Posts by StarTrekAngel

20

Lurking JWs: Do people really need to know and use the word "Jehovah" or other language equivalents, to truly know God?

by Island Man in

watchtower puts forth the argument that you can't really know god unless you know and use the appellation "jehovah" or its equivalent in other languages.

is this really true?

i say it's not true and i will demonstrate to you why.. god's name is not a mere label that we have to use to communicate with him so that he knows we're talking to him.

StarTrekAngel

In my view, the fact that Jesus called him "Father" rather than "Jehovah" doesn't really say much. Like others explained, the relationship being known, you would know exactly who Jesus was referring to when he said "father". In the same tone, using the name back then, again as many have pointed, was necessary due to the number of other Gods people had in those days. Nowadays, not only is this the most well known God (specially if you live in the western side of the planet) but also there are other religions that have began to adopt the name and therefore calling him Jehovah does not immediately isolate you from the rest anymore.

Where JWs fail is in understanding the analogy of uniqueness that God seeks. Is like saying Elvis was your best friend or would be if he was alive, just because you know his name and use it. With so many Elvis impersonators around, would you be able to pinpoint exactly who you refer to by using only his name? Or do you need to show other evidence that makes him unique?

If JWs grasped that concept, they would realize that is more important to say "our God" than it is to say "Jehovah" or even never use the generic term "God". It would be like naming your dog "Dog"

11

Evolution is a Fact - Index for Numbers 1 - 30

by cofty in

#1 protein functional redundancycomparing the sequences of amino acids in ubiquitous proteins confirms the relationship between all living things.. #2 dna functional redundancycomparison of the dna that codes for the amino acids of ubiquitous proteins predicts the tree of life with an astonishing degree of accuracy.. #3 ervsendogenous retroviruses that infected our ancestors are found in the same place of the genome of our closest primate cousins.. #4 smelly geneshundreds of broken genes that used to code for olfactory receptors in our ancestors are still found in our genome.. #5 vitamin cwhy humans can no longer make their own vitamin c and what that tells us about our species' history.. #6 human chromosome 2our second biggest chromosome is made up of two of our ancestors' chromosomes stuck end-to-end.. #7 human egg yolk genehumans and our primate cousins have the genes for making vitellogenin and they are all broken in the same way.. #8 jumping genesbits of parasitic code called alu elements prove our common ancestry with primates.. #9 less chewing more thinkinga broken gene for a type of muscle fibre we no longer have tells a story about our evolutionary past.. #10 non-coding dnain common with many other species huge amounts of our genome originated as copying errors.. #11 tiktaalikan amazing fossil discovery illustrates the transition of life from sea to land.. #12 lenski's e.coli experimentan experiment with e.coli, now in it's third decade, demonstrates the power of natural selection.. #13 morris minor bonnetsevolution has to make do with building on existing designs as illustrated by the recurrent laryngeal nerve.. #14 joey goes to ozfossil evidence for the origins of marsupials found in antarctica exactly as predicted.. #15 robinson crusoethe biogeography of oceanic islands presents an impossible dilemma for creationism.. #16 aquatic mammalsan excellent sequence of fossils illustrates the evolutionary journey of whales from land to sea.. #17 belyaev's silver foxesa 50 year breeding programme demonstrates the amazing power of selection and the interconnected nature of genes.. #18 fish fingersthe evolution of limbs is mapped out in an amazing sequence of ancient fish fossils.. #19 goosebumpsa vestigial reflex bequeathed by our hairier ancestors.. #20 lucy in the sky...an exceptional fossil of a 3 million year old hominid.. #21 footprints in the sand...footprints at laetoli show our australopithecus afarensis ancestors were bipedal 3.6 million years ago.. #22 the hillocks of hiss...a vestigial feature if the human ear shared by 10% of the population demonstrates our evolutionary history.. #23 faunal succession...the consistent sequence of fossils found in the rocks can only be explained by evolution.. #24 the origin of your inner ear...how the bones that reptiles eat with became the bones that we hear with.. #25 deep time...scottish geologist andrew hutton discovered the proof of earth's great antiquity.. #26 colour vision...how gene duplication - new "information" -and mutation equipped us with trichromatic vision.. #27 monkeys, typewriters, shakespeare, 747s etc...evolution is a combination of random mutations and non-random selection.. #28 something darwin didn't say...a long term study of pigeons demonstrates how natural selection acts on a local population.. #29 use it or lose it...fossil genes reveal the history of modern species.. #30 your third eyelid...the remnants of a nictitating membrane reveals our evolutionary history..

