Why all the venom? (page 3)

pamkw

I have anger because my childhood was ruined by my mother becoming a jw. I didn't go to college as a young person because I was rasied a jw and was told not to go. I was also told my oldest son would never have to go to school because the end would come before he got old enough. He is 22 now. I am now the black sheep of my family because I am no longer a jw. That doesn't bother me so much any more because I live in Alaska and they are in Kansas. Putting distance between me and them is one reason I moved. I was baptized in 1975, at 13 because an elder told my mom I would die if I wasn't. You may feel that they have the answers now, but wait a while you might think differently. Pam

Pistoff

Why am I angry?

1. Elders lied to me about an issue of life and death involving my suicidal son.

2. When the elder was confronted with it, the elder body closed ranks, and I lost.

3. The elders, in my experience, do not show the interest in the young people that the WT says they do, until they commit an offense regarded as serious. Did you know, lynnmelo, that if you have sex outside of the parameters that the elders say you can that they may ask you for the complete details, right down to what type of underwear you were wearing, and if you climaxed or not, and where you climaxed??? They will then determine if it was done with greediness or not, at which point you will be shunned, most likely even by your closest family.

4. The leadership for decades inveighed against the UN, calling it a harlot and whore. In 1992, they joined for 10 years until their membership was outed, when they said they just did it for a library card, and that the terms of membership had changed. Numerous letters have been posted by the UN stating that membership requirements have always been the same.

5. In 1996 the leadership changed its position about alternative military service; prior to this time, it was a disfellowshiping offense if you accepted it, but OK it you were forced to do it by the courts. Many spent time in jail prior to 1996 for this; no apologies were offered.

6. In 2000, the WT changed a longstanding position on blood so quietly that they had to repeat it twice. The change? Allowing hemoglobin solutions to be used. Prior to 2000, if you took a hemoglobin solution you were subject to disfellowshiping. No apologies were offered for those dead or disfellowshiped.

7. The blood policy itself: in a nutshell, they say that fundamentally it has not changed, and that JW's refuse blood. This is not true; hundreds of medical products are made from blood, including vaccinations and hemophiliac preparations, which is OK for JW's. Up to 2500 units of blood is necessary to make one such preparation; how can it be said that JW's do not accept blood? The policy further shakes out this way: you may NOT take in whole blood, or the "primary" four parts, namely, white cells, red cells, plasma and platelets.

BUT: any fraction of any part, and in any amount, may be taken. Thus, you may not take the whole, but you can take all of the parts of the parts.

Why am I angry? Those are just a few of the reasons.

You are studying now. Have you learned all the infractions that can get you thrown out? Smoking, oral sex (if you don't feel guilty enough and are not smart enough to deny it), voting, military service, disagreeing with leadership and working in churches or casinos, celebrating Christmas, Easter, Halloween or Thanksgiving.

Have you been encouraged to research all you can about the origins or Jehovah's Witnesses and the beliefs of early witnesses? Did you know that the 2nd president of the WT preached strongly against VACCINATIONS, calling it "vile pus" from the Devil? And against aluminum cookware? That the 1st president believed that the pyramids in Egypt held the key to understanding the chronology leading to our modern day?

ASK if dissent is possible if you think something is open to debate.

BUT MOST OF ALL: ask if it is really true that 2 WITNESS TO CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE ARE REQUIRED in order for the congregation to remove a child molester.

Come back if you are not angry at the answers.

They will say to you: former disgruntled ones have said this. This might be true. But you are asking the right question: WHY ARE WE ANGRY?

What is the important factor? Where you hear something, or if the fact is true or not?

Jez

I understand what you are saying, but perhaps if you read some stories here, you would gain some insight into the reasons why 'venom' exists.

My story is at freeminds.org under the Womens Issues, entitled "Pretending"

There are lots of other stories there as well.

Jez

stillajwexelder

Welcome - I too think JWs are right about somethings and that is why I still go to meetings etc. But they are wrong about many things you specifically mentioned shunning - I think you can make a case out for removing somebody from the congregation but look at the procedure for reinstatement and compare that to the parable of the prodigal son in the scriptures - they are so far apart that I maintain the procedure is anti-scriptural never mind unscriptural -so there is genuine hurt for many here - and the WTBTS does not care 1 jot. That is why there is what the scriptutres call "righteous anger " here. Especially with those that have been sexually abused by some in the organization and the WTBTS protects the perpetrator not the victim

bigmouth

lynnmelon,welcome!

So you work in an academic environment.From your post it's clear you have the capacity to think for yourself.The longer you choose to accept what you're told from a witnesss as the unequivocal truth without researching it independantly,you become lazy.By now you will be aware that to question the Organizations literature is unnecessary because it's plausible and it's done for you.Spend a little time here and read the posts of some older ones.I figure you might be quite young?Pete

jwfacts

When you have trusted everything that the WTS has said and based the entire course of your life on that, it arouses extreme anger when you find that so much was not just wrong, but often misquotes and even direct lies.

When you decide that you can not longer follow something that is doctrinally and ethically wrong it is even more disturbing to find that you are labelled an apostate, a 'dog returning to its vomit', feeding from the table of demons.

But where the real venom comes from is be threated with your entire family, your entire circle of friends, the entire basis of your life shunnig you like you are a leper, because you claim you can no longer hand your entire life over to whatever the current teachings happen to be of a group of old men in Brooklyn.

Speaking of which Legolas....aren't you neglecting certain "board posting" duties? I "C" said the blind man.

LOL.... Enigma I have no clue what you are talking about!

I was up too early this morning and am just waking up now!

Why all the venom?

pamkw

Pistoff

Jez

stillajwexelder

bigmouth

jwfacts

lynnmelo

Legolas

Enigma One

Legolas

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