Excommunicated - 30,000 / year - Love JW Style

Originally posted by galveston75
Yes I'm a real sicko so you'd better run for the hills.... 🙂

It's unfortunate that we take things personally. Objectivity is difficult to maintain whether on the one side or the other.

I certainly don't mean to impugn the character or intelligence or mental health of my debate opponent. I try hard not to. It's not right.

We debate about ideas and beliefs, and criticise what is said, not the one who says something we don't agree with.

At least that's the way I always thought it should be.

Originally posted by josephw
It's unfortunate that we take things personally. Objectivity is difficult to maintain whether on the one side or the other.

I certainly don't mean to impugn the character or intelligence or mental health of my debate opponent. I try hard not to. It's not right.

We debate about ideas and beliefs, and criticise what is said, not the one who says something we don't agree with.

At least that the way I always thought it should be.

That would be nice.....

Originally posted by googlefudge
Ahem, would you like to reconsider telling me how to contribute to the discussion?
Because I am pretty sure I get to decide that.

You are reading cranky this evening.

I don't necessarily disagree that JW's might be justifiably termed a cult.

I disagree that cult has a hard and fast definition that can be applied in a rigourus and indisputable ...

Post what you want, by all means. But your tangent about what you think or don't think the word "cult" means, means little or nothing to me, and yet you keep addressing me about it. Why don't you just address the OP? 🙂

Originally posted by galveston75
Yawn........

Why can't you just address the concerns raised in the OP? Your lack of composure on this thread is decidedly odd.

Originally posted by googlefudge
Calling them a cult generally just leads to arguments over what you mean by the word cult.

Good luck in your bid to be a walking-talking-self-fulfilling prophesy! 😵

Originally posted by FMF
Why can't you just address the concerns raised in the OP? Your lack of composure on this thread is decidedly odd.

Perhaps you missed the first page of this thread with my extensive answers? No need for you to get rude....

Originally posted by galveston75
Perhaps you missed the first page of this thread with my extensive answers? No need for you to get rude....

I saw the mixture of ad hominems and spam-bombing, yes.

Originally posted by galveston75
When Individuals Choose to Ignore Bible Standards

Millions of persons have studied the Bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses, but not all of them have become Witnesses. When some persons learn the high standards that apply, they decide that this is not the sort of life that they want. All who do get baptized are first given thorough instruction in basic Bib ...[text shortened]... intaining a morally clean organization is vital in order to continue to have Jehovah’s approval.

This is me. I studied with them and quickly determined many of their
teachings were wrong. What really disgusted me was when I found out
that they had changed and added things in their version of the Bible to
support these false teachings. That is why I threw away that green
bible and stopped my study with them.

Originally posted by FMF
Good luck in your bid to be a walking-talking-self-fulfilling prophesy! 😵

Yeah cos nobody was arguing over whether cult was applicable before I got here.....

Hypothetical:
Let's say I agree with 90% of JW doctrine. I go out and knock on doors and I do everything a good JW should do but yet I vocally disagree with the blood transfusion doctrine? Would I be allowed to stay a JW? Would I get disowned? I'm the champ of champ bringing 100's of new converts to the Kingdom Hall yet I just can't keep my mouth shut about that blood transfusion issue what is my fate?


Manny

Originally posted by menace71
Hypothetical:
Let's say I agree with 90% of JW doctrine. I go out and knock on doors and I do everything a good JW should do but yet I vocally disagree with the blood transfusion doctrine? Would I be allowed to stay a JW? Would I get disowned? I'm the champ of champ bringing 100's of new converts to the Kingdom Hall yet I just can't keep my mouth shut about that blood transfusion issue what is my fate?


Manny

Depends on what you do with your opinion. If it's something secret in your mind and heart then probably nothing would happen. We can't read hearts and minds... but Jehovah can. You would have to answer to him IF you do not go by the Bible's command to "Obstain from Blood" if that issue ever came up to you in a hospital setting. But chances are you would still be allowed to attend meetings and hopefully be shown the Bible's view more clearly.
Just because a person get's baptized and does all they feel they need to do as a JW does not mean they may not have doubts or have confusion about certian things the Bible says to do or not to do.
But...if you decided to teach and preach to others that you may be studying with about this issue that you disagree with then you would not be permitted to be a part of the congregations field service activities.
An example would be if you were in the military but yet spoke against it's laws and standards and it's allegance to this country, would that person be allowed to still serve in it? No.
The Bible says clearly to keep the congregations clean of wickedness and of a false tongue and ones who want to destroy it.
Why would that be any different then any organization or military etc, etc?
And if one were to go even farther with this to actually disrupt the congregation with this disagreement like during a meeting, they would simply be asked to leave.
Make sense?

Originally posted by galveston75
Depends on what you do with your opinion. If it's something secret in your mind and heart then probably nothing would happen. We can't read hearts and minds... but Jehovah can. You would have to answer to him IF you do not go by the Bible's command to "Obstain from Blood" if that issue ever came up to you in a hospital setting. But chances are you would ...[text shortened]... disagreement like during a meeting, they would simply be asked to leave.
Make sense?

I said vocally disagreed not in my mind. So then there is no way to have disagreement if you belong to a JW congregation? What if the person with the disagreement comes with a scriptural reason why they disagree with the JW doctrine.


Manny

Originally posted by menace71
I said vocally disagreed not in my mind. So then there is no way to have disagreement if you belong to a JW congregation? What if the person with the disagreement comes with a scriptural reason why they disagree with the JW doctrine.


Manny

Don't add words that are not there. There are some who will disagree but usually they are new ones that have not studied for a long period and are still new. I'm still learning and there have been a couple times I didn't agree with minor issues. But it was from not knowing a particular set of scriptures or understanding a principle or just being confused.
There are still things I don't know as clearly as I'd like but for the 99% of the things I do know and have been shown from the Bible, I know there correct.
This my friend is where patience on learning and patience on God to show these things comes into affect. One should not just fly off the handle and get mad just because some issue comes up. Sometimes all it takes is one scripture that you may have read but never caught the meaning of it until it is shown to you in a particlar situation your confused about.
That is also why the scriptures say to let ones grow and become spiritually mature before given the position as an elder.
So yes one can have a disagreement and the elders are more then willing to help you with it even if you think you have a scripturre to show what you feel is wrong.
Does not the Bible tell us to TEST the scriptures daily?

Originally posted by googlefudge
Yeah cos nobody was arguing over whether cult was applicable before I got here.....

If you don't think the word "cult" is applicable, fine. I've not been "arguing over" it. I just do not accept your assertions and I've been trying to get you to post something thought provoking that's relevant to the OP. In the absence of something relevant you've gone off on a personal tangent about some sort of Crisis Of Vocabulary that is of interest seemingly only to you. It's your prerogative. 🙂

Originally posted by galveston75
Don't add words that are not there. There are some who will disagree but usually they are new ones that have not studied for a long period and are still new. I'm still learning and there have been a couple times I didn't agree with minor issues. But it was from not knowing a particular set of scriptures or understanding a principle or just being confused ...[text shortened]... to show what you feel is wrong.
Does not the Bible tell us to TEST the scriptures daily?

The elders could be wrong. It sounds like you basically have to agree with the organizations interpretations of the bible or else your not a true JW .



Manny