chester

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Posts by chester

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  15

  Brain Dead

  by Free2Bme in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  just like to comment on the brain deadening effect of the jw way of life.

  it's bizarre how completely oblivious they are to major issues such as doctrinal changes !

  it's like they just calmly accept anything the org says without engaging their thought processes.. the 'generation' change was pretty amazing and would affect their door-to-door message in a big way yet it seemed to be met with a collective shrug.. i can remember triumphantly waving matt24:34 in many an impatient householders face as conclusive proof the end was nigh.. even more baffling is the fact that if i had been a bit of a swat and decided the society had got it wrong and the generation referred to the wicked generation rather than a generation of people alive in 1914 who would witness the end i would probably have been in big trouble and labelled 'apostate'.. it's as if the worldwide congregation is in a trance.

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  chester

  I just had to reply to this post because you have echoed my sentiments exactly.

  It is so amazing to me also how everyone is so afraid to express their feelings to one another.
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  19

  naughty elder in Detroit

  by Dogpatch in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  passed on from a loyal jw:.

  disgrace was surely brought upon jehovah's name last night.

  on the 10 o'clock news there is this program called the problem solvers.

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  chester

  The story is true. I saw it myself this evening.

  It was on Fox 2 Detroit.

  I checked the problem solvers link but it was not there yet.

  I am surprised that no one from Detroit has replied to this post.
  Everyone in Detroit must be Loyal Jdubs.

  But the story IS true.
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  24

  I ate meat on Friday

  by chester in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i was raised as a catholic.

  it used to be considered a sin to eat meat on friday.

  even for a little boy who was at the age of reason.. i remember very well the time when i was in the second grade about the age of 7 that i did eat a hot dog on a friday.. i knew that it was a sin but i ate it anyway.

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  chester

  To JanG,
  

  Interesting that you felt that badly when you ate that hot dog. I was taught that if I was so hungry that
  I could eat the meat, as long as I did not want to do it deliberately.

  There were dispensations to the rule, but obviously no one told you about them .... sad because you
  felt so fearful as a result.

  Nobody told me anything about any dispensations.

  I guess the situation is similiar to what is happening in WT world today. There are many Jehovah's Witnesses who have no idea that they are now "allowed" to take certain blood fractions.

  To Redhorsewoman,
  

  Just remember, the full quote is "Curiosity killed the cat. Satisfaction brought him back." :)

  
  Thanks for letting me know about the ending.
  The brother "forgot" to mention that. :)
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  24

  I ate meat on Friday

  by chester in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i was raised as a catholic.

  it used to be considered a sin to eat meat on friday.

  even for a little boy who was at the age of reason.. i remember very well the time when i was in the second grade about the age of 7 that i did eat a hot dog on a friday.. i knew that it was a sin but i ate it anyway.

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  chester

  I would like to thank all who replied to my post.

  It is good to know that I have support. I appreciate it very much.

  It was in the mid 60s (about 35 years ago) when the Catholics made the change so BlueSapphire you are probably very young since you don't even know that it really was considered to be a mortal sin in the Catholic church at one time to eat meat on Friday.

  Changes that the WTS are making will most likely not be known about by the young ones who are growing up today 35 years from now either.
  (unless they do their research)
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  24

  I ate meat on Friday

  by chester in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i was raised as a catholic.

  it used to be considered a sin to eat meat on friday.

  even for a little boy who was at the age of reason.. i remember very well the time when i was in the second grade about the age of 7 that i did eat a hot dog on a friday.. i knew that it was a sin but i ate it anyway.

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  chester

  Expat,

  To answer your question:
  Has my wife quit WT?
  *********************************************************
  My wife is still attending the meetings. Her reasoning is that she is going to serve Jehovah and not man.

  She sees the hypocrisy of the WT but believes that this is the true religion. Or as she says "it is the closest thing to the truth that she has seen."

  She also feels that if she does not keep going she will not be able to see our son in the resurrection.

  I tell her that an organization has nothing to do with that at all.

  She has decided that it is best not to pressure me into attending the meetings because she can see that I am in a much better frame of mind now that I am not dealing with my feelings about religion.

  My blood pressure has returned to normal and my feelings of well being are back to normal as well.
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  24

  I ate meat on Friday

  by chester in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i was raised as a catholic.

  it used to be considered a sin to eat meat on friday.

  even for a little boy who was at the age of reason.. i remember very well the time when i was in the second grade about the age of 7 that i did eat a hot dog on a friday.. i knew that it was a sin but i ate it anyway.

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  chester

  I was raised as a Catholic. It used to be considered a sin to eat meat on Friday. Even for a little boy who was at the age of reason.

  I remember very well the time when I was in the second grade about the age of 7 that I did eat a hot dog on a Friday.

  I knew that it was a sin but I ate it anyway. I went to confession and confessed to the priest but I knew in my heart that I was not truly sorry for doing it. I was hungry.

  I believed for years that I would be going to hell for eating that meat.

