Posts by Half banana

41

Watchtower Doctrines JWs most commonly don't believe

by Diogenesister in

there was a recent thread on another site where posters maintained that many of the *most* long-standing jw's don't believe at least one official watchtower doctrine.

i've even read reports from bethelites saying they've heard bethel overseers say they don't believe some watchtower theology.

this made me think - i believe there are a few official doctrines that are common for many jw's to be either in denial about or simply not really believe ( often one and the same thing).. i'd say these are pretty high in the ranking:.

Half banana

Yes it's true that the real motivation for being a JW is saving your neck at the mythical Big A. And indeed even the GB are also victims of human frailties but being rewarded for their ignorant rule over the peasants makes them responsible for their actions because they know what they are doing.

Ever the rebel as a beard wearing corduroy suited JW, I always tended towards scepticism and never believed in the devil nor in 1914. So surely most JWs have reservations about the truthfulness of some of the doctrines? Funny but I often mentioned my sincerely held belief that I thought that the devil was not literal and no one ever complained, perhaps they would today?

At its heart this cult is fascist by nature and only rewards JWs who totally conform because it sends a message to the world that they are unified, which they want others to read as "divinely inspired".

But heck, half of the JWs these days don't believe all the doctrines, it's not important; it's just the family religion.

20

I'm giving up in 2017! (More steps in my fading)

by Skepsis in

jw
friends

when i joined this site at the beginning of this year, i was serving as an uber-zealous regular pioneer and ms in a foreign congregation where the need is greater.

i was giving public talks and having parts at regional conventions.

had started to have doubts but i hadn't time to focus on them, i simply was overcharged with so many activities and things to do.. i started by quitting pioneering but couldn't think i would give further steps for a long time.

Half banana

Good on you Skepsis! It's troubling at the moment as you straddle the two worlds but it gets better as the influence of the org dwindles and you can enjoy your own authentic life.

I found that making new friends is a great compensation for the loss of old JW friends. Perhaps your actions might give them the confidence to join you?

119

Do I have to believe in Jesus to be saved?

by unsure in

do i have to believe in jesus to be saved?.

i was raised as a jehovah's witness.

i was born in.

Half banana

Unsure, I understand your request for ideas, you are asking for reality after having suffered from the JW fantasy world. You are searching for the guidelines for correct beliefs and that is where the problem lies because having "a religious belief" is a cultural thing, it is not a truthful or factual thing.

I agree with Anders above; what ifs only beg more what ifs. What you do need to do is to distinguish between "belief" and "knowledge".

Instead I suggest you try only "believing" things which have factual or testable evidence for their existence. If a belief is not testable (like "God is love") then don't waste your time on it.

By this criterion "salvation" becomes only a slogan of a religious doctrine, it cannot be tested, it's propaganda, it's a distraction from the world of reality.

Perhaps you are afraid to be yourself? Try it and learn what it is to be a mature human with free choices-- you are not a pawn in a religious lottery, you have every right to navigate your own course through life. You need not be beholden to invisible spirits which are unknowable-- try shaking off those superstitions my friend and get a grip on the real world-- learn critical thinking!.

119

Do I have to believe in Jesus to be saved?

by unsure in

do i have to believe in jesus to be saved?.

i was raised as a jehovah's witness.

i was born in.

Half banana

Unsure, a few hours ago you said,

"That's the problem, without these fairy tales, I believe life is meaningless."

Who said life should have meaning? It is up to you, to give your life meaning. Trying to live someone else's dreams is madness.

Of course we all go through this questioning when we have been hoodwinked by religion but we have a right to determine our own path; have a family, build a house, help mankind, end the attitudes which lead to war, create a better world free of oppressive belief systems or whatever you choose to do. . . but life only has meaning to us if we are the makers of our own life.

119

Do I have to believe in Jesus to be saved?

by unsure in

do i have to believe in jesus to be saved?.

i was raised as a jehovah's witness.

i was born in.

