For me it was several things over time, but a few stand out:
1. In the late 1980s I was chair of an appeal committee assigned to look into the appeals of eight people disfellowshipped by a special committee looking into problems in the Ogdensberg, NY congregation. It was obvious these eight had been DFed to get rid of "troublemakers." NONE of them had committed a DFing offense. We wrote the WTS disagreeing with the DFing action, and providing over 30 pages of documentation in every case showing there was no scriptural grounds for the DFing.
The WTS upheld all of the DFings, and I realized immediately that there was no Holy Spirit involved in these decisions what-so-ever!
2. A NPR broadcast on continuous ice core drillings in all three of the major ice shelves that could be counted like the rings on trees and all dated back 130,000 years or so. Absolute proof that there was no Flood, no paradise earth under a water canopy, etc.
3. The 1914 Generation change in the mid-1990s. In the midst of the sheep and goats being seperated change, the turn about on going to college and the disappearance of the King of the North, I came to the conclusion that the brothers leading the WTS didn't know jackshit!
4. Reading the book of Genesis without WTS blinders or filters on my eyes. By chapter 22 I was absolutely certain I was reading a mishmash of mythology.
S4
Seeker4
JoinedPosts by Seeker4
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51
Was There A Specific Event That U Remember-- Realizing It Wasn't The Truth?
by minimus infor me, it was a combination of things over a long period of time.
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how about you?
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Seeker4
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"Have You Been DF'd? Get Reinstated FAST!" - a new book!
by AlmostAtheist inhas anyone else seen this book?
i'm half-tempted to order it.
the author claims to be a presiding overseer, and claims to have lost his son to suicide after the son was df'd.
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Seeker4
I was good friends for many years with the Circuit and District overseer John Crispin and his wife Mella.
I'm fairly certain they are still in the WTS. This may be a relative of John's.
But considering that this website offers a lot of Russell's books, AND copies of the super secret Elder's and Pioneer's manuals, I have a feeling this is not a WTS approved site!!
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Let's Talk About NEW YEARS RESOLUTIONS
by jayhawk1 indo you attempt to set a new years resolution or several?
in the past, i have not.
this year is different, i guess.
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Seeker4
1. Lose 20 pounds.
2. Get super fit.
3. Get and stay in a really great fitness/wellness program.
4. Start eating super healthy food.
WAIT!! I ALREADY DID THAT IN 2007!!
Yeah man, Seeker4 is in great shape for 2008! Thank you P90X! What an awesome fitness program.
My only resolution is to bring the same committment, discipline and intensity to all of my life that I've brought to this fitness program.
Happy New Year to all!!
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Circuit Assembly This Weekend
by united states of nothing inwell, i went this weekend and there were a few key points that i thought were pretty interesting.
one thing is that we are not to use the word 'society' any longer.
i don't know if anybody else has heard of this before but i wondered what the reason was behind it.
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Seeker4
For quite a while they have discouraged using phrases like "the Society says" or "according to the Society." Instead they want people to say "the Bible, or God's word, says..."
The problem with that? Most of these things ARE actually said just by the Society, and NOT in the Bible!
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Happy Solstice To All!!
by Seeker4 inhey, all jwders!
hope you have a wonderful solstice today.
tonight i will toast you all as we burn a candle against the darkness and enjoy the incredible adventure of being alive on this remarkable planet.
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Seeker4
I have a feeling that there won't be a virgin in sight when Lori and I are celebrating!!
Enjoy, my friend.
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Happy Solstice To All!!
by Seeker4 inhey, all jwders!
hope you have a wonderful solstice today.
tonight i will toast you all as we burn a candle against the darkness and enjoy the incredible adventure of being alive on this remarkable planet.
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Seeker4
Hey, all JWDers!
Hope you have a wonderful Solstice today. Tonight I will toast you all as we burn a candle against the darkness and enjoy the incredible adventure of being alive on this remarkable planet.
My seasonal best to my brothers and sisters scattered across its beautiful surface.
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New Yearbook stats for 2007 now out!
by Dogpatch inthe report is out!.
http://www.watchtowernews.org/2007report.pdf.
cooking the books with 3% increase??.
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Seeker4
I haven't read all of the comments here, but does anyone else find it strange that essentially all of the countries that have shown negative or minimal growth over the last several years all of a sudden are showing positive numbers???
In the past several years the growth in Europe, especially northern Europe, the US, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Japan and Korea has been flatline.
Now, with this report, there is ONLY ONE COUNTRY (Lichenstein) out of ALL of those, that has negative growth! Japan, Denmark and Poland report no growth, but all the rest are in positive numbers. The US had an increase that amounts to about 3 new publishers in each congregation. That really surprises me.
I've never had any reason to think that the WTS 'cooks the books' as it were, but these numbers, even though 3% is limited "growth" for sure, seem very odd to me. Could there possibly be a new way of looking at the figures? I agree that using the "Peak Publisher" numbers is bogus, but it looks like they figured this again using the "Average" figures, which should be fairly accurate.
It's hard for me to believe that with 10 years of the Internet, the access to huge amounts of reliable, accurate, negative WTS info online in 1st World countries, and the idiocy of WTS policy and lack of leadership during this time, that there would be a positive shift like this.
Very odd.
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Judgemental Yoga instructor!
by changeling inwe were talking to my yoga instructor (who is kind of a yoga nazi) about another studio in the area.
she had recommended them in the past.
tonight she said their instructors were really good but that one of them was "so gay" she couldn't handle taking his class.
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Seeker4
JWs can't do yoga cause it's like this direct line to demon possession and a life of Satan-controlled insanity. That really ought to be obvious to anyone who has ever attended an actual yoga class. Oh! The filth and degradation in such a place! The wild wantoness and unbridled sexuality seen in the typical yoga class! It's brazen and shameless!
A flamboyant gay Swede yoga instructor would be no surprise to any reader of the Awake! magazine. They would assume that was simply the norm amidst the demon-riddled yoga culture.
Or is that yogurt culture??
Whatever....
S4 (a happy hatha yoga practitioner) -
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Barb Anderson's proof of her background - pics of GB and more
by Dogpatch inbarb sez some silly jws are questioning her credentials.
well boo on their party.. barb anderson's proof of her background - pics of gb and more.
http://www.freeminds.org/women/barbara_anderson.htm.
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Seeker4
On the phone and via e-mail, and even here at JWD, Barbara and I have shared many memories of friends at Bethel.
EVERYTHING we've ever discusses has convinced me that she's as authentic as it gets.
She and Joe are also one of the things that long time JWs and the WTS simply cannot seem to comprehend. Barb and Joe are thinking people who left the WTS and the Witnesses because it is an organization and a religion that simply does not make sense, and that falls apart under intelligent questioning.
Looking at all those memories, the photos and friendships and family - all that had to be left behind - makes me sad. I've got a lot of similar memories and lost friendships. You don't leave something like that lightly. It requires a true crisis of conscience, and it demands that you love truth so much that you can no longer live a lie.
I salute all of those here who have made this choice.
S4
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Our CO says..."women in the workplace...a Satanic plot!"
by sir82 inour co came galloping into town this week.
in his tuesday talk, these were his comments (not word for word, but more or less):.
"i imagine one of the biggest problems in your territory is not-at-homes.
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Seeker4
You go out in service all week and talk to no one?
Wow, what an effective method is the house to house work!
This CO is just saying the typical dumb CO stuff. I can guarantee that there are some folks sitting in the Kingdom Hall nodding at his wisdom, and some sitting there thinking, "What a dumb shit this guy is!"
S4