Posts by Super

173

Birthday celebrations and customs - Are they for Christians?

by AlmostAtheist in

jw
friends

i sent my birthday document (http://thebentinel.com/jw-birthdays.html) to a poster here that is at the very least a jw-sympathizer, if not a full-blown jw.

the response i got back indicated that my reasoning on it was seriously flawed and essentially any idiot with a passing knowledge of scripture and history can tell that birthdays are not something christians should celebrate.. of course, if you're not a bible-believer or a god-believer, you couldn't care less about pagan origins and all that.

but let's keep this conversation on the 'appropriate for christians' vein.

Super_Becka

jgnat said:

I'm new to this thread, "sweetscholar" have you covered yet, why "pagan origins" equates to "pagan" in our day?

and then DanTheMan said:

Given the stance the WTS has taken on pinatas, that what's important is how a custom is viewed now, not 1000 years or however long ago, why wouldn't that same reasoning apply to a birthday celebration?

Hmm, I posted on this thread a while back, but nobody paid any attention to my posts, not surprisingly, hey, I'm just a mere newbie, so I figured I'd post again to support a couple of fellow posters.

When I read jgnat and DanTheMan's posts, I see a very clear question that our friend sweetscholar doesn't seem to want to answer. Maybe it hasn't been stated as clearly as this until now, or maybe it has, I haven't read every single post on this thread, but the question is one that keeps coming up, especially with the recurring mention of eye makeup and pagan origins.

So I'm gonna ask again - just because it was once pagan, what makes it pagan now?? OK, so a few pre-Christians worshipped pagan gods, yeah, that was bound to happen before Christianity reached them, humans have been worshipping gods for centuries - look at the ancient Egyptians and Greeks. And you know, some of the things they did as part of their worship still exist today. Like cats - ancient Egyptians revered cats and worshipped them. The WTS's linear reasoning would say that therefore, cats are pagan and shouldn't be kept as pets. The same goes for pinatas - it has pre-Christian, pagan origins, and according to the WTS, that's a very bad thing, right?? Then why aren't cats and pinatas unequivocably banned?? Because once upon a time, they were both pagan practices, but today, they have lost all of their pagan meanings. When someone smashes a pinata, nobody is thinking about anything religious, they're thinking, "YES, I finally smashed the pinata!!". And you know, some people just like having cats for pets - ask my JW boyfriend and his parents, between them, they have three cats and believe me, these cats are so spoiled, they could be mistaken for gods.

And as a 20-year-old who has had and attended many birthday parties, I have yet to see one child worship anything or anyone when they blow out the candles on a birthday cake, much less some Druids or pagan gods or whatever. Ask a little kid why he has a birthday party and he'll probably say that he likes cake and party hats, simple as that. No underlying pagan rituals here.

Just because something used to be pagan doesn't mean that it still is, things lose their meaning all the time. Windchimes is another example, they were once used to ward off evil spirits, but now, people just use them as a decoration because they're pretty and they sound nice. And I won't even get into Christmas, that's a whole other can of worms that belongs on another thread. The key is, meanings change and what was once pagan can be part of a Christian life because the original pagan meanings have disappeared.

Birthdays, just like pinatas, are just customs in Western society. They've lost any and all pagan meanings. So why are they still banned when other things that are so clearly descended from pagan rituals, like the pinata, are in the clear according to the WTS??

Thanks.

-Becka :)

67

why disfellowshipped?

by knothead34 in

jw
friends

as a new unbaptized publisher, i would really like to know why some of you were disfellowshipped if you don't mind sharing your stories.

thanks.

Super_Becka

Hi knothead,

I'm glad you're not just blowing off everything that's said here. It's good that you're looking at the posts here with an open mind, even if you can't take absolutely everything here at face value. Research is definitely the key to getting to the bottom of things and deciding what you want to believe and what you don't want to believe. You're very smart to do your research before you make any decisions, but more importantly, as a JW, you're very smart to be looking into things, I know that's frowned upon in the WTS and I applaud you for it. Get the facts, listen to the stories of other ex-JWs, do the research and decide for youself what you want in your life. Only you know what's right for you, not some organization or anyone else.

