But Urantia was written in the 1950's, right? Hardly a credible source. It's not like testimony from someone that was there, right? You believe what you believe, it doesn't matter to me, but I think Cofty and Simon were looking more for writings from Jesus' contemporaries.
dubstepped
JoinedPosts by dubstepped
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240
Introduction - Any Believers?
by Believer ini’ve been reading it for a few of years off and on, but have been a little too ... maybe ... timid to join.
i left the watchtower organization almost 20 years ago but never abandoned my faith and belief in god.
i knew the gb/organization didn’t represent god, so when i lost my faith in them, i managed to keep my faith in an all wise benevolent creator.
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240
Introduction - Any Believers?
by Believer ini’ve been reading it for a few of years off and on, but have been a little too ... maybe ... timid to join.
i left the watchtower organization almost 20 years ago but never abandoned my faith and belief in god.
i knew the gb/organization didn’t represent god, so when i lost my faith in them, i managed to keep my faith in an all wise benevolent creator.
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dubstepped
Haha Believer, you found out why "believers" on here don't post much. It's like when you're a dub and someone at work finds out that you are and then you're descended upon by 10 people each questioning you and wanting an answer as they pick apart your faith like piranhas on prey, from every direction at once. Same thing here, only you end up trying to defend your belief in God to people that don't believe.
I went through a period where I still believed in the God of the Bible myself, but I'd never talk about it here. I had hoped to find people with similar thoughts and feelings and realized quickly that you can't just post and have a discussion with your fellow believers because those that don't believe take it upon themselves to dominate the discussion and challenge your every word. It's just no fun. Like you surmised, you're outnumbered here.
I no longer really believe myself, but because I chose to take it upon myself to challenge long held notions, not because a bunch of people tried to reverse JW me by proselytizing as hard for atheism as we formerly did for theism. I believe there may be a God, but if so he's surely done a piss-poor job of making himself clear as to what he wants and values, so I'm not worried anymore as to whether it's the one in the Bible or some other "holy" book or something altogether different or something that simply doesn't exist and is man-made. I don't have to know everything or claim to know. My ego doesn't need to be right so much anymore. I had enough of that as a dub. I believe in possibility and science that shows what we know so far, but nothing gets my absolute faith anymore. Everything is subject to change and none of it deserves my devotion. I just want to live a happy life, do no harm, and look back someday when I'm dying and appreciate my life rather than worry about whatever is to come.
Best wishes on your journey.
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Message from Designer Stubble to the former JWR members
by Designer Stubble inmessage from designer stubble to the former jwr members.
first of all i am glad to see that many of you have found your way to this great forum, facilitated by simon.
i am sure that after the dust of the jwr shutdown has settled, you will find this to be a good new home.. i would like to apologize for the sudden closure of jwr.
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dubstepped
Unfortunately human nature is such that a poor dessert experience can ruin a great meal. People tend to remember the final interaction, whether fair or not. Sounds like JWR took a big dump on the table to finish things off and for a while that will be the lasting impression. Too bad. Hopefully with time some can appreciate the journey they had as a lasting impression, but it's not likely when you leave a bad taste in someone's mouth.
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Need some help: Existential crisis in full swing
by Freeandclear inso is anyone else having an existential crisis after becoming fully awake?
let me explain.
about 2 years ago i read coc, still believed and tried to get back in da troof.
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dubstepped
I have gone through a lot of the crisis over the past year. First I lost faith in the JW's and disassociated in September. After questioning that I realized that everything I believed in was built on a book, the Bible, and that I had never questioned it. Well, doing that didn't turn out well for the Bible. I do believe that something greater than us exists as I have a hard time believing that we're the top of the chain, but it's just something I believe.
I now believe in possibility. I now believe that I don't have to know everything.
That keeps it simple for me. Could their be a benevolent God that cares about me personally? Sure, it's possible. Could their be no God at all? Yep, again it's possible. Perhaps a malevolent God that hates me? Why not? Ultimately, I have no control over any of that and don't worry so much anymore. If he/she/it has a path they want me to lead they should have made it more clear. If they want to hold that against me they aren't very just or fair, not much I can do there either.
So I just live in the present as much as possible and try to be the best person I can be. Do no harm, try to grow as a human to be the best version of me that I can be, and enjoy every moment that I can because all I know that I have is that one moment. I exist in the now, not in something that may or may not exist.
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Jehovah's Witness Recovery is no more...
by TimeBandit ini just tried to go to the site and there is a goodbye message.
i was a member there since 2010. i was really surprised.
i had just started posting there again after being away for a while.
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dubstepped
@Mia T -. First, welcome. Second, I think that as JWs we were told that we could (or should) control everything. So when something spins out in life it makes us feel out of control whether or not it was ours to affect. They create control freaks both because they held out unrealistic goals of perfection but also because they took control of us and made us look for control anywhere we could get it. Cults work black magic on the mind.
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Jehovah's Witness Recovery is no more...
by TimeBandit ini just tried to go to the site and there is a goodbye message.
i was a member there since 2010. i was really surprised.
i had just started posting there again after being away for a while.
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dubstepped
That seems like a really crappy thing to do to people that have already had the rug pulled out from beneath them and a loss of social contact. I'm not sure you could handle that much worse. Sorry for you guys that lost your group again. :(
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ANNOUNCEMENT
by COLLINS ina wonderful announcement to my friends in the forum.
i am no longer one of jehovah's witnesses.
in the month of may 2016 i wrote my resignation letter and gave it to the elders in my congregation.
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dubstepped
Good for you Collins! Be safe. It sounds like your parents could cause you trouble. You're free of the cult. Now you may need to get free of your parents.
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EdenOne, Mrs. Eden & Son: DISASSOCIATED!
by EdenOne ingreat news!.
we are free!.
as of the 9th of june, me and my dear wife mrs. eden handed over our letters of disassociation at bethel in portugal, thus making official our departure from the jehovah's witnesses.
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dubstepped
So awesome! My wife and I DA'd last September. Glad to see three more out. Life is about to get a lot better for you all of you. Celebrate your freedom and that weight that has been lifted. You can breathe free now.
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I feel frustrated
by BlackWolf inhello all, things for the most part have been somewhat better for me because my parents haven't talked about baptism or anything recently.
i got a scholarship to go to art camp for a few weeks which has been fun (since its free, my parents didn't refuse) but it has also been very nervewracking for me.
i haven't been around any non jws for more than a year and its like being in a different world, a world where people are actually real and genuine and not mindless drones.
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dubstepped
I'm assuming at camp that your parents aren't watching your every move, so make camp friends at camp. Chances are you'll all drift away once you go your separate ways, but you'll have a better time at camp if you just be friendly. If they want to do something you can't do with your parents outside of camp, just tell them that you'd love to but can't because your religion doesn't allow you to.
I'm sorry it is so frustrating. Of course it would be. JW's don't make anything easy.
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"Shunning" - now a Watchtower word?
by slimboyfat ini know jws have long used the word "shun" in a general sense, as in "shun what is bad".
but i think they have long avoided using the word in relation to disfellowshipping.
in external media or literature wherever the word "shunning" was used in a piece about jws it was usually a good indication it was critical of watchtower and not a neutral or supportive commentary.
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dubstepped
Oh yeah, shunning was formerly an apostate word. They would claim to not shun. Now they're making the shun their own.