is there a standard rite of declaration or anything that could be considered a ritual confirmation giving jws the title/duty of clergy?.
also, at memorial is there a standard prayer or invocation that is recited every year?.
"Is there a standard rite of declaration or anything that could be considered a ritual confirmation giving JWs the title/duty of clergy?"
Technically for a JW, your baptism is your ordination date as a minister. That means that ANY JW should be able to perform all the duties of a priest or minister. In practice, as we know, that isn't so. Just have a sister try to perform a marriage.
S4
why is it that on jw discussion boards, anyone who brings up difficult issues or questions will soon be banned from the site, while sites like this one where debate and discussion are encouraged, we welcome believing jws with open arms?.
of course, most of us here know the answer to that!
but it is something to take note of, and to mention when you get a chance.. there was a recent post about a jw group on facebook.
The turn around of this site is amazing, for sure.
When we've dealt with the same, lame JW arguments, they pose no threat to us. Hey, they gotta remember, We used the Reasoning book for years also! We were quite familiar with those arguments and reasonings when we left.
S4
about six years ago, when self-extricating myself from jehovah's witnesses, i decided to follow robert anton wilson's advice in cosmic trigger, a life changing book for me, and explore taboos as a way to rapidly deprogram myself.
tarot was a great way to do that, as few things are more odious in the jw world.
i wrote up my remarkable experiences in an essay on my blog, tarot & rapid brain change which will probably be interesting to jw forum readers.. .
I did some of the same things. Had my fortune read at a party, hung around with witches, etc. Found it was all silly nonsense, except its ability to get one to think in different ways, see things from another angle.
I gave myself permission to read the Tao Te Ching, and that was a real turning point. I found more practical help for how to live in that slim little book that you can read in an hour, than I did in all of the Bible. I thought to myself that, if there was an all wise god, the Tao Te Ching was the simple book he'd write, not the bloated, confusing Bible.
Yet the TTC doesn't even mention a god or worship or any of that.
Lost a lot of fear at that time.
S4
fred franz was known for giving weird talks in the sense that he would pronounce words in a strange ways, ramble on for extended periods, and exceed the allotted time for speaking.
he violated most of the rules in the "theocratic school" book for giving talks.. it is even said he gave a public prayer once at a convention that went on for 20 minutes!.
why wasn't fred franz counciled concerning his public speaking like everyone else is in the congregations when they give their talks?.
I heard Freddie many times, from 1963 on. Even got to be on the program with him a few times. He was a god to most JWs, and certainly to me for many years. He was the WTS's resident genius, as far as most of us ere concerned. We were certain he would survive Amageddon.
He had a phenomenal memory. BUT, I was working in the Chairman's office as assistant at one district convention where we had Fred Franz as a speaker. The talk he gave was a big change at the time for WTS teaching. For the life of me, I can't remember the change, but it was a convention in Massachusets.
Fred gave his talk, and the Chairman and I were following along with the manuscript. I was next to the stage and supposed to fill in if Fred died or something.
Anyway, we realized that, though he may have memorized the manuscript, in fact, he skipped an entire page of the talk.
What were we going to do? The Chairman decided we'd do nothing, just wait for the WT to come out with the study article that covered the talk and let that handle things.
S4
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyid=101034642.
above is a link to leonard cohen in concert in manhattan a week or so ago.
he is a brillant singer, songwriter and poet, a hall of famer, but there is something more to leonard.. i started an essay last year called "leonard cohen and my other fathers.
Sorry, Black Sheep. I was not familiar with the reference and took it as a personal slam. Accept my apology and thanks for introducing me to Cohen's fiction. I'll take the ass monikor on for the moment!
Outlaw, I'm sure he was there at the monastary on several occasions, shorter and longer, and will likely be again.
Thanks for the note, SYF.
"You came to me this morning / And you handled me like meat / You'd have to be a man to know / How good that feels, how sweet" A Thousand Kisses Deep. I'm memorizing this poem.
S4
why is it that on jw discussion boards, anyone who brings up difficult issues or questions will soon be banned from the site, while sites like this one where debate and discussion are encouraged, we welcome believing jws with open arms?.
of course, most of us here know the answer to that!
but it is something to take note of, and to mention when you get a chance.. there was a recent post about a jw group on facebook.
A turning point for me when I left the Witnesses was when I realized that protecting and defending the WTS was really the main purpose of the WTS and Jehovah's Witnesses. It was not finding the truth as related in the Bible, it was defending what the WTS was currently telling us was the truth.
When that changed a little down the road, it was protecting this "New Truth" as proclaimed by the WTS.
S4
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyid=101034642.
above is a link to leonard cohen in concert in manhattan a week or so ago.
he is a brillant singer, songwriter and poet, a hall of famer, but there is something more to leonard.. i started an essay last year called "leonard cohen and my other fathers.
Cohen is actually a Buddhist monk, and he spent five years in a monastary - hardly a vacation. When he got out, he found that his manager had defrauded him for $5 million. Part of the reason he's back on the road.
And I do agree, he's improved with time.
S4
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyid=101034642.
above is a link to leonard cohen in concert in manhattan a week or so ago.
he is a brillant singer, songwriter and poet, a hall of famer, but there is something more to leonard.. i started an essay last year called "leonard cohen and my other fathers.
Nice, Black Sheep. Never heard of that game, and wouldn't play it. With that comment, I think of you more as an ass than a sheep.
Do you have any idea who Cohen is, or just trying to be clever?
Outlaw - thanks for getting it. I've got a ton of favorite Canadian performers: Cohen, Fred Eaglesmith, Neil Young, most of the members of The Band, Joni Mitchell, David Francey - the top of the list.
S4
got an e-amil from illowy today, who says he still cannot post here.
he was helping a ms with inventory and posting on the jw.org site that the congregations use.
he added this: .
Oops, I meant, Thanks Outlaw, not Thanks Illowy.
S4
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyid=101034642.
above is a link to leonard cohen in concert in manhattan a week or so ago.
he is a brillant singer, songwriter and poet, a hall of famer, but there is something more to leonard.. i started an essay last year called "leonard cohen and my other fathers.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=101034642
Above is a link to Leonard Cohen in concert in Manhattan a week or so ago. He is a brillant singer, songwriter and poet, a Hall of Famer, but there is something more to Leonard.
I started an essay last year called "Leonard Cohen and My Other Fathers." I think over the years, through his songs and poetry and how he's lived his life, Cohen has taught me as much about how a man lives and ages well and deals with the women in his life as any man I've known. I lost my dad when I was a baby, and have no memoryof him. When I thnk if the men who've influenced me the most, though I've never met him, my mind always comes back to Leonard Cohen.
I was a good, but not always faithful husband. I have had a few lovers. There are people who judge and condemn me for that. But to this day, whenever I meet any woman that I've loved or who's been a lover, she smiles, and we are still friends. How many men can say that? Leonard Cohen, perhaps. For some reason, I think I owe him something for that.
S4
