Posts by Xanthippe

87

Think for Yourself: Reform Judaism Uses JW Blood Issue For Shavuot

by David_Jay in

as the jewish holy day of shavuot (pentecost) begins this weekend, the reform judaism site publishes an interesting article entitled "judaism teaches: question authority, think for yourself.".

the article employs a jewish doctor's recollection of a jw patient who refused blood and died as an example of how both religious traditions greatly differ on how they see and apply god's law.. shavuot is the day jews recall god's giving the law to israel.

the article is significant in that it demonstrates how jews see the giving of the law as a call to questioning authority, including divine revelation itself whereas the death of the jw patient is contrasted as a slavish interpretation that misses the point behind jewish scripture.. for more see the article at:.

Xanthippe

'While the Orthodox may be very exact in trying to keep as much of the Law as possible, the idea is still the same: you must bend with the changing tides, you must adjust to the circumstance, you must let observance of the Law be illuminated with enlightenment.'

Surely we can adjust to circumstances, making enlightened and educated decisions without ancient texts David? To my mind this is how humans grow, by deciding on each situation as it comes along with intelligence and compassion and not by following rules made by those who are not in that situation ( or who've been dead for thousands of years).

36

How long can this cult remain with only kids becoming members?

by Crazyguy in

it'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?.

Xanthippe

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.

37

A question JWs almost never ask, but should

by slimboyfat in

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?

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 in

jw
friends

time 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

150

Start A Butterfly Garden!

by Bonsai in

jw
friends

time 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 in

shower 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 in

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?

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 in

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?

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 in

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?

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 in

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?

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!