Posts by Sirona

2

Trying to say Goodbye to Yourself - A metaphor

by invisible in

jw
friends

maybe it's information burnout or emotional burnout in denial or possibly some sense of avoidance i am going through, sometimes i want to ask for help on issues, but know not the questions i have yet to be asking myself.. trying to leave the final vestiges of something so major in your life as a cultist in ignorance, in this case - jw's, especially when one is brought up in such is similar to saying goodbye to parts of yourself, but how do you know that the incoming transformations through learning experience are 'parts' that you welcome into your new emerging unique identity?.

i think i'm keeping a grasp on the whole picture, but its absurdly complex yet i know the answers are so simple.. perhaps i might just walk away from it all?

(rhetorical), talking to myself.. any other transactional analyst's out there willing to offer a hand?.

Sirona

OMG, you sound just like me, Inv. Mimilly made some fantastic points there (thanks mimilly)

I think I'm keeping a grasp on the whole picture, but its absurdly complex yet I know the answers are so simple.

I find it so hard to keep a grasp on the whole picture so I think you must be doing very well. Just discovering who I am over the last couple of years has been the most dramatic transformation I think I will ever experience in this life. Its been tremendously difficult but also wildly exhilarating. You will be a so much better person - just keep going!

Sirona

** http://www.religioustolerance.org **

45

What Color Is Your Aura?

by MrMoe in

jw
friends

what color is your aura?

quiz time!!!

http://www.emode.com/emode/tests/aura.jsp.

Sirona

HI Derek,

Thanks for that link. It had some interesting perspectives. I was particularly interested in physical causes for seeing auras, since I can see them. I'm very open to the possibility that it is some sort of problem with visual perception. Sometimes it is more pronounced, and I've also sometimes see flashing spots - this is more indicative of a migraine. I don't have head pain, but I seem to get migraine like symptoms.

As you know, I'm into mystical things, but I do realise that there are many things with scientific explanation.

Sirona

** http://www.religioustolerance.org **

42

Voice your opinion- Organised religion.

by jerome in

my main problem with organised religion is when totalitarianism comes into play.

thats when you get institutions like the catholic church in its earlier years.

that should never be allowed.. jerome

Sirona

Simon,

All religion.
Imagine how much better society would be without religion? It devalues life IMHO because of the 'god will fix it' mentality and without it people would probably value life a lot more than they do.

I don't agree, Simon. Religion itself can be a belief system for one individual that enhances their life and may even help them value life more.

Organised religion is a different thing entirely. Yes, organised religion has been extremely damaging throughout history.

Belief itself is not the cause of the horrors. Human beings are the cause. Desire for power, control, and group conformity are part of human nature. We all get together in groups with a common interest (whether that is religion or something else) and we tell each other we are right and that the "other" groups are wrong. Then, we act with the group and diffuse the responsibility of those actions. The product of this is a group who behave more horrifically than most individuals would.

I consider myself to be religious, and I associate with a local group (probably once a month). It is entirely possible to be religious and to not be controlled by the group, in fact its possible to be extremely spiritual without ever meeting anyone else with similar beliefs.

Sirona

42

From JW to Pagan

by Sirona in

jw
friends

i've noticed that quite a few people on this board have said that they are now pagan.

i'm starting to wonder if converting to paganism is something that many ex-jws do?

being a pagan myself, i am actually surprised at how i could choose the religion that jws probably hate the most.

Sirona

Comf: Hurrah!!

Arachnia, I appreciate you voicing your view of the subject.

I suppose that's a part of our existance we tend take for granted: we fail to understand one another because we mistakenly assume that our worldview matches everyone elses.

Yes. Or that our worldview is the only right one. So many problems would be eliminated if people simply accepted other people for who/what they are.

GentlyFeral: You bad person you! I'm sure that you got into my head this weekend. I'm not joking when I say that over this weekend I have had the name "GentlyFeral" repeated over in my head so many times, I had to speak out loud and say "ok, I get the message!". I intended looking you up on this board today, then when I logged onto this thread I saw your post.

Anyway, back to topic.... I agree with you about educating people. It would be fantastic if we could speak openly, using words like "witch" and have people understand us. I feel comfortable using those words with those who do understand, but with non-pagans I tend to shy away from it. Thinking about it, I'm not sure if its got something to do with my own embarrassment at using such a word with regard to myself. Actually I'm more a "witch in training"!

And about Witch having "negative connotations": aren't there times when that's precisely the power you wish to draw on, especially for self-defense? In the words of Evelyn Waugh, "There are people one would wish to offend."

I've never had the situation where I'd use that word in self defense. What sort of self defense? If its with someone who is not knowledgeable about magick I always would prefer that they didn't know what method I'd used as protection. Still, it is a good point. I have a friend who is known as a witch by the local community, and she has the least trouble from local vandals, etc. since they're all scared of her!

