rebel8

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Posts by rebel8

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  44

  Lot's Wife - Connect the dots - JW.org

  by Funchback in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  yay!

  now kids can help draw lot's wife getting destroyed.. .

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  rebel8

  DISGUSTING
  
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  35

  "would you drink a glass of water if it had just a tiny bit of poison in it?"

  by stuckinarut2 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  no doubt we have all heard that well used "illustration" in public talks etc over the years:.

  "if you were handed a glass of water that looked pure, but were told it has just a tiny drop of poison in it, would you drink it?".

  the society has used that illustration at length to say we should avoid all influences of every part of the world.. but, as we know, the society has had a track record of errors, false ideas and doctrines.

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  rebel8

  Arsenic in water? We’re adapting

  Over 400 years ago, alchemist and physician Paracelsus said: “All substances are poisons; there is none that is not a poison. The right dose differentiates a poison from a remedy.”...Some years ago, a death occurred due to the overconsumption of carrots. People have died from drinking too much water (water intoxication). Too much oxygen (vital for life) results in cell damage and can lead to death (oxygen toxicity). Likewise, even for extremely toxic substances such as snake venom, there is a dose below which there is no detectable toxic effect. [source]
  

  
  
  
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  52

  last convention before global attack on witnesses

  by Phoebe in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  so it's not enough that i'm dealing with post traumatic stress/anxiety and panic attacks all related to my life as a jw (50 years baptized -- i stopped going a couple of months ago) at 3 a.m. i get an email from the other side of the world.

  'you have to go to the convention.

  bro sanderson says we must watch the news, things are happening.

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  rebel8

  Can anyone share their personal experience to help me?

  Sharing of personal experiences can definitely be therapeutic. It makes you realize you are not alone. There are no doubt many in active and inactive threads on this forum.

  I left with severe doubts but more along the lines of, "I don't know if they actually have the truth or not, but I know for sure I would rather be killed at Armageddon (coming any day now) than to live forever with jws." I knew for sure I didn't want to worship a god who called them his people.

  And that's where I started. I let myself feel what I needed to feel. I exposed myself to opposing points of view--a thing dubs didn't do back then--and then put them into perspective.

  I had anxious discomfort continuously for quite a while as I sorted out beliefs vs. reality. They fell away one by one, and honestly it was painful.
  

  Years later, I started to work as a counselor and just happened to have some jw clients. I noticed they went through the same sorts of things I went through (this). It is a grief process the same as any major loss.
  

  My advice is to focus mostly on personal wellness and getting well/happy emotionally first. Be a good person. Enjoy the 'gift' of life in a positive way.

  If there is a god/goddess/gods worth worshiping, and they someday check in on you, you're in good standing because you have made good things from the 'gift' of life. If there is no god, then great, you have still done the right thing and become happy along the way.

  Doctrinal stuff comes later. You will have to figure that out, but there is no hurry. Let them float by as though you are watching boats pass you on a river. Pick one to pay attention to at a time and take breaks in between. When you pay attention to one, start with the evidence and be courageous as you ask yourself tough questions about what is really true. Example: Are earthquakes getting worse?
  
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  21

  Drama is about avoiding materialism. GB has $10k watch in one of the videos.

  by ILoveTTATT2 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

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  rebel8

  ^ditto.

  We were counseled not to wear designer jeans in the 80s because it would stumble others! Dubs aren't supposed to have certain automobile makes, expensive houses, etc. even if they can afford them because of the same issue.

  The suit pictured in the photos on Page 1 of this thread has a striped lining. According to this, it isn't Armani.
  
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  18

  The new personality

  by longgone in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i've been thinking about the changes we make within ourselves after leaving the wts cult.

  i'm not referring to how we spend our time now that we actually have some, but who we have become, or working to be?.

  the gb carries on and on about "stripping off the old personality and putting on the new one.

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  rebel8

  When I think about the little girl I was pre-cult, I realize I have become an adult version of her now. :)
  
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  12

  What Is Brain Washing?

  by Brokeback Watchtower in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i don't think this applies to the watchtower corporation as the beginning this is talking about the more extreme forms.

  but interesting just the same.

  i'm sure we see some of the wt's depictions of death and and destruction(verbal and in pictures) that awaits those not in corporate "jehovah's" favor, a clear uses of inducing maximum fear and stress to make the mind more suggestable to corporate directives.

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  rebel8

  To me, it matters not what you call it, but the ethics of it--the impact it has on the target, the dishonesty involved, the manipulation and harm.
  
