Posts by Xanthippe

14

Outstanding new book out today for you atheists, agnostics, humanists, naturalists and free thinkers

by Cornbread in

i just got back from the bookstore and i can't wait to sink into it based on all the reviews and press it has been getting.

it's called the big picture - on the origin of life, meaning, and the universe itself by sean carroll.. “weaving the threads of astronomy, physics, chemistry, biology, and philosophy into a seamless narrative tapestry, sean carroll enthralls us with what we’ve figured out in the universe and humbles us with what we don’t yet understand.

yet in the end, it’s the meaning of it all that feeds your soul of curiosity.” —neil degrasse tyson, host of cosmos: a spacetime odyssey*publishers weekly #1 most anticipated science book of spring 2016*"already internationally acclaimed for his elegant, lucid writing on the most challenging notions in modern physics, sean carroll is emerging as one of the greatest humanist thinkers of his generation as he brings his extraordinary intellect to bear not only on higgs bosons and extra dimensions but now also on our deepest personal questions.

Xanthippe

Looks good thanks for the heads up. Physics and philosophy, nothing better.

16

It is now official: Another falsified Watchtower prophecy

by ILoveTTATT2 in

jw
friends

"jesus was obviously speaking about those who were old enough to witness with understanding what took place when the 'last days' began.

... even if we presume that youngsters 15 years of age would be perceptive enough to realize the import of what happened in 1914, it would still make the youngest of 'this generation' nearly 70 years old today.

" awake!

Xanthippe

Wow it's true what they say about the Japanese diet then. I must eat more fish.

26

Now finally Caleb & Sofia Anti-Gay Video going viral in Germany too

by Daniel1555 in

today spiegel online & bento have an article about the anti-gay video.. spiegel is one of the biggest and most serious news media in germany.. they also report and show that youtubers cut the video and changed it in a funny way.

sofia tells her mother that the teacher said it's fine if they live each other.

then sofia's mother says: "thats wonderful.".

Xanthippe

I mean, I am also not invited to paradise - should I be equally offended? Should I call the newspaper

I am offended that my relatives have been commanded to ignore me and then my child for nearly thirty years because they are afraid of being shut out of paradise. This vid is about being very careful not to do anything that will cause them to be shut out of paradise. Including admitting to one's sexual orientation.

I am not shocked by this vid, it is typical JW cultism but why should the world not comment on it? We should speak up against any form of discrimination. I am part of normal human society now and 'we' speak up against discrimination.

26

I thought it was time to talk.....

by wozza in

i'd like to relate an experience i had yesterday with a couple of jw's "working" with a cart yesterday.. been coming to this site for many years and these days i don't feel i've got much to contribute ,but i was out yesterday doing some voluntary work for a friend who has gone on an overseas trip .travelling around my local seaside area doing the job at hand ,i came across a couple of jw's sitting in a shelter overlooking the beach and had their trolley propped against a large public rubbish bin ,it was actually hard to see ithe trolley from most angles - whatever happened to lifting the basket to show the light stuff ...oh well .the large carpark was pretty empty except for us ,we've had pretty wet weather here lately ,bad storms and here they were set up for a days witnessing rugged up with wind and spitting rain ,i sort of thought " well that's dedication " ....that was my first thought then i pulled myself together and then thought "if i wanted to get some time in and not have to work at it too hard this maybe the place to go if i was a jw still".. well i finished my pickup and looked over at the two and realised i'd read other's experiences about approaching the cart people and wondered if talking to them would be of any benefit as i had witnessed this area for many years and my stance against the wts for hiding molestation of children is well known ,i thought, and they avoid me like the plague.. they were'nt familiar to me so i went up to them and introduced myself and quickly let them know who i was and what i am doing now as regards jw's.

they were a married couple middle aged been in for a long time and could relate to changes in the org very well to pre 1975 when i had first contact.

they pretty much suggested i was blinded to the truth ,when challenged on the royal commission into sex abuse they pointed to a case where they believed a victim they supposedly knew of in the jws was a liar ,so that's their case for the org -unbelievable.

Xanthippe

Well done wozza. I've only seen a cart once when I was at work on my lunch break so I didn't have time. I'm not sure how I would approach and how frustrating I would find it but as you say the experience was as much for you as for them. Cathartic, good to find you've moved on from feeling really angry.

