Posts by Schism

113

Question: Demons

by ladybug25 in

growing up, i remember hearing stories from my own parents and others in the congregation about experiences with demons.

sister x wore a t-shirt that she purchased at a second hand store and the demons attached themselves to the shirt and gave her problems.

certain movies and/or cds would give a family problems.

Schism

Ok, I don't want to sound like a lunatic conspiracy theorist or anything, but this is just something to think about:

My SO recently told me about some rumor that scientists have figured out a way to use a shield/veil of light to hide an object, such as a body or a vehicle. In other words, they want to make something invisible (probably for war). Whether they have actually been successful with it or not, I don't know. But if humans have even been able to come close to imagining that this is possible, it makes me wonder how more advanced life forms could have already come up with it. It might seem like a stretch, but aliens might not be "demons" as the JWs would have it, but maybe their demons are actually "aliens".

On that note, I'd like to add that I've had a few experiences, including the successful use of a Ouiji board. I don't believe that my mind was moving the eye on the board, but I don't believe it was some demon either. Believing in aliens is way easier than believing in demons because it doesn't require faith to believe in such. In fact, it's easy to be an atheist if you believe in aliens. So, maybe earth is a big terrarium and aliens are having fun on it? Wouldn't you think that an alien who studies humans might be more interested in us than an ex-angel who already "knows" all there is to know about us because he watched us being created from the beginning? To me, a demon would be bored with us. To an alien, we could be college credit.

The Bible is a poor excuse for any sort of paranormal activity because the people who wrote it were just trying to explain unknown things that had been bothering them for a long time.

I also believe that nothing is in black and white. My SO suffers from sleep paralysis on a regular basis. So, many accounts could be that. Others could be energy, and some could be aliens. I'm comfortable believing in a little bit of everything and a lot of uncertainty because we might never have all of the answers. And BTW, it was barely 2 months ago when I firmly believed that aliens were tricks up Satan's sleeve, but now that I've allowed myself to think on my own, their actual existance would explain so much more than the Bible ever could.

I've had terrariums before, and sometimes little beings would just pop up out of nowhere, such as snails (from eggs in the soil I hadn't known about), and I thought it was pretty cool. If I had the power to invent life forms who were microscopic and who would worship me from the confines of their little glass tank, I would have....because it sounds like fun. If there are aliens, and they are advanced, why couldn't they have hobbies on other planets? That's every hobbiest's dream come true! LOL.

Like I said, don't believe me. But do try not to elevate the Bible writers to some other-worldly wisdom. They didn't know any more about the invisible realm than you and I do today. They were desperate to figure out the unknown, and they wrote about it.

And to those of you who have had experiences, I do believe many of them are true. I also believe that some can be the sleep paralysis deal (my SO has experienced "demons" and "aliens" with it, and he believes it was just his subconscious imagining certain things that he was afraid of and thinking of at the time), as for those of you who are mentally stable and were wide awake when things happened, I wouldn't go to the Bible for the answers because the guys who wrote it were just as confused as were are :)

42

After you left JWs how did you work out what you believe now

by awol in

jw
friends

i left jws 10 yrs ago and have just considered myself drifted.

never df'd.

could never go back as i personally found it too hard to live up to.

Schism

I think many of us actually know how you feel. It's really nice to be able to come here and see many opinions as well. This board is GREAT!

I have recently (I'm talking, last month) decided that being a JW is completely out of the question for me. And though I've come to terms with that (easily might I add), I am not ready to jump into the arms of another organization. Before I found this board, I had made the decision to float through life, learn new things, and to be open to suggestions while being weary of any particular group.

I have been a JW all of my life, and recently I've found it extraordinarily easy to accept that we might only have this one life to live, and nothing more, so we have to live it the way we want to. My suggestion to you is to make a resolve to not cling to the Bible and grope for another religion that's easier for you to grasp. Instead, be open to another though process. (Like a deprogramming of Christianity)

This is just my example, I'm not saying it's right, but think about it:

We have evidence of human life having been on this earth way longer than the Bible says there was human life. Carbon dating isn't as screwed up as the society would like us to believe. Did you know that the Christian church immediately dismissed dinosaur bones to be tools of Satan to trick us? Just because the Bible didn't mention them! LOL

I personally feel that humans have only elevated themselves above animals, and with religion in the picture, we have assumed that we play a vital role in the issue of "universal soveriegnty" (spell that the right way, lol). But there is a very good chance that we are no more entitled to an afterlife than any other creature around us. There's no proof of a god, and there's no proof of no god either. There is, however, many topics that seriously question the accuracy of the Bible.

