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Srecko Sostar

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  1. Like
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Pudgy in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    Jehovah understood it all before it got started. This is evidenced by the following image called by physicists and mathematicians “The Thumbprint of God”. The equation that generated this image shows up in EVERYTHING! 

  2. Like
    Srecko Sostar got a reaction from Pudgy in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    There are irregularities in nature that are studied as chaos theory. Even in this chaos there is a certain order, but that order is different from our usual understanding of order and organization. I am reading a written work and there it says.

    There are three basic characteristics of chaos:
    1. disproportion between input and output;
    2. inconspicuousness of the entrance;
    3. unpredictable output
    In the last few years, the application of chaos theory in social phenomena has been seriously considered. It is interesting that in the last 10 years or so, a number of physicists have moved into the field of sociology and political science.
    They realized that some nonlinear equations that describe certain processes, even those that describe quantum physical events on at the level of the atom, can be applied to social and political phenomena, with the proviso that instead of the flow of liquid, for example, the transfer of information is considered: that instead of a phase transition, where a parameter suddenly changes, in society, for example, a law can change, and that instead of an essential phase transition can have a political revolution, so systems of differential equations that describe physical processes are applied for describing changes in society. By solving this system of equations, treating society as a chaotic system, one tries to predict the likely outcome. Politicians in the West are now closely following these pioneering studies.
    Organizational chaos represents disorder, confusion, commotion in the organization. Organizational chaos means that the organization is in a state of entropy. Entropy is a measure of disorganization of the system, it is a state in which the system falls apart. The tendency towards disorganization, that is, organizational chaos, is a natural tendency of the system. organization as a measure of order in the system, the entropy of the system and its tendency towards organizational chaos is reduced.
    My comment:
    The schisms within the initial, Russell's WTS, and later other doctrinal turmoil under other presidents, indicate a certain chaotic state and consequently dramatic changes that the Society goes through, constantly. They could say that the leadership's pursuit of order and control is possible, but it is also not impossible to have disorder and chaos.
    What kind of chaos could or should YHVH have anticipated, foreseen before the creation of angels and men?
     
  3. Like
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Pudgy in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    When  I was about 13 years old I started collecting stamps, and having ADD I focused on this like the proverbial laser, and could even recognize stamps that had different numbers of perforations around the edges that were valuable, and those which were common because they had different numbers of perforations.  
    This was about 1960, and it was the same time that I started getting an interest in Jehovah’s Witnesses.
    The United States government came out with a series of stamps called “The American Credo Series“, about 1962 which has influenced my entire life, hopefully for the good, sometimes demonstrably for the good.

    One stamp particularly resonated with me quoting Thomas Jefferson, and in 1964 when I was baptized it had become a part of my occasionally obnoxious and overbearing personality. 

    I took the long version of this oath before my baptism oath, (… quite different from today’s baptism oath …), and in a massively imperfect way I consider both to still be in force.
    Thomas Jefferson was also a massively imperfect man, as is the JW Governing Body.
    Thomas Jefferson's second inaugural address, delivered on March 4, 1805 expressed his commitment to protecting individual liberties and declared, "I shall often go wrong through defect of judgment. When right, I shall often be thought wrong by those whose positions will not command a view of the whole ground. I ask your indulgence for my own errors, which will never be intentional, and your support against the errors of others, who may condemn what they would not if seen in all its parts. The approbation implied by your suffrage is a great consolation to me for the past, and my future solicitude will be to retain the good opinion of those who have bestowed it in advance, to conciliate that of others by doing them all the good in my power, and to be instrumental to the happiness and freedom of all."

  4. Like
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Many Miles in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    I think it would seem to be quite presumptuous to say that we are the only spokesperson that God is using. Not my words. But I agree with the sentiment.
    The early Christian church found it difficult to think there were people whose worship God accepted outside Judaism and outside Christianity. But God showed them different. There's no reason to think these worshipers were particularly organized. They were just living life in a way God accepted. How we live our life is our worship, not what organization we do or do not belong to. Just think about all the good that came from how Job lived his life, and this despite him having no advertised affiliation with any organization.
    Asserting we must be organized to get things done is a slippery slop, and oftentimes the sentiment has ended up hurting people because too late folks discovered an organization had an underlying operating arrangement different than they were either allowed to or led to believe. God is not dependent on humans organizing to get His will done.
    Because people organize to get things done does not mean to get things done you have to be organized. Because someone does not organize does not mean they don't care about getting things done; it just means they don't organize. That said, unity within an organization is not because of uniformity. To the contrary, unity is continuing within a common cause despite holding differences.
    I'm not anti-organization. I am for rationality and transparency. Any organization whose primary purpose is to help people follow Jesus should be completely transparent and rational in all things. We find these attributes in the early Christian church.
     
