What do you mean by "S.I.F.T. method"? I do notice that Google's search results are often in a rut and that when it comes to news sources it tends to show articles from the same news providers as that shown in numerous prior searches (perhaps it 'thinks' I am only interested in those providers). I wish Googe's search engine wasn't that way.
Disillusioned JW
JoinedPosts by Disillusioned JW
-
20
Urgent Message from American Atheists regarding the need to get the Covid-19 vaccine!
by Disillusioned JW inthe following is an urgent email message (except i deleted mention of my name and links which might include information about me,) i received from american atheists regarding the need to get the covid-19 vaccine.. ".
for months, we've thought that vaccine rates have been incredibly strong among our community..
for example, a pew poll in march found that 90% of atheist respondents indicated they'd already received the first vaccine dose or would "definitely" or "probably" seek the shot..
-
-
Disillusioned JW
-
13
Don't take my booze!
by David.L.Henson ina direct confirmation that judge joseph rutherford, 2nd president of the watchtower organization, had a weak spot for good whisky, can be found in the following hilarious watch tower article.. the u.s. congress had passed the spirit prohibition law, and the judge was absolutely furious that these "servants of satan" tried to take his booze away.. the watch tower, which according to fred franz had jehovah as editor during these days, directly stated that christians could not "participate in" such a prohibition.
in other words, they had to smuggle and drink booze to be loyal to god.
the jws are unfortunately a much more boring sect these days.. the watchtower, november 1, 1924prohibition.
-
-
Disillusioned JW
I disagree that the WT article is teaching that Christians "had to smuggle and drink booze to be loyal to God", for the article clearly says that "A desire to eliminate intoxicating liquor and all other evils is a proper and laudable desire. All Christians should be in accord with that desire. But how to accomplish that end is a different thing. ... Intoxicating liquor is a great evil. The devil stands for all things evil. He is the very personification of wickedness. ... Intoxicating liquor is a great evil, and the saloons a curse to humanity. The good American people do not want either. ... No Christian advocates the use of intoxicating liquor. The question is not concerning the existence of the evil, but the *method* of elimination of that evil."
As a result when the article says Christians could not consistently participate in Prohibition, it means in the sense of prohibiting the manufacture, distribution, sale, possession, and/or consumption of intoxicating liquor. It is suggesting that if a JW Christian were to prohibit intoxicating liquor, rather than allow people to decide for themselves whether they can use (or produce, sell, distribute, or possess) intoxicating liquor or not, would be inconsistent with the Bible's teachings.
I am not sure if the WT in 1924 taught that it is OK for JWs to drink alcohol in moderation, since the 1924 WT says "Intoxicating liquor is a great evil." But as we know, at least since the 1970s the WT religion teaches that moderate drinking of alcoholic drinks are permissible and even beneficial to some extent.
-
13
It's VERY DIFFICULT for some JWs to accept the Truth-------But for other not so much------WHY?
by pistolpete inwhat is it about some jws that they can't see the flip-flops of the wt's changing doctrine?.
some of the flip-flops involved the death of many of it's members, and it was not even biblical based.
yet for some reason they can't seem to grasp the significance of the matter.
-
-
Disillusioned JW
Correction: In my prior post where I said "might have sent" I meant to say "might have been sent". Also, where I said "Furthermore, the Revelation says God will use demonic spirits to lead the 10 kings of the Earth into the Battle of Armageddon" see Revelation 16:13-16 which says the demonic spirits (or unclean spirits) come out of the mouth of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet. But also see also Revelation 17:12-17, and note that 17:16-17 (ASV) says "16 And the ten horns which thou sawest, and the beast, these shall hate the harlot, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and shall burn her utterly with fire. 17 For God did put in their hearts to do his mind, and to come to one mind, and to give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God should be accomplished." Thus, these verses in Revelation are an example in the Bible of the Bible saying God will use unclean spirits to influence humans, as a means to carry out God's will. Regarding the idea of God putting an idea (or emotion) into the hearts (and/or minds) of human kings in order to manipulate and control them, recall to mind what the biblical book of Exodus says of Jehovah God having hardened the heart of Pharaoh. There is also a verse which says Jehovah God influenced (by means of a spirit?) the emotions of king Saul.
-
13
It's VERY DIFFICULT for some JWs to accept the Truth-------But for other not so much------WHY?
by pistolpete inwhat is it about some jws that they can't see the flip-flops of the wt's changing doctrine?.
some of the flip-flops involved the death of many of it's members, and it was not even biblical based.
yet for some reason they can't seem to grasp the significance of the matter.
-
-
Disillusioned JW
But regarding the idea that God cannot lie, the Bible in 1 Kings 22:19-23 says the Lord (Jehovah) sent a lying/deceiving spirit! I recommend that people read it in various translations, including the KJV, NASB, and NWT. This passage when combined with the NT verses about God being incapable of lying, is one of the many examples of a possible contradiction in the Bible, and is thus part of the very strong evidence against the Bible being God's (any always truthful all-knowing god's) word. In the KJV the passage says the following.
