i remember the "boy's club" mentality from many of the bethelites in the 70's and 80's.
it seemed there were a number of males who were "effeminate" back in the day.. i knew of one guy that was told by the bethel brass that he would "go places" at headquarters if he could learn to deepen his voice and tone down his gestures a bit (and he was told it wouldn't hurt if he ever married a fellow bethelite sister).
this man was extensively used at conventions, became less "gay looking" and got married.. so my question is, did you see effeminate men in bethel?
In answer to minimus question, yes, there were/are a number of "gays" at Bethel. We're everywhere else so why would Bethel be different. And I agree with Steve2, the knuckle-dragging perceptions of sexuality on here are, at times, deplorable.
Minimus, what is it with you and homosexuality, is it a topic you feel hasn't been clearly explored by all your previous threads?
i've received a submitted article for publication on my blog (http://thegoverningbody.org).
this is from the introduction:.
i have an issue i would like raise.
I remain surprised that anyone expects a 'judicial committee' to be some ethically based court. It's a nonsense, the very premise of it. They make up the rules and if you don't play by them shit happens.
i am sick and tired of people putting down posters like the andersons!
they work hard to expose some things we might never have known about.
why some find fault with them, or ray franz before them, or maximus when he was here is beyond me.. be thankful for those that decide to come here and share what they know about this organization.. we get elders who are still in their positions and they share with us a lot of interesting news and perspectives.
I normally like your posts Steve2 but in this case I think you're being a bit of a dick.
I'll add that I've never had the impression that Barbara wants to bring down the WTBTS but that she does want it to be held responsible for child protection issues over sexual abuse and blood transfusion. But I've met her so maybe I read her posts differently from you.
note: mature language/content warning.
the youtube video below is a 'best of' compilation from a british tv show called 'the scheme'.
i'm told it's like a scottish version of 'jersey shore'.
Beyond the comic surface it is utterly depressing.
do you miss the "friends"?.
do you miss the meetings?.
do you miss field service?.
I miss some of the friends I had, sorry that they remain trapped.
But more interestingly to me is that I miss the age range and socio-economic mix of friends I had as a JW. Granted we were friends by necessity but they ranged from teenagers to octogenarians, rich to poor, boorish to cultured. The majority of my friends now are like me, maybe not in background but in terms of cultural values, interests and age (well15yrs either way). Attempting to make friends unlike me would feel rather contrived, potentially patronsing, and I think the only way it happens is when the choice is limited by faith or sometimes geography.
But I miss both these things in a very limited sense.
in the latest issue of the new yorker, paul haggis opens up about his split with the church of scientology.
it is a very lengthy article, and i've quoted some of it, below.
click the link at the bottom for the entire article.
It is an interesting account and its the unthinking acceptance that Haggis went along with that resonated with me.
an elder phoned me up the other day to see how i was.
he does this every couple of months, as part of his shepherding routine i suppose.
(at least this elder takes shepherding seriously) i have not been to a meeting for a few months.
Maybe you're just nicer than lifelonghumanist and me and they want you back...
9 years out, not dfed and I've never had them in touch. Wonder what I did wrong right?
did anyone hear the part from the recording of the last 6 screens conference call where johnny talked about a brother being "effeminate?
" johnny mentioned that he refers to this brother as "sister.
".
Judge Dread
Your definition doesn't chime with Webster
: irrational fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against homosexuality or homosexuals
in this context the term has been used in identifying an aversion. You may dislike the anomaly between the construction of the word and current usage but you strict definition of homophobia is inaccurate.
did anyone hear the part from the recording of the last 6 screens conference call where johnny talked about a brother being "effeminate?
" johnny mentioned that he refers to this brother as "sister.
".
CuriousButterfly
Perhaps you can talk to my family and Witness friends who ceased associating with me as I seem to be have been stuck with the bigoted 20%.
i'm hardly the biggest fan but i thought this was genuinely funny.
he held a mirror up to the overpaid botoxed schmucks and some of them found it funny.
but i'm hearing there's a bit of a criticism.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvhxzp2spla.
What heights do you have in mind?
One of the 144,000?
