Heaven

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Posts by Heaven

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  12

  Has God done anything recently worth witing about?

  by WireRider in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i'm not sure why religions insist upon living and teaching from thousands of years ago.

  a time when people lived in fear of things they didn't understand and didn't have the knowledge or words to describe things and events in terms that are relevant to us in 2015. why are we taught to live, and believe, in the middle-east over 2000 years ago?

  when is there going to be some new material?

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  Heaven

  I think he has helped Tim Tebow ... or maybe not.
  
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  447

  Does Anyone Still Believe in God?

  by LaurenM in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  do any of you ex-jw's still believe in god?

  even with the new rebranding/softening of this religion, i still don't see how people can believe in him.

  the god of the old testimate is an angry murderer who approved rapes and slavery and killed thousands of men, women and children.

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  Heaven

  Wow, this thing took off in a crazy kinda way. I had to claw back through to see where I last posted. And there it is way back on pg 23.
  

  prologos said:Does anyone still believe in the Goddess?" Heaven, or rather "Does anyone already believe in the Goddess?, because the goddesses of the past mythologies are as pathetic as their male counterparts. so: look into the option 8) the deists. but:the reason for the thinking of god as a male , consider the bower birds. The male builds the nest first, then the female can do her grand work. wt doctrine has it, that the quality of love is exemplified by the male face of those freaky four faced creatures of the chariot. I disagree with that, I would pick the female faces in my life, for god to be embodying love. but to be original, the creator would have to make the foundation, the universe fist, for our love, the female, nourishing prerogative to flourish in. and. Males staring at their nipples should be reminded where their priorities lie, where they came from.

  prologos, that was a rather odd post but to answer your question, yes, present day Pagans, Witches, and Hindus do believe in both Gods and Goddesses. The ancients also believed in both Gods and Goddesses. Asherah was Yahweh's consort. But the ancients decided to turn her into a staff of wood or the Tree of Life depending on which way you want to believe. I'm not exactly sure why Asherah was done away with. It was probably to do with the emerging ancient ideal of there being only one true God and it was decided to be Yahweh (definitely NOT a Goddess). To eliminate the Goddess, made everything unbalanced. The entire Bible is a monument to this as are the present day religions. The Gods and Goddesses were the male and female of various different natural phenomenon in ancient times. Luckily, our present day knowledge has surpassed the need to attribute known, defined, and understood natural processes to magical invisible beings.
  

  I have oft times felt that the entire Bible was really written only for men. Right up front it states humans were made in the image of god. And then the whole Bible is about the male version of god. I am a woman and cannot relate my physical being to anything male. If I were a believer, I'd relate far more to a goddess. I am certainly not made in the image of something male. Bear in mind, the social system of Patriarchy was adopted well before the Bible or idea of Jesus. This was a system brought in to attempt to bring stability to ancient warring Middle Eastern desert tribes. Patriarchy was not a system adopted everywhere on Earth at that time but it definitely influenced the Bible.
  

  stuff said: Why on earth is that a problem to a believer who's god concept is either not omnipotent, not omniscient, or so far from human: it's intervention in human affairs is not to be expected?

  Believers who think god is neither omnipotent nor omniscient have made up their own version of god. It is not the one that is presented by the main religions of today. Which is rather the point isn't it? In my discussions with various believers, they all have their own rendition of God. The only conclusion from that is God is a construct of the human imagination.
  
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  28

  Prayer Question I Had After Sundays Watchtower...

  by freemindfade in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  while i was sitting through another grueling watchtower, dying from my brain being turned into cult pudding, i had this thought after i heard this read: .

  when we express our most intimate thoughts to god in prayer, he may answer us through a bible passage, an article in a magazine, or an encouraging word from a fellow believer.

  -august 2015 watchtard.

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  Heaven

  When we express our most intimate thoughts to God in prayer, he may answer us through a Bible passage, an article in a magazine, or an encouraging word from a fellow believer. -August 2015 Watchtard

  It is somewhat odd that 'God' feels the need to use indirect methods to communicate.
  

  As human knowledge has increased over the centuries, God's direct communication with his so-called 'creation' has dwindled down to a select few with auditory or mental issues.
  
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  Updates

  by Cthulhu in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  greetings!.

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  Heaven

  YAY! Missed ya! Have you got your Hallowe'en decorations up yet?
  
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  50

  The NEW "Bible Teach" book

  by Oubliette in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the new "bible teach" book is out!

  thetruthbr has posted links for this and several other of the new publications.

  as an educator, i am very interested in where the society is heading with their alleged "bible education" program.

