StephaneLaliberte

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Posts by StephaneLaliberte

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  43

  Watchtower looses Norwegian Appeal

  by Diogenesister in

  1. social
  2. current

  watchtower has just lost its appeal in the norwegian courts over the withdrawal of the funding it receives from the government as an officially recognised religion.

  the initial decision will now stand due to what the court termed 'exclusionary practices' which includes the witnesses barbaric practice of shunning minors, even by family members in their own homes.

  the ministry of children and families have decided they are now no longer eligible for the state grant of 16 million norwegian kroner given to officially recognised religions.. the following is a statement has been issued, i have summarised if it isn't readable: .

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  StephaneLaliberte

  Bravo! Bravo!!
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  15

  Do you believe in ultimate justice?

  by Fisherman in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  ultimate justice means that conduct is not inconsequential.

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  StephaneLaliberte

  Religion rationalizes or make it easier to accept the fact that there is no such thing. We like to watch movies where the hero wins, but the world we live in often lets the bad guy take it all.

  Some also try to rationalize this by saying that even if some evil doers are not held accountable by the justice system, they will still suffer. They will inevitably be tormented by their conscience, or experience the absence of true love from everyone that surround them. Take Stalin for instance, he did a lot of wrong, yet, never faced external consequences other than being feared rather than loved. Was he truly happy? The idea that he probably wasn't makes it seem like there is an ultimate justice after all.

  But then again, I believe this also is trying to rationalize something we'd rather not accept. That perhaps these evil doers are happy nonetheless. We might simply be projecting on "evil" people. We could never imagine happiness by ruling over hell and so, we assume it is the same with people like Stalin. It's a comforting thought. Unfortunately, in spit of what good decent people think, perhaps these bad people don't hold the same values at all. As a result, they can still feel satisfied, fulfilled and happy in following their course. No consequences.

  There is no real justice. The winner [good or bad] takes it all.
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  11530

  It's been a long 9 years Lloyd Evans / John Cedars

  by Newly Enlightened in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  original reddit post (removed).

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  StephaneLaliberte

  Looking at that video where Loyd is doing manual work... this isn't going to convince JWs against a paradise at all... they actually dream of building their own houses (so do I, just in this world though). But I do get his point... there will be jobs that people don't like in a paradise... its just that his video isn't expressing this well at all.
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  28

  JW Obession with the trinity

  by Riley in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  so a few years i watched a lecture series by a man named dr. micheal heiser called the two powers in heaven, jesus in the old testament.

  funny thing was it wasn't even very evangelical in nature, so i turned off my religious binders and just watched it like a regular person.

  it turns out that the new testament is a hinge point in the bible.

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  StephaneLaliberte

  So what? So what if people are wrong about exactly who Jesus and God and the holy spirit are? In the end, aren't we supposed to be judged by our actions? JWs and many religions seem to believe it's the other way around and when you think about it, it doesn't make sense.

  I had this epiphany years ago reflecting upon my grandmother’s life. Always faithful to her husband and kids, dedicated her life to raise 10 kids, keeping the house in order, feeding them, dressing them, ALWAYS there for them. Even in her late years, she'd call everyone and make sure everyone remained in contact with each other. Everyone loved her. She wasn't perfect, but she was loved and still is. A hug from my grandma made me feel that no matter what happened in this world, she loved me.

  BUT! She believed in the trinity! How horrible! According to JWs logic, had Armageddon happened during her lifetime, God would have sent an angel, or perhaps a resurrected governing body member, to kill her.

  Fear mongering none-sense.
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  16

  An army of volunteers and a convoy of trucks and heavy equipment headed to Florida as we speak!

  by nowwhat? in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  no not the watchtower, but franklin graham's samaritan purse!

  nothing on the website as of noon friday edt.

  evidently all the resources are tied up making their next movie.

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  StephaneLaliberte

  Donation originating from the Watchtower is actually limited when you consider that the majority is actually given by the locals:

  • The local elders administer the donations and the work to be done. For instance, identifying where the food needs to be moved at, houses that offer hospitality, making health-checks, etc.
  • The majority of the donations are done on the spot, by local brothers and sisters, for that specific event: Food, clothing, materials, etc.
  • Most, if not, all of the material used for repairs are paid by individual insurances and local donations.
  • All re-build work is 100% volunteered by brothers and sisters.

  So, what exactly does the WT donate?

