Posts by Bungi Bill

13

1/1/11 WT Using One Myth to Support Another

by WalkTall in

i thought this was pretty hysterical and something that i would have never noticed before i woke up.

in the jan 1 wt under the heading 'was the garden of eden a real place?

part of the reasoning they use as to why no one could find the garden of eden even though there are specifics in genesis identifying it's location is because "the flood of noah's day may have altered the topography in ways that we simply cannot know today".

Bungi Bill

This reminds me of observations by people who have travelled through that part of the world where the Garden of Eden was supposed to have been:

i.e. around where the borders of Turkey, Iraq and Armenia meet.

Their feelings were unanimous, and to the effect of:

"If this is supposed to be the Garden of Eden, then I would hate to see what Hell looks like!"

Prodigal Son,

Two good points!

1) The JWs would have us believe that the ark as not boat-shaped, but was rather a rectangular wooden box.

My father was from a family of marine engineers, and had himself worked in the shipbuilding industry. I remember him trying to point out to the JWs exactly the same fact that you have brought out - that a box shaped craft of those dimensions would be broken apart very quickly by the forces of waves.

2) And the other one!

- who was the silliest; religion for teaching such an unlikely story, or us for believing it?

Bill.

50

Child Abuse At The Meetings

by Hairyhegoat in

please read and i will tell you now this was it was like for me !.

kingdom halls are a hellish memory for me.

i grew up as a jehovah's witness from the age of 9 until i fought my way to freedom at age 18. i recall children as young as a year old being beaten repeatedly for not sitting still during services...some sessions, called assemblies, were 6 hours long and lasted for 3-5 days in succession.. my nephew was one of many who felt the literal sting of the watchtower's stance of "spare the rod, spoil the child.

Bungi Bill

It is quite a challenge for most adults to sit through even two hours of a boring, mind-numbing JW meeting; listening to a succession of badly-educated speakers, delivering by monotone the same spiel we have heard already - one zillion times before!

To expect a small child to sit quietly through the same is whatever is worse than ridiculous;

- do these idiots not realize that children have a short attention span at the best of times?

- and furthermore, when it comes to matters of which they haven't a clue (e.g. the subjects covered at most JW meetings), a child's attention span is practically non existent.

No wonder two thirds of the JW children give the religion away as soon as they can - the miracle is that even one third remain with the cult.

Full marks to those other churches that provide seperate activities for children:

- activites that are geared for their level of development, and consequently capture the child's interest.

- which at the end of the day, results in a child actually coming home having learned something positive.

(Contrast that with the experience of a typical JW child:

- unlikely to retain anything positive from attending a meeting at the kingdom hell hall.

- quite likely, though, to come home sporting bruises or other marks from corporal punishment!)

While I am no fan of the Church of Latter Day Saints (Mormons) either, at least their retention rate makes that of the JWs look stupid by comparison.

All this is evidently too much for the old fossils of the Governing Body to comprehend:

- it is disappointing, though, that JW parents don't wake up to themselves over this matter; as they at least are in a position to make a choice.

Bill.

PS: I cannot thank my father enough for resisting the pressure from his JW parents, to bring us three children up as JWs. Yuk!

27

Was this ever a good religion to be in?

by whatistruth in

where sincerity, mercy, love predominated the witnesses at one time?

or has it always been like it is today, corrupt, hypocritical, abuse of power, unloving?

just curious if it started out with good intentions and then like anything else as time goes on and it becomes too big for unqualified people to handle it, it all goes bad..

Bungi Bill

Stevenson, in his book 1975 - Year of Doom? summed it up one sentence:

" no other religious group demands so much of its members, in return for so little."

Also, according to Raymond Franz in Crisis of Conscience, the then WTS president, Nathan Knorr, once volunteered that the JWs "do not look after their members."

In other words, the JW religion is described by some at the top as being one that cares nothing at all about its members' welfare, and yet is insistent on squeezing as much out of them as is bodily possible.

That should answer the above question!

As to previous times - in many ways, the JWs were once even more demanding than they are now.

There will be some here who can recall how pre-1971, to be classified as a "Regular Publisher", you were required to put in at least 10 hours a month, place at least 12 magazines, and conduct at least one bible study (this ended about the time I first began attending the kingdom hall).

It goes without saying that if you did not qualify to meet the requirements of being a "Regular Publisher", then you were one of the lowest forms of life imaginable!

- the congregation had on display a blackboard that listed how it had performed during the previous month,

- and if any of the performance indicators were below target, the "Congregation Servant" would read the Riot Act at the next Service Meeting.

(Look out if you didn't place your twelve magazines - it would be "ten laps of the parade ground, holding your rifle above your head!")

What good can it bring to be a member of a religious group that is organised and run like a business?

Bill.

30

What is the WTS take on Speaking in Tongues?

by Lion Cask in

this is a fairly worldly view, for those who haven't seen it.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3be9wcawim.

