Rocky

Hallelujah!

That's a very stoic sentiment you put forth, Oldies? My perspective is the bible is all story. Clearly there are still some on this thread who hew to the fundamentalist way of trying to figure out what's going to happen in the future... by looking at concordances and such. BUT... accepting what comes your way in life is a very (emotionally) healthy approach overall anyway. Put another way, as Stoicism writer Ryan Holiday put it, Stillness is the key. Regardless of your believe in or denial of purgatory, I appreciate your Stoic reflection on the subject.

It's a different time and a different culture. Literally.

Hmmm... interesting reflection. For safety's sake, you're probably right. As to whether the culture at such an event would be anything we'd expect to imagine? I have no clue.

Great insight there Socks. Of course, you are NOT them. A very salient question for them might be whether they are even capable of taking the temperature of the membership or are they just desperate for ideas (throwing spaghetti against the wall and hoping it will stick)?

Except, I saw it here: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/jan/29/amy-coney-barrett-father-christian-sect-controversy

Hey Rusty Duck, A lot of vets face a lot of crap. I look forward to reading more of your story. Like you, I was a Military WOW Ambassador after becoming involved w/TWI. Unlike you, I never had suicidal ideations. I have had other intense ideations, when dealing with a divorce that was far more painful than it needed to be. One factor for me was the model of family where the man is the head of the woman. Also like you, I have gotten medical care at the US Dept of Veterans Services. I hear stories from fellow vets who are less than pleased with VA medical care. However, I'm tremendously thankful for the care I've received. Maybe sometime I'll be ready to get more personal and vulnerable in what I share about my medical care. For now, I don't want to derail your thread or take away from your story. Your story is very important. I'm very interested in hearing more of it, as much as you can be comfortable sharing.

I would bet it's an archaic remnant of 1970s Jesus Movement rhetoric. Key word being archaic.

I saw that article. SMH!

By definition of subjectivity, that is inherently not a true statement.

Wow!

Was he being blackmailed? I doubt it. Who knows what's in the heart of any human?

Spiritual warfare? Or economic warfare? Gotta protect their "intellectual property" don't ya know?

If you think you're being brave (courageous) and it doesn't involve vulnerability (risk or uncertainty), you're not being brave. According to Dr Brown, the opposite of belonging is FITTING IN. The reason many of us fell under Victor Wierwille's influence was a combination of 1) how we were raised or what we believed as a result of what we were exposed to as children; and 2) that Victor exploited THAT very cultural inheritance we had when we first heard of him, TWI, and PFLAP. TWI embraced us enough (love bombing) at first to draw us in. Then we heard a loud drumbeat of what it would take to please God. Brené Brown | The Most Eye-Opening 14 Minutes Of Your Life And it will NOT cost you $200, or even $40. She's not even trying to sell you a class. Victor Wierwille, from this perspective, was nothing more and nothing less than an entrepreneur. IF he was a con artist. WE were the marks. I was. In October this year, it will have been 50 years since I first hear the pitch. What I have today that I did NOT have 50 years ago is EXPERIENCE. Experience gained through struggle. See Romans 5:3

Highlight is the youngest child rocking with two older girls. 20230428 Crazy Train Song by Ozzy Osbourne (Performed by Petty Rock) at Siam Indy Stage

groovy!

Of course. BUT, can it happen? After viewing this TED talk vid, is it possible?

Tap the imagination of individuals and society?

Perhaps now, at the start of the new year (2024), it might be worth revisiting the notion of whether and/or to what degree humans do have free will and what factors might hijack innate abilities for said free will. I've programmed this YT to start at a particular point. However, IF YOU ARE INTERESTED you are free to watch/listen to the entire clip. Years ago, I began to recognize how job and marriage stress made certain things difficult for me. It seems the influence of stress on a person may even predate one's birth.

The answer is multifold. Sure, believing and holding forth the story for God's protection was only one part of it. The reality was more complicated. Any religion seeking to stir up the dust and challenge entrenched church empires was bound to be a magnet attracting disturbed individuals. Further complications entered when the hired heavies (official bless patrol, would get LEO certification and carry firearms). With that came another level of arrogance both on the part of the MOGs and those who carried the hardware.

It was before Loy was in charge, yes. Westboro, at the time, must have been still trying to settle on its identity, who do they hate most. It wasn't about gays for either group, as intensely as it became only a few years later.

TWI

I clearly remember one ROA night time bless patrol shift keeping an eye on the protesters from Westboro Baptist Church. This was well before the Westboro folks had become well-known throughout the country. Same flavor they retained for the decades to come. Hateful signs in abundance. It was a very cold (maybe down into the 50s F.) August mid 1970s night in rural Ohio, before The Way began holding ROAs at HQ. I remember the yellow Bless Patrol hats and standing (shivering) with a guy (who later served in the 7th corpse) for a couple of hours. It may have been boring, but I recall a sense of camaraderie on an otherwise calm night.

Raf/Modcat said (to chockfull)...

FFS... when YOU blame YOUR words/actions on what (anyone other than yourself) someone else says or does or doesn't say or doesn't do...