Posts by erbie

3

Alternative Watchtower

by jonno12225 in

jw
friends

heres a thought expereiment.. what do you think the watchtower would be like if it had started in europe instead of america.. in europe at the time of the 1800's you had an interesting period of social, political and scientific change.

womens rights movenment were making strides in bettering their standing in society.

many religious institutions welcomed darwins explanation of evolution over time.. how do you think this back drop would have influenced the religions precursers and founders?

erbie

At that time America was the perfect fertile soil in which a cult can take root.

I really don't think that it would ever have been conceived in Europe...

At least I hope not.

119

How many of you followed the WTS direction on education years ago and have been screwed by it?

by Julia Orwell in

jw
friends

i'm really interested in this question because i've heard for years that if you forgo further education and go pioneering, when you have a family down the track you will get a good job because jehovah will provide for you because you pioneered.

as long as i was a kool-aid drinker, even then, i thought, "how does pioneering pay your bills?

surely education should come first.

erbie

I am now in my 40s and studying at university.

This is a great topic and one that we all seem to feel very stongly about.

They really did screw us over didn't they!

86

My wife just told me to move out...

by nolongerconfused in

because of "religious" differences, she now wants me to move out and "separate"...i said what biblical grounds does she have for her request?.

she couldnt respond...she said she'd rather be beaten up by me than have an "apostate" in the house.... this org definitely encourages conditional love.... i don't know what to do...by the way, we dont have children.

.

erbie

Take a step back and try to save your marriage. She doesn't need to see things the way you do right now so just let it cool off for a while.

Just remember that she is not your enemy!

If you love her then that is the most important thing here and you could be taking steps that you will regret for a very long time.

Try to see that she feels like her world has been ripped apart. I bet its really difficult for her so show her love and understanding.

Love and peace to you both.

46

The huge impact the JWs have out in their door knocking --- May 15, 2013

by RayPublisher in

the may 15, 2013 washtowel has a cute little piece of artwork about what an impact they make out in serve-us.

i thought some captions might help make it clearer!.

.

erbie

Yeah, I think it is they who are taking out the trash!

70

Women: Are they Equal to Men ?

by villagegirl in

jw
friends

one of the hard core doctrines of the wt society, and many other religions, is that women are to be in "subjection" to men.. in the bible, in genisis , it says the domination of women by men came after adam and eve disobeyed god.

eve was cursed by pain in childbirth and that from then on as a curse: "he shall rule over you " from then on the male was to dominate the female.. but that was not in the original plan.

this was a reversal of the plan and a curse.

erbie

Are men equal to women?

I believe that the glass can be both half empty and half full

46

The huge impact the JWs have out in their door knocking --- May 15, 2013

by RayPublisher in

the may 15, 2013 washtowel has a cute little piece of artwork about what an impact they make out in serve-us.

i thought some captions might help make it clearer!.

.

erbie

Compare and contrast the Ministry brother with the garbage collector.

What an evil organization!

He may not shave but at least he's doing an honest days work instead of swooning along like a dandy flaneur.

Ahh...the possession of leisure is a wonderful opportunity...

160

I've Come To Realize That "Facts" Don't Mean Much If A Person Refuses To Accept Them

by minimus in

jw
friends

...and that applies to religion as well as politics.. if someone simply believes such and such is true, it doesn't really matter whether you "prove" it or not.

people will believe what they want to believe..

erbie

You are quite correct.

I read both Franz books, Gentile Times Reconsidered and some other books which I can't remember the name of.

The trouble is, people believe what they want to believe irrespective of the facts and I quickly realized this. Many people have been blindly following the 'truth' for so long that, when faced with a challenge, instead of questioning their beliefs cognitive dissonance will cut in like the governor on an engine to compensate for the lack of 'proof'.

You just have to let them be as it is a case of the blind leading the blind.

To spend your time trying to prove them wrong actually in some way qualifies or dignifies the false message that they preach.

If I told you that I was from the future would you waste your time tracing my lineage and my history to prove that I was in fact born and raised over the last few decades???

Of course not. And in time I realized that arguing with an active Witness about their false take on the Bible was doing my own intellect an injustice.

Apathy is the best medicine for them for if you don't take them seriously they will find it increasingly more difficult to take their own message seriously.

Persecution only serves to reinforce their own preconcieved notion in line with what the WT has them believe.

That said, an acurate and well documented history of the WTS is of course neccessary for those wishing to gain an objective view of the movement so I do not critisize anyone for that but you do reach a point when you have to let people believe what they will.

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