Sam Beli

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Posts by Sam Beli

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  11

  My Father's Funeral

  by teenyuck in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as many of you know, my father passed away last monday.

  i found out monday evening and flew into chicago wednesday morning, from columbus, ohio.

  my dad's sister mary, and his best friend ed were close by and started handling all the funeral arrangements.

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  Sam Beli

  Please accept my condolences, Puff.

  Sam Beli

  I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind. What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted. Solomon
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  34

  Tough Question for ExElders...

  by Xena in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  with a friend suddenly confronted with the prospect of being disfellowshiped recently it got me wondering about how an elder feels the first time he disfellowships someone.. the first time you disfellowshiped someone was there regret?

  sadness?

  or a sense of justice?.

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  Sam Beli

  I would answer your questions much like Ozzie did.

  I recall only one DFing that I was a part of and I had some regret at the time; much more regret later. Even later still I called the man (still DF'd) and expressed my regret and gave him my apology. He graciously accepted it and proved to me that all along he was smarter and "larger" than all of us on that BOE at the time. His 'sin" was a disagreement with the WTS over the 1975 issue. He knew the "Society" was full of BS.
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  21

  A general apology

  by Seeker in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've been a bit short with people today in the forums, and i shouldn't have been quite so abrupt.

  i get frustrated when i see exjws make the same mistake and join up with political groupthink just as they used to join with governing body groupthink.

  it's all propaganda, as i keep trying to point out, but the fact is that you can believe whatever you want without my input.. i realize i keep harping on conservative hypocrisy lately, but that's because they are in power right now.

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  Sam Beli

  Seeker, thought you might fined this a bit cute, given the topic:

  A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She lowered altitude and spotted a man below. She shouted to him, "Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."
  
  The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, "You're in a hot air balloon approximately 30 feet above a round elevation of 2346 feet above sea level. You are 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and 100 degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude."
  
  She rolled her eyes and said, "You must be a Republican."
  
  "I am," replied the man. "How did you know?"
  
  "Well," answered the balloonist, "Everything you told me is technically correct, but I have no idea what to make of your information, and I'm still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help to me."
  
  The man smiled and responded, "You must be a Democrat."
  
  "I am," replied the balloonist. "How did you know?"
  
  "Well," said the man, "you don't know where you are or where you're going. You've risen to where you are due to a large quantity of hot air. You made a promise that you have no idea how to keep, and you expect ME to solve your problem. You're in EXACTLY the same position you were in before we met, but somehow now, it's MY fault.
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  25

  Misleading insertion in 2-22-02 Awake.

  by Belligerent Paladin in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  misleading insertion.. in the 2-22-02 awake magazine with the cover title how safe are you at work?

  has an interesting article under watching the world.. blood transfusion dangers.

  one in three transfusions were being administered when, under [new south wales] health guidelines, they should not have been, reports australias sydney morning herald.

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  Sam Beli

  Seedy, you said: "So that means that in Australia every year there are about 54,000 blood transfusions every year. Man that's a lot of blood!"

  Actually, the figure is much higher than that. Nearly a million donations of blood are made each year in Australia.

  You can get the Red Cross report on this subject here: http://www.giveblood.redcross.org.au/pdf/arcbsar.pdf

  This report contains lots of information on their blood drives down under.
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  20

  Frustration of Discussion

  by Marvin Shilmer in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  frustration of discussion .

  discussions with my fellow jehovahs witnesses (jw) is not an easy affair when difficult subjects and questions are addressed to ones who pride themselves on an ability to answer for all doctrines as published in the watchtower, which we know as the chief journal of the governing body of jehovahs witnesses and published by the watchtower bible and tract society of new york (wts) and associated corporations.

  a recent experience exemplifies this difficulty and how it poses a considerable hindrance to growth in knowledge and understanding among jws.

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  Sam Beli

  Marvin, thank you for your reply. You said:

  “If I was overtaken by poor health or injury and required some form of blood to survive then I would okay it if asked. If HLC members were at my bedside I would do something very simple—tell them to leave.”

  Of course you would and the HLC probably would honor the request. However, many JWs will not have the confidence under such circumstances to make such a request and even more unfortunately, they may trust the HLC member more than their own physician, thinking that the “Society” knows more about blood and healthcare than does their own physician! In my experience, even if the HLC member does leave he will be back soon to find out what decision was made and to learn how “things” are going.

  When hospitalized a while back in one of the US’s major medical centers, in critical condition, I learned that the HLC member that usually covered that center was nick-named “the Gestapo” by the medical staff. That should tell you something about how he conducted his official business there.

  “If necessary I would remind the doctor that I expect his and the facility’s confidentiality, and in fact demand it.”

  Demanding confidentiality is usually unnecessary; at most a gentle reminder is all that is required, unless a JW happens to work in that facility and he/she has access to your records. My experience has been that the medical staff offers confidentiality (my doc volunteered that if anyone divulged my record he would personally see to it that that person was fired).

  “Usually having HLC members asserting themselves is rare. So I really don’t foresee a problem there.”

  My experience has been different. My wife had to stand guard at the door to keep the HLC and other JWs working at the facility away. When one is in an ICU it is less difficult to keep unwanted visitors away, but on general floors most visitors can come and go as they please.

