Mad Sweeney

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Posts by Mad Sweeney

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  27

  Not called the Memorial this year?

  by jwfacts in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i just received my invitation to the memorial this year and noticed that the word memorial does not appear anywhere on the invitation.

  it refers instead to the anniversary of jesus death.

  is this a new thing, or is it always marketed as an anniversary rather than a memorial to unbelievers?.

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  Mad Sweeney

  I always felt like "The Memorial" was a sort of slang term for insiders.

  You would think the number of these invitations distributed in comparison to the number who attend would snap some of the stastically minded dubs to attention. You're looking at 5-10K invitations per congregation (the publishers get 50 each, pioneers get all they want) and they're thrilled when a handful total new people show up. That's a statistically HORRIBLE way to advertise. They could run a TV ad at 3am and get better results, if attendance for new people is actually the goal.

  But it isn't.

  It is an ad campaign but it is a "look at us!" ad campaign. Whether anything comes of it is of no consequence.

  In addition it is a way to control the 'belongings' by putting them all together in an organized group activity.
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  11

  How to do communion?

  by matrixx in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i was talking to a friend about the importance of doing communion.

  that it is not simply the passing of the bread and the wine as an observer but the partaking of the emblems.

  she asked, " how often do you do communion?

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  Mad Sweeney

  I think ritual is important to some people to help build their spiritual relationship with their God.

  I don't think God or Jesus really cares though.
• 
  16

  "The point is that earthquakes are common and always have been,"

  by purplesofa in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  survivors shiver in turkey after quake kills 51by burhan ozbilici and suzan fraser, associated press writersmon mar 8, 3:39 pm etokcular, turkey hundreds of earthquake survivors huddled in aid tents and around bonfires monday in eastern turkey, seeking relief from the winter cold after a strong temblor knocked down stone and mud-brick houses in five villages, killing 51 people.http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100308/ap_on_re_eu/eu_turkey_earthquake/print;_ylt=aovcmz.3hc_i9x940453ssxbbbaf;_ylu=x3odmtbvajzzatfybhbvcwmxnqrzzwmddg9wbhnsawnwcmluda--.

  monday's quake in eastern turkey followed deadly recent temblors in haiti and chile, but bernard doft, the seismologist for the royal netherlands meteorological institute in utrecht, said there was no direct connection between the three.. "these events are too far apart to be of direct influence to each other," he said.. richard luckett, a seismologist from the british geological survey, said there has not been a spike in global seismic activity.. "if there was a big increase in the number of magnitude 6.0s in the past decade we would know it, because we would see it in the statistics," luckett said.

  "we haven't seen an increase in 7.0s either.".

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  Mad Sweeney

  Anyone who has taken a freshman level geology class learns this. It's yet another reason (in addition to freshman sociology and psychology classes) why the borg opposes college education so vehemently.
• 
  99

  Outsiders of JWN

  by Yizuman in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  does anyone feel threatened by outsiders of the jw world?

  does it matter if anyone never has been a jw?.

  what about those who have family members who are one, but not they themselves?

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  Mad Sweeney

  "Mad Sweeney's Solicitation List

  ASK FOR MONEY:

  Mouthy

  DO NOT ASK FOR MONEY:

  Shamus, Outlaw"

  Seriously, it is one thing to clown around and act like a kid for fun. It is another thing completely to act like children in all self-righteous judgmental seriousness. Get over yourselves. I feel like I'm at the friggin' Kingdom Hall!!!
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  18

  Will the FDS start demanding a "pledge"?

  by hamsterbait in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  remember how the bible students had to make a pledge, among other things "never to be alone in a room with a member of the opposite sex, except a sister, mother or daughter?".

  do you think they will start to demand a "pledge of alliegance" to the borganisation?.

  will those refusing to make it then be summaraily df, since they have shown by their refusal, that they do not believe that the gibbering buddy, is the appointed "fds" of matthew 25.. how likely is this do you think?.

