Posts by Scully

39

HELP Why dont we hear God/Angels

by frigginconfused in

ive heard time and time again that the gb does its best because "as we all know" god doesnt talk to us anymore.. so my question is this...is there and scriptual evidence that god has said he will be cutting off all communication to us.

all prophecy is done and the bible is the end all be all?.

unless the bible specificly states that god and the angels are silent then thats a huge game changer.. how is the food gonna be fed to us at the propper time unless we get new communication..

Scully

Perry:

A god complex is a non-clinical term generally used to describe an individual who consistently believes he or she can accomplish more than is humanly possible or that their opinion is automatically above those with whom he or she may disagree.

The highlighted portion of that definition could be applied to you.

Speaking strictly for myself as an atheist, that definition doesn't describe me at all. But thanks for assuming to know that I think I am superior, when in fact nothing could be further from the truth. I'll take it as a compliment.

39

HELP Why dont we hear God/Angels

by frigginconfused in

ive heard time and time again that the gb does its best because "as we all know" god doesnt talk to us anymore.. so my question is this...is there and scriptual evidence that god has said he will be cutting off all communication to us.

all prophecy is done and the bible is the end all be all?.

unless the bible specificly states that god and the angels are silent then thats a huge game changer.. how is the food gonna be fed to us at the propper time unless we get new communication..

Scully

We don't hear them because they don't exist.

There's a saying in psychiatry that goes like this: When someone talks to god, it's called prayer. When god talks to them, it's called schizophrenia.

My personal take on the GB's claim of hearing god speak to them is (a) bull$h!t and/or (b) delusion and/or (c) deliberate contrivance.

The fact that the WTS depends on people believing these claims to generate massive amounts of revenue speaks more to (a) and (c) than (b).

88

So I asked my female coworker what she was doing this weekend............

by miseryloveselders in

jw
friends

but her reply made me so very envious.

you know my mother always would tell me, "wordly people aren't really happy.

" as a kid that always bugged me because i figured if people are laughing, smiling, and generally having a good time, they must be happy.

Scully

One of my best defences against JW bullying whose goal was to get me to participate in some JW endorsed activity against my wishes was the concept of CONSCIENCE.

It's a kind of thought stopping phrase among JWs, for example "I won't include my mileage in this expense report because it would bother my conscience".

Something I used to say regarding Field Service™, when my husband was aware of my questions and misgivings about The Truth™, was "How can I - in good conscience - go to peoples' homes and try to convince them that the Witnesses have something better to offer them than what they already have, when I don't believe it 100% myself?"

He agreed with my position - how could he argue against my Bible Trained™ conscience.

It was the same with Meetings™ - he knew how dismally the local JWs had treated me while I was suffering with postpartum depression - and I'd tell him that my CONSCIENCE was directing me to not associate with people who did not meet the criteria for Jesus' disciples at John 13:34, 35.

He actually talked with an Elder™ about the way the congregation treated me while I'd been depressed and said that the unkind, unloving spirit was a stumbling block for me (it was). He'd hoped that people might be more kind, but as it turned out the ostracism against our family just got worse. That's what opened his eyes and got him to leave the JWs with me, before that hateful spirit infected our children.

24

Tattoo - Regret it or love it?

by mythreesons in

jw
friends

i've been mulling over "getting ink done".

anybody here have any thoughts.

do you regret it?

Scully

I got mine a few years ago. Still love it and the meaning it holds for me.

27

May 15 WT sisters support your husband.....or else!

by hoser in

jw
friends

the new study watchtower page 9 explains how sisters should be happy to be servants to their elder husbands.. "co-operate in financial matters".

"joyful to see her husband active in the congregation".

if he makes a decision you disagree with "she displays a quiet and mild spirit and cooperates with him to make his decision work".

Scully

I've just finished watching the first 3 seasons of Mad Men on Netflix and the Good Housekeeping article seems to be the historical source for the script.

And I thought it was intended as comic relief.

27

May 15 WT sisters support your husband.....or else!

by hoser in

jw
friends

the new study watchtower page 9 explains how sisters should be happy to be servants to their elder husbands.. "co-operate in financial matters".

"joyful to see her husband active in the congregation".

if he makes a decision you disagree with "she displays a quiet and mild spirit and cooperates with him to make his decision work".

Scully

gag me.

13

Need reference for withholding the truth from "those who don't deserve it"

by Pistoff in

hey all, i know that the references for 'theocratic warfare' are ancient and not considered useful.. i would like a reference to the wt saying that one does not have to give truth to those who are not worthy or something similar.. help!.

this information is for a court case.

