Terry

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Posts by Terry

• 
  6

  KM "worksheets" for Bible "students", and a question about God.

  by DATA-DOG in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  so, there was a km part about worksheets for bible studies.

  1) watchtarded.

  one hilarious part came from a paragraph in the km.

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• 

  Terry

  In the JW's the Bible is a strawman.

  It is used to supposedly prop up and vouch for the interpretations of the GB.

  The Bible is a ruse and a fetish.

  The Governing Body is the Mediator, what they print and preach takes precedence.

  I know a JW who was called before a Judicial Committee on a matter irrelevant to this discussion, but

  suffice it to say it was none of the Elder's business in any practical way.

  The uncomfortable moment came and this brother said to the Elders, "Where in the Bible does it say

  you can question a fellow Christian on such and such?"

  He was shot down immediately with the line of argument: "The ORGANIZATION is our source authority."

  He was then forced into acceptance/denial of that summary authority.

  So, you see, Bible is bullshit.
• 
  27

  How can I ever leave this cult?

  by Julia Orwell in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've been out nearly two years but it's not out of me.

  i am on school holidays now til february so i thought without work to worry about i can come off my medication.

  i phased it slowly, starting in early november to avoid the physical side effects of coming down.

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• 

  Terry

  What follows is a rather colorful if not altogether disgusting analogy purposed to make a point worth, I hope, making.

  If you attended a large social gathering with many of your friends and you somehow ended up crapping your underwear. . .

  there may be quite a few things going through your head.

  The one possible course of action you would NEVER consider taking would be to pretend it didn't happen!

  Ask yourself how 'waking up' inside a cult is any different, and I believe you'll have the beginning of your answer.

  It is embarrassing. It is humiliating. There are no good immediate steps which will save you distress and opprobrium.

  BUT YOU'VE GOT TO GET OUT OF THE SHITTY UNDERWEAR before you do anything else!

  You deal with worst things first.

  GET OUT OF THERE.

  Then, deal with the stink attached to yourself. (The indoctrination.)

  Any other approach is simply weird and unrealistic.

  Stinkin' thinkin' doesn't allow you the luxury of standing around asking people if the smell offends or if

  it will go away on its own, or if you should do this or that to prepare for dealing with the situation.

  I apologize for the crudity--but--WAKE UP AND SMELL THE, um uh--well, you get it!
• 
  85

  Mormons getting hollowed out: The tipping point has occurred.

  by Qcmbr in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  ever since mitt romney turned the spotlight on the lds church a growing tsunami of disaffection has been accelerated and brought to a head.. the lds core faithful members are leaving in increasing numbers such that growth has not simply stagnated in the west but it has actively reversed.

  to their credit the church is responding aggressively but not only is it too late, it is an impossible task.

  you can only paint sh*t so many ways.

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• 

  Terry

  The plus factors for Mormons vs. JW's are vast.

  The social programs actually address family life, young people, earning a living, practical finances, etc.

  I've never met a stupid Mormon, which is more than I can say for JW's.

  A large number of upper-level Mormons have been exposed to factual disproofs from Science.

  The official line is now, "Yes, these things may not be factually true, but by talking about it we are not being faith-affirming."

  Oh, okay.

  Faith is much more important than reality. Right. Uh huh.
• 
  11

  Does Anyone Watch Ascension?

  by jw07 in

  1. social
  2. entertainment

  this new series' pilot episode is the perfect allegory for the blind faith of the average person in the jw movement, those who deny that anything 'immoral' or sinister happens within the ranks, the double lives, doubters, and towards the end of the episode, an example of how the governing body controls persons' lives.

  check it out and tell me if you saw all the parallels.

  i think it's my new favourite show.. http://tv-series.me/2014/12/15/ascension-s1e1-season-1-episode-1/.

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• 

  Terry

  My son kept urging me to watch ASCENSION.

  He is quite the formidable critic when it comes to good movies, so I gave it a watch.

  I can certainly see--plotwise--what the attraction is. The plot is a dandy.

  But, I cannot get past the bad actors and slack direction.

  There are so many great actors available I just can't see why a series like this would settle for crappy ones!

  The script has no spark of intelligence, but it gets the job done.

  If you want to see fine actors and superb writing, watch Sherlock or Fleming: the Man who would be Bond.

  If you want to see masterful handling of an aesthetic presentation, watch MARCO POLO.

  But, ASCENSION simply made me angry with the flabby characterization by 7/10ths of the cast.

  Now, having said all that--I went to Wikipedia and read the plot rundown for each episode. Good stuff!

  All this is my opinion only and does not reflect on anybody elses tastes.

  I watch a lot of BBC productions and they have truly wonderful and BELIEVABLE characters in their series.
• 
  24

  Can anyone tell me any narrative of having successfully avoided Baptism while being raised JW?

  by SonoftheTrinity in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i just worry for my stepkids about their future that way..

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  Terry

  Even the Elders would have a very difficult time over-riding the following:

  "I have taken the matter of Baptism to Jehovah in prayer repeatedly and He tells me I am not yet ready. Should

  I not trust in Jehovah's guidance on this matter?"