  5. Like
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Pudgy in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    …. you need to reread Luke 22:36-38.
    Jesus DID COMMAND his Apostles to buy swords, but agreed that two were enough!
    Your agenda is interfering with your reading comprehension.
    He was not talking about swords for bears!
     

  6. Haha
    Srecko Sostar reacted to TrueTomHarley in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    To the extent that is true it would appear that I am the blockhead.
  7. Upvote
    Srecko Sostar got a reaction from Thinking in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    Blockhead? lol
    I thought that by now you already had the chance to know my sense of humor and some kind of irony and sarcasm in some of the written sentences. Well, for such things, we don't need to "conduct a Bible study" in order to master the material. Or do we? lol
  8. Haha
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Thinking in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    Yes koalas are very cute but they have a big problem with STDs which I think they are trying to eradicate …..I wouldn’t hold one ..but one day ..it’s a sure thing….i don’t think pudgy looks as cute as that when he awakes…
  9. Upvote
    Srecko Sostar got a reaction from Pudgy in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    One of the self-defense tools highly recommended by WTJWorg, when it comes to women, is to scream loudly. They never encourage them to take an actual self-defense course.
    Please clarify what is the difference between "actual use " and "self-defense"? When is the "sword"  really used in actual defense use, and when is it used in self-defense?
     
  10. Like
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Many Miles in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    "God proceeded to form the man out of dust from the ground and to blow into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man came to be a living soul." (Gen 2:7) 
    Or, as the Live Forever book expresses it:
    "Notice, however, that the Bible does not say that God gave man a soul. Rather, it says that after God started man breathing “the man came to be a living soul.” So the man was a soul, just as a man who becomes a doctor is a doctor. (1 Corinthians 15:45)  The “dust from the ground,” from which the physical body is formed, is not the soul. Nor does the Bible say that the “breath of life” is the soul. Rather, the Bible shows that the putting together of these two things is what resulted in ‘man’s becoming a living soul.’"
    Plenty of children have comprehended that.
     
  11. Haha
    Srecko Sostar reacted to TrueTomHarley in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    You blockhead. I mean, Duh, if anyone discards belief in God they necessarily focus on only the inconveniences of being Christian in the present system, which no Witness would ever deny there are some, but they are compensated by realities to come.
    If there really is a God, and if there really will be a new system in which He rules unopposed, then he will enforce his own standards. Just like during that circuit assembly in the early 70’s in which two resurrected ones were bellyaching over everything under the sun, impervious to the correction that the loving elders (who weren’t packing guns) were pouring on like syrup, then the lights went out, there was a loud zap and a flash from heaven, and they were gone! Oh, yeah—a ‘dramatization’ it was.
  12. Haha
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Pudgy in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    I don’t know how else to say this, so here goes…. 
    Do we REALLY want Elders in the Congregation to carry guns?

