according to the november wt study article, there a study lesson about 7 shepherds, and 8 dukes.
the interesting thing is par 17. it instructs the elders to not question the instrutions they receive during an modern day asyrian attack.
maybe some kool aid is coming.
Duke ? Definition:
A Duke (male) or Duchess (female) can either be a monarch ruling
over a Duchy or a member of the Nobility, historically of highest rank
below the Monarch. The title comes from French duc, itself from the
Latindux, 'leader', a term used in Republican Rome to refer to a
military commander without an official rank (particularly one of
Germanic or Celtic origin), and later coming to mean
the leading military commander of a province.
ive been around this board for quite awhile.
it has helped immensely.
lately i just read everyone elses experiences and try and forget the whole nightmare...but i cant.
When I divorced her embezzling mother (we owned our own business)
she and her mother stayed in the cult.
My son and I left. Since then she has shunned her brother,
myself and her 93 year-old grandmother.
This is your daughter we are talking about? Not your ex-wife ?
And the grown daughter, shuns her paternal grandmother?
Your mother? Or is it her maternal grandmother, your wife's mother?
You and your grown son are making this video ? To shame his sister
in front of her co-workers? Is it possible to send the video just to your
daughter ? You might remind her of some Biblical principels like ;
Honor you mother ( that includes grandmothers ) and many other Biblical
references to caring for relatives, the elderly and loving one another.
1 Timothy 5:8 and Exodus 20:12 Try not to seem like the bad guys.
Rather , be the voice of reason, justice, and love.
Appeal to her heart, and her compassion and goodness ( all witnesses think
they are good and doing the right thing ) If that doesn't work, then send the
video to her co-workers as a last resort.
i know there are some here that are going through some tough times.
some of you do not believe in god.
some are not sure.. i was told recently by a friend to pray to god for help and he would comfort me.. my first impulse is to pray.
No one here can tell you what to believe.
Atheists tend to be more vocal and adamant than people
who retain a personal world view that is not atheistic but may
not be connected to any particular group. Most evangelists of this
board seem to be atheist evangelists. Ignore the opinion of others.
You have been held in the grips of the Borg who demands uniformity
on punishment of banishment or death. To doubt deeply held beliefs
feels like you are dying at first, and you are, "He who loses his life will
find it." That is what Jesus said. He was a non conformist.
If you mention God here you will be mocked. Mockery; is the
tool of children, they mock everything. See it for what it is;
Fear disguised as Power, Inertia disguised as Action,
lack of imagination disguised as intelligence.
i'm on the brink of publishing my book.
here are some survey questions that will help me make some important decisions.. if you were ever going to actually buy a book about an ex-jehovah's witness conscientious objector who went to prison, would you:.
a. prefer the book to be 8 1/2 x 11 ?.
(A) Define your audience, is it ex-jws only ? Or the general public?
(B) Define the purpose and structure:
Is it primarily biographical ?
Is this your personal biography ?
Or is it a sort of "Self Help" book or and
"Instruction Manual", or a "History of Religion" ?
(C) Don't ramble: always keep the audience in mind.
Plan where you are taking them and why.
Make the trip interesting with details.
Who, Why, What and Where, logical development.
If it has no characters and no narrative then
it should at least make sense, have a clear, definable path,
a beginning, a middle and and end that satisfies and resolves.
(D) Develop interest by good storytelling, by building atticipation,
decribing conflict and resoving conflict. If you introduce characters
make them understandable to the audience, remember the reader
cannot read your mind or guess your motives, you have to show
the reader, and remain objective and fair. Don't preach, don't whine.
Everyone can write, but not everyone can write.
i work with the school overseer so he'll be with me all day before the meeting...so being 'sick' isn't an option.
this really isn't like me to weasel my way out of something....but i've been ridiculously depressed lately and honestly i just don't have it in me to do anything let alone put a talk together.
everytime i do one it takes allot out of me and let's just say the well is pretty dry.
noonehome - leave a message on your voicemail that says - no one home.
Tell them you have a Yoga class that day and time. Then really go out and sign up
for a Yoga class. It will relieve the stress of all the lying you are doing. Tell them
you are suffering from severe cognitive dissonance. Tell them you suddeny realized
you are one of 144,000 and you need to time to comune with the Holy Spirit.
this is the kind of thing that really burns me.. .
wtbts holds out an extreme double standard in regards to education.
most, if not all, of you know how they feel about obtaining an education past high school (in the u.s.).
Sigh - Tech49 , your preachin' to the choir, as the saying goes.
Been there. But I am amazed they pull this off decade after decade,
generation after generation.
I was a 15 year old "convert", now I have
grandchildren. I married at 18 to a 35 year old "brother"
a dumb as a stone, janitor, who slept through meetings
and was brain dead. I married him to "be in the truth".