7

An Atheist gives Credit To Religions

by smiddy in

even though i now consider myself an atheist and have little time for religion as such , i have to acknowledge that some religious institutions , and even some i would consider a cult more so than others , do a fantastic job in the field of charitable works.. for so many in our communities who are disadvantaged ,in one way or another , the down and outs , for a better phrase , those that have succumbed to alcoholism , drug dependency , mental illness in it`s many forms , homeless people , juveniles suffering abuse of one sort or another at home , domestic violence , etc.

etc.

the list just goes on and on .. yet their are religious charitable institutions who are at the forefront of helping these people offering and lending a hand both physically , emotionally , and even financially to support these people without judging them .. so even though i consider myself an atheist i can commend what these religious institutions do to for these people... i can`t say the same thing for jehovah`s witnesses who will take , take , take and give nothing in return.. smiddy.

Xanthippe

The Sally Army do a lot for the homeless and hungry.

23

Healing

by compound complex in

jw
friends

i feel an unfamiliar restlessness in my lower body.

too long have i been confined to my sickbed; my mind and heart coax me arise and gaze upon the world outside.

it is no longer a matter of fighting long-entrenched despair.

Xanthippe

A thing of beauty is a joy forever...

Thank you for reminding me CoCo.

23

Thankful for my babies

by BeautifulMind in

i hope everyone is having a good day/night.

so i was just reflecting on how happy i am to have my babies, despite the orgs.

not so subtle requests that married couples not have babies in order to further serve the org.

Xanthippe

Beautiful mind I am also grateful for my wonderful daughter. I pioneered for ten years and we hadn't had children by the time we left, I was thirty. Then we were left in near poverty because of the cult and had to get degrees and jobs. I suddenly realised that time was slipping by and decided to try and get pregnant. My baby was born a few weeks before I was 37.

I had preeclampsia and had to have a c-section at 39 weeks because blood tests showed my liver and kidneys were starting to shut down. She came out a little blue but her lungs were properly developed and she's a wonderful healthy young woman of 21 now. She's just finished her BA and graduates this July. I am so glad I didn't wait any longer, she is the light of my life.

Thanks for this thread, I feel all happy now as I get ready for work.

160

Beliefs About What Caused the Universe

by Perry in

the universe can be observed to be expanding.. an expanding universe must have had a beginning.

whatever begins to exist had a cause.

therefore the universe had a cause.

Xanthippe

Believing in Materialism is ultimately belief in nothing more than make-believe.

Perry I don't know where the universe came from. When my husband did his physics degree he said virtual particles pop in and out of existence but we don't know where they come from. He said there is no such thing as common sense with quantum field theory, it is beyond our experience to always predict the surprising outcome.

I don't believe the universe came about by magic but I do think if those humans who do find out in the future could get in a time machine now and tell us the answers it would seem like magic. Just as my iPad would seem like magic a couple of hundred years ago.

It's all relative. 😏

27

The two paths of exJWs

by Simon in

it's easy to think of exjws as being a single amorphous group but the more i think about it, the more i believe that there are two distinct sub-groups and wonder if you agree.. there are those who believe and those who don't.

i know that seems obvious but let's break it down a bit more.

there are those who don't and never believed and some who are looking for a religion to match their beliefs.. i used to think this split would be between born-ins and converts but of course it's possible for born-ins to be believers although i suspect that many, like with other faiths, do so simply because they have never experienced anything else or made a conscious choice.

Xanthippe

I do respect people like you who had the guts to get out at eighteen Talesin. I met a lovely man and married at twenty-two which unfortunately kept me in longer. When we finally got out I was thirty and we were both very bruised and battered like you. But you did it on your on Talesin. Kudos to you.

160

Beliefs About What Caused the Universe

by Perry in

the universe can be observed to be expanding.. an expanding universe must have had a beginning.

whatever begins to exist had a cause.

therefore the universe had a cause.

Xanthippe

xainhippe,
As previously discussed, the fact that the universe is expanding, is strong evidence (with much scientific support) that not only did the universe have a beginning, but that an Agent or first cause existing outside of the space time universe must have acted upon our universe.

No it isn't.

Otherwise, we are left with a scenario far worse than magic - Something begins from nothing.

Eh and God began where? Same tired old circular argument Perry.

I can say that I have personally found this to be true. Unless God penetrates (or transcends) our space/time universe and manifests himself to us; finding, testing, & observing him is impossible, but not his effects.... those are "clearly seen"... so that "we are without excuse" when positing credit for our existence within our space time universe..... without excuse.

Why do I need an excuse for wanting evidence before I hand my life over to some group that tells me they have a hot line and a list of rules I need to now follow?

So why doesn't God manifest himself to me?

Heb. 11: 6 - he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder

If I look for God with an open mind wanting to know reality, why is that not enough?