Posts by Rainbow

40

All About The Words We Used

by dubstepped in

in the time since i've left the borg behind i've had a few things hit me as to how words were used.

i'm wondering if anyone else has some similar examples, but here are some things that have made me think:.

watchtower - my whole life i saw this as a thing of protection from outside evil forces, and then when i left someone pointed out "isn't that what they used to keep people in prison".

Rainbow_Troll

schnell 3 hours ago
@Rainbow_Troll, just show them Ezekiel 1:10 and 15-20, and then a picture of the zodiac

LOL

Not to mention the numerous veiled (or not so veiled if you know astrology) astrological themes in the gospels as well as the Book of Revelation. I once met a woman who called Christianity "astro-theology". She even wrote a book about it called 'Suns of God' which I haven't yet gotten around to reading, but it would be a great place to start for anyone still hung up on Christianity.

The early history of the Watchtower is itself rife with occultism. C.T. Russell believed in astrology and even once used it to make a prediction in a 1903 Watchtower. C.J. Woodworth, who wrote a portion of The Finished Mystery, openly admitted on several occassions to being demon possessed. Then there is the barely hidden occult iconography and symbolism that sometimes shows up in Watchtower publications.

40

All About The Words We Used

by dubstepped in

in the time since i've left the borg behind i've had a few things hit me as to how words were used.

i'm wondering if anyone else has some similar examples, but here are some things that have made me think:.

watchtower - my whole life i saw this as a thing of protection from outside evil forces, and then when i left someone pointed out "isn't that what they used to keep people in prison".

Rainbow_Troll

Diogenesister15 hours ago
Rainbow_troll correct me if I'm wrong but isn't what you looked into what people would call spiritualism which isn't a word dubs use, but if you were to use it they would become extremely confused!! After all usually anything with spiritual in has to be good, doesn't it??!!

Spiritualism is the more common term, yes, but spiritism has an identical meaning if you look it up in a dictionary (though not all dictionaries list it).

40

All About The Words We Used

by dubstepped in

in the time since i've left the borg behind i've had a few things hit me as to how words were used.

i'm wondering if anyone else has some similar examples, but here are some things that have made me think:.

watchtower - my whole life i saw this as a thing of protection from outside evil forces, and then when i left someone pointed out "isn't that what they used to keep people in prison".

Rainbow_Troll

Spiritism

In my quest for the truth I investigated psychic phenomena, parapsychology, OBEs because I thought it a more scientific (and therefore reliable) approach to answering metaphysical questions than consulting the Bible. And so of course I was accussed of the heinous sin of spiritism; but when I asked my accussers to define just what they meant by 'spiritism' they could never give me a clear answer.

I looked up the word in the dictionary and found that it refers to mediumship, table-tapping, and similar chicanery. Well, that certainly didn't describe anything I was doing. Even back then, I knew that psychic mediums were con artists.

I tried to explain all this to the brothers, but their minds were closed. Reading books on the paranormal was spiritism (unless you bothered to consult a dictionary), which made me ipso facto a witch in league with Satan.

Some time after that I had my first OBE (which was totally fucking awesome, BTW) and was foolish enough to tell my mom about it. According to her, the demons were now trying to rip me out of my body so they could take possession of the vacated cadavre! I tried, in vain, to explain how silly that was and that it wasn't even consistent with her own theological beliefs; but to no avail.

Ah, religion...

19

Has your name or reputation been maligned by the Witness gossip-mill?

by stuckinarut2 in

as we all know, witnesses routinely share in gossiping, slandering or maligning the name and reputation of those who are "spiritually weak" or ones who "fade" or "stop associating".. they feel it is ok to speak badly of such ones who "have left jehovah's organization".. of course, some of the worst perpetrators of this are elders and their wives, who insidiously plant negative stories in the minds of all they interact with in the congregation.

they may never have actual facts, but since when do facts matter to witnesses?

however through such conduct they manage to separate people from one another, or cause rifts amongst former friends.. this sort of conduct is plainly inappropriate.. but what scriptures could be used if the opportunity arose to confront such ones about the way they have behaved?.

Rainbow_Troll

I'm breaking my heart night and day thinking about the loss of the loving people who now shun me! As long as they keep showing love to concealed paedophiles in their cult - that's the important thing.

