the next town over from me was kind enough to send their sister city in the uk a very thoughtful gift, and this is the thanks they get!.
.
http://news.excite.com/news/r/010820/08/odd-potato-dc
ChuckD:
No accounting for taste. One town near me with a spinach cannery has as its town mascot.... you guessed it, an 8' statue of Popeye. Wonder where they could send a copy. Another town has its visitor information center in, of all things, a restored turn of the century bordello. Just think, some towns in New England don't want a Wal-Mart! How un-american!
being raised a jw sometimes you feel you only know conditional love.
you are only loved if you tow the line.
i only have one thing to say,.
RealElder said:
No I don't and none of the men on the body of elders that I am on are that way either.
I have to weigh in on this one, I guess. First, though, I have to sympathize with Dave's attitude on this subject. I saw this over and over during my years as JW. It stinks and a loving elder would just keep his mouth shut when he became aware of any such 'association' with family members who were DF'd. To comply with WTS direction in this matter was simply ignoring human nature and common sense.
The BOE that I served on tried very hard to actually 'shepherd' the flock. Sometimes we even succeeded.
The issues that many of us on this board go far beyond just the inhumane practice of shunning. It goes to:
1. Can the WTS really claim that they are the 'Faithful and Discreet Slave?'
2. What about all of the false prophecies uttered in the last 120 years? 1975 in particular. Would a truly spirit directed org make those kind of mistakes over and over again? And then blame the R & F for making 'wrong assumptions?
3. What about the historical flip-flops on doctrines that have cost people their lives and loved ones? e.g., blood fractions, organ transplants, etc., etc.
4. What about the claim of 'Holy Spirit' making the appointments in the congregations? I was an elder and I assure you, the process is not, in my opinion, totally 'Spirit' directed.
5. What about the wobbly foundation under the '1914' chronology? If this is a false teaching, then what becomes of the rest of the WTS's interpretations?
6. If the 'generation' definition was wrong all this time, then a lot of people have put faith in something for decades that has cost them dearly in family ties, property and economic security that cannot be replaced. (I know one brother who sold his business in the '50's and moved to 'where the need was great' and devoted the rest of his life to the WTS. The savings ran out long before his life did. He wound up in poverty, confined to a nursing home. His mind gone, he wandered away one day and was found dead two days later from hypothermia. So much for the 'new system' curing his problems.]
Disfellowshipping policy be hanged! That is just the tip of the iceberg for most of us on this board!
If you are here to see 'what the commotion is all about', then fine, but you will get an earful. And I hope it will make you think about a lot of things, not just DFing. I spent 22 yrs of my life faithfully serving an org that when the chips are down, just isn't what they claim to be. I'm not a person that is going to go down to the DC and picket, but if I'm asked about JW's I will certainly relate my personal experiences with them.
This board contains a wide variety of people and opinions. There are former elders, pioneers and publishers, former Bethelites and on and on. These people are not people 'denied a position in the org' they are people who have made an honest examination of an organization they were in and made the decision to leave. It is difficult for most, because of the strong hold that the WTS has on its members. I went through months of depression following my exit, but it's over now and I am better off for being out of the JW's.
in response to the commonly-repeated myth that all ex-witnesses are bitter angry people with nothing better to do then attack their former religion, i thought we should set the record straight.
where are you in life right now?
are you doing things that you always wanted to do, traveling to interesting places in your free time, making great new friends, generally enjoying life?
GodRules said:
Of course your going to have great lives. Enjoy it while you can. All enemies of Jehovah seem to have great lives, but that's just because Satan already has them under his control.
Whoa, Nellie! 'Enemy of Jehovah?' The WTS is NOT Jehovah, never has been, never will be!
Every politician's message is, stated or unstated: "Are you better now than you were four years ago?" I have to answer a resounding "YES!"
in response to the commonly-repeated myth that all ex-witnesses are bitter angry people with nothing better to do then attack their former religion, i thought we should set the record straight.
where are you in life right now?
are you doing things that you always wanted to do, traveling to interesting places in your free time, making great new friends, generally enjoying life?
Tergiversator asked:
In response to the commonly-repeated myth that all ex-witnesses are bitter angry people with nothing better to do then attack their former religion, I thought we should set the record straight. Where are you in life right now? Are you doing things that you always wanted to do, traveling to interesting places in your free time, making great new friends, generally enjoying life?
I am at the pinnacle of a career in my chosen field. [One that I no longer feel guilty about the politics involved.] I get to travel around the country on business regularly, meeting interesting people and generally enjoying it. I'm married to a fabulous lady(non-JW)[Lefty] who loves me and I love her. I'm 53 and ride a motorcycle, something I probably would never have done as a JW. [Wrong image, you know.] I hang out with people who interest me and not people chosen for their ability to be taken in by WT dogma. I sing karaoke and shoot pool. The beer is a bonus. I'm having a great time and I don't worry anymore about my falsified time reports; or Armageddon coming next week. ;-) I'm not a 'disgruntled former JW', I'm a former JW who wonders why in hell it took me 22 years to figure out the truth about the trooth. Jimi Hendrix said it best, "Freedom" that's all you have to say.
there is a homeless man (ill call him pete) that stands on a street corner nearby my home.
hes been on this corner since i moved into this neighborhood almost 4 years ago.
a staple to our community really.
