whilst "reading" the april 15 watchtowera, i came across an article called disabled yet eager to serve.
i found it quite upsetting, and yet i have to accept the paradigm shifts in play here.. .
a brothera in el salvador has lost both of his hands in an accident, but has designed tools which adapt to his disability, thus allowing him to continue in his chosen building trade.
I find it disturbing that Leonardo had to fashion his own tools so he could participate — you'd think the brothers would help him with obtaining some proper prostheses like the churches of Christendom do. Instead we are treated to a view of crude metal cuffs chafing into his stumps as he gleefully pushes awheelbarrow. How long could an able-bodied person last under those conditions?
Boy, that paints a whole different picture, doesn't it?
you can go on and on but the fact is you can't prove it!
i only have your word for it that you had your experience.. and the books you cite don't help, either, because i've only got the author's word that he's telling the truth.
how can i believe him if i haven't experienced it myself?.
You experience the process of thinking, but you don't experience the thought per se. Does that mean the thought isn't real?
we all know about "theocratic war strategy" - it's not really lying, if the person you are speaking "isn't entitled to know the truth".
but, it suddenly struck me - this definition of lying, unique to jws (lying is not merely telling a known untruth, but telling such to one who doesn't deserve the truth) helps them justify the blood doctrine.
well, consider the extreme example cited in the old wts bold enough to actually name & describe "theocratic war strategy" - a country where jws are under ban.
Epiphany indeed!
i posted this a few years ago, before the society created the christian congregaton of jehovah's witnesses, inc., kingdom services, inc., etc.
in their oct. 2000 meeting.
watchtower bible & tract society of pennsylvania brooklyn, ny branch.
Amazing. Wow...this took a lot of work and research and we thank you. You, too, jgnat.
Do either of you know if any of the fat cat officers of these corps. have their own personal corps. set up that perhaps "service" the WTBTS with vendor-type companies or service-type companies?
I have to also wonder if those hidden officers might have side businesses either in their name or a family member's name that might be beneifitting from the org.
anyone else read this book?
i enjoyed it, as it how i have lived my life sense i left the witnesses and in many ways, before i left.
if you like a good read, pick it up.
I read it a month or two ago, and really enjoyed it, too. It basically says that what you focus on is what is manifested in your life. I've read several books on creative visualization, too, which is a similar technique to create your own universe. I have to say, however, that it's easier said than done, don't you think? The mind is an amazing thing and we don't fully understand the science behind thought, but we're getting closer to the realization that there is something happening with the thought process other than just a lot of chemical/electrical interaction in the physical brain. Have you read The Science of God by Gerald L. Schroeder? I recommend it highly, too.
<!-- .style1 { font-family: verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; } .style2 { font-size: 18px; font-family: arial; } .style3 { font-size: 16px; font-family: arial; } .style4 {color: #ff0000} --> did armageddon hold you hostage?when my zeal for the truth started to slow down and i started .
to view the dictations of the watchtower society as more work .
and responsibility than love and caring it was the fear of dying .
If you're raised a JW like I was, it starts as a little kid. The picture in the Paradise book was burned into our psyche, and it settles in you as this huge fear of the big A. It's part of your mindset and it becomes extremely difficult to let the fear go because it's been there so long and is ingrained into your very nature. So, yes....you are held hostage by it.
the v tech shooter bought his guns legally.
gun control laws don't stop this kind of determined killer anywhere in the world.
the defenseless victims couldn't carry a gun legally on campus if they had one.
Brother Apostate.....I've just got to say it: You are always right on with your information and have the savvy to present it so eloquently. You see the deeper aspects of this issue and you allow no one to baffle you with bullshit. (just mho)
the v tech shooter bought his guns legally.
gun control laws don't stop this kind of determined killer anywhere in the world.
the defenseless victims couldn't carry a gun legally on campus if they had one.
This is a huge country with a very diverse population and lots of great freedoms which we cherish. We are not an angry country. In general, we have big hearts and open arms. We're a generous country and sometimes we fail miserably in our attempts to show our true nature because the media, especially the foreign media, play up our failures and shortcomings.
Yeah, you hear about the guy that kills somebody for his Rolex. But we have over 300,000,000 people and every language and nationality is represented here! But do you hear about all the heartfelt things our people do....all the day to day kindnesses and acts of generosity performed. We are one of the givingest countries in the world. We deal with the diverse, opinionated, free-thinking, individualistic society superbly imo. It's not utopia, but it's not bad. I've been to Europe and other countries as well and I can tell you without hesitation, that there is no place like home!
The population in a small country like Finland can be more easily controlled. There's less diversity. It's like a family. It's a lot easier to control and organize two kids than a family with twelve kids.
Give us a break, okay.
the v tech shooter bought his guns legally.
gun control laws don't stop this kind of determined killer anywhere in the world.
the defenseless victims couldn't carry a gun legally on campus if they had one.
Someone pointed out to me today that two of the worse mass murders in recent history were carried out with box cutters and fertilizer---not guns.
Control people, not guns. Our society is not perfect. Sometimes a crazy will slip through and do something horrendous and it breaks our hearts and blows our minds and we start looking for solutions. But I have reached the conclusion that we must vigorously defend the Bill of Rights. They are basic freedoms which government should not encroach upon and no matter how innocent or beneficial it may seem to some group of individuals to tamper with them we must view that tampering with skepticism and inquiry.
Americans sometimes go about their daily lives under an apathetic cloud, believing that our government is invulnerable to a take over by tyrannical or sinister forces. I went to James Madison's writings in The Federalist Papers to see if the founding fathers actually intended for the populace to have the right to keep and bear arms. I found my answer in the 46th writing when he spoke of the advantage of being armed, which the Americans possess over the people of almost every other nations. He said that in the several kingdoms of Europe, the governments are afraid to trust the people with arms. Then he expresses his confidence in the American people and their ability to defend the rights which they possess. We have a unique and historic civilization and just because our immediate comfort, safety and interest might seem to benefit by the restriction of another's freedom of choice, the reality may be the hastening of the end of our democracy as we now enjoy it.
I also read that had the Jews in the Warsaw ghetto been allowed to own firearms, Hitler's SS forces would have met with so much resistance that a successful uprising may have prevented much of the attrocities that we are no so familiar with. Their fates just in the past century should demonstrate the folly of a disarmed citizenry.
i haven't posted here in ages.
but i have this huge question mark in my head and this is the perfect place to get some feedback without compromising my sister.
my sister is an active jw.
The reason why I'm bringing this up is because I also feel that she is truly unhappy. The kind of unhappyness that comes when you are living a lie and not being true to yourself.
I understand from the above statement that her unhappiness is your motive for wanting to bring things out in the open. I get that totally. We don't like to see our loved one suffer unhappiness. Maybe you could just tell her point blank that you will always love her no matter what and there is nothing that would prevent you from being there for her always. Maybe bring up the fact that you, being so close to her, have detected some underlying unhappiness and if she wants to talk about anything at all, you are there.
God, how I hate how this org puts a wedge between family members.
