On the whole I liked conventions, because, for a young person, I was strangely interested in things like four-part symposiums on the prophet Habakkuk and new light on Daniel's prophecy and so on. What did get a bit boring to me, were the talks on things like how to be a good pioneer, that were very long, said absolutely nothing new, and included gems like: don't walk too slow between doors, don't waste our precious literature, and conduct progressive Bible Studies. I swear, looking back, the function of these tedious talks was purely to turn your brains into compliant mush, because there was absolutely nothing practical or interesting ever contained in them.
slimboyfat
JoinedPosts by slimboyfat
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38
Were Conventions, Asemblies and the Memorials boring to you?
by HereIgo inconventions always just seemed like more of a vacation to me than anything else, especially if you had to travel out of town for it, but definitely were exhausting especially toward the end of each day.
for some reason i didn't mind the special and circuit assemblies too much, probably because they seemed like more of a social event than anything else and only 1-2 days.
the memorial always was kind of boring to me.
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A stunning piece of LOGIC from the Apostle Paul
by nicolaou in1st corinthians 15 12-17. but if it is preached that christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?
if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even christ has been raised.
and if christ has not been raised, your faith is futile... .
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slimboyfat
I can't understand why the idea of resurrection should be incredible. I used to view it that way but not any more. When I thought it was an incredible idea it was because I was convinced that universe only comprises physical things and physical causes, and that science has explained where we came from and where we are likely going. There's not much mystery left and attempts to fill in parts with mystical things like angels and resurrections were just wishful thinking at best.
But a few things changed my view on this. First of all my worldview was based on a pretty strong inclination that there is no supreme being. If there is a supreme being then it seems to me there should be little problem for him performing a resurrection. Especially now that science offers the prospect of manipulating matter at the level of atoms and of storing massive information. Why shouldn't a supreme being be able to do this if he wishes?
So, saying that we find the idea of a resurrection incredible amounts to little more than saying we find the idea of a supreme being incredible. And I find that increasinly difficult to say. Because the very fact of our existence and our ability to ponder our existence is itself so strange a self-existent being outside of space and time seems a plausible explanation. And if it is possible that God exists then why shouldn't he perform a resurrection?
The more we find out about reality the more it seems a purely material explanation does not exhaust all that there is. The prevailing worldview is that the material universe has given rise to life which in turn has given rise to consciousness. But what if it's the other way around? Have you heard of biocentrism?
The problem with atheist sceptics, I often find, is they are simply not sceptical enough. There is so much about reality we do not know that it is really very premature to be definitively closing doors on any possibilities.
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Christadelphians the closest to JW?
by ab.ortega ini am curious as to what current religion is similar in beliefs and organization to jw's.
i've only come as far as christadelphians.
are there any others you know of?.
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slimboyfat
Christadelphians are close but don't believe in the Devil.
The Church of God of the Abraham Faith is closer. These are sister religious bodies to JWs, sharing common origins, though long alienated.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_God_General_Conference
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HELP needed from folks in UK, esp. in Scotland!
by WTS Archive intl;dr: if you live either in scotland or in other parts of uk and you don't mind traveling, you might be able to help a fellow ex-jw by being present during a courtcase where she alone has to face more than two dozens of jws who have ruined their business.
please contact me directly for details on when and where the court case will be held (i will know these details in few days probably).
ps.
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slimboyfat
Who knows it might be true. I'm reserving judgement.
The idea that a Polish immigrant might be attracted to JWs, but later discover their darker side on YouTube in her own language, and leave, seems the most plausible and compelling part of the story to me.
What is a bit more difficult to understand is the part where, having discovered that JWs are controlling and abusive through watching the YouTube video, why did it come as a surprise to the Polish woman that she would have problems with her JW employees when she left? You'd think someone in that position would ask a few questions and try to discover the lay of the land. Not simply turn up at work to find a ghost ship. Very dramatic scene, but difficult to comprehend in practice.
