StarryNight9

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Posts by StarryNight9

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  90

  Is attendance down in your location too?

  by StarryNight9 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i was commenting on another thread about how local kh attendance is down.

  memorial attendance was also way down and the circuit assembly had hundreds less people than what is typical.

  my jw family has even mentioned it.

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  StarryNight9

  @Doubter

  Relax. It's just a personal observation (and what my JW family has noticed/said). I'm curious what other people are seeing with their own eyes. If someone has hard numbers, I'd love to take a look.

  @Coded Logic

  US here too.
  
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  90

  Is attendance down in your location too?

  by StarryNight9 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i was commenting on another thread about how local kh attendance is down.

  memorial attendance was also way down and the circuit assembly had hundreds less people than what is typical.

  my jw family has even mentioned it.

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  StarryNight9

  I was commenting on another thread about how local KH attendance is down. Memorial attendance was also way down and the Circuit Assembly had hundreds less people than what is typical. My JW family has even mentioned it. Is anyone else seeing this where they are?
  
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  50

  Overwhelmed

  by Freedom rocks in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  does anyone else feel overwhelmed on what to believe?.

  i've been doing lots of research on beliefs, evolution, creationism but i feel no further forward about what i truly believe.

  for example i looked at the fossil record and tiktaalic and thought great it proves a lot but then i've seen counter arguments on youtube of people basically saying its a load of rubbish and doesn't prove anything.

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  StarryNight9

  Perry - it's ONE study. It doesn't matter where it's printed. It has to be reproduced by other scientists to validate any results and that still doesn't validate how the data is being interpreted. Please reply to what I actually said - thanks!
  
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  44

  Study Watchtower confirms shunning spiritually weak. How nice!

  by Isambard Crater in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  it really hurt to hear brothers and sisters commenting about this at the meeting yesterday.. "as in solomon’s case, one of the greatest threats to spirituality is friendship with those who do not understand or respect jehovah’s standards.

  some may be associated with the congregation but may be spiritually weak.

  others could be relatives, neighbors, coworkers, or schoolmates who are not worshippers of jehovah.

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  StarryNight9

  I'm guessing at least 50% of us born-ins do the double life thing to the max extent possible. Everyone subtly knows who's in the first category and who the uber-JWs are. The percentage of double-lifers seems to increase with every generation/age (none of that overlapping stuff ) and be more open about it. It's all about being just JW enough to be not shunned. There are virtually no new recruits to halt the relaxation of local JW culture where I am. A family/elder that moved in is still in shock, but doesn't have enough power to make any meaningful changes. In fact... his kids appear to be slowly adjusting to fit right in. The elder JW grandparents are just seen as slightly senile/overboard or they have no desire to see their progeny kicked out. There could also be some nepotism overlooking things over time/generations. I wonder if upper-management is catching on to what's happening. They might be trying to stem that flow (far too late...).
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  12

  Saw homemade "Cart art" and murmurs about cart working yesterday.To old to do cart work?

  by caves in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  yesterday i parked at a rest stop for a bit and there were 2 ladys at a cart.

  the cart sign was hand painted.

  that was odd to me.

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  StarryNight9

  neat blue dog: Some of the new cart art designs are simplistic, blocky renderings of previous artwork, (edited in the computer to look that way) and could be mistaken for crude artwork. Just a guess.
  

  I was wondering if anyone else had noticed paintings were becoming passé. Sometimes old paintings get reused, but comic book style illustrations appear to be "in" right now.
  
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  50

  Overwhelmed

  by Freedom rocks in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  does anyone else feel overwhelmed on what to believe?.

  i've been doing lots of research on beliefs, evolution, creationism but i feel no further forward about what i truly believe.

  for example i looked at the fossil record and tiktaalic and thought great it proves a lot but then i've seen counter arguments on youtube of people basically saying its a load of rubbish and doesn't prove anything.

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  StarryNight9

  Crofty - thanks for the heads-up about Perry. I looked around at his posts and you're right... totally not worth the work of responding.
• 
  50

  Overwhelmed

  by Freedom rocks in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  does anyone else feel overwhelmed on what to believe?.

  i've been doing lots of research on beliefs, evolution, creationism but i feel no further forward about what i truly believe.

  for example i looked at the fossil record and tiktaalic and thought great it proves a lot but then i've seen counter arguments on youtube of people basically saying its a load of rubbish and doesn't prove anything.

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  StarryNight9

  Perry:
  "Here's a recent large sweeping gene survey study that claims 90% of all animals appeared recently at the same time as man. Amazingly, the study also claims that "species have very clear genetic boundaries, and there's nothing much in between." Sounds close to what you’d expect to find based on the Genesis account of origins."
  "If we were created by a being who is capable of starting life as we know it, it is reasonable to assume that he has the power over death as well."

