And to think that back in the 1980s, our Japanese "brothers" were upheld as the very personification of the term "dedicated" ! (And by contrast, the rest of us were portrayed as mere slack-@$$es).
Bungi Bill
JoinedPosts by Bungi Bill
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28
Report from Japan
by wifibandit inanon in japan says:.
i served in the third circuit of shikoku japan.
a few years ago, a well-known theocratic family disassociated.
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15
Reached a milestone today!
by Bungi Bill intoday represents for me something of a milestone.
after breaking both bones in my lower left leg nearly four months ago, i am now able to walk without the aid of crutches.
also, the orthopedic specialist has cleared me to once more drive a motor vehicle.
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Bungi Bill
Thanking everyone for their kind thoughts.
The physiotherapists inform me that my leg muscles have now regained their former strength, but still need further work to build up endurance. Yesterday, I was given a solid work out in the gym, then provided with a set of exercises to perform each day at home. As they say, though, "You cannot train without pain" . (That and thank goodness for paracetamol !)
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15
Reached a milestone today!
by Bungi Bill intoday represents for me something of a milestone.
after breaking both bones in my lower left leg nearly four months ago, i am now able to walk without the aid of crutches.
also, the orthopedic specialist has cleared me to once more drive a motor vehicle.
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Bungi Bill
Today represents for me something of a milestone.
After breaking both bones in my lower left leg nearly four months ago, I am now able to walk without the aid of crutches. Also, the orthopedic specialist has cleared me to once more drive a motor vehicle. I now look forward to gradually progressing back to working full time, and carrying out my normal duties. (For the last three months, I have been on four hours a day, and "light duties only").
My lower knee is still a bit tender (where they drove in the steel rod), but it still feels so good that I think I'll go and crack a cold one to celebrate!
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16
They should show this 2 minute video about 1975 at the convention
by LevelThePlayingField inif only there was a way to hack in and play this.
:).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bmca1qdhho&feature=push-u&attr_tag=3yku113wrp-khxdt-6.
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Bungi Bill
Wasandelder Once,
Interesting!
Yes, I was very much a JW during those times - baptised in 1972 after having been a regular reader of WTS literature for six years beforehand. Not only the congregation I was in, but all others I knew about as well (without exception), swallowed that one about 1975.
One of the more prominent elders in that congregation made no secret of what he thought about 1975; as late as May of that year, he was still insistent that the current set of tyres on his car was going to "see the system out".
Nobody in that congregation had an educational level greater than Grade 12. Furthermore, I am only aware of one person in the entire circuit who had a university degree (he was a geologist). The few who bucked the trend did no better than a Diploma of Education (qualifying them to teach school at primary level), and they were widely regarded as being over educated! Even those of us who actually got to complete Grade 12 were few and far between - to say nothing of being on the verge of that very disapproved of state of affairs, over educated!"
Your observations about the connection between education levels and skepticism about WTS chronology seem pretty accurate to me! The congregation you describe, though, seems a little different to most, in having a larger number of university graduates amongst its ranks.
In all the congregations I ever associated with, over 28 years and in three different countries, there was only one that a number of degree-qualified persons. This was an English speaking congregation in the capital city of a recently independent Third World country. As a consequence, its territory included the local elite, plus expatriate professionals who had remained behind on short, fixed-term contracts.
Apart from that, in all the other congregations I ever associated with, you struggled to find anybody who even held a diploma. I can recall one brother who was a Quantity Surveyor, and several who were school teachers. That was it, though!
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They should show this 2 minute video about 1975 at the convention
by LevelThePlayingField inif only there was a way to hack in and play this.
:).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bmca1qdhho&feature=push-u&attr_tag=3yku113wrp-khxdt-6.
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Bungi Bill
"Some back then believed 1975 would be it" ................ only some?
If most didn't, then they were certainly a silent majority. (Actually, make that bloody silent ! ) Not at all surprising, though, when the WTS thought they had that "No man knows the day or the hour" scripture covered. A Watchtower article in August 1968, entitled "Why Are You Looking Forward to 1975?" warned that this was "no time to hide behind" that particular bible verse.
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How did you overcome feelings of lost time in the Org?
by Skepsis ini'm a very positive person who always try to focus on the good side of things.. however, my fading is becoming increasingly painful and i'm starting being shunned by some i thought were friends.
i'm missing some meetings so the rumour is spreading to neighbouring congregations where i'm known that i'm not as spiritual as i used to be.
elders want to have a shepherding meeting with me.
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Bungi Bill
Unfortunately, there is no magic "silver bullet" to cure that one; unless somebody invents a Time Machine, the past is the one period of time that none of us has any control over!
At the end of the day, all any of us can do is make the best with what we have. You at least have age on your side. Coming from somebody who is more than twice your age, 30 is not at all a bad age to be! Another advantage you have is having already completed a university degree (you didn't mention what qualification you gained there?). That definitely places you one step ahead of the likes of myself, who never managed to complete their degree until over the age of 60 (and even then, only gaining the equivalent of an Associate Degree).
It is true that all too many employers have rather unrealistic expectations of a job applicant - the old wanting somebody who is "17 years old and fully experienced" attitude still reveals itself on occasions! However, rightly or wrongly (and as I discovered), academic qualifications tend to be rated higher than practical experience. In my own case, although having worked at all levels in the industry from labourer to senior management, that lack of formal qualifications posed a definite barrier (very much a situation of "No degree qualification - don't even bother wasting our time!")
Being a JW doesn't exactly refine ones social skills, and as Finkelstein has already remarked, somebody like yourself gets rather quickly "sent to Coventry" by their former friends. There are, though, ways of making new friends, through involvement in various community groups - such as sports clubs, cultural organisations, social groups etc. In that way, it is a bit like moving into a new town.
The main idea is to try to keep looking ahead through the windscreen, rather than backwards through the rear vision mirror!
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Would You Outlaw Jehovah's Witnesses If You Had Your Way?
by minimus ini still believe in freedom of religion even if i disagree with the beliefsof the religion.
what about you?.
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Bungi Bill
What Island Man said!
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They should show this 2 minute video about 1975 at the convention
by LevelThePlayingField inif only there was a way to hack in and play this.
:).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bmca1qdhho&feature=push-u&attr_tag=3yku113wrp-khxdt-6.
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Bungi Bill
That's what they said!
(And everybody developed a collective case of amnesia afterwards).
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The future
by no-zombie inconsidering the demographic transition patterns of societies historically under go and in particular how the population pyramids evolve over time has a direct application to the future of the organization and i encourage all to have a look at this very interesting subject.
i've spent quite a bit of time formally studying these proven concepts and despite all the spin we hear and read about the magnificent growth the society is enjoying ... it is in fact in a death spiral (or more exactly a stage 5 population contraction).
look it up for yourselves guys, it can be quite encouraging when you think about.
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Bungi Bill
We can all certainly hope that this is the case!
Where, though, do you get this data from to form that conclusion?
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KISS - Knights In Satan's Service
by Funchback ingrowing up as a jw, i was told that kiss stood for knights in satan's system (or service).. i just did a google search and learned it's not true.
it's actually not an acronym for anything.. to be honest, apparently it's not just the jws who believe it means something related to satan.. http://www.snopes.com/music/hidden/kiss.asp.
one day paul [stanley] and peter [criss] and i were driving around, brainstorming for new names.
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Bungi Bill
Yeah - I well remember that priceless canard!
According to the WTS, members of this band were so bad that while travelling by commercial airline flights, they had to be physically separated from the other passengers.
All of it complete nonsense, of course.