Hi, All.
I’ve been lurking and reading for many months now. I have been an active member of JWRecovery for sometime now. It’s Iphone friendly! This site is great! A wealth of information.
I was raised a dub. Baptized at 14 (I’m now 38). Served as a ministerial servant for a few years. Last year (around Aug 2012), my wife allowed her self to look into some things that had bothered her about the "society,” the teachings, the beginnings of the religion, things like how the WT says it’s better to let your husband beat you instead of divorce him... " Steve had hit me as I had tried to prove a point" - " Realizing that I needed to adjust my thinking" - " After 17 years, Steve accepted the truth" ( Watchtower 2012 Apr 1 p.29)* WTF! 17 years of this sh*t. I wish I would have run into Steve in a dark alley... Anyway, back to my story - My wife and I have a great relationship and support and encourage free speech and free thought! No mind control in our home (at least that’s what she tells me… That was a joke). So, she brought up some points to me… UN/NGO, child molestation cases and how the elders are to deal with them, the whacky teachings of Russell. I have never been a big fan of god. Simply put, he always seemed a bit of a narcissistic, psychotic, murdering A-Hole. But, I had to remind myself that I could never have the wisdom god has and will never be able to see things from his perspective. This is his universe right? How dare I even question him and the way he does things? That’s what I was raised to believe and indoctrinated to believe. So, I did have to take it a little slow when my wife brought to my attention the things earlier mentioned. But, within a few days (yes, I believe it was days… maybe a week) I started coming around. We decided to do the fade. Funny, we were so disgusted by what we were learning we pretty much just quit going to meetings and everything else. If you are curious about anything feel free to ask questions. I don’t see a need to go on an on about me. I’m just another victim of the GB, a victim of fear and a victim of not trusting my gut. I take some responsibility in not questioning sooner. I question everything. My wife does too. If we hadn’t been raised dubs I can’t imagine we would have ever been in the org. But, one never knows for sure until put in that position. But that’s not this story and no point in going there.
Thanks to all those involved in posting insightful thoughts, links, and so forth. They have been a great help. Thanks for those who post crap too… We all need a good laugh once in a while.
Adam
* Watchtower 2012 Apr 1 p.29
"Selma recalls a lesson she learned from the Witness who studied with her. “On one particular day,” says Selma, “I didn’t want to have a Bible study. The night before, Steve had hit me as I had tried to prove a point, and I was feeling sad and sorry for myself. After I told the sister what had happened and how I felt, she asked me to read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7. As I did, I began to reason, ‘Steve never does any of these loving things for me.’ But the sister made me think differently by asking, ‘How many of those acts of love do you show toward your husband?’ My answer was, ‘None, for he is so difficult to live with.’ The sister softly said, ‘Selma, who is trying to be a Christian here? You or Steve?’ Realizing that I needed to adjust my thinking, I prayed to Jehovah to help me be more loving toward Steve. Slowly, things started to change.”After 17 years, Steve accepted the truth. Click for scan.
Watchtower 2012 Apr 1 p.29