Hmm... that's difficult really and plays to my ego
Possibly as a man who sought truth and challenged his own thoughts and by extention, the thoughts of others.
Somebody who was as reliable as his word and attempted to break down his own barriers to connect with others.
Interesting thread.
i would like to here your opinions about ae even if you don't know much about him,, what do you think about him according to what limited knowledge you have of him.
i think this would be fun for our imagination.
i bet those that have a mystical nature might have some interesting things to say as well as you science buffs.. i think he was very introverted,,had great intuitions,, a very lively imagination,,and had perhaps experinced enlightenment perhaps not as much as some mystics but quite abit atleast that's what i gather from the recient thread i started which has some quotes of his ideas about spirituality.
I am a great believer in a mystical approach to reality (with a hint of the rational mind of course)
An abandonment of the logical part of my mind has often bought me closer to a real understanding of circumstances as I sit quietly within, using the eyes of a child to feel out situations.
I think at a deeper conscious level there lies an awareness and guide that teaches us ineffable truths that touch the very heart of us and connect us to each other through love.
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men have facial hair and women don't, and that's god who decided that.. so why can't brothers have beards or goatees.
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I started to grow a beard and turned up at the meeting (this was while I was drifting away) and one elder approached me and based upon my facial hair, he asked if everything was alright.
They are obsessed with facial hair.
I was told that we had to trick the householder to view the information by using an aesthetic they could relate to.
The problem is, that approach turns the JWs into an organization that appears to be made up of drones. Most people understandably are afraid to be absorbed into what appears to be a rigid hive structure.
It is daft and well groomed beards should be allowed.
Rules made by petty men my friends!
my knowledge about this is limited to some quotes of what various early church fathers taught and what they said about "heresies", in addition to the nt.
could some of the more knowledgeable folks on this board give their input as to what schools of thought were out there in the 1st century regarding christ's nature, the worship of christ, etc.?
leolaia in another post mentioned how there were three principle factions around the question of salvation.
MJ
This book was recommended to me:
The Christians As The Romans Saw Them - Robert Louis Wilken (check Amazon)
I have a few pages to go and it has been a fascinating read. The book draws upon the work of great Roman & Greek writers/philosophers mainly sourced from the 1st to the 4th century regarding their observation and criticism of Christianity.
Consider buying the book, I think you will learn a lot
It is also easy to read and will not give you a headache.
something i?ve wanted to ask you all for a while.
had you 100% denounced jw doctrine to yourself at the time of your leaving the org?
i know many have said that specific issues prompted them to leave i.e., wt membership in the un, silent lambs/child molestation policy, malawi political party card issues, inconsistent changes in doctrine i.e., 1975/1914 generation not passing?new light begets old light begets new light etc.
How many years away from the faith do you have to spend before the old inputs are completely overwritten by the new ones, will it take another 19years?
Well personally I reckon you move further away from any body of teaching by employing critical thinking, by yourself, within the areas that bind you.
It takes effort and tenacity.
There is a shorter route out if you are willing to place faith within others experiences and research. This board being a prime example.
Or, you may have been so severly wounded by an incident within the body of the WTBTS, that naturally you recoil from the source of hurt, demonize the source and then move on.
I think it's different for each person depending upon their analytical skills and experience.
have any of you had experiences like this?.
last weekend, i was at a friend's social.
i was outside smoking and conversing with two other ladies.
I get odd looks all the time when in the main town, but then my hair does need a cut - I think I look like an Arab terrorist or something, especially when I wear my hat.
An old guy I was being friendly to actually believes that I stole a dinner plate out of his cupboard and has been telling people I am a thief ? Quite obviously I didn't do this.
Some kids used to shout "look, look it's Jeeeezus" across the street at me as well (because of my beard, olive skin and hair presumably).
I've also had abuse from a glue sniffer. I told him I was a cop and he left me alone after a while.
Some people are just odd.
I think Blondie is right though, just pay back the insults with kindness.
i'm working out at the ymca with my sister, and she spots an old dub friend of mine playing b'ball on the court.
i had become really close friends with him during my high school years (about seven years ago), and lost touch a couple of years ago.
anyway, he much like most other jw's in my life i never really had one last "huraaah" before i formally da'd myself in 2004, so chances are he never got the word.
I'm defending his religious freedom
- sorry, but that is a pile of cack.
How is the US defending a persons religious freedom by going to Iraq, I thought the whole point was for Bush to begin his global domination.
okay...so many of you know that i have two stepdaughters....great kids, 7 and 9. currently they are living with us.
now, when they, or one of them is with their mom, it is like pulling teeth to get her to answer the phone or call back when we leave a message to talk to the girls.
there was one period of time that my husband went almost 10 months without getting to talk to his oldest daughter when she was with her mom.
Nope - in fact, most adults shouldn't have them either !
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what is the most ridiculous song that you couldn't listen too.. because of so called bad lyircs (maybe misheard lyrics), sexy beat or because fo the person who sang it didn't have the proper morals?.
mine.... couldn't listen to ac/dc because it meant they went both ways.
Many Reggae songs because they mentioned Jah & Babylon.
I used to listen to the music, but the brothers used to breath down my neck about it.
i have a new audio mp3 on my site called understanding soul sleep: the teaching that man sleeps in the ground after death.
there are also many personal testimonies of ex-witnesses you can listen to on my audio page.
here's the soul sleep page link: http://www.towertotruth.net/jw/jw_main.htm.
I'll take a look later - cheers for the link.
