slimboyfat

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Posts by slimboyfat

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  20

  I hate to be a purveyor of doom

  by ballistic in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  old habits die hard i guess .

  but with the uk's april retail sales figures in, showing the biggest drop since records began in the mid 1990s, i think we are about to hit another recession.

  just so those in the usa know what i'm talking about, here in the uk personal debt here recently broke the 1 trillion mark and property prices have maxed out and are just starting to show signs of dropping, with most young people unable to afford to get on the ladder.

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  slimboyfat

  It is not all bad news... maybe it means a crushing defeat for New Labour next time round.
• 
  55

  Did You Ever Think The "End" Was Going To Happen In Your Lifetime"?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  although i was considered an exemplary jw, i never really could see it happening.

  still don't.

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  slimboyfat

  Sometimes I thought it might. Sometimes I still do think it might.

  I now realise there are a lot of ways for a world to end...
• 
  32

  THE IMPORTANCE OF MAKING OUT A WILL

  by Dansk in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  this morning claire and i saw our solicitor and finalised our wills, the originals being left in his care and keeping.

  i post this as a wake up call to anyone who hasn't yet made a last will and testament.. we have had to make sure that our two daughters, who are still active jws, receive absolutely nothing because we all know that part of anything they would receive would be donated to the society.

  that cannot be allowed to happen.

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  slimboyfat

  If there was a Watchtower article encouraging Witnesses to leave disfellowshipped people out of their will there would be an apostate outcry. Nuff said...
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  25

  Disassociation = Disfellowshipment = The Final Insult (A Proposal)

  by slimboyfat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i try to keep up with discussion on this forum, but i missed the threads about the new policy on the announcement of disfellowshipping and disassociation.

  so excuse me if i am covering old ground.

  the new "organized to do jehovah's will" book stated that in future announcements of disfellowshipping and disassociation would follow the same formulation: "****** ****** is no longer one of jehovah's witnesses".

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  slimboyfat

  Hi Seattleniceguy,

  You say:

  Then again, I have never been one for spectacular displays, so I don't think I would have tried the approach you suggest.

  It need not be melodramatic. You could even cut out the preliminary explanation and simply say "I wish to disassociate myself from Jehovah's Witnesses", just so everyone knows. Writing letters is good too, but as a direct response to the denial of a proper disassociation announcement from the platform I think my idea is proportionate. I am not suggesting an extended mad apostate rant. As you know, I don't care much for apostates in any case.
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  25

  Disassociation = Disfellowshipment = The Final Insult (A Proposal)

  by slimboyfat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i try to keep up with discussion on this forum, but i missed the threads about the new policy on the announcement of disfellowshipping and disassociation.

  so excuse me if i am covering old ground.

  the new "organized to do jehovah's will" book stated that in future announcements of disfellowshipping and disassociation would follow the same formulation: "****** ****** is no longer one of jehovah's witnesses".

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  slimboyfat

  I try to keep up with discussion on this forum, but I missed the threads about the new policy on the announcement of disfellowshipping and disassociation. So excuse me if I am covering old ground.

  The new "Organized To Do Jehovah's Will" book stated that in future announcements of disfellowshipping and disassociation would follow the same formulation: "****** ****** is no longer one of Jehovah's Witnesses". This means that while there remains a distinction between disassociation and disfellowshipment in the judicial hearings and in the official records, that distinction will not be made clear to the whole congregation when the judicial committee reaches the decision and the announcement is made.

  That this change constitutes one of the very few noticeable changes in the new 'Organization' book was evidenced by the fact that this was the only new feature which was highlighted in the letter from the Society accompanying the release of the new publication. What was the significance of the change?

  Interestingly, although the Witnesses usually explain all changes (no matter how minor) in terms of at least some vague reference to their interpretation of a particular principle or scripture text, no 'spiritual' justification accompanied this alteration. Perhaps the change was prompted by some legal technicality of which I am unaware: a possibility considering the society's increased concern to counter litigation. But perhaps the motive was simpler. The distinction between disassociation and disfellowshipment had allowed the creation of an apparent hierarchy of the 'shunned'. Whereas disfellowshipped persons were removed from the congregation for 'bad' behaviour; those who disassociated had not been thus removed, but had chosen to separate themselves from the congregation on matters of principle. (this is generally true, although a significant number apparently also disassociate themselves in anticipation of inevitable disfellowshipment proceedings)

  If my interpretation is correct then I would view this as the Final Insult. For those leaving the association on matters of principle, some small consolation was previously to be had from the fact that the announcement of their 'disassociation' would at least make clear to those former friends and acquaintances who would not all hear their motivations for leaving, that at least the decision had been theirs and that they had chosen to remove themselves from the congregation - not the other way round. From this point of view, the new policy on the announcement of disassociation removes any vestige of dignity that the Society has accorded to those who have decided to leave the religion.

