Xanthippe

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Posts by Xanthippe

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  52

  Help with understanding

  by Doltologist in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  please take pity on me someone and help.. i was going to say that i suffer from aspergers syndrome but actually, i've come to rather enjoy it.. no, seriously, i really do have aspergers which is why my posts may seem a little odd to some of you.

  ok, they may seem bloody odd to most of you.. my world exists in a binary frame.

  things are or they are not.. i know that in the "real world" things might be or might not be as well as are and are not.

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  Xanthippe

  If you haven't been, you must visit the Parthenon. Oh, and make sure you sign the petition to give the Elgin marbles back to Greece.

  Yes I'm going this summer. I agree it's a crime about the Elgin marbles.
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  52

  Help with understanding

  by Doltologist in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  please take pity on me someone and help.. i was going to say that i suffer from aspergers syndrome but actually, i've come to rather enjoy it.. no, seriously, i really do have aspergers which is why my posts may seem a little odd to some of you.

  ok, they may seem bloody odd to most of you.. my world exists in a binary frame.

  things are or they are not.. i know that in the "real world" things might be or might not be as well as are and are not.

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  Xanthippe

  Under the old regime of multiple deities, Man went to the 'Afterlife', for want of a better world, when he died. It's what naturally happened. There wasn't an 'Afterlife' for the rich and one for the poor nor was there one for the good and another for the bad. There was just one afterlife and, when you died, that's where you went. -Doltologist

  Yes the classical pagans had many gods and goddesses who were created in man's image, fallible and they liked to party. They also believed everyone went to the afterlife. Christianity came along with its hatred of fun, sex and alcohol, 'bad' people went to hell and you had to jump through multiple hoops for your eternal reward.

  Visiting the Pantheon in Rome last year I was frustrated that beautiful goddesses with flowing robes and gods like Bacchus with grapes for hair and the ubiquitous goblet of wine had been replaced with saintly Christian statues.

  Ancient pagans had more fun and didn't hate their humanity. As you said they didn't fear death, it was a natural part of life. The Christians were taught to fear death because they feared judgement.
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  76

  OMG, I’m gonna get Old and Die.

  by John Aquila in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  when it finally clicked,.

  and you realized there was no 1914, there was no generation that would see the end of a wicked system, there was no paradise around the corner, .

  what went through you mind?.

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  Xanthippe

  When I realised I was going to get old and die I thought I'm thirty, going on the three score and ten thing, I've got forty years to live. I stopped washing my face with soap 😀

  Seriously I just wanted to get out of the poverty trap we were left in after pioneering for ten years. Did a degree, got a job, bought a house, had a child. Damned hard work but worth it. Yes we didn't cope well for the first two years, did a lot of falling apart, but it gets better I promise you.
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  23

  Article: Why More Young Women Are Leaving Church [65% of JW members are women]

  by AndersonsInfo in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  http://national.deseretnews.com/article/4645/why-more-young-women-are-leaving-church.html.

  stock photo a kulicki .

  faith compiled by massarah mikati sunday, may 31, 2015 why more young women are leaving church.

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  Xanthippe

  Scully I wanted to like your post five times over. I wholeheartedly agree that I couldn't have anything to do with that religion now because of its treatment of women. I couldn't allow my daughter to grow up believing that women are second class citizens. I can't tolerate sexism anymore and I'm certain my daughter wouldn't.
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  52

  Help with understanding

  by Doltologist in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  please take pity on me someone and help.. i was going to say that i suffer from aspergers syndrome but actually, i've come to rather enjoy it.. no, seriously, i really do have aspergers which is why my posts may seem a little odd to some of you.

  ok, they may seem bloody odd to most of you.. my world exists in a binary frame.

  things are or they are not.. i know that in the "real world" things might be or might not be as well as are and are not.

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  Xanthippe

  My comment was just a general one to highlight the fact that the 'proof' for the existence of jesus is nowhere near as strong as people think. In fact, its a bit flimsy, even at best.

