Posts by trevor

26

Cynical Post By Hillary-Step ...

by snowbird in

snowbird,.

what have you against cuddles, hs?.

in real life?

trevor

It seems that Hillary_Step is simply pointing out that a discussion board like this one, has its place but it is not real life.

I think it is entertaining and at times helpful to people leaving the JW set up. But it is a mistake to take it too seriously and become emotional involved at a deeper level.

Deep emotion should be reserved for life and real live friends that we can hug and look at. People come here to let off steam or enjoy the 'self directed emotional masturbation' that HS referred too.

There is at times genuine emotion , usually shown by the less seasoned punters. The old timers just like a good scrap and a chance to show off - myself included.

Those that spend huge amounts of time here and see it as a substitute for real life interaction are setting themselves up for depression.

trevor

69

Why does an atheist have to disprove anything?

by digderidoo in

jw
friends

i have noticed alot of debate in posts lately between an atheist argument and a christian one.

it seems to me that the atheist is asked to disprove god's existence.

some times these debates have started to get personal with one side attacking the other with insults and i do not want to start another argument like these.. but i dont get it?

trevor

I don't think atheists have to disprove God (or prove God doesn't exist) but it doesn't really matter. Some people want to believe, some don't.

Unfortunately it does matter.

Many peoples lives are ruined by people's obsession with the God of their choice.

We all have to share this planet and suffer the consequences of other peoples actions. The lengths believers go to in an attempt to appease their bloodthirsty Gods, affects non- believers despite their abstinence from such insanity.

Trevor

168

Athiest or Agnostic?

by real one in

jw
friends

how can one be considered an athiest?

athiest means you believe god does not exist.

agnostic means you don't know if god really exist.

trevor

Deputy Dog:

wrath of God is revealed from Heaven

How can mature people have a relationship with an immature petulant thug who is driven by wrath rather than love?

69

Why does an atheist have to disprove anything?

by digderidoo in

jw
friends

i have noticed alot of debate in posts lately between an atheist argument and a christian one.

it seems to me that the atheist is asked to disprove god's existence.

some times these debates have started to get personal with one side attacking the other with insults and i do not want to start another argument like these.. but i dont get it?

trevor

I guess Atheists feel the need to speak out against the crazy and damaging antics of those who are driven by belief in a God.

Both Tony Blair and George Bush claim they entered into war with Iraq because God told them to! They were indoctrinated from birth to believe in the fantasy of a God they could speak to. They are just two of the many religious crusader who have blighted humanity in God’s name.

Religion is not harmless and is at present, arguably the greatest threat to western civilisation and culture.

Once people realise that we are in charge of humanity and neither Allah, Christ, Jehovah or the queen of fairies is guiding the human race, we can start to take a more responsible approach to government and relationships between nations.

Until parents and schools stop damaging children’s minds with the unproven theory of a guiding and controlling God, those of us who are unconvinced will continue to speak out and protest.

Trevor

168

Athiest or Agnostic?

by real one in

jw
friends

how can one be considered an athiest?

athiest means you believe god does not exist.

agnostic means you don't know if god really exist.

trevor

real one you instruct me:

Oh, I see you are not God so stop trying to establish his love.

How am I to love God with my whole heart mind and soul if I cannot evidence or establish his love in myself or his creation?

More importantly why do the scriptures make my returning God's love a condition of salvation, if I am too simple to understand what God's love is?

Trevor

168

Athiest or Agnostic?

by real one in

jw
friends

how can one be considered an athiest?

athiest means you believe god does not exist.

agnostic means you don't know if god really exist.

trevor

According to the Bible, God created spirit creatures in his own image long before he created man. Even some of these creatures failed, in time, to meet the requirements of God.
Why would a God of love create a planet of base material creatures that survive by ripping each other to pieces and then place a man and woman among them? Then give them rules that he would have fore-known were impossible to keep?
This is not an act of love. God then allegedly felt regret that he had created man and presumably woman.
How could he then claim to love his failed, corrupted attempt at producing material creatures that shared his attributes, and at the same time sentence them to death?
Deputy Dog fails to answer Hillary Steps question but instead asks:

"Have you ever loved?"
"Have you ever been loved?"
"Have you ever seen someone love someone else?"

