Posts by Arthur

28

Percentage of JW's that are undercover?

by flipper in

jw
friends

what do you think?

it seems like a lot are there so they won't lose family and friends - are in good standing but don't actually believe.

Arthur

It's hard for me to understand how "undercover" people are able to do it. It must take an enormous amount of self-control to hide their disdain for the way that Scriptures are constantly twisted, taken out of context, and misapplied. It seems that it would also be difficult to hide one's contempt for the manipulative slogans and buzzwords that get thrown around: "avoid the seeds of doubt", "beware of a faul-finding attitude", "make the truth your own", etc, etc.

It became more and more difficult for me to hide my contempt for the manipulation, coercion, and mind-control that is employed. I knew that if I would have attempted to stay in the borg, that I would have wound up making a very controversial comment at the KH, or done something to get me "marked". I would not have been able to contain my anger.

I tip my hat to those who have the intestinal fortitude to stay in the organization. That is something that I could not do.

22

What "Common Denominator" do most JW's have?

by JH in

jw
friends

do you think that there is a common denominator, or are they all different people who found what they call "the truth"?.

.

Arthur

Tired and burned out

The organization pushes the friends to continue forward on a rigorous treadmill of busy-work. Tons of meetings, assemblies, studying publications, and door-to-door activity keep them so busy, that they don't have time to do serious, in-depth research of the Bible. Ironically, it is only when people start missing meetings, and going out in service less, that they actually have the time to seriously research their own beliefs and dogma. No wonder the GB doesn't want to lighten the load.

45

2007 District Convention to hammer apostates?

by yaddayadda in

jw
friends

this years "follow the christ" dc looks like it is going to be focused on avoiding all those evil apostates and their falsehoods, judging by some of the dc talks listed on the back of the june 2007 awake!

do not follow false teachers .

do not follow false stories .

Arthur

What really used to crack me up was when the chairman would ask the friends not to use flash photography during the drama; as it disturbs others, and it has no value in a large venue.

Gee, what do you think happened next? Flashes everywhere. I remember how I used to curse those friends under my breathe. Like any good JW, I used to ask: "if those friends can't be faithful in what is least, how are they going to be faithful in what is great? Those friends are in for a rude awakening at the Great Tribulation!" LOL

(Arthur: a member of the sanctimonious anti-flashbulb class)

17

The Faithful and Discreet Slave is an IDOL

by cultswatter in

when i was a dub i remember including the fds in my prayers because i did what all the other dubs were doing.

little did i know that i was worshipping and idol.

the fact is the fds does not exist other than in the mind of the brainwashed victim.

Arthur

To JWs the organization is "the truth." Whereas the Bible speaks of Christ as "the way and the truth and the life." Each JWs now has to take an oath to the organization before baptism. But Christians were baptised "in the name of the Father, the Son and holy spirit." The FDS claim to be God's only spokesman today belies the fact that Christ alone is "the Word." In this way, the Watchtower has diminished the importance of Christ and taken upon itself the roles that are exclusive to him: Saviour, Mediator, Word, etc.

This was one of the most disturbing aspects of the organization that began to haunt me in my final days as a JW. I remember sitting in a Circuit Assembly and finally seeing how the organization is idolized. I couldn't understand how I had failed to see this for all of those years. It was like I had finally awoken out of a blackout and realized what was really going on. It was an experience that left me shaken. The baptismal questions were a glaring example of this.

Indeed, the organization has been placed into the role of mediator. More specifically, the annointed remnant have been placed into the role of mediator; being that associating with these ones or the "John Class", is vital for salvation.

When any church or organization teaches that salvation can only come through them; they are guilty of preaching a new gospel.

45

2007 District Convention to hammer apostates?

by yaddayadda in

jw
friends

this years "follow the christ" dc looks like it is going to be focused on avoiding all those evil apostates and their falsehoods, judging by some of the dc talks listed on the back of the june 2007 awake!

do not follow false teachers .

do not follow false stories .

Arthur

I really miss those fantastic dramas with their natural, life-like dialogues, and their awe-inspiring special effects.

