Posts by Thomas Poole

31

Hey There ! All You Disfellowshipped Ones!

by Englishman in

jw
friends

is your anger with the jw religion due mainly to the fact that you have been df'd?

is it possible that persons who post here who are not disfellowshipped can feel as angry as those who are being shunned and who are therefore being effectively gagged?.

is the df'ing policy of the wtbts the main reason that ex-jw's seem to go all out to get other witnesses out of the org?

Thomas Poole

A good time to read Franz's books is when you're disfellowshipped.

Crisis of a Consceience

In Search of Christian Freedom

Anyone with a problem will have their eyes' opened up.

156

Biblical PROOF that Jesus Christ IS GOD

by Bibleboy in

before i get started, my name is mark whitmore, 20, i live in vancouver, canada, and i am a follower of the way, a true christian, not a jw.

if you reply, please post who you are, how old and what you believe so that i know where you are coming from.

thanks.. now down to business.. strongs' hebrew and greek online:.

Thomas Poole

Regarding Jesus being God,

He's not. This thinking is not divine any more than the
formula: 3=1 --a doctrine make by men, held-to by tradition.

Start listing scriptures about each and their relationship to
each other. It will come together very nicely. You will
also be able to know if the Holy Spirit is a force
[Moffatt says, "Divine Energy." ] or a person.
You will find that the Holy Spirit has independent
intelligence that he exercises. You will also realize
what the Bible doesn't tell us, but it tells enough.
So have fun! I found it fun.

The WatchTower is very shallow about really explaining
Jesus and the Holy Spirit. They like to get in the way
and control. They take the place of one's relationship
with Jesus, and they don't understand how the Counselor
works in a Christian life, not really.

The closest one can come with the Jesus / God relationship
is that Jesus is the preeminent representation of God.
Jesus is one with God, right. He said the Father and I
are one. Well, we are one with Jesus. Jesus and I are one.
Jesus is in me and I am Jesus, but I am not Jesus and
he's not me. Are you and I one on this?

If God wanted to represent himself to us in a way that
could best be done, what better way to do this than
to put all the divine fullness of himself into his Son,
for us to relate to. The Bible doesn't get in any more
clear than this.

Again, all the Divine fullness of God was given [put into] Jesus.
However, the fact remains that they are still two different
persons, not the same, not the same by simultaneous location.
God is here; Jesus is there. They are not one person.
Think dear Christian!

Jesus is over everything** in Heaven and Earth; however, he
eventually hands all things back over to his Father, right?
...such that all things in Heaven and Earth are under
[returned to]the Father.

**[The Father apparently steps-aside for a time and entrusts
everything to his son because he is worthy of it,
with honor... ]

A related thought: Genesis 1:1 says, God created (formed) the Heavens
and the Earth. If one takes the Heavens and Earth to be
the universe, then God apparently is not bound by the
containment of the Universe, right? I mean He existed
before the Universe, his creation. Think of the Universe
as being a house for God, his own dwelling place. So
he entrusts this dwelling place to our Lord Jesus Christ,
and eventually Jesus gives it back.

From the Father himself, Jesus is called Mighty God [not the
Almighty] , Prince of Peace, Wonderful Counselor...

Free In Christ Jesus our Lord & Savior, as the Father would have it.

3

Cognitive-behavioral conditioning

by Introspection in

i know from the psych classes i've taken that this is a technique for overcoming pessimistic thought patterns.

(positive affirmations, etc) but i have to wonder, are we really just a bundle of conditioned statements and reactive responses?

maybe i've just missed the point, had cheesy textbooks or whatever.. but i personally believe there's a higher resource we can draw upon.

Thomas Poole

Intro, you're chattering. It's called thinking out loud; not a good way to communicate. For example, if I were to say

I realize that life should have action and passion. So, I reason, if not so for me, would I be judged never to have lived. What is your opinion?

Should I share the passion and action of my day. Does anyone know what Socretes would have done. Was his search for wisdom a proper form of action and passion. Was he too old for his endeavors? Too mindless such that he should have shut-up and saved his life. What do all of you think?

Really now, reach through the pores of your skins and sweat your thoughts through. Do not let the plains of hesitation greet you, do not become like bleach bones upon the desert.

Speak to me, all who feel as I feel, and might think as I think. Tell me, now, for I yearn so for your comments, your introspective comments, such that I might find greater meaning in my class studies and fill greatly by rubber shoes.

Do you really enjoy belaboring of our minds? Speak adult please.

6

Martial arts as a metaphor for verbal conflicts

by Introspection in

let me know what you guys think of this.. if there isn't much response maybe i'll type a little less, don't want to be boring everyone if it's not of interest.... well, i was thinking about how arguments happen online on this board and elsewhere, and it occurred to me it has some things in common with some basic martial arts principles.. first of all, something very basic that nobody seems to think about is that you need to see what your opponent is doing.

it seems that often people get upset and are more likely to be focused on that feeling, rather than how they will respond to the other person's argument or actions.

