Posts by tornapart

15

We are living in the 21st Century , When , Are We Going to Bury Religious Superstition ? Once and for all ?

by smiddy in

the christian bible / cannon is different , depending on what religion you profess ,around the world.. russian orthodox ,greek orthodox ,christian gnostics ,roman catholics , polish national catholics ,c.of e , etc,etc,.

the very many christian bible translations that exist today differ according to different interpretations of the translators.. the jewish translators of the hebrew scriptures add a whole new concept to the traditional interpretation by christian translators of the old testament... throw in the mix all of the fundamentalist religions that have sprung up these past couple of centuries including the j.w.`s , s.d.a.`s , mormons , t.v.

evangelists , etc, etc,.

tornapart

I must say those are questions I've been asking myself for a long time. If you believe in a God it gives you a strange sense of abandonment sometimes but then there are other times when he feels strangely close. I feel being in a religion can give you a sense of belonging, a higher power to tell you what to do and what to believe, maybe in the same way as a child with a parent. Only trouble is a child grows up and moves away, makes his own way in life. Who wants to be stuck as a child? The way I think of it myself, I can't shake off the feeling that there is a God. He does exist to me. Have I got evidence... no. But then neither is there evidence that he doesn't exist. I don't believe he is involved in man's affairs the way religion says he is. We have free will and free choices, Many don't like it when that free will and free choice is taken away by religion.

It's good to keep asking questions... even if we don't like the answers. Sometimes there are no answers.

133

The new service meeting

by John Aquila in

i wanted to relate an experience that happened this morning.

it is regarding the new format for the meeting on thursdays in my area.

its not word for word but im summarizing what i heard, the best i can remember.

tornapart

I told my elder hubby your story this morning John Aquila and he wasn't surprised at all. He said he knows what a lot of the brothers and sisters are saying and many are disturbed by all the changes especially the older ones. He even told me that all the things I'm bothered about, many others are bothered by too (except I've gone one step further by leaving). He thinks there will be a lot more asking questions sooner or later.

64

"Apostates " how honest are we?

by closed in

as i mentioned in another post i used to serve as an elder for 2 decades.

i was involved in a number of jc.

some i dealt with are good friends now.

tornapart

People lie all the time. We all do it. White lies, withholding something, outright deceit. To a greater or lesser degree we all do it. It's human nature. The problem is, as JWs we were taught that we were the most honest group of people on earth. Well... that's a lie! There are just as many dishonest JWs as any other group of people, in fact, they lie to themselves probably more than other people. So is it any wonder when we break free or worse are kicked out... we make stuff up? Some people are naturally more honest than others but I think it's more to do with who they are as a person than what they are.

49

Steven Lett asks for money again

by Gorbatchov in

jw
friends

the 2016 january tv.jw.org broadcasting has a clear message: jw.org needs more money!.

the 2 months of donation increase is not enough: the thousands of projects are not a 2 month project.. so: thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you (heh heh heh) and send us more!

personal conclusion: if i had any doubts that the society is sincere, this openly money grabbing has made my perception complete.

tornapart

The first thing that struck me was the way he came across, as if he were on a children's programme aimed at primary school age (7-11). Then the guilt tripping (Jesus obeying his Father). Then the commendation (how wonderful you've all been in responding) including some emotional manipulation in reading out a young teen's letter about how she'd saved up her pocket money to send. It seems the May broadcasting resulted in a 15% increase in contributions during June and July (according to Lett). 'So now we're trying it again', he's saying.

What happened to the 'we will never ask for money'?

Then there's the showing of what all the money is being used for. Nothing about having to clean up contaminated property. Nothing about out of court settlements for child abuse cases. Nothing about covering dodgy investments that have gone wrong. It's all got to look totally squeaky clean.

94

ELDERS, ha ha ha ha....!!!!!

by brandnew in

jw
friends

so as many know....ive been df'd goin on 19 years already.

i drive pops to meetings, and drop him off on saturdays for fs.. well yesterday, the elders ask to speak to me, and tell me that if i plan on returning to jehovah, i had better shave my beard off..

omg!!!!!!

tornapart

Outlaw... you missed Sophia with her ice cream money

138

How many of you actually KNOW the bible OR God???

by Mark Zyche in

since jws are sooooooo terrible and full of lies.

what the heck do you think about fat santa, and and days later the celebration of janus?.

since you seem to be so good at looking at the "lies of the watchtower" what do you people think of your lives now, religiously speaking?

tornapart

Mark.. you are not a true JW, otherwise you wouldn't be here. You are also not even a true christian because a true christian behaves the way Jesus behaved. You don't. So what are you?

