A Science lesson is there to teach what is science, creationism isn't science it is an alternative point of view and therefore should not be taught in science. Schools do not have the unlimited time and resources to teach every single religious perspective, good grief teachers have enough to do. If parents want their children to learn alternative viewpoints they have weekends and evenings to do it in their own time.
Posts by nugget
-
77Should Creationism Ever Be Taught In Schools?
by nicolaou inthis is taken from the bbc's sunday morning show 'the big questions'.
i was going to pick out a few highlights but really, you need to watch the whole thing - it's only 23 minutes.
seriously, i could feel the bile and frustration rising in my gullet .
-
-
-
77
Should Creationism Ever Be Taught In Schools?
by nicolaou inthis is taken from the bbc's sunday morning show 'the big questions'.
i was going to pick out a few highlights but really, you need to watch the whole thing - it's only 23 minutes.
seriously, i could feel the bile and frustration rising in my gullet .
-
-
nugget
I found the programme fascinating some of the religious element especially those in support of creationism came across as extreme and unbalanced making some bizarre statements. This desire to influence children constantly is bordering on the hysterical. Religion is a personnal matter and although it is part of school to educate about society which includes what people in society may believe it is not the role of school to indoctrinate.
Creationism as established in the programme is a viewpoint of some religious people but not all, after all religions cover a wide spectrum of beliefs so to teach just one idea is ludicrous. It is up to each religion to explain their doctrine within their setting, that is their job. School can only cover a very broad view of different beliefs they have neither the time nor the resources to devote to specifics.
School should be a setting where children are taught information and how to examine ideas. School can present facts supported by physical evidence rather than beliefs. Lessons should be presented without an agenda and what teachers believe should not influence how a lesson is taught. A science lesson is not a place to debate religious beliefs that is RE. Pupils need to understand this as well as their parents. Teachers are presenting what has been discovered and what is understood by science in a science lesson.
In a multicultural society it is problematic to try to present everyones point of view without offending someone else. School is not a religious battleground. What parents choose to teach their children and what they expose them to outside the classroom is their choice it is wrong to try to expose all the children in the class to their point of view it is ridiculous and ill judged.
-
21
I don't love my family
by noontide inhow can i love people that dont really know me?
how can i love people i dont really know?.
thats not love.
-
-
nugget
It is little wonder that you have difficulty loving your family, the Watchtower gives us conditional parents and conditional friends. We never know the simple security of unconditional love from our parents. When you make affection conditional on belief and are taught that people can be unworthy of attention and can be cut out from life for minor religious infringements it is a form of protection to reserve love for those that will not withold it based on instructions from outside the relationship. We have a right to be loved for who we are not what we believe, we are a person not a component of a religion,
It is hard to love people who delegate their life choices to an invisible third party. Sadly we were not raised in a family but in an organisation.
-
62
Well my JW elder dad has lost his job...
by BU2B inas a little background, my dad became a jw in 1980 i think, went to bethel, married my mom in 86' went back for another year and then i came along... he worked in the auto repair shop at bethel while he was there, and upon leaving, continued working in this field.
my whole life they have been the type of jw parents that tell you how you will never get to high school, never graduate it, never get married in this system, never have children in this system etc.. i say this to illustrate the end is just around the corner attitude they have always had, probably because they fully bought/buy into the hype at the conventions/wt articles.
my father has no plan in place for retirement, and he is physically slowing down doing such hard laborious work.
-
-
nugget
It takes a lot of hard work for any arrangement such as this to be successful. If their habits are very different from yours and if they have no intention of contributing to expenses then it is likely to be a disaster that will end with you griping at one another constantly. Even when your goals are the same living in close proximity to others can be frustrating and stressful.
They are approaching your wife thinking that she is the soft option and most likely to be sympathetic. However remember when you have guests your home is not your own, you can never relax. You find that other people's clutter starts filling spaces and that you are being judged on how your spend your time and resources. Be very firm, if your parents are not at the end of their resources and they have the capacity to look after themselves then there is no necessity for you to have them live with you.
Be united and consistent. No they cannot live with you as you cannot afford to fund their lifestyle choice.
-
37
I think my fade has hit a rut. Do I need to grow a pair?
by konceptual99 inso here i am after about 18 months of wake up.
the first 6 months were a rollercoster of feelings as my whole belief system unravelled.
the last year has been more stable but things seem like they are just stalling now.. my wife is aware of many of my feelings although i have held back the fact that i am pretty close to denying all belief in any kind of god.
-
-
nugget
This is your life and only you can decide what you can tolerate and what you can't. It is easy to tell you to force the issue but you are the one living with the consequences of your decisions.
You have several issues, your own well being, the relationship with your wife and the affect of the religion on the children. It is natural in the organisation for a wife to over compensate when a husband starts to draw away from the organisation. Women have a lot invested in the society, often family and friends as well as networks of friends for the children are all tied up with the organisation. This can mean the emotional anxiety is high as if you were to quit then it might jeopardise her friendships and relationships. The intellectual arguments will be less important than the perceived loss of status and friends and it is easier to say Jehovah will sort things out rather than confront issues and risk relationships.
