Posts by Pete Zahut

13

What would be just enough so they can guard themselves as they grow up?

by Tameria2001 in

i wasn't sure which topic to ask this question under.

three days ago my very first grandbaby, a boy was born.

so i still have time to think about stuff, and not royally screw up things.

Pete Zahut

If you purposely set out to teach him that JW's and or religion in general is bad news or that the Bible is nothing but nonsense, you are just as bad as they are.

If, when he asks about things having to do with holidays, customs and religious beliefs that he's heard of, you show him what religion is and help him an overall general understanding of the different beliefs out there and how to look at those beliefs critically yet without judgement of others, he'll be able to see things for himself and realize that its ok to do so.

Having grown up as a JW, I was told what to think and believe about every possible topic before I even wondered about them myself. Not only that, I was told that I would be a huge disappointment to everyone I loved and I would even die if I didn't believe what I was being taught.

I think that it's unlikely that any child who is free to look into whatever interests them and is taught that it's ok to come to his or her own conclusions about things without the fear of being judged or a disappointment to his family, would be readily taken in or mislead by a high control religious group .

I think you should relax and enjoy your grandchild and trust that when the time comes, you'll be able to show him how to see things clearly.

10

Cain and Abel

by Freedom rocks in

i love this from the atheists book of bible stories.

cain and abel the sacrifices

for some reason, these two boys got it into their heads that god liked gifts.

Pete Zahut

I was never sure why Cain had a herd or flock when humans were supposedly vegetarian until after the flood. I suppose he could have kept them for their fur or milk.

It seems to me the idea of Cain and Able making sacrifices to God was added later once this practice became customary among pagan nations in the same manner as the spinning sword at the entrance to the Garden of Eden was added to the Bible even though swords and the ability to mine and forge metal came along much much later in human history.

14

Crossword Puzzles in the Awake?

by Wild_Thing in

jw
friends

didn't they use to print crossword puzzles in the awake?

i vaguely remember my mother doing them, and me trying to do them when i was a small child.

is this an accurate memory or could i be thinking of a non-jw publication.

Pete Zahut

I don't remember crossword puzzles but "Watching the World" was probably the only part of the magazines I liked until I realized that they only featured news that fit their agenda.

They used to love news that discredited other religions, especially the Catholic church. The only time they ever said anything positive about anyone from another religion was when one of their leaders said something good about JW's such as " I wish we could get our parishioners to go from door to door like Jehovah's Witnesses do".

I always got the feeling that they were delighted to find awful bits of news to present. It really should have been called " A Negative Look At the World"

15

Those awkward magazines

by Addison0998 in

i’m sure we all remember those really weird, awkward magazines we were expected to place in service.

and it was before we are had the website or the thing on the back to fall back on.

imagine being a 12 year old girl, and having to place magazines on god’s view of pornography, sex, homosexuality.

Pete Zahut

This post reminds me of an experience I had out in service one time

Back when I was in high school my best friend and I were going from door to door one Saturday morning. Neither of us had really prepared well but we had been going out in service and talking at the doors since the first grade so we could usually just wing it.

We knocked on the first door and a woman answered. My friend started talking about world conditions (of course) and he featured one of the typical articles in the Watchtower that highlighted some timely topic that showed how deep into the time of the end we were (this was back in 1974 by the way).

There was an oil shortage going on and there were long lines at gas stations all over the country and after the woman agreed that world conditions indeed looked pretty bad, my friend said very earnestly:

" And along with the Watchtower, we are also offering it's companion magazine the Awake which features many thought provoking articles such as this one, Kop-ping With Seenus Trouble."

The woman and I looked at each other and we both burst out laughing. She said with a smirk " Um...I think you meant to say "Coping With Sinus Trouble" my dear.

She and I were laughing but my friend was mortified because it was so obvious that he had come to her door to recommend that she read a magazine that he hadn't bothered to read himself. There was no coming back from this one....the woman closed the door and we got in his car and got the heck out of there.

Back in the car he exclaimed "Pete....we are the WORST example of Witnesses EVER !!! Why the do they have to have such stupid articles in these damn magazines???? Why are there two magazines and why would anyone who wasn't a JW want to read them??? I barely want to read them !!!