StarTrekAngel

I remember a long time ago, while I was still hypnotized, reading in WT literature, where they claimed that DNA and proteins where like the chicken and the egg. The WT claims there can not make protein without DNA and you can not make DNA without proteins. They used this argument to show or explain that such paradox can only be explained by means of a creator. Off course, the statement itself could be totally false or constructed but... do you have any ideas as to what they could have been talking about?

17

Is reasoning with a JW the answer?

by Saved_JW in

when i first left the watchtower society, i can remember being very eager to learn new information, especially information which pertained to discrediting the watchtower organization.

i called it "the cage stage" .

this excitement and newfound change in worldview completely rocked my world.

StarTrekAngel

If reasoning and critical thinking was not a problem, the org would not be so insistent on avoiding apostate material or any other information critical of the org. They know that there is a good chunk of members out there who have a weak shell (that is actually a good thing) and could be easily pierced. Provided they are willing to listen, even if just a little bit. With that said, emotions do play a big role and I did not want to accept it at first.

I think emotions, however, can have a bit of logic built-in. Not as easy to dwell on as plain math where 2+2=4 no matter who you love or what party you are affiliated with. But you could call it the Barney principle. I love you, therefore you love me. But when one of those sides fails, then the logic is destroyed and the questions begin to raise. Once the emotions are removed, then the questioning can begin.

Unfortunately, is much easier said than done.

15

I like how it looks in other people but not for myself. A question specially for women.

by StarTrekAngel in

i like how it looks in other people but not for myself.. this is a phrase i have heard often from my wife.

now i am to a point where i am trying to figure it out if this is something all women do or say.

i can understand how you would say this if you were talking about a type of clothing that doesn't go with your figure, except that you may add the disclaimer... "if i had that figure i would wear this".

StarTrekAngel

I agree with most of your replies except that the part I don't understand is the lack of her making a more complete statement. Like I said, if she said that something is not suitable to her shape I would understand.

Let me make an example with myself. I like tattoos and I would get one if I found one that I liked. In the same tone, I like those tribal tattoos that some bodybuilders do on their chest and extend to the shoulders.

The way I see it, there is a difference between the following two statements.

1) I like chest tattoos and I like how it looks in others but I would never get one

2) I like chest tattoos but I don't get one because I don't have the muscle physique to carry one but If I did, I would consider getting one because I do like them

In my view, the first statement tells me you don't really have a reason to refuse the option is everything is there. Wether it is your skin color, shape, heights or anything else, I can understand why but if you don't add the rest, I find it hard to understand why not. She makes statements similar to number one only. May be my problem is not assuming that she actually meant like number two but she never really verbalizes it, which still makes me mad because I would hope she would really tell me how she feels.

15

I like how it looks in other people but not for myself. A question specially for women.

by StarTrekAngel in

i like how it looks in other people but not for myself.. this is a phrase i have heard often from my wife.

now i am to a point where i am trying to figure it out if this is something all women do or say.

i can understand how you would say this if you were talking about a type of clothing that doesn't go with your figure, except that you may add the disclaimer... "if i had that figure i would wear this".

StarTrekAngel

I like how it looks in other people but not for myself.

This is a phrase I have heard often from my wife. Now I am to a point where I am trying to figure it out if this is something all women do or say. I can understand how you would say this if you were talking about a type of clothing that doesn't go with your figure, except that you may add the disclaimer... "If I had that figure I would wear this". This make it somewhat conditional but expresses your willingness to align your wardrobe with your taste.

The way I understand my wife, she can simply admire how some dress or jewelry looks in other women but she would never wear it herself, even though there is no reason why it would not look good on her. Once again, I am trying to stick to the idea that there is no other reason (is not too short, not too plunged) other than the fact she would not wear, even though it looks "great" in other people.

The latest instance on this come from a comment she made about a friends of hers. She is divorcing and she just got a small tattoo. I said that I've always wanted one and she said her tattoo looks good but that once again she likes how it looks on her but she would never get one herself.

I am honestly confused and have always been confused about such statement. Hope someone, specially a woman, can help me understand it.

