Superstitions (page 2)

Geoff

SIXofNine you dont believe in the devil? I assume then that you dont believe in God. If this is the case then why are we arguing over a box of cereal, when we cant even find a common ground on God which is way more basic.

dark clouds

silly vampires. . .trix are for kids

jesus was killed on a wooden cross, iron spikes driven into him
vampires fear crosses, and have an aversion to being impaled by wood
(but then again everyone has this fear of being impaled and some of us have come to fear the cult like activity symbolized by the cross)

jesus rose from the dead---became immortal
vampires are inmortal after rising from the dead
(granted they must drink the blood first)

jesus brought people back from the dead
vampires share their inmortality if they chose

jesus told us:
(and you can witness this in a roman catholic mass)
"take this all of you and eat it this for this is my body
the body of the new and everlasting covenant. . .
take this cup and drink for this is my blood
which will be shed for you and for all
so that sins may be forgiven
do this in memory of me"

then the church memebers go on to do this
they drink and they eat his body and blood

vampires drink blood and sometimes eat bodies thus following the commandment

coincidence?

this is an interesting tid bit. . .

a difference between the roman catholics and the greek orthodox when it comes down to an exumed corpse is
in roman catholic belief---if the corpse has not begun to decompose they consider it a saint
in greek orthodox---if the corpse has not decomposed they consider it to be a vampire, thus beheading it and driving a stake through its heart and then burning the remains

i think that this suposed protection was there to avoid future 'cereal killers'

by the way i know boo-berry was out of the question for being a spirit
but what about franken-berry the creation of science and strawberries
was this perversion blasphemy in the eyes of god

by the way there was also the ever hard to find version of the were-wolf the fourth in this chain of cereal spooks if anyone remebers his name and the flavor of the cereal please share

chuck

terraly

I'm a bit confused by your reply Geoff. You seem to indicate you believe "imperfect men and women" have tainted the organization- although we probably differ on the amount of goodness we think is still left in it (after certain impurities enter a glass of water I would not want to drink it).

And you admit that these superstitions are silly...

If I were Satan, I would want people to focus on chocolate vampires and demon-possessed lawn chairs, thereby blaming evil on outside influences rather than on the sinful heart of man/woman. It is very tempting and easy to externalize- focus on an outside enemy and attack, attack, attack, all the while ignoring the problems inside.

It's not just in religion of course, this is a fundamental human tactic- and why we have superstitions in the first place. The only difference here is that religion is trying to lend credence to this most human of foibles.

Mark 7:15 "There is nothing from outside a man that passes into him that can defile him: but the things that issue forth out of a man are the things that defile a man."

Mommie Dark

Wait a sec, Geoff.
You said:
"SIXofNine you dont believe in the devil? I assume then that you dont believe in God. If this is the case then why are we arguing over a box of cereal, when we cant even find a common ground on God which is way more basic."

FIrst of all, nobody was 'arguing' over a box of cereal. We merely offered our anecdotes about JW superstition and its effect on various people. You apparently needed to intellectualize the reasoning behind those superstitions. Nice try, but no brass ring...

Those of us who were told to throw out or to avoid purchasing said foodstuffs (or whatever 'questionable' item)weren't scolded by those elderettes and pioneers 'because it might be spiritually dangerous to bring such ideas into our childrens' lives'! We were told superstitious stories about other JWs who had experienced demonic attack after eating/using/wearing whatever the suspicious item might be at the moment.

JWs encourage a morbid fear of demons and Satan. I vividly recall a Service Meeting part about talking to inactive ones, which urged JWs to descibe the world to these 'weak ones' as a 'demon-filled void.'

These people are not talking about introducing abstract concepts that may spiritually pollute a child's innocence. They are talking about cartoon characters walking out of the wallpaper and biting JW kids! They are talking about demons hopping out of a bowl of cereal and down some JW kids' gullet! Most JWs don't even try to coat this stuff with the thin veneer of intelligent reason you've tried to slap over this fearmongering.

Distaste for rank superstition does not preclude a belief in some higher power, as you smarmily imply to Six of Nine...but perhaps that is another discussion altogether.

SixofNine

I'll just play devil's advocate for a moment. Lets assume I am still a believing JW, much like yourself (it wasn't all that long ago that that was true). If that were the case, I would say that indeed, the cereal box superstition is a crock, and laughable to boot. You know the old expression, 'you can't be too careful'? Malarky.
I would say that in truth, a person CAN be too careful, in every aspect of Christian life.

A person can be so 'careful' in trying to "win the prize", that they are no longer anything remotely resembling the example of the rather laid back, yet intensly loving, personality displayed by the account of Jesus.

And of course, no one, especially no JW, is ever content to just be "careful" for himself. Nope, they have to 'protect' everyone else as well. Soon you have nothing but mindless zombies, humble and obedient sheep, but really only humble and obedient to the next guy up the line. Ok, the next guy(s), plural, up the line. Obedient even to death to the guys waaaay up the line.

But of course, as I pointed out, those guys waaaaay up the line don't resemble anything close to the example of Jesus. Hell, in fact, even Jesus doesn't resemble Jesus by the time they are through with him, lol. Check this out: http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/thread.asp?id=4852&site=3

As for your assumption that I don't believe in God, you assumed wrong. What I don't believe is that God has anything to do with the stories about, and pictures painted, of him in the Bible. After all, it paints a not very pretty picture, and tells a story of a not very nice God. In fact, it paints a picture of a God who is remarkably similar in thought and action to Isrealite men a few thousand years ago.

Surely you can come up with a larger and more magnanamous idea of God than that.

Geoff

I realize it is a human failing to always have to have the last say on something and realize that it was a mistake to try to "CONVERT THE UN-CONVERTABLE" :) Not the car. I wasted your time and mine as well.

SixofNine

Geoff, Geoff, jeff, jefe, I'm all ears to anything reasonable and logical you have to say.

Methinks your personal superstitions are telling you to get the hell out of this conversation quick. You might hear something based on logic instead of superstition.

And then were would you be?

If you're interested, I'll tell you.

outnfree

dark clouds,

ROFL -- Thanks for the belly laugh!

outnfree

mustang

I guess we can't count on Geoff writing the book on JW superstitions at this rate. Pity, it seems that writing such a book would be a moral imperative.

Don't say they aren't out there Geoff. I don't know how old you are, but I can likely say that I have observed them as long as you have been alive.

Mustang

mustang

What is the greatest thing about JW superstitions?

It's not how humourous they are, though that is certainly a contender.

It the situation that for every superstition DISPELLED BY JW's,
at least TWO ARISE IN IT'S PLACE!!!

Mustang

Superstitions

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