Last time some JWs came (Saturday) mum arranged for the brother the elder brought to come over and talk to me about the Bible. (I wasn't paying attention...)
Anyway, he turned up today with another brother. Mum sat in and was referree. (Why did I stay in - kind of a sitting target) Anyway, he said "we need to decide what book to study". I said "no no, I don't want a study, at the most I'd like some answers from the Bible" - he went into the whole can't-understand-the-Bible-without-the-publications bit. I said "why would God tell his children something so important but make it impossible to understand?".
*Anyway*... I told them there are specific reasons I don't want to use the publications - and showed them an example doctrine change. Of course they tried to explain it away.
Some other stuff came up - somehow including JWs not fighting in wars... *puzzled*
Then as they were leaving (coming back though), I said "Who is your Mediator?" - they BOTH said JESUS (I was *stunned*). One even went into full turbo-Christian mode "proving" to me from Scripture. I asked them both to research it for me (played dumb).
Mum let the cat out of the bag with the non-turbo-Christian one, saying she was stunned too when she found out (I told her - but she said they she must've not taken it in when it had been in a magazine or book or had not really thought about it).
So... how many R+F JWs don't know the FDS "is" their Mediator?
I know I should've told them to take a hike but, things are difficult at the moment. I live at home cos I'm disabled and need quite a lot of help and care. My mum's been getting pissed off with me always seeing JWD on my taskbar or open (I'm here every day though I don't post as much as I want cos faster smarter people always say what I want to first and I don't want to be the "me too!" girl.. :)), and that I'm always "going on about it" and that Satan's got me... She's not *once* said any of it is false though. She *knows* it's true and the Truth? is wrong, but... she's trapped because she believes in God.
So I had to at least try at the Bible study to calm things down... Plus I'm worried if I come out and say I don't believe in God and I'm an apostate then JWs will shun her more than they do *already* (cos she let a elder's wife who was being beaten black and blue daily stay with us - other elders even drove her to our house and *asked us* to shelter her! This was in 1991 - but apparently you don't mess with the big dynasties in the congregations...) and she'll blame me for them shunning her and things - or that they'll accuse her of being apostate too.
This has gone on and on. Really I suppose I'm asking several questions:
- Do ordinary JWs not know who ther mediator "is"?
- How do you think they'll research it and come back?
- How would you have reacted or *did* you react when you found out the JWs had contradicted the Bible in this way?
- Is my mum *ever* going to admit anything about the JWs - I think I'm close, if I ask her if she believes they're God's Channel? she won't answer and just says "I believe in God, and I believe Jesus is his son." or a variation on that. She doesn't defend the WTS.
Anyone?
Sorry for rambling on, a lot of this has been going round it my head for ages.
Edit: Changed title to make it stand out more. :)