(of course, a calm and collected fight probably doesn't make a good movie) in verbal arguments, this can take various forms.

Thomas Poole

Careful about this type "entertainment." It has ingrediences of spiritism and demonic influences along with it, a lot of new-age mentality also. Personal experience!!! Take time to study the personalities of the people drawn to this stuff. Note their attraction and fascitation with violence. Not good for a Christian developing the mind of Christ.

Free In Christ Jesus our Lord & Savior, as the Father would have it.

8

Our Grand Illusion of Life

by DougKelley in

our grand illusion of life.

doug kelley august 2001. i want to know who you really are; what is really inside you.... each one of us lives an illusion of life.

deep inside us dwells a person that is real and alive, but far removed.

Thomas Poole

Actually, to us little older guys, your ponderances are like nothing new under the sun. Wrap up all the searchings, observations, and interpretations that you expound, it's the same ol', same ol'. It's part of what a lot of your age group grapple with, those who have a sensitive or "creative mind."

Young or old, once in a while it's fun [helps] to put on a jag, along with some laughing, crying, and wrestling, with a partner of like mind. In this system, most everything I find is based upon love, hatred, selfishness, or vanity.

However, everything scopes out differently when one is drawn to Christ by the Father. Then life becomes spiritually rich; the future becomes a Truth for which to hope and be excited about.

Keep thinking, but stop to ask us old guys a question or two also. We've already been there several times. Get yourself an old dog and some elderberry wine; you'll get a lot of insight this way.

Free In Christ Jesus our Lord & Savior, as the Father would have it.

2

Sense of security

by Introspection in

i'd like to invite everyone to comment on this subject.

the only thing i will add at this point is that it isn't only a matter of physical security, but one does derive a sense of security from how they view the world.

this isn't always an accurate view, as most of us on this board will agree with atleast one example, but it is a way to make sense of things.

Thomas Poole

I'm 62. Children grown, independent minded, and industrious. I have two degrees--one literary, one engineering. I'm at the point where intellectually the general scheme of life is mundane and boring. I see society with dumb schools, dumb parents, dumb children, dumb corporations, dumb music, dumb movies, dumb internet chat, mostly dumb literature, sports idolatry, and Christian churches that are more social and pseudo entertaining, rather than Bible teaching. I see this world as Satan's territory, and I have to remind myself that I'm on his turf, in a war zone.

If I want to achieve worldly things at 62, I view life as my being 18 with 40 more years to live. I seem to be intertained by animal behavior more now days. Animals don't curse, smoke, drink, and they listen to wisdom. Also, I am delighted more by what I plant in the ground. I look for ways to help people who are down; they are the ones who are supposed to be teachable about Christ. I reminisce once in while about the 31 years I was in captivity by the WT, and wonder who or what I would be without that experience. The most important thing for me now is to teach and help others know Jesus Christ. It's hard to know how to fit in with these churches. Something about what I pray the Counselor to teach me.

Sometimes I say I have lived long enough to do everything wrong. Still, I feel joy in my heart, mind, and soul because I know the Father, Son, Holy Spirit, and this is more than just intellectual.

Free In Christ Jesus our Lord & Savior, as the Father would have it.

95

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

by Wounded Heart in

used to be called multiple personality disorder (mpd).. i have it.

i was physically, emotionally, sexually abused.

the tramas in my life were so great that i split into many.

Thomas Poole

Reading these posts has awakened me to a minor [if there is such a thing] sexual abuse that I experienced. It was hardly like anything hardcore sustained over time. It was a one time very quick event.

I was visiting my mother's first cousin and her husband. I was about 7 or 8. I was in my pajamas and walked into their opened-door bedroom where I just jumped on the end of the bed ready for conversation or some type of interplay as a child would entertain. After a moment Ben reached over and roughly pulled down my pants about to my knees. I was exposed explicity. Even now--and this was 55 years ago--I remember full well his face as he did this, with his hard core intent and anticpation. I can also still feel my stoned-confused state of fear, fright, and extreme embarassment, all mixed. My reaction was immediate and desperately intense, as I pulled up my pants. I never had company with them again, even though they were always around as the extended family. This man had problems; he eventually shot himself. One of his sons has tried to kill himself twice.

My coping with this was to not think about it, to close it out, although it was always there if I elected to think of it. A bit of my family life was taken out of context by not having a normal relationship with other relatives, just because of one event with one relative. I probably think about this once every eight years. It is not an on-edge dwelling within me.

