JW Core Beliefs .... As Applied

[Arauna]

12 minutes ago, Srecko Sostar said:

“Guardians of doctrine” have in the past, for example, celebrated Christ’s birthday. Then they decided it was a pagan custom.

Again painting with a broad brush!  When the book of Alexander Hislop came out in 1916 it was a catalyst for many religions realizing that Xmas was pagan.  This is more than 100 years ago.  So you have taken just this little point out of its time context and given it a deceiving slant.

 

[Patiently waiting for Truth]

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

God. We worship the one true and Almighty God, the Creator, whose name is Jehovah

I think it has been proven that God's name is not Jehovah. Even when Rutherford started the JW thing they actually believed that God's name was Yahweh, but because Jehovah was 'well known' at the time, that was what they used. Yehovah may be closer but in fact no one really knows.

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

Jesus. We follow the teachings and example of Jesus Christ

But totally disobey Jesus' words about baptism. 

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

Jesus is the King of God’s Kingdom in heaven. He began ruling in 1914.

The 1914 teaching cannot be proven and is probably untrue.  All authority was given to Jesus in 33 C.E. unless you wish to call Christ a liar. 

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

Salvation. Deliverance from sin and death is possible through the ransom sacrifice of Jesus. (Matthew 20:28; Acts 4:12) To benefit from that sacrifice, people must not only exercise faith in Jesus but also change their course of life and get baptized.

Re-read your own words and stop and think right there.  through the ransom sacrifice of Jesus Not through the JW Org.

But the Org teaches that, A. One has to get baptised into the ORG, B. One has to be a baptised JW to be saved.

The JW way is not God's or Christ's way. The instruction from Jesus was to to Baptise in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. 

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

A relatively small number of people—144,000—will be resurrected to life in heaven to rule with Jesus in the Kingdom.

This idea that they will rule from heaven is not definite. One scripture seems to be able to be translated as either 'over the earth' or 'on the earth'.  And there is something about Gog / Magog surrounding the Camp of the Holy Ones, which would be on Earth ? As I don't pretend to fully understand this, i will keep an open mind on it. 

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

In order to settle the moral issues raised by Satan, God has allowed evil and suffering, but He will not permit them to continue forever.

I like this.  This is truthful. @Arauna thinks humans are 'most important' or that was how she commented to me. But this shows truth in that the issue is more about the spirit realm than about us. There would be no point cleansing the Earth if Satan and his demons still 'ruled over it'. 

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

Our worship. We do not venerate the cross or any other images.

This could lead to a large debate .  Most things that JWs 'see' are material things. Especially in America with Warrick and Ramapo. And JWs look to the GB as God's mouthpiece F&DS. All reading material comes from this GB and their helpers, some of whom are not even Anointed ones. The whole JW movement is based on what is seen with physical eyes. Not much room is left for real faith. 

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

Reading and studying the Bible.

This is a funny one. Instruction comes from the GB via talks and the Watchtower mag. So beliefs clarified are taught to the congregations. That actually means that the congregation is TOLD what to believe. However personal Bible reading is encouraged AS LONG AS a congregant does not find reason to disagree with the GB's instruction on what to believe. 

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

Meeting together to pray, study the Bible,

Um, yes, but only if you do it to the GB's set of rules. The GB had it written in the Watchtower that members of the Anointed would 'not want to meet together to pray or to study God's word' and, if they did meet together ' they would be working against the Holy Spirit'

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

Preaching the “good news of the Kingdom.”

Congregants don't actually do much of this. Especially since the 'trolly/cart' work started. What congregants do is act as puppets for the GB. To stand at a cart offering the written word of the GB is not preaching the Good News. Also offering Watchtower mags is not preaching the Good News, it is distributing the GB's written words. 

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

However, the elders do not form a clergy class,

This is of course a complete lie. The Elders are the clergy class and prove it in Court rooms around the world.  

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

Our unity allows for personal choice, though. Each Witness makes decisions in harmony with his or her own Bible-trained conscience.

This is another lie. The beard thing being one issue. Dress code being another. Birthdays another. And as a personal thing I was totally embarrassed by an Elder at my daughter's wedding, when this Elder put his hand over my glass and told me, in front of everyone, that I was NOT ALLOWED to drink a toast to my daughter and her new husband. 

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

We avoid practices that displease God, including the misuse of blood by taking blood transfusions.

This is another issue which was the teaching of MEN, not of GOD. @JW Insider has raised this point. 

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

We respect the government where we live and obey its laws as long as these do not call on us to disobey God’s laws.

Not much respect in Australia when asked to join the compensation scheme. Not much respect in the UK when the Charity Commission first asked for CSA documents. 

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

Our relationships with others. Jesus commanded: “You must love your neighbor as yourself.” So we try to “work what is good toward all,”

Unless it is someone that has left the JW Org of course. Or even a young person that was baptised too young and then commits sin. Jesus also said 'to love your enemy'. But JWs show hatred to ex JWs and to anyone that is disfellowshipped, and we know that people are d/fed for the wrong reasons some times. But all are shunned and despised. And the CSA / Pedophile problem and mistreatment of Victims shows the hypocrisy here.

