Posts by freddo

22

V's memorial teaser - its time to get busy with your email campaigns :-)

by besty in

they had better wine glasses at this hall, but otherwise everything was the same.

we had one at our hall last year.

so the people in the side rows get to hold the wine glass twice.

freddo

"... plus I had the new song book"

At last years memorial?

11

Too Many In The Car

by Broken Promises in

for a period of time when i was a jw, i lived with a family of jws.

they had 2 young children under 12. the family were good friends with another jw family who had 3 children under 12. .

so were talking about 5 kids under 12, this will be important later.. .

As a kid I used to sit with a friend on a cushion in the very back of Dad's estate car (station-wagon) with no seatbelts while the grown ups sat in the 5 seats. No seatbelts in the rear but two in the front. We would travel on holiday or to assemblies like this - it was the norm.

Then when seatbelts and insurance limitations got stricter we might risk it for short journeys. Now I won't drive without a seatbelt done up and I won't carry anyone in the very back (if I had an estate car). It's legality and liability as well as safety that bother me.

I personally don't see a huge risk (in chances of a bad enough accident terms happening on that rare unbuckled journey) in riding unrestrained but it's a good habit to get into.

But it can get ridiculous - I had a car where we went to pick someone up and the seatbelt clip broke as one of my kids tried to buckle up. So I have a choice - make them walk with me or my wife for five miles home or take the chance. I took the chance and would again. But got the belt fixed immediately and only used the 4 working ones until it was repaired. My current car is 5 years old and has airbags too - the side impact ones are not a legal requirement and if one packed in I wouldn't worry about replacing it.

In the OP's situation with other peoples kids I would stand my ground or offer two journey's if it was a short hop like you did. No one - especially the car owner - should be forced to go against their personal wishes on health and safety.

57

New light on blood?

by Mickey mouse in

this is prompted by barbara's new article at freeminds and a message someone sent to my youtube account a month ago.. there are rumours that there will be "new light" this year about blood transfusions.

if this happens, i for one will be speaking up and asking who is accountable for all the lives lost due to the wt's death dealing policy.

this is an opportunity for all those who still have some connections with jws to make people think..

freddo

Some good stuff in your posts guys and gals. Some of which mirrors my views below. Me? After the great Pio Hours reducing to 55 "certainty" I am a little more wary. But ...

What motivates the GB? - consciously or otherwise - as a collective whole. Imagine your body of elders as a board of directors with more talent for climbing the greasy pole and the ability to realise they will die as humans. They probably, as a group believe they are directed by Jehovah. Remember the GB do not believe they will live forever on paradise earth. Unlike we did.

In no particular order the first three are IMO:- 1. Retaining authority, power and position over a steadily increasing "organization"

2. Reflecting Jehovah's will (with a huge investment in old testament values) 3. $$$$$$! (Their control over it as a group)

Then certain individuals will wish to:- Care for the flock/Air their own pet peeves/have their own agenda

So where does keeping the blood ban fit in:

Plusses -

1. Doing Jah's will (according to their mad interpretation)/ keeping them in power and not having people leave

2. They have persuaded themselves that blood is medically bad for people (and this may be true in some elective non emergency situations)

Minuses -

1. Places like Russia and France use it to restrict jw expansion

2. It slows outside growth to a standstill in the West

3. It costs money/time in HLC's; lawsuits etc etc.

So what to do:-

Keep on as they are and slowly release the reins. The obvious one to me is to make the "four major components" acceptable as they have done with haemogoblin. In the West that opens up all the life saving measures of blood and they don't care as much about Africa (Malawi anyone?) do they?

Then later they can withdraw the HLC involvement to advice to tell the brothers they would be wise to follow their physicians' guidance as long as they do not have "whole blood". They can tell elders to back off.

They won't - because they are takers - but they could use old testament passages such as selling blood filled carcasses to the nations to justify giving blood or Saul's men eating along with the blood with little sanction in a non emergency situation to justify having large fractions too.

I would feel my family were much safer if they dropped the 4 main components ban and I hope they do - it's the most I can expect within the next, say five years and it will come with a "dealing with modern medical complexities" is not our focus justification.

32

Former/Active District Overseer Arrested For Child Porn on Laptop In The UK

by jookbeard in

breaking news on exjw cafe, anyone can shed any light on this?.

freddo

Bump

30

armageddon, fred franz and the year 2000 - questions

by Aussie Oz in

i have read that fred franz said armageddon would come by/in 2000.... been through search and the cd library but other than quotes of how bad the world will be by then, i cant seem to find anything.. any help?.

oz.

freddo

I have the single issue 1/1/89 printed in English. and it says "completed in our 20th century". Bound volume was changed.

26

Is it my imagination or is there more Apostasy about?

by freddo in

jw
friends

here in the uk over the last couple of years i hear more about people leaving/being removed due to apostasy?

do you think this is true or is it because my radar is up and listening?.

.

freddo

Here in the UK over the last couple of years I hear more about people leaving/being removed due to apostasy? Do you think this is true or is it because my radar is up and listening?

How about where you are?

55

BOE on Disfellowshiped Relatives

by JWFreak in

jw
friends

again...please do not request a pdf scan these are interbranch copies not the same ones sent to the congregations.

jwf.. january 21, 2010 .

to all bodies of elders .

freddo

As an ex-elder I can say that this letter rings true and I too have known the politics that go on in these circumstances. This is how it goes:-

Elder 1: Lots of bros and sis in the cong are concerned that Johnny Knobthruster is back in the family home.

Elder 2: But he has got mental issues and suicidal thoughts.

