Posts by StephaneLaliberte

37

Lloyd Evans removing comments he does not like, just like the cult

by mickbobcat in

i see posts that evans does not seem to like being removed.

i guess he is not a lot different than the control cult he left.

his rebuttal to the zoom assembly he said that dawkins made some silly comments about gender.

StephaneLaliberte

I agree, and said it before, he does control/filters the comments under his videos. He probably deletes more comments than he should and this is why he left this forum as he was not in control of the feeds.

While this indeed warrants criticism, I think comparing him to the Governing Body is too much.

1) He doesn't claim to be inspired or spirit directed. He corrects himself and admits his mistakes from time to time.

2) isn't head of some type of sect or religion where he's trying to control people. He's said often that people are in a better place when they leave the JWs and don't need to watch his videos.

3) Doesn't shy from working publicly with people who don't believe the same thing he does. - He often works with believers while he's openly atheist.

4) Doesn't try to break families apart based on what they believe.

5) Doesn't try to rationalize and or excuse pedophiles.

All this to say: Yes, he is a bit of a controller, doesn't always deliver on his promises, gets annoying with "his patrons", talks way longer than he should on many of his videos, and sometimes finds criticism where none is really warranted. Sure. But to go as far as to compare him to cult leaders who destroy people's lifes on a daily basis? Come on now...

52

If you could pick out critical errors to the JWS religion what would it be ?

by Rocketman123 in

many that have come to this forum have left the jws religion and moved on with their lives but from a outsider's viewpoint what do think makes the jws religion wrong or incorrect as a active christian faith ?.

somethings come to mind such as its long continuous end times/armageddon soon doctrine which has really been a core doctrine for decades going right back to its beginning .. maybe they should have adopted the stance as other christian based faiths and adhered to jesus's own words when he said " no one knows of the time not even he ".

.

StephaneLaliberte

The Watchtower never admits it is wrong or apologizes for the pain it caused with its teaches.

I second truth b known.

The religion and its leaders should display Christian qualities. They are not exempt from this requirement. One of these things is asking forgiveness for your sins, which they don't do. Moreover, if you say you disagree with them on even insignificant matters, they will cast you out labeling you an apostate/anti-Christ. This is the furthest thing from being meek and humble Christian leaders.

11

Another Gem of a conversation with my PIMI Dad

by joe134cd in

the following is a conversation i had with my pimi father regarding a news segment on tv dealing with csa.

joe: that’s terrible the incidences of csa happening in the community.

dad: yes it is.

StephaneLaliberte

I had a conversation with my dad who’s in. He understood that the WT is facing, and will face, financial repercussion for the way they handled abuse. He doesn’t stand behind the WT for this type of mishandling that he’s seen, and, to some extent, participated in. He knows that the victims suing the WT are doing it for a just cause and that they (the victims) deserve to win. The only thing though is that he was afraid that this could mean the end of his religion.

I told him that even if the WT lost all of its assets, including kingdom halls and assemblies, this would not translate to the end of the religion. The members would still be able to connect (through teams, in parcs, in community centers, etc), share their beliefs and live their faith. With time, they would be able to start new, build new halls, new bethels and go on. Financial penalties imposed on a corporation are not the same as straight up persecution as it is the case, for instance, with Russia. The religion, the belief system is not banned, but specific organizational policies are no longer accepted. These financial restitutions can and has resulted in change within the internal policies of the organization and we’d only assume that they would fix this thing if they are starting from scratch. But it wouldn’t be the end of the religion.

20

Strong female characters in film before the 'Woke Era'

by LoveUniHateExams in

since about 2015, hollywood has congratulated itself and circle-jerked over the 'strong women' characters they've written.

i'd say this roughly began with rey in the force awakens (2015).

what hollywood forgets is that strong characters have to have a personality, otherwise audiences don't really relate to them.. well, hollywood should really stop patting themselves on the back as if they've done something special.. strong female characters have been a staple for decades.. here's one: private vasquez, from aliens (1986).

StephaneLaliberte

20

Strong female characters in film before the 'Woke Era'

by LoveUniHateExams in

since about 2015, hollywood has congratulated itself and circle-jerked over the 'strong women' characters they've written.

i'd say this roughly began with rey in the force awakens (2015).

what hollywood forgets is that strong characters have to have a personality, otherwise audiences don't really relate to them.. well, hollywood should really stop patting themselves on the back as if they've done something special.. strong female characters have been a staple for decades.. here's one: private vasquez, from aliens (1986).