Core teachings. Hypocrisy at it's best. The whole thing just proves the dishonesty and lies of the Governing Body and others involved in writing it, and in pretending it is true.

 

[Patiently waiting for Truth]

On 7/5/2021 at 8:51 AM, Anna said:

I haven't blocked you. I posted the core beliefs HERE

My apologies. 

[Srecko Sostar]

3 hours ago, Arauna said:

Again painting with a broad brush!  When the book of Alexander Hislop came out in 1916 it was a catalyst for many religions realizing that Xmas was pagan.  This is more than 100 years ago.  So you have taken just this little point out of its time context and given it a deceiving slant.

 

Apologize, but we have to make clear distinction between this two celebration. Christmas vs Jesus Birthday celebration. Christmas is one wrong way full with traditions and folklore of that how people are convinced that they giving honor to Jesus. JW members missed opportunity to "show the world" what can be better or proper way to doing so.   

Nowhere in its text does the Bible show that celebrating a birthday is wrong or pagan. 

Has having more than one wife ever been a pagan custom? Jewish law in the Bible says no, but it was and became a Jewish custom legitimized by decrees. How would JW members declare today what polygamy is? A pagan custom or simply a social norm of a nation and tradition?

Is celebrating a birthday "more dangerous and bigger evil" than having more women or vice versa?  

[Patiently waiting for Truth]

13 hours ago, Srecko Sostar said:

Is celebrating a birthday "more dangerous and bigger evil" than having more women or vice versa?  

One wife at a time is enough  

[Arauna]

26 minutes ago, Srecko Sostar said:

what can be better or proper way to doing so.   

There is NO proper way of celebrating the birthday of Jesus.  Christians were only instructed to commemorate his death NOT his birth.  This is why there is NO accurate date for the birth of Christ in the Bible.

If you know the history of how this was instituted you would know that it is a no-no to Christians - no matter how much one tries to justify it.

[Patiently waiting for Truth]

13 hours ago, Arauna said:

There is NO proper way of celebrating the birthday of Jesus.  Christians were only instructed to commemorate his death NOT his birth.  This is why there is NO accurate date for the birth of Christ in the Bible.

If you know the history of how this was instituted you would know that it is a no-no to Christians - no matter how much one tries to justify it.

The history of bridesmaids at weddings is pagan but JWs still have bridesmaids but call them by a different name. 

[Arauna]

3 minutes ago, Patiently waiting for Truth said:

istory of bridesmaids at weddings is pagan

Bad argument.  Xmas has direct bearing on the worship of false gods. There is a difference.  If rings and bride maids had direct connection with the active worship of a false god then we can talk again.  The days chosen for Xmas have to do with worship of false gods and the orgies that were held for these gods.  They used to give women the mistletoe to abort babies after the celebrations. 

[Arauna]

48 minutes ago, Patiently waiting for Truth said:

I think it has been proven that God's name is not Jehovah

Think again - there are new books out by hebrew scholars that show that we had the pronunciation right all the time!  

Jeho-ram - jeho-safat - all have Jehovah's name.

It is a rare name - Moses could not have thought this one up.  It comes from a rare hollow root.  

" Yehovah comes from the same root as Ehyeh: the hollow root HYH. Yehovah is actually a combination of three verbforms:
Hayah "he was", Hoveh "he is", and Yih'yeh "he is now and will continue to be in the future". Together Hayah,
Hoveh, and Yih'yeh combine into the name Yehovah.

 

[TrueTomHarley]

5 hours ago, Srecko Sostar said:

After all, they are the “guardians of the doctrine,” as Mr. Jackson told the ARC.

He could not have chosen a better description. Per that list of key tenets (doctrines, core beliefs) listed on the FAQ of the website, and cited by Anna, they are all of them found in only one place. 

Why are they not found in many places? Because if there were ever any guardians of those places, they long ago fell fast asleep. Only in one place have the doctrines been guarded. Everywhere else they dissipated to the four winds or thieves made off with them.

Every time someone flushes a toilet in Bethel it is a doctrine for you. It is impossible to be so obtuse unless it is deliberate. Everyone but you knows that if your picnic gets rained out because you read the weather wrong, it does not take away from the overall success of your life goals and purposes.

[xero]

https://www.academia.edu/14029315/The_Name_of_God_Y_eH_oW_aH_Which_is_pronounced_as_it_is_Written_I_Eh_oU_Ah_Simplified_edition?email_work_card=title

https://www.academia.edu/10728293/Gods_name_readable_but_unpronounceable_why

https://www.academia.edu/33873583/Did_Jesus_Je_HoVaH_salvation_know_God_s_name

 

[Patiently waiting for Truth]

14 hours ago, Arauna said:

Yehovah is

So once again you are changing it from Jehovah to Yahovah. 

I don't think you can decide which to believe.