what is public reproof?
does the watchtower corp still use it?
do they use a judicial committee for it?
If I remember correctly a public reproof is one step shy of being disfellowshipped. When on public reproof you lose all priviledges - commenting at meetings, saying prayer at meetings, giving talks, going in service, etc - but your not shunned.
Actually, you can still do service. All of the others apply, though.
j
when i first found this place,i did not want to post.i wanted to see what was going on,and get a feel for the place..getting into a debate with some of the "meat eaters" here,was not at the top of my list of things to do..lol!
!..now this place is my cyber home..(thanks simon!
)..so my question is:how long did you lurk before you decieded to take a chance and make your first post?...outlaw
Within a day or two. By the time I started to consider ex-jw sites, most of my decisions about the org. were already made. The folks here seemed friendly enough for me so the decision was easy.
j
.
i'm very new to this and please understand, but at one time or another most everyone here was a loyal and faithful witness.. if you disapproove of it or don't fit in as i don't.
why keep pounding at them it is like an obsession.. i would really like to know.
Thinking about the WTS in a critical (but not hateful) manner. No religion should fear an open and honest discussion of it's practices, and I think that there is much of that going on here (but for some reason JWs don't like it that much?!).
That's exactly it. Anything that is critical of the WTS, seems hateful to the average jw. Most of us thought like that at one time or another. Jws are just not used to that sort of open forum, as it is not allowed in the org. Hopefully, if you stick around a bit, you will see that most of the persons here are not hateful, just honest. If there IS any hatred, it is usually only aimed at the entity of the org itself, and not the individual.
j
i've been on plenty of jcs but i never was the target of the elders, judicially.....although i would be now.
btw, there looking for me again...
j
i've been on plenty of jcs but i never was the target of the elders, judicially.....although i would be now.
Once. Not long before I began to re-evaluate what I had been believeing for the previous 20 or so years. Was publically reproved. The counsel I received was uncsriptural at best, and more of a witchunt, (by one of the elders), at worst. Even the society's own publications didn't support that counsel.
j
well, the hard, rusty gears of theocratic justice has begun to turn, and the teeth have caught me.
for those of you who read my earlier threads, in february of 2005, a "sister" i had known for almost 30 years contacted me and wanted to know what i had learned in the years since i had faded.
after granting me full assurance of confidentiality, in writing, i disclosed to her the un scandal.
Don't give them the opportunity for the JC. All that accomplishes is giving "power" to them under thier self-imposed system. If they df you anyway, as others have said, enjoy your freedom. Yes, it does have it's downside, (loss of family, friends, etc), but as has been said many times here, what good are conditional "friends" anyway?
j
i read through the various threads here and often think of how i used to think being a jw.
when i read through the thread about "holidays and birthdays" it kind of took me back to my first time coming to xjw sites.
i use to think that all you guys were evil and influenced by the devil.
I haven't been "out" as long as you have, but yes, the change is dramatic. I can almost laugh at how I used to think about many things as a dub. Independent thinking is a wonderful thing!
j
we were without electricity for about a week after a storm.
it was over 100 degrees during that period.
come to find out,the churches opened their buildings to house and cool those in need in nearby areas.
The jw organization places next to zero value on doing good for the community. Only as far as it reflects presenting the organization in a postive light, do they care. This is what is wrong with the organization, everything they do is centered around making a good display.
j
.
what rules did you find, you couldn't help breaking as a witness?.
i swore sometimes, got me and a mate drunk, copied software e.t.c (caesars things to caesar), celebrated a birthday/christmas or two...went against some stuff we were told not to do in the young people ask book...erm.... how about you?
Swearing, got drunk, R-rated movies, "liberal" use of software, toasting, gambling in the football pool, and a few others...
j
it is little wonder that many ask, why does god allow such suffering?
comfort for those who suffer.
comfort for those who suffer.
There is no God that looks after us. Life as such has absolutely no meaning, we must give life meaning ourselves, we can’t expect anyone “out there” to do that for us. We can only give life meaning by behaving as ethical and moral beings, helping each other and cooperate with each other. We don’t need a fantasy, a God to do that, we don’t have to bullshit our self with complete nonsensical “explanations” for something that doesn’t need any explanation, as we can observe the realities around us every day. There is much comfort and satisfaction in accepting reality. Acceptance of it gives peace of mind and enable you to get on with life and stop wasting your time on superstitious nonsense.
We live in the here and now. We have no way of proving if there is some kind of an afterlife, and it sure dosen't seem likely. We must make the best of this world now. Nice post Norm.
j
