Posts by Anders Andersen

I will be looking at editing and re-posting an updated table - I want to see first if WT are going to edit their own data with regard to Russia, Guinea-Bissau and Ireland befor I rush out another version

If you publish as Google Docs spreadsheet, you can update while the document is online. It's also easier for others to then copy-pasted the data in their own data files....

And of course, thank you very much for your efforts (but I said that on Reddit already too ;-)

22

What Do You Do if the Household Does Not Celebrate?

by BluesBrother in

jw
friends

it is christmas morning ....the weather outside looks cold grey and dismal (typical britain in winter ) the house is quiet as my wife gets on with something.

.... the street is silent, as dead as the grave.

the tv is full of the purile nonsense that fills airtime this time of year .

Yes, many of us experience what second generation immigrants experience as well: we are no longer accepted by our heritage culture (nor do we want to accept all of that culture), but we don't fit in our new culture either. We're in limbo.

22

What Do You Do if the Household Does Not Celebrate?

by BluesBrother in

jw
friends

it is christmas morning ....the weather outside looks cold grey and dismal (typical britain in winter ) the house is quiet as my wife gets on with something.

.... the street is silent, as dead as the grave.

the tv is full of the purile nonsense that fills airtime this time of year .

Anders Andersen

No, you're not alone.

Here in the Netherlands we have the same grey and shitty weather

My pimi wife is still sleeping. My daughter and I have been up for 2,5 hours now. Drawing. Making puzzles. Cooking stuff in her tiny wooden kitchen.

At least when I was still a JW we would go to friends or have them over for a nice dinner, some movies, or playing some board games.

But now that I'm an apostate the JW don't want me at their treeless Christmas get-togethers

52

What Made You Decide To Finally Leave The Organization?

by minimus in

jw
friends

was there one certain event or was it more a cumulative thing?.

Anders Andersen

Research.

In 6 weeks time I thoroughly researched the evidence on which my faith was based.

I found none.

Only evidence that shows key beliefs wrong.

I also found Watchtower to be very dishonest when presenting their case.

As a new atheist without faith, I cold turkey quit that dishonest religion I grew up in.

5

"How Did You Come to the Conclusion That Your God Is Moral If You Can't Make a Moral Judgement."

by WeatherLover in

i love the atheist experience show on youtube!

i just re-watched this video and it's one of my favorites.. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mlakj_z_cgk.

Anders Andersen

Well, if you buy something and use it outside the parameters it was designed for, it is going to break. You are free to use it however you like but you did not designed it, someone else did.

What if a knife manufacturer wrote in his manual that you have to stab a human being with the knife at least once a week?

We're not talking consumer goods here. We're talking morality.
If you try to equate human beings with consumer products, you are simplifying the discussion way too much.

If a creator wrote in his instruction manual* for human beings 'kill unbelievers, even if it is your own child', would that be morally good? Why, or why not?

If he said "slavery is ok, as long as you don't beat your slaves to death and release Jewish male slave every after many years", would that instruction be morally good? Why, or why not?

-----------

*) side note: if the Bible is supposed to be an instruction manual for human beings or life, it is hands down the worst manual ever! It has no decent and full description or explanation of the product, it is not arranged by topic, it has no FAQ, no trouble shooting guide, no safety instructions, no warranty. Many ambiguous and unclear statements. Some of the advice is contradicted by other advice. Nobody knows how to read this damn thing. Apparently we need priests, a Pope, LDS Living Prophets or a JW Governing Body to interpret and explain how this manual should be read? What a joke! Even those badly translated manuals for cheap ass Chinese toys, with incomprehensible and too tiny pictures are way better...

5

"How Did You Come to the Conclusion That Your God Is Moral If You Can't Make a Moral Judgement."

by WeatherLover in

i love the atheist experience show on youtube!

i just re-watched this video and it's one of my favorites.. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mlakj_z_cgk.

Anders Andersen

Wow....that blows my mind!

How do you know someone else has a perfect measuring tape, if you yourself can't tell a foot from an inch?

You only have that other person's claim to go on. Their measuring tape may be as bad as yours....or worse.

We have to go on the results then.

Results for God:

Kills everyone with a devitating opinion. Killing to be escalated 'soon' in Armageddon.
Allow slavery and objectification of women and children.
Did not use his power or knowledge to cure disease, stop famine, improve living conditions.

Results for humans:

Slowly but steadily moving away from absolute rulership to societies where devitating opinions are respected and seen as valuable. Diversity becomes accepted and even celebrated.
Abolished legal slavery almost everywhere. Working hard to decrease 'modern' slavery.
Promote respect for women and children as people, not being in subjection to or owned by men.
Work together to slowly but steady improve living conditions for all, cure diseases and decrease famine and poverty.

Well....my measuring tape may be crooked or off....but I'll take the human results any day!

35

Matthew 24:34 not fulfilled in the first century

by Jules Saturn in

i was discussing with an elder the generation teaching and telling him when jesus christ says in matthew 24:34 “truly i say to you that this generation will by no means pass away until all these things happen.” he was referring to the generation from the first century in 33 ad and these events that were to take place took place with the destruction of jerusalem in 70 ad.

now the elder tells me to go back to a few verses to from verses 29-33 which read: .

“immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun will be darkened,+ and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.+ 30 then the sign of the son of man will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will beat themselves in grief,+ and they will see the son of man+ coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

Anders Andersen

That's the beauty of prophecy: they're vague enough to be applied in retrospect to many events in history, and if no event fits the vague description believers can continue to point to the future.

Instead of admitting that Jesus' prophecy failed, believers can now claim that there has to be future fulfillment. Because there's always the future. And nobody can prove evente won't happen in the future.

Believers love ideas that can't be disproven. It means they don't have that uncomfortable feeling you get when ignoring facts.

10

The Netherlands: Minister for Legal Protection wants Jehovah's Witnesses to conduct an independent investigation of sexual abuse

by jochie in

meanwhile in the netherlands:minister dekker: jehovah's witnesses must review abuse policyin order to protect children better against abuse, the jehovah's witnesses must look back on catholics, according to minister dekker.

but abuse victims think that this approach will not work.. minister sander dekker for legal protection wants the jehovah's witnesses to conduct an independent investigation of sexual abuse within the community, just like the catholic church.

this is stated in a letter he sent this week to the parliamentary committee for justice and security.

Anders Andersen

Hoi jochie,

Thanks for sharing, and thank you and the other brave volunteers of Reclaimed Voices.

Know that you are making an impact, changing lives for the better!

10

The Netherlands: Minister for Legal Protection wants Jehovah's Witnesses to conduct an independent investigation of sexual abuse

by jochie in

meanwhile in the netherlands:minister dekker: jehovah's witnesses must review abuse policyin order to protect children better against abuse, the jehovah's witnesses must look back on catholics, according to minister dekker.

but abuse victims think that this approach will not work.. minister sander dekker for legal protection wants the jehovah's witnesses to conduct an independent investigation of sexual abuse within the community, just like the catholic church.

this is stated in a letter he sent this week to the parliamentary committee for justice and security.

Anders Andersen

I think it's awesome that the Dutch government told the JW to look at and imitate the process the Catholic Church (in the Netherlands) went through.

That's a big burn right there...