Posts by Super

26

So what about Lent and Easter??

by Super_Becka in

ok, so today is the first day of lent (which is painfully obvious to me because i've chosen to give up my favourite snacks for lent and right now, i have a really bad craving for doritos), and it got me to thinking, once again, about wts doctrine and the whole banning of holidays thing that they have going on.. i've read the reasons behind banning things like birthdays, christmas, halloween, mother's and father's day and national holidays like canada day and independence day, but i have yet to read anything about lent and easter.. so, what's the line of reasoning behind the banning of lent and easter??

and i don't mean easter as in chocolate bunnies and easter eggs and all of that, i mean easter as a religious celebration of the resurrection of christ.

after all, jws have the memorial of the crucifixion, don't they??

Super_Becka

I thought about giving up chocolate but seeing all those chocolate bunnies and Dove milk chocolate truffle eggs make that way too difficult.

I was going to try to give up chocolate, too, but I don't think that would be in the best interests of those around me - I'm the kind of person who needs some chocolate every single day, and if I don't get it, it's not pretty. No chocolate till the middle of April?? Somebody might die, so it's best for me to keep eating my chocolate. Instead, I gave up potato chips and popcorn, my two favourite snacks. I'm suffering from withdrawal already!!

And besides, my birthday is in a couple of weeks, and I fully intend to eat a lot of chocolate cake!!

-Becka :) (of the "diehard chocoholic" class)

26

So what about Lent and Easter??

by Super_Becka in

ok, so today is the first day of lent (which is painfully obvious to me because i've chosen to give up my favourite snacks for lent and right now, i have a really bad craving for doritos), and it got me to thinking, once again, about wts doctrine and the whole banning of holidays thing that they have going on.. i've read the reasons behind banning things like birthdays, christmas, halloween, mother's and father's day and national holidays like canada day and independence day, but i have yet to read anything about lent and easter.. so, what's the line of reasoning behind the banning of lent and easter??

and i don't mean easter as in chocolate bunnies and easter eggs and all of that, i mean easter as a religious celebration of the resurrection of christ.

after all, jws have the memorial of the crucifixion, don't they??

Super_Becka

You weren't always Catholic if you had Sunday School, huh?

Actually, I've never been Catholic, my whole family, both sides, are Anglican, and so am I. My family has always been Anglican, it goes way back for us.

So I went to Anglican Sunday school every year from age 4 through age 12, then took confirmation classes at 12 and was confirmed just before I turned 13.

Maybe Lent and all of that is a Catholic thing, but it's also present in a lot of Protestant denominations. From what I know of Catholicism, there are a lot of similarities between it and Anglicanism anyway - I call Anglicanism, "Catholicism Lite", just because we have a lot of the same doctrines and beliefs, but only half the guilt. No confession for me!! (And women are allowed to be ordained, and ministers can get married, and we're allowed to use birth control, among other things.)

I'm not an avid churchgoer by any stretch of the imagination - I usually only go for special occasions, like Christmas and Easter and weddings - but I know that Lent and Easter are very important in the Anglican Church. This time of year, there are also church services on Wednesday nights, as well as the usual Sunday services, and there are special services on Palm Sunday (complete with palm crosses for the congregation, I have a bunch of them), Good Friday and Easter Sunday. I would even venture to say that Lent and Easter are more important in the Anglican Church than Christmas.

-Becka :) (of the "pure-bred Anglican" class)

14

DOCTRINAL CHANGES______how SIGNIFICANT?

by Terry in

jw
friends

source: wikipedia online encyclopedia

"changes in viewpoint that took place up to 1939: 1921 - vaccines banned.

1927 - "faithful and discreet slave" is identified as a group of christians and not an individual

Super_Becka

IF the Bible says anything; it says what it says.
What is said doesn't change because nobody is continuing to write it.
The Bible cannot change, then.
God's Word (if that is what the Bible is) doesn't change.
However, if any person or group INTERPRETS the Bible's doctrines and the doctrines CHANGE, then,
it must be the INTERPRETER who is in error. (I call it "error" because; why change it otherwise?)

How very true. In this sense, the Bible is like any other written word - it doesn't change. If I write my name down on a piece of paper, that word doesn't change at all, it stays the same. The Bible has always said what it says, it doesn't change, it can't change. Christians believe that the Bible is the Word of God, and the Bible can't change, ergo God's Word can't change, and so doctrines based on God's Word as it is written in the Bible can't change, either. It just makes sense. Apparently the WTS is naive enough to think that the rest of the world won't see what they're doing as they work to change their rules and keep their followers in an iron grip.

"God has never published a decree which forbids employing medicine, injections, and blood transfusions. It is a human invention like the Pharisee's disregard for mercy and grace. To serve Jehovah with all one's mind does not mean to put our intelligence in a box, principally because there is a human life at stake. Life is of great value and is holy to Jehovah."

