Posts by mamochan13

38

Why have things changed?

by nvrgnbk in

jw
friends

according to the old testament, yahweh/jehovah regularly and violently made himself manifest.. according to the new testament, there were miraculous works performed to prove that the messiah was who he said he was and that his followers were authentic.. why are there no such public manifestations of jehovah/yahweh/jesus/holy spirit today?

i say public because some individuals describe very personal experiences detailing some sort of miracle or divine intervention in their lives, most often at a low or desperate point.

i have no interest in discounting such personal experiences.

mamochan13

one poster referred to psychadelic bread - I read that temple priestesses used a type of hallucinogenic honey in their ceremonies. I do think there is an element of enhanced perception involved in many of the reported miracles.

That being said, I think we are still seeing miracles today, and I think there is a scientific explanation for all of the miracles of old. We see people come back to life who are in a coma, for example. Pre-technological age people would have called this resurrection.

Don't forget the effects of re-telling the story many times until it assumes a heroic proportion. Every culture has folklore that gets more mystical and fantastic over time.

44

The Greatest Movie of all times...

by zeroday in

jw
friends

rocky 1... what's yours...

mamochan13

I define a great movie as one that, if I happen to be channel surfing I can't stop watching...

Gone with the Wind

hitchcock: Dial M for Murder; Psycho; Vertigo

Wizard of Oz

Little Shop of Horrors

West Side Story

memento

The King and I

The Shining

all I can think of right now...

12

Any Old TImers remember Awake (early 1960's) saying JW's could vote ?

by ShirleyW in

b-deserters post reminded me of something that was posted quite some time ago, matter of fact, it could've been posted on tishies board, if some of us here remember her website.

a poster on her website quoted the exact date of an awake magazine going back to the early 1960's which clearly stated that jw's could vote if they wanted to, conscious was not mentioned in the article !!.

i went down to my mother's basement, looked up the exact date that was mentioned, and sure enough there it was in plain black and white, jw's had the vote!!

mamochan13

Interesting. I don't interpret their stance so much a flip flop as just the usual tactic of using vague and misleading speech so that they can later place the blame on the rank & file for misinterpreting what comes from above.

I do recall when i was a kid our city held a plebiscite on water flouridation. My mom was extremely against it and wanted to vote. She went to the elders and they basically gave her permission - told her it was up to her conscience, but that voting on something like a plebiscite affecting one's health was not the same as voting on a political matter.

Most voting legislation I'm aware of states that it is illegal to destroy or deface a ballot, so they are really instructing their members to break the law.

45

Would YOU Like To Continue Having The Watchtower Summary???

by minimus in

jw
friends

as you know, blondie took a hiatus due to illness and she is still not at 100%.

watchtower scans are needed now since they are not easily available.. would anyone be interested in helping here?.

is the watchtower summary, as blondie has developed it, still of interest here??

mamochan13

I don't read it regularly, only articles that catch my eye, but I've greatly appreciated the summary. It helps to know what they are feeding my JW family and it really helps to glean points to reinforce my stance.

I'll be honest, here. I enjoyed Blondie's summaries, but I know they were a lot of work. Sometimes it seemed like too much information (although it's hard to say what could be eliminated), so perhaps a slimmer version would be better. I enjoyed the more recent versions, although I found them a bit overprocessed. I think Minimus was a pretty good balance, although I missed Blondie's sharp wit and background info.

I guess what I'm saying is that everyone doing the summaries brings a slightly different perspective. However, it does take a certain skill with irony and satire, and not everyone is good at it. I'd love to see them continue, but in a form that does not overly tax anyone involved.

I might be able to help with scans, now that I think of it, I'd have to snoop around at my moms house.

20

1. What was it like when you "awakend?" 2. How did you know, and......

by oompa in

jw
friends

2.5 how did you react at that time?.

3.how long was it before you somehow took action on this event?

4. was there a particular thing that all of a sudden caused you to wake up, or did doubts build over the years?

mamochan13

1. What was it like when you "awakend?" My awakening was rather gradual. I had left the religion for quite a while before I actually started to realize it was a cult.

2. How did you know, and......2.5 how did you react at that time? Again, it was gradual, but the light grew brighter when I started reading Randy Watters' site, and then became a beacon when I found this forum.

3.how long was it before you somehow took action on this event? My real awakening was closely link to my decision to start university full time. As I was immersed in my studies I started to learn things that really piqued my interest and got me thinking. I don't recall when it happened, but one day about 7 or 8 years ago I decided to start researching JWs on the net.

4. Was there a particular thing that all of a sudden caused you to wake up, or did doubts build over the years? My DF'ing was the first big wake up call. Now looking back I see I had many doubts over the years, but I wasn't willing to rock the boat and lose everything. Once I had lost everything (family, friends, etc.), it became much easier to let the doubts surface.

