"LOL, I have thought for a while that there should be a 'Christian only' section, so those poor persecuted souls can converse in peace"
I agree.
After that, maybe we could make a 'JW only' section, where those poor persecuted souls can converse in peace. All apostate views would not be allowed, and anyone who posted a viewpoint or fact that disturbed the peaceful 'unity of thought' would be banned.
In order to gain access to the page, a prospective member of the 'JW' section would have to swear on the New World Translation that any views that contradict the JW understanding of reality and Gods Word would remain private, and not be discussed.
A moderator (preferably one with plenty of experience in attempting to quell criticism of religious beliefs) would be appointed to ensure that any 'apostate' comments, from those who dared to sneak in and try to introduce an independent thought or opposing viewpoint, would be promptly deleted.
I am sure that Witnesses would be thankful to the Governing Bod.. oops I meant Simon, for this loving provision to remain seperate from the 'world'.
.... It'd be so funny if Simon came in now and said "hey, a Christian only forum, that sounds like a great idea". Talk about having egg on your face ;)
(p.s. Please don't think I am mocking you or having a go at you. I'm honestly not. You seem like a very nice person. I just have a direct style of talking when I'm trying to make someone think. Hope you are not offended..)
defender of truth
JoinedPosts by defender of truth
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147
Your views and ideas on forum areas and organization?
by Simon inthis may come as a shock to some people, but the current forum structure was kind of thrown together without much real thought and then evolved a bit over time.
there are a few things that particularly grate on me and areas where i don't think the subjects work particularly well.
'friends' is a bit vague and becomes a dumping ground, news & world events vs politics & current affairs is hard to decide sometimes, child abuse is a scandal but isn't contained withing 'scandals & coverups' etc.... with a new forum platform imminent, it's a good time to solicit ideas to improve things.
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defender of truth
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32
Please help....in a dilemma..
by crazyhorse inplease help with this: when i was in college, there was a lot of talk about university and how all who pursue that are wasting their time and all that.
even before going to uni, there was a lot of pressurr on me concerning my decision.
during that time, two elders sat with me for appointment as ms and asked me if i have freedom of speech in the org since i'm going to uni and i said no.
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defender of truth
Lol at Rebel8's post :)
crazyhorse:"But I have made the decision to decline. Its going to be very hard."
Well done. I'm not sure that I'd have the guts to say no.
I'd recommend planning what you are going to say and then stick to it, firmly repeating (for example) 'no thank you, I cannot cope with this at the moment for xxxxx reason'. Perhaps share it with us and have a practice. Or not.
Oh, and stop being so darn responsible.
From now on, this is how you should look when the COBOE asks you where you left the keys to the Kingdom Hall..
http://actioncoachstevegoranson.com/files/2011/04/Monkey-Question.jpg -
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A question for Athiests.
by new hope and happiness ini am now an athiest myself, but i think being an athiest its a bit like having a faith.
some get very hooked on it and "preash" others (like me) simply get with with there lifes.
i am sure that some athiests like to have discussions about the non existence of " god" in a similar way that "thisists" do about the existence of god.
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defender of truth
"has not yet been tested or proved to be correct"
.. Notice the word yet, which implies that it will be tested in the future and will be either proven or disproven.
A hypothesis (a scientific one that isn't a mere guess anyway), as Viviane told you, needs to be verifiable, meaning it is a theory that is possible to prove correct, by testing and recording the results.
Seeing as nobody has come back from the dead to tell us that all is well, and that there is an afterlife
where they watched Buddha shoot some pool with Jesus, after sharing a bottle of whiskey with Allah and Zeus (Who won? Jesus didn't have a prayer..), there is no way to carry out and record the results of a test in order to prove or disprove your theory. Once we're dead, we can't tell anyone anything.
Unless you can propose a way to carry out a scientific test of your speculation, it's speculation. (see number 4: a guess) ;)
1. a proposition, or set of propositions, set forth as an explanation for the occurrence of some specified group of phenomena, either asserted merely as a provisional conjecture to guide investigation (working hypothesis) or accepted as highly probable in the light of established facts.
...4. a mere assumption or guess."
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/hypothesis -
101
A question for Athiests.
by new hope and happiness ini am now an athiest myself, but i think being an athiest its a bit like having a faith.
some get very hooked on it and "preash" others (like me) simply get with with there lifes.
i am sure that some athiests like to have discussions about the non existence of " god" in a similar way that "thisists" do about the existence of god.
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defender of truth
OP: "But seriously even an atheist...[nonsense]
...so why can't i still believe in an after life?"
If you don't have a belief in a God, you are an atheist.
Beyond that, atheists believe whatever they like.
The definition of atheist stops at disbelief in God. Okey-dokey? -
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Have You Ever Rejected Being Appointed an Elder/MS Before the Announcement?
by GermanXJW inwhen i was a jw several brothers (ms) told me in private that the elders had asked them several times if they did not want to become an elder.
they said they rejected because it was too much responsibility for them.
were you ever approached that the boe wanted to make you an elder but you refused?
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defender of truth
I was never approached about being a ministerial servant...I always thought that strange because... I was by far and away the best teacher and speaker in the congregation."