' 19 And he said, Hear thou therefore the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left.
20 And the Lord said, Who shall persuade Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramothgilead? And one said on this manner, and another said on that manner.
21 And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said, I will persuade him.
22 And the Lord said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so.
23 Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the Lord hath spoken evil concerning thee.'
The ASV Bible in verse 20 instead of saying "persuade" says "entice" and the footnote says "Or, deceive".
Hypothetically speaking, if the WT and its Governing Body are receiving communications from demon lying spirits and if Jehovah exists, then based upon 1 Kings 22:19-23 those demon lying spirits might have sent by Jehovah to deliver those messages. Furthermore, the Revelation says God will use demonic spirits to lead the 10 kings of the Earth into the Battle of Armageddon.
-
20
Urgent Message from American Atheists regarding the need to get the Covid-19 vaccine!
by Disillusioned JW inthe following is an urgent email message (except i deleted mention of my name and links which might include information about me,) i received from american atheists regarding the need to get the covid-19 vaccine.. ".
for months, we've thought that vaccine rates have been incredibly strong among our community..
for example, a pew poll in march found that 90% of atheist respondents indicated they'd already received the first vaccine dose or would "definitely" or "probably" seek the shot..
-
-
Disillusioned JW
Thanks. I found such articles a moment ago and revised my prior post accordingly.
-
20
Urgent Message from American Atheists regarding the need to get the Covid-19 vaccine!
by Disillusioned JW inthe following is an urgent email message (except i deleted mention of my name and links which might include information about me,) i received from american atheists regarding the need to get the covid-19 vaccine.. ".
for months, we've thought that vaccine rates have been incredibly strong among our community..
for example, a pew poll in march found that 90% of atheist respondents indicated they'd already received the first vaccine dose or would "definitely" or "probably" seek the shot..
-
-
Disillusioned JW
Regarding the claim that "the most vaccinated group in the US is the Jewish American ", here is one source for it: https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/.premium-u-s-jews-are-most-pro-vaccine-religious-group-in-america-poll-finds-1.10111880 . Another news source is at https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/07/28/us-jews-overwhelmingly-support-covid-19-vaccine-push-compared-with-other-religious-groups-new-survey-finds/ .
-
20
Urgent Message from American Atheists regarding the need to get the Covid-19 vaccine!
by Disillusioned JW inthe following is an urgent email message (except i deleted mention of my name and links which might include information about me,) i received from american atheists regarding the need to get the covid-19 vaccine.. ".
for months, we've thought that vaccine rates have been incredibly strong among our community..
for example, a pew poll in march found that 90% of atheist respondents indicated they'd already received the first vaccine dose or would "definitely" or "probably" seek the shot..
-
-
Disillusioned JW
The vaccine I had was Moderna's 2-dose mRNA style vaccine (several minutes ago I updated my prior post to mention it); I chose that one because I thought it was the safest Covid-19 vaccine. For more info, see my post at https://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/4686320411607040/have-you-been-vaccinated-have-you-had-any-side-effects?page=4#/5113585503043584 . On August 14, 2021 there will be a free health fair in my community, which will include physicals and blood pressure and glucose screenings. I will ask the doctor there (I'm hoping there will be a doctor and not merely a nurse) about my condition, as well as receive a physical, a blood pressure screening, and a blood glucose screening. I don't currently have a doctor, since my prior one (who worked at an urgent care center, with nearly all of the medics at the center being nurses) retired and I have not yet chosen another doctor. I want my future doctor to be at a regular doctor's office/clinic.
-
41
Have you been vaccinated? Have you had any side effects?
by LoveUniHateExams inhi all.. i'm 42 years old.
i have had two jabs of the oxford-astrazeneca vaccine.. after my first jab i experienced flu-like symptoms - shivering, wanted to lie down in a dark room, etc.. i experienced no side effects after my second shot.. how about you?.
how many jabs have you had?.
-
-
Disillusioned JW
I am now wondering if I should have avoided taking the Covid-19 vaccine (I took two doses of Moderna's mRNA style vaccine). That is because I have noticed a number of damaged looking blood vessels in my legs. This is damage that I never saw prior to taking the vaccine (at least if I ever did see similar damage in the past it eventually went away) and thus I now wonder if the vaccine was a contributing factor (though not the only factor, since I know some other things I did made it difficult for my legs). I prefer not to mention the things I did which made matters difficult for my legs, other than to say I have a job which requires me to stand the entire time I am working and some shoes I have been wearing for the prior two months have damaged heels.
When I took the first dose the needle prick was more painful than I expected. Within a couple of hours I developed soreness in my arm and it lasted for 24 hours. I never had soreness as intense as that from flu vaccines nor from other injections.
