lol. When I was 13 or so, I remember thinking a world of perfect naked women sounded pretty good.
Balaamsass2
JoinedPosts by Balaamsass2
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24
Naked in the New World
by neat blue dog ini know there was a painting of a woman being resurrected naked and someone coming to greet her holding clothes, but what about after perfection, after the thousand years?.
the idea is we're supposed to achieve what adam lost by returning to human perfection, so wouldn't that include not wearing clothes, especially as the act of adam and eve hiding in the trees and sewing fig leaves signified shame, and imperfection passed on through the reproductive organs.
has the wt ever addressed this?
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No pension no preparation for retirement
by Mikejw ina lot of my ex fellow servants must be now in their seventies, what can you do?.
no children no money no home.
it is so sad.. so many decided not to have children as the end was right around the corner and that was decades ago.
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Balaamsass2
Adding to admonitions from the platform to NOT save for the future, were the admonitions to avoid ALL education. I clearly remember murmuring and gossiping in the 70s about a few elders who took short courses to prepare for simply getting a Realtors License or Contractor's license.
I eventually went to college at night. I had to carefully plan my courses around meeting nights. I told no one for years. You would have thought I was selling drugs or having an affair. Looking back, I can't believe I stayed in for so long. I am so grateful for the invention of Google, and sites like this that opened my eyes to the absolute craziness of Watchtower Dogma.
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96
No pension no preparation for retirement
by Mikejw ina lot of my ex fellow servants must be now in their seventies, what can you do?.
no children no money no home.
it is so sad.. so many decided not to have children as the end was right around the corner and that was decades ago.
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Balaamsass2
Thanks, LongHairGal.
I agree with you. The funny thing is the bible actually admonished working hard, thrift, and saving money for emergencies.."Go to the ant you lazy one". It is fascinating how Watchtower expounds from the pulpit so many non-biblical teachings...and tries to punish people for actually following sound scriptural advice.
As far as feeling pity, it is hard to see a senior sleeping on the ground, carrying all her worldly belongings in plastic trash bags because she hung on every word of deluded pompous ass hats in New York.
My current wife of 22 years, a lovely woman with common sense,(third gen) agrees with you.
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96
No pension no preparation for retirement
by Mikejw ina lot of my ex fellow servants must be now in their seventies, what can you do?.
no children no money no home.
it is so sad.. so many decided not to have children as the end was right around the corner and that was decades ago.
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Balaamsass2
Many years ago my first wife, (a former special pioneer) flipped when she noticed my paycheck stub had deductions for a 401k and IRA. She ran to the elders to report me for "not believing the end was near". This resulted in a "Judicial investigation" and the loss of some "Priveledges".
The elders who counseled me for my lack of faith ended up in poverty in their old age 30 years later. Wife #1 left me soon after the incident for "Spiritual Endangerment" because I wasn't up to her Spiritual standards. Wife #1, is now a senior and a "bag lady" who begs change at Starbucks, sleeps behind KH halls, and "couch surfs" on a few JW couches. She never remarried,(no one was up to her spiritual standards), and most JWs will not rent a room to her because (she has no $$) and she likes to remind THEM... they are not "putting kingdom interests first" if they have nice things or a nice home. The end result of following Watchtower's advice.
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Elder Arrangement
by vienne inhi everyone, (including the person who down votes all of my posts).
as some of you know, i'm working toward my master's degree.
comments from those associated when the elder arrangement was introduced would help me with a research paper.. what was the reaction among adherents?
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Balaamsass2
Before the big change and for a year after, everyone seemed happy. On the second round of "appointments", a number of brand new converts, illiterate men, and socially inept people were "appointed". The second round of appointees had never read the bible even once and had never supervised anyone or anything in their lives. It created a lot of drama and divisions and seemed a disaster. It began to help me see the entire process had nothing to do with Christianity, the bible, or logic.
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Balaamsass2
What! I enjoy all the unfulfilled prophicies, flip-flops, and crazy talk of old WT books. I especially enjoy all the Masonic and "pagan" iconology.
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News story claims: "Jehovah’s Witnesses" are QAnon believers"
by Balaamsass2 ini was googling the subject and came across this story.
i just had an incredible phone conversation with a long-time jw who has strong "q-anon" "sovereign citizen" beliefs.
the wife(first gen) says she is not surprised.
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Balaamsass2
Having grown up and worked with "worldly" people in the Silicon Valley, I was a little amused with some of the world views of Bethel residents while I was there. Many were VERY afraid of "worldly people", and would have had no problem believing " the main threads of QAnon’s core theory are that a network of Satan-worshipping pedophiles control the government and media,". I found the underground passages, backup generators, and lockdown procedures amusing....much like the removal of all windows in Kingdom Halls some years ago, and the new "compound" at Walkill.