To me, we have invented god, religion, and the afterlife as a means of being able to cope with death. There's plenty of greed motives as well when religion is involved, as many have learned the hard way.

I'm not saying I believe everything just popped up from some soup, but I do believe that everything on earth is most likely a huge science project for aliens. And just like a terrarium of bugs, the different life forms on earth could just be prospering and reproducing. In fact, this really wouldn't even contradict the Bible as far as I'm concerned, because Jehovah may very well exist as an alien who has decided to have a hobby. Of course, I'd like to believe that they have just forgotten the whole project and will just observe from a distance. Naturally, it sounds like a dumb and crazy thing to believe, but it feels more real and more tangible to me than ANYTHING taught through religion.

Now, I am not saying I am right, but it works for me. Of course, as with anything, there's uncertainties involved, but it isn't like I have to blindfold myself to accept some doctrine and bow down to anything in order to have this belief. Now, what you have to do is endure some "I don't know" time, and let your mind wander outside of the Christian box, so to speak, and consider that something much less fluffy and frilly to be the reason we exist.

Like the possibility that there's no such thing as the right religion and that we may just live and die like animals do. It feels good to me, because an eternity with any religion would have me wishing I was non-existant, lol. I personally wouldn't want it any other way. There's massive evidence that chimps have the same complex emotions as we do. Is it fair that we get eternity and they get nada? I wouldn't want to worship a god who thinks so, because he would be a jerk for making a creature SO SIMILAR to us, even in the way they feel and communicate, and then give us center stage.

Think about this. Say that humans were here for a long LONG time, then religion is invented. People are creative, and come up with good stories and some crazy ideas. Also, throw in a half-ass explanation of spirits, who were here WAY before humans were, existing merely in another realm. Suddenly, people read and believe the book, and accept the ecplanation of life and spirits and death, so they go with the book. hmmm :)

45

What would you notice first if you went back to a Kingdom Hall?

by JH in

jw
friends

first thing i'd notice is how the old ones got so much older and how the kids became adults and are taller than me.. next thing i'd notice would be how long and dull the meetings are.. *yawn*.

Schism

Actually, I just got back from the KH. The first thing I noticed tonight was how the kids are allowed to hang out in the foyer with no reprocussions because we are all related to the PO.

Second, I noticed how someone can use the Bible to tell people how to hold a microphone. Not too close, not too far away, just like the Bible says to hold the mic. (1st half)

Third, I noticed how the song on the opposite page of the one sang in half time (#128) looks like a tribute to Hitler. About the Nazirites, subtract rites. Read it and you will laugh.

Fourth, I noticed how well the local needs didn't fit the local need.

Lastly, I noticed how no one cried when a kid got DFed. She had problems, probably because she had a traumatic childhood. Of course, there's no patience for people who need help, especially ethnic kids, as we know they tend to be a little racist.

Then another song. The weirdos who sing off key and too loud, the sermon at the very end to allow that elder to get a final word in while pretending to talk to some god. Then back to the off-limits foyer for another anti-social teenager gathering (my guilty self included).

36

Do you have any phobias?

by greendawn in

jw
friends

do you have any phobias jw related or not?

i personally don't have much except having to go through very narrow spaces where i can barely fit in that freaks me out and i also fear very hot weather like over 38 degrees celsius as if it will give me a heat stroke.

Schism

Wasps! I can't even be in the same area as one. I couldn't look at a drawing of one without getting chills! I have many horror stories about them. One was the summer when my house was INFESTED, and I couldn't go a day without running across 5-8 of them ALIVE in my home! Don't know how they were getting in, and several exterminators were hired, then fired for not being able to find them. I was JUST about to move out and into a hotel over it, until *poof*, they went away and never came back. But we tried everything. We bombed the AC unit, and under the house. The place is new, and there weren't any cracks or holes visible. Satan must have been letting them in! lol

But they were on the curtains, buzzing across the floor, hiding on the ceiling, on the pedal of the trash can, if it ever happens again, I will commit suicide for sure!

