Posts by StrongHaiku

16

Eyebrows up!... Eyebrows down!...

by Splash in

today... i'm going to talk to you..... about "sisters!!".

now our dear sisters... have a place ... in god's organisation.

they are not permitted to teach!.

StrongHaiku

Good Lord what a horrifying and creepy look Lett has. Good old-fashioned nightmare fuel. Thanks! He looks like Jabba the Hutt eating a McRib sandwich.

14

if we are to look at matthew 1:17, looks like there were 42 generations from abraham to jesus.. if we take 1948 bce (abraham's birth) and we take it to jesus baptisim (29 ce) we get to 1,977 years.. so lets divide 1977 years by 42 (the amount of generations), we get to around 47 years for one generation.. 1 generation = 47 years.. 1 generation + an overlapping generation (1 generation more) = 94 years.. this is all in the first chapter of the new testament..... comments welcome.....

StrongHaiku

@Splash, thank you so much for your clear explanation. I think I finally get it and how absolutely convoluted it is. Every time I heard the "overlapping generation" explanation it reminded me of the Marx Brother's "Contract Scene" from "A Night at the Opera" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6u8AgUXPpLM).

303

The best reasonable, rational, intelligent discussion on religion I've ever seen

by TerryWalstrom in

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hl6e4emx-4k

StrongHaiku

I like to believe that "religion" will eventually be redefined as what it is; stories and metaphors from people who knew very little about nature and the cosmos. Humans are storytellers and we will continue to tell stories in word and art. But, I like to believe that modernity will continue to move "religion" to the confines of storytelling and strip off its unchallenged authority.

I dearly hope that "religion" will lose it's privileged status and that faith will stop being a virtue. Otherwise, in a thousand years we'll be fighting "holy" wars on who shot first, "Han Solo or Greedo"...

But, then again, I could be wrong... (said by no one ever in the GB)

71

Are we heading for III World War?

by abiather in

the leaders of russia, germany, france and ukraine are slated to meet in minsk (the belarusian capital) tomorrow to discuss a ukrainian peace plan!

some countries such as hollande believe there is going to be a total war.

when they met last year in the same place, they had put forward a peace plan (a ceasefire, withdrawal of artillery, prisoner exchanges and other concessions) that were never fully implemented!

StrongHaiku

Eschatology, gotta love it. It always seems to me that it is less about "prophecy" and "serving God" and more of a coping mechanism for the day-to-day problems people encounter in real life. It seems to comfort people who can't deal with their anger at big and small injustices. "You put too much sugar in my coffee. Ha, ha... Someday you will pay for that at 'Armageddon'. See who laughs last...That'll show you."

Eschatology smacks to me like destruction porn for the impotent and insecure.

25

Do the Rank & File JW's REALLY read and understand the bible to be able to REALLY start a study with someone???

by ADJUSTMENTS in

i believe the average rank & file are illiterate when it come to the bible because they are so used to using the wbats cliff notes... even though i believe the bible is a fiction novel, at least be able to explain a novel you hold is such high regard: i mean jesus!!!

.

StrongHaiku

I used to remember all of the books of the Bible by singing them out. For the Old-Testament book use "This Old Man" ("With a knick knack paddy wack...") and for the NT use "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star". I've been out 25 years and that still works. ;-)

21

Giving comments at meetings that cause cognitive dissonance while keeping yourself below elder radar for apostasy

by Brokeback Watchtower in

well i'm sure we can come up with clever comments that make people feel uncomfortable by serving to decompartmentalize things that have been compartmentalized in the thinking of the average jw.

or comments that make the cognitive dissonance stand out plainly, these have to be said in innocent manner and with an apparent obliviousness to the contradiction.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/compartmentalization_%28psychology%29.

StrongHaiku

Brokeback Watchtower12 hours ago

Also even more effective is giving a private statements that cause cognitive dissonance but done with complete innocent expression and obliviousness to the contradictions.
Yep. Good reminder...Innocent questions can be very powerful...

21

Giving comments at meetings that cause cognitive dissonance while keeping yourself below elder radar for apostasy

by Brokeback Watchtower in

well i'm sure we can come up with clever comments that make people feel uncomfortable by serving to decompartmentalize things that have been compartmentalized in the thinking of the average jw.

or comments that make the cognitive dissonance stand out plainly, these have to be said in innocent manner and with an apparent obliviousness to the contradiction.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/compartmentalization_%28psychology%29.

StrongHaiku

How about making the comment and adding the words "I guess?" at the end. No. Don't do that. That'll just get you in trouble...

51

What JW's are afraid of~

by kairos in

just putting together a mental list:.

jehovah .

jesus.

StrongHaiku

51

What JW's are afraid of~

by kairos in

just putting together a mental list:.

jehovah .

jesus.

StrongHaiku

Great answers... I would argue that they are more afraid of life than of death because every day is another opportunity where they could slip up and lose everything...

I think this is why many JWs will still rather die than take blood. For many the idea of dying for their faith is very strong. I think many JWs are the same type of people who would martyr themselves (and others) in a public square.

56

2014 increase in Memorial Partakers to 14,121

by jwfacts in

i have updated the article at memorial partakers with the figures released for 2014. no surprises here, it has risen yet again, this time by 6% over last year, and is now 14,121.. .

.

StrongHaiku

My Mother started partaking around 1982 (she was in her mid-thirties at the time). She married a brother and soon after he was partaking. Soon, other people in the hall got "anointed-fever". I have not talked with them in years but I recently found out through the grapevine that my nephew and his Dad may be partaking in the next memorial. I'm starting to think there are high-levels of "midi-chlorians" in my family. ;-)

I have been out for 25 years but I am sure that the numbers are waaaaay higher than what they report. As already pointed out by posters, many partake in private and/or are "discounted" as "mentally ill/imbalanced", etc. I was an MS at the time and I remember given directions by the elders on who to count or not. Crazy.

Glad to be now be an atheist where I don't have to pretend to understand all of this nonsense.