i have come to this website/forum looking for friendship and guidance along with a bit of support.
i hope here i can learn more about jehovah.
my family is soo against it, and i hope i can gain more knowledge here, for i am thirsty for it.
Also 100% of my family looks at it like a cult, and dont want me involved.
Why do they think it is a cult? What is a cult anyway? I mean, before you could say the jw is a cult, you would have to know what a cult is.
For instance, my sister was in Scientology. Now that is a cult. They don't even believe in Jehovah! Here is a neat link that talks about them and why they are a cult. The first part is boring, but there is a checklist below that explains some of the reasons they are a cult.
i have come to this website/forum looking for friendship and guidance along with a bit of support.
i hope here i can learn more about jehovah.
my family is soo against it, and i hope i can gain more knowledge here, for i am thirsty for it.
Hey JD! Welcome to the forum.
It is always so nice and encouraging to see young ones who yearn for and find Jehovah on their own. Sorry about your family situation. Maybe you could tell them about this forum. That way they could ask questions and get to understand what you are doing and why it is so important to you.
There are some people who aren't jw here, or who used to be. Some folks will tell you to avoid such people because they are a danger to your faith.
I guess that never made much sense to me. I figure if I have the truth, it should be able to stand up to any questions or scrutiny. Plus I want to know what people who don't believe in the truth think. That way I can find out the best ways to argue against them.
So please stick around and let us get to know you better.
CYP
i know rick ross and this should be interesting.
amy manchester is a christian and part of the project, and asks for prayer for this show.
i hope they don't make it look like deprogramming is the "way to do it.
Hope it goes well, and I hope they keep it reasonably accurate.
THe big problem with drama is it has to be dramatic. I could see this being really cartoony. If they show JW's as raving lunatics for dramatic effect, then it will probably do more harm then good.
On the other hand, if it really shows the subtlety of mind control as well as objective criteria for determining whether a cult is a cult based on how they behave, it could be really powerful and beneficial.
I can't imagine that someone with RR anti-cult experience wouldn't consult it to the effect of helping vast numbers of people leave these groups and regain control over their lives.
CYP
if the big news is legit, someone will file suit and win.. if it is the big snooze one of the above will not happen.
nothing we do or say here will bear on the outcome of the above.
if you think it is the big news, by all means promote it as such.
I don't have a problem with the news. I do, however, have a problem with the sensationalizing of news for the purpose of manipulating people to some action. Particularly when the news itself is withheld while the masses are manipulated into an unreasonable frenzy.
Even if the Big News is completely worthless, I don't believe the person who allegedly "sensationalized" and "manipulated" did so with that intention.
I think it was only sensationalized if it is in fact worthless. If it has teeth then I don't think it was hyped ENOUGH!
If it is worthless, the person who did the sensationalizing most certainly did so from what she thought was a well informed opinion.
I certainly wouldn't want to discourage others from coming up with new and clever ways to hurt the WT by slandering the character of a person who is, at worst, legally naive.
The thread that finally prompted me to write this thread was titled, "Can we trust Barbara Anderson?". Was that really fair or necessary or appropriate. If this is the Big Snooze, then that just means we got more work to do. "A" for effort Barbara!
CYP
i have had a quick look and found no references to this, so - here goes..as in the mag we picked up on sunday.. worldwide % increase over 2004 = 1.3%.
memorial partakers 8524 (compared to 8570 in 2004).
most european and nth american lands show pretty static figs - britain 1% increase, canada 0%, germany 0%, france 1%, usa 0%... but spare a thought for the inhabitants of zambia where 1 person in 90 is a reporting witness, must be hell going down to the local market!
The reports from elders, COs and DOs is true... they really are loosing people faster than they are coming in. If they had more coming in than leaving then the number of Publishers Increase would be greater than the number baptized.
Well you don't have to be baptized to be a publisher. So an increase in baptizims doesn't mean an one to one increase in publishers. Right?
Enter into a long term relationship with someone you really like having sex with.
I always say in regards to my wife, "at least the org isn't sleeping with my wife".
Of course they dictate what is allowed....
i thought the photography was awesome and enjoyed the story.
i loved the books when i was younger and i'm glad they finally made it into a movie.
swalker.
My wife won't see it because BigMother doesn't approve of it.
I tried to explain to her that it is Christian allegory and that C.S. Lewis is about the most loved Christian apologist there is.
BigMother doesn't approve.
I told her actually, it isn't even really Christian allegory. It is more of a "supposal". Suppose God created other worlds, and one of those worlds was entered by man with all his sinful nature. Then how would God set that world to right. The rest is just a backdrop so kids will want to read it.
She will probably watch it on dvd.
It isn't that big of a deal or likely to open her eyes to the truth about BigMother. I just like it when she does things not approved by BigMother.
CYP
please send letters to stephen bates requesting an article on this issue.
many of you may not see immediately how important this matter is.
beyond the other legal ramifications, i.e, the wts lying about secular info., intentional deception, etc., the blood issue is a huge one.
the use of such statistics is completely irresponsible and detracts from a good message about reform on the issue.
True, we don't have any such statistics. As a result, any attempt to come up with such statistics are speculation.
One really neat way for such info to become publicly known fact is for someone to sue the WT over their bogus blood policy.
I can't say if such a thing is feasible from a legal standpoint, and only time and events will tell.
It sure would be neat to have that info made public.
Why not make it public without the trial WT? Jesus said in John 3 that those who do good seek the light so their goodness can be seen, and only those who do evil seek the darkness. If you believe it WT, tell us how many brave JW have been willing to lay down their life.
CYP
if the big news is legit, someone will file suit and win.. if it is the big snooze one of the above will not happen.
nothing we do or say here will bear on the outcome of the above.
if you think it is the big news, by all means promote it as such.
I don't see any fighting. I see something healthier: People freely expressing their opinions - and oftentimes in the real world, opinions vary and it's no big deal. As difficult as it may be to see an opinion that is different than mine, I'd rather acknowledge it exists that play the old game of, "Let's just all agree."
Well said.
I agree that healthy debate is a good thing. Friends just need to realize when an impasse has been reached, and agree to respect eachother's conclusions. The point of my post was to attempt to signal that such a point had been reached.
Part of me was a little embarrassed. I felt we were airing our dirty laundry. I imagined the old coots in brooklyn having a good old time watching the board spin out of control.
On the other hand though, history shows that free and open debate always leads to a stronger sense of truth then any small group that demands unanimity from a place of authority. Like the old Soviet Union, the WT will crumble under the weight of it's internal contradictions. Men were never meant to have the authority or monopoly on truth that they claim.
So such open and heated debate looks unseemly, but I would rather have that any day than the "organized" WT fantasy land.
CYP
if the big news is legit, someone will file suit and win.. if it is the big snooze one of the above will not happen.
nothing we do or say here will bear on the outcome of the above.
if you think it is the big news, by all means promote it as such.
I have to agree with Steve2. What good is a discussion forum with a bunch of nodding bobble-heads? We ALSO support and comfort and console. But this is a discussion forum. Discussions get heated on certain issues. No big deal.
I do feel much better with you saying this. You are one of my favorite people on this site, and you have always been a good friend.
I saw you in the thick of the fray, and naturally I didn't like people taking shots at you.
