Posts by Dis-Member

2

How fear tactics bring people into the organisation..

by Dis-Member in

tell people the world is about to end and they will do just about anything.. .http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3_yfwuj2j8.

Tell people the world is about to end and they will do just about anything..

.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3_YFwUJ2J8

31

Bizarre exchange with witness after being away for a year..

by Dis-Member in

i few moments ago i received a strange text message.

it read:.

russian government is opening a case on banning our jw.org website in russia.

But if she exits the exchange - for whatever reason - and she continues to receive separate texts, one after the other, with still more questions that are perceived as critical of her religious beliefs, that's where I begin to see how it could be construed by her as harassment.

What does this mean? How did she exit the exchange? If I send you a long text from 10 miles away.. and your responses don't occur in within 30 seconds... does that mean you have exited the exchange? Do i need to remind you that this was it a face to face conversation in which she turned her back and fled screaming in the opposite direction from me. It's text messages! I very often text people and don't get a reply till the next day and often even days later. Does that mean my recipients 'exited the exchange'?

No. It means they were maybe busy.. or working.. or eating, or sleeping.. or knocking on doors, or busy sending that same jw.org mass mailer message to the other 100 people in their phone book and dealing with the responses.. not to mention her message said to forward her text on to everyone else that I knew as well.

Steve.. my initial post may appear to be long and drawn out but this whole exchange took less than a few minutes.

If anything, it's you that's harassing me in right now in this post. Where's my lawyer? I think I need to text him.

33

Morris in Italy

by Achille in

morris in italy, january 5, 2014. http://forum.infotdgeova.it/viewtopic.php?p=281371#p281371.

Dis-Member

“In my opinion” TV is never to be on during meal time.

What if your learning from a cooking program?

24

World's Greatest Music: Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, voted # 1

by compound complex in

jw
friends

now playing at kdfc.com.

interesting that dvorak's symphony no.

9 was voted to the number two spot .

Dis-Member

Whatever the mis-understanding it gave us an insight to your deep music experience and appreciation. It is amazing that there were JW's who still managed to keep their identity together and actually flourish.

I was able to flourish because I was not raised in the organisation at all.. far from it. I came from a very free and creative background. I also took well over a 2 decade break from the organisation and to fill the gap and void that appeared I completely immersed myself in music. I was practicing my instrument often up to 16 hours a day for a straight 14 years. On leaving the first time I had an absolute explosion of personal creativity.

On leaving for the second and final time I am now having another. It's very clear to me that being locked in a tight confining box like that the society creates for you all creative energy and expression is choked to death.

I myself have been fortunate to personally met some of the worlds greatest musicians including: Miles Davis, Wayne Shorter, BB.King , Jimmy Smith, Jack McDuff, Betty Carter, Dave Brubeck (and his whole family), Mike Stern, Art Blakey (dozens of times) Nina Simone, Wynton and Branford Marsalis, George Benson, Jacques Loussier (beautiful piano player,and an incredible human being), Wayne Shorter, Freddie Hubbard , Pace De Lucia (worlds best flamenco guitarist), Juan Martin (same), Paco Pena (ditto), Zakhir Hussien (worlds No.1 tabla player unbelievable human being!) Joe Pass, Julian Joseph, Several of Bob Marley's children (various concerts), Fela Kuti and all his 27 wives, Jimmy Page and John Bonham from Led Zepplin, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Pantera (whole band), Prince (he's only about 4ft tall, lol) , Chris De Burg, Bjork, Fishbone, Jools Holland, Jamiroquoi, and many ohers I can not remember.

Growing up surrounded by these people and their astounding music your entire life does something to you. It alters you for ever.

31

Bizarre exchange with witness after being away for a year..

by Dis-Member in

i few moments ago i received a strange text message.

it read:.

russian government is opening a case on banning our jw.org website in russia.

Dis-Member

I did not state you were harrassing her; I said it could be construed as harrassment.

Pardon? Someone who used to be a friend texts me.. and I text them back and ask a few questions on the subject they spoke to me about.. and I can be accused of harrasment!!?

I think we live on different planets mate.

4

Here's what the org can do with it's billions..

by Dis-Member in

why don't they leave the magazines at home, go all out on they streets and do this for a change.. jesus would be very pleased.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g65z8p1ynhw.

Dis-Member

Why don't they leave the magazines at home, go all out on they streets and do this for a change.. Jesus would be very pleased..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G65z8p1YNhw

31

Bizarre exchange with witness after being away for a year..

by Dis-Member in

i few moments ago i received a strange text message.

it read:.

russian government is opening a case on banning our jw.org website in russia.

Dis-Member

It's here..

http://www.jw.org/en/news/by-region/europe/russia/attempt-to-ban-website/

31

Bizarre exchange with witness after being away for a year..

by Dis-Member in

i few moments ago i received a strange text message.

it read:.

russian government is opening a case on banning our jw.org website in russia.

Dis-Member

The manner in which one question followed another via consecutive texts, despite her non-replies, could be construed as harrassment.

She was from a totaly different congregation and had no idea that I'd not been to a meeting in a year.

