Posts by Tallyman

things he said suddenly started clicking: it was about what's inside us, not the ghost in the machine.
Lewis was liberating. Thanks for bringing him up on this sometimes parched board.
Edit PS: That led me to Madeleine L'Engle .....

Max,
couldn't a said it better meself.
Lewis was liberating for me. Just sprung from the Kult and badly burned by the spiritual Kounterfeit it is, and then discovered Lewis.
He was liberating at a time liberty was (and still is) very important to me.

Some may have a big problem with Lewis's concept of the Dissolution of Self as being liberating (and I'm not sure that was what you were referring to...), and as being what it truly takes to be an individual creation of God... and Individualism is something I have always prized.
I think Lewis's take on that is beautiful.

A musician friend a while back recommended Madeleine L'Engle, and having a background in graphic art, I purchased her "Walking On Water - Reflections on Faith and Art" and several chapters in, find her observations fantastic. This woman is a sage. She's what - in her 80s? Is she still living?

"Mere Christianity" is another of C.S. Lewis works which really builds up faith in God and it's reasoning is stunning.
And all this nourishment outside of the only organisation providing "spiritual food" !

Pubsinger,

You know, I'd almost recommend the "Screwtape Letters to an exiting Dub, as that one, goes into the trickery and deception of the Con Man (from any realm) being able to snooker the gullible.

And come to think of it, I don't remember the WTS ever quoting C.S.Lewis like they did certain other Christian writers. Maybe the KultLeaders did not approve of Lewis's tobacco habit. (He smoked like a train!)

It's still an good book,[Mere Christianity] and one I couldn't put down- at times in frustration, at times in great interest.

terraly,

Yep.
Lewis can be a hard read. Challenging. But well worth the effort, methinks.
Like Maximus, I've read some of his works twice, and the second time
around, derive something that blows me away - that I completely missed
the first time.

Recently, I re-read "The Problem of Pain
(because I've been in a lot of pain lately) and caught something
which escaped me the first time reading it.

I identify with it so much, and I trace back this "something"
Lewis alludes to, to my earliest childhood memories...

I'll call it "The Signature of the Soul"
Here, I made a webpage for the excerpt:

* http://intrex.net/tallyman/soulsign.html

Thanks for bringing up a positive, encouraging thread, Tallyman.

Rational,

You're Velcome and We Konkur!
BTW, since you used Lewis's work when you were Dubbing,
did you ever recall seeing the WTS use a quote from Lewis in their lit?

Guess I'm alone in hating the Narnia books. I thought they were sexist, smug, suffocatingly preachy.

MumsyD,

The Narnia books are (about) the (only) ones by Lewis I haven't explored
in any depth... since I'm not a Kid, only a big Kidder!
So, I can't say what they'd appear like through the eyes of a child.
(especially a 21st Century child)
But, "sexist"?
That seems so out of character with the rest of what I've read by Lewis.
And the movie "Shadowlands", which several in this thread have mentioned
with Anthony Hopkins and Debra Winger, as C.S.Lewis and Joy Gresham
(Joy, a radical divorcee from NYCity, Jewish born but a Christian convert)
did not have a trace of sexism displayed by Lewis's character.
In the Movie, Hopkins absolutely delights when Joy comes to visit him
in England and cuts down his sexist friends from the "Brit Boy Club"
with her very unique, razor-sharp sarcasm.
In the end of the movie, Lewis says to her on her deathbed:
"You are the truest person I have ever known"...
and you can tell he means it, and you get the impression that he is
more referring to her outspokenness, than anything else.

And Lewis "smug"? This is TOTALLY out of character with all else I've read.
I love the guy so much because he is exactly the opposite of smug.
He puts in more "disclaimers" in his writings that any other I've ever read.
The link I post above to terraly has this in the excerpt:

"What I am now going to say is merely an opinion of my own without
the slightest authority, which I submit to the judgement of better
Christians and better scholars than myself.

His stuff is chockful of that kind of self-effacing comment.

