anuva dear - I haven't even finished reading everything you sent me!! I'm on overload here. But give me some credit - I will definitely respond in PM once I've read all of it!!
Studying with JWs - Confused, Conflicted ...
by RebelliousSpirit 278 Replies latest members private
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RebelliousSpirit
Do your research and ask those hard questions.
I just sent out an email to my study conductor yesterday about my position on the blood issue, along with questions. No response - and I'm not surprised. I am expecting at some point though to get a "cookie cutter" response from her elder husband. Do they ALWAYS all say the SAME things over and over?? I feel like I'm talking to broken records - they always site the same scriptures, use the same coined phrases - no matter who I ask the question to!
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bebu
Cookie-cutter answers... do they satisfy you?
If they don't, then simply admit that they don't. What can they do?? They can either search for better answers for you--and surprise themselves at new things they learn--or they can shrug and give up over time. It's really win/win.
bebu
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RebelliousSpirit
Cookie-cutter answers... do they satisfy you?
No, they don't. At all. That's the problem.
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ddean3673
Can anyone tell me exactly why there are so many who seem to have such regrets, feelings of wasted years, pain, negativity etc associated with being a JW?
Those that are there could be compared to people living in any condition, they don't really know anything else because the whole culture makes you get rid of anyone or anything that would bring to mind things outside the org. Same with associations, the reason they don't talk to you is because IT WORKS....it works because if you had gotten in the position to be DF'ed in the first place, odds are you ran everyone else in your life off either on purpose or by Bibleing them to death every time you saw them becuase you have to preach to everyone!
For me, once I realized there was so much more in life and so many lies, I had and continue to have regret for the things I did not do, the experiences I missed, the future and present I could have had. But there are times it is replaced by the fact that "Ex-Witnesses make the best worldly people" because we know how great is is to NOT be judged, experiencing life wihtout restriction, eating for the first time in your life and tasting it!
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AlanF
RS said:
: Do they ALWAYS all say the SAME things over and over?? I feel like I'm talking to broken records - they always site the same scriptures, use the same coined phrases - no matter who I ask the question to!
They do, and you are. That's the mentality that defines JWs as a cult -- no real individual thinking, individual opinions are disncouraged or disallowed.
Have you read my essay yet, "Thinking Ability and the Watchtower Society" ( http://www.geocities.com/osarsif/think.htm )? It tells you what the JWs demand of their members. A red flag should go up when one hears demands like these from JW Governing Body members:
When we talk about law, we talk about organization. With all our hearts we need to search after that law. Jehovah doesn't give individuals interpretation (of the scriptures). We need a guide, and that is the 'faithful and discreet slave'. We should not be getting together in a clique to discuss views contrary to the 'faithful and discreet slave'. We must recognize the source of our instruction. We must be like an ass, be humble, and stay in the manger; and we won't get any poison. [Governing Body member Lloyd Barry, May 29, 1980, in addressing the elders of the Bethel family]
If you have a tendency towards 'apostasy', get a hobby and keep yourself busy to keep your mind off of it. Stay away from deep Bible study to determine meanings of the scriptures. [Governing Body member Karl Klein, April 30, 1980, in addressing the Bethel family]
AlanF
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RebelliousSpirit
That's a great essay, Alan, you wicked apostate you. I truly appreciate your points and find them to be valid. And now it makes sense to me that the more I studied the more 1984 entered my mind.
How silly I am for being an independent thinking woman in this day and age. How dare I! I'm sure they'd love to put me in my place as it were - thanks, but no thanks.
It still makes me sad that my husband buys into this.
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AlanF
Perhaps you should try to get hubby to read that essay, RS.
AlanF
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Billygoat
Rebellious,
There have been several JW couples leave the Org and are now on this board, where one left before the other. Sometimes it tooks months, even years, for them to slowly get their spouse to even consider the WTS as false teachers. But it can be done. Off the top of my head, Big Tex and Cruzan, Mulan and Big Red, just2laws and Joyzabel...I know there are others. (Perhaps if I've named you or you've experienced the above you could post your success story for Rebellious!)
Don't give up dear. You love your husband and he loves you. You'll get through this. Just remember to keep loving and keep being kind to each other. It'll make it not so difficult.
Blessings,
Andi
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Shakita
Hi RS,
I was the gungho Witness in my family for about 25 years. If I could change anything about my life it would be to NOT be baptized as a Jehovah's Witness. About three years ago my adult son started to feed some information to me that exposed the Wt's duplicity. On the one hand, they viewed the peace beast of Revelation as the United Nations. This UN beast, along with the governments of the earth were supposedly destined to destroy all false religion, except for our boys in Brooklyn. We were warned to stay away from that beast and avoid having any association with her. Yet for ten years from 1991 to 2001 the WT was registered with the United Nations as an NGO. A non-governmental organization that would be required to espouse the ideals of the UN. What hypocrisy! The WT's spin was that they become an NGO to use the UN's library. How original.
That was just one point of many that I found out about the WT. I would recommend that you do some reading. Only do what you can handle. You don't want to overwhelm yourself. Ray Franz, the ousted Governing Body member, wrote a very revealing expose of what is really going on behind the scenes of the WT: Crisis of Conscience. This book will blow away the myth that the Governing Body of the Jehovah's WItnesses are even remotely a group of men selected by God to dispense spiritual food to us domestics.
I am reading a book right now that I highly recommend entitled: The Battle For God, by Karen Armstrong. She chronicles the big three religions, Christianity, Islam and Judaism from about the 1400's to the present day. This book has been an eye opener for me. What the Governing Body of the JW's have done is nothing new. There have been countless other religious groups that have behaved in a similar way towards the common man. I wish that this book had been available when I was baptized about twenty-five years ago.
As to your husband, I would advise being very patient and using tact when bringing up a point that contradicts the JW's. My family did this in my case. They would throw out a point here and there and I would think about it and start to do some investigation. The key is to remove the mystical view that the average JW has of the Governing Body. Once the JW no longer believes that the GB has been chosen by God, the fear of leaving the group diminishes. When they see this, they can begin to accept points that you are bringing up. I hope that things work out for you RS.
Mr. Shakita
PS Andi, you can add Mr. and Mrs. Shakita to that list