Posts by ShaunaC

30

Did Christ exist?

by uncle_onion in

jw
friends

jesus christ is the main feature of christianity.

what proof is there of him existing?

we touched on this subject on the the last thread that i started, but i would appreciate in depth veiw points and "evidence" please.

I watched a fascinating program on the man Jesus about a year ago on TV. While I don't discount that he truly existed, I am coming to the realization that he was probably just another man among many who led a revolt against the Roman Empire.

You have to remember that life for the Jews was simply unbearable under Roman rule. They were, for all intents & purposes, like slaves. Their life expentancy was only about 30-40 years, mainly due to the harsh conditions of working in the fields. On the other hand, the average life of a Roman was considerably longer, about 65-70 years.

The Jews occasionally had someone rise up who wanted to lead a revolt againt the oppression of the Romans. Jesus was more likely just one of many. However he did stand out due to the fact that ancient writings seemed to be fulfilling in him. With people so oppressed and ready for any kind of deliverance, they attached on to Jesus as their Messiah.

Some intersting ideas & points...

Much faith was put into Jesus as the Deliverer from God because he seemed to be fulfilling so much written in the OT. Of one I particularly remember was Jesus riding in on the ass with palm branches. Uuummmm, duh, it was Passover! Palm branches were a part of the celebration, it had nothing to do with Jesus coming into town. Too, there was probably only a handful of followers with him, not a great crowd.

I did find it intersting that even scientists don't discount the miracles, which Christians often point to as proof Jesus was from God. Again you have to remember how oppressed these people really were. 2000 years later we know perfectly well how the mind can control pain and can even go as far as curing our ailments. Could it not be possible that for someone who wanted to believe so badly that Jesus was their Messiah, that they would end up healing themselves out of extreme faith?

Another thought is that people always point to Josephus to prove that Jesus was a real person. But did you know that out of all the writings of Josephus, the mentions of Jesus are relatively few. If he was such a mover & shaker, don't you think it would have been more of a focus? Or could it be that he was just another guy causing some commotion?

I don't think there is much doubt that there was a man named Jesus that lived 2000 years ago. Was he what the Bible portrays him to be? Why is his story so oddly similar to those in other cultures? Could he have been the basis for the others? Not really, maybe he was later created in such a grandious fashion after the stories of others. Could it all be made up as a tool to control the masses by hysteria and a hope like that of the oppressed Jews...a Messiah & Deliverer from the increasingly bad world?

We know for a fact that 6 million people in the world right now are being mislead. What am I talking about! As far as I'm concerned all religion is a crock, a snare & a racket, a tool to control the people, the opium of the masses, so there are billions being duped! Is it so hard to believe, with man so yearning for understanding of his existence and where he is going, that mankind has been mislead for centuries by all forms of religion?

Good question! Unfortunately....not so easy to answer!

Shauna

17

Special assembly day

by comment in

jw
friends

i attended a local special assembly day yesterday.

didn't seem like too much had changed overall.

however, i've got some questions.. 1) when did the society decide to revert to allowing witnesses to study more than one book with their bible studies?

ShaunaC

Thanks J.C. for the info. Sure wish I had that arrangement when I was busting my ass to pioneer. I remember all to well those days of getting up at 6:00 a.m. to start by 7:00. Meet up with the group at 9:00. Work through lunch. Meet at 1:00. Continue till we met up again at 6:00 pm. And go till 9:00 at night! ALl of that in the midst of summer with 110 degree weather!!!

I'm just thankful that despite all that time, I don't have to live with the guilt of ever bringing anyone into the WT. Whew!

Thanks again!

17

Special assembly day

by comment in

jw
friends

i attended a local special assembly day yesterday.

didn't seem like too much had changed overall.

however, i've got some questions.. 1) when did the society decide to revert to allowing witnesses to study more than one book with their bible studies?

ShaunaC

Path,

I foretold for years(ooohhh maybe I'm a prophet like MDS & don't know it) that the WT would have to reduce the regular pioneer hourly requirement or there would be no pioneers left after awhile. I remember hearing about them finally making the change last year (maybe the previous) but don't remember what it was changed to. Help me out?