She is very depressed, as she is having a hard time with her restaurant right now and could really use the emotional support of my parents.
Un fortunately, they are in the middle of their summertime spiritual paradise (co stayed with them for two weeks and their distric convention starts tomorrow.) Therefore, they are treating her as if she were literally dead.
Thanks again, am sending warm thoughts your way and hoping you are doing well.

Lisa,
Thanks for the well-wishes. I can use them.
Hope your sis pulls out of the tailspin she's in.
What kind of restaurant does she have?
Did the Circuit Overseer eat there?
Did she spit in his food?
(I might have been tempted... )

They ought to rename them "Gastric Conventions"
sure seems like they generate a lot of heartburn...

"Shadowlands" ... the true story of "Lewis"?
If so............see it.......a bit of a weepy though.

Ana,

Yer right. That scene in the end with Lewis and his stepson,
both losing their Wife and Mom... and gots no one but each other,
well, that's a tearjerker alritey.

Oh yes, I forgot about Out of the Silent Planet. I read the next one (Perelandra?) but it was a bit scary at the time...

Simon,
yeah, but I thought the third, "That Hideous Strength" was even spookier,
especially, when Merlin stepped out from behind "The Veil" back into
this world and spoke some heavy stuff.
(Hey, anyone who liked the recent TV Miniseries "Mists of Avalon"
would relate to Lewis last book in his sci-fi trilogy, as there is
a generous dose of the mixture of the Old with the New (Celtic Christianity))

I too am a big CS Lewis fan! It is really cool to see others have found him on the way out of JW-dom! I have come to love many of his books.

lisaBObeesa,

Yep.
I'm glad I found Lewis when I found the Way Out of the WT.
I've considered my 20 years of "lost time" in Kulthoodish Servitude
as not unlike that of the wanderings of the prodigal son.

With the help of Lewis and others, I've found my way home.

I am relatively new to the writings of C.S. Lewis.
He has some very good information on the
Bible as myth and what that means.

Quester,

I have to agree with Lewis that mythology, legend and lore
is often rooted in something factual, and should not be summarily dismissed
as of no value as "history".

What size sweatshirt do you wear? I want to start creating a tie-dye for you ......thanks hun,Luv ya!

Tina,

wOw! Tanks!
I wear between a Large and Xtra Large.
What I usually do with Tshirts, is buy a 100% cotton Xtra Large,
and then wash and dry it, and it shrinks down to the right size...
I don't know how that translates to sweatshirts

TT

17

C.S.Lewis makes a "comeback"...

by Tallyman in

jw
friends

for those who chowed down for years on the watchtower's "spiritual food" (who was that talking about schit on a schingle in an earlier post?

) and thought you were getting christianity, and have now left the table of jehovah-of-the-watchtower... .

and purged what you consumed.... and still haven't given up on christianity - (hey, jesus did warn of counterfeits).

Tallyman

I loved the Narnia books and re-read them many times.

Simon,
when I wigged out of the WT, I initially discovered Lewis through the first of his science fiction trilogy - Out of the Silent Planet
and that one will always be special to me.

S'funny but at the time I never twigged that it was actually the bible story re-written...

Clever how Lewis snuck that in, eh?

TT

17

C.S.Lewis makes a "comeback"...

by Tallyman in

jw
friends

for those who chowed down for years on the watchtower's "spiritual food" (who was that talking about schit on a schingle in an earlier post?

) and thought you were getting christianity, and have now left the table of jehovah-of-the-watchtower... .

and purged what you consumed.... and still haven't given up on christianity - (hey, jesus did warn of counterfeits).

Tallyman

Tally, do you have a website?

Lisa,
I have some quick Patches of Schtuff I Schtitched together:
* http://www.intrex.net/tallyman/Schtuff.html
Does your sister have a copy of 'Crisis of Conscience' to read?
Ray has a calming effect on those just making their exit...

I see you caught a Case of the Egyptian Flu, too.

Kongrats!

TT

17

C.S.Lewis makes a "comeback"...

by Tallyman in

jw
friends

for those who chowed down for years on the watchtower's "spiritual food" (who was that talking about schit on a schingle in an earlier post?