  At this point, an idiot Elder might try to wedge the Organization in between Jehovah and the unbaptized person.

  Thereupon, the non-baptized sheep could artfully craft the following sentence.

  "So, you are advising me to ignore Jehovah's counsel in my heart through prayer?"

  ______________________________

  The only way to ward off intrusion into privacy is by citing "Jehovah's guidance in prayer."

  Why would meetings be opened and closed with prayer if it wasn't effective in securing His spirit?

  "Where two or more gather in my name--there I am also" seems pretty non-Organization to my eyes.

  ___________________

  As long as the person being counseled is humble, sincere and very pious--it would take a very insidious Elder to find a wedge.
• 
  7

  F & DS - the Domestics

  by Listener in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  i was just considering the copyright issues that the wtbts impose on other people and thought about their so called appointment of the fds as discussed in matthew 24:45 "who really is the faithful and discreet slave whom his master appointed over his domestics ?.

  this is how tje governing body identify the domestics.

  who, then, are the domestics ?

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• 

  Terry

  Apognophos: This is sort of a non sequitur . The preaching work is intended to make more domestics, i.e., to bring more people into the household. The authority to preach comes from having the correct interpretation of the Bible, which they claim they do. The only thing that follows logically from the text you quoted is that the Governing Body does not have spiritual authority over worldly people.

  ____________________________________

  Are you sure?

  __________________________

  w52 2/1 pp. 94-96 :

  Jehovah has not commissioned us to convert the world, which is wicked beyond recovery and hence will be destroyed.

  ___________________

  This seems pretty narrowly defined.

  I'm not sure where the Organization is trying to draw the line. Looks like they want it both ways.
• 
  127

  I'm sitting here listening to a JW try to recruit somebody

  by Terry in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i'm at starbucks .

  just outside in the courtyard.. i'm trembling.

  my hands are shaking.. wow!.

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  Terry

  Well, I'd feel that was a bit of a recruitment on my part.

  Hard to explain.

  I prefer letting him settle wherever he feels most comfortable.

  Am I paranoid or what?
• 
  26

  Elders and priests what 's the difference?

  by sparrowdown in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  is being a "good" elder the same as being a "good" catholic priest?.

  is there any difference between representing the rcc and representing that other bastion of child abuse the wt?.

  .

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• 

  Terry

  THIS is an extraordinary book.

  Well-researched, easy to read and you'll learn important facts on EVERY page.

  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/17/books/review/why-priests-by-garry-wills.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

  Preview this book »
• 
  81

  your favourite Christmas music , and merry Christmas to you all

  by jhine in

  1. social
  2. entertainment

  i am perhaps a bit behind on this but i have just listened to " grandma got run over by a reindeer " sung by elmo and patsy .

  it got me to thinking about christmas songs in general ,so i thought a thread about people's favourite christmas songs would be good .

  please share your fave christmas music , a carol or something more modern .to start i will list my best carol as hark the herald and my best ever chart song as santa claus is coming to town by bruce springsteen .

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• 

  Terry

  I do love a good fugue and Ring Christmas Bells does it for me IF it is cleverly arranged and orchestrated.

  Minor key melody entwined upon itself like an Ouroboros: fascinating and delightful!

  Here are two widely divergent versions. The first is traditional and the second is modern.

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJWz1-R88oc

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1Tr1qCHwq4

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCabI3MdV9g
• 
  102

  Should I attend Kingdom Hall meetings to discreetly "preach"?

  by CrytoJesus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  christians, should i attend kingdom hall meetings to discreetly "preach" to jws about the real jesus and the lies of the watchtower?.

  .

  i plan to go undercover and plant seeds into them.. .

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• 

  Terry

  If you walk up to a person and tell them their mother is a whore, would you expect them to be happy and to thank you?

  Well, telling the 'truth about the truth' is exactly that. It is brutal!

  It is not an act of kindness. . . UNLESS. . . the person you talk to is readyfor it.

  If they've been noticing something strange going on with their Mother and can't quite put their finger on what it is. . .

  at a certain point, THEY ARE READY for the 'truth.'

  But, not until then.

  The ORGANIZATION is their mother--or so the GB has said.

  You don't talk about a person's mother casually or drop rumors or innuendos and expect a positive response.

  Please remember that!

  LOYALTY is the first line of defense.

  Righteous anger will soon follow.

  Denial is the order of the day.

  _________________________

  You see, none of this is actually about Bible verses being interpreted wrong or right. No.

  This is about NEED. Human NEED to be told what to do is at work.

  If you remove a person's compass, map and tear down their safety net--you damned well better be ready

  to REPLACE it with something equal to it.

  YOU CAN'T!

  That is right. You can't replace what religion and belief and faith and loyalty offer.

  Leaving all that behind is a long journey of self-searching, depression, anxiety and harsh reality intruding on every day.

  This kind of preparation is done INSIDE the individual THROUGH THE AGONY of self-examination.

  The only thing you or me or anybody else can do is SPOT THE MOMENT of breakthrough and be ready to toss a life vest.

  Reality is a harsh mistress.