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  29

  BBC Programme Re. Contaminated Blood - Dub Blinkers

  by BluesBrother in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b08qhmhc/panorama-contaminated-blood-the-search-for-the-truth.

  an experienced j w of my acquaintance , who had best be nameless, urged me to watch this t v programme because it "proves the society were right all along in warning of the dangers of blood.. well, yes , it does in a way demonstrate that the potential dangers of blood products was not fully recognized.

  in particular this is shown in respect of the aids/hiv virus which was a new threat when it occurred.. there were some important points deliberately ignored by my dub associate , though :.

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  rebel8

  Hi BluesBrother,

  I (obviously) have strong emotions on this topic and perhaps I wasn't very nice in my reply. I'm sorry if I wasn't.

  I was referring to the secret F8 permissions written about by Ray Franz, and the fact that even when the official position was "conscience matter", we were still told point blank it is not ok to take F8. This was stated in conferences with elders, at assemblies and meetings.

  When it was 'officially ok', it would get you a marking talk and bloodguilt for stumbling others (which of course we know means jehoopla will execute you).

  When it was officially 'not ok', you would get disfellowshipped (and executed).

  The only course of action that would avoid execution and congregational punishment was to refuse F8.
  

  At one point, the position was reversed but not published, and wts called congregations they knew of who had hemophiliacs to tell them privately it was ok to take their medicine again.

  Either I was not 'known' or the elders in my congregation opted to not tell me.
  

  So there is a bit more to the story than what is published in the literature.
  
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  29

  BBC Programme Re. Contaminated Blood - Dub Blinkers

  by BluesBrother in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b08qhmhc/panorama-contaminated-blood-the-search-for-the-truth.

  an experienced j w of my acquaintance , who had best be nameless, urged me to watch this t v programme because it "proves the society were right all along in warning of the dangers of blood.. well, yes , it does in a way demonstrate that the potential dangers of blood products was not fully recognized.

  in particular this is shown in respect of the aids/hiv virus which was a new threat when it occurred.. there were some important points deliberately ignored by my dub associate , though :.

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  rebel8

  I can tell you...as a jw child with a serious bleeding disorder in NY in the heyday of the AIDS crisis...there were few moments in my life when I was more angry than at an ass-embly in the late 1980s when the dubbies said their blood policy was to protect jehoopla's one and only super special holy people from getting the virus...jehoopla knew all along and so did the wts.

  In my head, I was like, OMG YOU F*(&)&()*& LIARS! They never predicted AIDS and their stupid blood teaching was never created because of the potential for bloodborne illnesses.

  Think about it. Let's pretend the wts is or was concerned about dubs getting HIV. They would be advocating testing before having safe sex (even within marriage, if someone had a previous partner). They have never said that, have they?
  

  I hate the wts for their dumb, boldface, unabashed lies and I hate the dubs who believe it when they know they're lies.

  I remember that highly insulting moment very clearly. I remember what building I was in and what seat I was sitting in. I had difficulty staying seated and silent.

  The subjects of the programme had received Factor Eight for Haemophilia . This serum was allowed by the WTS at the time (as a conscience matter) and ,of course still is today.
  

  Actually, this is only partially true, in that this was their official position that they directly flip flopped about. But even when they said it's ok publicly, they actively preached against it from the platform and in private conferences with elders. At a bare minimum, only during the timeframes when they said it's ok, you would be publicly marked as bad association for doing it. When they said it's not ok, they privately said it is and didn't publish a retraction, leaving many of us victims of a policy they no longer believed in.
  

  Tell that to your friend if you like, Blues Brother. :)
  
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  27

  Apostasy endorsed in this yesterday's Watchtower Study

  by doubtfull1799 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  “there may be occasions when it would be good for us to reconsider a choice or decision.

  it could be when the prevailing circumstances change.

  jehovah altered his decision at times when circumstances changed.

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  rebel8

  IIRC this statement has been used by wts repeatedly, always immediately preceding some policy flip flop or failed prophecy.
  
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  65

  Major changes to convention security beginning in 2017

  by Edison Trent in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  short info on interesting changes to the major conventions this year: there will be a new security concept that will be implemented at all regional conventions in 2017.. similar to other major events (e.g.

  festivals, concerts), there will be admittance controls in stadiums.. - at each entrance, there will be a massive presence of attendants that look at each visitor.. - there will be pocket checks at the entrance.. - suspicious persons are no longer left on the convention grounds.. - suppliers to the stadium will be intensively inspected by attendants.. - there will be a special sign for attendants that must enter the stadium before 7.30 am.

  all others (even all attendants) can only enter after 7.30 am..

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  rebel8

  We have seen what has happened when ignorant elders are put in charge of peoples lives; this will not bode well.

  This is exactly why it's AWESOME. Keep it culty, wts! That's how we prevent the innocents from ever joining.