Posts by Balaamsass2

Still at work grinding out paper and my thoughts were about our dog who died last week. My dog would take a bullet for me. How many humans would do that?

It is sad they have such short lives.

9

Not on JW.org: THANK YOU!! Jehovah's Witnesses sue hospital after hospital honors NO BLOOD request.

by Balaamsass2 in

home articles wood news should jehovah's witness be able to sue after refusing blood...

should jehovah's witness be able to sue after refusing blood transfusion?.

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Balaamsass2

Home » Articles » WOOD News » Should Jehovah's Witness be able to sue after refusing blood...

Should Jehovah's Witness be able to sue after refusing blood transfusion?

Permalink Posted Tuesday, December 2nd 2014 @ 7pm

The Michigan State Supreme court has refused to hear the case of a Jehovah's Witness who died after receiving a kidney transplant. After the operation in 2007 the woman began to undergo symptoms of rejection. Doctors to the family she needed a blood transfusion, but they refused on religious grounds. After the woman died the family sued claiming negligence. The high court rejected the theory out of hand.

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NOT on JW.org: Huffington Post interview with Director of new movie about Jehovahs' Witnesses and the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society.

by Balaamsass2 in

danielle tumminio become a fan .

episcopal priest, life coach, and author of 'god and harry potter at yale'.

email.

Balaamsass2

An Inside View of Jehovah's Witnesses: A Interview With Director Gregorio Smith

Posted: 12/02/2014 6:11 pm EST Updated: 3 hours ago

I recently had the opportunity to view a new documentary about the experiences of contemporary Jehovah's Witnesses and was so intrigued by what I saw that I wanted to know more and thought my readers would as well. So what follows is an interview with director Gregorio Smith, whose film Truth Be Told will currently become available to the general public on December 19th.

This film takes a fairly critical look at the institution behind the Jehovah's Witnesses. What led you to make it?

I had just completed my film Birds and was eager to start a new project when my production partner, who was raised Catholic, suggested we do a documentary about "the Jehovah's." This is what they were called in his neighborhood while growing up, as in, "Quick! Get away from the window! The Jehovah's are coming!"

At the time there were few films about the Jehovah's Witnesses organization and/or experience. Two of the more recent productions included a well-received fictional drama from Denmark, and a documentary that aired on PBS here in the States that's widely considered a patently uncritical puff piece of the Watchtower Society.

I watched dozens of ex-Jehovah's Witness testimonials on YouTube and found revisiting my own Jehovah's Witness upbringing more distressing than anticipated. I left the religion decades ago, but there I was feeling an instant kinship with complete strangers sharing their stories of various emotional, social and psychological traumas.

These testimonials, albeit powerful, have a limited reach since they contain language that would only be understood by other ex-Jehovah's Witnesses -- The Truth, field service, apostates, disfellowshipping (shunning), worldly, the society, demonized -- an entire lexicon of obscure Jehovah's Witness jargon. Furthermore, these testimonials were mostly created in people's homes with consumer-grade technology and lacked key formalistic elements like picture quality, shot composition, lighting, editing and sound design.

Production value and approachability matter. And after giving the project much thought, we felt that we were in a good position to produce a documentary that offered an immersive historical understanding of the Jehovah's Witness experience, one that harmonizes the intensity of individual Jehovah's Witness stories with professional-grade aesthetics and technical elements.
And while Truth Be Told is of natural interest to former, fading and active Jehovah's Witnesses, we believe it is a valuable tool that will appeal to the non-Jehovah's Witness world and can educate millions about the lesser-known side of Watchtower Society culture: the suspension of critical thinking, the discouragement of higher education, the non-observance of birthdays, Christmas and other societal holidays and customs, the prohibitions on sexual conduct, their zero-tolerance homosexuality policy and their excessive devotion to a central tenet that the destruction of the world is imminent.

Do you think there's such a thing as a happy Jehovah's Witness? Or if I phrase it differently, do you think the religion is flawed or do you think the way people practice it makes it flawed?

I think Jehovah's Witnesses believe they are happy, at least in the Jehovah's Witness version of happiness. Problem is, this happiness resides outside of themselves in a facade, a pious Potemkin Village where members are simply aping the smiling happy people and fellowship depicted in Jehovah's Witness literature designed to elicit emotional versus rational responses. In short, their happiness is informed by their own propaganda.

