Posts by myelaine

84

Why are the atheists on this site so hateful?

by HopeEverLasting in

jw
friends

all us creationists try to do is offer true evidence that the one and only god is out there watching and looking down on us.

we present that certain scientists know the truth about god and that he is everything that we see from trees, life, weather, the air we breath, and even the most simple molecules.

but of course you atheists reject it because it is your nature to not be humble and see god because you want to rule your own life.

myelaine

dear Simon...

one thing I've noticed is that someone can start a thread about God stuff and then athiests are "compelled" to click on the thread, read it and either ask questions of the theist or taunt. I've heard it said before that no one is forcing anyone to look at a thread. so why, instead of just letting thiests have their discussions amongst themselves as you've suggested, why don't athiest such as yourself let us DO that? Is this forum really what it bills itself as, "a place to discuss anything JW related"?

If you want a forum where any God releted discussion is not allowed then why don't you have the transparency and state that on your home page so that everyone knows upfront? How about. "everyone welcome EXCEPT thiests...you guys just "fuck off.""

this place would become quite the echo chamber, wouldn't it? Diversity be damned!?

It seems to me that the JW "thing" has become a convenient hook to catch the fish (ratings). It's a sad, sad situation for more than a few people looking for shelter in what has become a major storm in thier lives.

I hope this post is taken in the spirit in which it was intended. If this forum exists as a "public service" then transparency or compassion. You can't have it both ways without it being deceptive...and I don't expect you actually want to be deceptive.

love michelle

103

JW and the Sabbath

by Andromeda in

hello brothers and sisters and truth seekers,.

i am an active jehovah's witness.

i don't believe in 1914 and i'm tototally against their way of dealing with abuse cases.

myelaine

dear leaving_quietly...

observing the sabbah is a time to rest from "labour". In an agricultural community that would have meant don't go and work in the fields which is why the pharisees challenged Jesus. I don't know if pulling a couple of handfulls of weeds in the flower garden is considered labour but I do know that picking peas or what ever is "harvesting" and therefore labour.

We can observe the sabbath by not labouring. Reading and enjoying personal hobbies may not be labour. Taking time to read and reflect on God's word and getting together for fellowship with like minded individuals is also observing the sabbath. The point is, make the day one of rest and thank God for the day.

I find it interesting that even on sunday, the churches day of worship, most of the church people I know will carry on doing labour, shopping and dining out (which means causing others to work for you) when the bible says not to. I did that too not realizing that it is actually called defiling that day. If someone is committed to observing the 7th day sabbath and knows these basics, I think he/she becomes more sensitive to what is "right" or "wrong" on that day...God is working with the conscience and leading. I know that some people in leadership roles go completely overboard with rules too and I think that they are mining the letter of the law for the purpose of holding power of authority over people. Boo.

I do the best I can to not defile the saturday sabbath now, and that's all that God asks...that I worship in spirit and truth. No labour, no shopping, no dining out and keeping my thoughts on God and His word while I go about my day. There is no group like minded where I live to fellowship with on that day but there's online teaching that kind of fits with what I need right now.

103

JW and the Sabbath

by Andromeda in

hello brothers and sisters and truth seekers,.

i am an active jehovah's witness.

i don't believe in 1914 and i'm tototally against their way of dealing with abuse cases.

myelaine

dear TheWonderofYou...

if you remember, in the OT there were people of "the nations" who attached themselves to the house of israel and began to worship the God of israel in the perscribed manner, they didn't become ethnic hebrews, they became israelites.

Spiritual israel is a nation made up of ALL redeemed people who are bought by the blood of Jesus and who have the Spirit in them...THAT NONE MAY BOAST. The exact same criteria is met in those called, the body of Christ etc.

In Hebrews 8:8-13 it says that the new covenant is with (12 tribes) the house of israel and the house of judah (not "gentiles") it goes on to talk about the old covenant sanctuary and the old covenant sacrifices (which were, in fact, destroyed in 70 AD) in 9:1-10. Verse 11 tells us Who the mediator of the new covenant is and about His new and perfect tabernacle. There are only 2 options here...either the new covenant doesn't include non-israelites OR the grafting in that is spoken of elsewhere means that individual believers from "the nations" are grafted in to become israelites just like the old days.

I'm sending you a link in a private message too :)

love michelle

103

JW and the Sabbath

by Andromeda in

hello brothers and sisters and truth seekers,.

i am an active jehovah's witness.

i don't believe in 1914 and i'm tototally against their way of dealing with abuse cases.

myelaine

dear TheWonderofYou...

you said, "The law of Sinai was for Israel and Sabbat wassign of the coventant between God and Israel, AND NEVERa sign between God and the nations. God instituted the seventh-day system, not for everybody in the world. In fact, specifically it says for Israel. Verse 17, “A sign between Me and the sons of Israel forever.”...

the wall between jew and gentile has been taken away in Christ(ephesians 2:14)...scripture says there is neither jew nor greek/gentile in Christ but there IS one "israel"...galatians 3:28.

So, scripture seems to indicate that sabbath observance is actually a sign that one IS an "israelite" or son of God.

xo

28

Why Judaism and the Torah ?

by Crazyguy in

so i have been studying early christianity a bit and noticed that before christianity really took off after 325 ce, there were a lot of religions.

gnostics teachings , belief in all sorts of different gods from egypt to greece .

the practice of emperor worship etc.

myelaine

why Jesus and the torah for christianity:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=5phuQwRByBc

xo

26

Are gays really condemned in the Bible?

by jws in

so i was having this argument with a friend about the westboro baptist idiots.

my point is that while they are horrible people, they are pretty much right in that the bible is against gays because it has verses in both the old and the new testament.

which is one of many reasons to reject the bible as merely man-made rules from ancient middle-easterners.. and she argued that there are problems in translation, etc.

myelaine

dear jws...

you said, "It's not a sin! If you say they're sinning, no. You can't claim to be supportive of gays. Get it out of your head that it's a sin and then we can start to have a conversation about your tolerance.

