Posts by garyneal

12

QUESTIONS and ANSWERS with NT scholar Prof. Bart Ehrman

by Terry in

the following is a tiny excerpt from bart ehrman's blog of which i'm a member.. this particular entry contains questions and answers about the nature of translating the new testament.. .

did the fact that early christian scripture was written in koine greek have an effect in how the religion was perceived by the pagan elites and imperial family?

in other words, did that make the religion look bad or koine greek was acceptable?

garyneal

Terry, how did you get on this blog? I would like to join too if it is possible.

50

Question for the nonbelievers and atheists

by nykid in

what specifically made you stop believing in god and the bible?

was it a steady road of doubts or it was reading one book or one major event that made you realize the bible was not what it's claimed to be?.

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I would have to say that my beliefs range a broader spectrum of Christian theism, deism, and atheism. Originally, I began to think that the WT religion was the one true religion and began to doubt my own Christian beliefs. Then I researched and discovered quite quickly that there were a lot of errors in their doctrine but I still struggled as they did get some things right. Eventually, I was able to shake the WT doctrines but I found myself is a strange dilemma concerning what the true religion really was. I started attending church but found out that they got things wrong and that many of the church goers did not really read the Bible. At the time I use to think that the Bible was the source of all Truth (with a capital T) but I was challenged on that here and elsewhere. Eventually, I came to actually read the Bible for myself and found a God who did not in resemble the one I believed in in many cases.

When I first broke away from WT beliefs and began reembracing my Christian beliefs I vowed never to commit the same dishonesty and fallacy that I saw in the WT publications and from JWs. It wasn't long before I found my own arguments untenable and I began seeing Christian apologists making the same fallacies as the WT. Now I simply see them as both being cut from the same cloth. I still believe in a God concept and I believe in Christ's teachings but I think the Bible does not accurately depict God. I think Matt Dillahunty says it best when he refers to himself as an atheist because he simply votes 'not guilty' on the existence of God based on the evidence.

11

I am curious from a comment made, were there any protests and any conventions this year?

by nonjwspouse in

i don't recall reaading on here about any.. i just wondered if any actually happened?.

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oops i misspelled "at" in the title.

garyneal

I was in Raliegh, NC this year and saw no protests. In the past when the assemblies were in Hampton, VA I would see protests. Nothing really big, just a few people holding signs with web addresses. Most to 4jehovah.org.

49

My Story: from JW Elder to Born Again Christian to Agnostic

by passwordprotected in

i first posted here on 3rd june 2008. at the time i was an elder, appointed the previous october, i was 36 and i was a born-in.

at the time i'd become disillusioned with the society due to the governing body's letter explaining why the book study in private homes was being abolished.

april 2008 saw me start questioning this decision, privately of course, and this eventually led me to this site, to jwfacts and to many youtube videos, all of which began to errode my faith in the leaders of the organisation.. in july 2008, having discussed my doubts with my wife, i attended the district convention, deciding to give the society one last chance to convince me it was the truth.

garyneal

PWP

I remember you from when I first started posting here. I remember your saying to me, "...praise God for your faith."

http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/beliefs/181448/1/Our-Bible-Study-with-the-Jehovahs-Witnesses#.VAPMuLd0y70

I was so faithful then, I began attending a church myself and with the people here challenging me and my own desire to want to remain intellectually honest due to how dishonest I saw the Watchtower being, I began to have doubts myself. I like reading about journeys like yours as it helps me to realize that I am far from alone.

20

JW.org to be regarded as fulfillment of the signs of the last days.

by jwfacts in

i struggled as a jw to accept that the good news of the kingdom was ever going to be preached in all the inhabited world by jws, as there were many parts of the world with few to no jws.

there are not enough to cover the 3 billion plus people in asia to allow everyone to get a chance to hear the message.

it also was offensive to me that jehovah would kill those billions that had never had a chance to accept the watchtower message.

garyneal

But, but the Internet is the tool of the devil!

A google search will reveal more websites that debunk the watchtower than support it.

23

The Circuit Overseer Visit

by garyneal in

last week, the circuit overseer came to visit my wifes congregation and as usual their patterns change somewhat during this week.

from my perspective, the meetings are held on tuesday and thursday instead of the normal wednesday night during this week and they are more eager to go out in field service.

sunday came and my wife wanted us to attend the meeting.

garyneal

Wouldn't they realize it was wrong as they are applying and seeking association?

That's what I would've thought. As mentioned above, if any one of us had say joined the Y for example, without knowing that we were not suppose to as witnesses it would be excusable so long as we left upon finding out. The WT preached for years prior to their seeking membership that the UN was the wild beast. How could they NOT know it was wrong to become an NGO member? After all, witnesses who are unsure of what is right and wrong consult the WTS for clarification.