My phone too is rather simple and basic so instead of sending a paragraph as you can with say an Iphone mine has limited characters per message so I had to send a small group of messages, but they were in rapid succession for form a paragrah at her end. No harassment there.

It what part of the world is asking mutiple questions harassment? We all did it ourselves when we knocked oin doors.. I always had a million questions for house holders. It's not harassment, it's called having a conversation.

The were not new points really either. It was all related to the single subject.. praying for bothers and the website.

31

Bizarre exchange with witness after being away for a year..

by Dis-Member in

i few moments ago i received a strange text message.

it read:.

russian government is opening a case on banning our jw.org website in russia.

Dis-Member

I felt sick only because it gave me a reminder of how twisted and mental some of these people can be and why I left. Not because I am afraid or fear anything from them.

They can do me no harm.

I did not quite persue her.. I type really fast when I text an fired off a flurry of questions. None of which are disfellowhipping actions. I have asked far more challenging things to Overseers CO'S and elders and was met with the same cold silence. Nothing else.

31

Bizarre exchange with witness after being away for a year..

by Dis-Member in

i few moments ago i received a strange text message.

it read:.

russian government is opening a case on banning our jw.org website in russia.

Dis-Member

I few moments ago I received a strange text message. it read:

Russian Government is opening a case on banning our jw.org website in Russia. What makes this situation even worse is that the brothers in Russia did not know that tis case existed until yesterday and their court date is today (01/22/14) This law will mean that anyone visiting the website will be condemned to prison. The Governing Body has begged s to pray to our great God Jehovah. Please pass on this message. Visit jw.org for info.

I have no idea who it came from but I am assuming a witness. It would be the first contact any witness has made with me in almost a year of me attending my last meeting.

I text them back asking who they were. The reply came back saying it was a young sister I worked with on the ministry one time a year ago and in her text she asked if I was fine.

"I'm just great" I text her back

I then asked her.. why are the governing body 'begging' the brothers to pray to Jehovah so the website does not get banned in Russia.. and does she think Jehovah really cares about websites?

I also said that the organisation has managed pretty well for a 100+ years with printed material so why is the website all of a sudden like the 'New Jerusalem' and must be preserved at all costs.

I asked if she also prayed for the poor brothers in Africa that had no Iphones, Ipads, Macbook Pro laptops or high speed internet that they too will have all the wonderful modern gadgets so they too can access the wonderful life saving website.

She replied that she prayed for them too and that Jehovah takes care of them anyway. (Wow!)

I then asked.. if the internet is now so great and wonderful.. then how come until only recently the governing body taught that the internet was full of nothing but evil and porn and demons and apostates and the entire internet is to be avoided unless absolutely necessary?

She then said that the Organisation uses any means available and possible to praise Jehovah and make his glorious name known and that's why the internet is so important.

Hmm..

I then asked her if praising Jehovah's name is the all important thing then why are witnesses not allowed to have personal blogs. websites, discussion forums,Youtube accounts, etc, simply to praise Jehovah's name? Several Kingdom Ministry's strongly disapprove of any such praising by the brothers.

She did not reply..

I then asked again about the poor brothers in Africa, and will she pray for them getting gadgets to access the all important website or just that they learn to make do with late or out of date copies of magazines often in the wrong language while their wealthy western spiritual brothers enjoy hi res retina display notebook screens in meetings with the latest Watchtower light and knowledge on tap?

She did not reply.

I then said if praising Jehovah's name is the all important thing then why am I not even allowed to wear a t-shirt that proudly says "I Love Jehovah" on it and if I did I would be dragged into the back courtroom for a whipping. Why is it that even our love and free spontaneous expression of our love for Jehovah is very rigidly controlled, managed and censored and rammed into a very tight narrow corridor by this same governing body who at the same time teach that praising Jehovah's name is the sole duty and purpose of all intelligent creation? Why can my absolute love for Jehovah only be expressed along extremely narrow and rigid lines like singing a depressing song written by someone we don't know in archaic language I could never conjour up no matter how hard I tried or reading words verbatim from a paragraph we did not write.. even our free spontaneous expressive love is measured, curbed and dictated by this same governing body?

She did no reply.

I then text her that none of this makes any sense to me.. and that it's complete and total madness.

The next reply I got to that from her was: "You are taking advantage of me and my trust and disrespected me and Jehovah's Organisation! Please delete my number."

And that was the last contact from the lovely sister.

I text her one last time saying to stop being so childish and that I have done no such thing.. I simply asked questions to things that make absolutely no sense to me whatsoever and that none of them including herself can answer satisfactorily. In fact it's again complete madness to me. I also mentioned that I had in fact deleted her number a year ago and that it was her that initiated this conversation by texting me.

I know now that she will be running to the elders to report me and I would not be a bit surprised if I am contacted regarding this exchange. If so that will be the second time any of my 'loving brothers' would have made any contact with me in a year of vanishing from meetings.

The whole thing has left me feeling quite sick in my stomach. A feeling I have not had since my last meeting a year ago. :(