Can It Be? (Testimony of a former Jehovah's Witness)

CE ^ | April 3, 2010 | Mary Kochan

[william clark]

I know, and I’m with you in that it’s of relatively little importance. I think it’s just one of the straws they grasp at in attempting to undermine the resurrection story enough to give their wrong spin on it some implied credibility.

It’s also just one example of how they focus so narrowly on a secondary issue, and by doing so, horribly miss the bigger picture.

[plinyelder]

Look .. You can spew venom and use the definitions of a cult that other ‘Valid’ religious leaders have deemed as the last word if you want.
My point is .. Why is it you people who call yourselves Christians have this need or desire to Invalidate another’s belief?
No One Made the person who posted the ripping revue about the JW’s ‘JOIN’ the JW’s.
Contrary to what some may think .. I am not a JW even though I have known and associated with many of them.

I have also known and associated with: Catholics, Seventh Day Adventists, Mormons, Baptists and more.
It is Only the ‘so called’ main stream Christians who go out of their way in spreading untruths, fallacy’s and downright lies about the JW’s.

Enough!

If your happy with your beliefs .. more power to you and yours.

Practice the love for others and their beliefs that ‘mainstream’ Christians preach so much about and then Maybe .. Your faith will be a convincing beacon to lead the misguided ‘Cult’ followers into Your light.

A Christian who is ripping and tearing at another’s belief because they fall into someone’s definition of a cult, kook or .. Whatever .. That, my friend is not going to help anyone!

[Doulos1]

Hey, he said devotion. Now that’s funny!

You will know a tree by it fruit.

[investigateworld]

Did I tell you my two favorite pick up lines are:

(1) I'm an ROTC instructor at George Fox University.

(2) I'm the food bank coordinator at the Jehovah Witness Church.

(I'm wicked - but God forgives ;^)

[TypeZoNegative]

>>6.a religion or sect considered to be false, unorthodox, or extremist, with members often living outside of conventional society under the direction of a charismatic leader. 7.the members of such a religion or sect. 8.any system for treating human sickness that originated by a person usually claiming to have sole insight into the nature of disease, and that employs methods regarded as unorthodox or unscientific. 6 and to a lesser extent 8 describe JW beliefs ==================== >>"a religion or sect considered to be false, unorthodox, or extremist, with members often living outside of conventional society under the direction of a charismatic leader." >There is a problem here, actually a few problems: Who does the considering here? You,The Rev. Al Sharpton .. The Pope, Who? How about the majority of universal societial morals, mores ethics and social norms. For instance, it's unethical to allow your infant to die no matter which society you live in, it's immoral to shun your family when they're suffering from a drug addiction, it's against social mores to bother people at their doors about personal religious beliefs and it's against universal social norms to publicly shame somebody for disagreeing with you. >"under the direction of a charismatic leader" >Again, this would fit in nicely with the Catholics and the Pope. JWs love to bash Catholics in debates even if the other person's not a Catholic. >On your number eight: "... treating human sickness...employs methods regarded as unorthodox or unscientific" .. >Other than the abstaining from the use of blood .. What other unorthodox or unscientific medical practices do the JW's engage in? Read it and weep. >If outside of conventional society is a Bad thing, would you please explain why? Actually .. Please just explain WHAT that means!? Every JW that I know of ..live in homes and go to normal jobs just like you and I do. They shop in the same markets and go to the same banks. >If they have compounds anywhere .. I'm not aware of any? A cult doesn't need compounds to control a person, they just need emotional barriers. You can function in society very well and still be in a cult because your religion's leaders will tell you not to speak to outsiders or have much to do with them.

[TypeZoNegative]

“No One Made the person who posted the ripping revue about the JW’s ‘JOIN’ the JW’s.
Contrary to what some may think .. I am not a JW even though I have known and associated with many of them.”

I’ve been a JW for most of my life. I can see through you. You’re either somebody who’s been disfellowshipped for some silly infraction and still feels loyalty to the religion or you’re facing a crisis.

[Theo]

Yup, I totally agree with you, William.