We both agreed how ridiculous it was to be offering two magazines full of JW specific information in them. Somehow we both continued being JW's well into adulthood. He eventually left when he was in his late 30's or early 40's after his JW wife cheated on him and he saw the religion from behind the scenes for the first time and realized that the Elders in his hall were a bunch of buffoons who weren't being directed by anyone.

For years afterward, whenever he was being a bit too cocky or full of himself I'll I had to do was say to him " Kop-ping With Seenus Trouble" and it would put him in his place...he still cringes at the very thought of it.

39

New releases at annual meeting??

by _Morpheus in

this has been mentioned in passing but it seems to deserve its own thread.. this year at the rc, no releases.

instead they wait to drop them at the annual meeting which isnt a even simulcast event.

what is their thinking?

Pete Zahut

There were new videos to show at the RC but there may not have been anything noteworthy on the program for the annual meeting so maybe they released the books there to jazz up an otherwise hum drum event. Also, the books might not have been produced in time for the RC so they held off releasing them until now.

These books will join the decades and decades of books that were printed, released, sat on shelves and were eventually forgotten and the volunteers who produced them are long gone.

18

Personalized Borg Number-plates!!!!

by Disassociated Lady 2 in

last week i was travelling in the u.k. when a car overtook me.

i noticed its numberplate which read 'jw 04 org'!!.

i couldnt believe it, i wonder how much the borg are charging for these?

Pete Zahut

The license plates are not issued by the Watchtower organization and they aren't making any money off them. They are government issued license plates but nstead but individuals can purchase personalized plate if they choose to If someone already has the license plate you want you can add an extra number or letter to it so that it becomes different from the one that has already been issued to someone else.

Hence if a JW wants JW Org but it's already taken, can be changed to JW-org - 4 or JW-Org - 5....etc.

I wonder if they count time as they drive?

33

BS stories in the publications

by Billzfan23 in

this is an example of a story that just strikes me as funny from their publications:.

"wilson, a christian from ghana, was notified that in a few days, he would be fired from his job.

on his final day at work, he was assigned to wash the private car of the managing director of the company.

Pete Zahut

...however Wilson turned down the promotion because it would mean he might have to work late on occasion and miss a meeting now and then. His boss was so impressed that he signed over the business to Wilson and gave him the deed to the building.

19

Venting, Wow, found out just how indoctrinated my wife is

by goingthruthemotions in

just had to share this, tonight we had a heated conversation about the religion.

she said everything they teach is 100% true and any mistakes are cleaned up and corrected, that the payouts for the child abuse is not an issue even if its taken from donations.

because, she believe 100% the org knows what its doing.

Pete Zahut

It sounds as if your discussion pushed her into a corner she wasn't prepared for. I'm guessing she said a lot of things out of fear and pride and may not mean them as strongly as she seemed to.

Be patient, she sounds like someone who knows that there is validity in your point of view and is afraid to face that reality.

We were all there at one time, to some degree but something eventually struck a chord with us so that in our own time we were able to take a realistic look at the religion. It rarely works to force someone to do something scary.

20

Who stands to benefit from the JW scam

by cognitivedizzy in

jw
friends

guys, i've always wondered about this ,.

all the money grab,selling, consolidation of kh, real estate scam , who is the one who benefits from this elaborate scam, what's the deal ?

who is the mastermind, do the gb or whoever really runs the show really believe what they sell.

Pete Zahut

If the organization goes under, the G.B. members become nobodies once again. I'm sure they've convinced themselves that they are looking out for God's interests but their job security is at stake and on some level, I'm guessing that's whats first and foremost in their minds.

25

Thought Provoking Question to a JW?

by Solzhenitsyn in

did jesus ever utter the name jehovah?.

and if he didn't what are the implications?

nwt answers don't count but feel free to use the kingdom interlinear.

Pete Zahut

You: Did Jesus ever utter the name Jehovah?

JW: He was God's son so he referred to Jehovah as "Father" rather than to call him by his name.

You: Are we not God's children as well? Is it respectful of us to call God by his name? After all, didn't Jesus tell us to pray to God by saying "Our Father who art in heaven hallowed be thy name " ? He didn't say to use that hallowed name, rather he said to refer to him as "Father" yet JW's constantly pray to him using his name rather than calling him Father.