I wish you all the best.

-Becka :)

31

Att'n U.S. & Canada: I need contacts and info for a Canadian Producer

by AndersonsInfo in

jw
friends

i have been contacted by an international award winning producer of documentaries and films for television.. .

do you know of anybody or are you currently involved with disciplinary action taken by the elders, or have you recently been "invited" to a judicial hearing?.

do you know of any young witness who has "reached out" of the organization for social support in defiance of wt training.. .

Super_Becka

Hmm, a new Canadian documentary, huh?? Any info as to when production starts and when it's expecting to air?? And who'll be airing it, the CBC or some other Canadian channel?? Keep us posted!!

-Becka :)

26

Another experience story about leaving the society

by enderby in

i was raised a dub, though not born one.

my mother had told the woman her story about studying in the 70's and that she believed the dubs were on to something but just didn't really care.

what i need are some dub friends.

Super_Becka

Welcome to the board!!

-Becka :)

35

some WONDER FULL news

by myelaine in

amazing grace!

how sweet the sound.

that saved a wretch like me!.

Super_Becka

I love this song, thanks for the post. There's just something about it that's so true, so honest and so reassuring, "Amazing Grace" just gives me a good feeling, like everything's not so hopeless after all.

And I'll admit it, "Amazing Grace" always makes me cry.

-Becka :)

29

How big does the "Big News" have to be for you to not feel disappointed?

by GetBusyLiving in

jw
friends

i hope this is huge.

like massive bethel schism huge.

like families reuniting in a blur of tears and joy, huge.

Super_Becka

I want this to be absolutely HUGE. I want it all over the news, I want it on the front pages of the newspapers, I want it plastered all over the Internet, the more the better.

But of course, that's probably just wishful thinking on my part. This news might be big, but it's probably not as big and important we most of us would like it to be. I'd just like to be big enough that my unbaptized, inactive boyfriend will hear about it and maybe open his eyes and mind a little to the flaws of the WTS, that's all. Just big enough so that he'll consider that maybe, just maybe, the WTS isn't right about everything and that other Christians might be good people, too.

Of course, if it's monstrously huge and it completely blows the WTS's cover, all the better, but I just need something to open my boyfriend's mind and help him see the WTS from another angle, a more objective and less biased one. He really is a smart man, he's just been blinded by the WTS and won't listen to reason, and I really need something to fix that.

-Becka :)

23

Lords evening meal/last supper

by cyberdyne systems 101 in

has anyone else wondered why the witnesses hold a meeting in order to 'keep doing this in rememberance of me' ?

since i was old enough to think and reason (yes i know how terrible!

) i could never understand why our 'celebration', the one thing important to true christians in the year, was another meeting!

Super_Becka

I'm not a JW, but I've been doing my research and this is really something that I just don't get. OK, so it's the only thing that JWs actually "celebrate", if you can call it that, but only certain people are allowed to participate. Jesus said, "Do this in remembrance of me", not "OK guys, only the remnants of the "144 000" can take part in this, so they can do it in remembrance of me and everyone else can watch", so why isn't everyone allowed to participate??

Or maybe I'm just looking at this through the eyes of an Anglican - we're all allowed to take part in the eating of the bread and drinking of the wine. It's called "Holy Communion" or "Holy Eucharist" and you know what, we do it every single week, no exceptions, sometimes twice a week!! And everyone who's been baptized and confirmed (baptism as an infant, confirmation around age 12 or 13) can take part, no exceptions. It's purely voluntary, you don't have to do it if you don't want to, but most people do, and if you've been through the proper rites of passage (the aforementioned baptism and confirmation), then nobody can refuse to let you participate. The reverend blesses the bread and the wine, then everyone gets a piece of the bread (it's called a "communion wafer") and a sip of the wine (yes, everyone sips from the same silver chalice). There, the Last Supper is remembered and revered by everyone in attendance, and we do it weekly, not once a year.