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  Mad Sweeney

  They make some sort of dopey group vow at almost every District Convention in the form of a "Resolution" that nobody really listens to before agreeing to en masse.
• 
  8

  Got a few hours to kill?? READ THIS!

  by Terry in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  --buckaroo 14:56, 10 november 2005 (utc) your response to the original post was that this doesn't read like "a fair and unbiased representation of the facts.

  do you have a better, more accurate version of the story?

  "tommstein 09:04, 14 november 2005 (utc) i don't need to have a, "more accurate version of the story," to tell when an individual's opinion is being presented as fact.

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  Mad Sweeney

  I couldn't finish it, Terry.

  Apparently they'll let just anyone become a Wikipedia editor.
• 
  25

  Jehovah's Witnesses do NOT claim to be prophets!!! Stop saying that!!!

  by sd-7 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  from the prophetic shadows to the actual realities we observe that this god-provided channel for christians is the collective congregation of anointed ones who serve as a prophetlike organization under the leadership of its communicating head, christ jesus.. ...the word then became flesh to dwell among men as jehovahs greatest prophet or channel of communication to convey priceless words of wisdom directly to honest men.. .

  ...preparation of prophetical organization.

  11 like the prophets noah, elijah, elisha and john the baptist, jesus, the prophet, gathered disciples around him and trained them to become preachers.

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  Mad Sweeney

  For hamsterbait, a theory: The April-May magazines are actually written and finalized in the dead of winter when the borg leadership are suffering from S.A.D.
• 
  46

  When do you know you are a JW apostate?

  by dissed in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  you know you are a jw apostate when..... .

  your fellow jw's mates that are df'd for drug abuse, drunkeness, and wild sex orgies refuse to talk to you because you are bad association.. you know you are a jw apostate when....... you come by to visit your jw parents, they open the door and say they are not interested.. you know you are a jw apostate when........ the wts takes your contribution for the wwf but refuses to send you a thank you letter.. you know you are a jw apostate when....... you can buy tupperware at a yard sale and not worry it has a demon preserved inside.. you know you are a jw apostate when........ you can visit jwn and not feel guillty for weeks at a time.

  you know you are a jw apostate when......... the girls at the kh find you more mysterious and sexy now that your df'd.

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  Mad Sweeney

  You know you're a JW apostate (still fading) when...

  you are strongly considering a prayer, a cracker and a cup of wine secretly at home after the Memorial.
• 
  5

  Good article on Scientologists

  by JeffT in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  it's four pages, seems to long to cut and paste.

  but worth reading, we aren't alone.

  http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/07/us/07scientology.html?pagewanted=1&ref=todayspaper.

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  Mad Sweeney

  Wow. Just change some of the terminology and this could be an article about a couple of ex-Dub Bethelites.
• 
  76

  With Heavy Heart

  by PSacramento in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  sometimes we find a place and it feels like home, it is accepting and understanding.. then, sometimes, that place becomes cold and inhospitible.. when i first joined here i felt i have found a good place.. people like narkissos, leolaia and others impressed me with their knowledge of scripture and motivated me to learn more for myself.. others touched me with the stories of their pan and hurt, pain and hurt that i was feeling also.. i don't think i ever offended anyone with my views on christianity and if i have i sincerly apologise for that was not my intent.. but things change and sometimes home isn't home anymore.... this site had been invalable to me for my understanding what is wrong with the jw's relgion and the wt, it has strengthened my faith and belief.. here i found people of religon, faith and love.. here i found agnostics and athiest that challenged my views and made me question, they made me a believe via reason and not "blind faith".. for that, i thank all of you, especially the "jeff's" ( ak and alltime), i also say a special thanks to leavingthewt, many of his posts made me feel welcomed and made me think and be a better person.. chalam, bts, dd and so many others, i thank you from my heart for your kind words over these many months.. people like mary and sylvia and so many others filled my heart with love with their stories.. all the best to you my dear brothers and sisters.. .

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  Mad Sweeney

  Cold and inhospitable?

  Let me know who's picking on you and I'll have someone lean on him.

  Seriously, you're a valued person here (I feel like everyone is, from the most lucid to the goofiest nutjob). No need to go anyplace. Need a break? That's cool. But no need to leave for good.