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HELP needed from folks in UK, esp. in Scotland!
by WTS Archive intl;dr: if you live either in scotland or in other parts of uk and you don't mind traveling, you might be able to help a fellow ex-jw by being present during a courtcase where she alone has to face more than two dozens of jws who have ruined their business.
please contact me directly for details on when and where the court case will be held (i will know these details in few days probably).
ps.
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slimboyfat
I can't find any story. I was also thrown by the "big local newspaper" comment, because Scotland doesn't exactly have a thriving newspaper industry these days. The Herald, The Press and Journal, The Evening Times, The Courier, are biggish regional newspapers. I don't know what you would call a "big" local newspaper, they are all in steady decline. Probably tangential comment but I'm interested in the fate of print media!
However I found this funny story.
http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12070403.Witnesses_apos__church_gets_in_way_of_festive_lights/
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HELP needed from folks in UK, esp. in Scotland!
by WTS Archive intl;dr: if you live either in scotland or in other parts of uk and you don't mind traveling, you might be able to help a fellow ex-jw by being present during a courtcase where she alone has to face more than two dozens of jws who have ruined their business.
please contact me directly for details on when and where the court case will be held (i will know these details in few days probably).
ps.
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slimboyfat
The story does sound a bit incredible. "Speak against our prganisation" and spit in people's face? Sounds like a caricature rather than real JW behaviour. But you never know. Maybe it's an embellished story with some truth to it.
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101
HELP needed from folks in UK, esp. in Scotland!
by WTS Archive intl;dr: if you live either in scotland or in other parts of uk and you don't mind traveling, you might be able to help a fellow ex-jw by being present during a courtcase where she alone has to face more than two dozens of jws who have ruined their business.
please contact me directly for details on when and where the court case will be held (i will know these details in few days probably).
ps.
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slimboyfat
For once, I wished I lived in Scotland!!
Hey, what's this "for once", business?
I've not heard of Polish people becoming JWs en masse in Scotland, but then, how would I know. I remember, around ten years ago, being struck by how many Polish people live in and around Blairgowrie, a congregation I knew at one time. I wonder if it's there, or possibly elsewhere in Perthshire. But there are plenty of Polish people in Glasgow and elsewhere too.
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How do we know JWs are wrong and how do we convince others JWs are wrong: logic versus persuasion
by slimboyfat inwe like to think we are logical and have good reasons for for our beliefs.
no more so than when it comes to our reasons for rejecting the truth claims of jws.
we reject their version of history, such as the date of the fall of jerusalem, because it doesn't agree with the historical evidence.
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slimboyfat
Most people are not even aware of their need to conform. They live under the illusion that they follow their own ideas and inclinations, that they are individualists, that they have arrived at their opinion as the result of their own thinking - and that it just happens that their ideas are the same as that of the majority. Erich Fromm
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I am deeply ashamed that I didn't accept evolution until a few years ago...
by ILoveTTATT2 inso... i live in mexico and i am helping with an esl class (english as a second language).
actually, i am helping with two classes.
i get two days a week in which i just stand there and have a debate with the class, encouraging as many as possible to just talk... in english.. anyways, i like talking about subjects that generate debate.
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slimboyfat
It does seem that way.
Cofty says people should read the arguments of those they disagree with so they can see both sides before arriving at a view. But he doesn't practise what he preaches when it comes to postmodernism.
What he really means seems to be: 'you should all read books that agree with me and see how wrong you are. But don't expect me to do the same.'
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113
I am deeply ashamed that I didn't accept evolution until a few years ago...
by ILoveTTATT2 inso... i live in mexico and i am helping with an esl class (english as a second language).
actually, i am helping with two classes.
i get two days a week in which i just stand there and have a debate with the class, encouraging as many as possible to just talk... in english.. anyways, i like talking about subjects that generate debate.
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slimboyfat
I would not criticise christianity unless I thoroughly understood the beliefs of christians. Christian theology is trivially easy to understand. Evolution is really complex. I have been studying it for 10 years and have only scratched the surface. Amusingly theists think it is intellectually honest to reject the fact of evolution despite never having read a single book on the subject - creationists books don't count!
How come you criticise poststructuralism, Derrida, Foucault, postmodernism, constructionism, deconstruction, and so on without reading any?