45

The story of my exit

by mrsObfuscate in

i have been lurking here for about 6 months, and being the last day of the year, and ready to start the new one afresh, i want to share the story of our exit from the org.

i have found the personal experiences of others of immeasurable value, (and its been a while since a good exit story has been posted) that i hope this can be of benefit to at least someone.. .

my mother became a jehovahs witness when i was about 9 or 10. i remember initially hating all of the new sanctions put on our lives (no birthdays and christmas anymore) but for some reason i soon after joined her in attending the meetings and eventually got baptized at the age of 14. my staunch catholic father converted a couple of years later.

tornapart

Wonderful story! This is going to be so helpful to those who are in a marriage where they still love their spouse but their spouse refuses to even hear a word against the organisation. You have given the other side of the story, how difficult and painful it is and how you feel on that side of the fence. It gives hope to others that eventually one day something will happen to awaken their spouse too. So happy for you both!

5

Superb advice from the WTBTS!

by Nicholaus Kopernicus in

(insight vol.

the reader must put his heart into it, be absorbed in study of the material, meditate deeply upon it, and seek to benefit from it personally.pr 15:28; 1ti 4:13-16; mt 24:15" this is a fascinating statement from the insight volume.

i accept that "the help of god's spirit is necessary for real discernment and understanding of god's word.

tornapart

When the forerunner of the Insight volumes (Aid to Bible Understanding) was written back in the 70's by Ray Franz and his friends, studying the bible on it's own really took off in Bethel, resulting in many disfellowshipings. It seems that the GB/FDS don't actually approve of reading it on it's own, despite the fact that the bible itself clearly states we don't need anything or anyone else to teach us except Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit.

The whole reason why they are so scared of us doing it is that they realise once we've read the scriptures with an open mind we reach the conclusion that they are teaching us a load of falsehoods that go directly against what the bible is telling us. Once we've discovered that then they lose their obedient slaves.

20

The worst gift of Christmas

by GrreatTeacher in

jw
friends

everybody gets one, the gift that stared up at you hopefully from its beautiful wrapping, and then, like a deflated balloon, delivers the worst gift ever.. i'm not talking about the gifts from small children like the "greatest aunt" coffee mug or the red and black lace folding fan.

surely you never would have chosen them for yourself, but it's the thought that counts from small people who love you.. then, there's the what the hell were they thinking gifts.

my mother-in-law has been giving these a lot lately.

tornapart

I've never had a 'worst' christmas present... being a JW all my life (until recently) they have been few and far between. But I've always treasured memories of the ones I've had, so for me it's the 'best'. As a child of about 6, a neighbour came round and gave me a 'stocking' full of chocolate bars and sweets and some warm fluffy mittens, over 60 years later I have never forgotten it. At school, age 12, my best school friend, knowing I didn't celebrate it and reciprocate her gift bought me a necklace and some perfume. I treasured it for years.

I know my parents tried to make up for the lack of christmas presents by buying us gifts when they could and they were always treasured and I did the same for my own children, but those christmas gifts as a child felt quite special to me.

51

Rivalry among the sisters

by Esmeralda001 in

when i was first introduced to the "truth", i was so distracted by the love and affection that the members were showing me that i was ready to convert into the religion without thinking twice.

i was conviced that jws were god's people (i still think some of them are).

i made it my goal to get baptized as i wanted to be part of the "only" religion that produce such good people.

tornapart

My sister came back to all this after many years out. She now says to me she understands why she left in the first place. She still wants to stick to it all but now she is very careful who she chooses as her friends. Not everyone is the same. Like me she feels it's best to chose those you can trust, who are non-judgemental and are caring. Genuine ones like this do exist and they are to be treasured. They won't look down on you, gossip about you, patronize you or judge you. Admitted they are few and far between but they are precious. If you can find them then everyone else can be forgotten and ignored. Just don't let these competitive, self-righteous women get to you. Think of those in your life who give you pleasure and joy and stick to them, forget everyone else. You owe them nothing.