Faced with the reality of mortality

by stuckinarut2 40 Replies latest jw experiences

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  DesirousOfChange

  I truly bought the cult's promise hook, line, and sinker.

  So did I. When we were younger, I didn't worry about health issues that were looming. After all, they would never progress to anything serious before the New World was here and solved all those problems. Fast forward to now. We've dealt with cancer, heart attacks, diabetes, eyesight and hearing decline, (HUH?). My term life insurance policy matures in 8 years so I must deal with the fact that I'm worth considerably more (financially) to my heirs if I die sooner rather than later. We've even discussed funeral plans, not that many of our "friends" would bother to attend. It's a real awakening to come to realize that one of you is going to die first and that the other will have to deal with it all and will be left alone (and probably too old to remarry at this point even if we wanted to deal with "training" a new spouse).

  Our goal now is to concentrate on our grandchildren. All of our children are "out", thus our grandchildren will never be slaves to this Cult and they will have the opportunity to get a good education. Even when we were JWs, we refused to deny our kids higher education. (I missed out and I was damn certain they would not!) So the kids are all fairly well established in their careers. We were able to help them with the costs of college and buying homes, so they should be OK as long as they don't f**k it up. We are by no means rich, but we plan to see that our grandkids will be OK starting out in life. Now it's absolutely ludicrous to think that at one time I believed that the best thing you could give to you kids (or grandkids) was The Troof. Now I realize it is TTATT.

  While I'm not 100% convinced about there being no afterlife, I see no evidence to cling to that belief. I'm pretty certain that it's all over with our last breath. I'm disappointed that I won't get to see my father and my grandparents again (in the resurrection). At the time, I didn't realize their deaths would be so "final". I wasn't as close as I wish I had been as I was too busy in my life -- work, raising kids -- and worst of all, being the dedicated JW Elder, which took priority over everything else. So much wasted time chasing a dream. Or should I say chasing a nightmare?

  “I do not fear death. I had been dead for billions and billions of years before I was born, and had not suffered the slightest inconvenience from it." ~ Mark Twain
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  truth_b_known

  I've looked Death square in the eye and you know what; he doesn't look half bad.
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  Muddy Waters

  Love all these comments, going thru a similar path... Will comment more in a bit... ty
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  tor1500

  @Island Man, & All,

  You mirror my thoughts exactly....before we were born, we knew nothing & when we die, we'll still know nothing...Death is scary because of the unknown...we are aware now so we think we will have some type of awareness when we die, so that's what scares us, because we think stuff will be going on & we can only watch...Like Island Man said, we are unconscious...I used to think the bible made death more acceptable, most think we going to heaven, witnesses think they going to paradise...others believe virgins will be waiting for'em...whatever story we choose, it's a better place...

  Witnesses are afraid of death, and they think they will cross over....but they are not prepared for Armaga....(however you spell it), why? Because they are germaphobic in this system, so how will they deal with the dead...especially if they aren't witnesses...ever notice witnesses are always sanitizing or moisturizing...wear gloves for everything...amazing...

  Nobody wants to die, but we don't want to stay here if we are in pain...but if we do return, just think, you will be able to say....Been There Done That....

  "Death does no harm to the dead. Death only grieves the living. Don't grieve over your own death. Grieve over the death of a loved one" SO PROFOUND...

  Tor
  
  
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  flipper

  STUCK IN A RUT- Great thread and topic, and I really hear you, really empathize as I was born & raised a JW from birth until exiting 14 years ago at age 44 in 2003. I have felt your same anger towards the WT Society about this fake " living forever " teaching ; but I've felt more anger over this on behalf of my aged JW parents who died this last year at 91 and 89 years old as they wasted over 65 years in this criminal organization Jehovahs Witnesses. I get so pissed off about their having been duped - that I actually brought it up to the JW cart people before telling them not to waste their lives and that my parents were lied to.

  I started having doubts about the " living forever " thing some years before I exited the cult so what I started doing then while still a JW and what my mantra is now is that I live in the here and now constantly. I live every moment, everyday like it might be my last and I don't take living in the here and now for granted. I stop and smell the roses in my life along the way instead of always being in such a hurry as to not notice just a simple, beautiful sunset, peaceful time sitting on my deck at our mountain home feeling the breeze on my face drinking a beer enjoying my wife's company, our cats or dog ; simple things matter . While sitting on my deck that's the time songs will come to me, and I get my guitar out and just start writing thoughts out that swim around in my head while picking different chords on the guitar and before I know it- a song starts evolving !

  It's moments like these that I've come to appreciate on a daily basis. I stay busy working at our property cutting wood, tending the vegetable garden we have, and being thankful for what I DO have in my life, not worrying about what I cannot control - like " living forever " which is an unreality. At the end of our life all we can really do is to hopefully try to look back with no regrets and try to be happy with the good friends we've made, the love we have spread out to those friends and received it back again to ourselves. What were the Beatles last words on the Abbey Road album ? " And in the end the love you take is equal to the love you make. " So if we keep sending out love to people we consider friends who are important in our life ; making love in many different ways , we will receive that back many times in ways we didn't expect. I guess it's constantly having this view that keeps me positive. I get down like everybody ; but I try not to let it dominate me or define who I am. That's all I can say Stuckinarut. Enjoy life while you have it my friend. Take care, Peace out, Mr. Flipper
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  EverApostate

  Once when I got to have doubts about the "Truth" , I started to investigate the reality.

  Everything in this universe has an end. Even our sun, earth, stars, galaxy as we know of, has an end.

  Our atoms may be recycled and probably end up as another living thing in a million years. But wont have any consciousness as what our atoms were before.

  Death = End of everything for that particular thing.

  Quite depressing but that's the truth. We can console ourselves that we cannot do anything about it.
  
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  LongHairGal

  To everybody:

  These are all great posts on this topic - which is not an easy topic for those raised in the JW religion.

  As the poster HALF BANANA said: the JWs teaching of everlasting life was like handing everybody a check for a million pounds issued by the Bank of Toy Town...Which is to say it's worthless, like Monopoly money. The religion should be ashamed of itself but, of course, it won't. When you really analyze it, the religion made promises that somebody ELSE is supposed to fulfill. That somebody else being the creator (whether or not you believe in him or what you perceive him/it to be).

  The point is that the JW religion promised pie in the sky that they can not and never could deliver on.

  I was raised Roman Catholic and even though I am not active in any religion now, I made peace with the idea that we are all temporary. Like FLIPPER says: be grateful for each day, live in the present and be good to your loved ones.
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  EverApostate

  
  
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  CookieMonster

  It's possible science may find an answer one day. Perhaps regenerating cells or even having your clone in a clone bank where your memories can be downloaded and your are 'resurrected'. However it will not happen in our lifetimes and may not happen at all if mankind destroys itself.
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  Vanderhoven7

  To most evangelical Christians death equates with ultimate healing.

  If one believes Jesus then death itself is not something to worry about. It's the suffering leading to death that everyone hopes to avoid.