Posts by daystar

26

When Your Beliefs Are Challenged, How Do You React?

by The wanderer in

jw
friends

when your beliefs are challenged, how do you react?when individuals question or challenge you about your beliefs, how do you react?

as a jehovahs witness, many individuals became touchy when questions directed .

toward the watchtower society did not fit the popular conception, thought or ideal.

daystar

My "beliefs" now are nowhere near as concrete as they were when I was a JW in my teens. The reason for this is that I see that beliefs are not truths, and while they do form a backdrop for how I perceive things, I know, again, that they are not truth, and should be flexible to allow for modification should new information be provided to me with enough "oomph!" or "AHA!".

So, I think I react very well to challenges to my beliefs generally. I try to challenge them myself! That is not to say I don't find myself on occasion falling into old habits, but I try to keep it in check.

I may be made of my beliefs, but just as they are subject to change, so am I. All is change, all is in motion, always. The universe is change.

34

"Charles Taze Russell was a 33rd Degree Freemason"

by FreedomFrog in

jw
friends

i found this site very interesting..... http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/false%20religions/jehovah%20witnesses/jw.htm.

daystar

About like saying if you ever use a compass and a square, you are automatically a mason. *sigh*

3

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

by daystar in

i can't believe that with as many star wars fans we have here, that no one has posted on this that i have found:.

lucasarts to release a sequel to star wars: jedi academy (jedi knight) called star wars: the force unleashed.. check out the trailer and then the web documentaries.

pretty fricken awesome!

daystar

I must not have read far enough. Thanks for the correction.

66

So non-creationist - what do you think of those who still accept creation?

by AK - Jeff in

no firestorms please.

but be honest.

do you think that we are of a lower level of intelligence than those who accept evolutionist' theories?.

daystar

I think nvrgnbak related my feelings about the subject rather succintly:

My point is, it's hard to say what happened when none of us were here.
Science offers explanations based on observations. These explanations are not static.

However, my ability to accept this is reliant upon my understanding that the bible is a book of stories, myths and legends, with some basis in truth in many cases, but highly unreliable as a source for facts regarding the nature of our world and our universe.

Similar to what is being discussed in another thread regarding the herbivorous nature of certain animals of obviously carnivorous nature, religionists tend to rely upon the bible as a source for absolute truth first and then deny actual scientific observation when the data opposes what the bible says. Creation can't be a natural phenomenon without being molded by the hand of God, because the bible says otherwise, they say. And yet, when it suits them, so many will deny (or manipulate interpretation of) certain lines of reasoning within the bible... such as its, to my mind, definitive stance against homosexuality. It baffles me as to how one can be a Christian and yet rationalize homosexuality. Yes, I've heard all the arguments, but they seem to me like frightened rationalizations. (Nope, not a Christian myself and so hold absolutely nothing against gays. Just don't see how, for example, a gay can also be Christian when the bible calls for their deaths.)

I suppose it's much easier to deny scientific theory regarding the development of life upon earth than to stand against individuals we may see day to day with alternative lifestyles.

I suppose one would have to accept the bible as a fallible piece of work to begin with to accept scientific attempts to explain it all. And if one does that, doesn't it call the entire rest of the work into question? House of cards...

3

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

by daystar in

i can't believe that with as many star wars fans we have here, that no one has posted on this that i have found:.

lucasarts to release a sequel to star wars: jedi academy (jedi knight) called star wars: the force unleashed.. check out the trailer and then the web documentaries.

pretty fricken awesome!

daystar

I can't believe that with as many Star Wars fans we have here, that no one has posted on this that I have found:

Lucasarts to release a sequel to Star Wars: Jedi Academy (Jedi Knight) called Star Wars: The Force Unleashed.

Check out the trailer and then the web documentaries. Pretty fricken awesome! But... there will not be a release for PC, only for PS2 and some handheld or other... lame-O! But I suppose I'll be getting it anyway.

41

How do you view crosses now?

by reneeisorym in

jw
friends

if you are a christian, how to you feel about crosses now?.

if you are an athiest, would you wear one?.

daystar

As a solar-phallic symbol, I have no problems with it at all. It symbolizes generation and regeneration... birth, life, death, rebirth...

126

I want to apologize to everyone, for everything.

by nvrgnbk in

jw
friends

i'm sorry.. we've all been through alot.. .

daystar

nvr

Oh, you're an attention whore, and you know it.

Welcome back.

36

Apologize here....

by Mum in

jw
friends

our fun-loving friend, nvrgnbk, has turned somber and apologized for "everything.

" i, too, am an unwitting transgressor and owe many apologies, mostly for things i'm sure i don't even remember i did.. let us all apologize here, and then begin an absolution thread, so we've all cleared the air and everyone is forgiven by everyone else.. i'll start:.

i'm sorry.. penitently,.

daystar

I apologize to myself for wasting so many years... then again, I guess I needed those years to work through a lot of things after, you know, that whole "JW thing".

Hmm, now that I think about it, perhaps I'm the one who needs the apology, from certain people in Brooklyn. I take apologies in the forms of cash, check or paypal please!

34

Any Suggestions for Curbing Kids' Internet Access?

by Scully in

what kind of measures do other parents take to help kids navigate the internet safely?.

i hate msn and other iming programs - there's far too much potential for mischief with that service available.. are there some easy ways to block sites or isps?

or is it better to set it up with approved sites only?.

daystar

If you can't keep someone from doing that, you have more problems. I think at that point, my son would no longer have a PC.
LOL. I didn't mean to sound like I was dissing your idea.

LOL. And I didn't mean "you" singular, but plural... damned intarweb chat thingies...

I'm not saying any of this to imply that we should throw up our hands and quit. I'm just pointing out that most of the parental controls out there are little more than "feel good" gimmicks.

I think that is true in many cases. True, absolute security is impossible. The best one can do is try to reduce the probability of a security breach to a manageable risk.

A multi-tiered setup is the best if you've got a really savvy kid on your hands. Even then...

34

Any Suggestions for Curbing Kids' Internet Access?

by Scully in

what kind of measures do other parents take to help kids navigate the internet safely?.

i hate msn and other iming programs - there's far too much potential for mischief with that service available.. are there some easy ways to block sites or isps?

or is it better to set it up with approved sites only?.

daystar

Driver would not survive a rollback to an earlier Ghost or True Image of the C partition

If you can't keep someone from doing that, you have more problems. I think at that point, my son would no longer have a PC.