voltaire

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Posts by voltaire

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  10

  Mi Familia

  by lisaBObeesa in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  dear friends,.

  i have come a long way from when i was 18 years old and fresh out of my parents house and the borg.

  i went throught stages...so many stages... of recovery.

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  voltaire

  I think you're on the right track when you wonder if it's possible for your sister to be both good and misled. Witnesses tend to see the world in black and white. The longer I live, the more obvious it becomes to me that we are all morally ambiguous. No one is good or bad, we are all good and bad. It's not a pleasant realization, but I'm afraid it's true. Do your best to be more of the former and as little of the latter as possible.

  I'm in a similar situation with my wife. Eventually, I'll make my feelings known to the elders and I assume I'll be disfellowshipped, which will put tremendous pressure on my mariage. I've learned to live with it. I am now putting my affairs in order so that I will have friends and a support structure in the event I am disfellowshipped. I've come to the reaization that I can't shield my wife or my mother from the consequences of their actions. If my views result in being DF'ed and that hurts them or ends my marriage, it will be the result of THEIR response to my actions, not my actions themselves. No hay de otra. Uno tiene que comportarse de acuerdo con sus convicciones.
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  10

  Good Things You Won't Read in the Awake!

  by metatron in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  cdc reports "dramatic drop" in u.s. teen birth rates.. - a dramatic 22% decrease in comparison to 1991.. "the continued decline in the teen birth rate is very.

  encouraging news" secretary of health and human services.

  tommy thompson said in a statement.

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  voltaire

  Berean,

  Good points!

  If things get better, looks like we're getting closer to "peace and security"
  If things get worse, it's more proof that we're in the last days.
  Looks like you're covered either way.

  If God is backing anyone, let them make an unequivocal prediction about what will happen, not one that can be justified no matter which turn world events take.

  Of course, the society has the incredible ability to understand prophecies after the events they foretold have already happened. That's impressive!
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  21

  Free Home Bible Study

  by MadApostate in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  a happy future!.

  a warm embrace from someone you love.

  hearty laughter during a good meal with dear friends.

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  voltaire

  Thank you, I am now an educated man. In 2 minutes worth of reading you gave me the equivalent a university education.
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  17

  Questions and Answers

  by Marvin Shilmer in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  questions and answers.

  should dissidence exist among dedicated jehovahs witnesses?

  answer:.

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  voltaire

  Maximus,

  It's interesting that in the article you cite, the society says that "the faith" does not refer to personal conviction, but rather to the "totality of belief". Most persons would probably assume faith is a personal thing, generated from within and based at least to a certain degree on one's personal understanding and conscience. It seems that the society has made faith out to be what it personally believes. Faith is no longer a personal conviction, but rather a set of ideas that originate with others. I doubt most non-JWs would suspect that faith could possibly mean such a thing. What a chasm exists between the thinking of the householder and the witness at the door. Actually, I doubt that most witnesses would define faith as anything other than personal. They have, however, been masterfully trained(manipulated?) to act as though faith is what is formulated for them by the GB, all the while believing consciously that it is a personal matter. I think few recognize that they no longer take much personal responsibility for themselves.
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  6

  One Simple Truth

  by metatron in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  some things are so simple, they can get overlooked.. for some time, i wished there was a simple, unassailable.

  arguement against being one of the borg.. and there is - what is the purpose of life?.

  answer: to be happy!

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  voltaire

  Excellent observation. That's one reason why I understand that someone might like being a witness. If they are really happy or their family is in the organization and they can stand the meetings, that's ok by me. Perhaps someone might feel that they are doing some good by discouraging smoking, encouraging marital fidelity, etc. It certainly allows(mostly men) a certain sense
  of accomplishment as they progress toward being respected members of their community, giving talks etc. My only hope is that some day JWs will see that that not everyone can find fulfillment and happiness in their way of life.
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  41

  How Many IN, OUT, etc.

  by troubled in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i'm wondering how many here are "active jws," "inactive jws," "x-jws," or "never jws.".

  i don't mean to be nosy.

  i'm just wondering how many are in a situation like mine (still in, but struggling).

