Posts by Chariklo

85

How many gods are there?

by jgnat in

christianity was birthed in a polytheistic world, inheriting from jewish roots the concept of one g-d. now, instead of one god for israel, we are offered one god for the whole world.

caesar (mortal men) was declared a god.

gods had powers beyond ordinary men, could grant requests, and demanded sacrifice and worship.

Just to throw into the mix, many people think that Hindus have countless numbers of gods. Yet educated Hindus I know state firmly that there is only one God, who allows himself to appear in many forms or aspects, and it is these personifications that are known as the many Hindu gods.

That makes sense to me.

I am also quite comfortable with the concept of a world in which there are many spirits, but I believe there is only one God. However, I do not think that such a God, creator of all that is, would bear much resemblance to the limited, limiting, punitive God portrayed by the Watchtower.

I suspect its members have a bit of a surprise waiting for them.

48

Waking Up From a 34 Year Slumber.

by alg1052 in

july 11, 2011 will be 34 years since i was baptised as one of jw's.

the sleeping pill i took was in the form of them providing the information that made the bible come alive with the truth and insisting that they go by the bible not adding or taking away from it.

i had negative experiences from local brothers from time to time, however i excused them as part of being imperfect.

Chariklo

Welcome!

Don't rush to find a new spiritual home for yourself.

The trivial issue of a small patch of facial hair is purely and simply a method of control, just as you perceived it to be. The ultimate in ridiculous!

I am hardly qualified to give any advice, as against your 35 years of experience I merely have 14 months, and brief experience as an unbaptised publisher, but a very enthusiastic one. Although only very briefly I was taken in by a lot of the rhetoric until events woke me up and brought back my common sense. But I can empathise with your observations on publishers harassing people in a territory just to complete pioneer time. I saw it, along with individuals explicitly "making" time supposedly spent actively publishing but in reality not doing so, just to tot up the hours.

Crazy.

It must be very hard after 35 years. Even after a year, albeit a very intensive year, I found elements had gone in deep. This forum is a great help in regaining perspective and a calm mind.

Stick around. You'll find many friends.

122

Jehovah's witness meetings are NOT BORING......

by punkofnice in

...i was told but they usually were as i look back.. as a lad i'd sit and look to see who the lights would fall on.

i'd get an almond and see how long i could suck it before i chewed at it.

i'd imagine playing rock'n'roll on the congregation's piano.. how did you get through the meetings when you were bored?.

Chariklo

Are babies in the meeting or in a nursery. Are all children in the regular meeting or is there a children's ministry separate somewhere? Making a young child sit through an adult meeting is retarded.

Children are in the meeting and are encouraged to answer questions. They do so easily. Not surprising. Often the questions can be easily answered by a five year old.

85

July 15th WT- Don't Research " False Stories " - Inspired by Satan !

by flipper in

jw
friends

i know the poster lost generation made a fantastic thread on this july 15th apostate article, however - i noticed some very powerful points on pg.

17 paragraphs 9 - 11 which weren't brought out that i feel needed to be touched on.

as was brought out in his thread this article told jw's to avoid apostates because they are " mentally diseased " allegedly and to avoid their web sites, not read their literature, watch t.v.

Chariklo

O often ask myslef just what there is about the tribes that became Israel that would lead us to think that God would reveal himself exclusivly to them.

Might he not have revealed himself equally clearly to people in India, South America, Australia etc?

7

Who pays for this?

by sizemik in

the precedent set here will mean a criminal record and a fine and/or other penalties for the legal caregiver of any jw minor who suffers injury or dies through not receiving blood.

with over 200,000 witnesses in russia, this could become a regular occurrance.. any loss of life as a result of this misguided belief should indeed be punished or deterred by law.. but i just wonder .

who will meet the cost for these ones?.

Chariklo

Just watch the literature.

Before long these sad cases will be listed as triumphs of faithful Witnesses holding fast to their faith and enduring under persecution.

116

I've Decided That It'll Be Best For Me To Return To The Kingdom Hall.

by Philadelphia Ponos in

jw
friends

after carefully evaluating the my current life situation, i've come to the conclusion that returning to the hall will be best for me.

i simply just don't fit in with the rest of the world.

i don't drink, smoke, have sex, go to clubs, listen to worldly music, watch movies, or gamble.

