Posts by Max Divergent

26

JW's protected from Tsunami by going to the meeting... from bethel

by Max Divergent in

jw
friends

came across this from one of the "faithfull".... now just watch out now you inactive ones there's a tsunami looking for you, so just be sure you "keep you eyes on the prize ocean".

just spoke to [some bethalite at a bethhell near you] last night.. she was telling us of the news regarding our brothers and sisters in the tsunami region.

in one area all the brothers were at the meeting when it struck, except for one sister who was home sick and a 6 member family of inactive ones who were caught up in it because they hadn't gone to the meeting.

Max Divergent

Came across this from one of the "faithfull".... now just watch out now you inactive ones there's a Tsunami looking for you, so just be sure you "Keep you eyes on the ~~prize~~ ocean"

Just spoke to [some bethalite at a bethhell near you] last night.. she was telling us of the news regarding our brothers and sisters in the Tsunami region. In one area all the brothers were at the meeting when it struck, except for one sister who was home sick and a 6 member family of inactive ones who were caught up in it because they hadn't gone to the meeting. In another area all the brothers were at a district convention so they were safe and in Aceh the worst hit area all the brothers were in the hills where they had been for a while after having been driven out after all the recent religious persecution in the area over the recent past! Some Kingdom Halls throught the Tsunami affected areas have been destroyed which is to be expected.

So, salvation from Satan, God, natural disasters and kryptonite are all brought to you by "The Truth" (TM) and local affiliates at your local Kligon Hall or District Jamboree...

Good lord...

Max - of the "buggered if there's a big wave" class

And the deepest of sympathy for the peoples of the region and visitors, whatever their race, creed or religion. We've been to many of the affected areas more than once and always enjoyed the hospitality and generosity of the locals who've been so terribly hurt by such a massive disaster in such a vulnerable region

34

JW Says:--JWs Are "Not Required" To Go Door To Door!

by Voyager in

http://www.postindependent.com/article/20041217/valleynews/112170011 .

overcast 29. .

Max Divergent

They just ignore the regular community accepted meaning of words... so, 'not required' is true in the sense that noone puts the proverbial gun to a person's head saying 'I require you to accompany me in the D2D work...'

...but they do say things liker 'if you don't go on the D2D work, you are putting a figurative gun to your own head by displeasing God and denying the obligation Jesus put on you to for forth and preach'...

I think the community would take that as 'required', but the JW can say it with a straight face and almost believe it themselves... all they do is redefine words to suit their version of truth.

GIVE ME FREEDOM FROM RELIGION

39

You mean Britain has increasing violent crime? I'm Shocked, Shocked!!

by CaptainSchmideo in

[ previous week | recent columns index | following week ]have great britain's restrictive gun laws contributed to the rise in violent crime?.

dear cecil:.

Max Divergent

>>But the UK has some of the strictest gun-control laws in the world. How could gun crime possibly be on the rise?

Because the guns are imported and distributed illegally - like drugs. They're quite common there as I understand it. I think the idea in America is that is the public are armed legally, then criinals are less likely to risk being shot by committing crime.

Personaly, I think social and economic issues are more of an issue than fear of getting shot.

12

Ozzie's Weekend Poll #119

by ozziepost in

jw
friends

well, it's certainly been an eventful week!

i hope this weekend is a time of resting and recharging the batteries.

so, let's settle down with a relaxing drink (especially a shiraz!

Max Divergent

1. Family study

HAH!! Did one once I think.... like once EVER, and that was only coz Mrs D had a guilt trip after a talk... It just seemed so pointless.

2. Daily text with the family

Can't remember ever doing that... not even the day of the sole family study... maybe I did though? I never read the bible either unless I was at a meeting and following along.

Couldn't see the point of reading the bible - what was in there was only valid if it was confirmed in the publications, so I used to just wait untill the publications were read to me at a meeting.

3. Pre-study on public transport

You must be joking!!!!!! I did go through a phase of pre-study for a month or two. In the end it was a scribbled highlighter randomly scrawled over the mag on teh drive to the hall or while slipping inot the back room during the talk.

4. Street witnessing

Once, and once only... that was at a Shopping Ctr... bloody awful idea... you had to talk to people and be seen with the JW's and all that sort of bad stuff...

5. Backroom meetings!

Yuk... had a few of those... no avoiding them though... I was fairly good at getting away with it though.

6. Shepherding calls

Making them was fun, recieving them was a pain in the arse. In latter years I was always the Book Study Asst, so the Conductor had a vested interest in not hassling me lest I be unavailable to take the group when he wants to nick off one night or for the weekend group...

7. Offerimg a subscription

Only offered it a few times, placed a couple... it was all the damn forms that was annoying. It wasn't much different to offering a mag really.

8. Hall cleaning

Only went if I had to if I'd be conspicuios by my absence.

9. Reading the secondary articles

What are they? :-) I never read the main articles!!! My total attention span was about 1 minute per magazine, I'd hear someone say somthing if there was anything I needed to know.

10. Brother/Sister Zealous

I pretended to be one so as not to be hassled and enjoy the maximum congregational privilages for the minimum possible work... so being around those ones wasn't a bad thing, though it was trialsome and strong liquor was required after ones escape... they were painful...

11. Other (please detail)

I was incredibly busy doing Sweet F. All really.

39

You mean Britain has increasing violent crime? I'm Shocked, Shocked!!

by CaptainSchmideo in

[ previous week | recent columns index | following week ]have great britain's restrictive gun laws contributed to the rise in violent crime?.

dear cecil:.

