Did Crisis of Conscience damage you?

by Mulan 42 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  Mulan

  Awesome comments, everyone!! Thanks!!

  Keep them coming. I need MORE!!!

  Marilyn (a.k.a. Mulan)
  
• 

  myMichelle

  Hi Mulan,

  My husband thanked me for getting him to read Crisis of Conscience. It has put him in an awkward position with his JW family, but is that really Ray's fault? Should he have kept silent because some people are at a loss when they finally realize "God's Organization" is not what they had thought it to be?

  I don't think so, and neither does my husband.

  Your friend is an adult (I assume). He has now heard another side to the Watchtower Society story, it is up to him to decide what to do with that information.

  I think the harm comes from the enforced shunning policy the Society has. A JW now has information, but is not free to act upon it without the possibility of some severe punishments. Compound that lack of personal freedom with a lack of a support system and an estrangement from worldly people, activities, etc. I can understand a "cast adrift" feeling, but if one is going to assign blame, is it the fault of Ray Franz or the Organization created the situation in the first place?

  Happy holidays,
  Michelle
• 

  Simon

  I found it confirmed a lot of things and made me feel a lot more comfortable with how wrong the WTS is.

  I think the claim is just a last-ditch attempt to stop people reading it.

  "Bad things will happen to to you ... ooooooh"
• 

  SmokeEater

  I did feel that C.O.C did kind of left me feeling "where to go". It convinced me it wasn't Gods Sprit Directed organization, but I couldn't help shake the fact that I had left "the truth". In all honesty it seemed that if Ray Franz had his way, he'd still be in the Org. That bothered me.

  I eventually read "Combatting Cult Mind Control" by Steve Hassan, which Ray references in "Christian Freedom". That book helped to shake any residual doubt I had. It revealed to me the psychology behind JW's and like-mind organizations. Now I feel 100% confident in my choice to leave.
• 

  larc

  I think one of the problems is the strong programming by the WT around the idea that your spiritual life must revolve around an organization. This is implyed in the idea, "but where would I go?" Well, you can find another church that is compatable with your new beliefs, what ever they turn out to be. However, you don't have to go anywhere. You can choose to have your spiritual journey be a private one or one that is only shared with a few close friends. An organization is not at all necessary in one's spiritual quest.
• 

  AmazingProgeny

  I read Christian Freedom before CofC. I read both books after I had already made my decision to leave. Neither one of them damaged me in any way. They helped me to see more clearly what the problems are in the borg. The feelings I had after reading them were not happy, but they were good for me. I needed to feel that because those feelings helped cement my decision.

  I was "cast adrift" for a while. Not because of Ray's books, but because of my own decisions. It was so hard to trust the world and to feel safe in it. It was so hard to believe that I could have a truly happy life. But everything I went through was worth it. I am so happy now where I am. I am still on my journey and I love it. I am not damaged in any way. I am healthier, stronger, and happier than I ever would have been as a JW.

  AmazingProgeny
• 

  Billygoat

  Larc - great points! I think as social creatures we like to have others around us that believe the same things. When we can socialize in a healthy manner with others that don't believe the same...all the better!

  But your post triggered some thoughts I've recently shared with a friend from the board. For so many years, we were spoon-fed by the elders and the FDS. Everything spiritually speaking was given to us...there was no need to go out and search for Truth. As people leave the borg, they are in the uncomfortable and unfamiliar turf of "looking" for something to fill the void. Uncomfortable and unfamiliar because we've never been given (or allowed) the charge of fending for ourselves before. The "where would you go" to me is a question that is asked too quickly upon departure. My advice is stay where you are. Out of the borg. Like you said, spirituality is something that you find inside your heart and mind...not in another church. You don't have to go anywhere to find it.

  Andi
• 

  LB

  While I've never read Crisis of Conscience I've been tempted. But I've left the organization already. I'm not so sure if I'd be damaged or affected in anyway. Perhaps the negativity would only bring up old angry feelings? Who knows.

  
  Never Squat With Yer Spurs On
• 

  D wiltshire

  I think the Truth about anything is better than lie.
  So I don't hesitate to tell any JW the Truth about the lies they have been told.
  I don't care if he on his death bed and has 2 months to live.
  If Daniel Sydlyck was going to die tomorrow and I had the ability to convince him he is not chosen by God to be part of the GB of JWs I would do it!
  No Hesitation!

  If someone lived a trillion X longer than you, and had a billion X more reasoning ability would he come to the same conclusions as you?
• 

  betweenworlds

  Hey Mulan,

  It didn't make me feel any despair at all!! Just the opposite. As others have stated here, it just showed that the feelings I had that there was something seriously wrong with *the truth* were were well founded! After reading it I can honestly say I felt like a huge weight was lifted from my shoulders, and for the first time in a long time I felt a sense of freedom of mind. It gave me the courage to examine my spirituallity openly without fear and guilt. I owe Ray a huge debt of gratitude for this. I'm sure I eventually would have reached that point without the book, but it was an immense help.

  betweenworlds