TheRedneckProfessor

Perhaps this will be of interest:

What if god isn't jehovah or jesus? What if god is something completely different from what is written in all of the holy books? What if each of us only see a little piece of god but none of us sees the whole picture? god can be anything you want god to be. Why limit yourself, and your god, to what is written in one single holy book compiled thousands of years ago by bronze age goat herders? Do you think they had a better connection to god than you or I can have today?

How jesus feels about end time prophecies:

Cum quickly, lord.

JWs once made the mistake of knocking on my door on the morning after a rather rambunctious St. Patrick's Day shindig. A good friend who had been a bit too knackered to drive had crashed on the couch, which was right beside the door upon which the offensive knocking occurred. A very angry and over-hung version of said friend presented himself, bleary-eyed and not entirely clothed, to address the knockers. Upon spying their Watch Tower literature and their bicycular conveyances, he erupted into a vehement diatribe of profanities and epithets that would have made Satan himself blush with shame, were he existent enough to do so. They never came back...

And I'm honored to be such.

What happens after you die? Lot's of things happen after you die - they just don't involve you. ~Louis C.K. This sentiment used to be my biggest hang-up concerning death. The idea that things would be happening without me being aware or experiencing seemed intolerable. I like knowing the whole story; not just the end, but all the little details that interweave to move the characters along. For the past XX years, I've been one of the main characters in the story as it is told in my experience. But I've never been the main character. I've shared that role with siblings, girlfriends, sons, friend and foe alike. Antagonists have come and gone; and sometimes it has felt like motherfucking Samuel L. motherfucking Jackson has been motherfucking narrating several motherfucking episodes in a row. The story will someday go on without me; but it will go on. And the role I've played in the story will always be there, even after I'm gone. Whenever the story is told, I'll be there. Sometimes as the hero; sometimes as the buffoon. I'm one of the main characters now; and the story wouldn't be the same without the roles I've played. I'm okay, now, with somebody else taking over the story when it's my turn to exit, stage left. Because whoever takes it will always be part of my story; and I will always be part of theirs.

Trying to spruce up your appearance won't automatically make you more poplar. You're alder-nough to know that; so don't beech at me if it doesn't work, oak-ay?

Over the past year, I've started dabbling in woodworking. It started out small--little keep boxes and display shelves and such. But lately I've made a few things that I'm really proud of. I've made chess sets for both the boys, a shoe rack for Ms. Professor, a table from my grandma's first pump pedal sewing machine... These will all, I hope, become family heirlooms; and I will live on and be remembered as they are passed down. This newfound hobby has also given me a new sense of patience, perspective, and creativity. I don't use store bought kits to make things. I do it all from scratch and imagination. I also don't use a lot of power tools beyond a planer, sander, and miter saw as needed. Instead I do everything by hand, using different hand saws, chisels, a hand planer, a rasp or two. This seems extreme; but it is deliberate. Not only does this force patience and zen; but it also puts me in touch with the long standing tradition and techniques of woodworkers from years long gone by, before there were tablesaws and a rotary jig for every kind of scroll or cut. It forces me into the moment with the reminder that time marches on. I like being there.

I think the only real unknown is what happens to consciousness. Personally, I'm okay with being rid of this body that seems to be having more problems with each passing day. I even look forward to not having to constantly struggle to keep the thoughts of my ADHA addled brain in check. But the quintessential "me"... well, I'd miss having him around. He's funny, creative, quick-witted, kind and giving, and would feel absolutely terrible about leaving anybody behind. Like Florduh said, everything changes; but maybe the "real" doesn't pass completely. Maybe it just changes into something new. Maybe all those things that make "me" will live on in my sons and the others I've loved. Maybe I'll be aware of it and maybe I won't. But I am aware of the possibility, which makes me want to be the best "me" I can be right now.

If you consider copying and pasting someone else's apologetics without giving credit or proper citation is honest, then you and I have radically different ideas about moral principles and ethical standards. The technical term is "plagiarism;" and, not only is it dishonest, by definition, I also find it insincere, disingenuous, and, quite frankly, insulting. I understand that you want to stick up for the little guy; and under ordinary circumstances that is a noble, and laudable, thing to do. But this is not a case of schoolyard bullying; nor is it a case of everybody ganging up on the new kid. It seems more a case of you needing to remind us all how butthurt you are because we won't run this website the way you want us to. I've told you before, you're more than welcome to go start your own kinder, gentler ex-christian website and run it ever how you'd like. But, as long as you're going to hang around here, we can all do without the passive-aggressive self-righteousness and the constant reminders that your panties are in a wad.

When I was a christian, I hated "witnessing." It was so embarrassing and I always felt like I was intruding into other people's lives and personal business. I was also terrified of not "witnessing;" because jesus said "if you're ashamed of me before men, I'll be ashamed of you before the father." I didn't want jesus to be ashamed of me. What a mind-fuck. If I had had access to a site like this back in those days, I'd have been here every minute of every day. Anonymous, unembarrassing, unintrusive proselytizing... hell yeah. I get why they come here. I especially understand the really persistent ones. I'd have been one myself.

Could you, perhaps, start by demonstrating that jesus even existed two thousand years ago?

Oh dear, how frightening. King of the North, you say? Whatever shall we do?

I thought the Soviet Union was already doing that during the "last days" of the late 70s and early 80s.