I am not a theologian, so I cannot say whether or not the Jehovah's Witness religion as a system of belief is flawed. I can say, however, that my Jehovah's Witness upbringing was a life of strict obedience to "theocratic order" in an atmosphere of high expectations with little to no reward. And a dogmatic culture fraught with fear, guilt, paranoia, legalism, isolation, and asceticism does not leave much room for happiness.

It's worth mentioning that a show of hands at Truth Be Told screenings across the country revealed that more than half of the former Jehovah's Witnesses in attendance have either been in or sought out mental health counseling/therapy, and half of those admitted to contemplating or attempting suicide.

What kind of reforms would you like to see the Jehovah's Witness -- formally called the Watchtower Society -- make for the religion to be healthier? Are such changes possible?

The Watchtower Society can benefit from a healthy dose of humility. This perception that they alone possess "The Truth" cultivates an air of spiritual elitism and bigotry, since members regard other faiths and beliefs as "false" or otherwise inferior. It also fosters a dangerous climate of absolutes where the rules, regulations and doctrine as set forth by its leadership (called "Governing Body") are considered unimpeachable and any challenge to their administrations is tantamount to religious persecution, heresy or apostasy.

Ironically, this tendency towards legalism could signal the demise of the Watchtower Society, as their entrenchment in response to upticks in departures and increasingly dangerous questions from members will ultimately approach a point of hyper-legalism whereby the entire Jehovah's Witness infrastructure chokes on its excess of rules and regulations.

No one has a monopoly on the truth and a healthy discussion about religion needs vagueness -- room to contemplate the wonderment and mystery of the unknowable. A God understood is no God. This kind of perceptual shift, however, challenges over a century of increasingly insular and absolutist Watchtower Society doctrine, so I don't believe reforms will ever happen in earnest.
What do you hope viewers will take from the film?

Truth Be Told is an examination of the clear and present dangers of undue influence in the hands of fanatical religions and other high-control groups. And it is important for our viewers to understand that the indoctrination, spiritual intimidation, ostracism and other human rights abuses discussed in the film did not just occur in the past. They are happening right now to millions of Jehovah's Witnesses families and their worldwide.

Truth Be Told is also an effective educational tool that will allow the non-Jehovah's Witness world to see this religion in an entirely new light. Academics, medical and mental health professionals, and legal experts regard have expressed surprise and fascination upon viewing Truth Be Told and regard the film as a "valuable contribution" for its historical and immersive insider's view into Jehovah's Witness culture.

Our outreach will have its challenges since the people that the film could help the most are the least likely to view it. As one ex-Jehovah's Witness tweeted:

"I'd share this with my JW family but am afraid of being called an apostate and losing contact. They are ruled by fear."

More information on the film is available at this website. Worldwide online screenings will be held on Christmas Day, accompanied by social media-facilitated discussions (#hereliesthetruth).

Follow Danielle Tumminio on Twitter: www.twitter.com/RevDaniBeth

MORE:

Gregorio Smith Truth Be Told Documentary Series Truth Be Told Jehovah's Witnesses

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Michael Brown verdict discussion policy - take II

by Simon in

i had originally thought that making the rules clear about what was and wasn't going to be allowed when discussing the michael brown verdict that we'd be able to avoid some of the unpleasantness that surrounded the subsequent trayvon martin trial discussions.. michael brown verdict discussion policy.

i had hoped that once the evidence came out there would not be as many people promoting opinions that contradicted it.

unfortunately, that appears to have been naive of me.

Balaamsass2

I have no dog in this fight....but the U.S. Supreme court ruled slavery legal in times past. So were abolitionist wrong?

P.S. I upset a judge a few years ago by saying this in court...and she ordered me off the jury and out of her court.

However I agree that he who owns the chat room makes the rules to ensure order.