Half banana

There is an irony in old Charlie Russell's choice of the name Watchtower. The metaphor of a literal watchtower was used from the start to illustrate the idea that the look-out at the top gets a panoramic view of the land to foresee events before they arrived, Russell and later "The org" being the only ones to have divine insight.

It never worked for them, they never got anything right, it was all complete rubbish; a fantasy.

A parable of being a JW is like someone born in a cave who never leaves it. An even better illustration for JWs is Plato's allegory of the cave. There are chained prisoners (JWs) who never see the daylight except dimly but are forced to look all the time at the wall at the end of the cave. Some distance behind them is a fire and between the fire and the backs of the prisoners, puppeteers come with shapes casting a shadow play on the end wall of what is purported to be the real world.

The prisoners had no reference to know or to deny reality because the shadows were their only experience of the world.

So my point Unsure, is that the fuzzy images given you from Bible stories are not the basis for making any real life decisions.

Who requires salvation? Only those who have had the concept of sin and the serpent drilled into their brain!

Why does the "Bible based" JW religion act like a cult? Because early Christianity was also a dumb cult, feeding off the gullible in the same way.

You ask "Is it enough to believe in a God" as if to get some hope. If you wish you can believe in anything and everything and if hope is all you want then that's the way forward for you. However if you want to be honest and live without false expectations then it's better to recognise that we all die and therefore we should live knowing that our life is very precious and should not to be wasted on supernatural fairy tales.

7

Neutered New World

by Labate in

if, as jesus said, there is no marriage in the afterlife, will our sex drive be removed?.

sex without marriage is fornication, which is a no-no.. if i were young and healthy, being surrounded by young, healthy women, having the normal male libido would hardly be paradise..

Half banana

Wake, that is a stonking piece of WT drivel you have unearthed.

Can you imagine the allure of joining an organisation which holds out for the new member the prospect of losing your gender identity?

It is beyond the pale. It is insane.

10

Time for a new type/anti-type, G.B? 2033 is the new 1975!

by The Fall Guy in

a well known scripture says, "however, do not let this escape your notice, beloved ones, that one day is with jehovah as a thousand years......." (2 peter 3:8) .

using this divine calculation of time, let's apply it to a prophetic type/anti-type scenario:.

matthew 16:21 says, ".....the christ would suffer and rise from among the dead on the third day...", while john 21:1 reveals that it was at the very beginning of that third day - "on the first day of the week, mary magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and she saw that the stone had already been taken away from the tomb.

Half banana

Surely even JWs know by now it's just not going to happen ...... ever?

34

Oct 2017 WT again shunning instructions

by Daniel1555 in

.

Half banana

The way it evolves in the JW cult is that an idea starts as a comment in a WT then becomes part of the routine. I can imagine that shunning could become a badge of honour in the congregation. "I see you are successfully shunning three family members and two friends Brother Zealous, keep up the good work."

"Theocratic warfare" i.e. lying for the Watchtower, was mentioned years ago as a rare and extreme measure under war-time conditions, as the cult goes into decline they will probably make it compulsory...............

13

I asked an elder how is the witnessing going in Bangladesh?

by Chook in

i said god is not giving them much of a chance to hear his message, i think it's one to 3 million ratio.

i said if wt paid prime internet space they could beam their propaganda to everyone instantly, then you could show the world mr lett live , and explain how he is to rule the world from heaven.

then i asked that god seems to like the anglo nations , i should of asked how many chinese and indian are on the gb..

Half banana

The reason is simple: God is a white Anglo Saxon male

15

June 29, 2017 TO ALL CONGREGATIONS Re: Branch Relocation - Newsletter (UK)

by wifibandit in

june 29, 2017 to all congregations re: branch relocation - newsletter.

britain branch relocation - newsletter ed.5 summer 2017. .

.

Half banana

or even cult delusion..........