Posts by problemaddict 2

45

What did NOT get you out?

by problemaddict 2 in

i realize this is odd, but a "how you woke up" thread and the personal stories that are told which i know we all enjoy, made me think of this.

in helping my wife and a couple others get the ball rolling, i realized the thing that resonated with me, didn't even move the needle with them.

i wanted to rail on and on about blood, because that was my conduit to waking up, but for my wife it was about shunning.

jp1692 - That is an interesting perspective. That the relative "perfection" the WT expects makes us hypersensitive to the faults within said org. I sometimes thing it ALL bugged me as well, but that is from the perspective now of someone aware they were duped. So maybe it didn't.......if that makes sense.

Anony - Its never just one thing (we have so many to choose from, its like the salad bar of the deplorable). BUT, it seems like one thing usually lowers guard to the point one is willing to "think" for the first time. Some brush it off, some use their power of reason.

Freemind - UN didn't do a thing for me. But jp1692 said that was it for him. I guess that is what I mean. I now see the hypocrisy in the UN situation, but it isn't even in my arsenal of discussion when I can actually get a few of these things through some conversation when their guard is down.

Sparrowdown - Good point. Its why i refuse to be disfellowshipped. People have asked me questions and reached out to me, where I think they would not have if I was DF'd, just because of the psychological barrier.

Chook - Me neither. I actually miss the elders that i grew up with. I am sure they feel the same at the root.

Ucant - Do you mind if I ask what that 1 thing was?

SBF - But everything else eh? Haha.

Scratchme - Thanks for that detailed response. I read it a couple of times. It makes perfect sense. However I would add one thing that might not fit simply into that. I was a "born in". So there was no point of refference for how the org made me feel. It was just everyday life. While I wasn't affected by items I mentioned (and in part due to the explanation you offered), I didn't stop entertaining them. I was a JW apologist on line for a few years. Pretty active too. In the end, blood just was too much of a foundational "brick" for me to keep the structural integrity of my mental wall in tact. then I was open to other things I hadn't seen before.

I am still rubbed wrong by aggressive activism and yelling at convention goers on you tube, and I still don't think arguing Christian doctrine vs JW doctrine works. Yet the people I assisted out.....none of them felt the same way about blood (even though now they see it). That wasn't their "thing".

16

My disassociation story

by Roger Kirkpatrick in

following is a summary of events leading up to my decision to disassociate from jehovah's witnesses and the unforeseen results of that decision.. a young man named joel engardio produced a documentary about jehovah's witnesses called "knocking" which aired nationally on pbs.

i purchased the dvd from joel before it was even released and we exchanged emails.

joel had been raised by his jw mother and had been active in jw activities during his adolescence, but he was never baptized as a jw.

problemaddict 2

Thanks for sharing. This really is amazing. In the not so grand scheme of things, this was such a benign (and accurate) statement. Yet it triggered their homophobia, and drove them to make a mountain out of a molehill.

In the end its happy news for you. Ridiculous elders are the cause for many people to be able to see just a little bit behind the curtain.

10

Nursing exam question on JW blood beliefs

by adjusted knowledge in

jw
friends

i had a similar question on my nclex exam for my nursing license.

in the rapid changing beliefs of jws what is the correct answer?.

.

problemaddict 2

Its one or 4 (probably 4 because of how EPO works as somone mentioned). Platlets, Plasma, RBC's, and WBC's are all considered "main components". All the various components of those components however are perfectly ok. You can eat pork, but not eat pepperoni, and definitely not have pizza!

180

What is the most bizarre counsel you received as a JW, from a JW?

by Funchback in

there were many addressed to me.

for example, i once had a sister tell me i was gambling because i liked playing skill crane (the machine where you have to try to pick up prizes like stuffed animals) at the arcade.

i then fired back a her: "you saw the r-rated movie 'backdraft.

problemaddict 2

My friend was told by a CO's wife to not boil their water (in a third world country), because it would "kill the vitamins". Not really counsel......but clearly nuts.

34

Physically In, Mentally Out

by James Jack in

7 years ago i was this "ultra spiritual elder".

you name it, i was visible all over the region.

i was the coordinator, on the convention committee, rbc, had a talk at every convention and assembly, regular pioneer, etc.

problemaddict 2

You were taught that to look inwardly, and think independently were bad things.

Really they are necessary for our development.

Even as a JW I had sort of a morbid fear of death (and maybe being killed by God). As an awake out person, I still can't shake it, and its not good. Through some real reflection and research, I figured that processing death, and you living your one and only life (at least in the state you are currently in...if you happen to have a religious faith), happens in per-adolesence.

But I WASN'T GOING TO DIE. I got to walk into the new world riding a lion. So......I never processed the idea of ceasing to exist as i was.

It took time......self reflection....and being open to anything to get that.

Give yourself time. So what is right for you and your family, and while it sounds like a buzzword, take back your integrity. It will make you feel whole again, even if you have more questions than answers maybe for the first time in your life.

25

I Give Up!

by pale.emperor in

im giving up guys.

i've reached the end of my patience and now i finally refuse to waste any more time on part-time witnesses.

i've text all of my active jw family members and told them to delete my number from their phone and never contact me again.

problemaddict 2

Nah. Don't give up! Haha.

For real, you are still int he best position to be able to help if there is a real opening. Cutting yourself off from them, is doing their work for them.

