Half banana

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Posts by Half banana

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  27

  November 2017 JW broadcasting HYPOCRISY!

  by stuckinarut2 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  ok...so i am on a bit of a temper tantrum rant here...but if anyone has (endured) watched this month's broadcast, you will know what i mean!.

  i have only watched 20 mins so far, and the hypocrisy is mind blowing.

  they dare to go on about how thoroughly they research the material produced, so that errors are prevented etc.. for instance, the actually say how they ensure that a scientist is not misquoted, or that an "evolutionist" is not inaccurately quoted to make it seem like his comments are different to his intentions.

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  Half banana

  "We cling to our accurate understanding of the Bible."

  ............like a drowning sailor clings to his punctured life raft.
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  6

  A Nightmare on the death of Pastor Charles Taze Russell

  by TerryWalstrom in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  pastor russell lay dying.

  clad only in a white roman toga he wavered between one world and the next.. outside the train's sleeper car, the pampas, texas flatland unfolded sideways to the naked eye.

  nothing of interest.

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  Half banana

  I especially enjoyed your Death of Russell Terry, thank you.

  He had been an opiate taker for much of his life as we are led to believe and when suffering from his diabolical hemorrhoids he must have needed to increase the dose. Perhaps this is what happened at his death? How are we to know? Do you know what the speculations are as to him being poisoned?
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  21

  A woman without a voice

  by SunnyOne026 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  this is my story in a nut-shell.

  i hope some of you can relate.

  if you can..i would love to hear from you.. i have been crushed and heartbroken more times than i can recount by a religion that claims to be based totally on love and mercy and most of that harm has come from the so called "shepherds" who or are supposed to lovingly take the stray lambs in their arms and lead them gently back to safety.

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  Half banana

  So sorry to hear of your woes Sunny, you have a voice but felt obliged not to use it. I shot myself in the foot as a young teenager and became a JW to the horror of my parents. I also turned down the education I wanted in art. We all make mistakes and being a JW is generally a very bad preparation for marriage although it has to be said that many couples do succeed despite their religion.

  Where JWs suffer is in being taught that they are good-for-nothing slaves.This ideal, psychologically speaking is just dreadful. Being a witness kills off ambition and personal growth and JWs remain infantilized by their leaders (I know they hate the term "leaders" but it is the correct one).

  Take it slowly from here, things will get a lot better as you learn more and begin to see your position with greater clarity. We have nearly all been through it and it is distressing to have been lied to about important things and also having been duped for such a big chunk of our lives.

  It can take many months to get rid of the Watchtower voice perpetually prodding your rational brain!

  You have friends here so do keep posting. Cyber hugs to you.
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  18

  My thoughts on Church shootings..

  by DATA-DOG in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  disclaimer: i do not approve or condone any acts of violence that result in the deaths of innocent persons.. alright.. let me just say that i have no idea what motivated the latest mass shooting, nor do i condone those actions.

  i am, however, beginning to understand why some individuals may feel that violence is their only choice, although i do not approve of that choice.. when i read topics on this forum that concern religion and legalism, topics that drone on and on, getting nowhere, i feel extremely frustrated.

  yes, religions are given certain freedoms, but many are obviously going beyond the spirit that motivated the separation of church and state.

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  Half banana

  DD, I'm talking off the cuff too but surely the shootings in question have little to do with religion, no more than a massacre at a school is to do with education. Isn't it about the psychopath who sees certain groups as so abhorrent to him or so valueless that he imagines he will feel better for killing some of them. It's about the accessibility of dangerous weapons by people with deranged minds.

  The target for the rest of us must be to recognize those potentially vulnerable to such behaviour and have some social systems in place to help them. Easier said than done.

  I can't help thinking how the JW org is all about being an outsider and fervently looking forward to "the death of the opposers" which is frankly in the same vein as these maniacs who do kill indiscriminately.
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  5

  Astro-theology and dates concerning Jesus the moon god?

  by Crazyguy in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  i have done a lot of research over the years in to jesus and how he related to other older gods and astro-theology.

  many who have looked in to this before me have stated that jesus is a retelling of a son god.

  they talk about horus and quote scriptures where jesus is alluded to being the sun of god as much as the son of god.

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  Half banana

  I don't think his death age signified anything in particular but the absence of a biography of Jesus between the age of twelve to thirty, if memory serves right was a direct parallel with Horus myth.

  When looking at the mythos behind a story it is probably best to know what the key signifiers were in the first place. To fulfill solar myth the hero's death had to be at the time of "the cross" i.e. when the Sun's path (the ecliptic) crosses the equator at the spring equinox in the northern hemisphere.