Sirona

** http://www.religioustolerance.org **

1

We need to warn the new recruits!

by Sirona in

i've been thinking about the whole child abuse issue within the jws.. i think somewhere along the line we are forgetting about new recruits - those who are having bible studies with the jws.

they are in a very dangerous position.. firstly, many of them are very likely to have been "sucked in" by the jw spiel and will think that the organisation can do no wrong.

they may think that individual jws can do no wrong (or they wouldn't be in the congregation, right?

Sirona

Hi All,

I've been thinking about the whole child abuse issue within the JWs.

I think somewhere along the line we are forgetting about new recruits - those who are having bible studies with the JWs. They are in a very dangerous position.

Firstly, many of them are very likely to have been "sucked in" by the JW spiel and will think that the organisation can do no wrong. They may think that individual JWs can do no wrong (or they wouldn't be in the congregation, right? they'd have been DF'd under the superb arrangement of keeping the congregation clean). They've been cushioned from seeing the dirt of the congregation (so far).

These people who are having bible studies with the JWs have children. They sometimes let JWs study with their children alone. If one of these witnesses abuses their child, where do they turn? The congregation believes a baptised JW over a 'bible study' or a 'worldly' child who reports something. Plus, would the parent believe the child if the parent was newly indoctrinated?

I think that we need to find a way to warn new recruits. They are in a VERY emotionally vulnerable position. Very often, people turn to JWs when they're at the end of their tether, and how tragic it would be if they were to have their children abused while they're in this spriritual "paradise" of the newly brainwashed.

Are there any records kept of bible studies being conducted? They need to be informed. Personally, I would love to put together a newsletter purely for distribution to bible studies.

Sirona

P.S. I'm not minimising other methods that have been used to warn people e.g. websites. I just think that one-to-one warning may be needed. Is there any way this could be done?

** http://www.religioustolerance.org **

42

From JW to Pagan

by Sirona in

jw
friends

i've noticed that quite a few people on this board have said that they are now pagan.

i'm starting to wonder if converting to paganism is something that many ex-jws do?

being a pagan myself, i am actually surprised at how i could choose the religion that jws probably hate the most.

Sirona

OK so I will rephrase to say "In the reality that none of us can truly know or understand due to our perceptive filters, you say spells don't work, I say they do"

Sirona

19

Silentlambs response to WT Media

by silentlambs in

distribute freely.... silentlambs response to inquires about watchtower misinformation.

mr. brown-child abuse is an evil.

its an evil of our time; its an evil in our society.

Sirona

Again, we see watchtower hypocrisy.

Petty Wrangling??

So the watchtower are not "petty" when they put in force their "directions" to the congregations? How long is your skirt? Do you cut your hair short enough? Beware of Yoga as excersize! Etc Etc Etc....it goes on forever.

Its not "petty" when they print articles on EVERY conceivable subject in order to show how 'pure' they are?

When someone responds to a major issue - something that affects childrens lives, oh well now they're petty!

Sirona

** http://www.religioustolerance.org **

42

From JW to Pagan

by Sirona in

jw
friends

i've noticed that quite a few people on this board have said that they are now pagan.

i'm starting to wonder if converting to paganism is something that many ex-jws do?

being a pagan myself, i am actually surprised at how i could choose the religion that jws probably hate the most.

Sirona

Comf,

First of all, I appreciate your input and value your opinion. I often use the word "argue" inappropriately, since a lively discussion gets defined as "argument" in my world.

As far as the "reality" argument, we are never going to agree. You say that none of us can know reality because of our perceptive filters - THAT we do agree on. Then, you say that there is a reality which prevents spells from 'working':

Likewise for praying, and for spells or rituals intended to produce a change in something outside ourselves. They don't work. That's the reality.

To me, that is a contradiction. We don't know what reality really is, but the reality that we don't understand stops spells from working. (?)

On the websites:

Of course it's representative of pagans. Who says you're the one who gets to define pagan?

Fair enough, you make a good point here. It is representative of SOME pagans. Remember that its only SOME and that the beliefs of pagans vary widely. You use these websites as some sort of evidence and generalise to say that it represents the pagan community as a whole. That is wrong.

Plus, you keep on confusing Wicca with pagans:

You seem to be confusing pagans with people who make money from trying to sell "spells" to people.
I've done enough research on wicca to know that a great deal of it has to do with ritual and spell-casting

WICCA does have a lot to do with ritual and spellcasting. (Although some wiccans never spellcast). PAGANISM is often not about spells at all and some pagans don't use ritual in the same way either.

Now onto the "does magick work?" question. Remember the context of my comments about it. You asserted that ritual /spells were

Belief in unseen forces that you can control by standing a certain way at a certain time and chanting certain words while holding certain objects.

I replied to say that if YOU try to do the above (stand a certain way, etc.) then you will get no results. Why? because spellwork is not about how you stand, or what you chant, or what you hold in your hands. You were reducing a religious practice to a mere 'act'.
I believe that we can affect our reality - just like the website you quoted said.

Of course, I could be wrong. You could be wrong. I'm glad that in this day and age we have such freedom of speech and such diversity that we can have this sort of discussion.

Sirona

** http://www.religioustolerance.org **

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