Thanks

40

Politically Correct Wasteland

by freemindfade in

this was a comment i made from another post, but i would like to hear some people discuss this.

i know the social justice warriors will scream i'm some sort of trump supporter for what i say even though i don't agree with his ideas and no i am not voting for him... i accept this is a go to for them.. i think we have fallen into a pc vacuum.. criticizing someones religion = racism!.

telling someone to not be so sensitive = misogyny!.

StarTrekAngel

Exactly as talesin puts it.

40

Politically Correct Wasteland

by freemindfade in

this was a comment i made from another post, but i would like to hear some people discuss this.

i know the social justice warriors will scream i'm some sort of trump supporter for what i say even though i don't agree with his ideas and no i am not voting for him... i accept this is a go to for them.. i think we have fallen into a pc vacuum.. criticizing someones religion = racism!.

telling someone to not be so sensitive = misogyny!.

StarTrekAngel

I think what needs to be kept in mind that PC has a time and a place and as long as you know your audience you should be able to put words that fit the audience. Transmits your message with firmness without offending anyone who joins.

Basically, this time and age and the topics discussed in open forums like these, require not so much the writer to be careful (respect is never out of the question) but the reader to be even more careful. Had certain conversations happened behind closed doors or in close groups, no one would have feel ofended. In other words, people have not really changed and become more sensitive. We have become more open about our thoughts and belief.

The issue arises when someone enters discussion that is, by nature, controversial to their own beliefs and the feel that just because it is open, they can go in and trash the discussion. They feel they can go in there and demand sensibility towards themselves or attempt to tell others they are idiots because they don't share the same view. The solution in my view is simple. Stay out of topics you don't agree with and ask that people stay out of yours if they don't agree with you.

11

Instructions for Circuit Accounting (S-331)

by wifibandit in

instructions for circuit accounting (s-331) 6/13.

7. normal operating expenditures: normal operating expenditures include per capita contributions for use of an assembly hall, payments for other meeting facilities, and reimbursement of the special assembly day guest speaker or trav-eling overseer for travel costs or other incidental expenses incurred in connection with a circuit assembly, an assigned district convention, or a special assembly day or while teaching the pio-neer service school or moving to a new assign-ment.

such expenditures do not require a res-olution.

StarTrekAngel

So we pay for the expenses of the visitor... is there a way to tell, with evidence, if this visitors are assigned by the WT or is the circuit seeking their visit? Basically, is the visitor or the organization deciding wether they need to send someone or is the circuit "ordering" a visitor when they decide they can afford one?

I am asking because I was shocked when I learned the Lett was coming to our last assembly and I thought, are we that important down here? Turns out that now I ask the question, did we order him down here and payed to have him present? Kind of like you can pay an ex president to give a talk at your corporation.

10

Update on fade. Elders finally are interested on my "welfare"

by StarTrekAngel in

so since the last time i posted regarding my fade, you all learned that i was having some health issues.

that came along just right to quit going to meeting without raising much suspicion.

somehow everyone at the hall seemed ready to tell my wife they missed me but attended the memorial and no one bothered to take the initiative to back those words with actions.. i guess that having seen me at the memorial they at least felt bad because last night i got a call from one of the elders telling me they want to come today and visit with me.

StarTrekAngel

Turns out I will not be able to meet with them today, even if I wanted to. Some other things have come up and I am going to have to postpone.

Just texted him to cancel

22

Gut Feelings - The Second Brain

by Xanthippe in

jw
friends

i came across a link on the bbc site this morning to an article in scientific american on gut health claiming that one reason we need to keep our guts healthy with probiotics, a good diet and reducing antibiotics is because there are neurons in our gut that are part of the process to create dopamine and serotonin for the brain.

yes happy hormones and neurotransmitters!

amazing article.. 'the enteric nervous system is often referred to as our body’s second brain.

StarTrekAngel

I learned about the enteric nervous system about two years ago while looking for some information on fitness and natural foods. I have since learn to appreciate its function. It makes sense, the mouth is the most prominent way in which we voluntarily allow "foreign" organisms to enter our bodies. It makes sense they they would go thru a series of "sensors" to identify the item and allow the body to deal with it properly.

I was diagnosed with lactose intolerance a long time ago. It was not until I took the idea of the enteric nervous system into account that I realized the benefits a healthy gut can bring. I learned too that there is a lot of other things we may be allergic too but the symptoms are not what common wisdom would dictate. Sometimes a bad night of sleep can be the consequence of ingesting food we are sensitive to but that regular allergy testing may not indicate.