Posts by JamesThomas

40

What is the truth?

by hardtobeme in

jw
friends

that is what my professor of philosophy asked us last night at class.. he said that pontius pilate asked jesus that question and that it was a hard one that jesus couldn't answer.. what do you think about this question?

what is the truth?

does the gb has any truth?

JamesThomas

Can truth be defined from a fanciful position; or understood viewed through a lens of delusion?

Perhaps the foundational-truth – that many seem to be seeking in various degrees – can only be known via the light of our own true identity.; or in other words: by seeing clearly from and as we truly and genuinely are, rather than through what we merely think, assume or believe ourselves to be.

Stop for a moment, can it be seen that everything ever thought, believed, felt, and experienced as our entire existence is an ever-changing movement unfolding before a silent, unmoving presence that is closer and more intimately “self” than any cognizant thought, emotion or occurrence? What/who are we really?

Just asking.

113

Are you religious or are you spiritual? Wake up to what?

by Deltawave in

there is a huge difference between been religious and been spiritual.

been religious is about been superior to others in the sight of god.

however, been spiritual is about self awareness, inner peace and unity with the natural world.

JamesThomas

...belief takes a holiday from reality

Well said.

The question remains: what beliefs, religious or otherwise, presently blinds us to what is genuine?

Radically and thoroughly subtract all beliefs and abstract mental concepts and stories about self and other -- and what remains? What is real?

22

How do JW's know that the bible is inspired?

by cappytan in

asked a friend of mine this question the other day.

here was his answer: "well, because paul said, 'all scripture is inspired of god...'".

but seriously, that argument is like saying, "the bible is inspired because it says so!

JamesThomas

Is the Bible inspired?

When I take a serious look at life and nature I am overwhelmed by its complexity and beauty.

When I take a serious look at the Bible I am perplexed by its childish contradiction and foolishness.

Personally, I have all the proof I need, that the Bible is not inspired by anything other than man's imagination.

14

Missing the point?! Is this what Jesus had in mind??

by Deltawave in

is this what jesus had in mind?

to be a spiritual person you must:.

underline your books.

JamesThomas

Delta,

I personally have no way of knowing what Jesus had in mind, or if he even existed. Other than that I pretty much agree with what you are saying.

Religious beliefs are generally just words and thoughts; abstract concepts weaved by the fantastic imagination of the mind that are far removed from any actual reality or truth that they proclaim to contain.

Every thought ever thought and every word ever written about a tree, is not a tree.

16

Are Jehovah's Witnesses ever "good enough", must they remain anxious and fragile for fear they will not be saved by their works?

by Trailer Park Pioneer in

as a jehovah's witness you know you can never do enough without hearing stories of another witness doing twice what your doing and living off half the money your living on because they give all their time and money to the watchtower.

this is totally bunk, reading romans 7:21-24 paul knew his condition was hopeless without the free gift from god.

paul put all his emphasis on jesus christ, not some self-appointed apostles whose proof offered up is over 150 years of failed prophecy!

JamesThomas

If you worship an immoral deity know to commit genocide at the drop of a hat, you are never good enough. You can only hope that within the myriad to be killed, you are somehow over-looked.

That's the price paid when reality is exchanged for words in a book.

160

"The organisation is imperfect, but it doesn't affect my relationship with Jehovah"

by Alive! in

i've noted active, devoted jw's state the above.. and, it's not a problem for me to remain trusting of god, i just don't trust religions or men.. recently, a member of this forum stated that he remains an active jw, in the family of god's people, wanting to encourage and do good - whilst recognising that the pastoral leaders (the gb) have shipwrecked the faith of many, being unsound scripturally etc, etc.. stop and think about this - the bible says to not follow after those who lie and hurt the faith of "little ones".. the pharisees were accused of traversing over lands and expending much energy to make a single convert - only for that convert to end up worse of than he started off with.. it's one thing to not believe this is the 'truth' and feeling the awful pressure of managing ones life, trying not to lose ones family.. it's quite another thing to declare oneself to be a christian believer of god's jw household, and somehow believe the god of love would use corrupt liars to parade as jesus' brothers in the urgency of last days.

really?

and, to then visibly promote faith in corrupt men, and try to bring converts into a place where the rulership is wrong.. some of us are dying from hurt here.......give me a break..

JamesThomas

When people surrender their life to a primitive tribal deity created by ignorant sheep herders thousands of years ago, don't expect any sane activity to follow.

12

Christ in You The Hope of Glory:Being Realized

by hopeofglory in

the mystery of the ages was revealed to the gentiles 2000 years ago.

the mystery is "christ in you, the hope of glory" (colossians 1:27).

the churches do not and never will teach this even though it was revealed to the gentiles.

JamesThomas

The mystery of the ages was revealed way before 2000 years ago. Restrictive time tables and names is only a product of the story-telling mind.

That said, Hopeofglory, I feel your core message is a very noble one. However, the language of Christian mysticism is extremely awkward and often contradictory. Why use the Bible and its phraseology in an attempt at a pure message when the book itself is so full of crap? It is also an extremely confusing exercise in non-duality via duality.

What you are trying to convey ultimately has nothing to do with religion or belief systems at all, so why use language that is overly loaded with preconceived concepts and strong held beliefs? Why muddy the waters? Saying nothing, may be more productive (IMHO).

Perhaps it is best to focus on ourselves; and if we see we are standing on a soapbox delivering an earthshaking message, it is likely a huge ego at play, and we have made no real progress at all.

Better to be like a salt doll thrown in a river.

Does this make any sense?

16

The Bible Does Not Say - But ...

by berrygerry in

painfully reading an article of may 15, 2015 (extra-simplified edition) and again observed this phraseology: the bible does not say, but .... so, did satan hope to tempt her with the luxurious palaces of pharaoh and abimelech?

did satan think that she would betray her husband and even jehovah by marrying one of those kings?

the bible does not say, but it is very likely that the devil would have been overjoyed if sarah had lost the opportunity to become part of the messiahs family line.. .

JamesThomas

There are 33,000+ different Christian denominations and likely no two interpret the words in the Bible the same. Little wonder so many run to the Bible for “truth” as you can pretty much adapt it to say whatever you want it to.........but then – that's pretty much the antithesis of truth.

10

With Jehovah's HELP

by B4Right in

how many times have you said that phrase?.

how often have you heard it in conversation with the friends?.

how often have you heard it in talks?.

JamesThomas

When we, like most people, confuse thoughts and beliefs generated by the mind as 'reality' then asking help from a imaginary deity created by ancient desert tribesmen may appear to make sense.

However, if we have let-go all beliefs and ideas regarding a God/Truth/Source, and have awakened to the indescribably genuine and vibrant presence of Life in and around us, then there is no reason or need to reach-out to the make-believe.

10

A Toast to Windchimes

by DarioKehl in

i recently researched on jw dot org why toasts are not allowed.

in the article, they candidly admit that wedding bands also have pagan origins, but their modern understanding trumps this fact since they serve another function: signifying whether or not a person is married.

same with neck ties, i guess (although their pagan origins were not mentioned in the article).

JamesThomas

When we replace the living reality of life with ideas, words and beliefs from a book(s) or magazines, then our 'life' becomes extremely narrow and subtracts most everything.

A wise question may be: in what ways am I doing that now?