Thanks for the link! There is some great stuff in there. I have always been attracted to Buddhism due to the way it promotes openness and a certain quiet calmness. In my daily life, I try and combine Christian ways and Buddhist ways. Maybe I'll start my own religion called Jehovah's Buddhists....
WinstonSmith
JoinedPosts by WinstonSmith
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Look at these beautiful Buddhist principles - why would Jehovah kill anyone following this?
by yadda yadda 2 incheck out these sublime buddhist mindfulness trainings by a famous buddhist monk.
now why would this man or any adherent of such beautiful teachings be destroyed at armageddon?.
(for some reason i can't cut and paste webpage addresses using google chrome.
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Zone Overseer Talk - Would You Wear Saul's Armour?
by WinstonSmith ini have been meaning to post these up since i signed up to jwn but, until someone mentioned the zone talk that is happening tomorrow in new zealand, i had forgotten!
i used to be a prolific note taker during public talks, assemblies and conventions.
as i became more awake to the truth about the truth this died off.
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WinstonSmith
I must say, he is a good speaker. There is something about the American lilt that appeals in talks. Fellow New Zealanders will no doubt remember Mike Kramer. He is an American brother with background in opera. Man his talks could blow the roof off any hall!
@sir82: As mentioned earlier in the thread, this kind of things annoys me too. The 'important people' in the ivory towers forget what like is like for the plebs squeezing out a living. There is a brother in our neighbouring congregation who has loads of money, his own successful business, a couple of homes. So much so that he has now retired early and is pioneering. Now he gives talks about what a struggle it is in this system and how we all need to do more...
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Strangest Ad's On JWN Sidebar Addressing You?
by Bubblegum Apotheosis in"help an isreal soldier" my first obligation is to a us soldier, than a uk one.
"viagra" "porn" "donate to save isreal" they have plenty of us aid, the fundamentals give zionist $75-$100 million are year, to bring forward the "rapture" "see lord save us from your people" movie.
the algorithm has no idea who i am or what my marketing preferenes are, sometimes they are correct, the majority of the time, their ads don't reflect me.. meet russian girls in your area now!
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WinstonSmith
@Aussie Oz: I have one at the moment which is similar, it says "2012 The End Times are Here!" and has a subtext of "2008 was God's final warning!" We better watch ourselves. As we have learned from being a JW, these "final" warnings can go on for YEARS.
@Bubblegum Apotheosis: Allow me to do a reading for you good sir - You should help an Israeli soldier by sending him Viagra and porn. This is, of course, a way to donate to save Israel. This will instigate the rapture, and like some prophecies in the bible being written in the past tense to emphasise the certainty of their fulfilment, the movie See Lord Save Us From Your People has already been made. All the good girls will go to heaven leaving only you and the Russian girls in your area here on the earth. Since you don't speak Russian, you need to go to Western College to learn it. As you have no money to pay for college, GoogleAds are your only hope at raising some cash.
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Strangest Ad's On JWN Sidebar Addressing You?
by Bubblegum Apotheosis in"help an isreal soldier" my first obligation is to a us soldier, than a uk one.
"viagra" "porn" "donate to save isreal" they have plenty of us aid, the fundamentals give zionist $75-$100 million are year, to bring forward the "rapture" "see lord save us from your people" movie.
the algorithm has no idea who i am or what my marketing preferenes are, sometimes they are correct, the majority of the time, their ads don't reflect me.. meet russian girls in your area now!
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WinstonSmith
Mine seem to cycle through Filipino Brides, Cougar Life and some random pest control company....not sure what the ad gods are trying to tell me....
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Zone Overseer Talk - Would You Wear Saul's Armour?
by WinstonSmith ini have been meaning to post these up since i signed up to jwn but, until someone mentioned the zone talk that is happening tomorrow in new zealand, i had forgotten!
i used to be a prolific note taker during public talks, assemblies and conventions.
as i became more awake to the truth about the truth this died off.
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WinstonSmith
@ziddina: It is like a broken record isn't it? An endless cycle of rehashed themes, with nothing really new in them. 'Ad nauseam' comes to mind...
