Posts by slimboyfat

37

Why are there still so many of humanity that are immersed onto the lies, ignorance and delusions of religion ?

by Finkelstein in

all religions under critical examination has been recognized inherently as formative lies devised to appeal to human emotions and as a means to cultivate power and control for a select propagating few.

knowledge acquired through scientific inquiry and evaluation has proven that all religious adherence was mostly drawn out human ignorance targeted toward the emotions and consciousness of people.

here we are in the 21 century and people like the jws are still adhering to the lies of christianity and how this religion developed over time.

slimboyfat

Religious beliefs of billions over thousands of years have been nothing but lies.

It's all control and manipulation.

Science has disproved religious claims.

Good grief, do you really believe all this?

You have more faith than I do!

27

Which Org 'directives' did you blatantly ignore

by Tallon in

i remember that we were always encouraged to let everyone at work know that you were one of jw's and therefore would not participate in any of their functions, parties etc.. this i outrightly refused to do.

my reasoning was that i was employed and paid to do a job and therefore my religious beliefs were a personal matter and therefore had nothing to do with my work.

secondly i had to work with these people.

slimboyfat

I didn't mange to read the Bible every day.

Which reminds be of a joke,

A successful comedian says younger comedians on their way up approach him and ask his secret of success. He tells them it's two hours of Bible reading every day. He explains that it doesn't stop them completely but it slows them down.

6

Amateurs built the Ark, professionals built the Titanic...Ben Carson

by James Mixon in

laughing my a-off watching the comedian lewis black and he mention what carson said, and i thought surely old ben didn't say that.

i b- damn, he said it.

black said " he said this in front of a lot of people and i'am surprise no one came up to him and said ben, you must come with us now"... .

slimboyfat

What's this guy all about? Does he say amateurs should perform brain surgery too instead of professional surgeons?

2

The "What Ifs" of Watchtower History

by slimboyfat in

counterfactual histories (where historians or journalists imagine how it would have turned out if history had taken a different path at a crucial moment) have become really popular in recent years.

they have also gained greater academic credibility, having previously been dismissed as frivolous or analytically irrelevant by serious minded historians.

now even senior academic historians, such as richard evans, extol the virtues of counterfactual history as a way of exploring cause and effect, and distinguishing long term trends from serendipitous contingencies.

slimboyfat

Well that's certainly the view of some historians, like Richard Evans. But Niall Ferguson and an increasing number of serious historians see merit in exploring counterfactuals.

Many of the arguments against counterfactuals are really arguments against bad counterfactuals. That is counterfactuals that are badly informed about real history, or counterfactuals that allow for too many simultaneous divergences from real history to the point where anything can happen. Focused and well informed counterfactuals can illuminate the causes and mechanisms in real history.

https://newrepublic.com/article/119357/altered-pasts-reviewed-cass-r-sunstein

I came across this interesting example from a prominent historian of Christianity - what if Arianism had won? (Maybe, one thing, there would have been no JWs)

https://youtu.be/sa_3a0bT_98

2

The "What Ifs" of Watchtower History

by slimboyfat in

counterfactual histories (where historians or journalists imagine how it would have turned out if history had taken a different path at a crucial moment) have become really popular in recent years.

they have also gained greater academic credibility, having previously been dismissed as frivolous or analytically irrelevant by serious minded historians.

now even senior academic historians, such as richard evans, extol the virtues of counterfactual history as a way of exploring cause and effect, and distinguishing long term trends from serendipitous contingencies.

slimboyfat

Counterfactual histories (where historians or journalists imagine how it would have turned out if history had taken a different path at a crucial moment) have become really popular in recent years. They have also gained greater academic credibility, having previously been dismissed as frivolous or analytically irrelevant by serious minded historians. Now even senior academic historians, such as Richard Evans, extol the virtues of counterfactual history as a way of exploring cause and effect, and distinguishing long term trends from serendipitous contingencies.

Among the most popular topics for counterfactual treatments, fiction and non-fiction, include:

What if the South had won the US civil war?

What if Kennedy hadn't been assassinated?

What if Hitler had been assassinated in 1939?

What if Al Gore had won the 2000 election instead of Bush?

What if Jesus hadn't been crucified?

I recently bought a book about counterfactuals relating to Jewish history that includes chapters on:

What if the Exodus never happened? (Irony of question acknowledged and explored)

What if the temple in Jerusalem had not been destroyed by the Romans?

What if Spinoza had repented?

What if Russian Jewry had never been confined to the Pale of Jewish Settlement?

What if the Jewish state had been established in east Africa?

What if Franz Kafka had emigrated to Palestine?

