jwfacts

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Posts by jwfacts

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  18

  "My brain NEEDS a good washing!!!"

  by bytheirworks in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  have you ever heard a jw say, after someone calls them brain washed, that: "well, my brain needs a good washing???".

  share your account & experiences.

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  jwfacts

  I heard that so often from the platform and assemblies that it became cliche.
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  118

  jwfacts or jwinterpretations?

  by slimboyfat in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  jwfacts is a great website, but in view of the fact that "there are no facts, only interpretations", as nietzsche said, should the website be renamed jwinterpretations instead?

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  jwfacts

  I know for a fact that you were being facetious, since you said "the fact that "there are no facts". Anyway, Nietzsche was wrong.

  Nietzsche infers from the phenomenon of multiple interpretations that 'facts are ... what there is not, only interpretations.' ( The Will to Power , section 481). But this is a mistake. That there are alternate interpretations of reality does not entail that we cannot grasp the truth about the world, only that we cannot grasp all of the truth. That a building is a house of worship as well as an architectural monument does not entail that it is not an architectural monument – the religious and aesthetic 'perspectives' can both reveal a truth about the world. It is this simple mistake which Nietzsche builds – quite unnecessarily – into the doctrine of perspectivism that is really fateful, for in it lie the relativism and nihilism that make post-modernism, as it seems to me, such an intellectually and spiritually destitute phenomenon. (Julian Young, Schopenhauer , p. 227)

  Multiple interpretations do not mean there are no facts. I present facts, present other people's interpretations, occasionally mention my own interpretation, all of which then allows the reader to determine their own interpretation. For that reason, some JWs do read the facts presented and remain JWs, and email to advise me so.

  SBF - "But are there not other ways of looking at the situation? Such as from the point of view of the JW who is happy in his beliefs, and finds them agreeable in shaping his life?"

  I agree with what you are stating, and regularly state " The Watchtower Society has benefited the lives of many people. " However, how happy will your JW be on finding out in 40 years that not everything they read in the Watchtower was accurate. It is only fair for that person to know other points of view, in order to come to informed consent on how to live their lives and whether to be a JW.

  If the url was jw-facts-and-the-only-correct-interpretation.com, then you could legitimately argue against it, but you are reading too much into the simple tag jwfacts.com.
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  24

  Help needed: JC standards/questions for "Drunkenness"

  by respectful_observer in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i'm hoping those of you in the jwn community may be able to help me out.

  an acquaintance (of legal drinking age) may soon be sitting for jc under the charge of "drunkenness".. to those of you who have direct experience either serving on a jc, or being the subject of a jc related to the misuse of alcohol:.

  - could you provide a list of questions that were asked of the accused?.

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  jwfacts

  My JW friend was a known alcoholic, even by the elders, who advised he went to the doctor for treatment, but was never disfellowshipped, as they could not prove he had been drunk. It is a very subjective line as to what is drunk, and proving when someone is.

  It sounds like a set up with your friend, since he has not had a drink for ages and cannot recall being spoken to. Is there another issue they are trying to get him for, but having trouble pinning on him? If the elders are after him, then they will get him for something. Otherwise, he needs to "humbly" say that he has not had a drink for several months, and cannot recall any warnings since that time years ago, and ask for specifics.
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  10

  WEASEL words: "nobody forced to choose religion vs family" Insight

  by hamsterbait in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  do we see now how this "statement" in the public rags is deceitful?.

  "nobody should be forced to choose between a religious way they cannot concientiously believe or their family.".

  all jdubs conscientiously believe what they are forced to swallow.

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  jwfacts

  This quote is far from reality.

  Does study of the Bible lead to family breakup? No. In fact, the Bible encourages a husband and wife who practice different religions to remain together as a family.— 1 Corinthians 7:12, 13 .

  There have been many experiences on here where the JW partner leaves due to fear of spiritual endangerment, sometimes at the encouragement of the elders. I wonder how an elder would respond in such a situation if shown this quote.
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  50

  Well I gotta go......

  by punkofnice in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  ...i might drop in every now and then but i hope you all enjoy life, escape the watchtower(r) and live prosperous lives.. i can't say i contribute much here anyway (and i'm not attention seeking).. i'm just going to get on with life away from the constant reminder of the mistakes i made being a jw zombie drone.. i guess i'm just going to fade.......rather quickly.. of course i didn't need to make any posts here to disappear but i thought it'd be polite and very british to bid you all a fond farewell.. see you all sometime.....maybe.....maybe not.....maybe....... bye!.

  ps.

  don't pm me as i won't be checking the pms.. .

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  jwfacts

  Good for you, but it is sad to see you go. You are one of the memorable ones.
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  42

  classification of Jehovahs Witness members by when they joined up

  by besty in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  just got to thinking how long can the watchtower peddle the 'soon' story with any credibility?.

  i would say there are the oldtimer or born ins in the 70+ age group - they possibly remember the 2nd world war, and maybe joined for 1975 or made life affecting decisions meaning they are so commited with 'nowhere else to go' that they have surrendered to the resurrection hope.. then you have the '1986 international year of peace, the 1914+70 year' generation crowd.

  people in their 40s and 50s now.

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  jwfacts

  In the 1950's the "generation" teaching was used as motivation, though it would be good to hear from someone from that era to know how important it was to them.