Thanks, Shauna

124

I Think That I Chose My Parents.

by Englishman in

jw
friends

do you believe in reincarnation?.

i dont think i believe in it in the same way that most believers do, which is that we keep coming back in different fleshly bodies until we have achieved perfection.. i do, however, strongly suspect that we may well be spirit creatures who find it necessary to inhabit a fleshly body from time to time, and that this entails us having to leave behind most of our past memories.. i say most memories, because many people seem to have some vestigal recollections that don`t seem to fit in with earthly experiences.. i`m pretty sure that i chose my parents!

i have a recollection of being shown a young and kind couple through some form of astral telescope and choosing to become their son.

ShaunaC

I don't believe in reincarnation, however I do have some questions about that inner voice, intuition, subconscious premonitions.

A couple of weeks ago a friend of my boyfriend, Nick, died in a car accident. The strange thing is that another friend helped this guys parents clean out his house. The friend got on his email and found an email sent to a girl he occasionally dated just the night before he died. The email smacked of what was initially thought to be suicidal thoughts. He spelled out almost perfectly what eventually happened the next day. He talked about how he had cheated death many times but that the roads are dangerous this time of year. He wondered if he died would she cry at his funeral & speak well of him.

Now we don't really believe he committed suicide. A car accident is not a way to get the job done. And we don't think he would have put other's lives at risk. But even Nick, who was the last to speak to him on a cell phone about 30 minutes prior to the accident, said that he sounded very different from usual. He was very flamboyant and always over-exagerated everything. But this time he was quite mellow. Interestingly, Nick made these comments about this before we knew of the email letter or any thought of suicide.

So I wonder....could he have had a subconscious premonition? I would normally not believe in this sort of thing, but I find the coincidences quite odd. What do you guys think?

Shauna

30

I need Help.............

by rollercoaster in

okay hi.

i'm new here and i kinda like it but i do have some question have any of you grown up in the truth and then some were along the line stop going to meeting well i did i found out about some stuff the organization was doing and it really disapointed me and also the congregations i have been in haven't been very confornting so if any of you have some you want to talk about or you have been through the same i would really like to hear from you .

discombobulatedgirl

ShaunaC

Hi Discombobulated! Welcome, Welcome!

I was raised in "the truth". In fact, my family goes way back as JW's, like 5 & 6 generations. I was a good JW girl. Baptized at 12, pioneer at 16, used many times in assembly parts. I finally left at 24, that was 2 years ago. My reasons were more personal...I was just tired of everyone ruling my life...my parents (dad is a PO), my husband (married for 7 years to MS), the congregation (they ruled so much down to what I was allowed to wear).

I discovered the ex JW world on the internet last summer and now have many added reasons as to why my leaving the Watchtower was the best decision I ever made for myself.

I understand how difficult it is growing up in the WT. I'm glad to see you're allowed to examine these things at an early age. You've got so much to look forward to in your life. And you've got a great mom to help you out in that.

And just like Expatbrit said...enjoy your friends...including the new ones you have here on this board. I too found out very quickly that the friends I thought I had in the organization weren't really true friends at all. Just know they aren't worthy of your friendship but there are many other good people out here in the so-called "world" who are!

Good luck to you! And please chat with us whenever you can!

Shauna

12

hi...

by HalfWayThere in

i was looking at jw sites on the net and i found this site, its pretty cool i must admit and you all seem to be so positive about life after "the truth".

but its also comforting to hear how scared some of you were when you first left.. at the moment i'm contemplating leaving the organization.

i haven't been attending the meetings much lately, nor done any witnessing, and to be honest i don't miss it.

ShaunaC

Welcome HWT! Glad you have found us. There are many here who will give you much strength, even if it's just by osmosis. I have not posted long myself and can already see how much I've benefited from the association here.

I completely understand how scary it is to leave the WT. I left 2 years ago from everything with nothing & noone on the other side to go to. I too felt the lonliness and was scared to death at the prospect of my life. But somehow, someway I'm continuing to muster the strength not to let fear control my life. There is so much good out here including many fine people here on this board who will understand you like no one else could, despite never meeting you in person or you even having to go in depth about who you are.

Please stay and benefit! I look forward to getting to know you!

