by Terry 37 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Terry
I agree with Villagegirl—Science has its place, but there is no point in elevating it to the stature of a super high priest. It is easy to over-value sceince and dismiss vocabulary like spirit; but are we sure that we know about ordinary/normal things? For instance, we still don't know how we experience thought. Nor do we know the mechanics behind insight, creativity and imagination.
Cofty
You have to wait till you get proof. I got the proof which is more than enough FOR ME. Few days after my father’s death, he appeared to me in my dream, and asked me to settle some amount of money he owed to a person, who was his colleague in the Company he was working decades ago. This was something both the parties had almost forgotten as money was a small amount, and it seems he did not bother about it as both were very friendly to each other! I had no idea about this man. I went in search of him. When I told him of my intent, he was surprised and vaguely remembered that my father had owed him money. He did not accept the money, but seemed very happy about the whole episode, and said my father’s blessing is more valuable than the money! Ever since, He is a very good friend of our family! [This dream-incident divided our Witness family into two—half turned into “apostates,” and other half dismissed my experience as trick played by Satan on me]. Cofty is behaving like my Witness family members! Don’t be quick to dismiss things we do not like! It is a course of wisdom to WAIT till you get the proof.
It is true that religions are a set of beliefs, so is Atheism. ATHEISM IS ALSO A RELIGION, ACCORDING TO THE AMERICAN JUDICIARY. The ruling came after a prisoner in 2005 claimed that his rights were violated when the warden refused to allow him to form a group of inmates to study and discuss atheism. A federal court agreed: “Atheism is the inmate's religion, and the group that he wanted to start was religious in nature even though it expressly rejects a belief in a supreme being,” the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals said.
It is true that religions are a set of beliefs, so is Atheism - Pinku
Atheism is a religion in the same way as abstinence is a sex position.
It is a course of wisdom to WAIT till you get the proof. - Pinku
Anecdotes are not "proof" of anything.
There are far simpler explanations for all these sort of accounts. Supernatural explanations are by definition the least likely answers.
Healthy skepticism requires that our beliefs should be commensurate with the available evidence.
Healthy skepticism requires that our beliefs should be commensurate with the available evidence
Even when I was completely "in" I always thought of myself as a skeptic. Perhaps I was enough of one to enable my waking up to the reality of the JW religion but the second greatest realisation I have had other than the deconstruction of my faith is that my skeptism was really at infant levels and not healthy at all.
Understanding that has really helped me to keep my sanity as my entire points of reference have disappeared and I have had to seriously consider what I really believe and how I go about choosin what to accept or not accept. Healthy skeptism is not necessarily cynical and allows one to be open minded with far less risk of taking on board beliefs and concepts that effectively put one back in the same place as when a Witness.
Asking for reasonable corroborative evidence is not the same as closing your mind.
I agree with that knoceptual99. When I left the borg and became a christian I thought I had examined all my beliefs objectively. In fact I had put a fence around my most basic ones.
Until we have faced up to the very best contrary evidence we are not being intellectually honest with ourselves.
Joining this forum encouraged me to hone my Critical Thinking skills, well, not so much just hone them, as acquire them, and then hone them.
It has made me a much happier person, I am not troubled by insecurity or doubts, and I am also able now to save myself much time.
Whilst researching this morning, due to questions in my mind prompted by another thread, I made myself look at the words of scholars that took the opposite view to the one I had come to. I gleaned a few gems from their work, but was also able to see the weaknesses in their arguments.
Cleaning out the junk vocabulary, and the junk thinking, as well as gaining skills in the art of learning has been a wonderful benefit from my JWN education.
Cofty,
If you can say " abstinence is a sex position," you can also say "NON-VIOLENCE is a VIOLENCE position!"
You could, but it would be gibberish.