What if the final Solution had been completed?

What if the Holocaust had been averted?

Some counterfactuals seem so obvious as to naturally present themselves, whereas others hint at details, contingencies, and personalities that require a lot of background knowledge and analytical consideration.

So I wonder what a good set of counterfactuals in Watchtower history would look like. I'm trying to compile a list, so any suggestions or criticisms of my suggestions are welcome. A few ideas for interesting Wachtower counterfactuals:

What if Russell never met Nelson Barbour?

What if World War 1 didn't begin in 1914?

What if Fred Franz completed his college degree before joining the Watchtower?

What if A H MacMilllan took control in 1917 instead of Rutheford?

What if Rutherford didn't change their name to Jehovah's Witnesses in 1931?

What if Hitler wanted to reach agreement with JWs in 1933?

What if Raymond Franz had stayed in a Governing Body open to reform?

What if the Watchtower had never predicted the end in 1975?

What if New Testament manuscripts containing the divine name were discovered?

What if Armageddon had really come in 1975?

What if the Governing Body promoted higher education instead of denouncing it?

What if the Governing Body listened to Barbara Anderson instead of having her disfellowshipped?

What if church shunning practices were banned in the United States?

39

Can Someone Explain To Me, Are The Org In Debt Or Rich?

by pale.emperor in

hi guys.. im aware of the orgs blatant hints to donate, donate, donate to the org, the sacking of bethel staff, selling of buildings, reducing mags and books, emphasis on digital rather than physical books etc which is obviously a money saver - but are the wt org in money difficulty?

because elsewhere on here and on youtube there's stories of the watchtower being mega rich, one even called it "a billion dollar organization".

and if there is any money in there, who's benefiting off it?

slimboyfat

Makes me wish someone would do a fake sheik style sting on the GB.

If an ordinary JW asked the GB how the organisation is doing financially they'd get nowhere. But imagine if it was a wealthy businessman with lots of money to donate who was making enquirers about the financial situation. Not to say they couldn't simply lie of course. But they might open up a bit, even unwittingly. I would be surprised if they didn't have such meetings with potential donors.

39

Can Someone Explain To Me, Are The Org In Debt Or Rich?

by pale.emperor in

hi guys.. im aware of the orgs blatant hints to donate, donate, donate to the org, the sacking of bethel staff, selling of buildings, reducing mags and books, emphasis on digital rather than physical books etc which is obviously a money saver - but are the wt org in money difficulty?

because elsewhere on here and on youtube there's stories of the watchtower being mega rich, one even called it "a billion dollar organization".

and if there is any money in there, who's benefiting off it?

slimboyfat

There have been at least three panic videos issued by the GB.

1. Lett saying the WT has got more money going out than coming in so please donate more.

2. Lett saying thanks for the response but we need more money every month not just for a few months, so keep it up.

3. Herd announcing bethel, branch and literature cutbacks weirdly claiming they are a sign of expansion and in no way means they are not being blessed.

Anyone who has watched the three "panic" videos must suspect they've got money problem. Or at least money worries.

Whether it will ever escalate into something they can no longer hide remains to be seen.

39

Can Someone Explain To Me, Are The Org In Debt Or Rich?

by pale.emperor in

hi guys.. im aware of the orgs blatant hints to donate, donate, donate to the org, the sacking of bethel staff, selling of buildings, reducing mags and books, emphasis on digital rather than physical books etc which is obviously a money saver - but are the wt org in money difficulty?

because elsewhere on here and on youtube there's stories of the watchtower being mega rich, one even called it "a billion dollar organization".

and if there is any money in there, who's benefiting off it?

slimboyfat

Searcher very interesting, but could you explain the killing the goose comment, what do you refer to?

15

Letter about changes in book 100 year kingdom

by Rather Be the Hammer in

yesterday a letter was read in our congregation.

it said that there have been doctrinal changes in many chapters of the book 'god's kingdom rules' so everyone but especially the conductor must be sure to use the latest update of the book.. this book is only ...how old?

two years?

slimboyfat

"Brother Bayatyan" has maybe "left the truth"?

Watchtower following the old Stalinist policy of airbrushing ideological renegades out of the picture.

583

What is the purpose of life?

by slimboyfat in

while reading the magazines the other day it occurred to me that jws never really had a very good answer to that question.

because it was aimed at young people and it said something along the lines, "if you believe in god you have a purpose, but if you don't believe in god your life has no purpose or meaning".

i think that is a faulty analysis of the situation.

slimboyfat

Which is one better than even Jesus who rode two horses into Jerusalem. (Matt 21)