Posts by StarTrekAngel

19

My Thoughts on the Subject of Faith

by Saethydd in

i've had several discussion about the basis for faith in an all powerful creator for the universe, and it seems as if the conversation often comes back to, "well, either way, you have to have faith either in a creator or in the process of evolution because you can't observe that either.

" setting aside the issue of creation and evolution (where i currently sit at undecided), i was also troubled by the tendency to treat faith as a static or absolute concept when in reality it is far more complex.. to begin with, faith isn't just about belief, it combines the concepts of belief and trust.

for the purposes of this discussion, i will be focusing primarily on the second attribute.

StarTrekAngel

Faith requires works as a foundation to stand ground. Don't get me wrong. I am not necessarily talking about work of the like of preaching or feeding the poor. We are usually told the Jews for example, were of little faith because despite all the things they had seen, the could not quit complaining when they felt trapped in between the Egyptian army and the red sea. If you ask most modern christians what they would have done in such situation they would tell you that unlike the jews, they would have trusted in God absolutely.

This is based in a misunderstanding of what faith is. The faith the Jews had was being solidified as their relationship with God went on. They accepted their God could bring about the plagues but may be, just may be, saving them from the Egyptian army in a situation where they did not have weapons themselves was too much for this new God they had just discovered. Every other work that this God did for them increased their understanding of how powerful and capable this God was. Some, like Moises, were a little more impressionable than the others and were able to "trust" sooner. There are plenty of examples in the bible of people who were commanded to carry out a task that seemed impossible. Where the odds were against them. Unlike the religions of today, God did not demand that the blindly trusted. They asked for proof that God would bless their mission and only then they had "faith".

Just as when you go to a bank to ask for a loan, the bank bases their decision on your credit history, faith is a credit report for God, not humans. Some humans would need more or less information in order to submit to the said deity, but none the less, the faith that religion promotes today is blind faith. It demands everything from you but shows nothing from their claimed authority.

201

I am glad to have found the true religion

by A Believer in

jw
friends

it really is great.

i remember browsing this forum the day after i had joined it, and their was a knock on the door.

i thought it was one of my package from ups but instead it was two sisters.

StarTrekAngel

Many in this forum have read the whole bible many times over. What a shame that as a JW you are setting such petty goals.

201

I am glad to have found the true religion

by A Believer in

jw
friends

it really is great.

i remember browsing this forum the day after i had joined it, and their was a knock on the door.

i thought it was one of my package from ups but instead it was two sisters.

StarTrekAngel

They sure do... now explain this to me and please stay on subject. Don't do the WT thing of deviating the answer until it fits a totally different question... ok? Jesus never did that. Imitate your master please.

Lets say you are out preaching and you knock on the door of a catholic or some other mainstream religion. You bring up the subject about death. The householder has happened to loose a loved one recently and tells you how he or she is trying to cope by remembering that we do not know God's higher plan for us. That he or she does not know why God has chosen to take this relative that he or she loved very much but that he or she is willing to accept God's will.

Now remind me if I am wrong but I remember from the many years of being a witness that the standar answer prepared for us is to tell the householder that such is not the case. May be most witnesses are not as direct but they would basically reply that we should not think that God has taken them at will. In fact, some tracts and definitely books used in bible studies actually explain that such explanation (as provided by other faiths) paints a cruel God who seem eager to take people, including kids, at random. Now while many here would agree such picture is accurate, lets not get hanged on that.

Now lets pretend for a minute this householder has heard your standard answer but now he or she proceeds to tell you that she has another relative who was a witness. This other person fell ill and had to be hospitalized. While there, doctors told this relative that unless she got a liver transplant she/he would die. This person, being the loyal witness that he or she was, strongly denied getting the transplant because at the time it was seen as canibalism (this would have happened decades ago). The family, in distress, attempts to change her mind but she/he told her relatives that God had directed the slave and the slave has pointed out that such procedure would not be acceptable in God's eyes. This relative later died as expected. Now this householder is getting to the point. He or she tells you that just about a month after her or his relative was buried, he or she found out from the rest of her JW family that new light now out, informed them of a new understanding. Now God has clarified that transplants are a matter of personal choice. Under the understanding that apparently God allowed this mistaken view drag for so long and cost so many lives, how do you explain to the house holder that her view of God is cruel while yours is not?

This is where new light looses compatibility with a God of love. If we put aside the other actions by Jehovah that make many categorize it as a cruel murderous God, even if you believe in a God of nothing but love, you can not reconcíliate this fact with such idea. Either God is not all loving and derives pleaseure from seeing people suffer under spiritual confusion or he has nothing to do with any of this and this are doctrines of men which we should not follow.

You can not summarize the vast implications of dominating large masses of people under mistaken ideas by using five simple words like "imperfect human being make mistakes"

11

2016 Watchtower Library CD ROM

by The Searcher in

available for download.

just remember to reject the "automatic updates" from the org.. http://avoidjw.org/watchtower-library/.

StarTrekAngel

New light! now automatically downloaded and updated for you. You won't even notice it wasn't there.

47

AND STILL NO RELEASE OF THE 2017 JW YEARBOOK

by steve2 in

here we are on the cusp of the new year, and the 2017 yearbook of jws has still not been released.

jw.org continues to feature the 2016 yearbook in its list of main publications.

in previous years, the upcoming yearbook's annual report on jws was released in november for the january 1st then the feb 1st watchtower, then earlier in december when it was only featured in the yearbook, then more recently with a couple of days of december 25th.

StarTrekAngel

I just went over the whole theocracy of the matter. Given the new light, they are now waiting on the overlapping of spiritual years to be complete. Basically, before they would report on the number of publishers and publications given in a typical theocratic year which, although it did not coincide with a worldly calendar year, it did consist of 365 days, give or take. Now, with the new understanding, they must adjust their thinking and realize that there is an overlap of two theocratic years. Therefore, any publication distributed or hours preached during this overlap must be counted both, towards the current yearly report as well as counted again on the next year. Conclusion: Jehovah's organization keeps growing at unprecedented rates.

