unshackled

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Posts by unshackled

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  34

  To my fellow atheists:

  by NomadSoul in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  just curious to know the steps that brought you to become an atheist.

  just wanted to shared mine in a nutshell:.

  1. learned that evolution had credibility.

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  unshackled

  Mostly the same as others, just different order of things...

  1) Born in JW, raised by hardcore elder/father
  2) Was hardcore myself, but still had nagging questions as a teen
  3) Went thru some judicial committies, noticed cracks in the Org being run by holy spirit
  4) Hypocrisy within congs became more noticeable
  5) Started to notice cracks in the god hypothesis, doubt the existence of a creator
  6) Then realized if god is unlikely, the bible is more likely the work of man with no divine influence
  7) Floated a few years without scrutinizing much further
  8) Re-kickstarted my exploratory journey by reading Christopher Hitchens "god is not Great"...followed by Sam Harris, Daniel Dennett, Dawkins, etc.
  9) Read a book about Mormons and the light went on about the true nature of JWs
  10) Scrutinized JWs...started with some hesitation to Google "Charles Russell"...eventually found this forum as well.
  11) Studied the facts of evolution, opened my eyes about the true nature and history of our planet
  12) Still rebuilding my own definition of "meaning of life", filtering the pain and frustration of so many lost years living in a "snowglobe"

  Lots of details in between those points....but in a nutshell that's kinda it.
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  34

  Did Jehovah really prove his sovreignty?

  by keyser soze in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  before the issue of sovreignty came up between god and satan, humans were in a perfect state.

  then adam and eve sinned, and satan challenged god's right to rule.

  god took satan up, and allowed humans a chance to prove that they could govern themselves, independent from him.. but first he inflicted them with sickness, death and imperfection.

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  unshackled

  When I first started questioning the god hypothethis a rough analogy I realized was likening mankind/earth as god's ant farm. But god lights that ant farm on fire, and only keeps the ones that survive as his "chosen ones". Pretty much sums up the bible story.
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  33

  your last day before impending destruction, what act would you perform?

  by jam in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  a large asteroid is heading for earth... it will destroy the earth.. i would tell my wife, thinks for making my life great.

  call my.

  daughter that i have not spoke with in 11yrs.

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  unshackled

  I think a combo of what jam and misery wrote would work. Except add in copious amounts of bacon. Maybe some tequila.
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  88

  Question of the Day: Why are so very few of Jesus ACTUAL WORDS...

  by Terry in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  why are so very few of jesus actual words recorded exactly?.

  the new testament is almost entirely written in greek.. jesus spoke aramaic.

  maybe a bit of what was called "market greek".

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  unshackled

  It's all magic, Terry. Whatever logic you lay down will be dismissed with "it's magic and spirit fluffiness".
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  42

  what kind of degree do you have?

  by deservingone26 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  ive been going thru a lot of the different posts on here and seeing that most here believe that higher education is very important.

  i agree that it is important and i plan on going back to school in the fall but im just wondering who all here has a degree and in what?

  just curious .

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  unshackled

  I've got a certain Degree of Anger that I was raised to believe education and career were "worldly" pursuits.

  Not too late in my mid-thirties, but damn...a lot of catching up to do.
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  36

  Were you SPANKED?

  by unshackled in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  don't get all excited...i don't mean lastnight.

  spankings were a regular occurence in my family, and don't think that was uncommon for born-in jws.

  my parents loved the line "we spank you because we love you.

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  unshackled

  My wife grew up a non-JW and she too receiving spankings.

  Seems like it was more common years ago, JW or not. But wonder if it was more prevalent within JWs, due to biblical support for it? Or religion in general?

  I remember Dr. Spock was always vilified by the WT for his stance against physical punishment. Like it was such evil thing to say "maybe you don't need to beat your kids".
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  36

  Were you SPANKED?

  by unshackled in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  don't get all excited...i don't mean lastnight.

  spankings were a regular occurence in my family, and don't think that was uncommon for born-in jws.

  my parents loved the line "we spank you because we love you.

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  unshackled

  Last time I checked, that was the Biblical point of view.

  
  
  True enough. Biblical views but JWs seem to take it to another level...the everything is evil outside of us thing. Your comment kinda jumped out at me with that vibe, but a wrong assumption on my part.
  
  

  but there is no doubt that their lack of discipline (spanking or otherwise) as a child direclty correlates to their current lack of social/societal stability.

  
  
  For sure, discipline along with ethical and moral guidance is key. Wonder though if spanking is at all needed, or has a possible negative effect? I'm not a parent yet, but think I'd prefer discipline without physical punishment.
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  87

  Is everyone on here disassociated??

  by happi2b in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  so i don't understand it seems to me from the posts that i have read just about everyone is disassociated.. just wondering if that's true or if i am not the only one on here still within the organization..

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  unshackled

  happi2b....before you get in too deep, PLEASE take some time and do some reading on this site. Really read and think about it. Once you're IN, it is a life-altering decision that can't easily be reversed. You owe it to yourself to look into it further.
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  7

  Survival store ideas?

  by sinis in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i'm getting ready to launch an online store but have a few questions maybe some can help with.

  the last thing i need to finish is the template.

  i have someone ready to do this.

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  unshackled

  Steal another page from the JW doomsday propoganda: pet lions. They'd come in handy for urban survival.
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  25

  Crisis of Conscience Just Arrived...

  by headisspinning in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  i am about to take the plunge.... will keep you posted!.

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  unshackled

  Thanks, I'm ordering my copy. Been too long to not have read it yet. An essential.