LisaRose

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Posts by LisaRose

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  12

  Are You A Thinker And A Lurker?

  by konceptual99 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  if you are a lurker then you are probably a thinker.

  you will already be wondering about a number of aspects of jw doctrine and how they stack up against reason, logic and modern scientific evidence.

  if so, then i appeal to you to meditate and reason on one implication arising from the latest news that the next publication will be a simplified version of an already simplified book.

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  LisaRose

  Very well written post, I don't think you sound bitter at all Konceptual, just determined to make a case for reason and logic. It's,a plea to think, to not accept the easy answers. If any JW are visiting here it means they already have doubts and are not going to blindly accept the Watchtower "all apostates are bitter" argument.
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  12

  WT Failure To Engage In Charitable Works

  by Joe Grundy in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i never was a jw.. wtbts and its hydra-headed organisations world wide has charitable status.

  yet, as far as i can see, it carries out little or no real charitable works.. last weekend my son and his friends did a 420 km cycle ride and mountain walk in aid of a local hospice at home charity.

  they've raised (so far) 5,000. this charity makes a real difference.. this a video of it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ijr7ipvrek&feature=youtu.be.

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  LisaRose

  In my last few years as a JW I couldn't shake the feeling that field service was completely futile and an inefficient waste of time. It hit me that I would have felt much better spending that time volunteering and doing something that would help people in a more immediate, concrete way.

  For all the emphasis put on the door to door work, the JWs aren't growing any more than any other religion, and not as much as some. Most JWs know this and are only engaging in it because it's required, they don't enjoy it and are not good at it. Most time supposedly spent in door to door work is wasted going to the meeting for field service, driving to and from the territory, driving around aimlessly going to return visits, and stopping for coffee.

  Just think what they could have done if those hours had been spent in actual, productive work of some sort. A church I visited did the following in one month:

  Organized an Easter egg hunt for low income children, along with some candy eggs the children found cans of tuna and other food for their families.

  Got together and made sandwiches, which they handed out along with protein bars to guys waiting to be hired for day labor.

  Took the money earmarked for Easter flowers for the church and contributed to the local food bank.

  Many church members play musical instruments, they all practice during the week so they can have good music at every service, which included a five piece band, a choir, and a hand bell group. Other church members volunteer to make food for fellowship after services.

  Any of those things are better use of time than field service. The Watchtower knows they this, but they don't care, because it keeps people too busy to think about any of this, and because no amount of time spend in field service is ever enough for "mother", it keeps them feeling guilty for not doing more and for not really liking it and not being good at it.
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  71

  Any thoughts on the real reasons for droppng the 'school"

  by sparrowdown in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  my thoughts are.

  1. they want to avoid being made to comply with any laws that come with anything classed as a "school" especially a school with children enrolled.. 2. the mid-week meeting has been dying in the ass for years and needs a revival.

  i predict happy -clappy-sing-a-longs to be included in the program.. anyone else have any thoughts ??

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  LisaRose

  I haven't been in a kingdom hall in fifteen years, so I don't know if my speculation is worth anything, but I can't sleep tonight and I thought of some possibilities. My guess would be they are having a hard time getting and keeping enough qualified elders, so the ones they do have are struggling with the demands of being an elder while also maintaining a full time job and having a family. Think how many parts the the elders have to do each week, conducting, reading, talks, service meeting parts, etc. Maybe they are getting burned out and stepping down or leaving the religion all together, leaving fewer elders, thus making the problem worse. Young men are not reaching out as much (and why would they considering what they have to do?), current elders are aging out, they had to do something.

  This may be simply a way to take some of the workload off of the elders, and make the meeting more relevant to everyone else. Video presentations will take up some of the time, sisters can give door to door demonstrations, possibly the new "our Christian life and ministry" will be beefed up so there is less for the elders to prepare, possibly a lot of question and answer parts.

  Another factor is that the the TMS was a failure anyway, it's not obligatory, so some don't even join, people often forget they have a talk or get sick. And for all that, most JWs can't even do a decent presentation. They should have gotten rid of it twenty years ago and focused on making sure everyone can at least do a decent magazine presentation.

  Really, they should just cut the meeting down to an hour or give it up entirely, but they can't let that happen, it's a cult and they need to keep everyone running on the theocratic hamster wheel, busy, busy, busy. I doubt all this will help much though, they are just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
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  5

  Shock belt to control defendant?

  by little_Socrates in

  1. social
  2. current

  skeen also ordered a shock device be placed on calvert for security reasons because of his unpredictable behavior, legal officials said.

  on sept. 15, when calvert did not stand up at the judge's request, skeen had an electric shock administered on the defendant that caused him to twist in pain before the jury, local tv broadcaster kltv reported.. .

  http://news.yahoo.com/questions-raised-shock-belt-used-texas-murder-trial-112021293.html.

