Rocky

Great job articulating the problem, Twinky. It's never been more clear that this has been the problem from the very beginning. Wierwille was always about himself, NOT about God.

How? They can obviously still pay the bills by doing things the old way. What motivation might they have to change when they don't have to?

Yet, we know that the twi grapevine isn't necessarily reliable.

Does it matter? Is the culture of the organization going to change? I doubt it.

As I understand it, the same happens with seedless watermelons.

I just read Vernon's message. Sounds like the same old same old. It is dated six weeks ago. Are we actually expecting any change in the corporate culture? It would surprise me.

Well, wasn't you know who sometimes referred to as werewolf? Or was that mainly at GSC?

That right there, had I known at the time, could have sent me running for the hills away from twi. It's barbaric to cook/serve food without garlic or onions. Absolutely barbaric.

One item I remember from way back when/then... Wayfers passing around information about microwave ovens killing food. Of course, when something is overcooked in a m/w, that goes without saying. But this was a matter of just telling people not to use m/w ovens.

That's a great description of the credulity I encountered, and likely engaged in myself during my time in twi, and probably for an undetermined time thereafter. noun willingness to believe or trust too readily, especially without proper or adequate evidence; gullibility.

Yeah, I lost weight that year. I didn't despise the borscht. I also remember the homemade bread was very good. But I don't remember thinking about coffee one way or the other. I DO remember being sleep deprived, and having a hard time staying awake in classes. No doubt you have stories to tell (to your children, perhaps). What I had left over from way corpse training wasn't necessarily the stuff of stories I would want to tell my child. Thankfully, she (my daughter) is a successful adult now... but I'm rambling. Sorry.

And the 9th corpse. The food was good. Not everyone appreciated the borscht, but it was good quality food.

Further, the publisher... American Christian Press. I'd love to get people who were around HQ in those days to share any potential insight on the Organic Gardening Department.

Not sure that's the correct spelling of the gentleman's last name. It might be Hearne or Herne.

Really? How is it that you can see into the heart or depths of mind of any person. Can you even do that with yourself? (i.e. self-awareness) Btw, I started addressing you as Gabe intending it to indicate respect. I will cease doing so.

That could be more aspirational than anything else. I mean what the heck, there's so much ambiguity and paradox, not to mention the variety of versions/translations. I wish you well in that endeavor.

I'm guessing that our good friend Gabe does NOT see how judgmental it sounds.

I stood in line to pay for groceries earlier this afternoon.

Didn't I read someplace/time that you were tired of answering questions about that subject? Really? Bloody is a swear word? Come on Gabe. People have been trying to give you the benefit of the doubt. Otherwise TL;DR

I recognize that.

I think you did a good job of trying to do so also.

Perhaps some of it applies to trying to communicate in print too.

I'm not sure if this is directly relevant to the biblical topic at hand but I just read it and I find it intriguing. "They will interpret what you say in light of what they want to hear; and if your advice runs counter to their desires, they will find some way to dismiss your opinion, your so-called expertise. The more powerful the person, the more they are subject to this form of the confirmation bias. "When investigating confirmation bias in the world, take a look at theories that seem a little too good to be true. Statistics and studies are trotted out to prove them; these are not very difficult to find, once you are convinced of the rightness of your argument. On the internet, it is easy to find studies that support both sides of an argument. In general, you should never accept the validity of people’s ideas because they have supplied “evidence.” Instead, examine the evidence yourself in the cold light of day, with as much skepticism as you can muster. Your first impulse should always be to find the evidence that disconfirms your most cherished beliefs and those of others. That is true science." Greene, Robert. The Laws of Human Nature (p. 29). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. In terms of our discussion, "evidence" relates to Bible verses. Science would be "biblical research." We seem to know enough to recognize that legitimate understanding of biblical truth acknowledges that there will be apparent contradictions and obvious paradox throughout the accepted scriptures. We all seem to have inherent biases that guide our interpretation of any complex issue, not the least of which would include God's commandments and His Plan for Redemption... given that we generally accept the Bible to be the focus of where God makes his will known. One such bias, confirmation bias, is the first listed by Mr. Green in his book on Human Nature. That's where I found the quote above. That's one reason I tried to change my approach to what our friend Gabe was trying to sell us about the sabbath. WE (most of us who have posted on this discussion) seem(ed) to have a common understanding of the issue. We set that understanding to words in response (and resistance) to Gabe's view. I've been able to recognize that I am not always right, and recognize it for years. Not necessarily for the last 34 years, but for more than one or two years. So I figured I had nothing to lose by giving Gabe the opportunity to make his case without my resistance.

Indeed.

And you assume that PFAL is worth sharing? For how much?