A few months ago, I went to get my parents' mail for them (they were out of town). I only get mail at night, because I am afraid that wasps are living in all mailboxes and they will get me. As I took the newpapers from the box, I noticed these little leaves on the papers, in the light of the street lamp. NOPE! Wasps!!! I have never thrown anything, run, nor driven away so fast in my LIFE. I will never get mail or newspaper again in my LIFE. Whew, I'm getting scared just thinking about it! I knew that it would eventually happen to me, and I was right! My DH laughs because I am the worst candidate for something like that to happen to, and I'm the only person he knows who's had to have so many horrible experiences with something I am so afraid of!

I also check under the covers before bed to make sure there aren't any wasps. And get something out of a shed??? Forget about it! I don't care if the cure for AIDS was in the shed, someone else will have to go in it to fetch it, because I won't step foot into any shed. I LOVE the winters for the simple fact the wasps aren't around! :)

I spray Raid in the house, because I think I will miss them if I try to hit them. I also check under the table before I put my legs there because I just know one day one will be resting under there and fall into my lap. One day, I will jump off of a roof to get away from the sound of one flying and that's how I will die! LOL

On the other hand, I am not afraid of spiders or snakes or rats or anything else. My husband CANNOT kill a spider, or be outside with a snake because he is scared of them. I can't kill a wasp, but I will kill the spiders. He kills the wasps, as he isn't scared of them. I love snakes and rats, so no one here kills them as far as I'm concerned You should see he reaction when there's a snake in the yard and he's running from it and I'm chasing after it to get a good look! LOL

13

No dating outside of religion?

by TillMorning in

hey this is my first post and since the search option is down i figured i'd risk getting flamed.. anyway, i have a problem.

this belief of not dating anyone who isnt a witness...is there anyway around it?

anyway short of converting them?

Schism

Just date, what's the worst that could happen?

92

omg i am totally floored

by akafreelife in

i have been hearing about a secret socioty called the illuminati.

i started seeing some connections on my own between illuminati and what i heard when i was at the meetings when i was younger.

holy shite they are directly connected.

Schism

And to think I was DFed for playing with a Ouiji board...

29

Whats the funniest/most bizarre comment heard from the audience during a WT

by chiddy in

jw
friends

whats the funniest comment heard from the audience during a wt study/book study/service meeting?.

we had a young retarded kid in our cong , who had his hand up for every single question , usually the bro would take his comment as he would just say "jehovah" but this time he takes the mic and starts this long winded comment rounded off with"satans going to cause a civil war!

priceless !.

Schism

Oh God, there have been so many nutcases in my Hall!

One brother was doing the reading, and he was asked to read a scripture with the word "organism" in it, but instead he read "orgasm" and never caught himself!

One elder was giving a public talk and kept using the term "half-assed", because he thought it was "half-fast" and he must have said it a hundred times during that talk! After, someone told him what he was actually saying and he cried!

One sister was trying to "hook up" with a brother who'd just lost his wife in death. She raised her hand and said something about the nights being lonely and there's nothing like a BIG BIG brother there for a sister (I don't remember the rest). Boy we were shocked! She was doing all this moaning and heavy breathing into the mic, and we all froze. It was the longest 2 minute comment in the world! I thought she was going to come right out and say that she was in need of some sexual healing! No question about it, she was getting hot and bothered in the hall.

Oh there's so much more, I just don't have time to put them all in here right now!!!

13

Are you a jealous lover, or with a jealous lover?

by free2beme in

jw
friends

if you walked into a restaurant and saw a beautiful woman, would the male member of your relationship say that they felt they were pretty?

if your a man and your female lover said she thought a movie star was hot, a person she worked with was sexy, would you be jealous?

i am in a unique relationship, in that my spouse and i do not care about that kind of stuff.

Schism

I don't know really. Stuff like this always gets me down because I think of those married men out there who walk into the walls to look at me or my mom and their wives are standing right there and look very hurt.

My husband and I are absolutely identical with our views towards the opposite sex. I often point out a woman who I think is gorgeous, because I feel that they are so rare, and he will agree. Same goes for other men as well. But neither of us will gawk at another person. You know? Get into the staring thing and almost pass out? I think that's trashy and I would be DEVASTATED if he ever decided to start that mess. But he also expresses how unbelievably sad he would be if I did it as well. So, we really don't have any problems in that department, as we trust each other because we both want to treat each other the way we want to be treated.