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Miniimizing 'Punishment' - marrying a non-JW
by doasthouwilt ini’d like to marry my best friend of 30+ years, turned ‘secret’ girlfriend of 1 ½ years who is a jehovah’s witness, born into it, baptized and an active ‘pioneer’.
our marriage would happen prior to letting any of her jw friends and cohorts know that we are together.
once married she may simply come forward and ‘admit’ or we may wait until it’s found out – one way or the other, the reason for this marriage is not customary – i am hoping that by doing so she can avoid being ‘marked’ or possibly ‘disfellowshipped’ once our relationship is no longer a secret and due to our already being married at that point, there can be no notion from society elders about her ending the relationship.
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Balaamsass2
A lot of things don't add up, but #1. if you simply want to reduce her odds of being disfellowshipped, get married without hoopla immediately, and have her leave pioneering and change congregations... immediately. Some bodies of elders don't bother investigating members who have moved....some do.
#2. More importantly, she will never be happy until she deals with her real core beliefs and true self. Please read over the website "JW Facts" with her and then spend the money for counseling with a professional.
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News story claims: "Jehovah’s Witnesses" are QAnon believers"
by Balaamsass2 ini was googling the subject and came across this story.
i just had an incredible phone conversation with a long-time jw who has strong "q-anon" "sovereign citizen" beliefs.
the wife(first gen) says she is not surprised.
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Balaamsass2
Here is the study the story refers to. Fascinating. https://www.prri.org/research/the-persistence-of-qanon-in-the-post-trump-era-an-analysis-of-who-believes-the-conspiracies/
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News story claims: "Jehovah’s Witnesses" are QAnon believers"
by Balaamsass2 ini was googling the subject and came across this story.
i just had an incredible phone conversation with a long-time jw who has strong "q-anon" "sovereign citizen" beliefs.
the wife(first gen) says she is not surprised.
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Balaamsass2
I was googling the subject and came across this story. I just had an incredible phone conversation with a long-time JW who has strong "Q-anon" "Sovereign Citizen" beliefs. The wife(first gen) says she is not surprised.
Post-Trump, see how many Americans, Latter-day Saints and others still buy into QAnon
Wild conspiracy theories continue to hold sway among wide swaths of believers." "Even though Donald Trump no longer is in the White House, featured on the nation’s television screens or Tweeting daily, the QAnon movement — which saw the former president as its de facto leader — is as strong as ever.
Nearly 1 in 6 Americans, or 16%, are “QAnon believers,” according to a poll released Thursday, roughly equal to the 17% found among self-identified U.S. members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The number jumps to 1 in 4 (25%) among the nation’s Republicans.
“Our surveys show that QAnon conspiracy theories are not losing popularity over time, despite their championed leader being out of power,” said Natalie Jackson, director of research at PRRI (Public Religion Research Institute), “... and although 16% seems small, that is around 41 million Americans.”
What is clear from the PRRI survey — titled “The Persistence of QAnon in the Post-Trump Era: An Analysis of Who Believes the Conspiracies” — is that “people who are more likely to believe in the conspiracy theories are those who have a deep distrust of society,” Jackson said. “They wish the country looked different than it does and are trying to find something to explain that.”
That the conspiracy-driven campaign hasn’t declined without Trump doesn’t surprise Matthew Bowman, director of Mormon studies at Claremont Graduate University, who taught a course on conspiracy theory at the Southern California school.
“For many of these conspiratorial groups, failure of the conspiracy makes those beliefs stronger,” Bowman said. “It forces people to begin justifying their beliefs more thoroughly.”
While QAnon advocates are racially, religiously and politically diverse, the PRRI survey said, “the unifying beliefs are that their way of life is under attack and that they might be willing to resort to violence to defend their vision of the country.”
What makes a person a QAnon devotee?
To be defined as a QAnon believer, a respondent had to generally agree with these three statements:
• “The government, media and financial sector are controlled by a group of Satan-worshipping pedophiles who run a global child sex-trafficking operation.”
• “There is a storm coming soon that will sweep away the elites in power and restore the rightful leaders.”
• “Because things have gotten so far off track, true American patriots may have to resort to violence in order to save our country.”
Though most QAnon believers are white Americans, they are a diverse group religiously.
Around 1 in 4 Hispanic Protestants (27%), white evangelical Protestants (23%), and Jehovah’s Witnesses (23%) are QAnon believers. Some 1 in 5 are other Protestants of color (21%) and Hispanic Catholics (18%).
At 17%, Black Protestants and Buddhists are tied with Latter-day Saints (most U.S. members of the Utah-based faith identify with or lean toward the Republican Party).
Other Catholics of color (15%), white Catholics (14%), or white mainline (nonevangelical) Protestants (14%) are QAnon believers....."
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