Posts by Curtains

i'm pretty taken with thomas paine's the age of reason at the moment but i've also come across a number of quotes from nietzsche and oscar wilde that make a great deal of sense to me.

Curtains

bringing this back as I didn't mention that I was arguing against Terry and I'd like to know what Terry has to say in answer.

16

Works of Nietzsche, Paine, Wilde

by SweetBabyCheezits in

jw
friends

in the past, i was hardly keen on reading for pleasure but i have been cracking open some of the more, uh, classic(?

) writings lately in an attempt to broaden my limited understanding.

i'm pretty taken with thomas paine's the age of reason at the moment but i've also come across a number of quotes from nietzsche and oscar wilde that make a great deal of sense to me.

Curtains

this is an interesting thread that I must have missed. I am reading Neitzche at the moment and am also attending a philosophical debate next week.

According to my understanding of Neitzsche the governing body mechanism of Jehovahs Witnesses are the lesser/weaker folk doing bad to the stronger folk. Neitsche was not suggesting that stronger folk take advantage of weaker folk although it is possible for people like Hitler to read him like that. Hitler was not a strong man, in my opnion. He was a weak man seeking to overthrow the strong. And this is what an organizaton like Jehovahs witnesses has in common with Hitler.

Neitzsche can be very inspiring when read philosophically. He was against religion because he believed that religion in some forms holds people back by making them responsible and guilty for things they are not guilty of or responsible for. THis is another example of the lesser/weaker existence holding sway over a stronger existence and imo this is what Neitzsche was warning about. We can read him not as criticisng physical illness and phsical weakness but as criticisng a sickness/weakness of the will to do something. I don't think anyone here suffers from a weakness of the will to act

22

If you CHANGE what you said was TRUE...How could it have been true??

by Terry in

jw
friends

if the bible says anything; it says what it says.. what is said doesn't change because nobody is continuing to write it.. the bible cannot change, then.. god's word (if that is what the bible is) doesn't change.however, if any person or group interprets the bible's doctrines and the doctrines change, then,it must be the interpreter who is in error.. (i call it "error" because; why change it otherwise?).

who would have enough hubris to risk representing god's word one way---and declare it truth--only to change that truth into something else?.

answer: the watchtower society!.

Curtains

This does show that Jehovahs witnesses are a man made organization who are tossed about their own opinions.

34

My journey to atheism

by Awakened at Gilead in

i've blogged about my path from missionary to atheist on freeminds - see the latest post here: http://www.freeminds.org/blogs/a-gilead-grad-s-guide-to-leaving-jws/from-missionary-to-atheist-how-is-that-possible-part-1.html.

i haven't shared this aspect of my journey in an organized fashion, so please let me know what you think.... .

cheers!.

Curtains

thanks for sharing your journey to atheism. I have also thought long and hard about an indifferent universe but will leave that discussion for another time. I am also looking forward to your discussions about evolution as you make some thoughtful, clear points that make sense.

37

Do Jehovah's Witnesses represent a less legitimate form of religious expression?

by slimboyfat in

jw
friends

i am at a point where i tend to think all religions are rubbish.

the bible is not a book to lead one's life by and not deserving of much respect.

if jesus existed then the gospels are not an accurate picture of his life and even if the non-supernatural elements resembled a real person there is much to repudiate as there is to admire.. so what about comparing jehovah's witnesses to other faiths?

Curtains

you are probably right dozy. I don't think I can be objective and I don't see the need to be so.

I also think Pauls writings (that slim references) can be interpreted as something benign like identity formation all the way to extreme social control - to me Jehovahs witnesses interpret Paul in the worst possible way.

37

Do Jehovah's Witnesses represent a less legitimate form of religious expression?

by slimboyfat in

jw
friends

i am at a point where i tend to think all religions are rubbish.

the bible is not a book to lead one's life by and not deserving of much respect.

if jesus existed then the gospels are not an accurate picture of his life and even if the non-supernatural elements resembled a real person there is much to repudiate as there is to admire.. so what about comparing jehovah's witnesses to other faiths?

Curtains

I think that if one has accurate info and still believes then there is a certain amount of lying to oneself. If one is a witness out of ignorance then one does not have to lie to oneself. This is the corrupting mechanism I was referring to in my post above. The governing body is requiring elders etc to lie to themselves because of secretly contradiciting their own official instructions to elders. Elders are then put in a strange postion where they have to choose to allow themselves to be corrupted. this mechanism also operates on a publisher.

37

Do Jehovah's Witnesses represent a less legitimate form of religious expression?

by slimboyfat in

jw
friends

i am at a point where i tend to think all religions are rubbish.

the bible is not a book to lead one's life by and not deserving of much respect.

if jesus existed then the gospels are not an accurate picture of his life and even if the non-supernatural elements resembled a real person there is much to repudiate as there is to admire.. so what about comparing jehovah's witnesses to other faiths?

Curtains

I wish that those who write the articles would lighten up on the constant need to legitimate themselves. This is done at every meeting and gets in the way of heartfelt religious expression.

Plus the governing body of Jehovahs witnesses is very arrogant and corrupt. CO's DO's branch members and elders are also being corrupted. Surely this must interfere with religious expression. I don't think there is as much interaction between local leaders and the central governing body in other religions as there is amongst Jehovahs witnesses.