What do you wish you had prior to your exit?

by kwintestal 3 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

• 

  kwintestal

  One of the reasons that I stayed a JW for as long as I did was because I didn't know where to start my research about the WT. I was scared of the stigma that JW's gave internet sites, so I avoided them for months after my departure, only visiting upon the advice of relatives. I was in my mid-twenties, and had grown up being told my whole life that I was in "the truth".

  It was books that got me out, reading Apocolypse Delayed, CoC, and Gentile Times made up my mind. I was lucky though that I happened upon a suggestion to read Apocolypse Delayed in a local paper. Had I not, I may not be here currently.

  What specific media type do you wish you had earlier that you would have been open to looking at?

  Kwin
• 

  run dont walk

  just more information, fortunately in today's world all the info is so easy to find,

  I find it amazing, that 20 years after Crisis Of Conscience, it is even more relevant today then back then, because we can check it all out, and we know now Ray was right, as maybe back in the 80's, we still would of had doubts.

  This will sound bizzare, but I left in 1990, in a strange way I wish I would of stayed til 1995, for the generation change, man the sh-t I would of caused.
• 

  greendawn

  Of course the internet but it didn't exist back in the mid 1980's, otherwise I would have cleared very quickly certain lingering doubts.
• 

  damselfly

  I think that what would have helped me was 'accidental' news stories, either in print or television. I remember as a teenager if a specific news-magazine( ie Dateline) was going to be shown we would be counseled at the KH to avoid it. However if during the nightly news broadcast a story re JW's was shown you would watch it not knowing if it was going to be negative or not. The same goes for articles in the newspapers or magazines. I feel that most JW's are very wary of viewing/reading anything that will appear to be obviously against the organization as most of the documentarys are, but I think that they would feel 'safe' watching the local newscaster talk about the religion, or read an editorial/news story in their local paper.

  I don't know if this story has been linked on this site but here it is anyway!

  www.thecoast.ca/issues/250903/feature.html