When I took the second dose the pain from needle prick was very mild (like what I expected the prick from the first dose would be like). I told the Dr./pharmacist (who injected me at a pharmacy inside Costco) that this injection was far less painful than the first. He said the needles used this time are different than some used before for the vaccine. I asked since that is the case, is this vaccine produced by a different manufacturer than the first one. He gave me a look of disapproval. Maybe he though I meant that maybe the vaccine was not really Moderna's this time. But what I meant was maybe Moderna had a third-party company fill the vaccine vials (or needles?) for them (or manufacture the vaccine on behalf of Moderna) and maybe that company was different than whichever company filled (or manufactured) the ones for my first dose. The pain in my arm that I experienced from the second dose was more painful than which I experienced from the first dose and the pain lasted 36 hours. I had both injections take place in the same arm.
Please watch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5sIWb9GTbbE and at least the first few minutes of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiwsv51Il4k (I didn't watch all of the latter video). For an opposing viewpoint please read https://www.aap.com.au/no-evidence-to-support-claim-mrna-vaccines-cause-clots/ .
-
20
Urgent Message from American Atheists regarding the need to get the Covid-19 vaccine!
by Disillusioned JW inthe following is an urgent email message (except i deleted mention of my name and links which might include information about me,) i received from american atheists regarding the need to get the covid-19 vaccine.. ".
for months, we've thought that vaccine rates have been incredibly strong among our community..
for example, a pew poll in march found that 90% of atheist respondents indicated they'd already received the first vaccine dose or would "definitely" or "probably" seek the shot..
-
-
Disillusioned JW
I am now wondering if I should have avoided taking the Covid-19 vaccine (Moderna's mRNA style vaccine). That is because I have noticed a number of damaged looking blood vessels in my legs. This is damage that I never saw prior to taking the vaccine and thus I now wonder if the vaccine was a contributing factor (though not the only factor, since I know some other things I did made it difficult for my legs).
-
11
Looking to learn
by kimmy insorry if i shouldn't be posting this, i am not jw however i have had past experiences with jw's and was learning a lot about the religion, in hopes to convert one day.
it all ended suddenly and i guess i feel guilty for not learning more, i would get scared at the thought of bible studies and discussions in case it brought back memories.
i was looking for any advice on the best ways i can find out more please.
-
-
Disillusioned JW
Hi kimmy, besides reading the information sources that the others mentioned (and considering the other counsel they gave), I also recommend reading the very old literature of the WT. Doing so can help you see how extensively the WT has taught false teachings. Most of the very old books and other very old literature can be read at http://www.strictlygenteel.co.uk/ .
I don't recommend letting a JW conduct a Bible study with you and I don't recommend attending meetings of the JWs. That is because WT led Bible studies would likely hinder you from thinking critically about the WT literature and its religion. (Some of the WT's literature even tells JWs to not think critically about what is taught in the WT literature; they discourage JWs from looking for possible flaws in the WT's teachings.) When reading quotes in the WT if you find yourself thinking the quote is accurate and not misleading (unless you already knew for certain the ideas were true before reading the WT literature), then I urge you to look up the sources of the quotes and to read the context in the sources. Very often the WT uses quotes in a very misleading and improper way, and very often their quotes leave out facts and theories (mentioned in the sources the quotes came from) which refute the claims the WT is making. I notice that a lot when the WT quotes scientists regarding the topic of evolution.
I also encourage you to to consider the possibility that much of the Bible's claims (especially claims about God and the supernatural) are false. I also encourage you to consider the possibility that no personal God/god exists (even if a deistic creator god exists). In regards to these matters I encourage you to read books written by atheistic scientists and ex-Christian atheists which present evidence and arguments against belief in Christianity, the Bible, and God. The following are some specific book recommendations in this regard.
- Thomas Paine's book (in three parts) called The Age of Reason (it is in the public domain and can be read online). His arguments for deism are outdated (at least from an atheistic scientific point of view), but most of his arguments against the Bible and Christianity are very good.
- Ingersoll the Magnificent: To which Has Been Added a Special Arrangement of Some Gems from Ingersoll for Inspiration, Wisdom, and Courage
- Why I Became an Atheist: A Former Preacher Rejects Christianity (Revised & Expanded), by John W. Loftus, and please read other books written and edited by him which promote atheism and which show problems with Christianity and the Bible.
- God: The Failed Hypothesis: How Science Shows That God Does Not Exist "... is a 2007 New York Times bestseller by scientist Victor J. Stenger ..."
- God and the Folly of Faith: The Incompatibility of Science and Religion by scientist Victor J. Stenger
- Sense and Goodness Without God: A Defense of Metaphysical Naturalism, by Richard Carrier who "is a philosopher and historian with a Ph.D. in ancient history"
- Humanism As A Philosophy (later called The Philosophy of Humanism). The Second Edition of that book, bearing the copyright date of 1949, can be read at https://archive.org/details/humanismasphilos00lamo .
If you are not convinced that biological evolution is a fact, then I encourage you to read scientific books and scientific articles by scientists which provide evidence for evolution. They include books which which disprove the specific arguments of creationists and of proponents of intelligent design.
The books are available at various public libraries. If your local library doesn't have the books, you can request library to obtain them from other libraries by interlibrary loan (such as through WorldCat.org).