) and thought you were getting christianity, and have now left the table of jehovah-of-the-watchtower... .

and purged what you consumed.... and still haven't given up on christianity - (hey, jesus did warn of counterfeits).

Tallyman

For those who Chowed Down for years on the Watchtower's "spiritual food" (who was that talking about Schit on a Schingle in an earlier post?) and thought you were getting Christianity, and have now left the Table of jehovah-Of-The-Watchtower...
and purged what you consumed...
and still haven't given up on Christianity - (hey, Jesus did warn of Counterfeits)
and maybe would like to approach it afresh, why not check out the writings of C.S.Lewis?
He's one of my favorites.
And as this recent article from The Boston Globe informed, Lewis's body of work is making a "comeback"... even though it never went away.

(what appears below, only more legible, here: * http://www.intrex.net/tallyman/cslewis.html)

-----------------------------------------------------

By MICHAEL PAULSON
THE BOSTON GLOBE

The stories of C.S. Lewis are familiar to millions of children:
a fantastical, hidden world ruled by an evil witch, loved by a great lion.
Less familiar to the 65 million purchasers of Lewis's "Chronicles of Narnia" is the fact that the stories are Christian allegories, penned by the Oxford don after J.R.R. Tolkien helped convert him to Christianity. [Lewis once subscribed to atheism]

To many, Lewis (1898-1963), was one of the great Christian apologists of the 20th century. Now the publishing industry is betting a larger audience is waiting to discover his works.
After a multimillion-dollar deal between HarperCollins Publishers and the Lewis estate, the publishing house is re-issuing all of Lewis' major works ...

The texts had hardly vanished. "The Screwtape Letters," a 1942 work of satire in which a devil instructs an apprentice, already sells 150,000 copies a year, while "Mere Christianity," which was developed as a series of radio talks on faith, sells 230,000 copies annually. And Lewis's marriage to his wife, Joy, was chronicled in the 1993 movie "Shadowlands," starring Anthony Hopkins and Debra Winger.

"Few resources are more often used than the writings of C.S. Lewis,"
said the [chaplain of Harvard College] who recommends the works to students ...
"If they come from some sort of church background but are wrestling with their own Christianity, then I point them to "Mere Christianity". If the questions point more in the direction of a moment of self-doubt or low self-esteem, I suggest "Til We Have Faces".
If they've sustained the loss of a parent or close friend, I suggest "A Grief Observed".

But HarperCo, to create a broader audience for an author dead for 40 years, is also trying to create buzz by reintroducing Lewis to authors and academics. "After the last 10 years, religion publishing has grown by leaps and bounds, and C.S. Lewis's books have sold several hundred thousand copies a year before we took over," said Mary Ellen Curley, marketing director for HarperCollins.
"We're looking to broaden him to anyone who is interested not only in Christianity, but in a broader sense of spirituality - the seekers out there."

Recently at Harvard, a poet a psychiatrist, and a philosopher took turns praising Lewis' work, comparing him to everyone from St. Augustine to Sigmund Freud.
Poet Kathleen Norris, author of "The Cloister Walk" said she was particularly struck by Lewis's language, his choice of words that reach out to readers as ff they were listeners.
"He is valuable to show the strength of the imagination," she said.
"He writes very personally, but there is not a trace of narcissism, and that is incredibly valuable."
The psychiatrist Armand Nicholi, and the philosopher, Boston College professor Peter Kreeft, both said that they rejected Lewis at first because they thought his work too simple, but later came to rely on him for the logical clarity of his faith.
"Lewis's appeal today continues ... [because] he has real insight into human nature and the human condition," Nicholi said. He added that Lewis had a profound understanding
of human experiences, such as grief. Lewis' wife was diagnosed with cancer the year the pair got married and died four years later.

And Kreeft argued that Lewis "is enormously relevant to young people today, because he doesn't strive to be relevant today. He isn't interested in fashions."

July 2001

* http://www.cslewis.org/

.

