...did you also toss your Faith as well?
For those of you that LEFT.....
by DocHouse 86 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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Apognophos
No, I just stopped placing it in old mythology and unreliable history texts. Now I look for confirming evidence before putting faith in something.
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stillin
Doc, I wouldn't say that my faith has been tossed. I feel like things have taken on a more wholesome aspect, more universal. The "narrow gate" principle may still apply, but not in the same narrow terms that the WTS would have me believe. I still believe that it's best to be a person with a conscience and to live by honorable principles, many of which are outlined in the Bible.
I no longer present myself to others as some sort of expert on what is going on in the invisible spirit realms. It simply struck me as self-promoting and pretentious to elevate myself like that.
I have new respect for those who actually live by religious guidelines, including many of the Witnesses, but I also feel that religion is not simply a crutch; it is the actual handicap for lots of people of different disciplines. But if people need the feeling of having a "tribe" that they can say they are a part of, well, who am I to criticisE? It's just the exclusivity that the JW's lay claim to that I find repulsive. Claiming to know what God is thinking, the gall!
But, no, I haven't tossed my faith. I still believe that if I keep looking, I will find. There are some very intelligent people who post here, who make some gobsmackingly astute observations. I'm not quick to argue with people because they deserve a measure of respect for simply voicing an opinion and setting themselves up for scrutiny. You can't really discuss things with witnesses like you can here.
a lot of posters here get really uptight when some Witness comes here to defend their faith. Try to understand that it isn't because they are wicked people, there are a thousand different things that made them who they are. But try to respect them as thinking human beings, as entitled to their thoughts as you are to yours.
peace
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LostGeneration
"Faith does not give you the answers, it just stops you asking the questions." -- Frater Ravus
"The Way to see by Faith is to shut the Eye of Reason ." -- Benjamin Franklin
"Faith is the great cop-out, the great excuse to evade the need to think and evaluate evidence. Faith is belief in spite of, even perhaps because of, the lack of evidence." -- Richard Dawkins
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flipper
DOCHOUSE- Welcome to the board ! No I didn't toss out my faith- I have the utmost faith and trust in myself ! I just tossed out my faith in the WT Society and the deceptive leaders of a mind control cult
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phats
My faith is stronger now than ever as now I can have faith in things that I can research without threats masked with lies & false agendas from strangers that don't have my best interests at heart.
Phats.
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Xanthippe
No I did something dangerous, I started reading books. Anything I wanted to read! Remember the 'Creation' book, big red one, that said that there's only a dining table full of fossils? Not true, found a library book with photos of neanderthal skulls. Found a second hand copy of Lucy by Donald Johanson about the discovery of australopithecus. Then found a second hand copy of Astral Projections by Robert Crookall and many others including books by neuropsychologist Peter Fenwick. Read many more but no time now, concluded we have evolved and are still evolving.
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phats
When faith comes from a third party then it's not faith at all in my opinion. It may well be hope or desperation or a load of things but for me faith must be attached to the best evidence "you" can muster. When your evidence is spoon fed & prepared for you by someone else then all you get is what someone else wants you to get.
Phats.
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LisaRose
Nice loaded question, your bias is showing, as if we all decided to jettison the idea of God on a whim. I didn't "toss" anything. I did research, learned about science, developed critical thinking skills, studied the bible with a more critical eye, and thought deeply about what was true versus what I previously believed to true. I reluctantly came to the conclusion that not only was the Watchtower a cult, and no more chosen by God than any religion, I came to the conclusion that God didn't exist either. One thing I learned as a Jehovah's Witness was honesty and integrity, and that honesty and integrity did not allow me to follow a religion that was a sham and based on lies, or profess a belief in God I no longer possessed.
What else could I do once I knew in my soul that God did not exist?
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DocHouse
Very interesting kalideoscope of views; I can relate a little to each- beliueve it or not!
The WTBS promotes a lot of goofy opinion as FACT (such as Jesus has RULED for 100 years!).
Many of the ancient biblical accounts SEEM like they may have been fabricated- until doing deep research and meditation.
One NEEDS to have faith in onself, as well as God- but NEVER rest our 'faith' on men.
And, unless you take a closer look at the speels evolutionary scientists give as they preach Evolution- it can seem VERY real when it is only modewrn Fairy Tale.