Chariklo

a person cannot receive God's spirit if they deliberately alienate themselves from his visible organization.

Maze, that's rubbish. That firstly presupposes that any earthly organisation is the equivalant of God and secondly, in context, that the WT is such an organisation. Paulapollos is absolutely right, neither of those passages is talking about an organisation.

Can't a person receive holy spirit by requesting it of Jehovah in prayer?

Serenitynow, God the Creator of Heaven and Earth, who loves each one of us and sent his only Son to earth to die for us, cannot be limited by teachings of any organisation, no matter how loudly it tells itself that it is God's organisation. Do you think an all-powerful, wise and loving God can be limited as to how he sends his Holy Spirit? Just as the wind blows where it pleases, the Spirit of God will do as God wills, at his pleasure and when he chooses, and we know that we only have to ask and we will receive. Of course you can ask for the Holy Spirit in prayer, and God will be answering your request before you've even made it, since he can read your heart.

That's my take on it anyway. That's my understanding of what the Bible says.

65

I walked out of an Elder's Meeting

by AlmightyDog in

well here goes... i apologize in advance if this turns into a long and disjointed rant, but i just have to begin typing in order to keep from exploding.

i realize that what im about to say could seriously jeopardize my anonymity, but i think ive reached the point that i just dont care.

i want this to be over.. let me explain what caused me to rip up a letter and get up and walk out in the middle of an elders meeting two weekends ago.. our boe has been embroiled in a nasty fight for the past 2 years over a certain brothers business dealings.

Chariklo

Satan uses the effect of fleshly claimants to being elders of God, for that exact intended effect, to make people theink the entire organization is not God's, when in fact it is the culmination on mankind's final warning, regardless of how many fleshly elders though, may harm the sheep, those keeping their eyes ON JEHOVAH, know these things must occur to a finality IN God's own house.

Well, 2057, that tells us a lot about what you, and the WT, believe God to be.

The God I believe in is the loving God imaged by Jesus, his loving Father, not one who gives out final warnings.

Almighty Dog, it is indeed a cult, and you are well out of it. My experience is as an unbaptised publisher who had a rude awakening just in time caused by the extraordinarily jealous, possessive and controlling behaviour of a sister, so I can sympathise with White Dove above.

Even at that level, recent and not even baptised, I found it very difficult and disorientating to stop the study of the second book and just not to go to meetings, but now, two weeks later, I'm feeling free (though they'll start the recovery mission on me again soon.) I don't know how it is with you, and I'm sure you have hard times ahead, but once you realise that it's just not true, your inner honesty is going to take over.

You'll be fine.

63

Can you answer: What is "The Truth"?

by serenitynow! in

i mean can someone, preferably an active jw, explain in 5 sentences or less what that really means?.

i ask because of the long post that "20571..." made on another thread about how "the truth" is better than this, that and the other thing.. what does it really mean?.

Chariklo

Different from the gospel, or good news, that all other Christians teach, then?

43

I am being DF as an 'Apostate' - I HAVE NO REGRETS

by punkofnice in

jw
friends

yes, folks!

you heard me correctly.. of course i'm not going to any jc or discussing the matter as i do not recognize jdub authority.. it'll be nice to get my release papers.

apparently an 'anonymous caller' dobbed me in.. how childish!

Chariklo

Hi Punk,

Looks like Congratulations are in order!

41

Hello, Hi and Heys! I'm new

by PinkPajamasx in

jw
friends

hello everyone, i am not nor ever been a jw.. i'm a 40 year old mother of 2 and i am married to a wonderful man who serves as a naval chief in the united states navy.

we have been married 15 years and life is beautiful.

i knew a little about jehovah's witnesses until recently.

Chariklo

Welcome, Pink!

Sounds to me like you are made of tough stuff, and well done for standing up to the in-laws.

It also sounds like you have a good priest to turn to for advice when you need it.

JW's are mad, bad and dangerous to know. In my opinion. They very, very nearly sucked/suckered me in, but no more.