Posts by Scully

38

Will you attend the Kingdom Hall for a funeral of parents who are still JW's? If not, do you tell them beforehand?

by ThomasCovenant in

jw
friends

i was recently talking to an ex witness whose elderly parents, and in law parents, are still witnesses.. as shocking and incomprehensible as it may seem to both sets of parents, this ex witness believes that, just like every other human throughout human history, they are going to die.

now this ex witness has expressed to me that he won't ever step foot in a kingdom hall again.. he is in a dillemma as to what to do about their funerals.

he does not want to attend any service held at the kingdom hall as the service will be heavily controlled by the seven members of the governing body that reside in brooklyn and who don't know his parents at all.. he is quite willing to stand outside the hall, or attend the crematorium or gravesite or funeral home and also any wake that takes place afterwards as people are more free to express themselves in a less formal setting.

Scully

My parents told me - when I was still living under their roof - that if I ever married out of The Truth™ they would not come to my wedding. Apparently they've softened over the decades since then, and have three times attended non-KH weddings (all civil ceremonies, not held in a church) for my siblings.

I don't see why I have to tell them that I'm not going to their KH funerals - they are the ones who set the standard and should not be surprised if I don't show up for their infomercial funeral. I've seen the what qualifies for a JW Memorial Service™ (a brief paragraph mentioning the deceased, the remaining 19 minutes of WT propaganda) and feel that it doesn't adequately respect the dead or the living who attend. Besides, their beliefs claim that the dead are conscious of nothing, so it shouldn't make a difference to them.

24

Why is sex suddenly pure and holy after you receive a marriage certificate?

by doubtful in

...but gross and detestable any time before marriage.

if a witness couple who are engaged to one another, decide to express their love toward each other by engaging in sexual intercourse just weeks or even days before they're officially married, they are considered to be loathsome, unclean people.

the witness girl would be seen by others in the hall as a dirty little whore...and the guy would just be thought of as a horny young man who couldn't keep it in his pants.

Scully

The background on the "tradition" of sexual abstinence before marriage has to do with how marriages were arranged way back when. It was customary for the bride and groom to meet on the day of the wedding, at the wedding - so they would have been unable to engage in sexual activity prior to the wedding. There was no chance of pregnancy out of wedlock if the bride and groom were kept apart before the marriage took place.

Also, there was the issue of the bride's virginity - it was a valuable commodity - and the father could exact a higher bride price for a virgin daughter than if she was not a virgin - in fact if she was not a virgin, she would bring shame on the family and likely nobody would take her as a wife.

Women were property in those times - they were given in marriage to form alliances with other families, traded like cattle to whomever provided the father with the best advantages. Romantic love wasn't part of the equation in most cases. The girl's virginity was her father's property to trade and barter with, she had no say in it.

I'm so glad those days are over for most women on the planet.

24

Why is sex suddenly pure and holy after you receive a marriage certificate?

by doubtful in

...but gross and detestable any time before marriage.

if a witness couple who are engaged to one another, decide to express their love toward each other by engaging in sexual intercourse just weeks or even days before they're officially married, they are considered to be loathsome, unclean people.

the witness girl would be seen by others in the hall as a dirty little whore...and the guy would just be thought of as a horny young man who couldn't keep it in his pants.

Scully

usury

Really?? They charge exorbitant rates of interest for sexual activity?

23

Katherine Jackson: "my son is gone and for forever"

by leavingwt in

i'm left to assume that sister jackson has concluded that michael will not be resurrected.

.. the matriarch of one of music's most famous families isn't planning any special preparations for the daily trek to a downtown los angeles courtroom where the trial begins may 9, but she says she'll rely on her faith to carry her through.. .

"i have mixed emotions," she told the associated press in an interview this week.

Scully

"I'll be there, but it just hurts me because my son is gone and for forever and this man is trying to get away and get off," she said. "He needs to be punished."

Whatever happened to Waiting on Jehovah™?

26

Boy Denied Communion Because of Cerebral Palsy

by whereami in

jw
friends

can't you just feel the love!!!

!kevin castro's grandmother calls priest's offer of annointing of sick 'offensive' .

a catholic church turned away 8-year-old kevin castro of floresville, texas, from his first communion because he had cerebral palsy, according to the boy's family.. when the rev.