This is an attempt to show that Gods attribute of love is expressed throughout creation and in man. Unfortunately if God is responsible for creating man then he has failed to demonstrate love in his dealings with man.
Man has failed to show perfect love which would have to include obedience to God.
There is no evidence of perfect love at work in Gods failed creation.
Men and women attach emotion to those that they value and protect them. This is more than God has proved himself capable of doing. It would seem logical to conclude that there is no controlling God who equates punishment with love.
Perhaps mankind is the pinnacle of morality in the universe and love exists to the degree that we demonstrate it.
Trevor

384

A STUNNINGLY simple question about JOHN 3:16 "For God so Loved the world."

by Terry in

on what basis did god so love the world?.

the world of mankind had been condemned to death by god's curse in eden!.

god viewed mankind as "dust on the scales".

trevor

This has been is long and interesting debate but at the same time tedious. I am amazed at the way such obviously intelligent minds can spend so much energy and thought on a fictional scenario.

Then again I sense a clash of egos that feel a need to demonstrate their sense of self and grow bigger through triumphing over each other.

Some can’t resist taking the bait and others love to dangle the bait.

It is all great entertainment and I would love to offer more than my original few comments at the beginning of this thread but my ego is at rest. Without an active and hungry ego the whole attempt at justifying or trashing the Biblical story of Adam & Eve, balanced against Jesus and his controlling God, becomes amusing.

Trevor

20

Do you hum?

by Layla33 in

jw
friends

i do and sometimes i do it when i am happy, when i have had a good meal, when a friend is on the phone and they went to do something - it's my musical interlude.

i think some people hum without noticing it.

i also used to hum to my brother, it was our way of communiting when we were young and a game we played where we would hum a tune and then each of us would try to give a verse.

trevor

RebelWife

No - I sing. The song usually expresses what I am feeling at the time, as does the tune you hum.

I once worked with a guy who offered to pay me a daily bounus if I could go all day without singing.

6

2008, & we are still here? No wonder JW's are depressed/tired!

by WingCommander in

jw
friends

greetings all...... i've been reading intently nearly every day on here.

it's like some sick addiction.

anyway, i'm constantly amazed when others on here relate stories of their relatives or ones in their congregations that are tired, depressed, sick, disgruntled, etc.

trevor

WingCommander

That was a sad but interesting post. Living in anticipation of such a frightening event as the Witnesses vision of Armageddon and longing for a better world - just around the corner - is a recipe for mental strain and frustration.

Coupled with this is the totally negative view a Witness develops towards the present world, believing it to be a giant failure, too bad to be evolved into a better world. Rather the people of the world are beyond hope and the best thing that can be done with them is to destroy them and start over again!

We were encouraged to look forward to the “End of this wicked system.” We wanted to be in the promised new world and as time passed waiting became more difficult.

A proverb in the Witnesses own Bible explains:

“Expectation postponed is making the heart sick, but the thing that is desired is the tree of life.” Proverbs 13:12 – NWT

trevor

60

DID GOD CREATE THE BEST OF ALL POSSIBLE WORLDS???

by Terry in

is this the best of all possible worlds?.

had god created a world in which he invested humans with adherence to inner, god designed morality guidance--wouldn't an obedient (and far better off human race) world not have been "better" than the one we are in?.

free will is only the freedom to screw up.. think about this.. everything man designs is designed to function properly.

trevor

Did God create the best of all possible worlds?

Let’s for the sake of argument, suspend common sense and accept the Bible idea that an all knowing, perfect God carefully created the world and everything in it and then declared that ‘it was good.’ He would have known in advance that the world he was creating would be a living thing, subject to change and development.

According to the Bible, he felt regret that he had created man. God’s world did not work out the way he planned. To any rational mind this constitutes failure. As he engineered the world into being, any fault in any part of it rests on his invisible shoulders.

Man can not be blamed for this because he was just a part of creation, he did not choose to be created or choose whether he had free will. These were the deliberate choices of the creator. If man was not supposed to use his free will then it is not free will but a built in flaw.

This was God’s world and he alone was responsible the world he created. He must take the credit or the blame for a successful project or a failed project.

IF ON THE OTHER HAND God created a world just to see how it would all work out, then we would have no problem. Like any experiment, any outcome would do.

But the Bible tells us that God had a preconceived plan with a predicted outcome. His plan failed to work out. He could have just said oops! Then worked with what was left to improve his world. That is what all responsible adults do.

Instead God placed the total blame on man and punished him. Not just a spank but a death sentence.

Did God create the best of all possible worlds? Logic dictates that God created the worst of all possible worlds but was too egotistical to admit that he was to blame.