If you wish to continue fading then stopping service is the next step, then reducing meeting attendance further and seeing how it goes. Confrontation may just force her further into the organisation or get her to go to the elders for advice.
-
53
2014 DC: Fewer, but larger venues in the U.S.
by doinmypart inin the u.s. there are fewer venues this year, but they will be held in larger facilities.
as long as i can remember my family travelled no more than 2 hours to attend and in the last few years the dc was local (within a few minutes travel).
this year my family is driving 6 hours to a major u.s. city.
-
-
nugget
This year if you don't want to go, don't go. 12 hr round trip to sit in a stadium for 3 days is madness. I suspect that there will be quite a few who don't make it.
-
23
Some vs Many
by Londo111 init is interesting how the watchtower uses these two words.
for instance, the word some is often used to minimize, and many used to maximize.
and yet, it is so unspecific that some might be a greater quantity than many, yet the mind doesnt process these words this way.. for instance, if it is a failed prediction or a changed teaching, they might say, some believed... when it fact some means most or all, because this was food at the proper time coming from gods channel through the watchtower.
-
-
nugget
Just hate their constant abuse of the English language. Do they ever feel any shame or are they so convinced of their own infalibility that they get so tied up with the semantics that they stop feeling any real connection with the words they vomit onto the paper.
-
17
This will be fun. What is your generation count?
by Defianttruth inthe wbts teaches a overlapping (generation) will not pass away since 1914 right?.
what is your personal genealogy.
(1) my great grand father was born in 1901. he became active with the bible students around 1910. .
-
-
nugget
My husbands grandmother was born in 1912
My father was born in 1938
I was born in 1965
My daughter was born in 2000
4 generations. My Husband and I have no grandparents left alive and my children have already lost one of theirs.
The overlapping generation teaching is a travesty and shameful.
-
44
How would you answer these questions that came to me in an email through my website? ...
by AndersonsInfo inmany emails are sent to me through my website, watchtowerdocuments.com.
all are answered.
remember 1corinthians 6: 1-2 (i'll answer this question.
-
-
nugget
4. I understand your emotional feeling as a woman regarding the molestation of teenage girls and women by members of the organization and the manner the in which the policies are applied in managing the issues, but shouldn't you have waited for Jehovah's own time? Deuteronomy 32:35
The expression wait on Jehovah is often used to justify inaction suggesting that Jehovah will take action on behalf of victims either by a change of policy or by some other act of judgement. However if you look at the Bible record Jehovah has never shown acceptance or approval for this attittude. When religious leaders became corrupt and led the people in false worship then the whole nation was punnished even though the majority had merely followed the lead of those in authority or been passive and uncritical. The only ones who received Gods approval were those who had the courage to speak out against the status quo and make a stand for what is right. Each one has to render an account for himself therefore Christianity is not a passive faith but an active one in which each one must be responsible and prepared to stand for what is right. Even from a human standpoint allowing vulnerable children to be raped and molested when you have the ability to prevent it is despicable. Outside of a religious setting you wouldn't even think twice you would do all you could to prevent or report it, why should the care given to children in a religion be less then that given to children elsewhere?
5. I understand the hypocrisy you are trying to highlight but is leaving the organization a better choice? Remember John 6: 66-70; 1Samuel 16: 7-9
This question is based on the assumption that the organisation fairly represents God and is the best place to be, that all alternatives are worse. However there is no indication in the Bible that God is happy with an organisation that claims to serve him but fails to do so. Jesus didn't stick with the Jewish faith and try to reform from within his followers left the corrupt faith and set up a new one. The assumption is also made that a person who sees a problem with the society can highlight this and be listened to and be allowed to remain in the society. Firstly most ordinary members and certainly women have no authority and no voice. Even when the issue is serious the pressure is to maintain the status quo and not to bring the society into disrepute is supreme. People who wish to make changes are not welcome and not allowed to stay a part of the organisation. The most effective way to keep something quiet is to exclude the person who tries to bring it to the attention of others. This means existing members are told not to talk to the person or to pay attention to anything they write in this way their concerns are silenced. Being outside is often forced on a person not a choice a person makes.
6. What is then the hope for salvation or have you believed there is no salvation for mankind?
Biblical salvation is not the gift of men but rather God. The Bible does not direct followers to an organisation but rather towards Christ and his sacrifice. So God will deem who is worthy to receive his salvation in whatever form it takes. For some Biblical salvation is a myth no more real than any other story. These ones seek to be involved and make a difference salvation is not something given but rather something to be achieved.
9. As a man, I hate rape and child molestation, but shouldn't there be reasonable evidence to convict somebody of a crime?
