Posts by StephaneLaliberte

17

SEX BETWEEN CONSENTING ADULTS NOT WRONG

by JohnTron72 in

i replied to a lesbian on the quora website who tried to state that god destroyed sodom because of the violent rape the people were trying to commit, not because they were homosexuals.

her argument perperuated so often was that it stated nothing about sex between "two consenting adults".

but, instead of using the bible scriptures such as a man shall not lay down with another as a woman, i used something else you never hear anyone use.... i told her to look to genesis 6:1-4 .

StephaneLaliberte

I find this post interesting; not because I'm against homosexuality, but because it is right: the bible is homophobic.

Here are the “high level” possibilities regarding God vs homosexuality:

There is no God, thereby, the bible and Quran is entirely man made. There is no issue with homosexuality.
There is a God; but he doesn’t communicate with man. Thereby, the bible and Quran are man made. Assuming that God is loving and just, he probably doesn’t have an issue with homosexuals.
There is a God and he inspired some of the writings in the bible or the Quran or perhaps both. However, every homophobic passages are man made teachings and philosophy. God accepts homosexuality.
The bible or the Quran are entirely inspired by God however, passages that appear homophobic are not properly interpreted in context and God accepts homosexuality.
The bible or the Quran are entirely inspired by God and reading the text as they stand, God clearly condemns homosexuality.

I believe in option 1, perhaps option 2 as well.

Option 3 doesn’t make much sense to me: You pick and choose teachings based on your desires, not logical conclusions on what originates from God. Also, does it make sense for God to leave such conflicting messages in books that are supposed to represent his teachings?

Option 4 is even more absurd as this implies that people must twist the meaning of the scriptures beyond common sense.

Sadly, hatred towards the LGBTQ+ community is not isolated to the JWs and it is even more sad to see people from that community trying to reconcile with the holy books while they are in fact, the source of their abuse.

33

How did you learn the truth about the truth?

by Iamallcool in

any takers?.

StephaneLaliberte

My first exposer to the TATT was at age 9, in the revelation book, they were boasting about how conventions in the 1920s were the accomplishment of prophecies about the trumpets. That was the first time I started to question everything that came out of the Watchtower. I still rationalized a lot of things and stayed until I was 35. But the point is that I did not trust the Society from that day forward.

7

Judicial Committee Meetings

by Iamallcool in

jw
friends

do you know of any judicial cases that is very trivial?

.

StephaneLaliberte

In the old days, I was "super spiritual" and my sister got into a JC. She didn't really have any remorse or regrets about her actions and asked for my help. So I told her exactly what to say and when and how to cry. She did as I advised and was "forgiven". She then came back to me thankful for my coaching!

This troubled my conscience for several years on two levels: 1) I was part of this manipulation and 2) appreciating the fact that a JC that prayed for Jehovah's guidance was soo easily fooled.

7

Judicial Committee Meetings

by Iamallcool in

jw
friends

do you know of any judicial cases that is very trivial?

.

StephaneLaliberte

A friend of mine got disfellowshipped for smoking two cigarettes at school. First time, he was regretful and told the elder. Second time, another JW told on him. He was 16. 2 cigarettes. Ridiculous.

25

Do JWs buy old JW books to destroy?

by mickbobcat in

i have never heard of this but i doubt its never been done.

i sell some older jw books on etsy and have always been a bit afraid that some jws are buying them to destroy.

if you have heard of this let me know.

StephaneLaliberte

The sad reality is that if you show an old book to a "spiritual" JW today, you will immediately be flagged as an apostate. I remember, in my initial stages of questioning the "truth", I was about to share writings of Charles Russel with a friend of mine. He literally fled my house telling me that he would not hear anything that would cause his faith to be stumbled. We were talking, he stood up and walked out of my house, mid conversation! In the end, his irrational reaction had a higher negative impact on my faith than the writings of Charles Russel!!

So, yeah, having old literature is a good thing for confirming your own decisions. Then, later, you can use these to discuss with people who were never JWs or that have since left the cult. But you will have next to no success with the JWs themselves. They view anyone digging the past in a very bad light.

17

My favorite films of this century

by LoveUniHateExams in

so, i was thinking about which are my favorite films of the 21st century.. there are lots of 21st century films i haven't seen and want to see.. anyhoo, i came up with these .... the nightingale (2018).

the lighthouse (2019).

the martian (2015).