46

You should meet Brother Smart Engineer

by garyneal in

jw
friends

my wife, who now thinks i am not competent enough to discuss spiritual matters with the kids, thinks that i could really benefit from discussing matters of the bible with this nasa engineer who attends meetings at her kingdom hall.

apparently, he is quite knowledgeable in the bible and has a good grasp of their doctrines.

at least according to her as i never actually spoken with the man at length but i do know that he is an elder.

garyneal

Gary, we have Blondie, Marvin Shilmer, Ray Publisher and BillytheEx, no NASA Engineer is going to win a Bible based argument our super smart members!

Agreed.

23

The Circuit Overseer Visit

by garyneal in

last week, the circuit overseer came to visit my wifes congregation and as usual their patterns change somewhat during this week.

from my perspective, the meetings are held on tuesday and thursday instead of the normal wednesday night during this week and they are more eager to go out in field service.

sunday came and my wife wanted us to attend the meeting.

garyneal

So one must ask: Are they really being directed by JEHOVAH? This is where the congnitive dissonance kicks in. It's a question that cannot be answered, therefore in JWLand it's a question that CANNOT BE ASKED.

Indeed. I can imagine that there is a great deal of that going on in my wife's mind as I share my thoughts on this as well as other things that do not make sense. She has tried to dismiss it by attacking my character saying that I am one of those individuals who want to do what I want to do. I keep having to remind her that this is not the case. Never-the-less, mind closed. I cannot get but so upset with her as I too was at one point in time very deluded. It is amazing any of us wake up.

This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill—the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill—you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes.

As much as I did not like taking the red pill, I cannot go back nor do I want to.

If the average JW went to a YMCA to use the swimming pool, they would likely be disfellowshipped for apostasy. Yet the WTBTS was a card-carrying member of the UN for nearly a decade.

That is precisely my point. When my wife first joined the Y, I asked her if it was okay with her beliefs because I had heard that the WTS had disapproved of this activity in the past. She said it was okay but could be a stumbling block for others. Never-the-less, she takes full advantage of her membership which she got at a discount by not including my income for our household income. I don't know but it seems a little less than honest to me. Oh well.

I also asked her a similar question when she enrolled in Liberty University for her Master's Degree. I guess you can be less than religious if there is a personal gain. I can't judge as I did less than honest things myself when I was more religious. It was my attempt to be more honest with myself and others that woke me up.

My response to this would be: if WT realized it was wrong and corrected their ways, why did they immediately join the OSCE as an NGO? The OSCE is the European sister organization of the UN, and their goals are so similar to the UN's they are viewed as one and the same. The OSCE is a self-described "political-military organization".

Hmmm, I would have to look this up for myself. The hypocrisy continues.

Sometimes I do wonder if the people who run this show know that too...and what else are they secretly involved in? How deep does the rabbit hole go? Are they now more discreet in the information age using front organization? For instance, do they lobby lawmakers?

I never understood why the WTS discourages their members from voting but yet they are quick to go to court? Either way, you're participating in "Satan's system." Personally, I think it is because Da Judge was a trial lawyer and (I believe) a door to door salesman at one point in time. Certainly explains field serve-us.

ProfCNJ: Your illustrations are spot on.

23

The Circuit Overseer Visit

by garyneal in

last week, the circuit overseer came to visit my wifes congregation and as usual their patterns change somewhat during this week.

from my perspective, the meetings are held on tuesday and thursday instead of the normal wednesday night during this week and they are more eager to go out in field service.

sunday came and my wife wanted us to attend the meeting.

garyneal

When I was at the meeting during his mention of the UN, I wondered if I should've approached him and told him about the WTS being a UN NGO member? At the time, I did not know the full details of this but I would've at least asked him if he knew whether or not the WTS had been a member. I ultimately did not bother but I still wonder if this is something I should bring to his attention. I do not have his contact information but I could request it and tell them why if asked. Any reprecussions that you think might come out of this that I should be concerned about?

23

The Circuit Overseer Visit

by garyneal in

last week, the circuit overseer came to visit my wifes congregation and as usual their patterns change somewhat during this week.

from my perspective, the meetings are held on tuesday and thursday instead of the normal wednesday night during this week and they are more eager to go out in field service.

sunday came and my wife wanted us to attend the meeting.

garyneal

It's nice that you can openly share ttatt with your wife...is it helping?

Nope, those pat answers were her answers as well. Nevermind the fact that they KNOWINGLY went into their relationship with the UN knowing that they were the wild beast. Somehow, they went in thinking something was right and left when they discovered it was wrong. Unreachable...