The person who helped me wake up online, probably thought he was beating his head against a wall. 7 years after our "talks" I found him and thanked him. I have helped a few people out, so you could say his time cost the branch about 12 members and their donations thus far.

So......do whats good for you, but don't let momentary frustration get you down. Being kind, making yourself available......it works!

30

Bible pssssges that are immoral - Lot offering his virgin daughters to be gang raped by homosexual males

by jambon1 in

jw
friends

.

tell me me more about your just & loving god..

problemaddict 2

The more I woke up, the more the Hebrew scriptures in particular read like an ancient nomadic desert dwelling tribe justifying their crazy actions through their God.

David committing the grave sin of counting people, and the people paying for it to the tune of something like 17,000 deaths definitely comes to mind.

In judges, when they are to slay a neighboring tribe, but spare the virgin women who have not gone through puberty. That was pretty rough. When the soldiers come back with infants and little children that are not virgin per-pubescent girls....Moses is all like Yo!....I thought I said kill all the boys? So I imagine them being ripped from their older sisters arms, and their throats cut. Jehovah doesn't say or so anything at all about it.

Yeah......really being honest with myself started with those things.

45

What did NOT get you out?

by problemaddict 2 in

i realize this is odd, but a "how you woke up" thread and the personal stories that are told which i know we all enjoy, made me think of this.

in helping my wife and a couple others get the ball rolling, i realized the thing that resonated with me, didn't even move the needle with them.

i wanted to rail on and on about blood, because that was my conduit to waking up, but for my wife it was about shunning.

problemaddict 2

I realize this is odd, but a "how you woke up" thread and the personal stories that are told which I know we all enjoy, made me think of this.

In helping my wife and a couple others get the ball rolling, I realized the thing that resonated with me, didn't even move the needle with them. I wanted to rail on and on about blood, because that was my conduit to waking up, but for my wife it was about shunning. 2 of my friends, one still in the process......for them it was about 607 and "administrative BS".

These had no effect on me for some reason.

Apostates with signs (the angrier, the more i felt they were just fullfilling prophecy)
Christians with signs (they were usually rude, and talking about the Trinity......next)
UN scandal. I didn't care.
Old friends trying to get me to think about why I wasn't allowed to go to college or play sports
"bad" Elders. I actually grew up around and with some really good guys. Guys I felt really believed, and tried their best to be balanced and extend mercy.

I am a firm believer that the best you can do to get through that wall in a JW's mind is to just loosen one brick. You have to do so gently. Once that brick is out, its up to them to poke around, look through to the other side, and see if there is anything that resonates with them.

Everyone has their brick. The rest of the wall could be stable.

Thoughts?

41

What woke you up?

by MrRoboto in

for me, i think it was just the right time as i was starting to wake up on other fronts as well (anyone who had went through these will know what i mean).

but it started when i was looking for what info goes on a publisher card, which led to me reading one person's story (ex bethelite) which was pretty crazy to an all-in jw but who trusts those apostates...?.

then i started watching videos on cults, as if my subconscious was trying to tell my concord mind something... when i saw a particular one about a young man in lds getting ready to start their 2 year preaching campaign, including a school, social activities etc, i realized that i couldn't tell the difference between the folks of this mormon cult and the jws (save for some religious differences) .

problemaddict 2

I love these type of threads.

I was serving in a foreign country as a young "need-greater" (which means my wife and I funded ourselves....quit our jobs.....big level of commitment). I had 19 bible studies and my wife 20. Sheesh.

I was learning a language, so i honestly got kind of bored and just wanted to communicate in english. I somehow stumbled upon a web site called "scriptural truths" which was ran apparently by some JW's. Also a forum called "touchstone". This was ran by an elder out of the UK. I loved that there were apologists defending the tenants of my faith, so i joined up. I was an active online JW apologist in the golden years of this (about 10 years ago or so). I met a LOT of brothers who were very intelligent, and put together decent defenses. (many of them are now out).

But in engaging with some apostates online, there was one in particular that while he could be a bit of an ass, I knew was telling the truth about his experience, and he ended up just kind of being for lack of a better term....NICE to me. It made me take into consideration some specific questions. The one that stuck?

BLOOD.

It seemed grey. Our policy made no sense. If it WAS grey, then it should be a conscience matter......but it wasn't. So was their bloodguilt to go around?

I didn't care about the UN, old predictions, or what I regarded as conspiracy theories. Blood to me became the single most indefensible doctrine there was. When we returned from foreign service, we were rock stars. I was an idealist, and thought I could change things. I got frustrated because you know how that went. I made the classic mistakes by sharing my frustration, which led to inquiry, loss of friendships, my wife thinking I'm insane (she is out now as well), and more.

___

I am a firm believer that the best you can do to get through that wall in a JW's mind is to just loosen one brick. You have to do so gently. Once that brick is out, its up to them to poke around, look through to the other side, and see if there is anything that resonates with them. My wife got out. She didn't care about blood even though that is what I pushed on. For her it was shunning. My buddy got out. I pushed blood......for him it all started with 607.

Everyone has their brick.

20

What Did You Imagine Jehovah To Look Like?

by pale.emperor in

what did you imagine jehovah to look like?

i always pictured him like this:.

.

problemaddict 2

The following is what I actually remembered imagining God in my head to be like.

A white guy, with dark hair, and keyhole aviator glasses (I know.....odd). Honestly.....just like the king of all elders.

Crazy.