It is NOT a sin to be overcome. Don't quote the "hate the sin, love the sinner" mantra. It does not apply to gay people because there's no sin here."...

God is holy/set apart and He wants His people to be holy/set apart, that means turning away from A LOT of things that the "world" takes for granted. It takes commitment to do that. God recognizes commitment to His way and He helps.

here's the kicker...there ARE people who are committed to God's way and they themselves testify that they were previously living a sinful lifestyle being homosexual. Would you want to talk to them about "tolerance"? Probably NOT because it would show your argument for what it is, shallow and "prideful". Shallow because for THEM it's not about homosexuals being marginalized and prideful because for THEM it's not about love being demoralized. For THEM it's about being called and holding to a higher standard, which is what God says being holy/set apart IS.

Not EVERYONE hears this calling on their lives. I don't condemn people who don't want to walk in God's way. I'm not the better one to navigate another's conscience, and likewise, you shouldn't feel free to dictate to me what is sin and what isn't. I responded to the question, "are gays really condemned in the bible?" With the answer...God is there to forgive and help people walk in His way. Is there something you find intolerable about that?

26

Are gays really condemned in the Bible?

by jws in

so i was having this argument with a friend about the westboro baptist idiots.

my point is that while they are horrible people, they are pretty much right in that the bible is against gays because it has verses in both the old and the new testament.

which is one of many reasons to reject the bible as merely man-made rules from ancient middle-easterners.. and she argued that there are problems in translation, etc.

myelaine

dear Fernando...

umm...you do know what that scripture you quoted is saying, don't you?

Jesus magnified the law by showing the spirit of the law. He said you have heard that it is against the law to have relations with another man's wife but the spirit of the law says that even looking at a woman with lust is adultery. The spirit of the law cuts both ways. It judges and convicts BUT it is willing to forgive and heal. The letter of the law kills but the spirit of the law gives life.

Just like other sin, homosexuality can be overcome. It starts with a willingness to overcome the flesh and it means putting in the effort in a making over of the mind. NONE of this is in accord with the prevailing spirit of our day. Like LisaRose pointed out: it is left to our conscience to decide (bearing in mind our carnal nature is at enmity with God.)

9

EXISTENTIAL topic: Why is Paradise or Heaven the solution to anything?

by TerryWalstrom in

gather around the campfire, boys and girls.. i have a little journey for us all to take together.. long, long ago in this universe not so far away .

.we were told a story.______________once in timeless nothingness, there existed a timeless being we now call god.whatever "perfection" is or was--god was.

god was perfect.. but wait--that's not all!and here is where the story begins!.

myelaine

Elohim is a triunity of being. Father, Son and the feminine Spirit. The notion of creating man in their image (male and female) wasn't borne out of not being content, but the desire to create man to share in love.

entering into eternity to become part of a loving family is a hope. Many don't have that pleasure on earth and many live with constant adversity as their "human condition". I wouldn't call heaven or paradise a solution like you did. (I guess that's the way you've framed the idea because you've got a crappy life?)...but for those humble in spirit or downtrodden it certainly is a blessed reward or consolation after their time on earth. Matthew 5:1-10.

xo

21

The Watchtower leaders are afraid of our elephants

by TerryWalstrom in

in the 1960's, when i was most active as a jehovah's witness, it was a different, more relaxed religion.

we were filled with confidence about our "truth" because we were skilled in rebuttal, overcoming objections, and we encouraged tough questions to test our mettle in the door to door work.. when an anti-dub book like "30 years a watchtower slave" was released, we all couldn't wait to read it and comment about it.it was seen as a pathetic effort at spite--never as a serious threat to our confidence in what we had.. so--what was different about the jw religion and our skillset back then from the watchtower world of paranoia and enforced loyalty today?i think i know.. we were like boxer george foreman before ali knocked him out.

we were mike tyson before buster douglas introduced his face to the canvas in that ring in japan.we were bullet proof.. not until you have a bone-shaking reckoning do you lose confidence and wonder, "wtf just happened?

myelaine

speaking of pledging alligence: The other day I noticed the similarity between the JW icon and the whitehouse one. I'll only post the one here.

87

Think for Yourself: Reform Judaism Uses JW Blood Issue For Shavuot

by David_Jay in

as the jewish holy day of shavuot (pentecost) begins this weekend, the reform judaism site publishes an interesting article entitled "judaism teaches: question authority, think for yourself.".

the article employs a jewish doctor's recollection of a jw patient who refused blood and died as an example of how both religious traditions greatly differ on how they see and apply god's law.. shavuot is the day jews recall god's giving the law to israel.

the article is significant in that it demonstrates how jews see the giving of the law as a call to questioning authority, including divine revelation itself whereas the death of the jw patient is contrasted as a slavish interpretation that misses the point behind jewish scripture.. for more see the article at:.

myelaine

Oh...I read what you said, David_Jay. I know why you've stopped talking to me. Cuz you're going to be like Jesus when He was opposed by the pharisees...because my answers didn't meet with your approval.

(you see, the pharisees were trying to avoid answering the question because they wanted to avoid something. I was not. I legitimately don't know the answer to your question)

xo