JWs and the whole "only whoever's left of the 144 000" bit doesn't make sense at all to me. For one, who tells you who's a member of the 144 000 and who's not (does the GB have a nice big list or do these people glow or something??) and two, who's to say that you can't participate in something that Jesus commanded that Christians observe?? Who can say that you're not good enough for it??

-Becka :)

27

BIG NEWS Email Clearing House

by Severus in

consider me a player.

i am interested in supporting the "big news" news blitz by coordinating a clearing house of jw email addresses.

most of us have a handful of jw email contacts, others may have whole address books filled of them.

Super_Becka

My concern with advance emails is the same as Lilycurly's - attack the JWs in advance and they're only gonna get defensive, that seems to be the general reaction to anything against the WTS. Heh, you don't even have to say anything specifically "against" the WTS, either - I was talking to my boyfriend about the WTS a while back, and I simply agreed with a statement that he'd made about the failed 1975 prediction and added a little extra about previous failed predictions without saying anything that could be misconstrued as being anti-WTS, and he STILL got offended and went into hyper-defensive mode. I guess JWs just don't like it when other people look into their beliefs and can possibly then start poking holes in it. Something tells me that sending anonymous emails to JWs would certainly put them on guard against any possible anti-WTS "propaganda".

That being said, I'd certainly love to forward my JW boyfriend's email address to this effort, along with his mother's and two sisters' email addresses, too, just for good measure. I'm a little wary about that, though, because I get the feeling that he'd probably know that it was me that set the whole thing up for him, and that definitely wouldn't be a good thing. I've thought about trying to send him anonymous anti-WTS information - the truth about "the Truth" - but I'm afraid that he'd find out that I was the one behind it, and that certainly wouldn't be good for our relationship. He said that he's willing to talk and compromise a bit on some things in our relationship regarding his practices (or, more specifically, his LACK of practices), but that would just close him up completely.

Has anyone done this before?? Does anonymous blanket emails to JWs actually work at all?? Do any of the JWs get suspicious and suspect specific individuals might be behind moves like that (like non-JW family members/friends/girlfriends/boyfriends)?? In other words, if I forwarded my boyfriend's email address (and possibly the email addresses of his family members, too), would he ever think that it might be me who put his name in for that or would he not suspect a thing?? I'd certainly love to have some information sent his way anonymously, but I'm still anxious about it. I don't want to make any moves that might have negative effects on my relationship - true, the relationship is probably doomed anyway, but I'd like to actually talk through it rather than make him really angry with something like this. What do you think??

-Becka :)

11

I need Barbera's email address! URGENT!!

by nicolaou in

jw
friends

i am so stupid sometimes!.

i own the domain name www.thewatchtower.org similar to the official www.watchtower.org right?

well ten days ago i got an email sent to [email protected] i didn't really look at it too hard, but something made me go back to it just now - i think it was intended for [email protected] !!.

Super_Becka

We're all interested now, please share, it sounds like something really juicy!! You have a very captive audience!!

-Becka :)

3

Quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson

by Super_Becka in

i was reading some quotes from ralph waldo emerson just now, and one really stuck out in my mind.

it made me think of the wts and what it has become in the last 130 years or so.. "every great institution is the lengthened shadow of a single man.

his character determines the character of the organization.".

Super_Becka

Hey Satanus,

Sure, I'd really appreciate the link to that thread, I'm sure it's good reading. I'm all about finding out EVERYTHING that I can about the WTS cult (and yes, I do firmly believe that it's a CULT) and getting lots of opinions on it. My JW boyfriend doesn't actually know how much research I've been doing - he's inactive and unbaptized and never goes to KH (he freely admits to all of this), but he still gets really offended at the thought of me finding out the truth about "the Truth".

And thanks for the reply, too, it's good to know that I'm not the only nutcase who can somehow relate a random Emerson quote to the WTS.

-Becka :)

Super_Becka

Posts by Super_Becka