It's a perfect example of how religion skews the internal moral compass. Granted, there are radically differing conceptions of right and wrong among various cultures and even between individuals, but regardless of that, most people still have (for lack of a better word) a hierarchy of values. For example: most people will at least give lip service to the idea that lying is wrong, yet no one would condemn those Germans who hid jews from the Nazis as a bunch of liars. In most hierarchies of value, respect for life trumps the obligation to tell the truth.

Apostasy may or may not be wrong, but to treat apostates worse than child abusers is really another way of saying that it's more important to believe the right doctrines than respect the bodily integrity of children (or adults for that matter).

"Oh, but the child abuser has repented. And if the apostate would only repent too, he would be forgiven and treated just as well as the child abuser."

So there you have it: we're not being shunned for our sins, but for our lack of repentance.

19

Has your name or reputation been maligned by the Witness gossip-mill?

by stuckinarut2 in

as we all know, witnesses routinely share in gossiping, slandering or maligning the name and reputation of those who are "spiritually weak" or ones who "fade" or "stop associating".. they feel it is ok to speak badly of such ones who "have left jehovah's organization".. of course, some of the worst perpetrators of this are elders and their wives, who insidiously plant negative stories in the minds of all they interact with in the congregation.

they may never have actual facts, but since when do facts matter to witnesses?

however through such conduct they manage to separate people from one another, or cause rifts amongst former friends.. this sort of conduct is plainly inappropriate.. but what scriptures could be used if the opportunity arose to confront such ones about the way they have behaved?.

Rainbow_Troll

It happened to me. Nowdays I am a really evil person by JW standards (and probably by Muslim, Buddhist, and secular humanist standards as well), but back in my teens I was actually a pretty good guy. The only sin I can recall committing was masturbation; other than that, I was squeaky clean.

Nevertheless, I found out later on that some pretty nasty rumors had been circulating about me which I was unaware of at the time. I have since traced them back to a close family member who was evidently attempting to slander me so she could create a rift between me and my friends (none of whom she liked). I'm ashamed to say that she lied to me as well and I believed her without ever investigating whether or not she was being truthful.

To be fair, I don't think this is unique to JWs at all. I've found that gossip and backbiting are endemic in human society no matter if it's a church, workplace, or school. People are bastards.

123

Why do some Jehovah's Witnesses choose to be atheist or agnostic?

by Cassaruby in

jw
friends

"traumatic as the initial transition may be, it can lead to the development of a truly personal relationship with these two greatest friends [the father and the son] .

.. "whatever sense of 'belonging' that membership in some religious system may create, it can never compare with the power and beauty and strengthening benefit of the intimate personal relationship the scripture presents .

from reading joseph campbell i've come to understand that there are functions to religion or mythology.

Rainbow_Troll

Why do some Jehovah's Witnesses choose to be atheist or agnostic?

Because we were disillusioned and we don't want it to happen again.
After I left the WT I spent (or wasted, some could argue) the next 18 years of my life searching for the true religion. I attended many churches and went near-sighted reading the Bible, Apocrypha, Book of Mormon, Calvin, Augustine, Aquinas, ad nauseum.

Once I concluded the Christianity was a total fraud, I looked into Islam (another big scam) and then some of the eastern "religions". I have to admit that Buddhism and Hinduism are actually good forms of psychology if you discount all the supersitious accretions and metaphysical speculation. Lao-tzu and Confucius were great ethical philosophers, but they weren't prophets (nor did they claim to be).

Eventually I just concluded that religion is bunk. I tend to shy away from generalizations, but I can say quite confidently that every person who has ever claimed to receive a revelation from God was either deluded or, more likely, a charlatan. Harsh? Maybe, but keep in mind that I spent EIGHTEEN years of my life in a sincere search for truth and this is the conclusion I've come to.

Religion is, even at its best, an utter waste of time and energy that could be spent much more productively. If anyone hungers for truth then they should apply themselves to philosophy, mathematics, and science (in that order). Pythagoras, Plato, and Liebniz grasped more about the true nature of reality than any theologian. Friedrich Nietzsche's philosophy offers more hope than any apocalyptic eschatology. Science has improved more lives, healed more illnesses, and eliminated more poverty than an army of the most well-meaning saints ever could. Banish faith and embrace reason! Your life can only change for the better.

