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Posts by jp1692
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15
Annual meeting - live
by Gorbatchov inopening prayer and welcome br ciranco .
babylon the great has fallen - how?
br robert wallen.
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jp1692
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37
Annual meeting topic
by asp59 inhow many think they will announce in the annual meeting they just gonna have one meeting a week?
if they dont it will be astonishing, amazing and other things..
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jp1692
The 2018 Annual Meeting of the WTBTS: Taking ho-hum to a new level of boring.
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48
Healing & Rebuilding Your Life - Feedback Wanted
by jp1692 ini have been invited to speak at an international cultic studies association workshop this fall.
i could use your help in focusing on my presentation subject.. these workshops are for former members of any cult or other high-control, authoritarian group, not just jehovah's witnesses.
last year, i spoke at one of their larger conferences in europe.
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jp1692
Hi all,
Just a quick update. The workshop is on for next weekend. I'm looking forward to being able to share my experiences as well as the wisdom and experiences of all of you that have given me much appreciated feedback and suggestions.
I'm told we are to have a smallish group of about 20 in attendance. They will be former members of a wide variety of different cults, not just JWs.
I'll return afterward to let you all know how it went.
Thanks again for your support!
jp
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12
Letter to elders: Say what brothers?
by pixel into all bodies of elders .
re: audio at sign-language meetings .
dear brothers: .
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jp1692
"Deaf publishers usually have no complaints about the audio playing in conjunction with a video that is signed."
Really? That's not what I heard!
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25
My Mom's Challenge to Me
by lriddle80 inso my jw mom messages me on facebook last night and says she wants me, for a month, to read the bible, but first pray using the name jehovah and in jesus name and then read it with an open mind.
she is so ridiculous!
first of all, i do pray but i usually just say father and i always pray in jesus name and i find it ironic that she is saying i should have an open mind when hers is closed.
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jp1692
Why don't you say, "Sure mom, I'll do that ... but only if for the same month you don't go to any meetings at the KH and don't read any WT literature at all. None. Just pray to God and keep an open mind."
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5
You Bet Your Life
by DNCall init is said that life is a gamble.
when you join a religion, you are wagering some portion of your life.
you may choose not to risk too much.
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jp1692
This sounds like a refutation of Pascal's wager -- or some version of it. However he pondered the pros and cons of mere belief in God, which is clearly NOT the same as membership in and obedience to some man-made religion with the corresponding obligation to observe all of it's rules and rituals.
And I doubt he would have ever endorsed membership in a high-control, authoritarian cult as ante worth placing on the gaming table of life. That would definitely be a huge mis-stake (pun intended).
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28
What are they trying to hide
by UnshackleTheChains inok. we are all aware of the scandal around the non reporting of child abuse cases to the authorities by the elders and how it was part of watchtower policy.. this has probably been discussed before, which i apologize for now if it has.. the obvious view that most of us make as to why the gb are so reluctant to comply with the authorities by revealing their database around child abuse allegations, is that the leadership at watchtower hq likely were trying to safeguard the reputation of the organisation.. however, (just a theory) are they hiding something more sinister which could in effect devastate the organisation ie could it be they are hiding some things within the gb itself, whether it be some individuals within the gb of the past or even present who might have had some serious allegations made against them which the authorities are never going to know about?
i mean why the hell are they going to such lengths to hide everything???.
any thoughts?
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jp1692
Don’t overthink it.
It’s the same reason for every organization that covers up corruption and illegal activity: they want to avoid accountability and taking responsibility.
So they lie to avoid the consequences
It’s. Just. That. Simple.
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9
Critical thinking
by Freedom rocks inwhat kind of questions would you use to get a child'scritical thinking skills going from a young age with regards to the bible/god/jesus/anything to do with the religion??.
my most hated answer jws gave to people when they said you can't see god so how do you know he exists was "well you can't see electricity or gravity but you know they exist".
sorry but that doesn't prove god exists.
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jp1692
It's true we can't see gravity but we most certainly can see evidence of it.
Thinking scientifically is a great way to encourage critical thinking. But it's even easier and more simple than that: encourage questions. Patiently explore them. Encourage your child's natural curiosity about things.
Share your own thought processes as well.
Here are a couple of recent threads on the topic you might appreciate as well:
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43
What immodest clothing have you got in trouble for wearing?
by Addison0998 ini personally have a very distinct sense of style and fashion which many of the fellow jdubs frown upon.
recently, i was told by a few specially self righteous ones that i looked like a prostitute in a pair of white boots!
a pair of 3 inch heeled, just a little taller than the ankle boots, with skirt that came down to my knees and a black long sleeve shirt that came up to my collarbone.
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jp1692
Nothing!
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40
JWs and 9-11. What was your reaction when it happened?
by kairos init was shocking.. all these years later, i found myself crying for the dead for the first time..
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jp1692
I remember that morning quite clearly.
A fellow JW and one of my best friends at the time called me and told me to turn on the television. I was -- as were many -- shocked by what I saw. It was beyond belief.
My wife (also a JW) as did virtually every JW I knew immediately said, "This could be the beginning of Armageddon!"
She was clearly more frightened than excited about that idea -- an idea which turned out to be very wrong, as has been every proclamation that "the end is nigh" both before and ever since.
In the 17 years that have passed since the tragedy of the Twin Towers I've seen many JWs die still clinging to the false beliefs of the WTBTS. I've also seen many stay in the religion desperately hoping that it is all somehow still true in spite of all the evidence to the contrary.
But I've also seen many former believers wake-up to the reality that the "theology" and beliefs of the JW religion and the WTBTS are false and unworthy of belief. These people have left the religion and begun living their lives, reclaiming whatever time remains to live a true, authentic life of meaning.
In retrospect, September 11th, 2001 was a tragic event on many levels. And yet for many of us it was a wake-up call to quit putting our faith in myths, lies and wishful thinking and put or faith in that what is real.
This is what I choose to commemorate on this day.