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  LisaRose

  It sounds like torture to me.. It's not a requirement that the defendant be present for his trial, if he isn't behaving he should be sent back to jail, not shocked. I've seen them used on dogs, it's only effective when the collar is on, once the collar is off the dog is worse, not better, and I wouldn't even use it on a dog, much less a person.
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  14

  help me to readjust my thinking about my hypocritical ex....

  by losingit in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i am really struggling with this particular situation in my life, and i really need your help to readjust my thinking.

  i am recently divorced from my ex-jw husband.

  we were both disfellowshipped at around the same time about 2-3years ago.

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  LisaRose

  I don't know why he refused to do things with you that he now does by himself, but this religion does strange things to people. You often get this dynamic when people are struggling with the harsh requirements of JW life, hot one day, cold the next as the cult personality waxes and wanes. Maybe you wanting to do things outside of the religion aroused his cult mind control and he wasn't ready to go there yet. Maybe he wanted you to be the good little JW wife so he could be the bad boy. Maybe he is a narcissistic, selfish jerk who cares nothing about anyone but himself. hard to say, maybe he doesn't even know

  For whatever reason he has abandoned all restrictions and is now doing whatever he feels like without the burdens of marriage and fatherhood. Even though you are loney you are better off without him, trust me on that. You can now meet someone without the JW baggage. But don't be in a hurry, focus on your children and your job, figure out who you are, then you will know what you want in a partner.
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  447

  Does Anyone Still Believe in God?

  by LaurenM in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  do any of you ex-jw's still believe in god?

  even with the new rebranding/softening of this religion, i still don't see how people can believe in him.

  the god of the old testimate is an angry murderer who approved rapes and slavery and killed thousands of men, women and children.

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  LisaRose

  I lost faith in the God of Jehovah's Witnesses when I left them, but still thought there was a possibility that some kind of God did exist. I was content to leave it like that for about eight years at which point I found JWN. After reading many posts by atheists and others I stopped believing in him or her altogether.

  For a while it seemed a bit of a loss, I envied those who still believed, as it seemed to help them get through life somehow, even if God was only in their imagination. I missed spirituality and even attended a liberal church for a few months in hopes of finding it there. Gradually I came to prefer the uncomfortable truth rather than the comfortable lie. Now I feel I have gained back my spirituality, but a better spirituality based on truth not fantasy. I have hope for the future and am enjoying my life very much. For me spirituality is in every moment of connection between two souls, in every beautiful sunset, in every thing I create, in every great meal I cook. I don't need anything more than that.
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  9

  Offended by JW letter targeting obituaries

  by betterdaze in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  local father offended by jehovah's witness letter, claims its writer is targeting obituariesjacksonville, fla. a local father who wishes to remain anonymous sent action news jax a copy of a letter sent to his family's church.. the letter read in part: "sorry about your loss.

  i read about it from the obituary.

  jehovahs witness literature was attached to the letter.. in a time when a family is grieving they need to be surrounded by family and friends.

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  LisaRose

  It's the same as chasing ambulances, using someones personal tragety to advance their own agenda. Of course they think they are doing them a favor, but they fail to realize that other people have their own faith and deeply held beliefs and may be comforted by the thought that their loved one is in heaven. The JWs are in effect telling them that they are not really in heaven, just dead, and if you want to see them again you just have to become a JW. It's offensive to say the least.
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  27

  Calm Down Everybody, We Will Know Soon Enough

  by OnTheWayOut in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  seriously, they will change the midweek meeting ever so slightly.

  it is just repackaging of the same old stuff.seriously, we don't know if construction is halted for days, weeks, months, forever, or what.. we don't know if new kingdom halls will still go up, old kingdom halls will be closed and sold.

  they have laid off bethelites before and they will lay them off some more.

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  LisaRose

  This seems like a chink in the armour of an organization that has never seemed to show any weakness before, speculating is irresistible.
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  26

  I just called Brooklyn Bethel about construction shut down

  by Watchtower-Free in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i just called brooklyn bethel service dept.

  they said they had not heard anything about a worldwide shut down of construction.

  i asked if he had heard about london bethel shutting down construction.. he said no that it was a surprise to him.

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  LisaRose

  They know it's true but are not allowed to confirm to the peons yet.
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  180

  What is the most bizarre counsel you received as a JW, from a JW?

  by Funchback in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  there were many addressed to me.

  for example, i once had a sister tell me i was gambling because i liked playing skill crane (the machine where you have to try to pick up prizes like stuffed animals) at the arcade.

  i then fired back a her: "you saw the r-rated movie 'backdraft.

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  LisaRose

  I had a dimwit who told me you should be careful what you wear in the living room because the government spies on people via their televisions.