  I'll say it again... evolution has nothing to do with how biologic life came to be... sigh
  

  One genetic study doesn't prove anything (one way or the other). Studies aren't even considered viable until the same results are reproduced by multiple independent scientists. We have a really bad habit of hearing one initial study (which we don't truly understand), drawing an uninformed conclusion, and blasting it at people as "proof" of our convictions. Media gets really click-bait with that stuff - competing for a cool headline. You also can't forget the rest of Genesis because you've found one sentence that sorta lines up with a yet-to-be-tested study. Don't even get me started on Noah's Ark...
  
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  50

  Overwhelmed

  by Freedom rocks in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  does anyone else feel overwhelmed on what to believe?.

  i've been doing lots of research on beliefs, evolution, creationism but i feel no further forward about what i truly believe.

  for example i looked at the fossil record and tiktaalic and thought great it proves a lot but then i've seen counter arguments on youtube of people basically saying its a load of rubbish and doesn't prove anything.

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  StarryNight9

  I like that science doesn't pretend to have all the answers to everything. There are just many answers that have yet to be discovered and tested. Watch out for misinterpretations of science - that's where a lot of the "science is wrong" arguments come from. Someone else mentioned the confusion over evolution (how living things change over time) being the same thing as abiogenesis (how biologic life started). I hear JWs and other religious people make this incorrect assumption all the time - and feeling very smart/smug about their dismissal of evolution. It's the same problem with their chimp/human argument. They claim we couldn't have evolved from chimps (or other current animal) since they're still around. It's yet another misunderstanding - evolution doesn't claim that. It's important to understand what's actually being said before dismissing it. If you like videos, here are a few good ones:
  

  Evolution: https://youtu.be/XdddbYILel0

  Irreducible complexity cut down to size: https://youtu.be/W96AJ0ChboU

  What is Evolution: https://youtu.be/GhHOjC4oxh8

  What is Natural Selection: https://youtu.be/0SCjhI86grU

  Human Evolution: Crash Course Big History #6: https://youtu.be/UPggkvB9_dc

  Evolution on Earth in 60 Seconds: https://youtu.be/OIWde6OpVZU

  The Origin of Life - Abiogenisis - Dr. Zack Szostak: https://youtu.be/U6QYDdgP9eg

  Proof of evolution that you can find on your body: https://youtu.be/rFxu7NEoKC8

  Why Women Are Stripey: https://youtu.be/BD6h-wDj7bw
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  12

  Vegan?

  by coalize in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  "the wolf and the lamb will feed together, the lion will eat straw just like the bull, and the serpent’s food will be dust.

  they will do no harm nor cause any ruin in all my holy mountain, says jehovah.

  " - isaiah 65:25. a muthafuckin vegan paradise?.

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  StarryNight9

  WTWizard " Even with vitamin B12 supplements, there are other nutrients found only in animal products that humans need."

  I'll start off by saying that I'm not vegan or a vegetarian, but I do know that vegans can be perfectly healthy. B12 can be found in many fortified cereals or even nutritional yeast (it tastes sort of like cheese dust). A newly minted vegan has up to 5 years to get a clue about what healthy vegan eating is before their B12 reserves run out. Even omnivores can have vitamin deficiencies if we don't eat a healthy diet. It's just easier for omnivores because we don't have to think about what is basically healthy for us. We learn it as children. I'm sure that someone raised as a vegan would be perfectly aware of the need for B12 in their diet - just like us omnivores know about eating our vegetables.
  
  *however - saying all animals will be vegan is just dumb
  
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  23

  Here's another subtle reverse-witnessing topic:

  by neat blue dog in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the next time a jw brings up a natural disaster or severe weather event as proof of the last days, and they preface it by reciting a fact they heard on the news like, (just for the sake of example) 'it's the worst earthquake in 70 years' or 'the worst plague in 200' years', (you get the picture), then simply reply: "oh, so that means that ____ years ago there was one that was worse, right?".

  i did this twice.

  both times got the same response:.

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  StarryNight9

  Talking with Uber-JWs is always a buzzkill. They revel in major disasters (nature or man-made) as "the end is near". It makes JWs extremely uncomfortable to go 100% Pollyanna with facts to back it up. The whole religion is a doom and gloom theme.
  

  Personal disasters are just opportunities for a conversion. It's absolutely disgusting to hear JWs hoping people experience some sort of misfortune (especially the death of a loved one) so they're receptive to "the truth" the next time a JW approaches them.