StephaneLaliberte

Marry Poppins

18

In History Who Is The Most Influential Person To You?

by minimus in

jw
friends

i think jesus christ was the most influential person in history.

of course some people think he never really existed but everyone has an opinion.

who do you think made the most influence on you?.

StephaneLaliberte

When reading "Hitler" in one of the answers here, I was like "What????" But come to thing about it, yeah, he's been very influential in terms of what not to do and how things can slowly get into a nightmarish state even in a civilized world. So, often, we thing: Don't do this or don't do that, cause that's how the nazi's started!

Interesting really.

35

Go Bag and Catastrophes

by StephaneLaliberte in

i live with my parents in law and yesterday, my mother in-law was very nervous about an email she got from the brothers in her congregation.

it was asking if she would be able to receive people over at our house should there be a catastrophe.

so, she asked me if i would agree with this.

StephaneLaliberte

That's the thing, a part of me wanted to calms my mother in law, but I know she's been conditioned to reject anything that remotely sounds contradictory with the WT. Instead, she'd be even more worried that we would not pass armagedon, so I played the game, for her, so that she may find some peace in believing that we might have a chance.

35

Go Bag and Catastrophes

by StephaneLaliberte in

i live with my parents in law and yesterday, my mother in-law was very nervous about an email she got from the brothers in her congregation.

it was asking if she would be able to receive people over at our house should there be a catastrophe.

so, she asked me if i would agree with this.

StephaneLaliberte

I live with my parents in law and yesterday, my mother in-law was very nervous about an email she got from the brothers in her congregation. It was asking if she would be able to receive people over at our house should there be a catastrophe. So, she asked me if I would agree with this. I said sure. However, we’d need to prioritize our family and close friends before we would welcome others. But if all our close ones were safe, then, yes, it would be our pleasure to provide shelter to others in trouble. She told me she would say “no” on the form, but that she would convey our message to the brothers.

She than told me that lately, the WT has talked a lot about the “go bag”, that they can sense something, and we should get ready just in case. To put her mind at ease, I’ll set up bags for my family as well. I mean, no harm in it. But what got be concerned is how stressed she appeared about the topic, as if catastrophe was at our door.

I then discussed with my wife about all this and my wife said that her mother made the right choice to say “no”, otherwise, it would give some “managing” power to the brothers about who would get shelter at our house. They would likely want to prioritize brothers and sisters over some of our close ones who are ex-jws or non-jws.

I have to say that the “fear” card that they are playing lately, I don’t like it, I don’t like it one bit. I don’t mind getting people prepared in case of emergency, but it’s the fact that they’ve been “talking a lot about it” that gets me annoyed.

39

The First Time I Went Over 120mph (193kph) I Was In A ____________ ,

by Sea Breeze in

honda vfr 750.

StephaneLaliberte

A 2001 Chrysler Neon, thought I think it was topped at 190. I was a stupid kid back then. Today, I still often drive above the limit, but not in a stupid way. For instance, back than, I'd drive 100 km in the city on 50km/h streets filled with parked cars; no idea if anyone will come out between two cars! Today, in such places, I go at 50, sometimes even less, minding the surroundings. But then again, on some select wide boulevards, I can drive 110 even if the limit is 70.

As for the highways, I've driven on "no speed limits" high ways in Germany that weren't much different then many of the highways we have here in Canada. So, I don't always agree with the posted limits in Canada. I believe it comes down to the experience of the driver and what they are driving. For instance, with my vehicle today, I never pushed it further than 165.

44

Poll: Atheists overwhelmingly oppose the death penalty, but most Christians favor it

by Disillusioned JW in

see https://friendlyatheist.patheos.com/2021/06/16/poll-atheists-overwhelmingly-oppose-the-death-penalty-most-christians-favor-it/ .

i am an atheist and i disapprove of the death penalty.

i remember michael dukakis, when he was a usa presidential candidate, saying i he was opposed to the death penalty - even for rapists and murderers.

StephaneLaliberte

I consider myself an atheist and have no problem with the death penalty when it is proven beyond any reasonable doubt about the guilt of the person charged with the crime.

I feel that way to. The problem is that I have seen 12 jury all agree that someone deserved the death sentence with nothing more than circumstantial evidence.