  “Let’s just say, though, that a HLC member did somehow assert himself or otherwise found I had accepted some forbidden form of blood. To hell with him! At least I have the benefit of acting according to my conscience and, hopefully, I will live, which is better than the alternative without congregational action. My scriptural belief is that God knows my sincerity, and that I am acting out of a clean conscience before him. How could He possibly demand more?[!]”

  As long as one is not concerned about family ties being broken your approach is fine, but for some it is not that clear cut, is it?

  “As you can see, my convictions are firm here to the point of not having any qualms about just what my Christian conscience would demand, so my personal circumstance is not too troublesome for me. But you latter inquiry is a critical one.”

  “You inquired, “I’d be interested in knowing how you advise JWs who know the “truth’ about the blood issue in these circumstances.”

  “Whether they know the truth about the blood issue or not, if I am faced with a publisher dying over the issue then I will explain to them that there is no discernable scriptural prohibition that should lead them to feel that dying is better than accepting life-saving blood therapy for Christians. If they want to know the details I will tell them, starting with the June 15, 2000 Watchtower! Otherwise my standard recommendation is that they do what is best for their health and there is no need in me or any other JW being present to impose our conscience on them. I advise that they talk with their doctor about the matter and then keep whatever treatment they decide upon where it should stay, between them and their doctor. I then head to the door and tell the doctor to take good care of my friend! I also tell the doctor if there is ANYTHING he thinks I can do to help save a life to let me know. I act accordingly.”

  Good for you! Isn’t it too bad that the GB does not refrain from attempting to impose its conscience on all JWs. If they kept their weak consciences to themselves your words and the patients actions would not have to be cloaked in such guarded language.

  “I will add one further point of fact.”

  “Based on The Watchtower of June 15, 2000, I would point out to an ailing publisher that the WTS’ doctrinal position is that EVERY SINGLE BIT of blood is acceptable as long as it is broken down enough. I would then emphasize, “This should TELL YOU SOMETHING about how to best proceed.”

  Unfortunately most JWs, including most elders, do not see that point when they read that QFR. Most see little if any change in the blood policy. The WTS does not write these articles in plain spoken language, nor do they point out the changes from previous positions. The plan is to obfuscate their message and unfortunately it works on most JWs.
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  20

  Frustration of Discussion

  by Marvin Shilmer in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  frustration of discussion .

  discussions with my fellow jehovahs witnesses (jw) is not an easy affair when difficult subjects and questions are addressed to ones who pride themselves on an ability to answer for all doctrines as published in the watchtower, which we know as the chief journal of the governing body of jehovahs witnesses and published by the watchtower bible and tract society of new york (wts) and associated corporations.

  a recent experience exemplifies this difficulty and how it poses a considerable hindrance to growth in knowledge and understanding among jws.

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  Sam Beli

  Excellent and interesting thoughts Marvin. May you have good health.

  If poor health or injury ever overtake you, how will you, as an “insider,” handle the blood matter if it ever becomes necessary “to sustain life?” How will you keep those pesky HLC guys away from your bedside and from discussions with your physicians?

  I found that lying on what could become one’s death-bed did not provide a convenient time or desirable place from which to fight a fierce religious battle while at the same time fighting for one’s physical life and perhaps fighting deeply entrenched family feelings and ties as well.

  I’d be interested in knowing how you advise JWs who know the “truth’ about the blood issue in these circumstances.

  Sam Beli
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  Second Best Leadership

  by ozziepost in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the study article in the march 15 issue of the watchtower proclaims: "how reassuring to know that jesus christ provides leadership to his disciples today through the governing body...." (p15, para 9).

  frankly, this is not reassuring at all.

  but the dubs have to make do with 'second-best'.

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  Sam Beli

  Thanks for posting this "gem." I don't see current mags very often anymore.

  Second best is what they want first! Incredible!

  Sam Beli

  I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind. What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted. Solomon
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  41

  My Father Died

  by teenyuck in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i just found out my father died today...he had a heart attack in the middle of the night.

  he was 63, one month shy of his 64th birthday.

  my 1/2 brother, age 19, who has been living with him trying to get off drugs, found him in his bed.

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  Sam Beli

  Please accept my condolences, Puff.

  Sam Beli

  I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind. What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted. Solomon
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  30

  Remaining in Association with Jehovah's W...

  by Marvin Shilmer in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  remaining in association with jehovahs witnesses .

  an active baptized member of jehovahs witnesses finds significant errors taught in the central publication of the religion, the watchtower journal.

  the error is taught with frequency in private and public settings arranged by the religion.

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  Sam Beli

  bttt

  Sam Beli

  I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind. What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted. Solomon
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  30

  Remaining in Association with Jehovah's W...

  by Marvin Shilmer in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  remaining in association with jehovahs witnesses .

  an active baptized member of jehovahs witnesses finds significant errors taught in the central publication of the religion, the watchtower journal.

  the error is taught with frequency in private and public settings arranged by the religion.

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  Sam Beli

  While I personally agree with JT’s points and those who have commented following his post, and while I personally have abandoned the WT organization, I believe that we must let each one determine his own path.

  Freedom is all about allowing each one to determine his/her own choice. If we condemn those who choose a different path, how are we much better than the WT who, as we all know, condemns all that choose a path different than the one they command we follow?

  Freedom folks. It is all about freedom.

  Sam Beli

  I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind. What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted. Solomon