Real estate is a very steady business and it's the one they're in now. Do they really care about new members anymore. Buying and selling land and property can keep them going for years and they can blame the low baptisms on persecution in these last days.
Xanthippe
JoinedPosts by Xanthippe
-
36
How long can this cult remain with only kids becoming members?
by Crazyguy init's become clear that very few from outside the religion are joining anymore.
if only the kids of the people that are already in are the one replacing the members as they die off and 50% let's say of the kids leave then how long can they realistically last before the downturn becomes obvious?.
-
-
-
37
A question JWs almost never ask, but should
by slimboyfat init occurs to me, if i was starting from scratch choosing a religion or belief system to join, there's one good question i should like answered first:.
does this religion promote a way of life and view of the world that would be satisfying even if not a single word of its doctrines are true?
if jws honestly answered that question i doubt many would say it's a good choice.
-
-
Xanthippe
Beliefs are a starting point, but they are irrelevant to actions. What you do, how you act, defines what you really are, what you really believe. Fighting amongst ourselves that we are somehow more enlightened due to what we believe or don't doesn't amount to much.
When I studied history my tutors emphasised that beliefs, whether religious or political inform all the actions in history. Beliefs are what make us do what we do, they are far from irrelevant. -
150
Start A Butterfly Garden!
by Bonsai intime to take a break from debating religion.
take in a breath of fresh air and be healed by the wonders of nature around you.. how many of you have a garden?
how many have a nice flower patch to go with your vegetable garden?
-
-
-
150
Start A Butterfly Garden!
by Bonsai intime to take a break from debating religion.
take in a breath of fresh air and be healed by the wonders of nature around you.. how many of you have a garden?
how many have a nice flower patch to go with your vegetable garden?
-
-
Xanthippe
Congratulation on the new baby Bonsai!
The yellow flags in the pond are starting to flower. As you can see I desperately need to get a new shed this year. I've started to empty it and I found a squirrel got in there in the winter and there was a pile of hazel nuts off my tree each with teeth marks and a hole in it!
-
157
WTS buys £1,000,000 luxury sea-front property in Wales, UK
by Simon inshower room.
office.
games room.
-
-
Xanthippe
Why the WTBTS needed to spend nearly a million pounds on buying such a property to house these people baffles me - they could easily have rented a house or flat in a nearby town for a few hundred pounds a month.
Oh come on it's a holiday home for the Bethel heavies, who just happen to turn up every so often to 'encourage' the translation team!
-
37
A question JWs almost never ask, but should
by slimboyfat init occurs to me, if i was starting from scratch choosing a religion or belief system to join, there's one good question i should like answered first:.
does this religion promote a way of life and view of the world that would be satisfying even if not a single word of its doctrines are true?
if jws honestly answered that question i doubt many would say it's a good choice.
-
-
Xanthippe
Yes when I was a JW I thought if the big A and the paradise is a reality then forbidding Xmas, our children having birthdays, worldly friends and blood transfusions makes sense, the end justifies the means. It did matter to me if it was correct however because if it's all nonsense then it means letting kids be screwed up by being isolated from normality at best and at worst dying from lack of medical treatment.
Now I tend to take the view that denying kids normal human friendship and fun is as you put it 'no way to treat someone'. If there is a God why would he do that? So in that sense I agree that often the best way to find out if a religion is 'right' and 'true' is if it works for human beings. No loving God would want us to spend a lifetime being miserable now for a beautiful future. This is a dark and medieval way of seeing the world. An omniscient being would not treat humans like this, he would know it wasn't necessary.
On top of that, the most important thing in the situation is how you treat the person/the practical results of pursuing a belief system.
Yes but in practical terms a belief system, a religion, entails people making rules that impact on your life. Don't have an abortion, a divorce, a blood transfusion, sex before marriage, a same-sex partner, a vote, an education etc. Beliefs impact on reality, whether they are true or not.
-
37
A question JWs almost never ask, but should
by slimboyfat init occurs to me, if i was starting from scratch choosing a religion or belief system to join, there's one good question i should like answered first:.
does this religion promote a way of life and view of the world that would be satisfying even if not a single word of its doctrines are true?
if jws honestly answered that question i doubt many would say it's a good choice.
-
-
Xanthippe
We are moving beyond that to a more pragmatic engagement with our world that asks, not, how is the world really, in itself, but rather how can we construct the world in the best way to fit our objectives.
Yes I agree but that is totally different to looking for a belief system that promotes a way of life and world view that's satisfying even if untrue, as you stated in your OP. You have lost your way here from your topic subject.
-
37
A question JWs almost never ask, but should
by slimboyfat init occurs to me, if i was starting from scratch choosing a religion or belief system to join, there's one good question i should like answered first:.
does this religion promote a way of life and view of the world that would be satisfying even if not a single word of its doctrines are true?
if jws honestly answered that question i doubt many would say it's a good choice.
-
-
Xanthippe
Why Xanthippe? I absolutely do mean that the practical effects of a belief system matter much more than any supposed "truth" value, or correspomdance to reality. This video, I've shared a number of times, is an excellent description of the situation that I agree with.
Yes I watched it. So you agree that for many years life was so dire for much of humanity that we created fantasies, religions, and that eventually when life became more comfortable we started thinking about making the world a better place for our grandchildren rather than aiming for immortality? That's what he said. -
37
A question JWs almost never ask, but should
by slimboyfat init occurs to me, if i was starting from scratch choosing a religion or belief system to join, there's one good question i should like answered first:.
does this religion promote a way of life and view of the world that would be satisfying even if not a single word of its doctrines are true?
if jws honestly answered that question i doubt many would say it's a good choice.
-
-
Xanthippe
It occurs to me, if I was starting from scratch choosing a religion or belief system to join, there's one good question I should like answered first:
Does this religion promote a way of life and view of the world that would be satisfying even if not a single word of its doctrines are true?Rather like joining a Meetup group online and going along because it sounds like something that would interest you. SBF I just know you're winding us up here. You do believe objective reality matters but you just can't resist winding us up. Naughty!
-
20
I feel frustrated
by BlackWolf inhello all, things for the most part have been somewhat better for me because my parents haven't talked about baptism or anything recently.
i got a scholarship to go to art camp for a few weeks which has been fun (since its free, my parents didn't refuse) but it has also been very nervewracking for me.
i haven't been around any non jws for more than a year and its like being in a different world, a world where people are actually real and genuine and not mindless drones.
-
-
Xanthippe
It's very hard for nonJWs to understand the cult mentality. I still find people look at me strangely if I tell them my brother and sisters shun me because of religion and I'm not sure it's possible to make them understand completely. Like OneEyedJoe said you won't be in this situation for much longer. It's frustrating but try and be patient if you can. I'm glad you had fun at art camp and got to interact with normal people.