19

How to disassociate? HELP

by Mandrake in

i'm looking for a way to disassociate myself, now i'm thinking to make a "public declaration" before a civil law notary (i'm in chile), but i need some ideas about what to put in that declaration, i would like to look the "ks" book to cover all possible sides and make a solid declaration... any experiences?

my plan is to make that legal declaration that would say "i'm no longer consider myself a jehovah's witness nor want to be linked to any of the wt organizations or legal entities, and want all my personal records to be erased"... any orientation will be helpful :).

Balaamsass2

Just say NO. Stop attending. Play. Sleep in Saturday and Sunday. Take a vacation. Move. Don't answer the door. Let the phone ring. Enjoy life.

3

NOT on JW.org.: Jehovah's Witnesses butt of talk show jokes..again.

by Balaamsass2 in

democracy & freedom watch.

reporting on the state of georgian democracy.

related:.

Balaamsass2

Democracy & Freedom Watch

REPORTING ON THE STATE OF GEORGIAN DEMOCRACY

Georgian talk show host makes fun of Jehovah’s Witnesses

by DFWATCH STAFF | Nov 27, 2014

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nanuka_zhorzholiani

Nanuka Zhorzholiani. (Interpressnews.)

TBILISI, DFWatch–A well-known TV host in the republic of Georgia was Wednesday evening criticized for making discriminating statements about Jehovah’s Witnesses while on air.

One of the guests on Nanuka’s Show, which is aired on Rustavi 2, a TV channel in the former Soviet republic, made disparaging statements about Jehovah’s Witnesses.

He was backed up by the host, Nanuka Zhorzholiani, who made a poor attempt at telling jokes: “Are Jehovah’s witnesses like zombies?” “I’m quite scared that they will hypnotize me.”

These comments, made by the host, were made during an interview with a man who used to be a Jehovah’s Witness, but converted to Orthodox Christianity and criticized his former religion saying it is ‘a dangerous and cruel sect.’

The host apologized on her Facebook page after being strongly criticized in social media. Later in the evening, the board of the Journalist Ethics Charter sent out a statement about the issue saying that the host violated the Broadcasters’ Code of Conduct, which requires a broadcasters to follow and protect principles of diversity, equality and tolerance, respect freedom of opinion, conscience, religion and belief and avoid insulting ethnic, religious, cultural, social or other groups.

“The board of the charter welcomes that after the reaction from people, the host published explanations, but we still believe she has to do it during her show,” the statement reads, calling on Rustavi 2 to never air this specific program on air or post it on the Internet.

The board also calls on the TV company not to brush away the incident without reaction and let the host explain her own and her guest’s discriminatory statements.

Nanuka Zhorzholiani wrote on her Facebook page that her show is about humans, their stories, and sometimes people might not like their attitudes and life stories, but it is part of their life and any person has a right to make it public or not.

“He was talking about his own religious life and he had this right,” she writes, adding that she read being criticized that she should have stopped the guest while he was telling his story. “It’s not clear how a TV show host can reprimand a respondent for telling about his own life.”

Zhorzholiani writes it is not understandable that no-one must be allowed to speak about positive and negative sides of Jehovah’s Witnesses ‘only because they are a minority in Georgia.’

About her own comments, she wrote that these were jokes about a long story which her responded was telling, but she ‘still accepts the remark.’

In the end of her statement, Zhorzholiani writes that she and the people working on her show completely supports fundamental values of freedom of religion and think that all religious groups are respected parts of society.

There were most discussions about this incident on Facebook, including on Zhorzholiani’s own page, as she posted some pictures from Wednesday’s show. One user wrote that she must have remembered living in a country where ten years ago Jehovah’s Witnesses were harassed and beaten, and their books were burned, and they still remain stigmatized and ridiculed.

“It is not right to humiliate another religion so publicly, or why should anyone be scared of Jehovah’s Witnesses,” another user wrote.

Some people called on her to invite people to the next show who can in the same manner openly humiliate and harass Orthodox Christianity, as it is most influential religion in Georgia.

Rusudan Gotsiridze, Bishop of the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia, also responded to the show by writing that ‘TV stars’ must think of other important issues apart from the show’s ratings.

“I wonder if Nanuka Zhorzholiani thought that tomorrow, Jehovah’s Witness children will be ridiculed with double enthusiasm at school by classmates, while teachers will try with greater fervor to convert them to the ‘true religion’. How many children will dream of dying, how many of them will hate their parents, the teachers, God and the whole world,” she writes.

