Posts by Onager

6

Present day tree.

by pleaseresearch in

since leaving and fading.

i don't celebrate christmas but in its place which is sad i know.

we have present day.

There are many aspects of Christmas that I don't like, the commercialisation, the lying to children about an invisible person who brings them presents, the over indulgence and so on. On top of that I don't have any cultural background of Christmas traditions, so the tree and the turkey and crackers and tinsel have no resonance for me.

BUT! The glow of the lights in a dark time of the year, the spending time with my (non JW) relatives and seeing their joy at giving our child gifts... is magical. who in their right mind wouldn't want that in their lives??

81

Secret sex in the Org

by pomo6780 in

2 pioneers of the opposite sex.

the brother is in his mid-20s, sister is in her late 20s.

both are alone in car as the only 2 out in field service.

Onager

Man's best friend has sex with his wife. Husband is furious and berates his wife for the loss of his best friend. Portsmouth South congregation.

You know a man's best friend is his dog right??

102

If mathematics teacher made a mistake, would it mean mathematics itself is wrong!

by venus in

many people point to the irrationality in the depiction of god by the religions and their scriptures, hence jump into the bottomless pit of atheism.

in either camp, god is not a factor because religion is only a means that misrepresents god, hence religionists themselves are atheists (literally, those who live without god).

it is like saying there exists no earth because you found out your friend who taught earth is flat is wrong; or it is like saying mathematics itself is wrong because you found out your mathematics teacher made a mistake.

Onager

Then I lay there in the gutter and my heart was all a-flutter,
Till a lady, passing by, did chance to say:
"You can tell a man that boozes by the company he chooses,"
Then the pig got up and slowly walked away.
- The Famous Pig Song

I'm sorry, but like the pig, I'm going to walk away from this thread.

58

Non JW wife/JW husband Christmas tree debate

by spacegirl443 in

jw
friends

first post here and looking for advice and help.

sorry in advance for it being so long :(.

i'm a happily married woman (no kids) who is a non-jw, presbyterian to be precise.

Onager

Hi Spacegirl, oh boy you are in a pickle!

All you need to know at the moment is that your husband's religion is crazy. Keep the discussion really simple, which will be hard because he will try and drag it all over the place. Your points could be something like:

You do not have the same religious beliefs.

A house is a shared space where both partners should feel equally at home.

you're not prepared to compromise on the Christmas tree and he needs to accept that if you are to feel that where you live is your home.

You have given up birthdays, Easter, having children(!!) for him. Is he prepared to give this up for you?

Stick to your few points, don't get distracted by arguments about pagan origins, don't get sidetracked down waffle alley and don't give in!

Once you get through this I'm afraid it's not going to get easier. The organisation will always be interfering. There will always be some issue unless you roll over and become a JW (and give up your free will and thinking ability). DON'T DO THAT!!!

102

If mathematics teacher made a mistake, would it mean mathematics itself is wrong!

by venus in

many people point to the irrationality in the depiction of god by the religions and their scriptures, hence jump into the bottomless pit of atheism.

in either camp, god is not a factor because religion is only a means that misrepresents god, hence religionists themselves are atheists (literally, those who live without god).

it is like saying there exists no earth because you found out your friend who taught earth is flat is wrong; or it is like saying mathematics itself is wrong because you found out your mathematics teacher made a mistake.

Onager

Conscious energy is an invention of yourself, or your teacher, backed up by no facts at all.

Evolution is a theory backed up by facts.

The gaps in the fossil record are because fossilisation rarely happens, not because transitional species are missing. ALL species are transitional, including Homo Sapiens.

The Elephant shrew is considered an insectivore... because it eats insects.

36

What phobias do you have?

by stuckinarut2 in

jw
friends

so this is just a general question.

call it curiosity.. what sort of phobias do we have?

heights?

Onager

You'd get on well with my dog Phoebe. She has very firm ideas about postmen and how they should be barked off the planet if at all possible!

I thought I had arachnophobia, but as an expert at Exmoor zoo pointed out, if I really did have arachnophobia I would not have stayed in the same room as him and the tarantula that he was holding. I guess that what I have is just a strong aversion therefore.

102

If mathematics teacher made a mistake, would it mean mathematics itself is wrong!

by venus in

many people point to the irrationality in the depiction of god by the religions and their scriptures, hence jump into the bottomless pit of atheism.

in either camp, god is not a factor because religion is only a means that misrepresents god, hence religionists themselves are atheists (literally, those who live without god).

it is like saying there exists no earth because you found out your friend who taught earth is flat is wrong; or it is like saying mathematics itself is wrong because you found out your mathematics teacher made a mistake.

Onager

The Big Bang theory makes no claims to be the ultimate theory. It is the current attempt to explain the way things are.

Energy and Conscious Energy are two completely different things. One exists and one doesn't. You see you're trying to define a god by taking something that exists (energy) and then adding stuff to it that there is no evidence for.

What you're presenting is the irreducible complexity argument and that applies to your "Conscious Energy" as well, so the question remains: who created the conscious energy?

93

Higher Education

by Brian J in

just spent 8 hours in a 1 day elders school last weekend.

clarification given: "moving forward any elder, ms, or pioneer who themselves or someone under their roof enrolls in higher education, may no longer qualify for privileges in the congregation.

their qualifications will have to be reviewed by their boe.".

Onager

"Greater love hath no man than he who will drive his stationwagon at 5mph away from the Org for the sake of his family." - Brian chapter 1, verse 5.

102

If mathematics teacher made a mistake, would it mean mathematics itself is wrong!

by venus in

many people point to the irrationality in the depiction of god by the religions and their scriptures, hence jump into the bottomless pit of atheism.

in either camp, god is not a factor because religion is only a means that misrepresents god, hence religionists themselves are atheists (literally, those who live without god).

it is like saying there exists no earth because you found out your friend who taught earth is flat is wrong; or it is like saying mathematics itself is wrong because you found out your mathematics teacher made a mistake.

Onager

You infer from the "simple" universe of the human body, the complex greater universe because the conscious energy that creates one must infer a greater conscious energy creating the other?

Ignoring for a moment the complete lack of evidence for this inference, this line of reasoning relies on the decreasing complexity of creation. So, something like this:

God > Human > Wristwatch

Whereas science suggests increasing complexity:

Big Bang > Energy > Matter > Universe > Life > intelligent life > A.I. Robots

The problem, which you have tried to sidestep but failed, of "who designed the designer" is still very much a problem for you then, because you need something MORE complex than god to design god.

78

Work Christmas functions: Being a Bible Student (unbaptized)

by rulehayl in

jw
friends

hi all,i have been studying with the witnesses for more than 6 months and regularly attend both midweek & weekend meetings, and i am nearly at the end of the "bible teach" book.

my boss is adamant i attend team christmas functions.

she knows about my studying and potential baptism next year, and has suggested that i attend and just not participate in activities like kris kringle.

Onager

Wow Anders, that's the scary power of the internet right there! The internet knows all, the internet remembers all.

for what it's worth, I also got the vibe that they were already a JW. It was something about their turn of phrase and lack of addressing arguments. Either way, bring on the next defender of the JDubs!