StephaneLaliberte

Too many to list them all, but here are a few on top of my list

Gladiator (2000)

Mystic River (2003)

The Departed (2006)

There Will Be Blood (2007)

No Country for Old Men (2007)

inception (2010)

interstellar (2014)

11

Norm Macdonald 1959-2021

by neat blue dog in

any other fans of norm macdonald here?

i think this is the only time where i actually felt a celebrity death.

what a loss.

StephaneLaliberte

Well for one Norm was famous for literally making up crazy stories all the time for the sake of a joke

Had the story of him getting it on with his friends wife been true, I doubt he would have made long lasting friendships as he did. How many people have you heard complaining about Norm for stuff like that? I haven't heard anything like it. The guy was a joke machine and respected as a comedian who would say anything for a laugh. So, that would fit perfectly well with his personality.

23

Anyone have an obvious gay or lesbian in the congregation?

by mickbobcat in

when i was a kid we had a kh with a basement and this guy joe winestien lived in it.

he has passed away i believe.

he was about 24 and used to hang around the young boys.

StephaneLaliberte

I was part of a group of friends who made plenty of gay jokes as we thought they were simply funny. However, one day, my wife pointed to someone who seemed to be gay in our circle and so, we stopped making jokes. I remember that my friends and I weren't homophobes in that we bought into the idea that they were born that way and, unfortunately for them, they simply weren't allowed to have sex, ever. So, we didn't avoid them or even feel uncomfortable around them.

Today, I realize that the amount of jokes we were making probably did hurt closeted gay friends that we weren't even aware of. There is no such thing as "gaydar". Some even get married as hetero trying to fight what they are.

Being raised as a JW is already not ideal. Being gay and raised as a JW or any anti-gay religion is absolutely horrible.

15

Get Vaccinated or Get laid Off

by StephaneLaliberte in

i’m personally for the vaccine, took two shots and would take a third if asked.

but i know a friend of mine that doesn’t want to take the vaccine who works for the government and now is faced with this choice: get vaccinated or get laid off.

i don’t agree with this measure as it is totalitarian and runs against my core belief in individual freedom.. now, with that being said, what i don’t understand is that my friend still won’t get vaccinated.

StephaneLaliberte

I’m personally for the vaccine, took two shots and would take a third if asked. But I know a friend of mine that doesn’t want to take the vaccine who works for the government and now is faced with this choice: Get Vaccinated or get laid off.

I don’t agree with this measure as it is totalitarian and runs against my core belief in individual freedom.

Now, with that being said, what I don’t understand is that my friend still won’t get vaccinated. Here me out: Someone pulls a knife on you in the street and tells you to give him your money. You have the choice to comply or run the risk of getting stab and possibly die. Most people will give their money while some will fight back and run the risk.

Handing your money over doesn’t mean you agree with person that stole your money. It simply means that you weighted the risks and considering the imminent threat, you chose the path of least resistance. Same goes with the vaccine in my opinion. You can get vaccinated or loose your job.

What saddens me about all this is that my friend thinks about this all the time, goes to sleep crying and feels utterly violated and betrayed by the very government she is working for. While I agree that she is indeed betrayed by the government and shouldn’t be forced, I can’t help but wonder why she is so obsessed about this. Taking the vaccine is safer than driving to your workplace everyday! I don’t understand the logic, I really don’t.

Anyways, thought I’d share this as it feels like the JWs not going to war. If there is a war where I’m called upon, I’ll likely go. But I would also respect people who simply don’t want to fight on religious grounds.

122

1995 generation change

by Gorb in

jw
friends

now, many years later, i remember the 1995 generation change, very well.. since early youth, hearing my father explaining in field service the 2520 years.

it was his main theme in the field.. with the change my doubts started.

with some jw friends we did not trust the organization anymore.

StephaneLaliberte

I am somewhat ashamed to admit that I was not too stubbled by it. I mean, I already didn't believe that teaching when I got baptized in '92, so, it didn't come as a surprise and I didn't care much about it.

It was only much much later, like in my early 30s, that, on this board, someone wrote that they preached about this date right on the magazines. That was the purpose of the magazine, that the generation that saw 1914 wouldn't pass away. It is only then that it dawned on me that the preaching work was somewhat bogus. If you go out and preach something false to billions of people in hundreds of languages, it is still false. The wide distribution doesn't make it true. That was part of the elements that slowly drove me out of the cult with my family.