  13. Downvote
    Srecko Sostar got a reaction from Alphonse in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    He can go to field service and conduct Bible study with people, i guess only this. According to articles from 2005 and 2017, your elders are not working according to the regulation if he have duties in congregation (carries microphone, reading, public speech etc. lol.
    Unless, you can provide written WTJWorg material that say opposite.
     Can a Christian maintain a good conscience if he accepts armed employment?
    Engaging in secular work that requires carrying a firearm or another weapon is a personal decision. But armed employment exposes one to possible bloodguilt if one uses the weapon and to the danger of injury or death from an attack or reprisal. A Christian carrying such a weapon would not qualify for special privileges in the congregation. (1 Timothy 3:3, 10)—11/1, page 31. - https://www.jw.org/hr/biblioteka/casopisi/w20051215/Sjećaš-li-se/
    Christians strive to be exemplary. (2 Cor. 4:2; 1 Pet. 5:2, 3) After receiving Scriptural counsel, a Christian who continues to keep a gun for protection against other humans could not be considered exemplary. He would therefore not qualify for responsibilities or special privileges in the congregation. The same applies to a Christian who continues to carry a firearm as part of his secular work. How much better to seek other employment! 
     - https://www.jw.org/hr/biblioteka/casopisi/strazarska-kula-proucavanje-srpanj-2017/posjedovanje-oruzja-radi-zastite/
  14. Upvote
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Many Miles in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    Juan, that's a lot of words, and to be honest, I'm not really sure what you're trying to say.
    Because above you write:
    "The question is not whether one will have glasses through which to interpret Scripture, but rather which glasses are the correct ones?" [Underlining added]
    Let's start with something simple. Check the box that applies:
    We should believe teaching "x" because:
    [______] it's rational.
    [______] the society says so.
    [______] some other reason other than because it's "rational" or "the society says so".
  15. Upvote
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Many Miles in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    Yes. I agree with that. And, people can debate the veracity of an interpretation. But once someone (anyone!) asserts an interpretation of a given text then they have no choice but to accept that interpretation equally and not pick-and-choose where and when they want that interpretation to apply. That is, if they want to use that interpretation rationally.
    Here's an example of one such interpretation:
    "So Satan’s ploy roused Eve’s curiosity; it got her to focus on the one thing in all the garden that was forbidden to her."
    Short version:
    There was only ONE THING in all the garden that was forbidden to Eve.
    Among other things, that would mean:
    Eve was not forbidden to eat meat, or blood.
    Oh. Wait. That would interfere with a pet teaching, wouldn't it.
  16. Upvote
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Many Miles in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    I hate to say it because 1) it sounds bad. But because 2) I could think of no other reason, and 3) given that the society's top leadership could not have ever imagined their own sworn oaths of allegiance to the United States of America would see the light of day, I 4) teeter between disingenuous and duplicitous.  
  17. Haha
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Pudgy in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    To be fair, I have ADD, and a 77 year old with ADD really needs to write with crayons.
  18. Like
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Thinking in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    Never could figure it out
  19. Like
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Thinking in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    I tend to break Juan’s and even JWI and their writing up in paragraphs at a time..just cannot do it in one hit …but it’s usually worth it even if I don’t understand everything…
  20. Upvote
    Srecko Sostar got a reaction from Pudgy in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    Well, GB does not prohibit the carrying of weapons for private or official use. But those JWs who have it are not ideologically eligible/acceptable for any ministry in the congregation. With Jesus, the apostles were eligible/acceptable for service. So GB does not follow Jesus. Clear as a sunny day. lol
  21. Like
    Srecko Sostar reacted to JW Insider in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    I don't doubt the overall point you are making that ultimately we must stand "ourselves alone" before the judgment seat of God. And you are right, too, about "examining our past actions and behavior to ensure they were not influenced by our own flawed understanding and judgment." I like that. It's very clear, and its scriptural:
    (Galatians 6:3-5) For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he is deceiving himself. 4  But let each one examine his own actions, and then he will have cause for rejoicing in regard to himself alone, and not in comparison with the other person. 5  For each one will carry his own load.
     
    The only thing I see a bit differently is not so important, but I hope you'll excuse me for pointing it out. The phrase "Am I my brother's keeper?" is not really meant to be a guide for our spiritual growth. More likely, in my opinion, it's a reminder that we SHOULD be our brother's keeper during the time of our spiritual growth.  Ultimately, we stand alone and carry our own load, but penultimately, during our spiritual growth, we SHOULD be our brother's keeper. We have a brotherhood, because Christianity is a social religion that works best when we mutually support one another. (Hebrews 10:24,25) The very point Paul made in Galatians, above, was preceded by a verse that sounded, at first, like just the opposite:
    (Galatians 6:2) .Go on carrying the burdens of one another, and in this way you will fulfill the law of the Christ. 
    I wouldn't have pointed it out, but it just sounded a bit jarring to think that Cain's words were some kind of spiritual guidance, when these were the words Cain used as he was trying to deflect and deceive Jehovah. He had just killed his own brother after harboring animosity and jealousy, and wanted to hide his crime. 
  22. Upvote
    Srecko Sostar reacted to Many Miles in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    Good company is definitely a bonus. But if we put poison on our plate that's going to be a real bummer.
  23. Upvote
    Srecko Sostar got a reaction from Pudgy in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    Emphasis is on "current".
    lol
  24. Thanks
    Srecko Sostar got a reaction from Pudgy in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    Link to book:
    https://www.academia.edu/34138714/Ever_changing_teachings_of_Jehovahs_Witnesses_The_most_important_changes_in_the_doctrine_of_the_Watchtower_Society_in_the_years_1879_2015?email_work_card=title
    Link to WT magazine:
    https://archive.org/details/WatchTowerAndHeraldOfChristsPresence1910-1919/page/n1545/mode/2up
    https://archive.org/details/WatchTowerAndHeraldOfChristsPresence1910-1919/page/n1547/mode/2up
  25. Downvote
    Srecko Sostar got a reaction from Alphonse in Malawi and MCP Cards?   
    WTJWorg is not honest about this, too. Encyclopedia Britannica is not consistently cited in JW publications.
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