Raised a JW from birth... (page 2)

onacruse

momcrazy:

While reading the gospels I found that the way to salvation requires much less than the Society teaches, yet much MORE. It's all encompassing in a person. Is that kind of the same thing?

Hmmmm. I don't pretend to be any kind of expert on Buddhism, or any of the many other Eastern religious philosophies, but from what I think I know I would be inclined to rephrase what you just said more along the lines of:

It's a person encompassing all.

In terms of comparative religions, a very simplistic dichotomy might be:

1) Those which seek revelation from without;

2) Those which seek revelation from within.

Of course, I'd be very glad to entertain contrary opinions.

WTWizard

Independent thinking is what leads you to what's right for you. Dependent thinking only leads to what's right for whoever does the thinking for you. Feel free to pick and choose what you wish to believe in, and modify it as you get objective facts to back it up or tear it apart.

eclipse

Yes I have come to a greater appreciation of Jesus from my study of Buddhism. Maybe I'm alone here, but I always noticed that JW's tend to steer away from Jesus and concentrate more on Jehovah, which is strange considering Jesus was the human embodiment of what Jehovah represented. When you look back at the teachings of Jesus and compare it to the Watchtower society, they really start to look worlds apart. Jesus was about love and compassion, and was only angered once as I can remember, ironically when he went to church! To see the judgmental attitude of many witnesses is really an insult to the teachings of Jesus. "The kingdom of heaven is within you." What a empowering statement. And I do agree that many sects seem to lose the core meanings of any given faith, but when you look at the simple truth that can be gained from teachings of Jesus and Buddha, life can really have a deeper meaning than what we can acquire in our minds with worldly knowledge, and we can be freed from this search for a god and find him within ourselves!

We think along the very same lines. Notice too when Jesus was introduced into the Bible that all of a sudden god changed and became much more compassionate and less blood thirsty? It seems to be that once god came down to earth and saw how difficult it was to be a perfect human, and god knew what it was like to be a child, thereby assigning a much higher value to them. Unlike in the Old Testament. God was much more forgiving of humans and not killing them all the time for inconsequential things for example; grabbing onto the ark so that it didn't fall, or making a golden calf, or being so starved that they are killed by god, for being greedy, using meat stuck in their teeth (how this is lethal is a curiousity). (unless that account is untrue or translated very badly in the NWT) I also agree with you that christianity is fear based. Not that christians fear god, but that the bible teaches over and over again that they should. imho. I am not a christian, (was rasied a JW) but I respect Jesus' teachings and think that they are very compatible with Taoism and Buddhism from what I have learned so far.

WT=watchtrouble

Hey Welcome Port,

Not into any religion of beliefs at the moment, not sure if I ever will. Still healing from the WT crap LOL

So glad you are here. Welcome enjoy your stay.

Dorktacular

Welcome Port! You're the same age as me!! :) I've found eastern religion in general very interesting. The eastern philosophy focuses on nature and coexisting in harmony with nature and its inherent spirituality. Western religions tend to be about conquering something. Conquer evil, conquer Satan, subdue the earth, salvation only comes through death, etc., etc.

In fact, I think my current religious philosophy is best summed up by the inscription on an ancient Japanese Zen scroll. It reads:

There is really nothing you must be. And there is nothing you must do. There is really nothing you must have. And there is nothing you must know. There is really nothing you must become.

However, it helps to understand that fire burns, and when it rains, the earth gets wet.

Kinda cool, huh?

Mulan

Even though I am anti religion, I do find many Buddhist teachings make a lot of sense. They seem to center on being the best person you can be and respecting the earth and all creatures on it. Who could argue with that?

Almost exactly what I was going to say. Definitely, I am anti religion. Well said.

portcontrol7

Very nice Zen scroll Dorktacular. I really love the simple beauty found in Zen. It really is ironic how the profound can be found in something that is right in front of your face, so close you cant see it and take it for granted! And Eclipse, I have for years found a great discrepancy with the 2 different God's in the bible, old testament vs. new. I've let go of that though now, I have to still work on letting go of bitterness, and still I find myself being so judgmental about others, it really is a process that I have much to work on. I feel pity for many still believing in the JW's, but I know even that must leave my heart. Everyone here has been very welcoming, it is refreshing to see a place where we can all share our experiences by those who really understand. I have found some posts that have had me laughing until tears came to my eyes. Thanks for this site and thanks for all the great friends here!

reneeisorym

To be fair, I think some Christians (as may be found on this board) have found a Christ-centric spirituality free from that fear - though in my experience that's still pretty new to me.

That would be me. I looked at Buddhism a little and found it to be a little too man made for me (like inventing something that sounded good.) I'll never again say that I know it all. That was just my breif experience with Buddhism.

portcontrol7

I've thought it interesting that Jesus taught many of the same things Buddha taught but hundreds of years later. Kind of makes you wonder where Jesus was in his teens and twenties. I know that when I focus on myself and try to empty my mind from thought, I definitely feel something that I have never felt before, no matter how many times I prayed. I never felt any connection to Jehovah. Christianity seems to be more about obtaining while Buddhism is more of letting go, at least thats what I have felt.

Raised a JW from birth...

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