As a human being I hate rape and molestation of children but do not believe that uneducated people whatever their religious conviction are best equipped to determine what has happened. Since the primary focus of elders is to determine the level of repentance and to protect the reputation of the congregation they are too invested in the outcome to be able to objectively investigate such an accusation. Reasonable evidence can be collected by police, forensics, by psychologists trained to talk to victims of child abuse and by hospital staff who can determine physical damage. They can not only examine evidence but also prosecute and thus protect other children from suffering similar abuse.
We must also consider the victim in this who can be damaged mentally and physically by going through a judicial committee. Sometimes they can be made to feel in some way responsible and because the process is there to examine repentance a victim is so concerned with showing how sorry they are to avoid being disfellowshipped that they can be left feeling tremendous guilt for their own abuse. Professional help received when reporting to the proper authorities can give the victim support so that they know that they are not to blame. In the real world saying sorry is not enough in fact it is irrelevent, in the kingdom hall it can be enough to get you a private reproof meaning a victim may be attending meetings with their abuser and not being able to tell anyone what a danger they are or warn other parents and children without being accused of reviling.
10. I understand your frustration with the two witnesses account policy but if someone denies the allegation, the organization have no means of establishing the truth without adequate evidence. In this case, shouldn't you have thought that vengeance belongs to God? Remember Romans 12: 17-19; Luke 12: 52 -59 11.
That is what the police and other experts are for.
On the issue of higher education, I do not think the organization banned members from seeking higher education. There a lot of witnesses in Nigeria that are in the higher school of learning. Except you can provide me with evidence to the contrary. What I understood was members should be careful not to be overtly pursuing higher education when they have a qualification that can provide them a basic means of sustenance e.g. if you are a degree holder, at least it could provide you a decent living so why go further when the time spent for further education can be used for God service. As an individual, I do not think anyone can talk me out of my personal dreams. The issue in religion I see amongst people generally is the application of the doctrines. Some are bigots while others are liberal.
If an elder supports a child in higher education their qualifications for oversight are reviewed. This shows how strongly the organisation feel about higher education. Does this person not attend assemblies or read the magazines or listen?
12. On the issue of flip-flops and the failure of witness message of doom, it maybe due to lack of understanding of the scripture at that time. Every day, new understanding is perceived. Remember 2Peter 3:16 13. The issues you highlighted on more dangers are baseless as I do not see anything wrong in being neutral in times of war or refusal to salute the flag. There are scriptural basis for it e.g. Isaiah 2: 2-4; Deuteronomy 4:16
It is nice that you can be so casual about the changes in doctrine and the failure in prophecy. Remember that anyone who does not believe the doctrine as writen at any time and questions it can be disfellowshipped, even if the society later changes their doctrine. People make important life decisions based on what they are told is the "truth" at any time, the consequences of such decisions can be huge. Any organisation that insists on this level of obedience also has a degree of responsibility to it's members to protect them. Since the society never apologies, admits failure or compensates members who have been harmed through following bad advice or for making poor decisions based on the societies interpretation of prophecy then they are causing unnecessary harm to their members. Flip flops are disgraceful when the society has such Draconian rules.
13. Talking about losing friends and family members as a result of associating with witnesses, I think there is also a scriptural basis for it. Matthew 10: 32-38; Luke 12: 52-53; 14: 25-27
There is no real scriptual basis for shunning. Jesus christ never shunned anyone including Judas. When Jesus said at the last supper that someone was going to betray him the disciples didn't confront Judas because Jesus had been shunning him, rather they were concerned that it wasn't themselves. They had no reason to see Judas as different. The parable of the prodigal son also indicates that forgiveness is required of Christians. The organisation tells members of the public that they should not have to choose between family and their religion and yet this is something baptised members are expected to do. The reason the organisation says something different to the public and gives a different message to it's members is because they know that such a stricture would be unpalatable to most people. It is unnatural to shun, it is bullying and unchristian it diminishes those that practice it.
-
32
Lies on the JW.org FAQ section
by EndofMysteries init's riddled with lies.
here are a few, "are you an american sect?
all of our teachings are based on the bible, not on the writings of some religious leader in the united states.1 thessalonians 2:13.. we follow jesus christ, not any human leader.matthew 23:8-10.. .
-
-
nugget
The purpose of the website is to advertise their religion and present themselves in the most favourable light.
The answers lie by omission and the use of the much abused "some people" or "most people" to indicate a viewpoint that has no reference attached to it but sounds authorative is a way of dodging harsh truths. You will always find some people who believe absolute nonsense. Some people believe the Earth is flat, some people believe the Queen is a lizard from space, some people believe in fairies. Just because some people say it it does not make it true.
The truth is Yes they are a cult since the GB in America has the final say on doctrine and failure to comply with these men is grounds for expulsion from the religion.
Yes only JWs are expected to be saved non JWs even children are expected to die. The millions who have already died will be saved is smoke and mirrors.
Yes they shun ex members who no longer believe or whom the elders do not deem to be sorry enough. You cannot leave the rteligion with dignity.
False advertising.