  My proposal: those who wish to make clear to fellow Witnesses that they are not in the same category as the 'disfellowshipped', but have voluntarily disassociated themselves should seek other ways to make this clear. Someone in this position could simply make the announcement that they disassociate themselves in an answer during the Watchtower Study or at the Ministry School meeting. This way all the congregation can still be made aware that the reason why you are 'no longer one of Jehovah's Witnesses', as the later generic announcement will confirm. If many of those choosing to disassociate themselves follow this practice, then new policy of the Society can be made to backfire on itself as those who disassociate will create greater publicity than the previous acknowledgement did. If ever I find myself in such a position, that is what I intend to do.

  If you choose the material during which your 'announcement' is made carefully, then you could also work in a justification, or explanation, into your statement. The comment you could make during a discussion of Christendom could start unobtrusively enough:

  'Because they hypocritically involve themselves in worldly politics, such as with the United Nations...'

  'Because they talk about true Christianity evidencing genuine love, yet among themselves and their leaders they display a distinct lack thereof...'

  'Because they claim to follow the Bible, but teach things contrary to what the Bible teaches...'

  Or whatever is appropriate to your own particular situation.

  And then end with the punch line:

  'I have decided, of my own accord, that I wish to disassociate myself from Jehovah's Witnesses'.

  By which time it is too late for an elder or the roving mike to snatch the microphone. The generic announcement will still be made a couple of weeks later in the Service meeting, but no one in the congregation will be in any doubt as to why you are 'no longer one of Jehovah's Witnesses' when that statement is made.

  So what do you think of my proposal?
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  35

  The Generation Game 10 years on - 1995

  by truthseeker in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  it's been roughly ten years since the change in the understanding of the generation was printed in a november watchtower.. while i won't discuss here what everyone already knows about this change, and the effects it had on many people, questions have to be asked.. what happens next for the watchtower society?

  where is the leadership?.

  in what direction are they headed?.

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  slimboyfat

  I am trying to attach something
• 
  35

  The Generation Game 10 years on - 1995

  by truthseeker in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  it's been roughly ten years since the change in the understanding of the generation was printed in a november watchtower.. while i won't discuss here what everyone already knows about this change, and the effects it had on many people, questions have to be asked.. what happens next for the watchtower society?

  where is the leadership?.

  in what direction are they headed?.

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  slimboyfat
• 
  35

  The Generation Game 10 years on - 1995

  by truthseeker in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  it's been roughly ten years since the change in the understanding of the generation was printed in a november watchtower.. while i won't discuss here what everyone already knows about this change, and the effects it had on many people, questions have to be asked.. what happens next for the watchtower society?

  where is the leadership?.

  in what direction are they headed?.

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  slimboyfat
• 
  61

  "I can't stop thinking about Jehovah's Witnesses!"

  by logansrun in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've heard this said by a few ex-witnesses in my three years away from the organization, and have sometimes said it myself.

  sometimes it is said in the context of, "i'd like to move on, but i just can't stop thinking about them.

  could it not be that one of the reasons ex-jws "can't stop thinking about" the organization -- and their past involvement with it -- is that they daily log onto this site, read about the society and talk about them?

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  slimboyfat

  We all know that "Mother organisation" is just a Freudian representation of repressed sexual urges, waiting to burst out...

  Speak for yourself "little" toe
• 
  92

  Will reading CoC automatically make me want to leave WTS?

  by ljwtiamb in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  since i am still active (somewhat).

  i have not read the book and you know what the org says about it.

  will crisis of conscience surely send me into a tailspin?

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  slimboyfat

  Because it made me think that perhaps the Witnesses had the truth after all.

  Ray Franz is surely a nice man, but there is no substance to his book.

  Jehovah's Witnesses offer a totality.