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  voltaire

  Troubled,

  You and I are strange animals here! I'm still in, too. I was baptised as a teen, pioneered and was an elder. I had some emotional trouble. I basically burned myself out(Thank you, organization). I found it stressful to go to meetings because I suffered from agoraphobia(Fear of going to any public place). I gradually overcame the phobia, but it left me emotionally exhausted. It was only then that I realized that emotion was a strong component of my faith. No problem, I thought, "I'll just have to bolster the intellectual basis for faith in God and the organization. That's when things got murky. I struggled with a number of issues for about five years. At first I was scared. Later I tried desperately to disprove what I was learning. I have only now come to accept that I not a JW, at least not at heart. My wife is devastated. I've come to grips with the fact that some day in the not too distant future I will be frank with the elders about how I really feel and think. I assume that I'll be DF'ed. That will probably end my marriage. If she supports the DF'ing I can't see us staying married. This has been the biggest hurdle for me emotionally. The only remaining hurdle is telling my mother. I would like to hang on as a witness while she's alive, but she'll probably outlive me. it's not a cheery picture but I find that my despair is slowly giving way to anger. Anger can be chanelled in a positive direction. I find myself more and more determined to be myself and quit hiding. Be patient with yourself.
  Keep searching, I'm sure we'll both make it out.
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  65

  The dim people

  by Norm in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the dim people.

  the new world society.

  the chosen, brain dead, scared people.. the watchtower's obedient parrots.

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  voltaire

  Norm, I prefer to call dubs naive as opposed to idiots.(Actually, I suppose there are plenty of both).

  Really, why does anyone belong to any religion? For most, I suppose it makes them feel better. It provides structure to their lives. It gives them a group to which to belong. Even after I came to an intellectual acceptance of the fact that this isn't the "truth", I found myself analyzing the whole thing trying to find some proof, any proof, that could serve as a logical basis for belief. I have only recently finally accepted that I am not really a witness. I don't think like a witness. I can't understand them anymore. Or perhaps, it would be more accurate to say that I have finally lost the emotional connection I had with JWs(I am still a witness). I accept the premise of your poem(is that what it is? I'm not a great lover of literature or poetry so I'm not sure how to classify it. Maybe it's a satirical tirade). Witnesses are obviously performing some incredible mental gymnastics in order to support an organization like the one they do. On the other hand it obviously provides some benefits or it wouldn't exist. Richard Dawkins has coined the term "meme" to refer to any idea that exists and which competes with other ideas for survival. This one has survived and flourishes. I understand why you feel the need to let off some steam, though.

  Again, I agree with your premise. The value of this board is that it allows JWs like me to be exposed to the whole truth about the "truth". I have had an outlet for my own expression and have derived great benefit from the experiences and comments of others. That includes you. Thank you.
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  55

  GB Split Over Bible vs. Policy

  by Maximus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  please read the following brief paragraph carefully: .

  "once again, the ruling ecclesiastical class suppressed efforts to make gods word available to their flock.

  they violently silenced a voice that pointed to some of the errors of their non-biblical beliefs.

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  voltaire

  Does anyone remember a WT study article around '90 that said it would be unreasonable to DF a newly baptized person for breaking down and taking a puff or two on a cigarette, especially if that person had been a heavy smoker for years? It amazed me because I expected that sort of info would be sent to the body in a letter or be relayed by the CO/DO at one of those elder's meetings. I never saw another word of it again.(In fact, several publishers got into trouble for just such a thing. Some were smoking, some were thought to have taken a puff. We were left trying to sort out who did and didn't take a single puff.) I presume that must have represented a minority view somewhere in the society.
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  27

  REAL HELP!

  by logicalthinker in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  if you want real help please go to:.

  the official site for jehovah's witnesses and those truly interested in the jw organisation and the word of god.. i wonder if you would find so many sites (such as this one) dedicated to the verbal tearing apart of jehovah's witnesses and their religion if there was not something special about it?.

  afterall when was the last time you found 10,000+ search results for catholics, jews, mormons or any supposed sect or cult?.

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  voltaire

  I've got to look into Catholicism. There must be something to it, after all. Otherwise, why would the JWs tear it apart verbally year after year?
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  30

  Evolution a proven fact? LOL

  by Rex B13 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  some interesting quotes from evolutionists.

  natural history, vol.

  ' new scientist, vol.

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  voltaire

  This was my first clue that JWs don't have the truth. Any thinking person surely will ask themselves, "Why do they teach it if there is no evidence for it and they don't believe it themselves?" This led me to begin investigating the origional quotes. The crass dishonesty and/or ignorance of anyone who misuses the quotes of another in such a fashion is the only proof I need that such a person(and the organization that supports its publication) is not from God. I sincerely hope that the society merely lifted these quotes from other sources. I truly suspect this is the case. If so, they are at worst uninformed. If they have read the origional sources and continue to use them, they are guilty of fraud.