Posts by Bridgette

37

JW Culture has Changed!

by Amazing in

jw
friends

in the late 1960s, i became a jw.

there was a sense of intellectual freedom and more openness to discuss various spiritual and even some social topics.

there was reliance on watch tower literature as an authority, but still the soiciety seem to confine its concerns and left the rest up to individual jws to decide.

Excellent points, Amazing. I remember reading about the early "brothers", esp. Russell, and thinking, what free thinkers they must have been to break away from traditional Christianity. I used to hear about the title of one of Russell's books, "Food for THINKING Christians" and thinking, we're not taught to think or question at all.
I know if I had not been practically born "in" it, I would never have chosen to become a Jehovah's Witness, but I think I would've had a lot more respect for those earlier "brothers" than the Naze-esque regime that represent their diety now.

B.

5

Paul Polidoro protects child molesters:

by sf in

the attorney representing the supreme court solicitation case rebutt from a case in '98:.

< http://www.jesus-witnesses.com/elderabuse.htm.

start page.

Bridgette

Was it relevant whether or not he was an elder (sorry, didn't have time to read thoroughly). What I have a problem with, is not reporting child molestation to the authorities when it happens--turn it over, let them investigate it. If a congregation (elders) who represent the WTBTS' interest at the local level, came into knowledge, or a member was accused before them as a child molester, the thing to do is: HAND THE CASE OVER TO THE AUTHORITIES. Simple. If they failed to do so, they did NOT do their utmost to protect the children of their flock.
We know this organization attempts to protect it's "reputation" to the unth degree. They have no compunctions about witholding information, (esp, that child molesters had come into Jehovah's "clean" organization). Just like suing any big corporation, these court cases set legal precedents. The message here to the the WTBTS: Protect your children, or we will. Report child child abuse to the authorities. It's the law.
Pax,
B.

83

NEWS: I am publicly reproved over UN situation.

by badwillie in

jw
friends

my wife and i met with 3 elders for a "judicial hearing".. our crime: simply put, was talking.

i showed a friend the un website where the wts was listed as an ngo which then led to a 2 hour discussion of various doubts that we both have had.

my wife also showed a friend the un thing but also discussed with her a first hand account of a pedophile cover-up that we knew about in our former congregation.

Bridgette

hmmmmm.....so they feel they have to "cut out of the congregation like a gangrene or cancer that can spread quickly".
Very interesting wording. Very.......
How Hitleresque. How Torquemada-esque.
And looking at a UN website--viewing public information is now cosorting with those who "speak twisted things".
If they're smart, they'll lighten up, NOT seek to censure, and come clean.
......if they're smart.....

My thoughts are with you on your journey, my friend,
B.

44

Christmas&Thanksgiving-Are you celebrating?

by Vitameatavegamin in

jw
friends

hi friends;.

just wondering about this subject of holidays again.

i really miss christmas but don't have enough nerve to celebrate it.

Bridgette

Well, I've written extensively on another thread regarding this, so I'll try to spare any from redundancy. First of all, if the holidays make you squeamish, don't celebrate them. But please bear in mind that they are what you make them. I personally do not have any compunction about the paganess of the holidays, and in fact embrace it, so the holidays are celebrated with relish in my household. My fav. is Halloween (wish my pic would show here!) I would like to say, Pagans have kind of a bad wrap. It's really a path of reverence of nature. The ancients (as do most pagans today) saw sacredness in absolutely everything--and everything had religious connotations. One would be hard pressed to extract EVERY trace of paganism from their lives--it is EVERYWHERE, believe me. I get so tickled sometimes at what I see. The WTBTS just honed in on the holidays, because they were an easy target, but believe me, if they set out to attack every vestige of paganism, they would resemble something even MORE stark than the Puritans:pure black clothes (then again, for certain festivals, that would be appropo), no wedding rings, no wedding ceremonies, candles, the list goes on and on. But again, I will say: the holidays, are what you make them. Even Thanksgiving bears a strong resemblence to the celebration of the harvest moon. But most people simply want to get together with family. The first Christians saw fit to change the re-birth of the Sun, to the birth of the Son--and it became a day to revere their Christ. It was what they made it. As our society becomes more secular, Christmas becomes more secular: a day to gather with family and exchange gifts--a way to show appreciation and love for one another.
Good luck on your decision and path--the beauty of it is, they are yours exclusively.
Love,
Bridgette
p.s. If you do decide to celebrate any or all of the holidays, enjoy them with a free heart--they are lovely!

18

How to tape secretly?

by OhHappyDay in

jw
friends

please answer me in private:.

i do need to taoe a meeting secretly.

wich kind of equipment do you suggest??.

Bridgette

I tape meetings all the time (with the attendees knowledge). Make sure that your tape is LONG, or the meeting short. Also, make sure your recorder is quiet when it turns off if the tape runs out.
B-Boy makes a good point. Make sure it's legal. Don't get into any trouble.
Good luck,
B.
p.s. good idea, Julien. You might just visit a radio shack, if you have any of those around and discreetly ask about quiet taping devices.

43

UN vs WT -It doesn't matter

by Dan B in

jw
friends

does anybody honestly think that all this exposure about the wtb&ts and the un really going to matter much in the jw community?

sure, it matters to us, since we already know the truth about the wt.

but it won't even make a dent in the jw population.