In the near past I wrote a list of all the people and things I needed to forgive. Then I said a prayer forgiving each person and each abuse that I could remember--anything I could think of. This doesn't make things better for the abuser, this doesn't erase my memory of course, but IT SET ME FREE. My bondage was lifted. Again, it set me free. Not free of memory, but free of hurt, bitterness, and anger; even if I didn't mean the forgiveness when I said it.

So, in my case it was a minor event. For others to understand real sustained hard-core sexual/mental abuse to a victim of this experience, impossible; for only the victim can know his journey. I do think and believe there is a cure that each victim can find. Mine was forgiving. I cannot imagine or know of any other way.

Where was God when this happened? I guess he was the same place during all les miserables of my life till now. I do believe and know that God exists and that I am loved. I don't hold anything against God. I know much cruelty exists in creation, and some use this to say God Is Dead or He doesn't exits.

Since I have had numerous demonic oppressive encounters, I have proof that Satan exits, that supernatural force and evil exists, which proves God exists as well. I have heard demons speak audibly with and without cassettes. I know and can discern when they initiate thoughts in my head. I know the difference between my thoughts and the ones they insert. I have experienced the power of goodness overcome the evil. I know that I could not be set free by my own independent mortal efforts.

I often think of how short life is. What's going on, I think. Is this some kind of joke. Should I laugh and be amused by it all or cry. I think, why I am only a blade of grass that withers away quickly in time, within this containment vessel, my body. I know there is better in the next life, as it is mean't to be. Once I laid upon my bed looking at the ceiling. I recognized that I had two choices: life or death. I knew I wanted life, and I made a list and took steps to pursue it.

Free In Christ Jesus our Lord & Savior, as the Father would have it.

95

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

by Wounded Heart in

used to be called multiple personality disorder (mpd).. i have it.

i was physically, emotionally, sexually abused.

the tramas in my life were so great that i split into many.

Thomas Poole

I am writing a book. It opens like this.

STOMPIN’ AT THE CONTINENTAL

I stood up. “May I have your attention a moment.” The faces were typical: pious, scorning, wide-eyed with indignant surprise, and accusing. I had broken the pecking-order control system of the congregation. Without authorized introduction, I had spoken out to the congregation in bold reckless urgency.

“I would like to announce that as of this moment, I am no longer one of Jehovah’s Witness. I now disassociate myself from the Columbia Heights Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses. [Actually, I realized later that I was excommunicating the Watchtower organization en masse.]

An elder rushed up to me and tore the paper I was reading out of my hand. I didn’t care much since I was going to give it to him anyway. Three days later this elder called me and said, “We have decided to accept your dissociation,” as though only they could decide if I could quit. What arrogance, I thought! Later they lied to the congregation that I had been “disfellowshipped,” as though they had grounds for using their form of religious excommunication. Little did I know I was graduating from the third grade that I had been kept in for so long spiritually.

So how did I become a JW in the first place; better said, a Watchtower slave. How did I jump straight out of the body-of-Christ into false enlightenment? One reason is that what the Watchtower teaches is impressive. They teach and address subjects that the churches seldom talk about. They teach immediate hope and near-future results. When believing a WatchTower trained mind, it helps for a person to understand nothing, or nearly so, about the Bible. It helps to be a person who is drawn towards a façade of sincerity [little red riding hood was more cautious]; one who is gullible to friendly behavior and clean appearance. It also helps not to know you should make sure about what you are learning. Later-on the thought of evaluating their teachings means treason and ground for severe reprisal—ostracism, excommunication, and often annihilation of a marriage.

95

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

by Wounded Heart in

used to be called multiple personality disorder (mpd).. i have it.

i was physically, emotionally, sexually abused.

the tramas in my life were so great that i split into many.

Thomas Poole

Note taken.

I stand down to my approach in communicating with these people. I have revised my responses; however, I left the truth where I felt is was valid.

I have been reasoning with a view to multiple personalities, while excluding any attention to the causes.

Free In Christ Jesus our Lord & Savior, as the Father would have it.

95

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

by Wounded Heart in

used to be called multiple personality disorder (mpd).. i have it.

i was physically, emotionally, sexually abused.

the tramas in my life were so great that i split into many.

Thomas Poole

I was told that

What is being discussed here ...is the result of horrible, sustained abuse of little children and the result to them all throughout their lives unless and until they get the right kinds of therapy.

So, sincerely, you inform me.

How should I speak?
What words are you looking to hear?
What kind of help does someone like you need?
How are you attempting to help yourself?
What to you seek to share with others?
How are you controlled and influenced by your past.
What kind of therapy are you undergoing; what is it called?
How far along have you come.
Are you able to function socially, hold a job?
What do you do now?
Were you a Jehovah's Witness at one time?
What kind of therapy.
Are you able to write a story?

Educate me please.

Free In Christ Jesus our Lord & Savior, as the Father would have it.