I must be somewhat shizophrenic, I guess... Am gay, former elder, shunned by family, left the organization due to teachings/organizational flaws, yet at times defend the witnesses but not the organization... I make a distinctin of JWs and the Watchtower. I guess three decades of witness-life cannot be erased, and that is not desirable either. Have learnt many good qualities: being able to stand up for what you are even though the majority don t endorse it. However, it is much easier to be a gay man, than a JW man. You´re much more integrated culturally eventhough you at times feel being in a marginal group.
InquiryMan
JoinedPosts by InquiryMan
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43
Gay/Lesbian Symbols
by Crumpet inthe whole rainbow thread piqued my curiosity.
i have often wondered how you know without speaking to someone if they are gay and you are not in a known gay place - like um brighton or the candy bar in london.. does anyone know of any other gay and lesbian symbols or signs?.
someone told me once that a ring on your pinkie was a sign - can anyone verify the truth of this?.
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Norway
by InquiryMan inin norway, the ombudsman of children s welfare intervened and a lot of fuss were made when it was made clear that jws endorsed corporal punishment in their publications even though it was banned by law.
it was even mentioned in the national news.
the coordinator was even interviewed on tv and the day after it was proven from the wt indexes that he had been lying.... i remember it was very embarrassing.
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InquiryMan
Still it cannot be denied that it has been / and is endorsed by the Watchtower society, varying on the cultural/social attitudes in their local communities.
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Norway
by InquiryMan inin norway, the ombudsman of children s welfare intervened and a lot of fuss were made when it was made clear that jws endorsed corporal punishment in their publications even though it was banned by law.
it was even mentioned in the national news.
the coordinator was even interviewed on tv and the day after it was proven from the wt indexes that he had been lying.... i remember it was very embarrassing.
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InquiryMan
And Liv Ullmann is Norwegian. And Norm, thanks for providing the details from the inside... I remember the whole matter quite vividly, although I was a loyal witness back then. I remember thinking when thor was on TV. He is just like "Kim Il Sung".... Why didn´t they send Hans Jacob Lilletvedt instead, handsome and eloquent....
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Norway
by InquiryMan inin norway, the ombudsman of children s welfare intervened and a lot of fuss were made when it was made clear that jws endorsed corporal punishment in their publications even though it was banned by law.
it was even mentioned in the national news.
the coordinator was even interviewed on tv and the day after it was proven from the wt indexes that he had been lying.... i remember it was very embarrassing.
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InquiryMan
In my congregation it was explicitly said from the platform that no spanking was to take place in the KH.
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InquiryMan
I did
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Norway
by InquiryMan inin norway, the ombudsman of children s welfare intervened and a lot of fuss were made when it was made clear that jws endorsed corporal punishment in their publications even though it was banned by law.
it was even mentioned in the national news.
the coordinator was even interviewed on tv and the day after it was proven from the wt indexes that he had been lying.... i remember it was very embarrassing.
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InquiryMan
In Norway, the ombudsman of children´s welfare intervened and a lot of fuss were made when it was made clear that JWs endorsed corporal punishment in their publications even though it was banned by law. It was even mentioned in the national news. The coordinator was even interviewed on TV and the day after it was proven from the WT indexes that he had been lying.... I remember it was very embarrassing. In order to adress the situation, small labels had to be inserted into the literature with alternative wording. I remeber we were called to the KH in order to perform this manual task. A neutral word like discpline (or tukt, in German: Zucht) was used instead of referring to spanking or literal punishment. When the original translated text deviated from the original english text, alternative bible passaged were referred to or and footnote was added stating the according to Norwegian law corporal punishment is not allowed. I also remembered that in public talks even some elders spoke against it, saying corporal punishment was cruel and not according to the bible. JWs also ceased disciplining their children in this way in the KH, although I doubt it was ever so widespread as in the US, cause the public sentiment and culture has been against it. On a personal note, I remember relating this to an American family living on a caribbean island. they were horrified that this was banned in my country, and shook their head in disbelief when we told them that the literature had been changed. They were also schocked to be told that JW got financial support from the state...
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What was the biggest secret that you kept from everyone
by TheCoolerKing inwhat was the biggest "secret" that you kept from everyone when you were a witness?.
i thought would could have some fun with this topic on a friday afternoon.. back when i was an active witness i started "secretly" dating a "worldy" girl.
there was a shortage of single sisters at my hall.
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InquiryMan
that i was gay. (BTW: What kind of films are R-rated in the US?) Never understood this fuzz about r-rated films.... Most witnesses where I live cared more about the content than a classification of a film in itself. And honestly, a lot did not care a lot about violent movies. They were more sensitive as to sex though.
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What was your first impression upon meeting 'worldly' people during exit?
by mavie inso, you are starting to leave the cult.
you begin to meet new people and instead of viewing them all as 'bad association', you begin to view them as fellow humans.
what was your first impression of 'worldly people'?.
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InquiryMan
Most are nice... And no one takes offense.
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why have jws got so many women among thier ranks?
by cyrus inany answers ive got ideas but would love some input from u guys first thanks peeps...?
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InquiryMan
A survey conducted among more than 140,000 German witnesses showed that 38 per cent were male and 62 per cent female. Once I attended a book study in Florence, Italy. All but the conductor were sisters... I´ve heard that in Russia, some 80 per cent are sisters....
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Eurovision Song Contest
by Crumpet ini am sure i am the only one who will be posting on this thread given america doesn't have the contest and no one else is likely to own up to watching such a shameful debacle!!!.
i am only slightly ashamed to say i have only ever missed one contest in 31 years and that was because i was in canada.
i love it - terry wogan is brilliantly funny - and so are most of the acts.. tonight the voting for the british entry begins on bbc1 - given the new enthusiasm for reality/talent shows its getting prime time treatement for the first time in years.
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InquiryMan
Don´t make fun of the Norwegian entry ;-). I love Guri and her "Vene bailar conmigo".... I also read in the newspaper yesterday, the Palestine is trying to be part of the ESC family as well. Lebanon tried last year, but were not allowed to participate (even though they had a song already selected) caused they refused to broadcast the Israel entry. Morocco took part a year when Israel did not participate... So it is a lot of politics involved. But it is great fun indeed.