Max Divergent

>>Simon, you are always dissing america...

You guys just aren't used to a certain class of the English ... their main sport isn't soccer, it's sledging the French... if they're not doing that, then it's the Americans or the Germans... minor amusement is gotten from making fun of the Welsh or Irish.

If they find an Australian, then saying something about colonials or convicts is a reflex action... if they can't find a white 'forigner' to pick on, then they have a complex system of internal bickerings/snobberys seemingly based on regional accents and social class... or even which newspaper people read...

It's truly astonishing how embedded and reflexive all that stuff is with so many people over there... but if you complain about it, that just encourages them...

26

New book by Jim Penton, and revised book by Carl Jonsson.

by cyberguy in

jim penton?s new book is out, "jehovah's witnesses and the third reich: sectarian politics under persecution.".

see amazon-- http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0802086780/qid=1099371922/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl14/002-3179410-1163212?v=glance&s=books&n=507846.

also, there?s an updated version of "the gentile times reconsidered: chronology & christ's return," coming out shortly (as indicated from an email i?ve gotten from carl jonsson).

Max Divergent

When I visited the Holocaust museum in Washington, DC we were given an identity card of a person who died in the Holocaust.

Mine was of a Witness, Willibald Wholfhart (1927-1945) of Austria. His family were active in the ministry and his father was the local overseer, despite Govt opposition. After the Nazi's invaded in 1939, his father was arrested and executed. His older brother went to a concentration camp and his other brother was executed for refusing to join the military. The rest of his brothers and sisters were taken away later by the Germans.

Willi was sent to a convent where a Nazi instructor attempted to indoctrinate him. He later refused to salute Hitler and was sent to dig trenches in front of the invading allies in 1945.

He was killed there.

64

Do You Look Down on "Religious" People Now That You're No Longer a JW?

by minimus in

jw
friends

i try to respect everyne's opinions on religion but i find myself thinking, "what's wrong with these people?

"

Max Divergent

I'm only really bothered when they get jobs like Prime Minister or President... right now I'm very botherd since they've gotten those jobs in the UK, US and Australia...

Since the conservitive god-fearing nutcases got re-elected with a majority in the House and Senate in Australia, the abortion issue has suddenly come up out of nowhere... apparently there's a newly discoverd 'epidemic' of abortions that they didn't notice until after the election...

God, please help us against Your followers...

36

Found an Awake at the rest stop today..and I knew exactly what to do....

by Dawn in

jw
friends

found it at a rest stop today while traveling.

i thought about tossing it, but decided it had a much better purpose.

it was an issue on what to teach your young child - cute picture of a little girl (about 4 years old) on the cover.. so - i took it to my car, got out a pretty purple pen and wrote on the cover "this religion has a major probelm with pedophiles and is hurtful to young children.

Max Divergent

Hi gdt - I understand the vast majority of JW's and elders would deal with such situations with good sense and with a sense of justice, but these problems seem to affect most sectors of the community where vulnerable people are present and the JW's are not an exception.

The JW's handle most things in ways that meet the standard of their reading of the bible, not in accord with prevailing community standards. That leaves the JW's vulnerable to critisism on this point. I don't envy any honest, fairminded person having to deal with these situations in the raw through the congregational system - or under any circumstances.

Some of the court cases in the US and Canada seem to be providing evidence that most elders handle it as well as ordinary people are expected to, but that there is still a streak of legalism and protectivness of the reputation of the org than seems to hamper these cases sometimes, and with disasterous effect for the individuals involved (espcially concerning inappropriate use of Matt 18, see Boer v Cairns - it's off the court site now but is still on Silentlambs, or I'll send you a copy if you prefer).

All in all, writing that on an Awake! troubles me less than some of the evidence presented in courts recently.

Regards, Max

92

Blacks and Voting

by Mecurious? in

okay, this is not meant to inflame or cause another race debate.

but something here is amiss.

why aren't more blacks getting out and registering to vote?

Max Divergent

I personally don't see the necessity in voting in the presidential election though, the only votes that matter are from the electoral college's votes.

But don't you vote to say who the Electoral College votes for?

Maybe you can tell your friends & brother that if you all vote, then you've got more of a say in the election than George W, George H, and Jeb Bush all put together... if your partners all vote too, then you've got even more of a voice than those guys and their wives...

16

Human skeletons found in Flores dated back 18,000 years!

by badboy in

.

they have found `fossils' of a new human species in liang ???

cave.. only1.5 metres in height, this is of the most exciting disveries to came from east asia.. i wonder what jws will make of this one?

Max Divergent

Just to say I was writing a post on the same topic when badboy posted his and ended up being a few minutes later... slightly different content, so I'll leave mine... no annoyance ment!

Jim_TX>> I am just puzzled as to why they are not referring to them as 'Pygmies'. Instead they have some yuppie archeologist (or paleontologist) labelling them as 'Hobbits'.

As I understand it, pygmies are a race of Homo sapiens but these little critters are a new species of humans - sort of like there are lots of species amongst the felines (lions, tigers, domestic cats...). They're not apes, but humans... but not Homo sapiens .

That's why it's such a big deal... Homo sapiens lived on earth at the same time as this species and there's the possibility that folk lore of 'little people' amongst some peoples may be oral history of this species similar to ourselves.

Homo erectus died off long before these guys and may or may not have interacted with Homo sapiens ... but these guys probably did.

Max