I left him to raise my daughter on my own and go
to university, a long struggle.
A longer struggle to truly free my spiritual life.
The stunted, undeveloped talent, the wasted time,
the absurd pressures to believe it is the only way to
"salvation" the "only true religion" How do some of us
manage to live a split life ? How did I manage to get a
university degree and attend meetings at the same time
while being treated like a second class citizen in the congregation ?
What was missing in my brain that allowed me to subject
myself to these absurdities ?
reading julia's comment about how she and her husband have become the epitome of evil (lol) moved me to post.
i have several family members and close friends that have faded or simply walked away.
each of them has chosen a different course.
My journey away from the WT led me to take a good look at myself
and how I viewed other people. Instead of the "US" and "THEM" thinking
of the WT, gradually learned to connect honestly and respect people.
I learned the meaning of real love and friendship, not conditional on
bowing down to arrogant, dishonest, false leaders and wolves in sheeps clothing.
I never lost my belief in God or my apprecaition of the extreme beauty
and complexity of this planet and universe. I continue to search for authenticity,
for meaningful and honest relationships and to do work that inspires and
is creative. Just seeing things without the warped and judgemental slant the
WT puts on everyone and everything. Being able to breathe freely.
Its not all or nothing, its shades of all colors in between.
There is no "be a witness or be evil" that is absurd.
Its be real or be a fraud. No more special language,
just honest plain speech . No more delusion I have "special knowledge"
There is nothing "special" in anything the Watchtower has ever taught.
ok i have been fading fast, missed a lot of meetings over the past couple of months and the kids think its mostly do to my being busy with work.
this morning was probably the first sunday that i was home and could go but did not.
so my 8 year old asked me if i was going and why when i said no.
USE - The JW doctrine from 2,000 year old sexist middle eastern culture
"I am the head of the house." This is no time to wimp out.
Stand up to her. Tell her she will not rule you or rule your house.
( and this is coming from the queen of feminism )
But I am guessing this is not a submissive woman.
Remind her she is supposed to be submissive according to the WT.
You as the man and "head of the house" do not have to make excuses to her.
You work and provide for her? You house and clothe and provide everything
for her and your children ? Take charge. Start taking that 8 years old on
some weekend outings to do fun stuff. And if she gives you "attitude"
tell her, you do not want to see "attitude"
Get the JW smile pasted on her face.
Tell her she is to BACK-OFF and forbid any interrogations
from her, or from elders. Don't let them BULLY you.
Stand your ground, do NOT explain yourself.
As soon as you try to explain yourself you play into their very
convoluted shame game. Point out to her, you have a right
to stay away from meeting, you have right to be with your children,
and to do as you see fit . Do not allow her to talk you DOWN to the children,
or criticsize you. No critism will be tolerated of the "Head of the House",
remind her she took vows to obey you.
Tell her what her place is, draw the line.
Defend yourself.
i don't mean the 'unruly men who cook up wicked reasoning and season their brew with poisonous lies that deceive minds' definition.... i mean - who are they actually referring to when they are doing these awful talks at the conventions about the mentally diseased apostates etc.. specifically - is an 'apostate' someone who was actually baptised (baptized for you american's ) ?
or can someone who was simply raised in "the truth" but left and was never baptised be classified as this lying, deceiving, mentally diseased apostate also?
or am i considered to be an apostate - even though i wasn't raised in the cult, never went to a meeting etc.
Anybody who even dares to suggest the governing body
and the faithful and discreet slave doctrine
are not biblical and no such WT world order exists.
Anybody who tries to discuss scriptures aside from
exactly what is printed in the WT or the "literture"
"Apostate" is the jehovah's wittness bogeyman.
Its all about fear, threat of abandonment,
and the opposite of "truth"
since my family is out of town, and i am alone this weekend, i have decided to attend this once to see these things for myself.
have no fear, i have absolutely no interest in joining.
my goal is simply to better understand how to reach those who are on the inside, and i feel i could better do that by observing it.
BRAGGING, and arrogance, and ignorance, and fear;
a lot of; We are the best. We live in a spiritual paradise,
Only we have the faithful and discreet salve. We are protected.
We are safe, as long as we obey the Governing Body.
We have special knowledge no one else has, only we have the truth.
WE are the only ones God loves. "Worldly" people live immoral lives.
We are the only righteous ones. The END is near, don't get a life.
As long as you keep it superficial, its a social club, but never question
anything written in literature and especially never question the authority
of the Governing Body or any of their actions. Then the smiles will disappear
and the shunning and hearts of stone will reveal themselves. Do lunch but
do not do any real probbing or you will either be assimulated into the Borg or
the Borg will neutralize you.
I think that sums it up ?