@Chariklo: When Mrs Winston and I were discussing the talk afterward, we made the same point. They focus on the whole 'go to university, get drunk, have sex, take drugs, fall in love with money' thing all the time. These days the motivation get a qualification is more likely to be so that they can just get by rather than so they can make heaps of money and drive a Mercedes. Have a look through most job boards, and even for basic administration type jobs, employers are looking for you to have some sort of certificate. It is a great bonus that as part of this, people learn how to really study (nothing at all like pre-studying a WT article) and think and analyse and pick apart. I guess, luckily for JWs you don't need a certificate to prove that you can clean a window.
@Bubblegum Apotheosis: I have had the privilege of knowing and working alongside some great old timers through the years. Growing up without a dad was hard, but there were a couple of the olders brothers who looked after me like close Uncles, and I will be forever be grateful to them. They have, like your friend now grown old (not 102 though!). Regardless of what we believe, we can always learn much from dear old friends.
@nugget: You hit the nail on the head! If only Mr Splane had summed it up like you, we would have been there for a lot less than two and a half hours!
When he said that we need to lower our standards and not expect so much, I thought "If we lowered our standards any more when we were growing up, we would have had to go and live under a bridge." We had a house but little money. Mum pioneered and we got by on a government benefit and from mum doing some ironing jobs part time. Congregations worldwide are full of people and families like this. And yet these ones are guilt tripped into giving even more from the little they have (as per last week's Kingdom Ministry talk). Meanwhile, people who have not worked a full time job in many years, have three meals a day provided for them, commute downstairs for work and have room and board provided continue to tell us how to live out here in the real world.
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Zone Overseer Talk - Would You Wear Saul's Armour?
by WinstonSmith ini have been meaning to post these up since i signed up to jwn but, until someone mentioned the zone talk that is happening tomorrow in new zealand, i had forgotten!
i used to be a prolific note taker during public talks, assemblies and conventions.
as i became more awake to the truth about the truth this died off.
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WinstonSmith
@serenitynow! There were some cringeworthy moments in the talk, and for Mrs Winston and I, Giant 1 was a clanger. The comment about putting trust in Jehovah as being the best retirement plan made me think about those who were around in the 1970s and how that must be working out for them now 30+ years later. Meanwhile the GB and crew rest in the ivory towers, travel the world and have no reason to wonder where their next meal is coming from.
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A Gary Busselman mind fart (WARNING, R-rated)
by Dogpatch inthe truth (as i seen it) according to jehovah's witnesses.
written by gary busselman wednesday, 22 october 2008 14:38. warning: this is not for little jw children!
you will not find it in "my book of babble stories.
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WinstonSmith
@Dogpatch, that was hilarious, thanks for sharing! We should print some off in smaller font and slip them into random books and magazines in the literature cupboard at the Hall....
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Zone Overseer Talk - Would You Wear Saul's Armour?
by WinstonSmith ini have been meaning to post these up since i signed up to jwn but, until someone mentioned the zone talk that is happening tomorrow in new zealand, i had forgotten!
i used to be a prolific note taker during public talks, assemblies and conventions.
as i became more awake to the truth about the truth this died off.
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WinstonSmith
Hello everyone,
I have been meaning to post these up since I signed up to JWN but, until someone mentioned the Zone Talk that is happening tomorrow in New Zealand, I had forgotten! I used to be a prolific note taker during public talks, assemblies and conventions. As I became more awake to the truth about the Truth this died off. The notes taken here are in the style I would usually take them in the old days, writing bullet points to aid easy recall later. Any text in bold italics is written verbatim from the speakers mouth.
It was an odd experience writing notes with an awake mind. I have tried simply to write the gist of what he was saying wether or not I agreed with it. There were some genuinely good points in the talk, but of course a lot of the WTS propaganda blurred the good advice available in the bible. The talk was here in Australia a couple of weeks ago.
Anyway, here they are, see what you think:
22.04.12
Should you wear Saul's armour?
Zone Overseer Talk
David Splane
- Saul was the tallest man in Israel. The scriptures say that he stood head and shoulders above everyone else.
- When Goliath taunted the battle lines of the Israelites, Saul stayed away. He did not want to confront him.
- When David turned up he heard what Goliath was saying and he got annoyed that this guy was dissing on Jehovah. He said that someone should do something about it.
