Posts by Pathofthorns

28

More Captions

by Stephanus in

jw
friends

this is a rather mundane pic of the penshurst (sydney) kh, taken earlier today.

your captions please: .

edited by - stephanus on 7 august 2002 7:43:40.

Pathofthorns

Mock judicial hearing in progress... (garbage bags over windows)

Path

48

Is Mutual Respect Possible?

by Sociologist in

jw
friends

one of the most striking things about this and similar message boards concerning jehovah's witnesses is the strength of feeling jw-related discussions evoke.

as i dabble in sociology, i was wondering what you all thought about the following questions.

my objective is not to criticize persons belonging to other group but rather to attempt to grasp the dynamics of the conflicts at work here.. the questions:.

I found your questions/comments interesting and not offensive. For me, I think a mutual respect between former and active JW's is the ultimate goal. Probably the biggest road block standing in the way of that is the disfellowshipping/shunning policy in place. Without open fellowship and interaction there can be no mutual respect.

Many of your comments are very true which probably raised some suspicions that you have an agenda. Both active JW's and former JW's seem to be very suspicious of anyone commenting accurately on certain subjects and automatically assume a hidden agenda.

While others criticised the somewhat biased format of your questions, I appreciated the format you chose because it forced us to look more critically at ourselves as a community and that can only be a good thing. If you came here with bias I would rather try to soften them instead of confirming them.

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36

CHANGED---NEW POLICY/INVITATION

by silentlambs in

jw
friends

as a few may recall watchtower policy has changed when circumstances serves the interest of the governing body in getting rid of someone they want to railroad.

an example that has been offered involves peter gregerson.

peter was a personal friend to ray franz, in 1980 peter wrote a letter to the society, saying he wanted no further association with the organization.

Pathofthorns

Now reel forward five years later, with the latest comments in the August 2002, Kingdom Ministry insert, the policy has been adjusted yet again, the "new" adjustment is that even if you say a greeting to your mother or father you could be disfellowshipped.

Can you please provide the exact wording of the comment from the Society that supports your comments above? Thanks.

Path

Edited by - Pathofthorns on 6 August 2002 7:53:16

36

CHANGED---NEW POLICY/INVITATION

by silentlambs in

jw
friends

as a few may recall watchtower policy has changed when circumstances serves the interest of the governing body in getting rid of someone they want to railroad.

an example that has been offered involves peter gregerson.

peter was a personal friend to ray franz, in 1980 peter wrote a letter to the society, saying he wanted no further association with the organization.

Pathofthorns

It would be good to make sure a reporter accompanies you so if anything unethical takes place it will be sure to be in the media. Also, arriving just after the meeting has started will provide maximum discomfort for the congregation but might also provide them an opportunity to lock you out. This would be one meeting I would love to see.

I can't see them having any reason for complaint if you all arrive quietly and take your seats since the meetings are "public" and we have all contributed financially in support of this organization.

It would also be interesting to see if they are prepared for your "visit". If they are, then that would be additional confirmation of the Society monitoring this website.

Good job in exposing the stupid and foolish games they play. In this day and age they look increasingly ridiculous.

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14

Response to JW article in TorontoStar published

by Pathofthorns in

jw
friends

a positive article on jw's in tuesday's edition of the toronto star that appeared to have obvious input and direction from the wt public affairs office left local jw's buzzing and glowing from some positive press for a change.

in some halls reference to it was made from the platforms.

if you haven't read the article you can read it here [url] http://www.thestar.com/nasapp/cs/contentserver?pagename=thestar/layout/article_type1&c=article&cid=1026143773683&call_page=ts_life&call_pageid=991479973472&call_pagepath=life/news&col=991929131147[/url].

Pathofthorns

A positive article on JW's in Tuesday's edition of the Toronto Star that appeared to have obvious input and direction from the WT public affairs office left local JW's buzzing and glowing from some positive press for a change. In some halls reference to it was made from the platforms. If you haven't read the article you can read it here [url] http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1026143773683&call_page=TS_Life&call_pageid=991479973472&call_pagepath=Life/News&col=991929131147[/url]

In today's paper a subtle letter to the editor was published that appears to highlight that forgoing a university education to pioneer might not be the wisest decision. [url] http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1026143889751&call_page=TS_Letters&call_pageid=968332189003&call_pagepath=News/Letters&col=968350116895[/url]

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37

Pedophilia and the WTS 's Irrational Arrogance

by Lee Elder in

jw
friends

i am shocked and outraged by the recent actions of the watchtower society to silence child advocates who's only agenda is to stop the rape and molestation of jehovah's witness children and protect them from the known pedophiles operating within the organization.

those in the organization who are responsible for these reprehensible actions must be sanctioned.

i sincerely hope that voting members of the watchtower society will insist on the removal of all corporate directors who support the current policies that harm children and protect pedophiles.

