2 things please: I need help with essay topic AND I'm having a crappy week

by 2pink 10 Replies latest jw friends

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  2pink

  yes, this is a dual post because i'm lazy like that. and i figure some of you might thank me for rolling my 2 questions/posts into one convenient click for you. ;)

  first things first: i am writing an argumentative essay this week on any topic of my choice for an english class. since i've been out, i try to seize every opportunity to raise awareness about the cult that is the borg. this seemed like a perfect chance, but i can't think of any angle to go at it that doesn't involve trampling on people's rights to religion/beliefs. any ideas??? this is an essay that will be posted for the instructor as well as the other 39 students in the class so i want it to be compelling.

  secondly, my husband and i have been fading/faded/rapidly disappearing since early fall (not dfed tho). word got out about my daughter's birthday party we had in december (and i really didn't care bcs i was tired of hiding it at that point). my father called me once and my sisters both called me (i never heard from one of them again). other than that, NO ONE in my entire close knit extended family has attempted contact with me. i sent out an email trying to tread lightly, mentioning nothing about the obvious, but just saying i loved everyone and the door was still open on my end. then this week, i got an email from one of my cousins blasting me...saying i have left them, not the other way around. how could i do this to them? how could i do this to my children and steal their everlasting life away? blah blah blah-typical JW stuff. then she confirmed what i already knew really-that no one in my family is going to talk to me anymore because i am so "dangerous". anyway that just hit like a ton of bricks. even tho i knew it all along, it really hurts to have confirmation. i hate that i have lost my entire family simply because i followed my conscience.

  anyway, all that aside...a little update. life is moving along for my family outside the organization. i jumped into community college this semester after being out of school for 10+ years. i'm taking 5 classes, doing very well and hoping to keep up at this pace so i can earn my BS in 3 years. my kids are doing great, and loving the holidays. they are eagerly anticipating the leprechaun's visit on wednesday.

  anyway, thanks as always. you guys are great (and i seriously need to find some of you in the sacramento, ca area to meet up with someday...)
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  GLTirebiter

  Here's one that seems obvious. How about discussing tactics used by certain religious groups to infringe on religious freedom? You don't have to call any group by name or even use the perjorative "cult" word. The position of the essay would be that practices such as shunning and other control tactics actually infringe on the member's religious freedom, while the leaders emplying those tactics hide behind "religious freedom" when anybody dares to criticize their actions.

  We'll all know who you're talking about, even if you don't put their name in the essay!
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  mindmelda

  I think you could use the idea that "the borg" (I love that!) are the antithesis of religious freedom, even though they demand it from every government. How's that for hypocrisy?

  But, they do not allow their members to peacefully interfaith with others, demonize other faiths, and shun members who investigate other beliefs.

  Every time I talk to my family member who are still assimilated, I just feel so sorry for them now. They are truly enslaved to this ridiculous excuse for a religion and believe their sacrifices of time and money, time they could be using in so many more productive and benefician ways, is going to make them young and happy forever.

  The way my aging parents pathetically hold onto that pipe dream makes me very sad, but they'd shriek and point at me because I was no longer a pod person if I even went near telling them that.
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  JeffT

  Why don't you write about what you just told us. Topic might be something like "Is religious shunning appropriate in a free society?"

  My degree is in English, I think it would make a great essay.
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  Heartbreaker

  Hello friend! I totally suck at all things essay, so I'll not offer any advice or council. I do want to say I can relate to the feelings you have regarding the family leaving you in the cold, and yes, it IS that way, you did NOT leave them. You are still willing to talk, they are not. They've withdrawn. You cannot fix their thoughts or feelings for them, you can only live your life and raise your beautiful girls the way you and your husband see fit. 20 years from now all that will matter is what THEIR nucleus of a family did, and how you raised them. It won't matter much at that point what their aunts, uncles, or grandparents did or did not do. I know extended family can be comforting, and nice to have, but not at the cost of all that they stand to gain in living a normal life.

  Look through all the posts of people "born in" and how they look back and wish who??? THEIR PARENTS hadn't made those choices...hardly ever do you hear about extended family members having a dramatic bearing on their lives regardless of their religions, jw or not, if the parents are in the picture. You are doing well, keep your head up, your goals in sight, and look at the smiles and listen to the giggles, and know you are being true to yourself.
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  StoneWall

  I like GL Tirebiter's suggestion on religious freedoms and how certain religious groups want it for themselves but

  don't want their individual members to have it in regards to questioning them.

  Another suggestion could be to show how incredibly dangerous and fatal it can be to have shifting religious beliefs/doctrines

  on important decisions such as medical treatments relating to blood transfusions,organ transplants etc.

  Whatever you decide on I wish you well on it.

  Are you going to be able to share said essay with us after it is completed?

  P.S. Hope your crappy week gets better!!! :)
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  Gregor

  How about an essay that discusses the movie "The Village" with it's theme of a closed, high control cult. Seems like a pretty easy segue into Jonestown, radical Mormon and JW type modern cults.
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  Quandry

  Effects of shunning from the religious group Jehovah's Witnesses.

  History of one religious group followed since the "age of enlightenment" in the United States. (JWs)
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  Scully

  i can't think of any angle to go at it that doesn't involve trampling on people's rights to religion/beliefs

  Isn't the WTS the Master of trampling on people's rights to religion/beliefs?

  Why not go at it from the angle of the lack of freedom to leave the JWs without severe consequences, like shunning, losing your close friends and family, business contacts, etc. Especially if you were born into the JWs and had no opportunities to examine your religion the way the WTS encourages prospective recruits to do.

  Oh, and I'd send a copy of said essay to all your family members too, thanking them profusely for lovingly providing you with exactly the right material for the topic.
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  nugget

  I am sorry that you are having a difficult time. I would explore the following: Can a religon that encourages people of other faiths to check their beliefs, prevent their own members from doing the same? Gives you the opportunity to point out discrepancies between public and study versions of the watchtower and talk about the way that bullying tactics are used to keep people from studying the history and doctrines of the faith. You can also discuss the consequences for those that discover the real history, false quotes and false doctrine after having made a commitment to the faith.

  Might help you to vent a bit on paper but try to keep objective as the essay will have more impact that way.