I tell you folks. If you don't understand this, pray to Jehovah and wait for a broadcast that would explain it all. This is the sort of stuff that, so far, only quantum physicist were able to understand. Yes, only quantum physics can attempt to explain how an hour of time can be part of two years at the same time. But now, thanks to the F&DS, we can understand things that are beyond the average worldly individual.

[/a] end of sarcasm [/a]

13

Jehovah's Witnesses Watchtower Society Houses Hidden Sexual Abuse Records, Says Journalist

by no password in

jehovah's witnesses watchtower society houses hidden sexual abuse records, says journalist.

.

StarTrekAngel

How long before we realize as a society that "freedom of religion" is being abused?

19

2016-12-29 BOE Re: Donations in Support of Kingdom Interests Worldwide

by wifibandit in

december 29, 2016 to all congregations re: donations in support of kingdom interests worldwide.

StarTrekAngel

Sounds like an attempt to tap into crowd biasing. Everyone is donating therefore you should donate too.

7

a test of the blood doctrine belief for my husband.

by nonjwspouse in

we discussed what he would do if i were incapacitated and our daughter needed a blood transfusion would he refuse and he said no.

( i do want that in writing still) .

now she is having a tonsillectomy, adnoidectomy and the back of an earring removed from her ear lobe( don't ask, i feel like a mother failure enough already!

StarTrekAngel

Prepare as much as you can even on the things that feel unnecessary. It would not hurt to even consider following some of the advice given to those who demand bloodless surgery (like prepping her system for a substantial loss). Besides, that may put your husband more at ease seeing that you are open to alternatives if they work. Most witnesses in my area are terrified of the word "transfusion". Many still do believe that such procedure would give you whatever decease the donor had. Including diabetes. (heard that one myself)

I just had surgery (septoplasty) about a month ago. I don't know what happened to me but when it came down to the final hour (naked in a gown already) I got severely nervous to the point where they had to sedate me to lower my blood pressure. I was ready to quit and walk out of the hospital in the same gown. During this time the nurses came to finish paperwork. One of the many questions asked where whether I would accept a blood transfusion if needed. I immediately said yes but I realized later on that such answer did not come from either side of the blood debate. It was pure and simply a nervous instinct to protect myself. I can not imagine that anyone can make a conscious decision on the matter if it had to be made with just hours to spare and a group of elders surrounding you.

9

"Casting Lots", How Was It Considered Acceptable?

by JW_Rogue in

the jws strongly condemn any form of gambling or decision making that invokes luck or divination.

however, no where in the bible is the "casting of lots" which basically amounted to gambling specifically condemned.

also, many jws don't realize that jewish priests (levites) were instructed to make decisions using the urim and thummin which many scholars argue was a divination practice similar to casting lots..

StarTrekAngel

Vidiot. I could not agree more. That has always been my feeling regarding celebrations as well. Most of the celebrations that are frowned upon are those that happen consistently year after year. Hence the yearly expense of celebrating them. Things like graduations and marriage are ok since they only happen once or twice in a lifetime. Even if they include rituals of pagan origin.

As far as casting lots, that is another point of contention of mine. It is hard, in my view, to necessarily compare it to gambling. Any well studied witness would easily refute that argument. The lots in questions, for example, during the selection of a replacement for Judas, were cast under prayer. In the context of the bible, the result was not random. It was God's hand at work. This was one of the first things I questioned once I woke up. In our area, lots of people seem to believe in bibliomancy. The idea that if you have a question or concern, you can pray to God and then open the bible at random with the certainty that God would direct you to the answer you seek. We used to go around in FS telling people such thing was not biblical and did not happen. I fail to see the difference between casting lots and opening the bible at random after a prayer.

6

Social gathering on December 25th

by StarTrekAngel in

i remember clearly the many times that in the past they have insisted on not showing their faces out in the street on this day.

i am exaggerating.

but i mean they've always insisted on being out and about very early on christmas day... preaching.. most elders in my congregation believed this was the best time to preach since most people were celebrating a religious holiday.

StarTrekAngel

I remember clearly the many times that in the past they have insisted on not showing their faces out in the street on this day. Well, not really. I am exaggerating. But I mean they've always insisted on being out and about very early on Christmas day... preaching.

Most elders in my congregation believed this was the best time to preach since most people were celebrating a religious holiday. They thought it was the perfect ice breaker. I can not recall one single outing in which an interested party was found. As I used to tell my wife "Its a bad idea to be out in service on December 25th early morning. The only thing we will achieve is piss off drunk people"

However, I do recall the "lectures" on how having a social gathering on December 25th was frowned upon. Most brothers and sisters saw it as an opportunity to get everyone together, since no one had anything better to do and besides, most people did not work that day. The elders and the "society" in the other hand, always pointed out that our neighbors may get the wrong idea. As if we are celebrating Christmas as a group.

Apparently our congo has reconsidered. The elders themselves were out and about inviting us all to a gathering to be had on the 25th right after the meeting. Needless to say we did not go to the gathering or the meeting for that matter.

I can not help to think that they have seen this idea of keeping up appearances has failed. Most neighbors won't even bother to notice that there is a feast next door and most brothers and sisters would spent December 25th with their non-JW relatives otherwise. Then excuse themselves off as "we are just spending time with family. We did not hang the decorations, they did". Social media has probably exposed most of them and so the elders probably figure is better to give them another place to be on that day. Do this for a couple of years and then prepare a talk in which you scold those who prefer worldly company over spiritual company and guilt trip them.