Whoa, where can I find some information on that publication, that's incredible!! I want to see this in writing, or at least see something that has a full reference (date, page number, publication title, etc.) to it. Leolaia, where did you get that quote?? Is that a direct quote or did you recite it from memory?? Is there a link or something I can visit that has some information about this, even without the original document??

If there are any Dutch JWDers out there who have access to that book, please scan it for us!! I would LOVE to see this!!

-Becka :)

23

COURTS ALLOW LAWRENCE HUGHES TO SUE WATCHTOWER SOCIETY

by SHUNNED FATHER in

jw
friends

last friday the judge decided that my wrongfull death suit for my daughters estate can proceed against the watchtower society and its lawyers and the doctors.

the story received national news coverage on saturday and tuesday with alot of coverage on monday.

today, associated press and cnn covered the story which makes it world news.. lawrence.

Super_Becka

Congratulations, Mr. Hughes, we're all very happy to see this thing proceed. What the WTS has done to you and your family, and countless others, is unexcusable and needs to be brought to the world's attention. It's time that the WTS paid for what it's done to its followers.

I'll be keeping track of this in the news, I hope this makes headlines internationally. The world needs to hear about this.

Good luck with your case, Mr. Hughes, we're all rooting for you.

-Becka :)

39

2005 WT CD-ROM now on reexamine.org

by reexaminer in

jw
friends

please go here for download and instructions on how to burn this file onto a cd.

please note for those whe have not done this before, you can't just download the file and use it off your computer.

it must be burned onto a cd following the instuctions on the download page "how to burn an iso file" .

Super_Becka

What constitutes proper use? Watchtower Library has been designed for your personal use. Hence, you may copy, print, or excerpt from the data for your personal use. But you may not distribute the program or large sections of the data to others who do not own Watchtower Library on CD-ROM. Nor may you copy, print, or excerpt from the copyrighted data to prepare and distribute books. Please do not put the program or data on the Internet or any public network.

Heh, that's hilarious. I think they put that disclaimer on there to make sure that the Library doesn't end up in the hands of people who can read it and see the truth behind the "Truth".

Like us.

-Becka :)

26

So what about Lent and Easter??

by Super_Becka in

ok, so today is the first day of lent (which is painfully obvious to me because i've chosen to give up my favourite snacks for lent and right now, i have a really bad craving for doritos), and it got me to thinking, once again, about wts doctrine and the whole banning of holidays thing that they have going on.. i've read the reasons behind banning things like birthdays, christmas, halloween, mother's and father's day and national holidays like canada day and independence day, but i have yet to read anything about lent and easter.. so, what's the line of reasoning behind the banning of lent and easter??

and i don't mean easter as in chocolate bunnies and easter eggs and all of that, i mean easter as a religious celebration of the resurrection of christ.

after all, jws have the memorial of the crucifixion, don't they??

Super_Becka

Like she said, it's not the easter egg traditions and such that we're talking about, it's the observance of Christ's Resurrection. To me, there's this cultural celebration at easter which is distinguished from the religious observance. Many Christians have nothing to do with the easter eggs, bunnies, and candies and focus on the resurrection. It's up to them.

For me, and I'm guessing that there are a lot of people who feel the same way, Easter is about Christ, the Crucifixion and the Resurrection. Sure, I do the whole "Easter bunny" thing with the egg hunt on Easter morning and the chocolate bunnies and all of that, but that's just a cultural thing, it's what people do here. Whether you're a religious person or not, most people around here still have chocolate eggs and bunnies and all of that for Easter, it's just a custom. Like the pinatas and luaus that the WTS don't ban anymore.

I know the Easter story, I learned it in Sunday school when I was little, I know that Easter isn't about chocolate and bunnies and all of that, and most Christians will be able to tell you that Easter is about the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ, whether they're Catholic or not. Even in church services on Easter Sunday, at least around here, the minister/priest is sure to distinguish between the true meaning of Easter and the "Easter Bunny" custom, if only to ensure that the children understand the difference.

I guess that the WTS couldn't find a decent, quasi-valid reason to ban Easter and the fun associated with it, so they decided that the Easter Bunny is evil and so a "True Christian" will instead go to the Memorial and watch other people accept the Communion (unleavened bread and wine). Sounds like a good time to me.

-Becka :)

62

What's your favourite movie of all time?

by deeskis in

jw
friends

we had a weekend away a couple of weeks ago.

i took a few classic dvd's along in case the weather turned sour.. so i watched ghost with demi moore, that pottery scene has to be one of my favourite ever..........gives me goosebumps!

but it's not my favourite movie of all time/ i'm embarrassed to admit it, but ok i will, cause i'm with friends!

Super_Becka

Okay I admit it. I watch it EVERYTIME I see it on TV. I practically know the entire script!!!
It's true! I confess!!!

Me too!! EVERY SINGLE TIME it's on TV, I watch it!! And I already OWN the DVD set!! I can recite the dialogue right along with the characters!!

Phew, it's so good to know that I'm not the only one. *looks relieved* Thanks, MJ, you just made my day!!

