...one with an 18 year old from his congregation.....
If that happened about 15 years ago they ended up in my old congregation. Of course there was R Cowling's dad - but that is ancient history.
...one with an 18 year old from his congregation.....
If that happened about 15 years ago they ended up in my old congregation. Of course there was R Cowling's dad - but that is ancient history.
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/12092006/140/irwin-backlash-stingrays-slaughtered.html.
at least 10 stingrays have been found dead and mutilated on australia's eastern coast since crocodile hunter steve irwin was killed by one of the animals last week.
the killings have prompted fears of "revenge attacks" against the normally docile fish.
For another side to this story see -
http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,2373920400096-952,00.html
or visit the Courier Mail website and find the article about mutilated stingrays listed under 'archives'.
Regardless of the rights or wrongs of cutting off the tails - not everything one reads in a newspaper can be taken at face value
(maybe this too).
.
very sad .
such an enthusiastic / passionate guy.. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/5311298.stm.
looking_glass ...
I think you'll find some posts from the Aussies (incl. myself) on another thread.
Perhaps Australians - in general - are a little less vocal about stuff. Just a cultural diference in some ways. I think Steve's somewhat 'over-the-top' personality was a little strange to some Aussies when he first became popular (remember he is a Queenslander) and maybe that is why he was first popular in the US; and maybe that is why he married a non-Aussie. Difficult to generalize. However, his divergence from the norm was a good education in itself - in many ways. All cultures change and grow in different ways and at different times and I think the legacy Steve has left to Australia is a good one. But, don't confuse silence with lack of concern and interest. Australian culture has changed significantly in the past few years - a product of globalization I'm sure, but the understated rather than the overstated is probably still more the norm.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,20349888-2,00.html.
crocodile hunter steve irwin dead.
september 04, 2006 02:14pm.
Sad to see someone so passionate about the environment die so early. He grew up in a family of 'average' folks who loved the environment and turned their interest into a business. He created a further vision for that and worked hard to achieve what he did. He has done a lot of good for the environment and awareness of environmental issues in Australia and overseas. His zoo is not far from my home. Someone mentioned that his staff talked badly of him. Maybe he expected a similar committment from them? He missed his mum very much after her death - I hope they are together again.
reading the other thread made me wonder, do jw's ever truly grieve at the loss of a loved one?
i can see in front of other jw's they feel the need to maintain the party line, but in private?
Firstly - my condolences to those who have posted about their loss - a loss is a loss regardless of the time that has passed.
In view of my experiece - and my family - I have wondered the same thing. I lost my son over a year ago and in that time have had no e-mails/calls from any JW ( just 2 e-mails from one -good- friend of 30 years). I knew and helped a lot of people during my time as a JW (I'm not df/da). Family are JW's. My father is still an elder and not one call from him or my mother. I have seen them twice - briefly - since his death and there has not been one mention of my son. I'm not sure JW's can process death well. After his death I certainly would have given anything to believe in an earthly resurrection, and it proved to be very painful that I could not. Maybe the belief of a resurrection hinders the grieving process - I'm not sure, I don't see why it should any more than other beliefs. I'm not sure that it isn't something to do with the denial of being part of this world/system, and psychologically/ideologically living in the 'new order'. Some dictatorships (eg Nth Korea) have lilttle evidence of cemetries - even war cemetries - and in their nationalistic rhetoric tends to deny death rates (beyond what would seem to be a normal cover-up of the economic situation) as a way of reinforcing racial superiority. It's just a guess. But certainly, the coldness makes grieving difficult - but maybe stonger in the end. It has helped me see why I felt uncommitted to the 'truth' after many years and has spurred me on to look at alternative points of view.
while i was in high school in the mid 60's i was told that the end was so near that i would not get to graduate from high school so i should not be concerned about being drafted due to the war in vietnam.
well i got drafted but did not pass my physical due to a medical problem.. i then considered go to school in the late 60's to enter the medical field.
i was encouraged by the elders not to do this because the end is so near and why get schooling for a profession that you will not need in a few years?