So, I don't think jealousy is a black and white thing. I think it's healthy for a couple to be able to recognize an attractive person without wanted to go home and masturbate while thinking of the other person. To me, you might as well initiate a threesome, because it would hurt me just the same.

I can remember a few years back, me and my mom walked into a restaurant and some man was at a table with his wife. He started staring and was making it so obvious! His wife got up and stormed out, passing an angry glance at us before leaving. I wanted to slap her husband across the face for being such a jerk. Something tells me that this sort of lack of respect carries on into the bedroom at home as well. A person behaving that way can cause the other mate to become a jealous lover before he realizes it. I just don't know how someone can stay in a marriage like that, with zero respect for the others' feelings.

But you guys are right on the money. I agree there's nothing wrong with being honest about how someone else looks. You just have to differentiate between a jealous person and a JEALOUS person, because I'm sure no one wants a stranger's name yelled out in the bedroom! LOL

6

August 15, 2006 "Do You Remember" Causes More ???s

by Schism in

boredom got the best of me, and i took a glance at the "do you remember?

" on pg 30 of aug 15th watchtower 2006.. the question: "under the law, why did certain natural sexual functions make a person "unclean"?".

the answer: "the laws concerning uncleanness ascribed to seminal emissions, menstruation, and childbirth fostered good hygiene and a healthy lifestyle, stressed the sanctity of blood, and showed the need for atonement of sins.".

Schism

LOL Rebel! It must have been the headcoverings!

The banning of certain animals is also one of those OT laws that is just insane. I forgot about that one!

Well, since I am seeing more and more that the OT shouldn't even be read by Christians, can anyone tell me why it is? Also, since I never really paid attention at the mettings, can anyone tell me exactly where the OT stops? Oh, is that in the middle where the page says the Greek scriptures are one their way?

You guys have no idea how good it is to be able to come here and talk to others about these things. Oh wait....you do have an idea! Well anyway, isn't it great to have someone other than the elders to ask questions to? I sure wasn't going to ask any of my husband's fair-weather Catholic family who only goes to church because the priest's dress is pretty and reminds them of Jesus! There's nothing like pondering the meaning of life with "evil apostates"! LOL, jk.

Up next, I will be begging for someone to talk me into DAing myself.

97

WHY IS THE WTBTS OBSESSED WITH MASTURBATION????!!!!!

by Gill in

what exactly is the cause of the wtbts total obsession with masturbation?.

is there any religion in the world that has printed so many articles on this topic?.

if your feelings are similart to those of luiz, pedro or andre, take courage.

Schism

I agree that it's horrid that they share so much sexual topics with very small kids. In fact, I feel as if the questions in a JC for a teenager are over the line. When I was 16, and confessing my own fornication (stupid move...I know), I was sitting in the back crying to my elders, and they were men I'd grown up with and knew like uncles. Then, these old uncle-like men wanted me to describe HOW we had sex, and I was SO shamed and confused! How uncomfortable that was. "What kind of sex did you 2 have?" ME (crying): "What do you mean...what kind?" "Regular?" ME: "Regular, I guess". I was trying to figure out if they wanted me to mention the oral side of the matter as well, though I think they got the hint that I didn't want to say it and they moved on quickly, probably because my giant father was sitting there wondering what the hell they wanted me to say. Then they asked if it was missionary. I just stared at them like, you've got to be kidding. I pretended to be so into crying that I couldn't answer, and they moved on.

It's almost like a gyno visit, except your dad is watching 3 men examine you instead of a doctor.

Not to change the subject, but what is the official rule when it comes to teens over 18 in a JC? Do the parents only have to be involved if they are living at home? Because I was very TO'ed that my dad had to keep hearing EVERYTHING about my "immoral" sexual encounters. It was bad enough that he called me a "slut" for doing it with a boy that I thought I was going to marry, but then for him to get a visualization of the positions, and obviously, of oral being performed (without me having to say it, they knew). Boy, they can sure make the natural parts of life seem like a nightmare. Now, I get creeped out that they know I do it with my husband of 2 years. What's worse, they involved my LITTLE sisters, who were VERY young at the time, and shared with them MY encounters with boys as well. The bad part about that is that they told the little big mouthed one, who has, in several occasions at the hall, used my fornications as leverage for an arguement in front of people who didn't know about it. Imagine to look on sister so in so when baby bigmouth says, "well, at least I didn't HAVE SEX with (insert boy's name". What a weird family!