InterestedOne

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Posts by InterestedOne

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  11

  Governing Body Represents Who?

  by Marvin Shilmer in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  governing body represents who?.

  today i uploaded a new article to my blog examining the veracity of watchtowers claim to represent all the anointed ones on earth.

  there is gigantic absurdity that to this day watchtower leaves unexplained, except to contradict itself.

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  InterestedOne

  I asked a couple JW's about feedback, and they said that's what the Questions From Readers is for.
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  3

  Do you find JW's have a way of getting in your head & you can't shake it?

  by InterestedOne in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have a jw acquaintance whom i do odd jobs for because we supposedly became friends a few years ago.

  we became acquainted before i knew about her worldview.

  when i do odd jobs for her, sometimes in passing she will make not-overtly-religious-but-still-jw-type comments that make my skin crawl, but i don't respond.

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  InterestedOne

  Thanks Retro and mindseye. I needed to vent & appreciate your comments.
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  3

  Do you find JW's have a way of getting in your head & you can't shake it?

  by InterestedOne in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have a jw acquaintance whom i do odd jobs for because we supposedly became friends a few years ago.

  we became acquainted before i knew about her worldview.

  when i do odd jobs for her, sometimes in passing she will make not-overtly-religious-but-still-jw-type comments that make my skin crawl, but i don't respond.

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  InterestedOne

  I have a JW acquaintance whom I do odd jobs for because we supposedly became friends a few years ago. We became acquainted before I knew about her worldview. When I do odd jobs for her, sometimes in passing she will make not-overtly-religious-but-still-JW-type comments that make my skin crawl, but I don't respond. I have interacted with her enough over email and in person to know that if I attempt to respond in disagreement (which confirms Black Sheep's advice that it doesn't do any good to disagree with a JW), she will say I am not being "upbuilding" and will leave a subtle threat that she will not have discussions with people who are not "upbuilding." I have a sick feeling throughout my being from how she does this. It's like she has her cake and eats it too. She makes her comments and doesn't have to bear the responsibility of the hearer's response. Or, if I do respond, she changes what I said into what she imagines I said and proceeds to make me sound ridiculous. Then she offers her oh-so-wise "counsel" about something I never even said. If I try to say that's not what I said, then I'm being "negative." It is a maddening form of interaction. I am in a mental state right now where it's like there's an itch that I can't scratch. Some of her comments are floating around in my head, and I know I can't respond to them. I'm at a point where I want nothing more to do with her, and what's crazy is that I am hesitating to let her know I want out of her life because it will validate her sense that the world persecutes and rejects Witnesses. Also, we have an ongoing understanding that I do various jobs for her, but I am at a point where I have a hard time even making eye contact with her. We also have several mutual friends. I'm really kind of screwed up in the head with this. I know I should just let it drop, but for some reason she has managed to get into my head, and I can't shake it because she has provided me no outlet to respond. Do you know what I'm talking about, and if so, how have you dealt with it? This may not even be specifically a JW thing. Maybe it's a type of person who interacts with others that way - making comments and not allowing the hearer a safe place to respond, so the hearer is left all twisted up inside.
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  10

  My JW Friend's Birthday Is Coming Up. Should I Say Happy Anniversary?

  by InterestedOne in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  meaning the anniversary of the day she came into the world.

  would a jw typically be offended by that?

  she's a convert and a true believer.

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  InterestedOne

  Meaning the anniversary of the day she came into the world. Would a JW typically be offended by that? She's a convert and a true believer. I don't want to offend her, but I'd like to acknowledge her birthday in some way.
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  103

  How the WTBTS creates atheists

  by Nickolas in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i am an atheist.

  i arrived at this juncture in my life despite not wanting to.

  when i first met the witnesses at 22 i was a seeker looking for answers to the question of life - in other words, prime cult target material.

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  InterestedOne

  garyneal wrote:

  I've seen it posted here before saying that the Watchtower is an atheist factory.

  My wife would fall in this camp. Either the Jehovah's Witnesses are the closest thing to truth there is or there is no truth.