Scully

Insight on the Scriptures, under the definition of LIE something to the effect of: while malicious lying is discouraged, a servant of god is not obligated to disclose truthful information to those not entitled to it. It is in the context of protecting the higher interests of The Truth™ or the WTS.

78

After a Lifetime Wasted on Atheism - He Finally Gets It

by Perry in

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1e4fuhfhiu&feature=player_detailpage .

i wonder if he offered an apology to all the people he helped deceive over the past 50 years?.

Scully

Perry,

I certainly do not expect a true dyed in the wool atheist to respect my position.

That's your first mistake, my friend. As far as I'm concerned, you can believe or not believe as you see fit, as long as I can do the same.

We are also saying that as God, it isn't enough to simply judge evil, which would be a minimum requirement, but to defeat it and to parade it around the universe as unfit, ultimately unuseful, and utterly illogical.

If God refuses to do this, having the ability to do so, would that not make him evil as an enabler?

Well, it "appears" that he's done nothing about evil for several millenia. Is there a tipping point of evil that will breach his tolerance level and require him to do something about it? Until then, yes, he is refusing to do something about evil, and, yes, he is enabling it.

Whether there is a god or not, I'm not going to let that change the good person I am or the positive things I do in my life. He/she/it can judge me as he/she/it sees fit (if he/she/it exists, which I doubt with every fibre of my being). I have nothing to be ashamed of and I'm not afraid of death - I didn't exist before I was born and I won't exist after I die - I'm not afraid of that. I don't need or desire eternal life - it's not my destiny. Maybe it's your need, your desire or your destiny, but I'm not that self-important to want eternal life.

22

JWs and Counseling/Psychologists/Therapists

by Had To Go in

jw
friends

hello - i am hoping that some born-ins, still-ins, elders (ex), ms, etc.

can help me with a question i have.

what is the typical jw thought on seeking counseling via a licensed therapist or psychologist?

Scully

Had To Go:

It's been more than 15 years since Mr Scully and I left the JWs, and for about a year and a half before we decided to leave together, I did a lot of personal research. At the beginning, it was nothing that would be considered Apostate™ - I was suffering from postpartum depression which was made worse by the way the local JWs treated me as a depressed person. By chance, I found a social psychology course that aired on the university channel and watched it faithfully for the whole semester. It was so fascinating to learn about group dynamics and pressure tactics that groups used to manipulate members - things like labelling / exclusion / exerting social control - and it was one of those a-ha! moments to realize that those were the exact tactics that JWs were using. It was such a relief and totally helped me cope with the way the JWs behaved and I learned some ways to deal with it. That was so empowering! It helped immensely with my depression.

Once it became clear that JWs were not the "loving" people described by Jesus at John 13:34, 35, I sat down with Mr Scully and let him know that I wasn't going to attend meetings anymore. I talked about the way I had been treated, how we had always been hospitable and kind and generous with people in our congregation, and then when the tables were turned and we needed their support, they treated me like I was demonized and dangerous. I said that I didn't want my children to grow up in such a closed-minded group, that I wanted them to learn love and kindness and generosity from people like him and me, who knew what it was like to need help from others but had been treated badly. I didn't want them to learn about love the way JWs taught it - that it was only deserved if you went in service all the time and attended all the meetings (which we had done, plus hosted the book study and service arrangements in our home!) and sucked up to the Elders™ and their wives (which we didn't do).

Appealing to Mr Scully on that level - when he saw how unkind Brothers™ and Sisters™ had been to me while I was sick - was exactly what opened his eyes. Once that was established, he was very open to researching on his own and we borrowed a bunch of books from the local library and ordered Crisis of Conscience from a Christian bookstore.

My point is that sometimes patience and subtlety will have a better result than in-your-face opposition to the JW belief system. If you can instill values of love and kindness in your children without tying their behaviour to "making Jehovah happy", your husband will be able to see that it is possible to raise a family with solid values without the JWs' influence.

32

Watch "Dr. Phil" on Wednesday

by JimmyPage in

jw
friends

subject of the show: "is this a cult?".

i hope they do a good job, my wife watches him every day.. hope steve hassan is a guest..

Scully

I actually prefer to see "other" cults discussed by Dr. Phil. That way, if I mention watching the show to a JW, it isn't targeting the group, and the Apostate™ red-alert siren doesn't go off in their brains. It opens the discussion to specific behaviour relevant to the group that is being highlighted. It takes a little longer for the JW to connect the dots, but it's far more effective for them to make those connections on their own than it is for someone to carpet bomb them with facts that will trigger thought-stopping cult tactics.