Pathofthorns

.

Edited by - Pathofthorns on 1 August 2002 21:18:32

37

Pedophilia and the WTS 's Irrational Arrogance

by Lee Elder in

jw
friends

i am shocked and outraged by the recent actions of the watchtower society to silence child advocates who's only agenda is to stop the rape and molestation of jehovah's witness children and protect them from the known pedophiles operating within the organization.

those in the organization who are responsible for these reprehensible actions must be sanctioned.

i sincerely hope that voting members of the watchtower society will insist on the removal of all corporate directors who support the current policies that harm children and protect pedophiles.

Pathofthorns

"Irrational" is the perfect word to describe the actions of whoever is running this organization. Anyone that honestly loves this religion's doctrines and main teachings would do well to think about whether it is really necessary to be "loyal" to an increasingly corrupt organization to hold onto the teachings that they love. At some point you cannot deny that your beliefs and supporting corruption are in conflict with each other.

Surely there must some among the increasingly mindless masses of JWs that can comprehend these things and surely there must be more men and women of principle that will stand up and be counted and do the right thing. The "waiting on Jehovah" to excuse inactivity has to stop and more elders need to start resigning for reasons of principle. People need to start pulling back and realize that by not saying anything and by quietly continuing to support this organization by continuing in their "spiritual routine" they support corruption.

If you are an active JW and especially an elder you need to get off your butt and start thinking seriously about what you are supporting. It's time to bite the bullet and prove what sort of persons you are and accept whatever losses come your way for standing up for what is right.

Path

8

The Revolving Door at the Kingdom Hall

by zenpunk in

jw
friends

about a year ago, i decided to drift into a meeting in my old congregation.

who knows, maybe i thought by doing so my mother would love me again....but anyway - i noticed that there were 5 or 6 of the same "diehard jw" families there but otherwise all the people were completely different.

it seemed that 3/4 of the congregation left and their seats were taken by a new group of converts.

Pathofthorns

Most are likely looking for that ever-elusive wonderful congregation where the atmosphere is going to help their spirituality flourish, and they'll move time and time again in hopes of finding it.

Absolutely brilliant words to sum up the never-ending quest of the faithful JW in an ever crumbling and corrupting organization.

Path

26

THE ATTITUDE OF A BETHELITE

by minimus in

jw
friends

one of the most interesting things that i have noticed about being a witness is the awe that is given to bethelites.

it seems that if you are a bethelite, you are accorded special privleges in congregations.

you are honored when you visit a hall.

Pathofthorns

If the average JW lives in a box, then bethelites imo lived in the center of the box with little or no clue how the outside world functioned.

I was not a fan of them and living close to the Canada branch I grew up in congregations where there were strong anti-bethelite sentiments. Many felt they were out of touch with reality and lived a relatively cushy life. Whether that was true or not, they certainly didn't live in the real world and could not relate to day to day life and were just clueless about everyday things.

The further one travelled away from bethel, the more they were 'worshipped', most likely because they never really had to put up with them on a weekly basis.

I got the feeling many bethelites were very afraid of the outside world and prayed if they got married their wife would be accepted into bethel. In the end many treated me with much respect and would no longer give me advice (counsel), but seemed more interested in understanding life on the 'outside'. I think they realized they were getting more and more out of touch with reality.

There were many bethelites that I liked but ultimately most seemed very 'programmed' and almost robotic in their whole manner. And yes, for the most part they seemed to like to drink hard but had to cover it up. I remember once showing up to bethel in cutoff jeans, a tank top with a case of beer and I soon learned that I should have sleaves on my shirt and a garbage bag to hide my beer.

When I made my exit from the organization, it was the bethel elders in my hall that seemed to feel the most sad and who I think understood my reasons the most but they just seemed so trapped and scared. I feel bad for them. They will be the ones that suffer the most when reality hits.

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29

Armaggedon Postponed By Branch Construction

by hillary_step in

jw
friends

jehovah's witnesses seek to expand campus in patterson

by michael risinit

the journal news .

Pathofthorns

I think Canada branch over-built years ago and a good chunck of building was never really used. It all seems rather strange that with so much vacant space and down-sizing elsewhere they are planning to build there.

Perhaps they are taking advantage of a local situation while it still is somewhat favourable or maybe they intend to collapse everything unnecessary or expendable back to Patterson. When it comes down to it, do they really need all of the presence they have in all of the countries that they do and could they not get by with a skeleton staff with most work outsourced with direction from Patterson?

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