5.What finally did it for you? Being reinstated. As they were all welcoming back with open arms, I realized that I was still the same person they had kicked out as being untouchable and unworthy of association and how ridiculous it was that they had been able to put me through sheer hell for a year and a half. I realized I did not deserve what they had done and that was the beginning of "the end".

6. How long before you in some way were no more part of your congregation? Another turning point for me was when I missed my first memorial, back in 1998. The consequences of that were pretty awful, as my family embarked on a campaign to try and force my daughters to remain in the religion. In the push to save my family I made my final break.

43

Email being circulated among JWs regarding the Golden Compass

by The Oracle in

jw
friends

thought i would share this warning email that is circulating among hundreds of jws.... -----------------------------------------------------------------.

just wanted to inform you all of a children's movie that is coming out in december, during the christmas season, which is entitled "the golden compass".

the film stars nicole kidman and is based on the first of a trilogy of books for children called "his dark materials" written by phillip pullman of england .

mamochan13

I commented on this in another topic before I saw this thread. It doesn't surprise me that JWs are getting on the bandwagon of the "ban the movie/book" contingent.

One poster commented on the bloodthirstyness of the bible. It brought back a comment my daughter made when she was just a toddler. I asked her which story from the Book of Bible Stories she wanted me to read to her. She responded, "cut the baby in half"

Kids are incredibly intelligent. Parents who try to stifle their growth by severly limiting what they are allowed to see/hear/read are doing their children a great disservice, in my opinion.

175

Confirmed! Watchtower Feb 15 08 brings the "generation" change

by observador in

friends,.

i just confirmed the "generation" change from another forum in portuguese.

the following is the text in portuguese:.

mamochan13

I appreciate all the insightful and informative comments on this thread. I know the generation teaching was a big one for me, too, one that I continually cited in field service as proof of the impending end. Now they can string it out forever.

For those who wonder when the end will come and how long the "last days" will continue, no doubt they will just explain it all away "new light", "wait on Jehovah", "his time keeping is different", etc., and then if all else fails, the "where else will we go?" line.

4

Testing what you believe

by mamochan13 in

a news editorial i read this morning regarding protests/banning of the books golden compass from the his dark materials trilogy (soon to also be a movie) got me thinking about testing faith.

these books are apparently an answer to c.s.

lewis's chronicles of narnia, presenting an athiest perspective to lewis's "overtly christian" one.. as a jw i used to like the scripture about the boreans who daily tested their faith by "carefully examining the scriptures daily to see if these things were so" acts 17:11. in retrospect now, of course, i wonder how it is possible to take that attitude and still remain a blind follower, although apparently my borean-like approach freed me!.

mamochan13

A news editorial I read this morning regarding protests/banning of the books Golden Compass from the His Dark Materials trilogy (soon to also be a movie) got me thinking about testing faith. These books are apparently an answer to C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia, presenting an athiest perspective to Lewis's "overtly Christian" one.

As a JW I used to like the scripture about the Boreans who daily tested their faith by "carefully examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so" Acts 17:11. In retrospect now, of course, I wonder how it is possible to take that attitude and still remain a blind follower, although apparently my Borean-like approach freed me!

The editorial writer noted that while some parents may want to shield thier children from non- or anti-Christian society, the Gospel does not call on the faithful to hide or retreat into a cloister. Asking questions is healthy no matter what your theological beliefs are, and we shouldn't just read what reinforces our own beliefs and try to censor the other.

One paragraph in particular resounded with me. He says, "It's often said that converts are the most passionate believers because they understand why they believe. They were born to one way of thinking ... but through a process of doubting and inquiry chose another. As a result, they often comprehend the new one better than those who have known only that view all their lives."

I think that is true of so many of us on this board.

52

Comments You Won't Hear at the 11-25-07 WT Study (w07 10/1, pp.26-30)

by minimus in

deliverance from the traps of the birdcatcher.

"[jehovah] himself will deliver you from the trap of the birdcatcher.

the trap of personal differences.

mamochan13

The constant warnings against soaps make me laugh. Are witnesses really so naive that they think soap operas are like real life and should be imitated? Wait - don't answer that!

I read some research that opined that women like soaps because they depict men the way women would like them to be: overly loving, always thoughtful, ready to show emotion and discuss feelings, and above all very easy to manipulate and fool. I wonder if that has anything to do with the paranoia against soaps

14

Do you have more and/or better friends now?

by sweet pea in

jw
friends

because of the season i have been writing a list of friends/'worldy' relatives to send cards to.

i can't believe how many are on it!

i am so excited and hopeful for the future.

mamochan13

No. I have far fewer friends. "better" is rather subjective - I like to think of my ex-jw friends as conditional friends - they were only friends with me on condition I remained part of their religion.

the few friends I have now don't have that condition (although I would argue that friendship always has some kind of condition attached).

Friendship takes a great deal of energy and time to maintain. I don't have many friends because I don't have that kind of time, but at this point in my life it's not a big deal.