many of you pagans get your spirituality, or a portion of it from nature.
which nature objects/places work the best for you?
i'm into rivers, trees, flowers and sunsets.
I'm with Larry....the STARS are simply incredible.
Try to look at them on a cool (or cold) night, when the air is still. If you can, get away from towns or cities or other sources of light pollution. Give your eyes some time in the dark to adjust. It's good for perscpective.
how do you feel about your friends you left behind and in the organisation and who now shun you?
do you feel they are still your friends, and are just doing what they think is right?
would you ,if shunning was dropped and they now wanted to have contact again accept them back as friends?edited by - sleepy on 18 august 2002 10:14:43.
I miss them. Actually, I'm not shunned because I was never a real JW, but they still feel uneasy around me, since I made a big exit. I'm sure they feel like they SHOULD be shunning me, but the WT rules don't apply.
I miss them, and I pity them...as I see them squandering their lives and talents by living the JW lie. We had some great times together as teenagers, and I'm glad for those memories. It seems that my memories of those days differ in context from my friends'. But that's OK, since the price I paid was a comfortable JW ignorance, and the prize I gained was truth.
I love them, and I hope they both: wake up from the JW lie, and piece together a life upon acknowledging that lie and deal with the truth the best they can.
I won't count on that happening. But I will be a better friend than the WT will ever allow them to be.
i'm giving up smoking on the 22nd.
it will be the third time, but this time as part of a government sponsored training course with drugs and patches supplied etc.
anyone else given up and got any helpfull advise?.
I was a chewer....so, some things are different, but I definately understand the nicotine buzz/addiction.
I quit almost a year ago, what it took was...a scare.
I had some intense, detailed dreams about having mouth/throat caner. Scared the crap outta me. I woke up determined to kick the habit. So far...I have. Fear, it turns out, is a strong motivator. My advice...
Get scared.
the following quote is taken from the september 15, 2002 edition of the watchtower, p.16-18:.
"in the first century, such individuals as hymanaeus, alexander, and philetus, were advocating ideas that did not fit "the pattern of healthful words.
" (1 timothy 1:18-20; 2 timothy 2:16,17) how could the early christians avoid being led astray by apostates?
Ha, ya just gotta LOVE all that word twisting...they've turned 'Be Like the Beroeans' into...
'Don't Be Like the Beroeans'....pathetic.
these poor bastards.
wonder if any of them are actually jw elders.. http://www.switchboard.com/bin/cgiqa.dll?sr=&mem=1&lnk=3%3a154&f=j.w.&l=elder&t=&s=&search.x=0&search.y=0.
tr
Even if they really are...so what?! You should see who they're making elders out of around here! I can't believe I used to be afraid of these jokers. Oh well...there's so much to be said for a little thing called perspective. I'm so glad I finally stumbled upon some.
"what's your theory on the other planets in the throne of heavens?
we can only guess, cause no man is able to understand the truth about the fathers wonderful creation"
If physical life is out there somewhere, and we want to find it, we'd better be lookin' at where good old H20 can be found. Europa? Mars' polar caps? Reason is...water, and ONLY water is suitable to carry out certain biochemical reactions during cellular respiration.
the fds has been a flexible type of entity, that has evolved as time has gone along and folks have died.what will it go to next?.
it started off being a single man...the president of the wts.
death and disappointment resulted in the fds title being passed from president to president.
I wonder if they (GB) ever considered returning to the original doctrine of ONE MAN being the 'slave'.
It would be a great way to consolidate power if things ever got shaky in Bethel. They could go back to the old...'it turns out Russell was right ALL ALONG!! Isn't new light wonderful, brothers?'
If this went down, it's obvious who would wear the crown...Teddy-Boy, right.
But, I don't think that nowadays, with information flowing as it does, I don't think that one man as the FDS could withstand the scrutiny. I think the GB likes their safety in numbers. Just a thought.
some historians date the beginning of the end of the soviet empire to the chernobyl disaster, for the reason that for several days after the explosion, as the radioactive cloud floated quietly over europe, the soviet government said nothing to warn people of the dangers that may have minimized some of the exposure.
it ruined their credibility, from which they never recovered.
presently, the whole capitalist system has an even worse credibility problem.
So, the question is: Does Jehovah still merit our faith and trust?
Maybe He does. How does the WTS feel about it? What has the 'Faithful Slave' been teaching the sheep?
But, now, there are millions of Jehovah's Witnesses who claim to have faith in Jehovah, but who are more or less followers of the Watchtower Society.
Thank's for answering that. But....they were supposed to teach people to build their faith in Jehovah and his Christ, weren't they? How did the opposite happen?
Of course, loyalty and devotion are two separate things and it is possible to be loyal to the Society without having our faith bound by their every utterance.
Of course, the WTS does not agree with your statement, here. And THAT'S how JWs were/are taught to build their faith, can you deny that? Why else would they be in a position of misplaced faith?! Under penalty of disfellowshipping and shunning, Jehovah's 'slave' has demanded just that - JW's are, in fact, 'bound by their every utterance'. And you actually believe that Jehovah would hold deceived JWs at fault because they exactly gave both loyalty AND devotion to the men who demanded it? I smell a double set of scales.
Edited by - hybridous on 26 June 2002 10:43:30
Edited by - hybridous on 26 June 2002 12:33:48
late last night, i made a grilled cheese sandwhich and stuck "wayne's world" in the vcr.
i've seen it dozens of times, but it never stops being funny!
and i thought about how clever mike meyers is to come up with such a great character like wayne campbell... then i thought about austin powers and the fact that part three is coming out soon!
Were you looking at my bum?! You bumlooker! You cheeky monkey!
late last night, i made a grilled cheese sandwhich and stuck "wayne's world" in the vcr.
i've seen it dozens of times, but it never stops being funny!
and i thought about how clever mike meyers is to come up with such a great character like wayne campbell... then i thought about austin powers and the fact that part three is coming out soon!
Remember this?
'Velcome to Shprokets....I am your host, Dieter.'
I hope I'm not dating myself, here.
