For the Lurkers: You are not alone.

okage

In the seats of Kingdom Halls, you wait patiently for the meetings to end so you can escape the lie you've forced yourself to live. At the conventions you smile at people you grew up with knowing that if they knew how you truly felt, they would leave you with nothing but memories.

You have questions. You may even have answers. But every day is a painful struggle to weigh the pro's and con's of finally speaking your mind and leaving the Society.

Your friends in the congregation feel like the only friends you can ever make. You've been told that the world outside the walls of the Organization are harsh and demonic. That only serving Jehovah would provide protection from the elements of a Satanic system.

Your family is loyal to Jehovah and have been made to believe that they can't serve Jehovah faithfully if they associate with someone who thinks the way you do. You fear they will pick Jehovah and the Organization over you. You don't know if you're strong enough to endure losing everything you know by taking a gamble.

You aren't the first to think like this. Here on JWN, thousands of people lived the life you live now. They had the same questions, the same doubts, the same fears.

There is no pressure to come forward. Please. See first hand that many here have moved on from the stigma the Society brands you with. Many endure the hardships you will face and are better people for it. Many are also going through exactly what you're going through, looking for an escape.

We understand you. We sympathize with you. You are not alone in this.

If you need help, there are many here willing to help you. There are some here dedicated to just that:
www.aawa.co (Advocates for the Awareness of Watchtower Abuse) run by John Cedars and Richard Kelly.
www.jwstruggle.com, an advice and help site run by JJ

If you need education, there are many here willing to educate you. There are some here dedicated to just that:
www.jwfacts.com, a comprehensive information site for all the things you wondered about but were discouraged from asking, run by Paul Grundy.
www.watchtowerdocuments.com, an information site run by one of the most prominent public faces of the Watchtower survivors, Barbara Anderson.

We are here for you and here when you need us.

~Ryan Arko

Oubliette

Okage

LisaRose

Very well put. If you are lurking here, we welcome you to post your story, if you feel comfortable doing so. Even if you are unsure if you want to leave this religion, you are still welcome to tell your story or ask your questions. We have all been where you are, we got through it, and so can you.

I saw an interesting story on the news today. This photographer takes strangers and poses them as if they were family, good friends or lovers. Though sometimes awkward, an amazing thing happens, they all feel a bond with this stranger they are posed with, no matter how different they are. That's what it is like here. We all are in different countries, with different viewpoints, different ages and current beliefs, but we all have this one thing, this experience of being in a religion, that betrayed us, and we come here to share our stories, to bond for a moment before we go back to our regular lives.

SafeAtHome

Beautifully written okage, and great that you posted all the useful sites for questions and info. I walked away many years ago, a slow fade, and until recently most all my family included me in family things. I have a neice and several cousins that I have a very strong inkling that they are feeling exactly as you described, but are fearful that after a life long association with this religion, they cannot leave for fear of losing relationships with parents and siblings. Hopefully what you have written will help someone on the path to freedom. You know, of all the stories we read about here, even tho so many are experiencing hardships and shunning because of their decision to leave, how many have stated they made a wrong choice and are going back? A handful, maybe?

snare&racket

Its true....,we were everywhere.... Pioneering, in bethel , taking watchtowers, writing literature, raising families, shepherding... Yet we were one of you.

Vidiot

I was once a lurker.

I'm not religious anymore, but (to paraphrase Winston Zeddemore in Ghostbusters 2) I still dig Jesus' style...

...and Jesus said to "judge not lest ye be judged"...

The WTS takes it upon themselves to judge.

If anybody tries that s**t here, though, they get their asses handed to them pretty quick.

One of the reasons I stopped lurking.

Phizzy

I only "lurked" for a few days and then took the plunge, and was hooked, because I enjoyed the freedom of expressing my feelings and thoughts, and because kind posters on here answered my questions, or guided me to the answer.

I am glad that you all started to post your comments, they are much appreciated, as will be the comments of those just reading here at present, when you finally introduce yourselves.

Even if you are just reading here, welcome !