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  Heaven

  Now I want to get that book "Stellaluna" even more that I did before. Adding it to my Amazon cart now.
  

  I have "Bats at the Beach" and various other children's books. I love illustrated children's books. I'd much rather read these than any of Botchtower's publications any day.
  
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  18

  Just recovering from a 'Mormon Mind Melt' ...

  by LoveUniHateExams in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i was in town centre about an hour ago to buy a shirt and tie for an upcoming job interview when i was stopped by a youngish, clean cut american young man (20-ish) in a cheap suit.

  my heart sank as i thought it was local jws.

  to my slight relief, it was mormons!

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  Heaven

  Mormons were found by a fraudster. I think that says it all.
  
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  44

  The Witnesses Are Really Trying Hard To Get Me Back In

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  at my mom's bed side all i see is either jw family or friends making a concerted effort to have me return to their fold.

  evidentlyy, my mom has encouraged this and i'm a trapped prisoner, as they do their best to have me come back.

  it's bad enough that i have to endure my mom's dying, now i have to be bombarded with this bs..

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  Heaven

  That is tough for sure. Emotional blackmail is nasty.
  

  If anyone were to do this to me, I would say "You claim to have the truth. Mom has told me my whole life that Armageddon was coming soon. Mom was <insert Mom's age here> years old and Armageddon never came in her lifetime. <insert Mom's age> years is not soon. This, alone, is a testament that you do not have the truth."
  
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  21

  Top three reason for it to be cult and/or not the true religion.

  by Powermetal4ever in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  alright, i want everyone to list your top three reasons for jw to be cult and/or not the true religion.

  1.you can't look, or wear whatever you want.. 2. blah.

  3. blah.

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  Heaven

  From Steven Hassan's B.I.T.E model (Behavoir, Information, Thought, and Emotional) of control, the JW's hit all 4 of these categories.

  Their policies on shunning, medical treatments, higher education, their restrictions on books, videos, movies, the internet, their sexual restrictiveness, and denigration and hatred of anyone who is not a witness are all indications the group is a high mind control organization.
  
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  43

  So sick of the abuse...

  by iwasblind in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i am still serving as an elder but just hanging in there.

  i think their quandry is that they don't see me out in the field, but when they need encouragement and decent prayer they come to me.. i just got off the phone to this poor sister who i have only met twice.

  she is not even in my congregation (her sister is).

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  Heaven

  While I am a non-believer (aka atheist, secular humanist), I do feel for those stuck in the Borg who know the TTATT and are in positions where they must try to help the 'sheep'. Using love is really the only way.

  It's what I did with my folks. I tried to show them that not all 'worldly' people were evil by living a good decent life. I gave them unconditional love even though I did not agree with their religious beliefs. I never attacked their religion directly. I used the Bible and basic common sense when they were talking nonsense (you know, like Armageddon is coming soon).

  As my Father became ill with dementia, one of the Alzheimer's Society's social workers told me that "Love transcends the dementia barrier." I have found her to be correct. You can't use legalism, anger, guilt, fear or any other negative, destructive tactic with someone who has dementia. These do not work and actually make things worse.
  

  When I asked my Dad if he wanted the brothers and sisters to help him with his post cataract surgery regime he told me "No. You are supportive." Which also says, they would not be.

  For this sister who is having trouble, I would tell her simply "The Bible says God is love. Keep that in mind. If you are being told unloving things or being asked to do unloving things, this is not coming from God."
  
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  447

  Does Anyone Still Believe in God?

  by LaurenM in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  do any of you ex-jw's still believe in god?

  even with the new rebranding/softening of this religion, i still don't see how people can believe in him.

  the god of the old testimate is an angry murderer who approved rapes and slavery and killed thousands of men, women and children.

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  Heaven

  I have read through most of the posts here. So far I have not seen anyone answer Viv's and cappy's question on which God is being referenced. There are thousands of them. As human knowledge has expanded, the gods have diminished. I think that's the answer right there.

  Reality and facts refute everything I've ever been told about who and what God is. My doubting began as an older child, upon learning of the massive scale of suffering during the Ethiopian famine of the 1970's. EVERY believer must deal with the issue of theodicy at some point in their 'belief' journey. Some come up with excuses, others come to the only logical conclusion: god(s) does/do not exist.

  Epicurus' quote sums it up:

  “Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
  Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
  Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
  Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?”

  Since being on this board, I've seen the main question posed several times. I've yet to see the question "Does anyone still believe in the Goddess?"

  I wonder why that is.