Posts by OnTheWayOut

46

Paranormal stuff: is it a cultural thing? Rant ahead

by Whynot in

paranormal stuff is common where my family is from it's almost expected.

native american background, my great grandmother was a witch doctor a damn good one too, my non witness relatives dabble in it.

so i have seen stuff and experienced stuff.

OnTheWayOut

I am willing to take on the thoughts on "the God of the Bible" and certainky will argue against an omnibenevolent and or all-knowing god out there.

From research, I believe weird things exist and have existed. And we don't know all there is to know on so much. But I already butt heads with god-believers who insist the burden of proving a negative is on me. (You can't prove the invisible unicorn DOESN'T exist.)

So I bow out of the direction this tgread is going in, but add that "oh yes, JW's freak out at anything with spiritism, magic, demons, dead people."

17

How does mankind know what happen before we were created??

by James Mixon in

for example, "and god said, let there be light: and there was light.

"a personal and vocal god said, "let there be light.

"so god saw the light, and thought it good, but how did the priestly scribe know that he did?

OnTheWayOut

It is clearly alleged that God inspired Moses to write that, word-for-word.

So, when the narrative gets weird- like God-approved raping, murduring, pillaging, and long lists of silly rules like it is okay to beat your slave but only nearly to death- then that's all on God. Not on the men who actuallly wrote it all.

24

I Went To My Brother’s Memorial Service at the Kingdom Hall

by minimus in

jw
friends

i have to say that the talk was very good.

instead of just repeating a jw manual , the speaker actually spoke about my brother!

there were a few scriptures with the jw hope but 80 % of the talk was actually about the life of my brother.

OnTheWayOut

80 % of the talk was actually about the life of my brother.

I am glad you got to hear that. But I will assume your brother was at least a fairly big fish in the pond (locally important and/or well known). They might violate the rules for an elder or certainly a male elder pioneer.

66

Overlapping Generations

by JRK in

jw
friends

i remember when that came out, my mother didn't catch it in the original article in the wt.

it was in one of the review "do you remember" thingies that she caught it.

she asked me if it means what she thought it meant.

OnTheWayOut

What I don't understand is why there wasn't a mass exodus from the religion when they came up with that bullshit. I would have thought half would have left.

Yes. Had I not already woke up or if I were awake but "physically in, mentally out," I am quite confident that I would have stood up during the coverage of that "overlapping generation" in the Watchtower study and loudly stated "Overlapping generation? Did the pull that out of [either "thin air" or "their asses" ?] F$#k this, I am outta here."

Edited to add:

dropoffyourkeylee
I think the 1995 generation change had more significance than the overlapping generation change. Before '95 most people really did believe in the 1914 generation thing. After '95 I think the average JW, if they didn't leave then, just took it as 'whatever', so the overlapping change didn't mean a lot because they were not committed to the generation teaching post '95.

7

JW "rules" and ex fellow shipping somebody..

by Canadian Sunshine in

i searched up jw rules, and things that can get them into trouble with the congregation.

if i remember correctly there is 100 rules.

i already assume these rules are taught regularly or "preached" and stating why they are against god therefore followers obey, or try to obey.

OnTheWayOut

While attending a sporting event is not forbidden, JWs are told not to favour any particular team as that is considered a form of nationalism.

Well, see how you will get varying answers. I never heard of "not favour[ing] any particular team."
GO CUBS!!!

As far as "celebrating" Christmas or birthdays with family, it all depends on what you did and who knows what you did and what you say about it. JW's are against anything that is considered "interfaith" which includes stepping inside any church/temple and certainly includes putting up any holiday decorations on your home. But if you went on a tour that included the Vatican and weren't there for services, most JW elders would not care. I regularly went to family funerals and some weddings at churches, but did not mention it to other elders. I doubt they would have a big problem with that if they knew, but I figured I would not take that chance. I went to some birthday gatherings of family with the excuse of "time with family" but again did not tell others. But if a member was accused of "stumbling" another member by their attending or participating in any "interfaith" stuff, they could be brought before a judicial committee. And some local congregations could do this just from the very knowledge that a member attended, regardless of the fact that no other JW's were even aware of it, let alone crying that they were stumbled.

Pagan and magic stuff, mediums and psychics- absolute wrongs according to the rules. Any knowledge of any involvement for any reason would get a member investigated and probably in front of a judicial committee. If a member participated to any degree even as small as curiosity for fun, they better keep it to themselves.