  I don't think being an atheist means believing there is no truth. I understand it to mean lack of belief in deities.
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  97

  Everything In The Universe Was Created By Absolutely Nothing.

  by Philadelphia Ponos in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  this is the purest example of an oxymoron.

  repeat this sentence over and over again and you will realize why it's impossible for some people to accept the big bang model.

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  InterestedOne

  "A Universe From Nothing"

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ImvlS8PLIo
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  103

  How the WTBTS creates atheists

  by Nickolas in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i am an atheist.

  i arrived at this juncture in my life despite not wanting to.

  when i first met the witnesses at 22 i was a seeker looking for answers to the question of life - in other words, prime cult target material.

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  InterestedOne

  I also think the Witnesses helped me move toward atheism. I can't say I felt the Witnesses were any truer than my former Christian beliefs, but the process of studying with them helped put the last nail in the coffin for all of it. One of the features of my experience with the Witnesses was how strange I thought the WT language was. In attempting to clarify what the heck the WT was even saying, I found myself examining religious ideas more closely and becoming much less inclined to believe any of them as a result.
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  15

  Radio Show About JWs - anyone have advice?

  by Shepherd Book in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i'm scheduled to appear on atheists talk radio show this sunday (i'll have to miss the public talk, though).. here's a link about it: radio program.. does anyone have any advice for me?

  or - do you have anything you think i really need to mention?

  (like new light or some recent crazy statement in the tower.).

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  InterestedOne

  One issue that comes to my mind that the listeners may find interesting is the notion of phobia indoctrination and how it relates to JW culture. Consider this excerpt from Steven Hassan:

  In some cults, members are systematically made to be phobic about ever leaving the group. Today's cults know how to effectively implant vivid negative images deep within members' unconscious minds, making it impossible for members to even conceive of ever being happy and successful outside of the group (Combatting Cult Mind Control, page 45).

  I think the idea of phobic reactions, like a fear response to a dog barking, is interesting to consider in relation to WT imagery and language. I don't know how much treatment this idea has received in the scholarly community though.
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  15

  Radio Show About JWs - anyone have advice?

  by Shepherd Book in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i'm scheduled to appear on atheists talk radio show this sunday (i'll have to miss the public talk, though).. here's a link about it: radio program.. does anyone have any advice for me?

  or - do you have anything you think i really need to mention?

  (like new light or some recent crazy statement in the tower.).

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  InterestedOne

  Shepherd Book wrote:

  Do you have any references for the "mentally diseased" and "contagious" statements?

  July 15th, 2011 WT study ed pp 15-16 pars 4-7. You can download the pdf of it at www.jw.org. I think the "mentally diseased" part is in paragraph 6 of the "standard English" edition not the "simplified English," although both are interesting to compare. Here is a recent thread about it.

  http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/bible/208850/1/Yet-another-July-15th-2011-WT-thread-use-caution-deconstruction-at-work
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  40

  Any JW, please help- I need just one thing!

  by moshe in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  --the name of a real live (not dead) member of the faithful and discreet slave class- someone who has admitted in public they are one of the f&ds and who can verify they have been providing the "meat in due season" for the governing body.

  obviously the gb can't be the f&ds, because they are neither discreet nor do they have a position of servitude- no, they have made it plain they are the bosses over jws and jws have to obey their words, as if jehovah and jesus were speaking them, or else they will get the disfellowshiped.

  just one verifiable name will do and how you obtained it.. the governing body claims that the f&ds are directing them and the worldwide work of jws, but they have never proven that they have a f&ds class they communicate with- just have one of the annointed call bethel and ask to speak to one of the gb and see what the switchboard operator does with their call.

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  InterestedOne

  Thanks Moshe. Interesting distinction. The GB lets the average JW assume they are the FDS without actually claiming that title. When I tried to discuss this with the CO, he quickly switched to using the terms "partake" and "anointed," while avoiding the term "Faithful & Discreet Slave." I wonder why the GB avoids claiming the title of FDS.