Posts by TheSilence

76

Anyone want to try an experiment?

by Lady Lee in

jw
friends

i have been having a discussion with scholar.

and like most discussions with a jw we aren't getting too far.. scholar insists that the wts/jws are known for:are known internationally as a clean and moral peopleour organization alone stands as a beacon of truth, hope and faithadvance people spiritually, emotionally and physically.

there are other wonderful qualities that he attributes to the wts/jws but that is usually the gist of his remarks.. of course most x-jws will say something quite different.. the experiment is this:.

TheSilence

Arrrogant

Condascending

and everything else that Angakuk said.

I have a shop full of them, this is not an uneducated observance.

I think they're doggoned nuisances to my peace and privacy.

Though I will admit that despite what I feel is a really impolite intrusion on my life, the ones I have answered the door to have otherwise shown good manners and have even been occasionally kind and helpful.

I think they can be overzelous (sp?) I don't know anyone personally but I admire thier belife in thier faith. Even if I don't like being woken up at six on a satureday

Here's a list of their beliefs. Here are some of the ones I have a problem with:

-God's name is Jehovah. Sure, that's one name, but there are dozens of names for Him throughout the Bible. Why just that one.

-Christ is God's Son and is inferior to Him. OK, He is God's Son but Jesus is not inferior.

-Christ was first of God's creations. Jesus was not created- He always was, and in fact, there are references to Jesus actually doing the creating. If you want, I can look them up. John something...

-Christ died on a stake, not a cross. That is just the JW's getting picky about translations, IMO.

-Christ's human life was paid as a ransom for obedient humans. No human is entirely obedient. He died for the sinners. That was the whole point- if humans were obedient, He wouldn't have needed to come.

-Kingdom will bring ideal living conditions to earth. Not entirely sure what they mean by this but they obviously are ignoring Revelation.

-Earth will never be destroyed or depopulated. Again, this is contradicted in Revelation.

-Only a little flock of 144,000 go to heaven and rule with Christ. Riiiight. There are that many spared from the trials according to Revelation, that's not the number of souls that will go to heaven. Actually, the numbering in the Bible, especially the last book, is very symbolic and can't always be taken literally.

-The 144,000 are born again as spiritual sons of God. Like I said above, they're taking the number thing too literally.

-A Christian ought to have no part in interfaith movements. A Christian should keep separate from world. "In the world but not of it" is the way the Bible puts it, but it would be contrary to Jesus' example to separate ourselves from unbelievers. Instead of appearing to the rest of the world as wierdo outsiders with a superiority complex, Christians need to be right in the trenches with non-believers and teaching by example and humility. It's not about lecturing and arguing. Maybe that tactic is needed for some but not for most.

-Taking blood into body through mouth or veins violates God's laws. Yes, the laws written in the Old Testament. However, Jesus said that He was providing a new covenant and so the dietary restrictions were nullified. As long as these practice do not cause you or others to waver in the Christian faith, they are acceptable.

-Sabbath observance was given only to Israel and ended with Mosaic Law. It is one of the 10 commandments, and those commandments were broken down to 2 by Jesus while He was teaching: Love God and love your neighbor. The Sabbath is a way to honor God and really it's in our best interest to take the Sabbath anyhow. Anyone who takes a day of rest each week be it a believer or not will agree that one day of doing nothing each week is incredibly renewing.

-A clergy class and special titles are improper. But the Bible also talks about the gifts of the spirit and if leadership and preaching are a persons' gifts then it is improper to ignore those gifts.

This is my perspective on JW's as a Christian. I do not like a lot of their theology and their methods of preaching. It annoys me when they don't know when to quit. The above is my summary of how their faith conflicts with mine. Just because something on their list was left off mine does not necessarily mean I agree with it implicitly but these are the biggest ones.

If needed, I can supply Scriptural references to my POV. However, I don't want to turn this into a debate on the truth or falsity of Christianity or the Bible as a whole; there are other threads for that (and there's a reason I don't try to post there Debate's not my thing). A lot of this is just my opinion in response to a question.

76

Anyone want to try an experiment?

by Lady Lee in

jw
friends

i have been having a discussion with scholar.

and like most discussions with a jw we aren't getting too far.. scholar insists that the wts/jws are known for:are known internationally as a clean and moral peopleour organization alone stands as a beacon of truth, hope and faithadvance people spiritually, emotionally and physically.

there are other wonderful qualities that he attributes to the wts/jws but that is usually the gist of his remarks.. of course most x-jws will say something quite different.. the experiment is this:.

TheSilence

And two more...

The JWs that I know who are just members of the faith are just like everyone else I know...just like normal people, you might say!

The missionaries are another thing...they will NOT take no for an answer. I don't mind someone approaching me and asking if I want to hear more, or whatever, but if I say no, I mean it! Pestering me isn't going to make me more inclined to listen.

and this one that just points to one of the old posts on the forum:

There is an old thread that may be of interest as well. Jehova's Witnesses (spelled thus). There maybe some posts there that you can add? (I'm not about to read it to see .)

on which there are 8 pages of posts that I haven't looked through as yet.

