Awakened at Gilead

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Posts by Awakened at Gilead

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  129

  Why I am an atheist

  by Awakened at Gilead in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  someone (a born-again exjw) on youtube asked me why i was an atheist... i crafted a brief response... it follows:.

  1. religious reason: there is no proof for god outside of the bible.

  once i dropped my belief in the bible, the judeo-christian concept of god fell apart like a house of cards.

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  Awakened at Gilead

  OTWO:Now, which is easier to help a believer, especially a JW? To say the Bible is fairytales or to say that "You don't have the truth." ?
  Easier to demonstrate the lack of truth to the believer, or to examine them by their own standard, then to afterward show them why it is so easy to reveal their lack of truth by their Bible because the Bible is fairytales.

  Paul:I guess then that the question then comes as to what is Lance's agenda in disproving the JW's as far as the bible is concerned. I have always been able to see why someone who believes in another version of scripture would want to disprove an alternative view, such as JW's, mormons or whoever. Their agenda is to 'save their life'. I cannot however understand why an atheist would want to represent an alternative scriptural view on a point.

  OTWO:Plus, Jw's use the Bible to condemn everyone else, so it is important to show them how it can condemn them.

  Paul:I can see that point of view, but isn't that just tit for tat? It's as if you're saying they knock me with the bible, so i'll knock them. So again it comes down to the agenda.

  Again, I am sharing my personal journey. In my videos I make it clear that "when I arrived at these conclusions at Gilead, I was scared to question the truth".

  What is my agenda? To help people out of the mind control. Since making my videos 2 months ago, which have garnered 18,000 views already, I have received a number of emails and messages from JWs and ExJWs thanking me for them. Several have indicated that I had nmore credibility in their eyes than a R&F JW since I was a Gilead missionary.

  My aim is not to get active diehard dubbies out... the people I hope to help are:

  1. Doubting JWs (a number of whom have told me how helpful my few vids have been)

  2. DFd JWs, who may be either trying to go back or living with the guilt

  3. Inactive JWs, who again are living with guilt

  4. ExJWs such as yourself who no longer believe in the WTS, and enjoy watching vids that debunk the WTS, perhaps from a different perspective.

  The diehard obedient dub should NOT be on YouTube, and therefore are not my target. Dubs who watch my video are likely secretly in category #1 above, and thus will be helped by my vids along with a multitude of other resources.

  I also am writing a book, and by having created these videos, I hope to create an audience for the book which will help to disseminate increased consciousness about what is wrong with the WTS.

  Does being an atheist in some way disqualify me from discussing the Bible?

  FYI, when I was doubting JWs, an atheist in my college classes presented some scriptures that I had a hard time defending as a JW. His efforts played an important role in my exit. I wish to do the same service for my fellow bOrg members who wish to leave the cult.

  Cheers!
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  129

  Why I am an atheist

  by Awakened at Gilead in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  someone (a born-again exjw) on youtube asked me why i was an atheist... i crafted a brief response... it follows:.

  1. religious reason: there is no proof for god outside of the bible.

  once i dropped my belief in the bible, the judeo-christian concept of god fell apart like a house of cards.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  Awakened at Gilead

  What i find hard to understand about your channel, is that if you are an atheist then why do you use the bible to critique JW's?

  Surely by representing an alternative biblical argument to a JW is futile if you do not believe that yourself? It's like using one set of lies to rebut another set of lies.

  If you want to discuss a JWs beliefs, you must use what they believe in. They believe in the Bible and the WT pubs.

  Think about it... on this board, how many times do we quote WT pubs? Do we believe them? No! But we can quote the WT to show what is wrong with their beliefs.

  Furthermore, my channel is describing my exodus from the WT... the angle is: What made a Gilead student question the WT? The answer is that the Bible did... I saw that the Bible had a message distanct from the WT... so that is the angle in my vids. There is no contradiction.

  I make no secret of my atheism in YouTube. I have also indicated that once I finish my set of videos about my exit from the Watchtower, I will fiollow up with a set of videos about why I became atheist... I will also use the Bible in these, ala "Scriptures for an atheist exJW"...
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  129

  Why I am an atheist

  by Awakened at Gilead in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  someone (a born-again exjw) on youtube asked me why i was an atheist... i crafted a brief response... it follows:.

  1. religious reason: there is no proof for god outside of the bible.

  once i dropped my belief in the bible, the judeo-christian concept of god fell apart like a house of cards.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  Awakened at Gilead

  awakened: Yes fjtoth, that is exactly what I am saying.

  fjtoth: So, which is it? First you say it's "ignorance" period, and now you say it's ignorance concerning evolution.

  Look at my posts. I am merely saying that you have demonstrated ignorance regarding evolution. I am not calling you ignorant. There are many things that I am ignorant about, as can be said about anyone. When did I say "ignorance, period"?

  You stated that you did not agree with blind chance. That is the same argument that the WT uses:

  *** w05 2/1 p. 6 How Precious Is Your Life? ***

  Do not be misled by the assertions of people who deny that there is a Creator. According to them, blind, impersonal forces of nature made you.

  *** g79 1/8 p. 6 Convincing Evidence From Sound Reasoning ***

  How did all this precision and complexity arise? Is it the result of “blind chance” operating over billions and billions of years?

  *** g90 1/22 p. 11 Fraud in Science—The Greatest Fraud of All ***

  ‘But does not this leave life on earth without a Creator-Designer?’ you ask. ‘None needed,’ evolutionists answer. ‘It is in the lap of chance. Blind chance is the designer. We call it Natural Selection.’