Elder 3: It don't stop him going clubbing with his on the "edge of the troof" friends; there is a element of leaven going on I think.

Elder 4: Well his Dad (Elder 5) is very useful on the Regional Building Committee

Elders 1 and 3: Why don't we bounce it off of the CO?

CO Pilate: Hmmm! Why not ask the Service Desk?

Elder 1: (To service, weighting the thing towards his personal view) "... and so the brothers are very concerned."

Anon. Service Desk heavy: "Well the elders need to meet to consider the situation and Elder 5's privileges" ()

All 4 elders hijack Elder 5 who hasn't a clue what's been brewing.

The decision depends on: -

Does Elder 5 need to have Johnny K in the house? As decided by the body of elders majority view as swayed by the strongest personalities with input from the CO and Service. If the elders buck the system and support him then the CO at the very least will take them off err overlook giving them circuit assembly talk privileges and at worst will manouvre things to remove Elder 5 at his next visit.

Possible outcomes:-

A) Elder 5 sees the light - kicks JK to the kerb and stays on the body

B) Elder 5 sees the light - kicks JK to the kerb and gets booted because he should have cleared JK's return to the family home beforehand

C) Elder 5 sees nothing - appeals in the vain hope that he will be exhonerated and gets booted anyway

D) Elder 5 really sees the light; sticks two fingers up to the body of elders and fades away.

Or a mixture of the above!

22

My almost 80 year old elderly JW father is getting remarried.....

by skeeter1 in

jw
friends

a wedding is in the works for my dad!

he's been very lonely since my mother's death.

the bride's in her 80's, and a lonely jw who lost her husband a few years back.

freddo

I think you did put doubts in his mind - as did his life's experience too. Well, good for you skeeter and good for them too.

6

Special Radio Drive for Lawrence Hughes

by Dr_Derrick in

jw
friends

insight on the word radio will be airing a five day event to help former jw lawrence hughes continue his fight against the watchtower society.

thanks to joe emerson who provided me some news, i like to pass this on...lawrence hughes who is suing watchtower attorneys over death of his daughter (blood transfusion issue) needs to raise $10,000 in the next few weeks to be able to continue the lawsuit which is a battle to save the lives of other jw kids too!

this is a very crucial moment for all concerned which is the reason for this special presentation of insight on the word radio, starting tonight at 11 pm u.s. eastern time (10 pm central, 9 pm mountain and 8 pm pacific).

freddo

I believe that all blood matters should be a "matter of conscience" in emergencies and that the decision of what constitutes an emergency should be left to the patient and his/her doctors with no interference from WTBTS aka "the organization." I believe there is scriptural support for this in the old testament where no one seemed to receive a death penalty for eating blood when famished and were allowed to sell blood-filled animal carcases to the surrounding nations. I also believe that in the new testament that the abstaining from blood is a dietary/worship matter not a medical life saving one.

If Lawrence Hughes is successful in pushing towards this goal then I wish him all the best. On a personal level I cry for him as I could so easily be in the same position if either my (now adult) son or daughter should take a "firm stand" against blood - I would be desperate that I had brought up my children to believe this is what God wants of them when I now don't believe this at all.

On this particular case with Bethany having received many transfusions as ward of court and dieing anyway - well, what a tragedy for all concerned.

107

Remember when assemblies were fun?

by Aphrodite in

jw
friends

i just remembered when i was a kid and we would go to the assembly, it was fun because we got to buy new clothes and put extra effort into looking good.

when we would get there you could save your seats and even save some for your friends, then go off looking for them.. i used to love our circuit assembly because of the food.

it was at the assembly hall and there was a big kitchen, some of my favourite brothers worked in that kitchen, sometimes i was allowed to go in and help.

freddo

Before they built the Bristol Assembly Hall and when I was living in Somerset we used to have circuit assemblies at Pontin's Brean Holiday Camp. As a late teenager this was fun. Some of us would go in an old car that one of us owned - another group would ride their motorbikes and we would share a chalet which was hilarious. It was always a windswept November or February too.

Program

Friday night - bag a bunkbed feed the electricity meter with 10p coins, turn on the two-bar fire and go over to the main hall (which still had posters up from the Worldly entertainment) for entertainment where the brothers were allowed to serve tea and cakes and put on bible based skits and plays from 8pm to 10pm. Skive out early at about 9.30 and walk out of the camp to the "Beachcomber pub" and knock back a few pints of Bass bitter until closing time and play "Space Invaders" at 20p a go.

Saturday - big fry up breakfast, put on checked jacket, massive shirt collar and tie knot and turn-up flared brown trousers, hair as long as we dared with centre parting of wavy hair with massive shoes that looked like lifeboats and go and grab some seats while checking out the girlies in their platform shoes and tight fitting outfits. (Think Farrah Fawcett styles)

Sessions - where we would pass notes to one another and get told off by the zealous attendants all the way through.

Saturday evening back over the pub - limit ourselves to 5 pints (don't want to get a bad name for Jah!) - playing darts or cards or just chatting.

Saturday evening run the gauntlet of the gatehouse security who would shut the gate at 11pm unless you could sweet talk your way in.

(Baptism - wow some of those girls wore the skimpiest of bikini's before the great T shirt clampdown that came later.)

Sunday morning - up late grab a coffee and skate into the sessions. We had David Algar as DO who would wear jeans to walk about the place after the sessions - who gave brilliant talks then.

Sunday lunchtime - last chance to get phone numbers of the sisters.

Sunday tea time - drive home with a David Bowie tape blaring out of the massive speakers in our Vauxhall Viva or Ford Cortina.

I loved those assemblies. Some of my mates from back then are out and some are in and I'm in the middle.