Serenity Now

Joined

• started 0 topics
• posted 15 times   see topics posted on
• send a message

Posts by Serenity Now

• 
  62

  Is it ok to be critical of the pope yet?????????

  by tyydyy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  censorship borg style.

  somebody killed the pope's last poop thread just because someone else was offended when i mentioned that i think that he wasn't such a good guy.

  if you think you might be offended by what's said in a thread then don't read it.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Serenity Now

  Stromboli writes: "They just saw him as an old man, definately not their leader, remember that only few give a shit about what he says."

  Okay, I reread your post and mine and here's my follow-up:

  No, Catholics didn't see JPII as just an old man. He was definitely their leader and deeply loved. Regardless of the fact that many Americans and Western Europeans are cafeteria-style Christians, 75% of the Catholics in the world are in third world countries and actually think people should try to live a life that is true to the teachings of the Church. Seventy-five percent of 1.1 billion people who cared deeply about what JPII said is not a "only few".

  Regarding me stating things that weren't simply a response to your post, I didn't know I had to stick to just responding to your post. I also added some other things that were on my mind.
• 
  66

  How do you know when your spouse is cheating on you?

  by Thegoodgirl in

  1. social
  2. relationships

  okay, i know this is personal, but i kind of like the annoninimity of the board versus asking my friends who are all also friends with my husband.. my husband went out of the country with a group from work this weekend.

  i was supposed to go but had to cancel due to other stuff.

  it turned out only 4 ended up going, my husband, a guy, and two women.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Serenity Now

  We tend to see others through the eyes of our own character. Despite very obvious evidence, I didn't realize my ex-husband was cheating on me until well after our divorce. Everybody else knew. Because I loved him so much that I would never have ever thought of cheating on him, I assumed he felt the same way about me. I believed every strange story he ever told. Boy, was I wrong. Best to find out now because, for me, I remember going out to dinner with a group of people and thinking at the time that all of the people I loved most in the world were around that table. I felt so happy. Later, I discovered that each and every person at that table knew then that he was cheating on me. Makes me very suspicious and over ten years later I still don't trust happiness. Find out now or it could have a negative effect on your emotional health for your whole life.
• 
  25

  Which Translation of the Bible would you say is most accurate?

  by researcher in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  which translation of the bible would you say is most accurate and was not influenced by any 'religious group' in the translation?

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Serenity Now

  I have several versions but DH and I like the Revised Standard Version best. We have both a protestant version and a Catholic version. We also have a New American Study Bible with lots of footnotes that is very easy to read.

  A set I'd like to have is called the Nevarre (sp?) Bible. It's a commentary and has the text in Greek/Latin/Hebrew, whatever, on one side of the page and then translations in English and commentary on the meaning on the right hand side of the page. It's about a 16 volume set. It was recommended to me and I've seen it in bookstores but didn't have @ $175 to plop down at that time.

  DH and I tend to read things in RSV first and then compare that text to other translations, including the NIV and Oxford English Bible.
• 
  16

  Science is a threat...

  by homme perdu in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  to many religions but i dont understand why.

  do you think there will be an understanding between the two?

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Serenity Now

  I don't think I understand this thread. Science is a threat how?

  Specifically, I'm confused because the late great Pope John Paul II stated that it's fine for science to theorize that life started with the Big Bang so long as they give God the credit for the Big Bang. The Pope, a former college professor, didn't seem to feel threatened by science then.

  However, there is a debate between religion and science when, for instance, a "scientist", i.e., the primary neurologist for Michael Schiavo in the recent court case over his wife's wishes, referred to Terri Schiavo as a "houseplant" because she was neurologically damaged. In that case, the late great Pope stressed the dignity of all human life, which was at odds with our current culture of basing the worthiness of a human life on intellectual functioning levels as determined by the science of medicine.

  The only threat, so to speak, I see between science and religion is a difference in the valuation of human life.
• 
  24

  What was your most embarrassing moments in the " feild service"?

  by new boy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i know its an old thread, but its fun and educational.. i had many, but the one that come to mind the most is.

  the orgy!!!.

  it was southern calif. about 1969. i was 20 years old.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Serenity Now

  We used to pick up this ancient sister from her nursing home and take her with us for an hour every Saturday morning. We took her with us on a return visit and, while we were inside, she asked to use the householder's bathroom. After we left, we were driving down the road and the old woman started rummaging in her bookbag and pulled out a big bottle of Listerine. Mom said, "Where did you get that?" The old sister told us she'd taken it from the bathroom at that householder's. Mom said, "You can't do that!" The old woman said, "But they had two," and put it back in her bag. From that time on, Mom would pick her up and take her to doctor's offices to put magazines in the waiting rooms and then took her right back to the nursing home.
• 
  22

  Just can't get this out of my head

  by jt stumbler in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  being recently self-dissassociated, i cannot get out of my head something that happened to me more than 20 years ago.

  having studied much in my youth, and being the submarine witness that i was, i married at 19 and began my "worldly coarse".

  i just knew it was the "truth".