My wife, 'Lefty' and I were in SF a couple of years ago on vacation. Down on Fisherman's Wharf was a legion of panhandlers. Being the hard-hearted and street educated person I am, I just went right by most of them. One fellow, however, was so totally honest with his sign, I had to contribute to his 'fund.' The BUD fund. Seemed logical to me. Another one was the group of punk rockers (6 in all) who were offering group pictures to the tourists. Naturally, I had to pose 'Lefty' in the middle. Worth two bucks to me just to show the pic to our friends back home.
Then, there was the evening we were returning to our hotel and passed a young lady sitting on the sidewalk with two small children. It was around 10:00 PM. 'Lefty' is absolutely beside herself wanting me to give the girl money. "But, honey, those two little kids!" My comment was that the State of CA has so many programs for deserving people, that to be on the street was totally unnecessary. Most likely, she rented the kids from a friend.
Additionally, a lot of panhandlers get dogs from the pound and use them as sympathy 'hooks'. Some may pass a human down on their luck, but they know it's tough for a lot of people to pass up a 'helpless' animal.
So, save your money for the next United Way Fund Drive, I say!
if you are wondering where the elders' real interests lie, please consider this statement:.
true shepherds recognize that during these last days, jesus has appointed his faithful and discreet slave over all his belongings and that holy spirit has directed this slave in appointing elders for the shepherding of the sheep.
hence, being theocratic involves having a deep respect for this slave, for the organizational arrangements that the slave has instituted, and for the elder arrangement within the congregation.
Oz:
I wonder if the Borg would be as loyal to the individual elder?
I know we've all heard the stories about whole BOE's being removed. But if they were loyal 'Borgites', they usually stayed in place until death did them part. In my own case, they bounced me so fast I didn't get the plate number of the truck. God forbid, you try to buck the BOE on a decision they've made, no matter how ridiculous it may have been.
if you are wondering where the elders' real interests lie, please consider this statement:.
true shepherds recognize that during these last days, jesus has appointed his faithful and discreet slave over all his belongings and that holy spirit has directed this slave in appointing elders for the shepherding of the sheep.
hence, being theocratic involves having a deep respect for this slave, for the organizational arrangements that the slave has instituted, and for the elder arrangement within the congregation.
Ozzie:
Hence, being theocratic involves having a deep respect for this slave, for the organizational arrangements that the slave has instituted, and for the elder arrangement within the congregation.[/i] Watchtower January 1, 1993 page 23
This is where just one of the problems lies. The loyalty of a BOE is with the WTS, not the individual members of the congregation. A 'former associate'of mine told his BOE that they were putting the WTS over Jehovah and the flock, and was removed for his candor. In my time as an elder, we were constantly exhorted to remain loyal to the 'organization.'
this is an old joke, but i thought some levity was appropriate.. wwjd.
most people assume wwjd is for "what would jesus do?
" but the initials.
This is an old joke, but I thought some levity was appropriate.
WWJD
Most people assume WWJD is for "What would Jesus do?" But the initials
really stand for "What would Jesus drive?"
One theory is that Jesus would tool around in an old Plymouth because
"the Bible says God drove Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden in a
Fury."
But in Psalm 83, the Almighty clearly owns a Pontiac and a Geo. The
passage urges the Lord to "pursue your enemies with your Tempest and
terrify them with your Storm."
Perhaps God favors Dodge pickup trucks, because Moses' followers are
warned not to go up a mountain "until the Ram's horn sounds a long blast."
Meanwhile, Moses rode an old British motorcycle, as evidenced by a Bible
passage declaring that "the roar of Moses' Triumph is heard in the hills."
Joshua drove a Triumph sports car with a hole in its muffler: "Joshua's
Triumph was heard throughout the land."
Some scholars insist that Jesus drove a Honda but didn't like to talk
about it. As proof, they cite a verse in St. John's gospel where Christ
tells the crowd, "For I did not speak of my own Accord..." Thus following their Master's lead, the Apostles car-pooled in a Honda ...."The Apostles were in one Accord."
hi, i have been following some of the discussions about the internet and jw.
some people think that it seems to make a big difference, that it will seriously reduce wts ranks because people get access to all sorts of information and because they can get in contact with people who maybe have the same doubts and thoughts as themselves.. but how big a difference do you think that the net is making?
how many people do you think have withdrawns from jw because of infomation or contact achieved over the net?.
MadApostate said:
Quote[The internet changed me from a several years long inactive, yet still believing, Jdub to a totally pissed-off, now fully aware I was in a CULT person looking for my next move.]Quote
Exactimundo!!
you can find pay attention to yourselves and to all the flock in many languages on the watchtower observer, such as english, spanish, polish, portuguese, french, finnish and german.
but there is also lots of other sites that carry the book.. there is a new "pay attention to yourselves and to all the flock" coming soon, and i hope to be able to bring the "new light" in a short while.
http://www.kki.net.pl/~ksk3/ (polish).
Kent:
Thanks for posting the url's on this book. Anyone up for a JC meeting needs to read this book. In my experience, most BOE's didn't follow the procedures outlined in it anyway.
Frankly, though, if you are up for a JC, you ought to tell them to get lost and go your own way. According to this book you can be disfellowshipped for having a person's vehicle parked outside your house all night! Think about it!
Thanks again, Kent!
Regards from your ugliest post reader.
