Posts by Syme

27

I disfellowshipped my parents this week..

by fulano in

i just wrote them a mail, telling them to not contact me any more under any circumstances, illness or death (79 and 83 years old).

unless they leave the cult and would apologize for our f*'.ed-up upbringing which ruined our whole life.

Syme

If my parents shun me after I make the DA step, it is possible that I will shun them back.

It is also possible that I will not help them when they are in need, if they persist on the shun rule. I think this is fair.

But, I will NOT request them to leave their cult/religion. It is their right. And we (as former jws, having suffered discrimination, persecution etc.) are supposed to have a heart for personal human rights. If they want to live in their delusions, let them do so. That is completely different from my requesting them to drop the shun rule.

10

Google: most accurate bible in the world

by enigma1863 in

i just googled "most accurate bible in the world" and got new world translation as the answer.

comments?

Syme

If you type "most accurate bible in the world" it says NWT.

If you type "most accurate bible" it says KJV.

32

If you were put in charge of the Governing Body tomorrow...

by FusionTheism in

if you were somehow magically put in-charge of the governing body tomorrow, by jesus, with the rules being, you could not teach anything that would be considered outright apostasy and you could not teach anything that would be considered to cause doubt about god's existence... (so as not to arouse suspicion).

what "new light" or "clarified understandings" would you introduce first?.

and which later on?.

Syme

I'd issue a letter to all congregations that would explain that: a) evolution is true, b) Adam never existed, there's no ransom, c) the Abrahamic deity is a myth as all other tribal end ethnic deities are, d) this is the only life you'll ever have and e) the FDS & WTS is dissolved.

With concluding words: "Live your life. You are free now".

7

"Your Inner Fish" with Neil Shubin on BBC TV

by cofty in

a 3 part documentary based on neil shubin's work and narrated by him is currently being shown on bbc 4.. part 1 is on i-player now and part 2 is live right now.. 180 minutes of clearly presented evidence for evolution including the discovery of tiktaalik.

outstanding!.

Syme

The book, especially, is excellent.

9

Musings on WT transformation

by aintenoughwiskey in

contemplating the watchtowers attempt at washing away 100 years of cult stink, i had another thought.

the wbt$ could be transitioning from a growth model to a retention model, particularly in 1st world nations.

the signs as i see them are:.

Syme

There is no "turning mainstream" possibility while the shunning rule applies, and never will be.

16

New (non)-Witnessing Model

by berrygerry in

so, one of the kids on reddit posted this video - an evangelist trying to witness to guardians of the cart.

(both sides are fairly respectful imo).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwbc9c4ajly&feature=youtu.be.

Syme

The Dub was honest and consistent with the actual policy of WTS; not just for cart guards, but for door-to-door service as well.

The actual policy is: We do not engage in lengthy Bible discussions that don't have the prospect of recruiting someone; we do not search for the truth, we have found the truth. Hence, we just advertise it, nothing more.

So, he did actually "right", by their own standards of course.

1

Incredible Medical Advance: Baby born from ovary frozen from 13 year old girl once she turned 27

by jwleaks in

jw
friends

a woman in belgium is the first in the world to give birth to a baby using transplanted ovarian tissue frozen when she was still a child, doctors say.. the 27-year-old had an ovary removed at age 13, just before she began invasive treatment for sickle cell anaemia.. her remaining ovary failed following the treatment, meaning she would have been unlikely to conceive without the transplant.. experts hope that this procedure could eventually help other young patients.. the woman gave birth to a healthy boy in november 2014, and details of the case were published on wednesday in the journal human reproduction.. bone marrow transplant.

the woman, who has asked to remain anonymous, was diagnosed with sickle cell anaemia at the age of five.. she emigrated from the republic of congo to belgium where doctors decided her disease was so severe that she needed a bone marrow transplant using her brother's matching tissue.. but before they could begin the bone marrow transplant, they needed to give her chemotherapy to disable her immune system and stop it from rejecting the foreign tissue.. chemotherapy can destroy the ovarian function, so they removed her right ovary and froze tissue fragments.

at that time, she was showing signs of puberty, but had not yet started her periods.

Syme

Now, news like that are truly "happifying".

45

New Thought About Active J.W.'s

by The Searcher in

from my own observations & conversations with selected active j.w.

's, here are my conclusions:.

's are very rapidly falling into two distinct camps -.

Syme

Searcher,

I think that there's a small group that is a combination of the 2 groups you described: those that are 'heretical' in a way, have different views in a lot of topics, and maybe not believing a lot of things, doctrinal and/or organizational, but nevertheless resent those who leave, and stick to the shunning rule with all their heart.

I know it because I have still-in active friends that fall exactly into that mixed category. The reason for resenting those who leave even though they themselves are not full believers, I cannot say for sure; but I think it is because they hate seeing someone having the courage to to something (leaving), that they cannot.

4

Genesis as a Parable

by FusionTheism in

jesus always spoke to the crowds using parables.

in fact, the bible says jesus would never speak to the crowds without using parables.. a parable is a fictional story that is used to teach deep moral and spiritual truths.. the scriptures say:.

matthew 13:34-35 (niv):jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable.

Syme

No, the "Genesis parable" hypothesis does not make sense for this simple reason:

If Adam was a parable, then what about the ransom and atonement doctrines? Did Jesus sacrifice his life for a story, for a parable? Did he die in place of a person that never existed (Adam)?

The Genesis account, especially the creation of Adam, is a "take it or leave it" piece.

Check this out: https://youtu.be/aMUG6qd98wc?t=30m8s

51

Best Argument for Atheism - In your view.

by LAWHFol in

if crisis of conscience is one of the top watchtower doctrine killers, what is the coc of theism?.

i'd like to read a book, or other material that does the best job logically arguing for atheism.. i've not read any darwin, however it is my assumption that his focus is primarily on evolution, is this correct?

if you were to recommend one book or a few pieces of reading material, which do the best job of defending atheism, what would they be?.

Syme

Richard Dawkins: "The God Delusion".

Christopher Hitchens (editor): "The Portable Atheist".