Posts by cappytan

53

Spirituality

by Jonathan Drake in

if you are a current practitioner of some religious faith i would appreciate it if you abstained from this thread entirely.

im curious if anyone has had what could be discribed as a spiritual experience.

i'm currently reading sam harris book waking up and it's very good so far.

cappytan

Here is an interesting article by Sam Harris on Buddhism: http://www.lionsroar.com/killing-the-buddha/

8

Hierarchy of Needs Revelation

by freemindfade in

in my quest to always understand why jws get so f%$@ed up (yes oubliette, lets review lol) i discovered something today.

in speaking with one of my fellow heathen friends from this site i was talking about maslov's hierarchy of needs in an unrelated subject but i had an epiphany.

witnesses are held at the third level and never make it to the oh so critical top two sections.

I think they would disagree with you and say, "I''ve acheived a lot of things! I was a bethelite! I'm an elder! I respect others, that's why I go in service! I'm moral! I'm a JW artist so I'm creative! I know how to solve problems...use the Bible! I'm not prejudiced! I have plenty of black friends in the truth! I accept the facts...it's a sacred secret!

14

A checklist for Lurking JW's.

by cappytan in

dear lurking jw's:.

if you were in a cult, how would you know?

cults don't call themselves cults.

cappytan

fastJehu: Good one! Unfortunately, I can't edit the OP anymore. lol

14

A checklist for Lurking JW's.

by cappytan in

dear lurking jw's:.

if you were in a cult, how would you know?

cults don't call themselves cults.

cappytan

fastJehu: Any other reference I should use instead?

We all know the JW FAQ is the sanitized version of the doctrines.

-------------

Can anyone else help with modern JWdotORG references for the rest of the points? I have to work right now. lol

14

A checklist for Lurking JW's.

by cappytan in

dear lurking jw's:.

if you were in a cult, how would you know?

cults don't call themselves cults.

cappytan

Dear Lurking JW's:

If you were in a cult, how would you know? Cults don't call themselves cults. The Branch Davidians and Jonestown cults didn't consider themselves cults.

Here are some identifying marks of cults:

1. Ruled by a man or group of men. YES - Governing Body

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2002203#h=12

2. Isolate you from your previous friends, family, and humanity YES - Bad Associations spoil useful habits

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1102006152#h=28

3. Tell you they are the only way, the only truth, and the only ones that can save you. YES - JW's refer to their religion as "The Truth" and their teachings as "Sacred Secrets"

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2011568#h=16

4. They use fear to persuade you to never leave them. YES - Armageddon, Disfellowshipping

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2008241#h=25
http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1102008083

5. If you leave you are punished severely. YES - Disfellowshipping, shunned by friends and family

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1102008083

6. Abuse is allowed because it favors a patriarchal society were men get privileges women don't. YES - Countless cases of abuse in the organization. Men are the only ones allowed to teach.

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1102008084
http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/402015042#h=17

7. They require some sort of sacrifice. YES - No Blood transfusions, no hanging out at party/bar, no holidays

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2000447

8. They threaten you with lose of family, friends if you don't do as they say. YES - Disfellowshipping and/or marking

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1102008083

9. They claim its not them, but God that wants you to act a certain way. YES - The Governing Body claims to be God's channel for communication.

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2002203#h=12

10. They claim they get their power by God. YES. - See above

11. They don't want you to read any literature that is against their cause. YES - The Governing Body discourages looking at literature and websites that are critical of the organization.

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1102008064#h=14

12. They discourage, use fear, threaten, or order that certain medical procedures are not done. YES - No Blood transfusions, in the past they used to ban organ transplants too.

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2000447

13. They discourage education that they aren't involved in. YES - The Governing Body frequently goes on rants against higher education.

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2011448#h=9

14. They are usually apocalyptic in their speech. YES - Armageddon

Reference: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2008241#h=25

39

Does What We Say Here Or In Person Really Help JWs To Get Out Of The Religion?

by minimus in

jw
friends

if we are in the congregation, do you think our comments or questions actually reach elders or others in the congregation?

do our comments on this board affect witnesses to the point of questioning their faith?

cappytan

I was an active uber dub and if it weren't for this site, I may have given in to cognitive dissonance and suppressed my doubts.

It's liberating when you find out you're not alone and there are others out there that are feeling the same doubts as you are.

13

587 vs 607: JW sources only

by wifibandit in

the latest jw podcast has inspired me to update the copypasta comment that i post anytime this topic comes up.. i have formatted it to more closely follow the wonderful www.jwfacts.com table.

i have also added a few more links directly to the jw online library.

"evil-merodach reigned two years" w65 1/1 p. 29.

cappytan

SimonSays: The Society accepts 539 BCE as the date of the fall of babylon.

They accept an archeological source when it agrees with them. But if that same source disagrees with them on another point, they don't accept it.

Why is it okay to accept a source for something that confirms your belief, yet reject that same source when it goes against your doctrine?

I'll answer that question: it's a little thing called "Confirmation Bias."

134

Young Girl Exposes Jehovah's Witnesses at school video goes VIRAL last 2 days 273,000 views

by Watchtower-Free in

original thread here.

http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/291080001/brave-high-school-student-exposes-abuse-corruption-within-jehovahs-witnesses.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdvt_gyq-ls.

cappytan

That is so awesome that Dawkins tweeted it.

9

does us Bethel Rachel oily racially reflect the publishers in us

by poopie in

jw
friends

your thoghts racially not oily

cappytan

Rachel oily skin color and the rest of the best thing about being able to get my nails done tomorrow night with a few weeks ago when the first place I have to be.

22

Hope y'all in Texas are doing OK !

by Simon in

some terrible flooding happening there.. i never realized that texas was so prone to serious floods and flash-floods because of the geography and weather.

it tops the stats nearly every year for flood fatalities.. stay safe, stay dry if you can and don't take any chances.

water is unbelievably powerful - whatever vehicle you have it can sweep it away like a twig.

cappytan

Just read an article and stupidly clicked on the comments section thinking I was going to see a lot of well wishers.

nope. A bunch of liberals laughing and daring Texas to take federal aid.

I really hate when people politicize a tragedy. Even worse when they do so before it's over.

anyhow, Texas is flush with cash right now thanks to the shale oil boom and California migration.