That was very good, Steve 2. LOL!!!
Rod P.
Posts by Rod P
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51Did we become JW because we wanted someone else to do our thinking for us?
by Rod P inask yourself the question "do i have the kind of personality that is attracted to a strong person or entity that speaks with authority, and is very assertive?".
most of us just want to follow the leader.
it makes us feel protected and secure.
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53
Examples of JW evasiveness/dishonesty
by BONEZZ inbeing born and bred into the borg i always felt it was the "truth" but i wasn't the one who measured up i was not good enough to be a dub.
but i also had nagging questions that went unanswered by the most learned elders...or at least not answered to my satisfaction.
their "answers" were in fact not really answers but side-steps or attempts to mis-direct my question into an area they could answer.. an example...it always bothered me that we could not examine the contents of what opposers put out.
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Rod P
Ellie,
You have asked one of those imponderable questions about God that theologians of all religions have been debating for centuries, and not just JW's.
We are talking about the "Foreknowledge" of God. If God is all powerful, and knows the beginning from the finale, does this mean that God caused it all to happen? Or does it mean that God would let everything happen, but because He is God, He would simply be able to predict from His Perfect Foreknowledge that such and such "Will Happen".
To use a crude analogy, if you saw your small child playing with matches, you would pretty well have the foreknowledge that your child would burn himself/herself if he/she lit them and put their fingers in the flame. This does not mean you forced your child to play with matches, just that, knowing your child, if there were matches there, he/she would be naturally curious enough to play with them, and from there you could see the consequences, while your child could not.
God knows all of us and the entire Universe infinitely more, since He created it all. Therefore he would know and see much deeper and farther than any of us mere mortals. But this does not prove that God caused us to behave a certain way; just that He would know that we would act a certain way, which would produce the natural consequences, which He would also know.
On the other hand, if God created us with the Nature that we have, and we do bad things or make bad or dangerous choices, does that not make God responsible for everything that happens in the Universe? If we weren't the way we were, then we wouldn't choose the way we do, and so the consequences would be different.
Rod P.
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51
Did we become JW because we wanted someone else to do our thinking for us?
by Rod P inask yourself the question "do i have the kind of personality that is attracted to a strong person or entity that speaks with authority, and is very assertive?".
most of us just want to follow the leader.
it makes us feel protected and secure.
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Rod P
Truth or Lie,
With respect, why don't you start your own thread on this forum and pontificate to your heart's content. I fail to see how your remarks on this thread have anything to do with the question I have asked, and I don't think the exchange of barbs back and forth is contributing a whole lot to the question either.
Rod P.
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24
Did the Devil and his Demons do it?
by Rod P intrue story: i used to drive for long trips on the highway a lot.
three-hundred-and-fifty mile trips were not unusual, and night time driving was quite common.
one night i fell asleep at the wheel, travelling 55 miles per hour along winding mountainous roads.
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Rod P
tetrapod.sapien,
I sent you a reply, but then discovered it never made it to this thread.
Anyway, I am prepared to accept the possibility that such supernaturel entities could exist. At the same time, as I have explained to others on this thread, I am just having a little fun asking a silly question about the Devil.
Rod P.
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24
Did the Devil and his Demons do it?
by Rod P intrue story: i used to drive for long trips on the highway a lot.
three-hundred-and-fifty mile trips were not unusual, and night time driving was quite common.
one night i fell asleep at the wheel, travelling 55 miles per hour along winding mountainous roads.
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Rod P
Evil Force,
I don't have a problem that there may well be an explanation that has to do with the subconscious mind. If so, great!
I am also prepared to accept the possibility that there is such a thing as "angels" or even "spirit guides"
So who knows for sure?
One thing I do know. This was nothing to do with the Devil. The rhetorical question at the top of this thread is totally rhetorical, tongue in cheek! Everyone one else is joking around about the debille on this forum, so why can't I.
Rod P.
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24
Did the Devil and his Demons do it?
by Rod P intrue story: i used to drive for long trips on the highway a lot.
three-hundred-and-fifty mile trips were not unusual, and night time driving was quite common.
one night i fell asleep at the wheel, travelling 55 miles per hour along winding mountainous roads.
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Rod P
Whoa, there AGuest,
You are taking me way too seriously.
I was actually doing a "spoof" about the devil. I do not for one minute attribute my experience on the road to the Devil or the Demons.
I was alluding to the fact that the WBTS always talks about phenomena being of the Devil. Maybe they would see my experience as of the devil too! LOL
Rod P.
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24
Did the Devil and his Demons do it?
by Rod P intrue story: i used to drive for long trips on the highway a lot.
three-hundred-and-fifty mile trips were not unusual, and night time driving was quite common.
one night i fell asleep at the wheel, travelling 55 miles per hour along winding mountainous roads.