Shauna

21

Hi-I'm new here

by had_enough in

jw
friends

im new to this (or any) board and id like to introduce myself.

ive been visiting this and h2o for about a month now, and it has been so therapeutic for me.

ive been inactive for about 2 years except for memorial and assemblies and those have only been for my siblings sake to help care for an aging parent.. i decided to join in and introduce myself because yesterday i read ozzies great post on restrictions on march 23 pm and got so worked up by past memories of my experience with dfing and going through the humiliation of qualifying for reinstatement.

ShaunaC

Welcome Had-Enough! So glad you've joined us!

I agree with Englishman...you're on a great journey. Unfortunately that journey entails many high & lows. But despite the rollercoaster, I am finding it all worthwhile. You get to find out what you're really made up of, you're exposed to different points of view previously not allowed, and you gain a whole hosts of new friends that truly understand you like no one else.

So...WELCOME AGAIN! I look forward to getting to know you!

Shauna

6

Stigmata & the Lost Saying of Jesus

by ShaunaC in

jw
friends

morning guys!

hope you all had an enjoyable weekend!.

i just watched the movie "stigmata" last night.

ShaunaC

Morning guys! Hope you all had an enjoyable weekend!

I just watched the movie "Stigmata" last night. Although it was about receiving the 5 wounds of Jesus, it was more about lost sacred writings of Jesus. I figured that this was completely fictional until I read at the end of the movie that in 1945 scrolls were discovered. Scholars around the world believe these to be the last sayings of Jesus. They have come to be known as "the Gospel of St. Thomas." Yet, the Vatican has rejected these as part of the Bible Canon and calls it heresy. According to the movie, the Catholic church wants to keep these newly discovered scrolls secret because these contain Jesus' instructions, in his own words, of how he wanted his church to be continued. This causes a problem for the Catholic Church because these scrolls teach that the kingdon of God is in the heart between a man and his Creator and not in any organized religion or with the use of priests and such. The Vatican with thus go to great lengths to ensure that this does not get out so that its hold on the people wll not be shaken.

Now...I have many questions regarding the authenticity of the Bible. As was discussed on another thread, I too agree that the Bible is more likely a compilation of Jewish & Christian myths & parables. I too also wonder as to who Jesus actually was. (There was a very intersting program on ABC last year.)

Yet, despite these personal questions I have to wonder...how many additional writings have been found or will continue to be found that may change the face of the Bible? Will the Church one day accept these writings as duly part of the Bible Canon, thus changing the Bible, perhaps the very meaning of it, as we have known it for hundreds of years? And how will this affect the religions of the world?

I know there are many on this board who have been separated from the WT for many years and have thus had much time to research such things. I would be intersted to hear of anyone's thought about either this "Gospel of Thomas" in particular or my secondary questions.

Thanks, Shauna

14

Unresolved anger or overwhelming sadness?

by LDH in

jw
friends

well, which is it guys?.

are you filled with anger at the wbts or just sad that things aren't what you though they were?.

i'm very sad that my parents won't talk with my sister (da'd) or my brother (df'd) even though the society's own web-site says that such actions do not sever family ties.

ShaunaC

Lisa, I definitely believe it's both. I would say that most time I remain somewhere in the middle of both. But sometimes I feel the anger well up inside me. This actually gives me much strength & conviction. When I'm at the height of my anger & frustration, I find I usually use that to delve into more research & reading. On the other hand, I also occasionally go to the other extreme of unbearable sadness. Unfortunately there is not a way to use this side to my advantage. I just have to go through my 2 hours of uncontrollable crying & sobbing. Despite not being able to stop myself when in this state, I do know that soon enough I'll return to my middle ground. Then I wait till the cycle starts again. Maybe it's a whole ying & yang thing! All a part of the healing process!

Shauna (Part of the bragging class cuz I got to have lunch with LDH! )

23

My story!!!

by VeniceIT in

jw
friends

well i haven't really posted my story here, for one reason it was too painful to write out.

well, i finally did go and write it up.

it's pretty long so i'll just link it.. http://www.geocities.com/veniceexjw/mystory.html.

ShaunaC

Venice....all I can say is....WOW!

Despite the pain of what you had to give up, be proud that you were able to successfully stand up for yourself & the real truth. You're a very strong lady. With that kind of strength in you...You're going to have a great new life!

Best wishes to you & your parents! I'm so glad you have each other for support!

Love, Shauna