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Serenity Now

  I remember something I heard several times from the platform back when I was still a JW: we were instructed to be very careful when we say our personal prayers like this out loud because Satan is listening too! Maybe it wasn't God who sent he JW's and the LDS to your door!
• 
  88

  Does anyone Love Jehovah anymore?

  by defd in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  .

  i know people have left for people issues but what about jehovah god and jesus?

  what have they done?.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Serenity Now

  Jez says: My take on it now:

  "Jehovah" is a man-made invention. He no longer exists for me because he was inextricably connected to the JehovahsWitnesses...."

  Wow! This really strikes me. I'm a Christian now but the word "Jehovah" to me is a dirty word. For me, it represents the god of the Jehovah's Witness, who is a sick sadist just waiting for people to mess up so he can slap them down.

  I tend to avoid the name "Jehovah" at all costs because of the emotional baggage tied to it.
• 
  62

  Is it ok to be critical of the pope yet?????????

  by tyydyy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  censorship borg style.

  somebody killed the pope's last poop thread just because someone else was offended when i mentioned that i think that he wasn't such a good guy.

  if you think you might be offended by what's said in a thread then don't read it.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Serenity Now

  Stromboli writes: "They just saw him as an old man, definately not their leader, remember that only few give a shit about what he says."

  Hmmm. Where did this "fact" come from? Most of the Catholics I know revere JPII and are proud that he has continued to work and be their spiritual leader, regardless of his physical limitations. JPII has shown people, by his example, the value of a life even if it's been compromised by illness. JPII is definitely their leader. That's why there are 250,000 people crowded together in St. Peter's Square right now holding a vigil as he dies.

  I don't know about Italy but I know that in the U.S. 80% or more of Catholics do use contraception but they also are fully aware that JPII has reminded them that it's considered a sin in the Catholic church. The difference is, if they decide to break the rules, they don't have to go before a judicial committee.

  People who contracept, etc., are called "cafeteria-style Catholics" by the faithful, meaning that they pick and choose what beliefs of the Church they want to accept for themselves and what beliefs they want to ignore.

  John Paul II has reminded people who want the Catholic Church to change its stance on topics such as contraception that, unlike the JW's, the Church hasn't had "new light" and doesn't have the authority to arbitrarily change the rules every ten years. If people don't like the rules and choose to ignore them, that's their decision. The fact that JPII has remained staunch and faithful to the teachings of the church has earned him a lot of respect and admiration from people who admire integrity.

  Regarding whether or not it's okay to trash someone who is dying and all the questions about who decides taste, one thing is certain: it's bad manners. Would you stand around at a wake and talk badly about the person in the casket? Of course not because it would be rude.
• 
  62

  Is it ok to be critical of the pope yet?????????

  by tyydyy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  censorship borg style.

  somebody killed the pope's last poop thread just because someone else was offended when i mentioned that i think that he wasn't such a good guy.

  if you think you might be offended by what's said in a thread then don't read it.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Serenity Now

  Please just keep in mind that "the Pope" is a man as well as an office. John Paul II was just a man with all the same imperfections and failings that all of the people on this planet have, no perfection in him, just someone trying to do what he thought was best with his life. I wish I had the courage and self-discipline to live my life as well as he has lived his. Be as critical as you want so long as you sit with a mirror in front of yourself while you're typing in your comments~and you're honest and factual in your comments.
• 
  32

  Recommend a film

  by Satans little helper in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  no big hollywood blockbusters, no explosion fests, just good films with a decent cast and a decent script.

  definitely nothing with keanu reeves and preferably something that will touch the audience rather than just wash over them.

  timeframe immaterial but quality is important.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Serenity Now

  Hi, first time poster, so please forgive any etiquette faux pas.

  Given all the coverage of the Terri Schiavo case recently, I was moved to pull out my copy of Lorenzo's Oil and re-view it. Has Susan Sarandon and Nick Nolte, very life affirming drama with great lighting, great soundtrack, and excellent cinematography.

  I think the two funniest movies of the last decade or so are O, Brother! Where Art Thou? with George Clooney and, believe it or not, Stuart Saves His Family by Al Franken. Stuart's family is dysfunctional enough to actually be compared to JW families. I laughed until I cried.

  Oh, and I second the person who recommended Snatch, which was hilarious also.