I came to believe in letting people believe in any idiocy they choose just as long as that doesn't disrupt anyone else's life. Saving people from themselves is as meritless as attempting to teach a pig to dance: you won't succeed, and the pig will be annoyed.
EdenOne
JoinedPosts by EdenOne
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16
Are Both The JW And The Ex-JW Community a Cult?
by Vanderhoven7 incharlie ryde writes:.
let us use the same bite model for determining if something is a cult to both being a jw and being ex-jw.
mind you this is a short summary.. b- behavioral control.
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WTBTS investments
by enoughisenough ini found this article, how be it from about 10 years ago.
https://clarencesisk.com/watchtower-investments/ i didn't even go to the end of the article, but assuming the writer knew of which he wrote, wt had/has?
stock in bot j&j and pfizer.
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EdenOne
Disney acquired PornHub back in 2018
https://www.thebeaverton.com/2018/06/disney-executives-pleased-to-announce-acquisition-of-pornhub/
Fake news. That is a satirical website. Be careful with such statements.
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My Explanation of Why They Got it Wrong About Blood Using Only the NWT
by cofty in10 " any israelite or any alien living among them who eats any bloodi will set my face against that person who eats blood and will cut him off from his people.
12 therefore i say to the israelites, "none of you may eat blood, nor may an alien living among you eat blood.
15 'anyone, whether native-born or alien, who eats anything found dead or torn by wild animals must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be ceremonially unclean till evening; then he will be clean.
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EdenOne
(Glad to see you back again, Cofty, I hope you're well.)
I don't know if this POV has been addressed in this old and long thread, so excuse me if it had been touched before.
It appears to me that the apparent double standard regarding the consumption of unbled meat in the torah may be resolved by evaluating the individual's responsibility on taking a life of an animal.
If an Israelite would take a life, therefore "stealing" life from God, it would be an act of respect towards Yahweh to symbolically return the life to the divinity by wasting the blood to the ground without consuming it.
However, if the (clean) animal was found dead already, the Israelite wouldn't be responsible for taking that life, and therefore, wouldn't have to symbolically return that life back to the ultimate life-giving god. He would not be guilty of capital sin, merely uncleanness.
Therefore, the capital punishment would be deserved, not by the mundane consumption of the fluid in itself, but for the equivalent of the original sin, that is, appropriation of something that belongs exclusively to the divinity (either being the authority to decide what is right or wrong, or life itself). That who would eat unbled meat whose life he hadn't taken, wouldn't be regarded as guilty of the same level of transgression.
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11530
It's been a long 9 years Lloyd Evans / John Cedars
by Newly Enlightened inoriginal reddit post (removed).
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EdenOne
Since it's public domain information, for what is worth .... -
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Which of you readers are being shunned by their relatives / friends ?
by stan livedeath ina simple " me" if you dont want to say more--or a short explanation about who is shunning you and how long has this been going on.. i'll set the ball rolling: my daughter--her husband and children; my younger son --no contact from them for 40 years...because i left their religion.. (edit--i just noticed the typo in the header--if should be of ).
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EdenOne
Those who chose to shun me aren't my "friends" anymore. It's quite simple. If and when they decide it was a mistake, then it's my choice if I still think they're worthy of being my "friends". That hasn't happened yet and I'm not holding my breath.
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Why isn't this forum growing like reddit exjw??
by nowwhat? inadmittedly it 90% crap over there but still they are up to 80k in subscribers.
over here it's the same half dozen or so that posts something, including myself.
why is that?.
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EdenOne
I drastically reduced my participation here because: a) I'making a deliberate effort to keep the JW religion a very small part of my daily concerns, i.e., moving on to other more worthy concerns; and b) for a good while this forum spiraled down into a bigoted trumpist s**tshow. I really don't mind political discussion, but needs to be civil, which hasn't been the case. And adding c) this endless ongoing trashing (well deserved anyway) of that other ex-JW activist is already too long and frankly very tiring.
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Kneel before me, for I am an ... Activist!
by Simon ini thought it was just me that had a negative view of people who proclaim themselves to be activists.. but no, it seems i'm not alone!.
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EdenOne
I still believe that giving our contribution to make this world a better place by limiting the damage caused by the Watchtower Society is a worthy effort.
However, It's not a more honorable cause than supporting your family, care for your loved ones, care for your community, the environment, improving your personality, your life, your skills, etc.
It's just one among many worthy things you can chose to do with your time - making sure that the greater things have priority. Anti-Watchtower activism shouldn't be a priority in someone's life - because if it is, they win.
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24
Family division
by joao inthe worst part of my experience of getting rid of the shackles of wt is not the shunning.
i can live with that.
if people don't want to talk to me, there are many more who do!
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EdenOne
Olá João!
It sucks, for sure. My own marriage was on the rocks for a while as my wife struggled with the idea of me (and my son) distancing ourselves from "the truth" while she tried to hold on to her beliefs as much as she could.
She had mixed days. Sometimes she would seem to listen to our criticism of the Watchtower, then something would trigger her and she would go ballistic and in full defense mode.
Our marriage was on the rocks for a while, when I feared that she might well choose the religion over her marriage. People in high places in Bethel in Alcabideche told her in no uncertain terms that she should consider a biblical separation because I, as an apostate, under my laid back surface, was just a monster in disguise, kind of a ware wolf that may turn under the moonlight.
I decided that no amount of words and "proof" would get results; I just would be the best person I could be for her, and braced myself for a long, 'cold war' marriage, that someday might end up in a split of her initiative.
Fortunately, being patient and loving paid off because my wife saw the light by herself, and reached her own conclusions by connecting the dots after stumbling on Barbara Anderson's website. Maybe it was hearing it from a woman's voice, maybe it was the child sex abuse that ticked her ... in any case, she made the best decision one fine morning and just told it to a dumbfounded husband.
João, if you love your wife and I'm sure you do, just be patient and give her some room to breathe. In time her eyes will start seeing the cracks on the surface of the WT. Brace yourself for the 'winter', hoping that spring comes next.
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Wrong Religion
by Vanderhoven7 inwe brainstormed a while back on this forum and pooled our knowledge on how to recognize false religion.
i think the list is worth reviewing and adding to if possible.
please feel free to correct and or add insights of your own to this list:.
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EdenOne
You're not really being intellectually honest until you dare to question the merits of religion, spirituality, theism and the reliability of the Bible. Like Cofty used to say, you haven't done your homework yet until you remove the dogma from the equation.
I would point out five linked dogmas that one needs to have the courage to remove in order to start having an honest discussion:
1) Gods exist
2) The Judaic-Christian creator god exists
3) That god is Almighty and perfect and good
4) The Bible is that god's message to mankind.
5) Therefore, the Bible is perfect (inerrant)
Until you remove these dogmas, you can't have an honest discussion.
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PIMO Bethel Elder Has Special Message & Speaks out
by Newly Enlightened ina pimo elder at bethel has come forward with a special message posted on reddit.. https://www.reddit.com/gallery/v9mgao.
the dated pictures attached are "proof conclusive" that this is for real.
no outside guests are allowed inside bethel at this time.
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EdenOne
Nothing really new here, generalities at best. We would need to see more specific information regarding the claims being made. Perhaps protecting his identity precludes that, but I don't see anything really groundbreaking vis a vis what was known already. Smoking gun needed ...