Posts by Buster

9

I've Started Studying With a JW...

by ApagaLaLuz in

jw
friends

ive started a bible study.

my cousin (63 yrs.

old by the way) is very well versed in his scripture.

Buster

Chevy, I just can't picture how such a study would get started. Even without a WTS publication, the JW will take the JW approach to a bible study. I don't think it matters too much as to who picks the topic. [the following logic 'lifted' from Ray Franz] A dubbie thinks it makes perfect sense to tie 'Matthew Chapter this' to 'Daniel verse that' as though the scriptures were written in some cosmic form of a jigsaw puzzle. It is how they approach it. They tink that the word of God was set down for some priviledged few to interpret and mete out to the rest of us as they see fit.

I can say this, if I was to sit with a JW, I would let them cite a scripture. But then I would get ahold sf some readily available bible commentary and discuss the context. I would read the surrounding verses and the entire chapter. I would first make the dubbie defend their choice of the scripture, given its context. Then I would challenge them to make the connections they claim are there. They would fail, abysmally.

I don't think I've ever met a dubbie that could tell why a certain book was written, or what Paul's ideas of community were. Tehy look at the elephant from 4 inches away, and have no idea of what they see.

Good luck. Please keep us posted.

20

Help she is trying to get to my son!!!!!!! FINAL CHAPTER

by Jesika in

jw
friends

ok, well here is the end of this crazy story............................

the court date was set for the 17th (monday).

i got my new next door neighbor to represent me and my now x husband.

Buster

Some days are better than others - like when you read news like this.

Congrats Jess!!

- Buster

6

the more precise question:

by nowisee in

has anyone found a way to reconcile homosexuality with scripture?

im really interested in an answer to this.

Buster

I haven't. But I'll say that I think many people overstate the homo thing. OK, even if it is against scripture, I can accept the existance of a couple guys that kiss each other one heck of lot faster than I can accept an unscrupulous construction contractor. Even if it is wrong, so is speeding and so is eating an unhealthy diet. I don't think it needs to be reconciled, just put in perspective.

4

Where does the $ come from?

by azaria in

jw
friends

i had a conversation with a jw lady recently and she proudly stated that they didn't pass the collection plate, like the churches do.

to me a rose by any other name is still a rose.

to pay the bills ( hall, hydro, phone, charity etc, etc) the money has to come from somewhere.

Buster

I read an interesting thread recently regarding cults. Folks were throwing around various definitions of a 'cult.' One poster put up a snippet from a book or some such that has stuck in my mind: The fact that they do not pass a plate is MORE cultish.

Someone has to pay for that stuff. Making the finances a 'covert op' simply forces the org to be more and more control oriented in order to ensure that the individuals are contributing.

43

Would you take your shoes off?

by Golden Girl in

if you went to someones house as a guest and they asked you to take your shoes off..would you?..would you be offended?....

does anyone know if this is proper etiquette?.

didn't know where else to post this........ my daughter was invited to a neighbors house and they requested people remove their shoes!...she never had anyone ask her that before.

Buster

It was a rare request when I lived in the Northeast. But here in the Pacific Northwest, most people will leave shoes at the door - a clear sign that they would like you to do likewise. I have always attributed it to the rainy days. My wife bought a bunch of pairs of slippers to offer to guests.

From Whittier CA?

by Buster in

but i had a close frind that was.

he moved back to ca from ma in '76.

his name was tim reese, parents dave and mary.

Buster

I'm not. But I had a close frind that was. He moved back to CA from MA in '76. His name was Tim Reese, Parents Dave and Mary. I guess there is more than one cong..

Does anyone know/remember them? I would love to know how they are.

22

Should we let 13 yr. old daughter go with JW sisters and husbands?

by Robotnomore in

my wife and i resigned from the wtbs last year.

we have a 13 yr. old daughter left at home.

we have 2 married daughters that have nothing to do with us but want to associate with their little sister.

Buster

No.

Your down to one remaining child, in more than one sense. That one remaining is the only one with a reasonable chance of a cult-free life. Don't deny her that.

16

sharring my secrets

by kls in

jw
friends

you all are so special, i just finished reading the thread i posted the other day and again you all made me cry(probably girl thing) not in a bad way but in a happy way,sometimes i think i found you guys just in time.so because of your caring i would like to share my life story,no i won,t drag it on.i was raised in a home with two sisters and a brother,i was the youngest ,i am three years younger then one sister ,ten years between my other sister and twelve years younger then my brother.father was a beater,belts,boards but his favorite was his fists,i went to school with plenty of black eyes and lying were they came from.my older sister and brother were married and out of the house and very seldom visited.as kids my brother and sister were beat also so there was alot of tenson when they did visit.so with my one sister and me we take the beatings for them and hide in our rooms hoping we didn,t do any thing to irritate our parents.my mother , i swear she would blow things out of perportion just to see us get beat , i think because she was beat so offen by my dad , i would hear them in my room at night or in the day , the shit would start to fly and we just hid.my parents were both drinkers but usually it was moderate until i was about ten years old and my sister was twelve, the drinking became out of control especially for my mom,fights got more intense till it was like living in a war zone.it got to the point that my mother never left her bedroom and was drunk twentyfour hrs.

a day, not even coming out to eat.my dad ,sister and me would do the shopping and cleaning and cooking.life was ,well for my sister and me was becoming normal .then one day coming home from school ,i see the police, my older sister and brother are there..odd, they are all crying and inform me dad killed himself and they just took his body.

well , we have funeral moms drunk at , and all of a sudden everyone is gone to their own lives while my sister and me are stealing food to live.

Buster

Man that sounds like a rough ride!

Looking forward to the rest, thanks for shaing.

26

Fred Said: The Mustard Seed

by refiners fire in

here is something interesting.

its about the parable of the mustard seed as interpreted in the days of the watchtowers key prophetic interpreter, the inimitable freddie franz.

its from the book: mans salvation out of world distress at hand (1975) and is gleaned from pages 206 209. the exposition commences by talking about christendom:

Buster

When I read Freddie's stuff, I get the sense that at least from the 60's, there was no one in the org with the clout to challenge him on anything doctrinal. Stuff he writes seems to get thru without editing, except perhaps editing for syntax and spelling. It is impossible to imagine that someone read those passages from the 70's, with an editorial eye, and said, "yup, that makes sense, print it!"

It is difficult to picture a group of serious, diligent men reading this crap and still believing they were promulgating the word of God.

By the way, as I read the excerpts, I got the sense that he claimed that the tree represents a counterfeit kingdom simply because the JWs have always been a small sect. The JWs could not fit into the parable if the tree applied to them.

23

Masonic Symbols On The Cover Of The Draw Close To Jehovah Book

by ColdRedRain in

.

i don't know if anybody has noticed yet, but today, i folded in the cover of the "draw close to jehovah" book and i noticed the bible turns into a pyramid, the clouds turn into a masonic "s" on top of that pyramid and "jehovah" becomes "jah".. freaky....

Buster

For the next short while, I think this will be my hobbyhorse. I've ordered some books and will do some reading. So far, I have read some web sites and read threads here. I am not a big 'conspiracy theory' kind of guy - but I am intrigued. If I was to guess where this'll take me: I doubt I'll find anything I consider conclusive proof. But I've seen enough to believe that the Society has had in it's employ more than one artist with a sense of humor and/or a practical joker. Such a person would be a disgruntled, under-appreciated slave (at Bethel ?) counting time 'til he can return home and fade out.

I'm looking forward to the investigation.