  Yes I agree very flimsy indeed.
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  52

  Help with understanding

  by Doltologist in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  please take pity on me someone and help.. i was going to say that i suffer from aspergers syndrome but actually, i've come to rather enjoy it.. no, seriously, i really do have aspergers which is why my posts may seem a little odd to some of you.

  ok, they may seem bloody odd to most of you.. my world exists in a binary frame.

  things are or they are not.. i know that in the "real world" things might be or might not be as well as are and are not.

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  Xanthippe

  The Tacitus reference was written in AD116

  Sorry I was rushing my post because I had to go to work. I just quickly looked at the beginning of that chapter In my copy of Tacitus to see when it was written and 62-65 AD are the dates it gives but they are the dates that chapter covers, not when it was written.

  The issue here is that they were not first-hand accounts. One was written 60 years after jesus' supposed death and the other a fully 83 years. So, what were the bases of these documents?

  Yes that's what I said they are not primary sources, or first hand accounts as you put it. Tacitus is a secondary source, a history, based on research I presume. Who knows where he got his information from. I am not promoting Jesus as the son of God, I am an atheist. I was just answering your question about any historical basis for Jesus following on from Adjusted Knowledge telling you about Josephus. Certainly, in my opinion, not enough information to base a lifetime's decision to devote yourself to any religion.

  
  
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  16

  Another "damned if they do/don't" Thread & the Perpetual Motion Machine

  by DarioKehl in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  a few days ago, a jw apologist posted a thread with a similar title.

  although he was defending their behavior, i've observed this cycle as well.

  i have a different spin on it, though.. how often do you see posts from people who are upset that "no one even bothers to check in on me," only to read as many threads about "they keep calling & texting--why won't they leave me alone?

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  Xanthippe

  So Dario if you miss people missing you at the KH perhaps you need to make a new support system outside the Borg. You are four years into your fade I think? How is it going with making new friends? It's natural to want people to care about us. We wouldn't be human if we didn't, but the comditional love is not something I miss.
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  52

  Help with understanding

  by Doltologist in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  please take pity on me someone and help.. i was going to say that i suffer from aspergers syndrome but actually, i've come to rather enjoy it.. no, seriously, i really do have aspergers which is why my posts may seem a little odd to some of you.

  ok, they may seem bloody odd to most of you.. my world exists in a binary frame.

  things are or they are not.. i know that in the "real world" things might be or might not be as well as are and are not.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  Xanthippe

  Regarding primary sources for an historical Jesus, Tacitus says Nero blamed the Christians for burning Rome and 'Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus'

  The Annals, Book XV, chapter 44.

  There's little else there in that 'chapter' which is actually a paragraph apart from Tacitus saying this 'mischievous superstition' (Christianity) spread to Rome. Also It was written in 62-65 AD so not even a primary source for Jesus. You can get a copy from Amazon and read it yourself.
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  19

  New to the site

  by LexIsFree in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  my name is alex.

  i have been a reader/lurker of this site for over a year now.

  first time i am posting.

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  Xanthippe

  Welcome to the forum Alex. Wow you've been through a lot. I hope things are looking up for you now. Glad you are free of the cult.
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  28

  The JW Family

  by dubstepped in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  maybe this is a bit obtuse, but see if you can follow me here and maybe throw in your own views.

  as i see it, the organization as a whole is a family, and like most, it is dysfunctional.

  you have the parents in those taking the lead (gb, elders, overseers, etc.

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  Xanthippe

  I do see the JWs as a group of people who are dysfunctional in that they cannot function in the real world. Planet earth frightens them. They have built a dream of perfection in their minds. Perfect standards of behaviour that are impossible for anyone to live up to which make people ill in the attempt.

  They want God to wave a wand and make the earth perfect, stop all the nasty things, make us all instantly happy. It's a silly childish dream which prevents them seeing that many really caring people are working hard to feed the hungry, provide clean water, protect children and look after the planet.

  The leaders don't want the best for the congregations, they don't want the publishers to be happy, they want perfection. Perfectionism damages everyone. It's just not reality.