Posts by Athanasius

54

What ever happened to homosexual GB member Leo Greeenlees, is he dead now?

by chiddy in

jw
friends

Athanasius

Though it has been a few years since I read Crisis of Conscience, if I remember correctly, Leo Greenlees was a liberal on issues like blood, alternate service, etc. Could he have been removed from the GB for political reasons, while at the same time the Watchtower disinformation service spread rumors of sexual impropriety to keep him from speaking out as Ray Franz did? It would also be a warning to other liberals on the GB to toe the line or be exiled in disgrace.

Remember all the rumors circulating in the early 1980s that Ray Franz, while still a GB member, gave the Memorial Talk in a congregation and invited all to partake? There are lots of rumors, but are there any hard facts that would stand up in a court of law?

38

Do you think Hillary Clinton is going to be the next President of the USA?

by free2beme in

jw
friends

i have a mix of friends from democrat to republican.

i am a registered independent myself.

i have heard it said, and watched in the news the obvious moves by the democrats, to put this woman in place to run for the office of president.

Athanasius

If recent history is a gauge, the first woman president of the US will be the candidate of the more conservative party. Note the UK and Germany. Therefore, Condi Rice may be in a better position to win the presidency than one may think.

12

Witnesses at the Fair

by Oroborus21 in

jw
friends

just went to the la county fair yesterday.

just before the gate, there were two large and prominent display stands.

one said "ask about our free bible study" and other stuff and the other had colorful tracts pasted all over.

Athanasius

Whenever I see the JWs with their display tables at Walmart or in the local shopping mall, I look at their literature and then ask them if I could have a copy of the Book of Mormon. They always look a little surprised. Guess they feel embarrassed at being mistaken for Mormons.

27

I love when they turn and run as fast as they can away from you!!

by mama1119 in

today i was at burlington baby depot registering for my baby shower, stolling up and down the aisles and scanning.

low and behold, down the aisle comes a dub.

as soon as she set eyes on me, she backed out of the aisles as fast as she could, as if i was throwing poop at her.

Athanasius

Though I was never DFd, most JWs treat me as if I were. So I've experienced them running away when they see me. However, I've found that if they are stuck in a line at the check out counter and a lot of people are around they will talk with me if I start the conversation. Guess they feel it would give a "bad witness" if they upheld their shunning policy in public and were rude to me.

62

How do you feel about the name Jehovah?

by JWdaughter in

do you use it anymore?

do you care?

do you cringe when you hear it?

Athanasius

You are correct about the letter j in Latin Hamster. In fact J was missing from the old Latin alphabet. The letters for the Divine name in old Latin would probably be IHVH. The Latin V was pronounced wah, like our modern W. Thus in the old Latin the name would probably be pronounced Yahweh, or Yahwah.

29

JW literature on racks - outside Walmart? WTF?

by BizzyBee in

i guess i've been out too long, cause this surprised me.

i was visiting my mom recently in modesto, california and was walking into a walmart (hey!

we don't have one where i live!

Athanasius

The JWs had set up a display table outside our local Walmart. So I approached them and asked if they had the Book Of Mormon, or the Pearl of Great Price. They looked surprised and said that they were JWs and didn't carry either publication.

23

Liberal World-view leads to a Corrupted Soul

by Shining One in

disabled newborns is acceptable .

princeton, n.j. (bp)--princeton university's peter singer, widely known .

for his founding of the great ape project to grant apes the same rights .

Athanasius

What about left-wing drivel? Do the same rules apply?

62

How do you feel about the name Jehovah?

by JWdaughter in

do you use it anymore?

do you care?

do you cringe when you hear it?

Athanasius

The last Public that I gave, I didn't use the name Jehovah for the first 25 minutes, using instead God or Lord to refer to the Deity. Then I noticed that my failure to use the familiar word made the audience very restless. Strangely everyone was wide awake, as if they realized something was wrong. When I started to sense hostility, I began referring to God as Jehovah. Then, once the magic word was used the audience settled back into their usual routine. Those who liked to sleep returned to their slumber, those whose minds liked to wander dropped their frowns and went back to the blank stare. While those who liked appear "theocratic" went back to writing notes, or whatever.

Since leaving the JWs I don't use the term Jehovah, unless referring to the Witnesses. Being a person who respects other religions and people of other faiths, even if I disagree with them, I don't use the word Jehovah in a disrespectful manner. However, I did have an interesting experience regarding the name for God. For a few years I was engaged to a Jewish woman and attended Synagogue with her and took Jewish living classes. I noticed that using the term Jehovah didn't offend her. However, she didn't like me to refer to God as Yahweh as she felt this was disrespectful. Jehovah is a made up word and had no meaning at all for her. But Yahweh did and shouldn't be pronounced.

10

How many were raised as a witness, and are now Christian ?

by troubled mind in

i was raised a witness and have not known anything else .

i go back and forth with myself on whether i even believe in god at all anymore .

i keep hoping that there is ....from a young age i had a strong desire to understand god .

Athanasius

I was raised in the JW religion, but left in 1984. Nevertheless, my JW experience didn't turn me against Christianity or other religions. In fact after leaving the KH I attended services at a number of churches and synagoges. However, in 1987 I began attending Episcopal services and in 1991 was recieved into the Episcopal Church. This has worked for me. Others may choose a different spiritual path.

56

weird phrases in WT

by badboy in

jw
friends

did you spot any?

Athanasius

One weird phrase common in Watchtower publications and JW conversation is "system of things." The term seems to be unique to the JWs, probably because the Greek word translated as "age," "era," or "world," in other Bible versions is rendered "system of things" in the NWT. For example the NWT renders Matthew 24:3 as: "Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your presence and of the conclusion of the system of things?" Interestingly Watchtower's own Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures (KIT) uses the more correct term, "age."