Maybe they wanted you to work on humility ;) ..lol -
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A question for Athiests.
by new hope and happiness ini am now an athiest myself, but i think being an athiest its a bit like having a faith.
some get very hooked on it and "preash" others (like me) simply get with with there lifes.
i am sure that some athiests like to have discussions about the non existence of " god" in a similar way that "thisists" do about the existence of god.
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defender of truth
Outlaw said: "Some people Who Claim to be Atheists...They`re Angry at God, for Not Being what They Expected.."
Either that's an oxymoron... or you mean that some atheists are angry with the things that some believers preach about, promoting a false belief in a loving and personal kind of God that doesn't exist and yet still needs your time, money, and full devotion? -
101
A question for Athiests.
by new hope and happiness ini am now an athiest myself, but i think being an athiest its a bit like having a faith.
some get very hooked on it and "preash" others (like me) simply get with with there lifes.
i am sure that some athiests like to have discussions about the non existence of " god" in a similar way that "thisists" do about the existence of god.
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defender of truth
Atheism isn't a religion.
"Calling Atheism a religion is like calling bald a hair color."
- Don Hirschberg -
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Letter of Reinstatement
by kayanow ini'm new to this website and i thought i'd create a profile.
i was disfellowshipped in july of 2013 in another city.
i since moved and starting going to meeting about 6 months ago in my new city.
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defender of truth
Welcome, kayanow!
I respect your decision.
After all, what's wrong with being a Jehovahs Witness?
"Jehovah's Witnesses are generally sincere, clean living people that wish to serve God.""One of the enjoyable aspects of being a Jehovah's Witness is the friends that can be made through the congregation and the broad variety of people that can be met through District Conventions."http://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/wrong-with-being-jehovahs-witness.php -
2596
The Pastor of my Old Church Tried to Re-Convert Me Yesterday
by cofty inyesterday evening my wife and i were invited to friends house for new year's eve.
we met them when i was a christian and we have kept in touch.
they had a few other friends there as well, including the new church pastor and his wife.
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defender of truth
Ruby said: "the earth itself gave plenty of early warnings."
That is a misleading statement. It is of no use for the earth to give such signs, if a civilisation cannot do the following;
detect as many of the signs as necessary, interpret them correctly, and then sound the warning in enough time.
"When the tsunami struck on December 26, 2004, the Indian Ocean had no early warning system to speak of—at least nothing like the Pacific Ocean's array of tide gauges, seismometers, deep ocean sensors, high-tech buoys, and communication systems.
The Pacific system's seismometers happened to detect the Indian Ocean earthquake that created the tsunami.
"We had seismic signals," Charles McCreery said. "But we had no sea-level data to detect or measure the tsunami and no system for disseminating a warning." McCreery is the director of the U.S. government's Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) in Ewa Beach, Hawaii."
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/12/1223_051223_tsunami_warning.html
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(sorry if this seems off-topic, Cofty)
Ruby- What would you say regarding the early civilisations that did not even have enough knowledge to interpret any of the signs that we know of today? Why did God not warn them of what was to occur?
(The following is about Pompeii)
"His uncle, known as Pliny the Elder...was not only the senior military officer in the district, but possibly the most well informed living Roman on matters of natural science. His 37-volume Natural History is the longest work on science in Latin that has survived from antiquity... And the sighting of a column of smoke 'like an umbrella pine' on the far side of the Bay triggered a response more of curiosity than of alarm in him...
Pliny's casual reference to earth tremors 'which were not particularly alarming because they are frequent in Campania' reveals the Roman's comprehensive ignorance of the link between seismic activity (earth tremors) and volcanic activity...
The volcanologists of today constantly monitor any changes in levels of seismic activity...
The catastrophic magnitude of the eruption of AD 79 was connected with the extended period of inactivity that preceded it. A long interval combined with mounting seismic activity is a sure sign of impending disaster.
Of course, the Romans could not know this."
"...the earthquakes that Pliny described so casually were more than just portents. Current thinking, however, had not yet caught up with their significance. We know this because, by an extraordinary coincidence, the philosopher Seneca, advisor to the emperor Nero, wrote a discussion of the scientific causes of earthquakes only a few years before the eruption.
Seneca's treatise on the causes of natural phenomena included an entire book on earthquakes, and at the time he was writing, the news was coming in freshly of the catastrophic earthquakes in Campania of AD 63, which caused extensive damage to both Pompeii and Herculaneum.
Seneca writes that he regarded it as likely that earthquakes in different parts of the world were interconnected, and even that they were linked to stormy weather, but he draws no link with volcanic activity. Indeed, he goes so far as to reproach the landowners who were deserting Campania for fear of further earthquakes."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/pompeii_portents_01.shtml -
2596
The Pastor of my Old Church Tried to Re-Convert Me Yesterday
by cofty inyesterday evening my wife and i were invited to friends house for new year's eve.
we met them when i was a christian and we have kept in touch.
they had a few other friends there as well, including the new church pastor and his wife.
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defender of truth
Ruby said: "here is an interesting quote from Freud regarding religion"..."A personal god was nothing more than an exalted father-figure: desire for such a deity sprang from infantile yearnings for a powerful, protective father, for justice and fairness and for life to go on forever. God is simply a projection of these desires.."
So you don't believe in a personal God, then? Either that or you don't agree with the quote, that you just threw in with no explanation of the relevance of it to this thread?
This thread is aimed at the Christian God.