  "The length of time is indicated by him when he said, "Truly I say to you that this generation will by no means pass away until all these things occur." (Matt. 24:34) The actual meaning of these words is, beyond question , that which takes a "generation" in the ordinary sense, as at Mark 8:12 and Acts 13:36, or for those who are living at the given period. So it was on "this generation" that the accumulated judgments were to fall. (Matt. 23:36) This therefore means that from 1914 a generation shall not pass till all is fulfilled, and amidst a great time of trouble. " Watchtower 1951 Jul 1 p.404

  exwhyzee The twenty and thirty somethings we see now, were raised by parents who were taken in by the whole 1975 falshood. They've heard the tales their parents and grandparents have to tell and wonder how they could have been so naive. They may be going through the motions of being JW's but they seem to be covering their bases as far as future plans and there is a noticable bit of skepticism about them. The "normal ones" aren't as strict about shunning, following directions such as "NO FACEBOOK", going to concerts, R movies or having non JW activities or friends. I don't think they feel the fear or have deep guilt about not going in service or missing meetings. I don't think they will be as deeply affected or dissapointed when they hit 40 or 50 and realize things just don't ad up.

  I hope you are right, but it does not seem that way in my experience. My parents went through the 1975 fiasco, and claimed it was nothing, and nothing was ever really expected for that year. Great selective memory. I believed them, so when "apostates" spoke about 1975 I thought they were lying. When I spoke with my 30 year old cousin about how in 1969 they said you would never finish school, he told me that was rubbish and didn't want to speak about it. Recently I met had to speak with him for "urgent family business" and he claimed he is the only young one in his congregation that is not reaching out, the others are all very spiritual. I met a few that walked past and did not know I was disfellowshipped. They looked like a massive bunch of nerds, as have all the young JWs I see street witnessing. It seems that there is a core group of misfits that "need" the religion for its social and family cultural aspects, and these will stay through thick and thin. The Watchtower may be able to keep gradually reinventing itself to keep these ones interested with a less appealing carrot.
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  20

  The happiest people on earth... Yeah right

  by Bells in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i am looking for some advice - or maybe just some moral support.. i can't find the link to my previous thread... but in a nutshell... husband and i got married a couple months ago after 10 or so years together.

  he was never baptised, but grew up 'in'.

  i never had any exposure to the craziness til i met him and his family.

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  jwfacts

  'did you hear about the shooting here, or the earthquake there or someone getting sick'. They are meant to be the happiest people on earth, but they are just so sad and negative. It never used to be like that. Is this common or is this just her??

  That is the norm. JWs revel in the misery, as it means that they are closer to Armageddon.

  You need to slowly try to get your husband to understand that he was raised in a cult and accept the underlying issues that is causing. If you do not, you run the risk of him going back to the religion during a period of crisis, or when you have a child. I have seen it constantly since I have left.

  Look at Hassan's books, at http://www.freedomofmind.com/ for ideas on how to discuss this with your husband. Also see Helping Someone leave Jehovah's Witnesses, because although he is not active, his defence of it means he will still react like when if you touch sensitive topics.

  He may also find the following youtube interesting.

  Growing up a Jehovah's Witness
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  21

  Becoming "unevenly yoked" ?

  by Blttex in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i haven't been to a meeting in about a year, made up my mind about six months ago that jw's are just another religion and that its not for me.

  started dating a "worldly" girl 10 months ago and got engaged this past weekend.

  i'm having a hard time deciding who to invite to the wedding.

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  jwfacts

  potentially lead to a call from the elders.

  You will set yourself up for that. The immediate thoughts from any JW will be whether you have "committed fornication" and that will be the only thing an elder will want to know.

  Congratualations, and I hope you can enjoy the wedding with or without the JW friends and family.
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  42

  classification of Jehovahs Witness members by when they joined up

  by besty in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  just got to thinking how long can the watchtower peddle the 'soon' story with any credibility?.

  i would say there are the oldtimer or born ins in the 70+ age group - they possibly remember the 2nd world war, and maybe joined for 1975 or made life affecting decisions meaning they are so commited with 'nowhere else to go' that they have surrendered to the resurrection hope.. then you have the '1986 international year of peace, the 1914+70 year' generation crowd.

  people in their 40s and 50s now.

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  jwfacts

  jwfacts, but mainstream Christianity is not growing as JWs are growing.

  I agree that a specific date spurs growth of converts more that an ambiguous "soon", and Watchtower growth will slow now there is less compelling urgency to join, along with greater access to comparative information about religions. However, for those that are already indoctrinated into the religion, "soon" seems to be good enough. My relatives get all excited everytime the Watchtower says how soon the end must be, despite having lived through the failures of 1975 and the generation, simply because the want to believe it is soon.

  BESTY - 70+ age group ... have surrendered to the resurrection hope.

  Good point. JW's used to talk a lot about walking arm in arm into the new world. It does not seem so certain anymore. I was shocked when my parents spoke about wanting to die in each others arms, like in the movie The Notebook.
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  8

  If you were a District Attorney what charges would you charge Jehovah God with?

  by booker-t in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  my friend hector who is an ex-jw had me laughing so hard i started crying when he asked me this question.

  i was over his house for coffee one day and somehow the subject came up and he said jehovah has to accept some of the blame for the problems of the world.

  he said if he were da he would charge jehovah with child endangerment and child neglect(killing all of the children in the flood, sodom and gommorrah, 42 kids with the bears in the ot) he also said he would charge jehovah with flip flopping on his own laws such as you can eat meat(after the flood) then certain meats were forbidden(leviticus laws such as rabbit, beef, duck,) then nt said you can eat all meats again.

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  jwfacts

  Genocide, on numerous counts.

  The recent series the Bible was horrifying. When I saw the part about Jehovah murdering all the first born Egyptian sons, simply because he wanted the Israelites released from slavery, I was stunned at how I had never fully recognised how barbaric the Bible is. How could it possibly be just for my son to die overnight at the hand of God, because of a decision the Australia Prime Minister had made without my input or even knowledge?