  In the matter of Sun gods and their offspring the moon does not usually figure and neither does thirty three years. The moon gods were usually feminine-- although in the Levant there were many exceptions including Yahweh who was a Canaanite male moon god, with his regular curved horns relating to the crescent Moon. The other element for the Moon would be its shorter periodicity not relating to the whole astronomical cycle of the solar year which would be the Sun god's rightful period.

  Another reason to exclude the Moon as a type for JC was that the son of the Sun god was "the exact representation of his very being". How perfectly true this was, as each morning it was witnessed by the ancients who saw in a glorious winter sunrise over the Nile, the rising Sun god and his perfect reflection in the water below.

  The fact that the Sun 'dies' for three and a half days I suggest is applied as a literary device to simply signify that the hero character who goes through this process (Odysseus and JC etc) was a mighty god like person. He is not required to do it as the same time as the actual Sun does.
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  41

  October 31, 2017 TO ALL CONGREGATIONS Re: New Visitor Exhibit at Bethel (UK)

  by wifibandit in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  october 31, 2017 to all congregations re: new visitor exhibit at bethel.

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  Half banana

  Thanx Dark
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  41

  October 31, 2017 TO ALL CONGREGATIONS Re: New Visitor Exhibit at Bethel (UK)

  by wifibandit in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  october 31, 2017 to all congregations re: new visitor exhibit at bethel.

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  Half banana

  It is my guess that Chelmsford was purchased by IBSA as a separate entity of the WT empire. Perhaps there are legal or financial benefits for retaining IBSA wealth here in the UK which would be lost if all the millions went to New York. Chelmsford is just another property investment and much bigger than they need.

  How many JWs in UK, 160,000 and reducing? What justifies millions being spent for their 'spiritual benefit' at Chelmsford? JWs after all are able to keep contact with the seven dwarfs electronically!

  IBSA should be dissolved and its wealth should be returned to those who contributed to it or in the spirit of Christianity; charitably given to the needy.
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  59

  What can the leadership at Watchtower do to turn things around?

  by UnshackleTheChains in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  let's play devils advocate here.. put yourself in the governing body's shoes.

  they are well aware of all the issues they are facing.

  they know their numbers (they 'do the math' as they say in the us).

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  Half banana

  I am in agreement Van.

  What can they do?

  Come clean and admit to the world that they have always been wrong in virtually everything they have ever said, done, published or broadcast.

  Solemnly declare they have no special relationship with any divinity and that their religion is a failure as a prophetic institution and that they have perpetuated a fraud.

  They can dissolve all arms of their worldly empire and shut up shop.

  They can apologise to those who they have taken advantage of or who have suffered loss of lives, loss of self esteem, family closeness, earning capacity et cetera because of their teachings-- and return WT wealth back to their supporters and contributors in part compensation.
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  59

  A Little Direction Please

  by Brian J in

  1. social
  2. relationships

  i'm an active elder, cobe, just got home from the meeting where i handled the treasures part and concluded by announcing a friend of mine has been d/f,.....blah blah blah...and over the last year have woken up.

  i simply cannot spill my guts to my wife and children as it would be family suicide.

  i have zero desire to bash, spread my feelings, or become an "apostate".

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  Half banana

  Brian I first admit that I failed when I was in your position but that does mean that I have had the chance to analyse what went wrong. In my case without criticising the org, just by stopping going to the meetings and saying that I didn't believe it anymore was enough for my wife to brand me as a devil.

  In retrospect I can see that the effect on my wife was taken to be an attack on her sense of security. It undermined her status as wife and mother and at the same time it challenged her emotional dependance on her Watchtower delusion and the social circle within the congregation.

  To suddenly stop being a JW is a shocking and powerful event for the believing spouse. In my case my wife went in the direction of becoming a super zealous JW blindly ignoring all other considerations. This had serious repercussions on the whole family and especially on my young children.

  In other words; don't do what I did! I suggest you remember that your wife wants security and consideration and not have the rug pulled from under her feet. So the advice already given to take it very slowly is a must.

  I guess that your wife needs the experience of being given a new vision of an honest and good life without dependence on flimsy promises of paradise before she is exposed to the faults of the JW mind-set. Criticism of the religion only arouses entrenchment.

  As you loosen the ties with JWdom you can increase your time with your wife and family instead.

  All the best to you as you embark on your new direction in life, remember we are with you and do keep posting!
  
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  38

  October 31, 2017 TO SELECTED BOEs IN THE US BRANCH TERRITORY Re: Discontinuation of the Funds-on-Deposit Arrangement

  by wifibandit in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  october 31, 2017 to selected bodies of elders in the united states branch territory re: discontinuation of the funds-on-deposit arrangement.

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  Half banana

  As the masked highwayman said pointing both of his cocked pistols, "Stand and deliver".