Rustavi 2 on Thursday issued a statement apologizing ‘if unwittingly religious feelings of Jehovah’s Witnesses were insulted’ on the show.

The statement says that Nanuka’s Show is a TV product produced by Outdoor Studio, and Rustavi 2 doesn’t participate in the creation of the show.

The TV company expressed readiness to ‘timely and effectively’ review any violation of journalistic standards on shows which are aired on Rustavi 2 and any person can make such a request to the company.

3

NOT on JW.org: Former Jehovah's Witness wins award for book..about Jehovah's Witness.

by Balaamsass2 in

home news poet jennifer lovegroves first novel gets...

13 hours ago | vote0 0. poet jennifer lovegroves first novel gets longlisted for the scotiabank giller prize.

long listed.

Balaamsass2

Home News Poet Jennifer LoveGrove’s first novel gets... | 13 hours ago | Vote0 0

Poet Jennifer LoveGrove’s first novel gets longlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize

Long listed

Courtesy Davenport and Dovercourt roads-area resident and poetry writer Jennifer LoveGrove has written her first novel, which was long listed for a Giller Prize. Bloor West Villager By Lisa Rainford

Poetry writer Jennifer LoveGrove has made the leap to novel writing, a transition she says was “weird.”

LoveGrove’s first novel Watch How We Walk is longlisted for the 2014 Scotiabank Giller Prize, recognition that has given the book a second life and provided its author “a confidence boost.”

“I thought it’d be a short story and it kept getting longer and longer,” she said about her work of fiction.

A voice she kept hearing in her head became LoveGrove’s main character. Inspired by her own upbringing in a Jehovah’s Witness household, the book tells the story of Emily, who ever since she was little wanted to grow up to become a full-time pioneer. Instead, she is destined to hand out Watchtower magazines door-to-door.

However, Emily begins to challenge her family’s beliefs; she forges a close relationship with her closeted uncle while her older sister Lenora starts wearing makeup, hangs out with boys and gets a radical new haircut.

After Lenora disappears, Emily’s life is turned upside down.

“I was so immersed in the novel I thought I’d never be able to write poetry again,” said the Davenport and Dovercourt roads-area resident, who spent six years completing the novel.

Raised a Jehovah’s Witness in Dunville, Ont., LoveGrove said she resisted writing about her experience because she says “there’s so many ‘losing my religion’ stories out there.”

“I resisted until it became unavoidable,” she said. “This is an isolated group; you can’t write this solely on research.”

LoveGrove was 13 when her parents separated. As a teen, it was more important for her to stay in the religion because of her best friend, than what her parents wanted. She stayed until she and her friend had a falling out.

LoveGrove came to Toronto to attend York University where she studied creative writing.

“I’ve been writing ever since I can remember,” she said. “I had a lamp chair and a typewriter in the bedroom I grew up in.”

Passionate about poetry, LoveGrove is the author of collections The Dagger Between Her Teeth and I Should Never Have Fired the Sentinel.

Shortlisted for the K. M. Hunter Artist Award for Literature in 2010, LoveGrove produced and hosted the literary radio show “In Other Words” on CKLN 88.1FM.

For further details, visit LoveGrove’s website at jenniferlovegrove.wordpress.com

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South American "Mayan" mob justice. Have you heard of it??

by DATA-DOG in

i have a close friend who has jw family in south america.

recently some criminals ran through their town.

the locals routinely practice "mayan justice" where the criminals are beaten or burned to death, depending on the crime.. the authorities try to stop it, but they are not always successful.

Balaamsass2

Some JW Special Pioneers and a Circuit Overseer faced some "Machete Justice" from the Maya in the 40s. The C.O. and Pioneer survived round one because the Pioneer carried a big revolver. Round 2 the Pioneer did not survive. That is one you won't read about in the yearbook.

Balaamsass2

Posts by Balaamsass2

Should Jehovah's Witness be able to sue after refusing blood transfusion?

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Related:

Georgian talk show host makes fun of Jehovah’s Witnesses

Poet Jennifer LoveGrove’s first novel gets longlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize

Long listed