Scully

GL Tirebiter:

A communion is not really a big deal it is not a commitment other than saying you wish to join a faith community.

In the Roman Catholic church, Communion is a big deal and taken very seriously.

I've noticed this too - particularly a child's First Communion. Little girls get to dress up like little brides, and little boys get to dress up in a little white suit. And around here, there are parties held for a child's First Communion. It is a big deal.

26

Boy Denied Communion Because of Cerebral Palsy

by whereami in

jw
friends

can't you just feel the love!!!

!kevin castro's grandmother calls priest's offer of annointing of sick 'offensive' .

a catholic church turned away 8-year-old kevin castro of floresville, texas, from his first communion because he had cerebral palsy, according to the boy's family.. when the rev.

Scully

james:

Maybe it is not the whole Catholic church - could it be just this one priest?

Maybe "just this one priest" was able to evaluate the child's ability/capacity to receive communion better than other priests who didn't know him or his family personally??

27

Such disrespect- Someone desecrated a WT at the laundromat

by keyser soze in

jw
friends

just in case you're wondering what happens to the magazines after they're left at laundromats..... it was ripped apart, with pages scattered all over the floor.

evidently, someone didn't like what they read..

Scully

You can only desecrate something that's sacred. Watchtowers and Awake!s don't count.

62

POSITIVE POST TIME!! We just want to know 3 things you are FOR.

by Terry in

jw
friends

on this topic we don't care what you are against.. let's be positive and tell three things we are for which are meaningful to us.. .

1.music lessons for kids.

learning to read music and play an instrument.. 2.memory training and math strategies in schools.

Scully

jgnat:

By the way, who is the royal "we"?

I think Terry is getting ready for Friday's festivities.

62

POSITIVE POST TIME!! We just want to know 3 things you are FOR.

by Terry in

jw
friends

on this topic we don't care what you are against.. let's be positive and tell three things we are for which are meaningful to us.. .

1.music lessons for kids.

learning to read music and play an instrument.. 2.memory training and math strategies in schools.

Scully

I am for:

having a personal chef, a maid and a personal trainer (all male)
spa days (masseurs included)
being independently wealthy

a girl can dream, can't she?

26

Boy Denied Communion Because of Cerebral Palsy

by whereami in

jw
friends

can't you just feel the love!!!

!kevin castro's grandmother calls priest's offer of annointing of sick 'offensive' .

a catholic church turned away 8-year-old kevin castro of floresville, texas, from his first communion because he had cerebral palsy, according to the boy's family.. when the rev.

Scully

In my opinion you cannot compare the Catholic religion to that of the JW religion because the Catholics do not shun members who decide to stop attending church. Also the JW's do not have a "faith community" in any real sense. They belong to a legalistic cult of mainstream chrisitianity that is more concerned with the members obeying thier rules than with fostering community within its ranks.

So NO I would not feel the same way about this if it were a mentally challenged jw kid. That is my opinion as a mainstream christian who also grew up in the Catholic church and was a JW for a decade. I am viewing this from my experience on all sides of the issue. While You are also entitled to your opinions you must know you and I will never agree on this one.

Lil,

I'm sure you'll agree with me that JWs mis-use the rite of baptism - and they do use it as an inclusionary tool to get individuals to join or "belong" to the cult group. The mind-control tactics play on the sense of belonging that all individuals want - the sense of belonging that is an integral part of the human experience. I think you'll also agree with me that it is a bait-and-switch tactic whereby individuals who become baptized are thereby enslaved / shackled to the group and there is no way out unless they are prepared for the social and emotional ramifications that ensue with shunning.

To me, it is an issue of the capacity to consent. Legally speaking, some mentally challenged persons do not have the capacity to consent, because they do not comprehend the implied contracts involved in things like taking out a loan at the bank, engaging in sexual activity, and committing to a belief system (to name a few) - all things whereby the person would be at high risk of being taken advantage of by persons who do not have their best interests at heart, but who are seeking their own advantage over someone who will never be their equal. That's why I feel it is unethical, even in cases where the individual wishes to (or is encouraged by their relatives to) submit to these activities.

There's nothing wrong with us agreeing to disagree on the matter.