's. First was the flip flop on alternative services caused expulsion of 1000 of males JWs before new light apporved. Second issue was gaining registration as own religious group at the ministry of culture, which was obtained illegally. Third issue was illegal money and laundering that involved prostitution, etc, with the Bethel. It was investigated by Czech Police and couple high rank elders at Prague bethel were expeled. Another exodus happened. Czech Republic like rest of post-communist world, expeirenced significant improvement of living standard, economy, social service, that maked them as wealthy as Spain or Italy. The improved quality of life does not match with hysteria of the end is near. JW could not combat the steady rise of living standard with apocalyptic vision. Slovakia experience indifferent population, especially among people under 40. Scandals are happening where you see oversee driving audis and mercedes and demand from the local population accommodation and want the locals to cook for them or pay them lunch and dinner expenses. People are leaving as they see to be used and milked of last penny.
I doubt -10,038 is not correct number, I would see it as typo and should be -1038, similar that was in Czech Republic in 1990's
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A letter from my brother Nathan to my uncle in 1978 when Nathan was at Bethel
by Magwitch inmy uncle recently died and apparently he never threw anything away.
among many things he held onto was a letter that my brother wrote to my uncle in 1978 from bethel.
my brother was in the same hall as howard zenke (a real heavy at bethel) and nathan rode to all the meetings with howard and beana.
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kaik
As of 2014, there are about 275,000-325,000 people around the world who are 100 years or more, but only two dozen that are over 110. Last person born in the 19th century died last summer. There are no other verified 115 years old at this time.
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A letter from my brother Nathan to my uncle in 1978 when Nathan was at Bethel
by Magwitch inmy uncle recently died and apparently he never threw anything away.
among many things he held onto was a letter that my brother wrote to my uncle in 1978 from bethel.
my brother was in the same hall as howard zenke (a real heavy at bethel) and nathan rode to all the meetings with howard and beana.
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kaik
I remember this one as well from kid to old codger
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This site has been going for 13 years. Did you ever at one point fear armageddon?
by ILoveTTATT ini am just wondering about all of you who have been on this site for long.
in all of the events that have happened since 2000 (for example, september 11th), have you at any point, even you die-hard apostates, felt like "oooh sh!t... i should go back to the kh"... just to have the world survive the latest disaster?.
what was the worst event for you, in terms of saying... "did i mess up???
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kaik
Armageddon is JW version of Catholic hell. What is main difference is that hell is in afterlife, while JW preaches that hell will happen at anytime. Armageddon is nothing more than scarecrow for weak minded JWs to get associated with the organization. There is not much difference between hell of renaissance era and pictures of armaggedon in WT. As a child I was scared due influence of the cult, and spent time preoccupied with it. Later years, I do not believe that Armageddon is real event. It is nonsense. Armies battling somewhere over unimportant land in Levant, where is semiarid desert without natural resources. If anything, it is symbolic imagination of the battle between good and evil as is know form various mythology. Armageddon does not really appear in medieval philosophy until the rise of various protestant churches. From time to time between 300AD and 1500AD there were some end of the time movements like that one in Frankish empire in 843, Italy in 1000 or Bohemia in 1419, it was never the main theology of the Christianity. However, during the Second Great Awakening, various crazies had spurred in Northern America that invented Armageddon as JW are preaching. It did not exist in traditional, European Christianity. The main motto was "Memento Mori".
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Three Comments & An Ass-Chewing
by piztjw inso, normally if i go to a meeting i sit and don't say a word through the entire ordeal.
however today i just could not keep my big mouth shut.. it was funny that i even got called on....three times none-the-less.
of course 99% of the sheeple just sat with blank looks on their mugs this morning.
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kaik
I believe over the years that the biblical and scriptural knowledge of JW in my native country went down. Under communism, we did not have much publication, we had to share one print of WT and we rely on Bible to get the right answers. Once the publications became widely used, the Bible was pretty much dropped from studies. This happened around 1990. I left 20 years ago to never return, but my family are in the organization. I had noticed over the years that their knowledge of Bible went down, and without some WT publications they do not know how to debate the "truth".
One of the issue with KH meetings is that is too many of them, there was WT, book, theocratic school, etc, which gives very little time for anyone to read and analyze what was just said. The questions are only related to the published texts, and do not allow deep debate over the doctrines. Peopel who would question anything too thoroughly will by labeled as apostate, or unbeliever and will be shuned.
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A letter from my brother Nathan to my uncle in 1978 when Nathan was at Bethel
by Magwitch inmy uncle recently died and apparently he never threw anything away.
among many things he held onto was a letter that my brother wrote to my uncle in 1978 from bethel.
my brother was in the same hall as howard zenke (a real heavy at bethel) and nathan rode to all the meetings with howard and beana.
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kaik
I remember this WT. I think my parents still have it. All these mofos are dead, generation that certainly past away. This WT should be given any JW that comes to anyone door.