Jackie

76

Anyone want to try an experiment?

by Lady Lee in

jw
friends

i have been having a discussion with scholar.

and like most discussions with a jw we aren't getting too far.. scholar insists that the wts/jws are known for:are known internationally as a clean and moral peopleour organization alone stands as a beacon of truth, hope and faithadvance people spiritually, emotionally and physically.

there are other wonderful qualities that he attributes to the wts/jws but that is usually the gist of his remarks.. of course most x-jws will say something quite different.. the experiment is this:.

TheSilence

Two comments I receieved...

They're people. Humans who believe in a Higher Power, and they have their way of worshipping said Power.

I do know they have a bad rep. but I don't know why. I knew a girl who was (still is) J-W, and she was a great friend.

Why are you conducting this experiment, if I may ask?

and

Dedicated,
Persistent,
Pushy,
Self-righteous,
Narrow-minded.

I think this is very interesting, thank you for the idea.

Jackie

26

The Butterfly Effect

by Rabbit in

jw
friends

it has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly's .

wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway around the world.

--chaos theory

TheSilence

Sure thing ;)

26

The Butterfly Effect

by Rabbit in

jw
friends

it has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly's .

wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway around the world.

--chaos theory

TheSilence

Yes, the alternate ending is on the DVD... just flip it over and play it again. There are a few scenes in the alternate ending that are not in the theatrical ending as well.

Jackie

11

AMAZING Christmas Lights!

by Billygoat in

jw
friends

you guys have to take a look at this.

make sure to have your speakers on.

(i hope the link works.

TheSilence

that is definitely the trans siberian orchestra. i go to their christmas concert every year. if you ever have the opportunity i highly recommend it.

jackie

12

Where are all the people who failed the BIG TEST...?

by upside/down in

isn't it odd that all the crucial contests in the bible between good and evil....involved some human "keeping integrity"?

we know for example what job did... .

were there any guys like job that flat out failed?

TheSilence

If you read fiction at all you might try reading a book by Anne Rice called Memnoch the Devil. It is a part of the vampire chronicles, but really the vampire aspect has little, if anything, to do with the story. I think she used the popularity of the vampire series to get this book out there. Her version of the devil's side of the story is in the book and it's an interesting theory/read.

Jackie

29

Harry Potter

by free2beme in

jw
friends

are you a wizard or a muggle?

anyway, wondering if anyone else if looking forward to the new release.

i already preordered and since my witness family has always said harry potter is demonized, i hope mine comes with the proper evil forces or i will feel like i purchased a defect.

TheSilence

I agree wholeheartedly, Chris. I was a bit disappointed in the order of the pheonix, but the half blood prince has become my favorite of them all so far. The ending was amazing and I've been pestering all my friends to hurry up and finish it so that I can see their reactions ;)

Jackie

61

first a publisher, now GF wants me baptized by Sept...

by Buck in

jw
friends

well i made publisher a couple of weeks ago.

i shared that story on here.

but now iam getting pressured into being baptized in september.

TheSilence

Sometimes you only get one shot at the gold and if you miss, you will have to settle.

...for a woman who loves you despite your relationship or lack thereof with a high control religion.

...for a woman who puts you first in her life, not behind the elders, field service, meetings, and conventions.

...for a woman who understands that your family is important to you and goes with you on your family vacation rather than depriving you of it.

...for a woman who is not sexually hindered by the beliefs and teachings of a group of old men.

...for a woman who is not only confident enough to stand up for her own opinion, but confident enough in hers to let you have yours as well.

...for a woman who believes you should not be forced or coerced into a lifetime commitment that you aren't quite ready to make.

...for a woman who will teach your children to be open minded and loving towards everyone, not just those who subscribe to her religion.

...for a woman who will not berate you for your choice of friends simply because of their religious beliefs.

...for a woman who won't discourage you from having close ties to your family because they are 'bad association'.

...for a woman who is a million things more...

This maybe my gold?

or maybe this is the woman you're settling for because you haven't yet found your gold.

Jackie

121

Who Was Shocked By the Watchtower UN NGO Scandal?

by AlanF in

.

i'd like to get comments from people about whether and how much they were shocked, surprised, or otherwise bothered by the watchtower society's becoming an associated non-governmental organization (ngo).. note that i'd like to see these comments because they might lead to some interesting publicity, so please comment accordingly.. alanf

TheSilence

Hi, Alan,

The complete and absolute hypocricy of it was shocking to me. Even though I had stopped believing in 'the truth' long before I ever found out about it... it was what finally put to rest any niggling little "what if they were right" thoughts that occaissionally popped into my head and heart. I had never come across any other scandals they were involved in previous to learning about the UN issue.

It was difficult for me to believe at first... surely they could not be so blatantly hypocritical. This was the religion that told me from the time I was a little girl that the UN was the wild beast. They were corrupt and a product of Satan the Devil. How could they be a part of it? It was unfathomable.

When finally I was convinced that it was true, it gave me a different perspective of the organization. Before I always tried to tell myself, and others when the conversation came up, that it was just another religion. It was so ingrained in me, from talks I grew up listening to, that they weren't a cult. It was instinctive for me to hold on to that... a knee jerk reaction. Knowing the degree of hypocrisy this took allowed me to look at the WTBTS in a different light and freed me to admit to myself the negative aspects of what it was.

For me it was a powerful nail in the coffin of ingrained beliefs I grew up with. It was frightening and freeing at the same time.

Jackie