17

WTF?! Yoga according to the WBTS is not acceptable?

by sinis in

http://www.watchtower.org/e/20020801a/article_01.htm.

.

jesus christ, hey don't exercise as its demonic... its ok to be a fat bastard....

Arthur

This is old news. I remember seeing an article on Yoga as far back as six years ago; although I'm not sure which year it was. I remember I had just bought a Yoga-fit book and was utilizing it with good results when the article came out. I dutifully threw the book away and quit Yoga.

This is just one more entry into the vast and ever expanding Watchtower Talmud.

45

2007 District Convention to hammer apostates?

by yaddayadda in

jw
friends

this years "follow the christ" dc looks like it is going to be focused on avoiding all those evil apostates and their falsehoods, judging by some of the dc talks listed on the back of the june 2007 awake!

do not follow false teachers .

do not follow false stories .

Arthur

Do Not Follow False Stories

I bet the borg is very well aware of Raymond Franz's books being promoted and discussed on the internet. Crisis of Conscience has indeed had a huge impact. The internet is no doubt chipping away at their credibilty. They can't keep secrets anymore. I'm sure this convention is an attempt to shore up the support of their members still reamaining in the organization.

10

Fundamentalists Say The Darndest Things!

by FireNBandits in

"westboro baptist church to preach at funerals of virginia tech dead.

wbc will preach at the funerals of the virginia tech students killed on campus during a shooting rampage april 16, 2007. you describe this as monumental horror, but you know nothing of horror -- yet.. .

wbc to preach to the whole world, via the bbc, and uk channel 4. .

Arthur

Everybody knows what a tv is, but only a few people know how it works or how to build one. The theory of evolution... science as a whole is like a super structure that can potentially collapse at a moment's notice. All it takes is another collapse of civilization like the ones we have observed in the past.

These kind of infantile talking points are amusing. When are they going to learn that they need to come up with something better that television and watch cliches? Listening to people babble on like this (while thinking they are clever) is like watchting a drunk guy tell jokes who believes that he's really funny.

64

Any current Good Standing JW, posting here?

by NotaNess in

i was wondering if there are any current regular posters here that are still active , but are mentally inactive and don't believe all the bull anymore, and are just going through the motions to keep their life with friends and family together.. i realize this might be a posting that will probably get 0 replies, but.......

Arthur

I know of two in Southern California alone. Due to the hour however, I don't think this thread is going to get much response. If I were you, I would bump up this thread early in the day on the weekend. You will surely get a lot of posts.

20

i'm new - help me

by donnalee in

i originally began my communications thorugh freeminds which i found thru google - one of the writers for freeminds suggested this forum.

i hope that i will find some ansers thru you.

below are some of the questions that i have.. .

Arthur

Let me just add a couple more points before I turn in for the night:

I'm not sure if I am accurate, but it seems as if you are asking whether a person can become a baptized JW without accepting all of the official doctrines. The answer is a resounding NO. To become a baptized JW, you must accept all doctrines regardless of whether they make sense to you or not. As a JW, you must also submit to all organizational policies which can govern many areas of life (healthcare, employment, etc.)

I don't know how much you have studied the Bible, but I strongly recommend that you learn as much about it if you can (if you haven't already). Study the Bible independently of Watchtower publications. I am going to go out on a limb and guess that your boyfriend didn't know very much about the Bible before he studied with the Witnesses. I'll tell you why I say this.

I have noticed over the years that people who have a good understanding of the Bible; and who regularly study Bible commentaries, lexicons, and varying translations almost never become JWs. This is because most of them quicly notice the peculiar alterations of the Watchtower's New World Translation. They often see how the Watchtower has taken various verses out of context, has twisted certain texts, and has even altered the translation of text to create different meaning. People who don't know very much about the Bible, and who aren't very intellectually curious usually won't pick up on these subtle factors.

Doing in-depth reseach into the Bible is very time consuming, and takes a lot of effort. Many people simply don't do this. It is easier to just study publications that tell them what to believe. This is where many people have been mislead by faulty Watchtower reasoning. I myself fell into this trap.

You'll need to do some research on your own. Don't just take our word for it. You need to be convinced yourself.