It's just a religious twist on the invisible clothes on the very visible ruler:
The emperor is naked, ... and he's fat and ugly too!
Oubliette
JoinedPosts by Oubliette
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Invisible Rulership - one of the dumbest things I ever believed in
by Black Man inhaving now been out of the cult for a few years, it really shocks me about some of the nonsense i used to believe in.
like for instance, christ ruling in the midst of his enemies, but doing so invisibly.. let's let that one sink in for a minute.
you've supposedly got a king who is ruling for a kingdom, but it is an invisible rule.
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On respect for the belief of others. Sorry for the long post
by StarTrekAngel ini am inclined to start this thread in response to some comments made in other threads.
i have been coming around these forum for quite some time now so whatever you find in here is not just related to something someone may have said this week.
it can go months back as well.. i have seen many who claim to respect the belief of others but when it comes down to applying it into practice, things take a whole different tune.
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Oubliette
Xanthippe: I think it's because a person's identity, their belief about the purpose of life and their view on life after death are usually tied up with their religion.
Good point.
So because they take it personally, they respond that way even though the instigating comments were directed at beliefs, beliefs which the person making the original comments might not even know the other person holds.
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On respect for the belief of others. Sorry for the long post
by StarTrekAngel ini am inclined to start this thread in response to some comments made in other threads.
i have been coming around these forum for quite some time now so whatever you find in here is not just related to something someone may have said this week.
it can go months back as well.. i have seen many who claim to respect the belief of others but when it comes down to applying it into practice, things take a whole different tune.
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Oubliette
In a deliberate attempt to redirect this thread back to the OP, it seems that many here feel that you can't disagree without it becoming a personal issue to them. Although they will deny it, their responses indicate otherwise.
I have enjoyed many excellent discussions on this forum where people are free to express their differing viewpoints with respect and are respected in return. I have also experienced the exact opposite.
With the intention of getting the discussion back on track, I have these two questions:
Why do you think this is?
What is the best way to address the situation?
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On respect for the belief of others. Sorry for the long post
by StarTrekAngel ini am inclined to start this thread in response to some comments made in other threads.
i have been coming around these forum for quite some time now so whatever you find in here is not just related to something someone may have said this week.
it can go months back as well.. i have seen many who claim to respect the belief of others but when it comes down to applying it into practice, things take a whole different tune.
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Oubliette
OC: people who have invested their time and life into a profession deserve respect, not ridicule.
Thank you!
I think this latest exchange illustrates why the GB doesn't want any of their sheeple to get an education. They don't have any and they don't want their "followers" to know more than they do.
Did you happen to see the latest Pew Research Center's Religious Landscape Study? It contains some very informative results concerning JWs. In reference to education, only 95 of JWs complete college and only 3% get graduate degrees. The WTBTS's policy against Higher Education has resulted in a religion with the most ignorant membership in the country, no doubt the world.
JWs ranked lowest in relying on common sense among the 12 groups reported. They were also among the lowest in using science and reason.
Very disturbing indeed.
Oubliette -
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It's official - JWs have least common sense of any religious group in US
by slimboyfat insome fascinating results in the latest pew research.
(how did i miss this before?
) including that jws rely on their religion the most of any group to tell right from wrong and rely on common sense the least.
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Oubliette
Also the lowest, or very near it, in science & reason. -
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Oubliette
LisaRose: I sometimes wonder if Rubber Face is personally responsible for waking up more people than JWN.
He had more to do with me leaving this religion than any other single individual.
I would see/listen to him give talks at conventions and just couldn't believe that any God would chose this moron as a leader in His religion.
Ultimately, this idiot's behavior was instrumental in me taking a much closer look at other aspects of the religion which had been bothering me. (Can you say, "Nagging doubts?")
The rest is, as they say: History!
Let's review: It's a cult!
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Oubliette
And everyone of them is ugly!
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372
On respect for the belief of others. Sorry for the long post
by StarTrekAngel ini am inclined to start this thread in response to some comments made in other threads.
i have been coming around these forum for quite some time now so whatever you find in here is not just related to something someone may have said this week.
it can go months back as well.. i have seen many who claim to respect the belief of others but when it comes down to applying it into practice, things take a whole different tune.
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Oubliette
Thanks, Azor.
I know that often I need to spend some time thinking about things before they make sense to me.
Although I've been trained as a scientist for most of my life, it's only in the last few years as an educator that I've really thought deeply about what it means to think this way. It has made a huge difference for me that I spend a great deal of time teaching these concepts to young adults. I have to be very clear in how I use language and how I explain things.
A few more thoughts on your previous comments that may help clarify it for any that are still not getting it:
It is as appropriate to say, "I am pro-science," as it is to say, "I am anti-religion."
Or similarly, "I am in favor of education and evidence-based knowledge and opposed to old wives' tales, superstition and myth."
Sometimes we just need to spend some time with things and let them come together in our mind. Unfortunately, this is very antithetical to how we were indoctrinated to "think" while in the JW cult.
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372
On respect for the belief of others. Sorry for the long post
by StarTrekAngel ini am inclined to start this thread in response to some comments made in other threads.
i have been coming around these forum for quite some time now so whatever you find in here is not just related to something someone may have said this week.
it can go months back as well.. i have seen many who claim to respect the belief of others but when it comes down to applying it into practice, things take a whole different tune.
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Oubliette
Not really. Reality is a concept. Science is a way of learning about it.
It would be silly to say, "I'm pro-reality."
But it makes perfect sense to say, "I'm in favor of a scientific approach to trying to understand reality, especially in comparison to what religion has to offer on the subject!"
I'm not being pedantic here, this is what science is. Scientists use the term much differently than the average person in everyday conversation.
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372
On respect for the belief of others. Sorry for the long post
by StarTrekAngel ini am inclined to start this thread in response to some comments made in other threads.
i have been coming around these forum for quite some time now so whatever you find in here is not just related to something someone may have said this week.
it can go months back as well.. i have seen many who claim to respect the belief of others but when it comes down to applying it into practice, things take a whole different tune.
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Oubliette
Azor: I don't understand the term pro science.
While we sometimes use the word "science" in connection with a particular field of study (biology, chemistry or physics, for example), it really is a philosophical world view.
Note this definition: Science - the intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment.
Science is a system or approach for acquiring knowledge.
As such, a person could most definitely be for or against this particular approach to knowledge and understanding. It certainly undermines any person or group claiming to have revealed knowledge and to be the sole possessors of it.
This explains why the GB of JWs, for example, are anti-science, although not explicitly. Their anti-science stance is subtle, but it is definitely firmly entrenched in their "theology," doctrines, policies and practices.