Posts by drewcoul

52

It is so obviously a lie......now

by snare&racket in

once the spell is broken, one you take a deep fresh breath outisde of the watchtower camp, the amazingly obvious realisation becomes clear.... of course this is a lie, of course this is ridiculous!

you find you have memories of really believing the claims and promises, but it seems like another life, another experience.

it seems so incredibly false once you leave and it is very difficult to belive you even once accepted it!

drewcoul

ethey were norhing to do with actually being a JW..it was the people in it and the unfulfilled promises that had value.

I agree with your thoughts. Those highlighted above stood out to me. I have an absolutely amazing and wonderful girlfriend who has friends since childhood. I see her with her friends and I miss the friends I had. The ones who I still care about and think about, but who will not speak to me in the grocery store because I am no longer a Witness.

Who wouldn't want what the JW's preach? I submit that no one could deny that what the JW's preach is something we all want. But when the truth smacks you in the face......When reality sets in, you realiize how naive you were. There is only pity for those still in.....and a yearning that they will wake up and breathe the air of freedom.

42

Are all JWs united in their beliefs?

by enigma1863 in

so i used to think that all witnesses believed the same exact thing but i have heard some claims that they believe things i'm not familiar with.

do you know if it's true?

drewcoul

Bemused said:

Interesting. I (a never-in) was told by an elder that non-believers might be resurrected (if they'd been good). Is this not a universal JW belief?

This is actually something is taught, but not explcitly. This creates a paradox to which there are no real good answers. Basically, you could get a witness to say that it's no better to be a Witness than a non-witness so long as you die before Armageddon.

So, it ends up like this: Don't be a witness and hope armageddon doesn't come in your lifetime, or be a Witness and hope it does. Armageddon is basically the only time you're better off being a witness. They would have a hard time admitting it, but it is found in their doctrine.

42

Are all JWs united in their beliefs?

by enigma1863 in

so i used to think that all witnesses believed the same exact thing but i have heard some claims that they believe things i'm not familiar with.

do you know if it's true?

drewcoul

If you can get them to open up, most witnesses will admit to either not believing everything, or at least not understanding. I spoke to a couple of elders who stopped by to see my mom several weeks ago. Since I had known these guys for my entire life, I was comfortable talking to them although I am disfellowshipped. I told them some of the things I had trouble with and one said "We don't understand everything." I asked how they could believe in something they don't understand. They didn't have a coherent response.

Before his death, I was having a similar discussion with my dad. He said he didn't believe everything but that it was the best religion out there.

The problem is, most witnesses won't open up about their real beliefs. There are a set of answers to questions for outsiders, and there's the real answers that Witnesses can give to each other. Like: Do you have to be a Witness to survive Armageddon? Most witnesses will answer to a non-witness that it's up to Jehovah. Between themselves, they claim that you have to be a witness to survive.

97

I did it !!!!

by snare&racket in

jw
friends

7 years ago i started on a path i had long ago given up on as impossible.

i met with my elders and told them i could not justify carrying on as a jw.

i went and got my high school qualifications and my higher education diploma (a levels with distinction) in just 12 months.

drewcoul

Congratulations Doctor!!!!!

93

Appointed by holy spirit

by Ben57 in

jw
friends

i have been reading the posts on who is and or had been an elder.

it amazes me at what many have said.

perhaps i have misunderstood what they were saying.

drewcoul

Ben, you are seeing classic WTS double speak and you are defending them! They never say anything about "outward appearance." Those are your words, not the WTS's. Either the elders are appointed by Holy Spirit or they are not. The Watchtower says they are. I believe they are not.

As you can see, you can quote the WT and someone with an opposing view can quote a WT, but the WT says two different things. THey want everyone in to pay attention to elders and to view their appointment as being from Holy Spirit, but because this is so obviously not the case with so many elders engaging in wrongdoing at the time of their appointment, they must also say that they "give evidence" of producing the fruitage of the spirit. However, Paul laid out the qualifications of being an elder, and he NEVER mentions: Field Service time; Bible studies conducted; comments at the meetings; activity at quick builds; circuit assembly or district assembly parts; pioneering or a list of other things that JW's think are necessary to be an elder. They go far beyond things written.

20

How I miss the 'Truth' of my youth....

by gingerbread in

jw
friends

my family moved from the city to the country.. part of the reason for the relocation was to move 'to where the need was greater'.

i loved our new home - i was free to roam the woods and fields, enjoy the wildlife, work in our garden and feed the chickens.

i had new friends in our new congregation.

drewcoul

Ginger- I know EXACTLY what you are talking about in your OP. I was talking to my girlfriend the other day about this same thing. I understand where you are coming from. Naive. That's a good way to describe it.

30

A small observation from the AGM...

by sir82 in

jw
friends

...but it struck me as significant anyway.. i attended at a jw assembly hall, and was sitting behind a pretty typical jw family.

2 kids about ages 8 & 5, frazzled hen-pecked husband, and....the mom.

the lady of the house.

drewcoul

Sir82: Absolutely outstanding observation and you are dead-nuts right on: That is something that, literally, money cannot buy. It is a hell of a drug, and those addicted to it are utterly hooked and unwilling to break the habit.

369

So are Republicans now openly terrorists?

by Simon in

they seem determined to undermine the us democracy and shut the government down hurting employees and veterans.. what a despicable bunch, hope they get their asses kicked for what they are doing..

drewcoul

As a gun-loving, small government, Tea partier, I have to say, the government shut down is stupid. I am against Obamacare as much as anyone, but defunding it like this is not the proper way to do it. It is not discretionary spending. Its law and it has to be funded (at least 90% of it that is not discretionary). The way the Republicans are trying to go about it is not lawful, at least from what I can gather. Although, I don't think the Republicans are 100% to blame because Obama needs to come to the table too. The GOP is going to cut off their nose to spite their face I'm afraid.

And, as much as I hate to admit it, BOTR is right. Republics and Democracies are not mutually exclusive. We are a Republic with Democratically elected representatives. But we are not a pure Democracy. Ben Franklin (I think) said that a democracy is nothing more than two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner. That's why pure Democracies don't work any more than a dictatorship works.

By the way, I haven't been on here in a while and hope you are all doing well. Especially Beks, BOTR, Farkel, and Sammie!

Edited to add: Bizzy too!!

293

AGM 5 OCTOBER 2013 (UNOFFICIAL RUMORS)

by WatchTower87 in

- 23 day to go .. annual meeting unofficial rumors.

- new bible.

- new nwt (revision).

drewcoul

Wow! The AGM is only a day away!! It seems to sneak up on me every year. I haven't been on here in a while, but thought I would check in. I'm thinking the new bible makes sense, and probably new understandings of Revelation. 144k being figurative and not literal would fix the predicament they created with the overlapping generation nonsense, but it will create a whold bunch of other problems as well.

Thanks to anyone and everyone who gets us the information from the annual meeting!

8

Heart bypass surgery & blood

by Twitch in

my father had an angioplasty this morning and was admitted immediately for coronary artery bypass surgery due to major blockages found.. how likely or necessary is a blood transfusion for this?.

what's the latest policy on blood?.

i realize there's likely a thread or two dedicated to the subject but i'm looking for the short answer from those in the know, at least on the latter.. i only found out this morning and am heading to the hospital now.

drewcoul

Blood transfusions are seldom used anymore in bypass surgery. Doctors like to have it available, but if he's an active JW, they won't press the issue too far. I've had several family members have multiple bypasses done, and none have had doctors balk at the idea of not using blood.