  Time: The bethel will be busy in coordinating the elders, directing phone calls to the proper elders, and providing guidance on how to address the overall situation. Considering that the bethelites are primarily paid in food and shelter, let's be generous and say that 50 bethelites are working two weeks each on this situation, that comes to about $60,000.

  Material: They will sometimes provide, rent, or even borrow trucks, and fill it up with food that they will indeed purchase, but this is rather rare. They might offer to pay some material to rebuild stuff, but from everything reported through the years, this wouldn't be significant.

  Bragging about how they help! Now this is probably the largest expense related to the disaster itself. They will produce promotional content (videos, website, magazines, books, photos) on how the "disaster relief funds" were used to help everyone there. They'll pay for a Governing Body member and some helpers to travel over there. Along with them will be a filming crew and their filming material. The irony is that in said promotional content, they will also take credit for all the local work and donations that have nothing to do with the "disaster relief funds".
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  15

  Honest Hearted Ones

  by Sea Breeze in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  there are certain wt terms that sound biblical but really just puff up the pride.

  hundreds of times the wt has used the term honest-hearted in their literature.

  it sounds biblical, if for no other reason because we hear it so often in jw circles.

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  StephaneLaliberte

  The expression "honest-hearted ones" is used as part of the Mind Control technique used by the Org. it is a thought stopper, especially when used like this "Honest-hearted ones accept..... " , or worse " honest-hearted ones do not question or doubt... ".

  Bang on Phizzy! Its manipulative and insults anyone who doesn't agree with them.
  
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  34

  1985 and baptism...I wish I had read this before today

  by enoughisenough in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i am posting a link as to being legally bound to jw rules at time of baptism.

  i only did a quick skim, but what i gathered is interesting, and what it says about 1985 may be of use to some hoping to just fade and not be bothered.

  in 1985, the questions were changed at baptism for legal purposes so they could have causation to defend themselves should you decide to sue for whatever reason.

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  StephaneLaliberte

  It is an oath, not a contract. - Smiles

  Totally agree. And I don't see anything immoral at breaking an oath when

  1. You're a minor and unable to understand the ramifications of that oath.
  2. You made that oath not knowing information that would have impacted your decision
  3. The other party to who you made your oath has not upheld their end of the bargain. ex: the generation that will never die; Significant changes in their beliefs and practices since I was baptized.
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  39

  Did becoming a JW influence you to give up something you enjoyed ?

  by smiddy3 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  when i was a teenager a younger fellow workmate was involved in the sport of judo.i got interested and went along to a number of sessions and took to it like a sponge to water ,and as a sport i was happy participating in.. not that much longer another workmate was getting re-activated in the religion of jw`s.

  which i had never heard o before and then got interested in that .. conflict : was judo a sport that was compatible with j.w beliefs?

  sadly i decided it was not and stopped any further involvement.. to this day i resent that decision i made back then .and i`m 82 years old now.. it was a sport i was comfortable doing and i enjoyed it.and i gave it up because of the religion .who knows what i may have achieved had i continued with it.

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  StephaneLaliberte

  Football: When I was a kid, I was naturally gifted for football. I'd play during lunch time with the football team guys and they really wanted me to join. But I couldn't... extra secular activities right? Always wondered if I could have gone far in that sport... I'll never know.
  
  Lawyer/Politics: It was my first career choice and I knew that politicians often start out as lawyers. I was really good at debates in school when they were part of the class curriculum. Even today, I'm still very much interested by this stuff. But of course, lawyers are frowned upon in the JWs and politics is straight up inadmissible. So, I chose IT instead.
  
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  10

  Wife's gone to visit distant relatives.......

  by BoogerMan in

  1. social
  2. humour

  ......so i thought i'd treat myself; i placed an order with the acme escort agency.. damn it, they only had a fiesta available!.

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  StephaneLaliberte

  If I ever introduced my wife as "my first wife", I'm pretty sure my wife would either smack me behind the head or, sit there in silence and let me have it in private. No way she'd let that go. That's also why I fell in love with her in the first place... she has a strong character and would never let me walk all over her.
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  10

  Wife's gone to visit distant relatives.......

  by BoogerMan in

  1. social
  2. humour

  ......so i thought i'd treat myself; i placed an order with the acme escort agency.. damn it, they only had a fiesta available!.

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  StephaneLaliberte

  My wife found out I was cheating... she found all the letters I was hiding from her.

  Now I don't think she'll play scrabble with me ever again.