just thought i'd share this ridiculous picture from a recent watchtower.
in recent years, the word bullying has been thrown around a lot, and often misused by instigators and subtle bullies themselves.
in this picture we learn that your loving family who wants to continue sharing a family tradition with you, who hands you a beautifully wrapped present with a smile on their face, is in fact bullying you.
Satan's not much of an evil presence, if he has to rely on Grandma giving you a box of socks around the winter solstice as his means of causing you pain and anguish.
And the Almighty Supreme Creator can't deal with this guy for over 6,000 years? Doesn't say much for him either.
https://www.jw.org/en/publications/books/convention-program-2018/.
friday.
be courageous and very strong”—joshua 1:7
SYMPOSIUM: Learn Courage From Creation
Lions (Micah 5:8)
Horses (Job 39:19-25)
Mongooses (Psalm 91:3, 13-15)
Hummingbirds (1 Peter 3:15)
Elephants (Proverbs 17:17)
Hummingbirds and mongooses (mongeese?) Seriously? I don't even know where to start on this entire symposium
https://jwtalk.net/forums/topic/34840-what-does-the-bible-say-about-dinosaurs/.
amazing how many words can be expended discussing things that people have utterly no clue about..
There is no direct reference to dinosaurs in the Bible.
Well, in my very first New World Translation there was. Dino was roaming the desert on the inside cover.
anyone here into guns.
i know alot of the euros here hate the idea but i wonder if there are any other members who are collectors or who are into hunting, target shooti g etc.. no shame zone?.
4 of them, for protection
You must have a lot of enemies.
I imagine it must be quite a skill to shoot 4 guns at once. I can see two, but I don't think even John Wick could pull off shooting 4 at once.
since blondie seems to still be on sabbatical, i'll take the liberty of highlighting a couple of "gems" from this week's upcoming study, from the article "reject worldly thinking".. from paragraph 12:.
is it true that succeeding in a secular career that offers power and prestige leads to lasting happiness?
remember that the craving to control others and the longing to be admired are the desires that enticed satan, but he is angry, not happy.. .
Is it true that succeeding in a secular career that offers power and prestige leads to lasting happiness? No. Remember that the craving to control others and the longing to be admired are the desires that enticed Satan,
non sequitur. How does having a successful secular career that offers perks correlate to craving those perks.
The 'no' answer is a blanket statement, and implies that secular success will lead to misery no matter what. The implication is to avoid secular success, and stick to washing windows and striping cars.
again with the pants... tony, if you can't stop looking at young men in tight pants don't take it out on the rest of us.
https://www.facebook.com/john.cedars.5/posts/868329653345317.
That WT graphic of two elders talking to the young guy in a hipsteresque suit (stylish for his age and size, not so much for us old guys), what publication/magazine was that from? It looks legit like a WT graphic, but at the same time, it's hard to comprehend that they went to such trouble to harp on such an innocuous situation.. I mean, he's wearing a goddamn suit for Christ's sake!
"my husbands religious beliefs are ruining our family" is the topic.
i"m not home when it airs on cbs in the afternoon so i watch a rerun on ch 55 here in nyc at 8pm.
i have my cable box all set to switch over at the appropriate time..
The only good from this story is that the jw's are in the news once again in a negative light.
This program will highlight the problems which occur when one parent leaves the JWS,
I hardly think Dr. Phil is going to be the catalyst to highlight real issues inside the JWs/WT world.
He's just another daytime TV quack, capitalizing on broken people and families to get ratings and make a buck.
it is christmas morning ....the weather outside looks cold grey and dismal (typical britain in winter ) the house is quiet as my wife gets on with something.
.... the street is silent, as dead as the grave.
the tv is full of the purile nonsense that fills airtime this time of year .
It's weird how the actual Xmas day leaves me feeling somewhat out of touch with everything and everyone around me. It's like I'm in a void. The couple of weeks leading up to Xmas aren't bad, I actually go to parties in the neighborhood, 'worldly' friends, the office. I partake in the spirit of it all, join in as best I can. But the actual day... It's as you described it BB. I don't fit in (nor want to) with the JW family attitude of shunning the holiday, nor am I part of the masses celebrating. I'm in a twilight zone state.
But, at the same time, I realize that not everyone lives 'A Christmas Story' life, no matter how many times they show the movie on TV. I acknowledge that there are lots of people who don't really 'celebrate' Xmas as you see on TV, in the ads, or the movies, yet for some weird reason, I actually pine for a time that has never existed for me.
My Xmas tradition now is that I usually go to the movies on Xmas day. A couple of hours of Star Wars or James Bond escapism until tomorrow when I go back to the office...
i ask this question out of interest, because as a jehovahs witness for some 26 years, i have always felt that there is an 'all work, no play' culture within the organisation.
the organisation doesn't promote social gatherings.
i could count on one hand each year how many get togethers we have had.
Yes and no. As a kid not so much... our family wasn't in the right clique, or any clique. Lived somewhat isolated as a kid and young teenager. Late teens though, I had some friends, we had our own clique. Didn't last too long. People moved, people got married, people got DFd.
As a young adult, married, had a few other couples we hung out with. Over time that faded, as kids came along, jobs and service to the bOrg wore us down and tired us out.
I remember as a kid that there were more congregation picnics and events than there were later on, before I left. This in part because the WTS clamped down on the fun factor. If you've got time to bake a pie for a picnic, you got time to knock on doors...
By the time I left, I really didn't have any friends. Just acquaintances. The only bond we had was the KH, and once that was broken, nothing was left to hold us together.
i've been lurking here for a couple of weeks now.
i'm starting to "awaken" and it is all that has been occupying my mind.
i've always, always had doubts, some of which i expressed to family members who always had the same replies:.
I just read the Mind Control section on JWFacts and my head is still spinning. I’m one of those people that expects things right away, but all of your responses tell me that it’s okay to not be able to process it right away.
I still even feel guilty posting here!
It will take time to process. It will even be a three steps forward, two steps backwards progress. You'll think you've got a handle on it, then you doubt yourself. You actually doubt your doubting. That's the indoctrination still holding on.
It gets better over time. In time, you will resolve all the issues that concern you the most, and all the little deals that aren't worth a lot of worry will slide off, and you'll move forward even more.
It took me weeks to work up the nerve to post here - a long time ago. And even then I wasn't sure what the heck I was doing. Was I making a mistake, or was I really finding out I was in a cult?
Welcome, and keep researching all your doubts and questions.