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Rod P
True Story: I used to drive for long trips on the highway a lot. Three-hundred-and-fifty mile trips were not unusual, and night time driving was quite common. One night I fell asleep at the wheel, travelling 55 miles per hour along winding mountainous roads. Suddenly a big hammer hit me with a thump on the inside of my head, and woke me up, just in time to steer the car back on the road in my own proper lane. The hammer was quite audible, and it shocked the heck out of me.
I have been told more than once that I have a spirit guide.
Is this experience a sign that Satan and the Demons had taken over? heh heh heh...
Rod P.
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53
Examples of JW evasiveness/dishonesty
by BONEZZ inbeing born and bred into the borg i always felt it was the "truth" but i wasn't the one who measured up i was not good enough to be a dub.
but i also had nagging questions that went unanswered by the most learned elders...or at least not answered to my satisfaction.
their "answers" were in fact not really answers but side-steps or attempts to mis-direct my question into an area they could answer.. an example...it always bothered me that we could not examine the contents of what opposers put out.
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Rod P
Yes, I had one of those experiences too.
My question to them was, If man is a living soul comprising the body and the breath of life (life force), then when we die and go out of existence, and the only thing left is Jehovah's perfect memory of all that we were while we were alive, what happens when we get resurrected? If Jehovah makes a new body and then implants that personality that was "You" while you were alive, then is that REALLY "You" that has been "resurrected"? Or is this just a Duplicate of You, a Clone? (My argument of logic was to imply that if there is life after death, that it would make more sense that there would have to be a continuity of personality or essence.)
Nobody could give an answer to that one. One guy put his hand on my head and felt around for horns. We had a good laugh over that one!
Rod P.
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51
Did we become JW because we wanted someone else to do our thinking for us?
by Rod P inask yourself the question "do i have the kind of personality that is attracted to a strong person or entity that speaks with authority, and is very assertive?".
most of us just want to follow the leader.
it makes us feel protected and secure.
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Rod P
Truth or Lie,
Many on this forum are here to teach. Many are also still looking for answers to life's questions, and they didn't find it inside the WTS, even though there was a time they thought they did. But there are other reasons as well: To share the experiences they have gone thru as a JW, and what happened when they left or were kicked out, either voluntarily or involuntarily. Perhaps with most of us, it's a little of everything. It's better than hiding your light under a bushel.
Rod P.
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10
Centre or fringe?
by Narkissos inas jws we were weekly told about making "jehovah," "the kingdom," "spiritual" or "theocratic interests" the centre of our lives.
many of us bought into it and really tried hard to do so.
committing oneself to full-time service was thought of as a natural way of "putting kingdom's interests first" and focusing on what was "most important".. forget a moment about the specific wt crap.
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Rod P
Narkissos,
There is the "Intellectual Gospel" and there is the "Social Gospel".
With the "Intellectual Gospel" we might be immersed in the central and priority themes of the cause we are serving, but after a while it becomes just too heavy a burden to carry, and we need a break from all this "heavy" stuff. Others may admire the focus and the capabilities of such an individual, but will also never "join his club". Kind of like being a "nerd", and the stigma that carries.
The "Social Gospel" on the other hand, is much easier to live, much lighter and entertaining, and, let's face it, we all want to have fun. Life just shouldn't be so serious all the time. And any philospphy that can't be taken out into the sunshine and had a good laugh over it, isn't worth keeping. We humans are social creatures; we need companionship, friendship, acceptance, interaction. Without it, we become unhappy. This is not about deep thinking and intellectualism.
I was with a group of people in Vancouver who belonged to Mensa. This is the club reserved for the brightest, the smart ones, the intellectuals with high I.Q.'s. They have chapters almost everywhere. You may have one in your area. Anyway, when they had their little get-togethers, typically on a weekend, they would play baseball and drink beer. It had absolutely nothing to do with being intellectual, and more to do with just having fun and getting loaded. Still, off in the corner was this small group of the "brainy bunch" who would sit there and debate a great many imponderable questions and topics (eg. particle physics, existentialism, etc), often over a game of chess. Under their collective breaths you could hear them complain about how the rest of these "beer-guzzling socialites" were spoiling the whole purpose and mission of Mensa. At the same time, they found themselves unhappy and off to the side, isolated (except for their own tiny group that just didn't fit in).
There is the story of the young man who went on a quest for truth and enlightenment. He bought all kinds of books and research materials on all kinds of subjects and philosophies and religions and topics. He read and read and read. He studied until it hurt. He spent his whole life in introspection. After many years of doing this, he noticed one thing. He was very, very unhappy. "Why am I so unhappy." he asked himself. "Why is life such a burden? Why don't I have all the answers? Why am I still searching?....." The questions were endless. He felt like he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. Finally he decided that he was going to get rid of the thing that was making him so unhappy. He gathered up all his books and his papers and threw them all in the garbage. He decided for the first time in his life, to just live. And for the first time in his life, he found he was happy. So let us put that in our collective "intellectual pipes" and smoke it!
Life is what happens to us while we are busy planning for it.
Rod P.