- 1 Samuel 17:38. David was going to head out to the battle so Saul offered David his armour. When he put it all on, he couldn't move properly as they didn't fit and he wasn't used to it. There was nothing wrong with the armour, it was just not suitable for David.
- 1 Samuel 17:45. David went out to face Goliath with faith that Jehovah would be backing him up.
- We all have giants to face. Will we face them with Saul's armour or with David's mindset?
- We face three giants in our lives:
- Giant 1 - THE WORLD ECONOMIC SYSTEM.
- Our work can take our time and energy. Things are getting more expensive and need more money.
- The world says that the best way to protect ourselves from this giant is to get a university education which means you can get a good job that pays well which means you can get by financially.
- David would ask 'How much do you really need to live on?' 1Timothy 6:8. "We need to lower our standards. If we don't expect too much we don't get disappointed when we can't get things."
- Jehovah says he will take care of us. If we seek work that will allow us to have free weekends and evenings, "we will have a relatively stress free life."
- "Putting our trust in Jehovah is the best retirement plan we could have. Jehovah's people don't need to worry like people of the world because Jehovah has said he will look after us." Deutoronomy 2:7.
- Giant 2 - PEER PRESSURE
- Saul would say 'Don't tell anyone that you are a JW.'
- David would say 'I come to you in the name of Jehovah of Armies.'
- Young ones often dread having someone from school open the door in the ministry.
- David had trust that Jehovah would back him up. Young ones can have the same confidence that Jehovah will help them.
- Preparation helps us to be ready for situations that we know will stress us.
- David was armed with stones. Parents can arm their kids by helping them with what they might say in certain situations.
- Meeting attendance and field service are key ways to increase our armoury. Regular participation in both build us up.
- Sometimes we don't want to do these things. Jonah felt the same. Even when there he was still not happy, yet he stuck with it.
- Giant 3 - OURSELVES.
- Sometimes we are our own worst enemy. We look down on ourselves and we tell ourselves that we are no good. Often these feelings come from the way we were raised.
- The word of God can help us with this. Philippians 4:4-8 reminds us that Jehovah will look after us. He can calm our minds, help us to be reasonable, and think things through. Prayer and supplication give us access to 'the peace of God'. Verse 8 reminds us to focus on good things.
- "When negative thoughts come into our minds, that is when we need to pray."
- So what happened to Saul's armour? 1 Samuel 31:8-10.
- Today we face an enemy greater than any giant. How can we confront them?
- Stand firm and have faith that Jehovah will back us up.
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I went to the Watchtower Study with the "Selma and Steve" article today, and....
by cedars inno, i didn't really - but i'm anxious to hear from anyone who did!!.
what happened after the paragraph was read?
did anyone try to denounce abusing one's spouse under any circumstances, or were most answers supportive of the "advice" given to selma, i.e.
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WinstonSmith
I agree he was obviously looking for a 'no' but didn't get it. The whole thing was breezed over fairly quickly. I think it goes to show that people either don't study their WT or if they do, don't study it too deeply or think on what they learn. That, I guess is why so many remain asleep - they don't look deep because it is all handed to them on a plate. If they took the time to pick apart what they were learning, they'd find more holes than a swiss cheese factory.
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I went to the Watchtower Study with the "Selma and Steve" article today, and....
by cedars inno, i didn't really - but i'm anxious to hear from anyone who did!!.
what happened after the paragraph was read?
did anyone try to denounce abusing one's spouse under any circumstances, or were most answers supportive of the "advice" given to selma, i.e.
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WinstonSmith
In our congregation, a kid answered up first and related the 'experience' pretty much word for word.
Straight after this the conductor said "So is this paragraph justifying Steve's action?' to which the answer came from an older brother in the audience: "The study was not practising true Christianity. She had to study more. When she changed, the husband noticed."
We then moved right on to the next paragraph. No mention of the fact that Selma says Steve had temper problems even before she started studying. No mention that the sister conducting the study bascially told Selma to "Suck it up and be more Christian, maybe like those guys that died in the Roman circus. They were martyrs, you can be a martyr too. God likes martyrs."
Two comments. One from a kid reading something they could not begin to understand and the other from who seemed to agree that she need to study more and harden up.
The sleep induced incognisance is sometimes breathtaking.