  Well, The Catholic church changed that law and now they are allowed to eat meat on Friday except during lent or something like that.

  I knew at that point that something was wrong with this religion. How could it have been a sin and now all of a sudden it was no longer a sin. God just does not change his mind like that.
  Something was just wrong. I had dealt with believing that I was going to hell for many years.

  I quit going to mass shortly after that. I felt I could not deal with religion any more.

  For years I was not involved with any religion.

  I got involved with Jehovah's witnesses after my wife became a witness after our son was killed.

  That in itself is a long story so I won't go into it on this forum.

  The point I am trying to make is that Jehovah just does not change his mind about what is a sin and what is not. Man does that.

  The WTBTS claims to be the spokesman for Jehovah. They have changed many things. It has been brought out many times what those things are. I won't go into them here.

  I want to make a point here about why I finally come to "see" the truth about the "troof".

  I was at the district convention last summer. There was a part on there about "apostates" and how we should avoid them. "stay off the Internet" "Don't read anything negative about Jehovah's witnesses".

  The brother giving the talk said, "If you are happy with your life as it is now then don't read or listen to anything negative about Jehovah's witnesses. He said, "you don't know if it is true or not". He said curiosity killed the cat. We all know that the truth can stand up to ANY scrutiny.

  I decided to see what it is they don't want us to know. There must be something because they are going to great lengths to keep information from us. They don't want us anywhere near the Internet. We might find out something about them.

  I found out a lot! I found out about all of the changes that have been made over the years for one thing.

  I found out that Raymond Franz had written a book. In fact two books. Believe it or not I had been "in the truth" for 13 years and I did not even know he had written a book. Shows how sheltered I was from information. Stay away from "apostates" they said (and I did).

  I came to realize that I was indeed involved in a cult. Cults keep information away from their members. Forums like this have made me realize that I was not alone in my feelings. There are many others out there just like me I am sure. Stories have been told on here that I feel could have been written by me. They are so close to the experiences I have had.

  The lack of love in the congregations. The love that is shown is directly related to how much field service time a person has.

  After reading Franz's books I began to really pay attention to what was being said at the meetings. I mean really listen. The end is right around the corner! It is only five minutes away according to Jehovah's sense of time! CO's are still saying that stuff after the society came out with the 1995 watchtower about the generation teaching.....you know what I mean. I would get home from the meetings and ask my wife, "Did you hear what that brother said?" Hasn't he heard that they changed the generation teaching?".

  After a while I just felt I could no longer attend the Kingdom Hall.

  I had been devoting my life to a publishing company, a cult that wants to keep information from its members. It is disgusting to me that this "religion" really has nothing to do with Jehovah although it carries his name.

  I urge each and everyone who might be reading this to really look into what you are involved in.

  Don't be an idiot like I was. Don't be an idiot like the 35,000+ people who sat in the audience at the district assembly last summer and let the information go right over their heads. "Curiosity killed the cat."

  Really look into the information that the society so cleverly wants to keep from you. Check it out for yourself.
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  5

  need a quote- thanks

  by JT in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the other day someonepost a quote to the .

  effect of .

  "don't allow an idiot to bring you to his level cause he will beat you with exp".

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  chester

  JT,

  Here it is:
  "Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level then beat you with experience."
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  40

  Have I changed?

  by mommy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as most of you know i am new to the world of the internet.

  therefore i am new to the discussion board forum.

  when i first entered simon's place, i did not fear to speak my mind.

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  chester

  Wendy,

  I don't post often but I read a lot. Your Posts are among my favorites.

  Thank you for welcoming me the first time I posted.

  Love
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  12

  to JT and other ex- (current) Bethelites

  by teejay in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hey, james,.

  if you would, and you have the time, give us.

  a run-down on your views of the governing.

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  chester

  JT,

  Thanks for the stories. Enjoyed them.

  Keep on keeping it real, Brother.

  Chester
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  78

  Panties or Thongs, WHICH????????????

  by JT in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i thought the name of this thread was so on time for this thread demostrates one of the sad things about claiming to speak for god, when one actually does not.. when i was a newly appointed elder at the tender age of 27 .

  i was introduced to the world of the judical committee.. it was in fact my first case.

  i had gotten a call from the po before the meeting stating that their would be an elders meetings to discuss some judical matters.

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  chester

  Prisca says: I have been reading JT's posts for 2 years now, and I have to say he is one of the kindest, loving and funny guys I have come across on the net. Unfortunately I haven't had the opportunity to meet him in person, but I think he would be just how his posts reflect him to be.
  *********************************************************************
  This is my first post to this board. I have been a lurker here since Jan.

  I would just like to say that I have personally known JT for 15 years and let me tell all that he defintely is a kind, loving and funny guy. He is also very compassionate and intelligent. He is all of that and more. What he says here is defintely the truth.

  JT was very much a "society man" and he was very hurt when he found out the "truth about the truth". I believe that he posts on this board to try to help others learn so that they won't make the mistake of wasting their lives with this religion that has hurt so many in so many ways.

  Thank you, JT.