  This last quote totally misleads the reader into thinking that some evolutionist actually says that we are the product of blind chance. Natural Selection is NOT blind chance. Anyone who makes that claim is ignorant (IMHO) of the processes that are behind the theory of evolution.
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  129

  Why I am an atheist

  by Awakened at Gilead in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  someone (a born-again exjw) on youtube asked me why i was an atheist... i crafted a brief response... it follows:.

  1. religious reason: there is no proof for god outside of the bible.

  once i dropped my belief in the bible, the judeo-christian concept of god fell apart like a house of cards.

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  Awakened at Gilead

  Yes fjtoth, that is exactly what I am saying. Unless you post something to the contrary, you have demonstrated ignorance about evolution.

  BTW, which god do you believe in?
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  129

  Why I am an atheist

  by Awakened at Gilead in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  someone (a born-again exjw) on youtube asked me why i was an atheist... i crafted a brief response... it follows:.

  1. religious reason: there is no proof for god outside of the bible.

  once i dropped my belief in the bible, the judeo-christian concept of god fell apart like a house of cards.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  Awakened at Gilead

  fjtoth:Those in this thread who have labeled believers as "ignorant" have identified themselves as atheists, not as anti-theists

  Since I used the term "ignorance" in my response to you, are you referring to my post?

  A@G:Again, your ignorance of basic evolutionary theory, to which I as a neophyte stake no claim to being an expert, is staggering.

  Referring to the ignorance of someone on a particular subject is not the same as labelling a person ignorant. You come across as knowledgable in many points, so I could hardly call you ignorant. There are many subjects that I may be ignorant about, but I don't consider myself an ignorant person. I was pointing out that if you refer to evolution as "blind chance", which you did, you are ignorant about how the theory of evolution works. This does not mean that you are not knowledgeable about other subjects.
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  129

  Why I am an atheist

  by Awakened at Gilead in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  someone (a born-again exjw) on youtube asked me why i was an atheist... i crafted a brief response... it follows:.

  1. religious reason: there is no proof for god outside of the bible.

  once i dropped my belief in the bible, the judeo-christian concept of god fell apart like a house of cards.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  Awakened at Gilead

  Maj, you are using a strawman, as far as I can tell....

  I did not use the 1st quoted line. And I did not claim that life arose by chance (none of my statements address abiogenesis). If you are referring to evolution, see my comments to fjtoth.

  I am not saying that you have to believe in anythjing... but let's say that:

  1. A deity create the physical universe (a possibility that I do not deny)

  2. A deity caused life to begin about 3 billion years ago (IMHO, a less likely possibility, but given your question, let's have a go, shall we?)

  Using my logic, does that translate into the Biblical God? the Christian God? any other concept of God? What is your concept of God given that you suppose that abiogenesis did not occur?
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  34

  EXOTIC WATCHTOWERS

  by cameo-d in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  i am inspired to start this topic because of something i stumbled across in an answer to parakeet on another thread.. he has some deruta majolica.

  this is the heraldy crest for the deruta family.

  it has a very exotic looking watchtower as its central theme.. i believe i have seen in a photograph somewhere, a similar one that actually exists.. i wonder what sinister meanings lurk behind the concept of watchtowers.. there has to be something very evil here since one of the most vile religions i know of has named its foundation after this structure.. let's see what we come up with.. .

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  Awakened at Gilead

  I'm with quirky on this one, can we get the erotic Watchtowers?
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  129

  Why I am an atheist

  by Awakened at Gilead in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  someone (a born-again exjw) on youtube asked me why i was an atheist... i crafted a brief response... it follows:.

  1. religious reason: there is no proof for god outside of the bible.

  once i dropped my belief in the bible, the judeo-christian concept of god fell apart like a house of cards.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  Awakened at Gilead

  A man whose mind is closed can easily explain away any and all evidence that God exists.

  A man whose mind is closed can easily explain away any and all evidence that God does NOT exist.

  Earth's great age and complexity point to a designer.

  That is a large assumption. It takes an open mind to consider the possibility that this assumption may not be true.

  series of blind non-directed accidents

  This shows your ignorance of how evolution and natural selection works. May I suggest you do some research on evolution before you use a WT-style attack on it?

  Long after I'm gone, he will still be here, performing marvelous wonders

  Can you name one of the wonders that he IS doing right now?

  All around us, the evidence is that nature is dying, not evolving upward.

  Evolution requires death in order to occur. Natural selection is focused on improving reproductive chances, not extending life. Again, your ignorance of basic evolutionary theory, to which I as a neophyte stake no claim to being an expert, is staggering.

  atheists try so hard to refute something that they don't believe even exists.

  This was the response to a born-again exJW who asked me to explain my position. This is my first atheist thread, as far as I can remember.

  I wonder if it's because they're not sure of their position

  I would question anyone who IS sure of their position, as in "We KNOW we have the truth". The truth is that we simply do not know the answers, and I am open to being proved wrong when the deity decides to make his identity clear. as I stated above "f. My disbelief in god is not absolute. "

  But believers continue to hang in there, and as long as that holds true atheists don't seem free to go about their lives.

  That is quite a generalization! If it makes you feel good, great! I was merely responding to a believer's question, who seems to be wavering in his faith. I, for one, am an atheist perfectly happy to go about my life and not take any mythological deity into account.
• 
  129

  Why I am an atheist

  by Awakened at Gilead in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  someone (a born-again exjw) on youtube asked me why i was an atheist... i crafted a brief response... it follows:.

  1. religious reason: there is no proof for god outside of the bible.

  once i dropped my belief in the bible, the judeo-christian concept of god fell apart like a house of cards.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  Awakened at Gilead

  Burn,

  Your concept of god, is, by definition, very limited, LOL. Who can't believe in such a god? makes perfect sense.
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  18

  How many of these people are dead?

  by rebel8 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

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  Awakened at Gilead

  I didnt get it :((((