Posts by VoidEater

My first cat lived till nearly 22 years - a large, long-haired orange and white tabby. I got him when I was 6 years old, so he was a long-standing member of my family.

My second cat lived for 17 years - a large, long-haired orange tabby. We got him the same year my partner and I got together, he passed away 3 years ago.

62

For those of you who don't go to meetings anymore...

by exwitless in

when you attended your last meeting ever as a dub, did you know it was your last?

did something happen which made it clear in your mind you were 'never going back' (not to be confused with nvrgnbk)?.

the last meeting we went to was the memorial in 2006. we only went because we knew we were already pegged for the elders' unwanted attention, so we had to go to keep them off our backs a little longer.

VoidEater

I had only been going because my parents expected it of me, I didn't know the last time was going to be the last time - the meetings had been utterly pointless for so long but I was habituated into attending. My attendance had been rather spotty, but it never occurred to me that maybe I didn't have to go at all. Then the next week - well, it just didn't seem relevant, and the next week after that, and then it became normal to not go at all...

14

Christmas Music

by golf2 in

.

has anyone noticed christmas music being played 'early' on radio and some shopping malls?

golf

VoidEater

I used to think trotting out the Xmas misuc and decorations and "seasonal products" before Thanksgiving was rude - but this year, yes, it started the week before Halloween! No music on the radio stations yet, but the decorations for sale, the business decorations, piped over the loudspeakers...I'm willing to participate with my in-laws and all, but sheesh, I feel a little abused!

79

Spirituality

by Aleman in

why care about spiritual things?

i see most of all of you speak in different opinions of what is or may be true spiritual things (while a few ar just freezing cold or dead spiritualy), but i ask all of you, why even bother to care or pretend to care of spiritual things?.

-aleman.

VoidEater

Satanus: Yes, same here...and I try to live each mundane day as a way for spirit to manifest...

nvrgnbk: Since the JW definition of faith is "the assured expectation of things to come", yes, I think my spirituality is devoid of faith - I don't have an assured expectation of anything (with or without evidence). ;-) That's ok, because the essence of spirituality for me is in this moment, not in the future. If you mean faith as "taking for true something without evidence", then it does get gray - because my spiritual motivations are based on subjective experience, not objective external world evidence - but still, it's mine, not what someone told me to believe. Like blueviceroy, though, it's not particularly important for me to make proofs - just live my life in ways that follow my own interpretations of spirituality. That doesn't mean I hide it, and indeed I have had the honor of being asked to mentor some in their own spirituality - a place I can only go by encouraging self-discovery, sharing my opinions, and responding authentically (and always knowing the limitations of my eyesight and hearing).

"My hearing is not so good - I cannot hear what God is telling you, I can only hear what God is telling me."

Robdar: I assign more meaning to it than that - it gives my worldview depth, and informs me of how I most want to behave in the world.

8

Alcohol and JW's

by sweet pea in

jw
friends

it seems like alcohol is a very grey area when it comes to jw's.

when i was a jw i knew many witnesses, particularly brothers, who seriously liked their drink and it appeared that when it came to elders and ministerial servants, the organisation seemed to turn a blind eye to alcohol abuse if those brothers were being faithful and especially if they were looked up to and liked in the congregation.

it reminds me of the mormons and the fact that utah is the prozac capital of the world - when something is not perceived as quite as bad a sin as another (even though all sins are equally bad in the bible/book or mormon), it becomes the one form of escape for people who have nowhere else to turn.

VoidEater

Alcohol to excess is banned by doctrine - but what is to excess? Getting drunk (degree of inebriation)? Drinking every day (instances of drinking)?

Drinking in moderation is specifically ok - but again seems rather subjective.

Alcoholism is sometimes easy to hide, sometimes easy to overlook. And of course those that have a good standing (through power, influence, or popularity) are never called on the carpet for it. That's my experience. In the 60's and 70's, everyone had a drink; few in my family's circle got drunk, though, and it was frowned upon.

I've known individual instances of teetotalers and instances of a glass of wine a day. I've never been in a congregation where it was much discussed openly, though when people talked about it they thought as long as you were not obviously drunk it was fine. Being a little inebriated was thought of as humorous (oh, isn't that silly of them!), and it only happened "by accident" - no heavy duty alcholics in my immediate family or circle.

My grandfather would drink to an extent that I thought of us more than usual - a scotch and soda or a beer each night, though i suspect later when everyone was in bed he would go for another.

Kids always experimented (teenage kids), and I knew a couple of my peers (15-16 at the time) who would get drunk when they could sneak the beer - but they were not baptized, just sons of elders (should I mentinon one of them made a pass at me?? Ah, those sons of preacher men!). This was rare, though, in my age group - we were too "straight and narrow", most of us.

79

Spirituality

by Aleman in

why care about spiritual things?

i see most of all of you speak in different opinions of what is or may be true spiritual things (while a few ar just freezing cold or dead spiritualy), but i ask all of you, why even bother to care or pretend to care of spiritual things?.

-aleman.

VoidEater

An additional thought: since I find the realm of experience to be quite a different domain to that of intellect, for me there is a wealth of spirit to be found within the domain of experience; however, the meaning of it - which is a data construct to me - is in the domain of intellect, and quite apart from the essence of the spirit.

Intellect seems highly personal, born of the physical brain we each have. The meanings we come away with - even from the self-same experience of spirit - can be highly individualized and must be left to the individual interpreting.

I generally feel, though, that when I go to the well of spirit that I am experiencing the same thing that others experience.

Namaste - I honor that place within you that, when I am in that place within me, we are in the same place.

I grok that.

OK, now you know my age and the books I was teething on growing up...

22

Must JWs Confirm They're JWs?

by Simon G Best in

i was just wondering.

is there some sort of doctrine, or belief, principle, rule or whatever, that says that jehovah's witnesses, when asked, must confirm that they're jehovah's witnesses?

(one possible basis for such a rule, that comes to mind, is the bit about peter denying jesus three times before the cock crowed.).

VoidEater

Hi Blues: Remember who we're dealing with - hypocrisy is their middle name. To answer about:

"doctrine, or belief, principle, rule"

...you have to go to what they are telling people to do rather explicitly. The latest "new light" really is quite different from past doctrine (pretty old WT to quote from when so much has changed). Dealing with the:

"...or whatever"

...part, sure there are lots of basic ethical standards Christians should uphold - honesty and integrity not being the least, and the specifics of proclaiming yourself to be one of Jehovah's people ("Witnessing about Jehovah") being at the forefront. That was the whole point with Malawi, with WWII...hmm, but not anymore.

That was then, this is now. No one should be lulled into a false sense of security that they will be dealt with honestly or ethically in this new age of "theocratic warfare". Clearly Witnesses now have permission to lie.

Should they answer honestly? Yes. Would a true Christian or witness of God do so? Sure. Is there a specific docttine you can count on today? Doesn't look like it.