Bridgette

Do I think this religious corporation will topple? No. Do I want it to? Not in particular. But what we do here is keep it honest. We are a watchdog group. There are sadly some who are in, who will be in for life, for various reasons, and nothing anyone says, or logically presents will change that. There's some dubs I know (my mother, for example) who, if they personally witnessed Jesus Christ or Jehovah himself coming down out of the sky, hovering right over Brooklyn and declaring "this org a bunch of crap! They are NOT my personal representatives!", would quietly wait on "new light" and accept whatever the "society" had to say in order to explain it ("it was a weather balloon"). Because most dubs are trained to worship their organization and not their diety. However, for those who DO think adn worship freely, the internet, and what we do here is vital. It's information. Information = Education = Freedom.
Love,
B.

25

Good Kharma? Bad Kharma?

by bboyneko in

jw
friends

i found some ladies purse at the local shopping mall parking lot tonight, it had her entire life in it, her social security card, her cell phone, her cash, her credit cards, even her daughters social security card.. from looking through the contents, me and saffron were able to find out many things about her:.

1)she had recently moved from way out in the country to columbia maryland... 2)she was probably divorced from a man of middle eastern origens.

3)she was white.

Bridgette

Hey, I thought we were all supposed to be wildly depraved apostates here, totally devoid of any morals whatsoever once we left "mother"? And you go and do something like return a purse with a PLATINUM AMEX CARD?!?!?! Sheesh, man, what are you trying to do?
I find most atheists are moral simply for the sake of being moral and a feeling of citizenship with their fellow beings, versus being moral out of fear of angry hebrew sky-god. But whatever works, imo.
Now, about Kharma (one of my favorite subjects) Slash put it very succinctly: "Kharma simply put is Cause and effect." The universe is a machine. We are not just a part of that machine, but we ARE the machine. For all that we "see" and perceive, there really are only a very few basic realities: Cause and Effect being one of the most basic. Loving, unselfish, compassionate acts feed that machine and perpetuate those energies, just as negative acts can perpetuate negative energies. Like a mathematical formula. I personally prefer the results of loving, compassionate acts, but that's just me.
So, in mommy D's words--"ya done good".
Love,
B.

34

Overweight JWs -- on the increase?

by Seeker in

jw
friends

yes, i know, the title is a pun.

it was deliberate.. i can recall in the 1970s seeing very few overweight jws.

in fact, i used to think (in my arrogant jw manner) that this was a sign of how jws were better at self-control than worldly people.

Bridgette

Tina,
You said, "They actually told me'these things will be fixed in the new system'. They took that as license to abuse food and their health."
I remember many sentiments such as this. It always struck me as very hypocritical how they would dog on smoking, drinking, etc, because those endangered your health, when the medical community was saying that being overweight and sedentary is almost as bad for your health. I do remember one article about gluttoney, and that it could be a disfellowshipping offense. But how are you going to enforce something like that (I'm sure they'd try to find some way, if they thought they could). There are valid medical conditions, but for the most part, it's the sedentary lifestyle they propogate that's so bad for the R&F. No sports as children. I was not even allowed to play outside when the worldly neighbors' kids were outside, so I learned to play quietly inside by myself and read a lot. Thank god, I happened to have fairly good genes and my grandmother's metabolism, so I never went passed a size 8. Even so, one of the first things I did upon my exit was join a gym and was down to a healthy 2 (I'm short and small boned) in no time. I have never been so healthy as I am now, since leaving the org: that's mentally, spiritually AND physically!! love my exercise and meditation!!
Love,
B.
p.s. then I remember on the other hand, a lot of bulemic and anorexic sisters. I think both ends of the spectrum--overeating, and undereating that you saw in the org reflected a deep seated lack of self esteem--love for themselves. When, if they had just been encouraged to view themselves and their bodies in a healthy way, more of that could've been avoided.

76

CNN mentions Jehovah's Witnesses Today

by ARoarer in

jw
friends

i have been watching the news on cnn and happened to notice the news flashing across the bottom mentioning the state of ohio banning door to door work and jehovah's witnesses!

has anyone seen this?

Bridgette

JT, you do make a good point when you say: "I'M SURE THE legal desk in brooklyn rejoiced when they saw the JW were the only group mentioned on the form-"
I'm sure this fed their psychotic paranoia to no end. But I still stand by my right to have people at my door ID'd. I do agree with the earlier poster about NOT enforcing Identification when preaching in a public place (I like the idea of airports--you can't step out of the little white square to preach or propagate). You cannot accost people. It's not a person's right to "preach" that I am interested in hindering--if that's how they practice their religion, I could care less. But my right to privacy, and my right to be unmolested (no pun intended) in my own residence, I will protect, and assert that it outweighs anyone's right to preach in my own residence.
Pax,
B.
Paranoia: A psychotic disorder marked by delusions of persecution or of grandeur, often strenuously rationalized.
hmmmmmm.....sound familiar?

76

CNN mentions Jehovah's Witnesses Today

by ARoarer in

jw
friends

i have been watching the news on cnn and happened to notice the news flashing across the bottom mentioning the state of ohio banning door to door work and jehovah's witnesses!

has anyone seen this?

Bridgette

Seeker,
You said: "I suspect you and I think very much alike in this area." I've had that feeling from some of your posts as well.
Pax,
B.