so i ran into this brother whom ive known for a while and the conversation led into me being invited to come back to the kingdom hall.
we talked for about an hour during which time i explained to him 607 being the wrong date and a lot of other stuff including the child abuse cases in australia.
but what i wanted to relate was the last few minutes of our conversation.
I agree with the main statement of this thread.
A person's religion is often the foundation of their paradigm or their "reality and identity".
They are not going to look outside their little bubble-of-self – unless there is something that they have already observed themselves that has caused a crack to allow a little light through. Without the crack, nothing we can say will make them shoot their false-sense of reality/self, in the head.
i've thought and said too much to ever gain jehovahs forgiveness and love if i want to be a christian again.
i made a topic on my unforgivable sin and blaspemy of the holy spirit.. i feel saddness everyday having no relationship with god, no religion and fear of the afterlife.
even when i was kid i feared death and the end of the world.
Dear, dear, 06...,
Relax. Go for a nice quite walk in nature with a question: " Is a primitive tribal "God" believed in by ancient desert nomads, responsible for all this unimaginable wonder and beauty? Or is there something infinitely huge and intimately close that our tiny minds can not comprehend that is the genuine Source?" Feel the answer. Don't think it.Be still, and see your anxious thoughts only as clouds in the
wind. because that's all they are.
back in the early 70s, right before 1975 we had about 7 or 8 thousand professed anointed.
cant remember the exact number.
but at every convention we were told that the end is close ---because---the number of anointed is getting smaller and smaller.
And they REALLY, BELIEVE THIS.
Generally we all really believe what the mind tells us, as we have not yet awaken enough to see that we silently watch the mind, and it is not what we are.
Do you know that?
so the other day i was walking through the huge local regional outlet shopping mall.
i see this sign "how do deal with anxiety" didn't take very long at all to confirm it was a jw booth.. that sign bothered me.
do jw actually think they have something to say about anxiety?
(IMHO) Anxiety is a mind-body thing that is generally (but not always) brought on by how we are thinking. Which can include what we are thinking about emotions and senses in th body. The body may feel something similar to fear and then the mind creates some story around it that can cause more fear..
Meditation is good for anxiety as is learning to witness your thoughts and realize you are not your thoughts. Also being open to the feelings within the body and not creating a story about them. Just silently watch and feel.
The worst thing for anxiety is bull-shit religious dogma that sets you against a mean little tribal deity who can supposedly know all your thoughts and so judge you accordingly. This type of psychological terrorism is the farthest thing from genuine help and health over anxiety.
How very sad the JW's are playing this card as if they had a valid answer and cure. When they are part of the problem.
the new testament specialist daniel wallace notes that although there are about 300,000 individual variations of the text of the new testament, this number is very misleading.
most of the differences are completely inconsequential--spelling errors, inverted phrases and the like.
a side by side comparison between the two main text families (the majority text and the modern critical text) shows agreement a full 98% of the time.[18].
I'm going to say what has already been said: So you have a fairly accurate rendition of original ancient mythological writings which foolishly postulates that a tiny, pernicious, patriarchal, tribal deity is the core cause of all life and existence -- unless you collect comic books -- so what?
How about we all bust out of the bubble of extreme ignorance and fairy-tales and embracing the infinite reality of life for a change. Truly the genuine Source of such marvelous wonder must be far, far beyond our little brains and imaginations to comprehend.
I love jumping spiders. In many ways probably far smarter than me.
sometimes i get a strong curiosity to start dabbling into other religions, other faiths, you know?
really different ones such as islam, judaism, hinduism, etc.. has anyone here looked into something else?
has your spirituality been satisfied by any other than christianity?.
in 1897, j.j. thomson discovered the electron.
this was the first constituent part of the atom which, for 2,000 years, was thought to be indivisible.
today, we know of 18 elemental particles following the recent discovery of the higgs boson, the so-called god particle.. back in 1897, most people believed in god because there weren't even any theories as to how the universe came into being.
Perhaps a better question: What Are You Going To Do When Everything You Ever Thought Yourself To Be Is Disproved???
Every thought, idea and belief ever conceived about a tree, is not a tree. Same goes for everything about ourselves.
We constantly focus on the objects of thought, feelings, beliefs, emotions and occurence; and never ever look at what is looking. Who/what are we, really???
What silently observes every and all
dynamics that we call our "personal existence"? What?
Hint: the answer can not be written or spoken; but can only be realized and lived.
how many times have elders read their bible in its entirety?
these are the leaders that give counsel to married couples, to teenagers, to single girls and single boys on everything from marriage, education, sex, association, dress, and recreation..
how well do they know their bible?
Rather than talk about others, do we actually want to embrace what is “Spiritual”?
How about abandoning the Bible and other words
and beliefs about what is "real and true", and quietly -- without thought
and commentary -- spend time in nature that is inherently real
and true. Look, see and feel, can we deeply connect with it?
Perhaps, the TRUTH we seek is not so tiny as to
be absent.
even if you don't regard yourself as a practicing jw, some may view you simply as inactive, a lost sheep, etc.. if you were baptized but not disfellowshipped or disassociated, you may still be a jw---right?
your thoughts please..
My sense is that there are lots of people who visit here on a regular basis who have clearly left the “Jehovah's Witness” religion, but still consider themselves – and perhaps even more so – a true Jehovah's Witness.
To these folks I say: Better to be an atheist, than embrace your heart around the extremely foolish belief that some primitive tribal deity named Yahweh/Jehovah is responsible for all the breathtaking wonder of nature, life and universe!
More sane that you worship a carved wooden doll -- at least there you have some remnant of an actual majestic tree.
Certainly a child can see that the true Source of all existence must be infinity more than the asinine icon found in the pages of the Bible?
Get your head out of your “Holy Scriptures” and take a month long hike in nature and touch bases with reality for a change.
Just say'n.
The JW-GB are no different than most of us.
They are ignorant and numb to the unitive and vibrant reality of life and existence in and around them, and so create a make-believe “reality” out of abstract thoughts and beliefs far removed from what is real.
I suggest we stop looking at others, and look at ourselves.