Christian music- I suppose it all depends. JINGLE BELLS has absolutely nothing Christian or even Santa Claus related. It's about winter. But playing it in the car with a bunch of JW's will get you in hot water. Many Christian songs say nothing wrong, so maybe not so much of a problem as anything that people relate to Christmas. But certainly, JW's will get in trouble for sharing religion-laden songs with other JW's. I find that most people (myself included) would not recognize "Christian rock" if it was not obvious, and JW's could probably listen to it among others and nobody would care.

7

JW "rules" and ex fellow shipping somebody..

by Canadian Sunshine in

i searched up jw rules, and things that can get them into trouble with the congregation.

if i remember correctly there is 100 rules.

i already assume these rules are taught regularly or "preached" and stating why they are against god therefore followers obey, or try to obey.

OnTheWayOut

If enough people give enough detaled answers, this could get confusing. Much depends on the local congregation and how they decide to uphold the "rules."

First off, people get called to a judicial committee for some violation of the rules. It is usually only for serious accusations of violations, not for getting a tattoo or telling another member to BLANK off. But some congregations will go after a member for any small rules violations too. There is only one thing you can be "disfellowshipped" for- being unrepentant when they decide your guilt. They can decide that you are only sorry because you were caught or that multiple violations before the committee meets are clear signs that your repentance is not genuine. So typically, you have to kiss their asses and only confess to a one-time violation if that is all they know about.

Gotta run now. I will give more thoughts on your "interfaith" questions later.

9

Volcano eruption in Hawaii! The end surely must be near!

by nowwhat? in

umm how do you think islands are formed to begin with?

!.

OnTheWayOut

The Big Island (the one actually named "Hawaii) is known to be formed by still-active volcanoes.

Nobody is dying from the eruptions and earthquakes on The Big Island, although it is serious. Quite a few people are being displaced. That is all.

JW Signs that the end is near:
Good times
Bad times
Black U.S. Presidents
Stock market roller coasters
Volcanic ash spewing from Iceland
Volcanic lava flows from Hawaii

31

Atheists - How Did You Become An Atheist After Waking Up?

by pale.emperor in

i consider myself an atheist.

and right now i'm reading a lot on atheism in general (books written to answer creationists).. i'd be interested in knowing how you became an atheist after leaving the jws and how long did it take?

was it instant or did your belief in a deity gradually decline?.

OnTheWayOut

My stages differ from yours, but I get it:

Still believed in the God of the Bible. I figured "Christendom" had it more right.
Believed the Bible "could" be God's Word.
Completed enough study of why Watchtower was a cult and kept studying to see what was up with the root of that religion- The Bible.
Included Eastern Thought in my studies.
Similarly to your path, found great books from the likes of Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens and also great videos on the secular establishment of the Bible.
Finally broke through to see how the Flood could not be true, the god of the Bible was a war-god. Continued to read science and added much about Jesus being a myth or just a man.
Just as I could never go back to the JW's once the truth about "the truth" was discovered, I could never go back to believing in the god that men created.

My whole philosophy of life was flipped upside down. People come first. While we plan for our futures, we plan for NOW and our IMMEDIATE future, not some hopeful everlasting future. We do our best to enjoy life and family now, before we are gone forever. It is not a dismal outlook.

Understanding "the big bang" and "string theory" are important things, but not knowing all about them doesn't default to "God did it." Humans are in the infant stage of understanding the universe, but religion asks us to stop seeking better answers.

28

advice please/data protection

by Phoebe in

jw
friends

i have just received an email from an elder's wife regarding the new data protection laws.

between the lines it sounds like she has been asked to contact me.. she says they 'don't want to leave me out' so they want me to fill out the form as 'i'm still part of the congregation'.

also, my blood card needs updating, apparently.. the elder in charge will be in contact.. obviously, i'm not doing either, but what do i do?

OnTheWayOut

There is no judicial committee for not keeping forms up to date. Members don't technically have to have blood cards.

8

JW's Setting Up Carts at Chicago Train Stations

by OnTheWayOut in

the reader is very chicago-oriented but for your benefit while reading, "the el" is the elevated train system that ties in with the subway system for commuters and "cta" is the chicago transit authority that runs the commuter trains and buses.

https://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/is-it-legal-for-jehovahs-witnesses-to-proselytize-inside-cta-stations/content?oid=47477482.

OnTheWayOut

The Reader is very Chicago-oriented but for your benefit while reading, "the el" is the elevated train system that ties in with the subway system for commuters and "CTA" is the Chicago Transit Authority that runs the commuter trains and buses.

https://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/is-it-legal-for-jehovahs-witnesses-to-proselytize-inside-cta-stations/Content?oid=47477482