44

Monomaniacal Ex-JWs?

by dunsscot in

jw
friends

its been a while since i read stephen r. covey's _the 7 habits of highly effective people_ and i do not feel like looking up the section i am getting ready to mention.

but i think i recall covey talking about the unhealthy habit of becoming overly engrossed in one activity or pursuit.. it seems that there are individuals using this medium of communication whose life's aim is to "help" jws out of the "borg" or 'bring down the tower.

if it tricks your trigger, i guess there is nothing anyone can do to prevent you from "helping" jws out of the "borg.

Tallyman

Dung Scot,

Has anyone told you that you smell bad?
I mean your words.
When I read them, they dredge memories of my former
Worshipful Watchtower life and call it olfactory hallucinations,
but my nostrils fill with a Rotten Odor

We do not interfere in anyone's religious life.

Interference, Meddling, Intrusion is your Stock'n Trade as a jW.

In imitation of our Lord and Master (Jesus Christ), we offer life's water free. If anyone does not wish us salaam,

Why would you want anyone to wish you a Salami?
Because you're a Meathead?

however, when we share in the door to door work--

Sheer. Not "share". You have Nothing but Sheer.

And you try to find the sheople and in order to shear them sheer.

we shake the dust off of our feet and go to the next door

Dung, not "dust", Dung Scot, and by doing so, you keep stinking up the neighborhoods.

Don't you realize yet, that the Vast Majority of Reasonably Intelligent people have no interest in the Watchtower's New Odor?

Obviously not, Dung Scot.

.

8

Crop Circles ? (check out link and comment please)

by Big Jim in

jw
friends

http://www.mufor.org/crops.htm .

i heard about this first on tv then began researching it.

pretty weird stuff check out the link and give your input.. thanks.

Tallyman

I think some of the best research being done in this -field-
is by Linda Moulton Howe

(William Cooper is the Very LAST person I'd go to for intell)

Here is her site - click "The Real X-Files"

* http://www.earthfiles.com/

To quote Mr.T (no relation):

"I pity the fool who think Doug and Dave made all the crop circles!"

If it is Pranksters who are responsible for this worldwide phenomenon, then they are not like Ken Kesey's Merry Pranksters.
Admittedly, the designs of the Agriglyphs are pretty trippy,
but they are done with Extreme Precision.
And it is so cool how they can lay the stalks down without bruising or crushing them, and then even cooler, is how they can weave the stalks together, kinda like a brother getting some new cornrows...
and not just flexible stalks like wheat or barley,
but crispy, brittle stalks like young rape.

There is an Intelligence at work behind this mystery,
but I don't think it is earthbound.

.

36

What do you think of Seeker (good or bad)?

by Seeker in

jw
friends

reading farkel's thoughts about being called names, and remembering my own discouragement about the same thing, and thinking about all the posts recently decrying the fighting and bad language, i'm curious to know how my "seeker" persona is perceived here.

i know i have fought with some, made friends with others, so how i am perceived will be varied.

i want to know it all, the good, the bad, the ugly.

Tallyman

Scheeker,

I am willing to still put up with you.

Howzat?

(I've enjoyed our stimulating arguments and robust debate over the years)

.

56

DATELINE-"Soon!AnyDayNow!JustAroundTheCorn...

by Tallyman in

jw
friends

dateline-"soon!anydaynow!justaroundthecorner!".

just read bendrr's post.. been out of the loop for awhile.. what's the deal with this so-called piece/expose on jw-pedophilia.

that nbc's "dateline" is supposed to be airing?.

Tallyman

MA,

I have two questions for you:
(I want you to feel included and welcome here...)

I've lurked around here and H2O sufficient enough to know that the vast majority of lurkers and occasional posters can't stand you

(1.) How does a Lurker poll other Lurkers to come up with a majority opinion?

I know you are the asshole jerk that jumped in and took Tina's side the other day [...] EVERYONE knows that you are the KING OF JERKS, [...] you and your suckups can sit around and massage each others egos and other body parts [...] "Some" XJWs ARE spawns of Satan, and your group are such [...] and leave these satanists to their own demise! [...] Your kind show yourself. There's NOTHING Chrstian about you [...] deep down you and your freakish friends are loathed and despised by those who retained their morals when they left the Borg.

(2.)Which one of the 'Fruits of the Spirit' were you showing us in your comments above?

.