30

Jehovah's Wonderous Creation - The Guinea Worm

by pale.emperor in

you're not likely to see this in an awake!

magazine, but here goes.

for those that believe in intelligent design please explain this one to me:.

Rainbow_Troll

careful
Rainbow_Troll, so is the Book of Jubilees from Satan or Jehovah?

It was written by Enoch before Jehovah transformed him into Metatron and took him up to Heaven. Don't you know anything?

pale.emperor
Rainbow Troll are you serious or being sarcastic?

Can't I be both?

moomanchu
Oh Wise Rainbow_Troll,
What then was the original and unperverted function of the Guinea Worm.

It was created for the purpose of oral hygiene; much like the Dentic in Farscape. You'd suck it into your mouth after a rich, vegetarian meal and let the little guy polish your teeth while you leaned against a tree and watched baby fawns and wolf pups play together.

BTW are you gay and a troll?

I wish I were gay, but I was born with an inexplicable preference for girls (it's a disease, I know). I really just became obsessed with trolls at age 10 after I was forced to throw away my entire collection when we found out the little eunuchs were demonized.

32

Irregular to meetings, can I partake in memorial?

by Squekylive in

hi friends .

i don't believe in jw doctrines anymore but because of family i have to be a jw for now.. i am not regular to meetings, and don't answer in meeting, but i report some hours so i remain as active jw now.. .

congregation knows that i am not spiritual and i don't talk to people and i don't care what they think about me.. now, i believe it's important to observe lord's supper as a christian as per john 6:53, so in the coming memorial if i attend i want to partake in the communion,.. i believe it is a sin to pass the bread and wine inspite of knowing it's flesh and blood of jesus.. it's like rejecting jesus.. so i want to partake.. but i dont consider i am anointed etc.

Rainbow_Troll

Squeky, why not just take the eucharist at a mainstream church? Surely you can sneak in to one at least once a year without anyone noticing.

If you partake at the memorial, it will just be seen as a desecration of their sacrament and probably embarrass your family.

Incidentally, I've studied Satanism and the black mass in particular. While there are many variations on the unholy rite, not partaking of the bread and wine is the one common thread that runs through them all, as it is symbolic of rejecting Jesus Christ and his atonement.

Fun fact: Nisan 14 does NOT fall the first full moon after the spring equinox (ask a Jew). That, in fact, is a pagan holy day (ask a Wiccan).

Cool, Huh?

15

Compiling a list of Sin

by Nihilistic Journey in

with all the rules that we had to live under to be a good christian it's a wonder that we aren't all neurotic basket cases like i am!

let's compile a list of transgressions and rules that we had to live by.

no rated r movies.

Rainbow_Troll

In no particular order:

No long hair (for men).
No crossdressing.
No reading books that are critical of the WTS' s teaching (which basically means anything written by apostates, as well as most books on Science, Philosophy, and Comparative Religion).
No Higher Education.
No icons, statues, crosses, or other emblems of idolatry.
No dating (unless you are an adult who is seriously searching for a spouse).
No holding hands or kissing.
No oral sex, mutual masturbation, BDSM, or role-playing with your spouse.
No witchcraft, enochian magick, or eldritch conjurations from the Necronomicon
No drugs.
No voting.

Since I left, I've committed all the above except one.

31

You know it's the Truth, because it attracts crazy people.

by schnell in

jw
friends

i wish i was kidding, but i have heard this idea suggested lately as a defense of the wts.

this is god's organization, even though it attracts crazy people, and because it attracts crazy people.

"unlettered and ordinary," et cetera.. i don't get it.

Rainbow_Troll

On that note, check this out:

http://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/mental-issues.php

To sum it up, studies show that JWs are 2 to 17 times more likely (depending on the study) to suffer from mental illnesses than the general population.

My own mom, though she hasn't be diagnosed as such, is almost certainly suffering from paranoid schizophrenia and I think the WT is primarily to blame.

Of course it could be argued that people predisposed to mental illness are attracted to the WT's teachings, but it is equally probable that those same teachings exacerbate mental illness. When the GB tells suggestible people, who accept their word as gospel, that they are surrounded by invisible demons who want persecute them and that, in fact, the entire world is controlled by Satan, this is bound to result in some JWs going insane.

Rainbow_Troll

Posts by Rainbow_Troll

Diogenesister15 hours ago