In Australia I can remember Ted Bromwich - CO - (whom I believe is now deceased) saying "We can't say for sure - but we can think - so lets think aloud....) and continue to count down the months to 1975, with suppositions re the creation of Eve. My mother still insists that the society didn't give any definite date :-( and my father (elder) still believes the society will get it right.... In the meantime I have had to pay for my own education ( will never go to high school) and that of my children (shouldn't waste time learing a musical instrument - etc.) and we battle on...now I have to try to convice my parents that they 'may' die in this system, or need aged care...and guess who they are angry at...???
.
are you a blind believer or do you have evidence of a continued existence beyond physical death either personal in nature or from scientifically valid sources?.
blueblades
I'm not sure how 'hard' the hard evidence would need to be to a skeptic, however the VERITAS research program at the University of Arizona, among others, may provide some useful information. The Institute of Noetic Sciences also has some interesting information and links.
Some books I've read recently on this subject - and found interesting are:
Physics of the Soul - Amit Goswami, Ph.D.
Beyond the Brain - Birth, Death and Trranscendence in Psychotherapy -Stanislav Grof
The Physics of Consciousness - Evan Harris Walker
An Experiment with Time - J.W.Dunne
There are many other sites and publications available that deal with this subject in various ways and from various perspectives, however I think it is safe to say that there is an obvious shift in scientific thinking towards different models of the brain/consciousness paradigm. Quantum Physics obviously has much to do with this. In addition I think there are two other points to keep in mind. 1. Our science-based models are a product of Western philosophy and research and account for a very short peroid of history. Most (if not all) other cultures accept the belief of a spiritual world or 'afterlife' without question. 2. Personal experience cannot be quantified and reproduced in a laboratory - but does that make it any less valid? In academia in general there has been a shift from predominantly quantitative research to viewing qualitative research as being of equal merit. Perhaps for those people who have experienced a 'different' kind of phenomena the question is more easily answered, regardless of whether all scientists agree with the conclusions or not.
a friend of mine just lost his young 4 year son in a sleigh accident.
the child ( the same age as my young caroline) sledded down the front hill of his property into the path of an on coming school bus.
terrible tragedy.. my wife and i ; who have known them for some time; must attend the service this eveing.
So sorry to hear of your friend's loss. It will be during the coming months that your friends will value the support you give them.
hi all, forgive me and my n00bness if this has been discussed, or if i started this thread in the wrong place.
how does everyone feel about death,and what happens to you afterward?
do you still believe what the wts teaches?
To those people who offered kind thoughts - thanks you.
hi all, forgive me and my n00bness if this has been discussed, or if i started this thread in the wrong place.
how does everyone feel about death,and what happens to you afterward?
do you still believe what the wts teaches?
Having been a JW for many years, this is a subject that, since leaving, I have given some thought. However due to lack of time and resources my progress has, until now, been limited. A couple of weeks ago my son died suddenly, and that has been quite a reality check in trying to get my thoughts together. My first reactions were - 1. as I kissed him godbye for the last time I definitely no longer felt fear of death. 2. If I could believe in anything I would llke to believe that an earthly resurrection is God's promise. No, I don't feel that life on earth would be boring as I believe knowledge is as infinite as the universe. Unfortunately I don't have the luxury of this belief, nor any other solid belief - at this stage. So, I have begun my search. With the kind assistance of one board member I have a list of books dealing with the bible's authorship and its historical perspective. I have ordered books on metaphysics, quantum theory, the afterlife, reincarnation and another version of the bible. This may be a lifetimes work and I don't know where it will take me - maybe the full circle. But I do know that I need to look at the evidence and find answers - whatever form they may take. My starting point is that I do believe in an 'intelligent' universe, and I do see logic in the argument for the continuation of an energy/force. Whether that force is extended within the paradigm of the Christian belief system or some other, I do not yet know. Numerous events occuring around the time of my son's death have propelled my thoughts along this line. Since leaving JW's (family still in) I have had a foot in each camp - sceptical of the bible and religion and leaning towards new age thinking and alternate philosophies, but still finding it difficult to disbelieve. I know the journey ahead will be a long one. I'm not at all sure this will help anyone else--just my thoughts.