[plinyelder]

Never been a JW.
Haven’t been in a Kingdom Hall for twenty years.
Never been baptized by ‘any’ religion.

No crisis.

And I find it Very Hard to believe that you are a JW because the Last place a JW would be is in a ‘political forum!’

Your seeing throughers <—(made up word)need some adjusting my friend.

[investigateworld]

1 Point to Plinyelder.

[TypeZoNegative]

If I were a JW, I would be a very bad JW. They tend to disfellowship people who call the religion a cult and who call them out on their policy on child molesters. I’m not a JW. In fact, I’m a member of a local support group for former JWs.

[plinyelder]

I’ve been a JW for most of my life. I can see through you. You’re either somebody who’s been disfellowshipped for some silly infraction and still feels loyalty to the religion or you’re facing a crisis."
==========

My good friend .. You need to go back and read what you have posted!
(See Your post #86)
I wont call you a liar because I don't think that you 'honestly' Know Who or What you are!

When you slander a group of people .. at Least get your stories straight!

If you are helping X-Witnesses .. Who's helping You?

[reaganaut]

The anti Mormon crowd has pulled two members out and into Christianity here on FR alone, that we know about.

I do live my Christian faith, and part of that is

I have had enough of ‘lukewarm’ Christians who don’t bother to defend their faith and think all roads lead to heaven.

I was LDS for several years, if some Christians hadn’t cared enough to ‘tear down my LDS faith’ I would still be trapped in that cult.

Until you have walked a mile in my shoes, don’t accuse me of not acting Christian by warning others about Mormonism. I confess I don’t know much about the JW’s, I was never one of them. Mormons OTOH...

It is far more important than me just being happy with my beliefs, it is sharing the change in my life (from works to grace) with other.

I don’t expect you to understand in the least.

[svcw]

It is Only the ‘so called’ main stream Christians who go out of their way in spreading untruths, fallacy’s and downright lies about the JW’s.

And what would those be? The lies, fallacy's and untruths.....that is.

[plinyelder]

And of course .. It was the anti Mormon crowd that is partly responsible for the Muslim in the White House.

Listen .. No One has a problem with YOU or with anyone else professing their New Found faith.

What I have a problem with is your incessant NEED to discredit the belief’s of others in doing so!

Reminds me of Radical ‘Former Smokers’!

[Religion Moderator]

your incessant NEED

Reading the mind of another Freeper is a form of "making it personal."

Also, making the thread "about" individual Freepers is a form of "making it personal."

Discuss the issues all you want, but do not make it personal.

[plinyelder]

My apologies to everyone.

[Vendome]

That’s great nOOb but no one here is anti Mormon, in fact, that Mormons are themselves becoming anti Mormon and claiming to be Christians, something they had never done before.

The had always been Latter Day Saints until recently and have decided the only way to remain relevant is to now profess they are Christians, though antithetical to their history.

They have always decried Christians as lower forms and to be disregarded. From Joseph Smith to Brigham Young from Fielding Smith to Kimball.

It is just nuts they are now putting on the mantle of Christianity, all the while calling Christians faux or manufactured.

It is the height of arrogance to call more than 1 billion people apostates and want to claim the very same title,which they believe they are the only ones who have authority(whatever that means)

To be sure there are plenty of Christians running each other into the ground but for LDS to be taken seriously, which their declining membership shows they are not, they will need to go through a reformation and stop this silliness of sending some 50,000 missionaries looking for converts and telling Christians they are worshiping in and apostate belief, with their salvation in serious doubt but, for being claimed by LDS and becoming a member.

Then again, since their whole premise is based on all other religions and creeds being invented errors I am not sure how they would overcome that hurdle.

[Vendome]

thing is, I think the author of the article is inferring there was no cross and we know from the historical records there were.

[colorcountry]

“It is no more narrow to claim that one religion is right than to claim that one way to think about all religions (namely that all are equal) is right. We are all exclusive in our beliefs about religion, but in different ways.” - Timothy Keller

[ejonesie22]

Another face palm moment..