-Becka :) (of the "Back to the Future addict" class)

26

So what about Lent and Easter??

by Super_Becka in

ok, so today is the first day of lent (which is painfully obvious to me because i've chosen to give up my favourite snacks for lent and right now, i have a really bad craving for doritos), and it got me to thinking, once again, about wts doctrine and the whole banning of holidays thing that they have going on.. i've read the reasons behind banning things like birthdays, christmas, halloween, mother's and father's day and national holidays like canada day and independence day, but i have yet to read anything about lent and easter.. so, what's the line of reasoning behind the banning of lent and easter??

and i don't mean easter as in chocolate bunnies and easter eggs and all of that, i mean easter as a religious celebration of the resurrection of christ.

after all, jws have the memorial of the crucifixion, don't they??

Super_Becka

Becka, you're giving up the wrong things for Lent. If I were Catholic, I'd give up something extremely difficult - like celibacy.
Seriously though, the JWs objections to Easter have to do with the Easter Bunny and Easter Eggs and Chocolate Bunnies and Chickens have nothing to do with what Easter is supposed to be about: Jesus' death and subsequent resurrection.

Well, I was going to give up sex and alcohol, but I changed my mind. After all, I'm not Catholic.

Ohh, so they're gonna argue that in "Christendom", Easter is about chocolate bunnies and all of that?? What, do they deny that we have church services that recognize, remember and celebrate the sacrifice of Christ?? What, do they think that we go to church to worship Satan and eat evil chocolate bunnies and eggs??

I should try that one on the minister when I go to Church on Easter Sunday to celebrate the Resurrection. "Gee, Reverend, aren't we supposed to be worshipping Satan and eating evil chocolate??"

Ya know, the more I read about them, the more ridiculous JWs seem to be, but really, this one takes the cake for me. I can half-way see their arguments against Christmas (hey, it is at the same time as the Winter Solstice and the Church does admit that Christmas was created at that time of year to convert the pagans) and Halloween and things like that, but this argument against Easter is just completely baseless. Well, even more baseless than their other arguments.

-Becka :) (of the "teetotaling virgin" class)

62

What's your favourite movie of all time?

by deeskis in

jw
friends

we had a weekend away a couple of weeks ago.

i took a few classic dvd's along in case the weather turned sour.. so i watched ghost with demi moore, that pottery scene has to be one of my favourite ever..........gives me goosebumps!

but it's not my favourite movie of all time/ i'm embarrassed to admit it, but ok i will, cause i'm with friends!

Super_Becka

Back to the Future
Yes, I guess that goes for me too.

YAY!! Another BTTF fan!!

Hey, what're you blushing for?? It's nothing to be embarrassed about!!

-Becka :) (of the "proud owner of the Back to the Future Trilogy on DVD" class)

26

So what about Lent and Easter??

by Super_Becka in

ok, so today is the first day of lent (which is painfully obvious to me because i've chosen to give up my favourite snacks for lent and right now, i have a really bad craving for doritos), and it got me to thinking, once again, about wts doctrine and the whole banning of holidays thing that they have going on.. i've read the reasons behind banning things like birthdays, christmas, halloween, mother's and father's day and national holidays like canada day and independence day, but i have yet to read anything about lent and easter.. so, what's the line of reasoning behind the banning of lent and easter??

and i don't mean easter as in chocolate bunnies and easter eggs and all of that, i mean easter as a religious celebration of the resurrection of christ.

after all, jws have the memorial of the crucifixion, don't they??

Super_Becka

OK, so today is the first day of Lent (which is painfully obvious to me because I've chosen to give up my favourite snacks for Lent and right now, I have a really bad craving for Doritos), and it got me to thinking, once again, about WTS doctrine and the whole banning of holidays thing that they have going on.

I've read the reasons behind banning things like birthdays, Christmas, Halloween, Mother's and Father's Day and national holidays like Canada Day and Independence Day, but I have yet to read anything about Lent and Easter.

So, what's the line of reasoning behind the banning of Lent and Easter?? And I don't mean Easter as in chocolate bunnies and Easter eggs and all of that, I mean Easter as a religious celebration of the resurrection of Christ. After all, JWs have the Memorial of the crucifixion, don't they?? So what's wrong with remembering the crucifixion on Good Friday and then celebrating the resurrection on Easter Sunday?? Hell, I don't know about everyone else out there, but as an Anglican, Palm Sunday (the Sunday before Easter) is noted as the day that Christ rode into Jerusalem and everyone laid down palm branches along his path, and even Maundy Thursday, marking the time of the Last Supper, is noted. And Lent itself is done to observed to imitate Christ's withdrawal into the wilderness for 40 days and 40 nights.

What makes the whole Easter season worth ignoring?? All of the above-mentioned events are Biblical, and it does commemorate a very important time for Christians, so what's the WTS reasoning behind the banning of Easter?? Any information and references on this topic would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks guys!!

-Becka :)

Super_Becka

Posts by Super_Becka