Bungi Bill

As far as the JWs are concerned, anybody "talking in tongues" is definitely "demonized."

All the Witnesses that I knew were so afraid of tongue talkers, that it would have to be the quickest, surest way of scaring them away permanently

(As in having your house "marked off the territory.")

- i.e.

(i) Tell them that you regularly talk in tongues.

(ii) Have them believe that you are about to hold a tongue-talking session.

(iii) Invite them in to participate.

Bill.

58

Why have all predictions about END TIMES been proved false?

by Terry in

) on gen. 15:13 (luther martin, date setters, guardian of truth, sept. 15, 1994).

(luther martin, date setters, guardian of truth, sept. 15, 1994).

Bungi Bill

In answer to the question as to "why have all predictions about END TIMES been proved false?:

- because the whole bloody thing is just a load of hocus-pocus.

Start and finish of the matter!

Sure, the end WILL Eventually come - but that will be when the sun runs out of nuclear fuel.

- This event has got nothing to do with the utterances of Charles Taze Russell, Joseph Smith, Joseph Rutherford, William Miller - or of mythical beings such as "Jehovah."

Bill.

PS: It won't happen in our lifetime!

9

In Whose" Name" Do Non Christians Cuss.???

by smiddy in

jw
friends

i am just curious about people in non christian countries who have occasion to cuss.we in english speaking countries with a christian background frequently use expressions such as "jesus christ" "christ almighty" "christ" "geez" etc.etc.

what do people in non christian lands say when making such exclamations ?

for eg muslim countries, asian countries,mainland china etc.

Bungi Bill

I have heard that Moslems use the term "By the Black Beard of the Prophet" in the same way as Christains use the expression "by Christ" etc.

Bill.

20

Arizona massacre -- Where does JW line of self defense get crossed?

by FatFreek 2005 in

jehovah's witnesses are peaceful folks, just ask them.

having been one till many years ago i used to know the stock answers to questions about that fine line between being peaceable and defending oneself.. this came to front and center during the past several days with that horrific arizona shooting where some 7 folks have lost their lives.

it could have been more if it weren't for several onlookers ganging up on the perpetrator after he emptied the first magazine of bullets, getting ready for his spare magazine.. these onlookers instinctively became aggressive and restrained the perpetrator, one of them choking the man when needed, etc., and etc.. heroes, all of them, in my opinion.. none of them remained passive, thinking that this man wasn't really a threat to them personally so why get involved.

Bungi Bill

The JWs have always been down on the learning of self-defense:

- defensive techniques that might enable one to disarm a violent attacker.

From what I could see of this particular case, it seemed like those members of the public who overpowered that gunman knew what they were doing:

- like they had received some basic training in self defense.

So even if the JWs do permit their members to come to the aid of a victim of violent attack, the typical JW would not be much use in such a situation as this one:

- simply because they are never permitted to learn how to handle themselves.

In dealing with a violent attack (particularly by lethal weapon), it is often prior training that makes all the difference

i.e. as to whether you walk away from it alive or not.

I know, as I have survived a few!

Bill.

131

Window Washers

by dontplaceliterature in

question:.

why do i see so frequently the witnesses referred to as "window washers" on here?

i have been a witness (though only recently "conscious") for my whole life.

Bungi Bill

sooner7nc,

What stories have you to tell about carpet cleaners?

- I can't wait to hear these!

Bill.

22

WT Society is a York Rite Masonic Cult!

by cameo-d in

so says jordan maxwell and he backs up the statement with years of research and knowledge.. at 1:25:00 he speaks about the eerie death of chas.

taze russell.

he died at the stroke of midnight on halloween, a high occult occasion.

Bungi Bill

It is rather hard to believe that C.T. Russell was financed by MI5 and MI6:

- The organisation that later became MI5 and MI6 was not founded until 1909.

- Yet the Watchtower Society was incorporated in 1884 (having been founded three years earlier).

By 1909, Russell was nearing the end of his tenure - what sustained him up until then?

Bill.

131

Window Washers

by dontplaceliterature in

question:.

why do i see so frequently the witnesses referred to as "window washers" on here?

i have been a witness (though only recently "conscious") for my whole life.

Bungi Bill

If I may break the train (which seems to be either throwing brickbats at Farkel, or else throwing brickbats back at those who do!) and return to the title of this thread:

- cleaning used to be seen as the single best source of part time work, and possibly still is.

Only because of this, many in the pioneer service turned to cleaning work in order to support themselves. It certainly did not mean that the same individuals were incapable of anything else (although I certainly agree that it does not prepare a person for much else - certainly not for handling the responsibilities of an elder!)

It should therefore hardly be a surprize that a disproportionate number of JWs are cleaners by occupation.

And not only window cleaners, either. Around here, many are into carpet cleaning as well - some even owning franchises for one or other of the big carpet cleaning concerns.

As well as cleaning, though, the local JWs seem to also be heavily represented in pest control work - and at all levels up to senior management.

Bill.