vinman

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Posts by vinman

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  18

  "The governing body has asked me to..."

  by OverlappingGeneralizations in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i have heard that phrase several times on the jw broadcast, uttered by gb members!

  "the governing body has asked me to bring to your attention (whatever)".

  aren't you the governing body?

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  vinman

  "The Governing body would like you to know just how much we love and appreciate you."

  JW response: " Wow! Jehovah sure loves us!"

  Barf!
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  5

  Exiting the JW cult, by Bonnie Zieman.

  by Sabin in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  hello to you all, i`m reading this book exiting the jw cult & i think so far it is brilliant.

  i emailed a friend the other day and said "sometimes i feel rage that isn't good towards the j dub`s & what they do to others".

  then i came across this section in the book, pg 62-63, where it says.

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  vinman

  Yes. Read the book. Gave it 5 stars. Most unique professional book for Ex-JW'S. And yes, I have fealt the rage. I have gotten to the point that I will tell anyone what I know of the truth of this organization. It is the only way for me to deal with it.
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  34

  Evolutionists Who Are Against Darwinism

  by Perry in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  this is a nice list of evolutionary scientists and their quotes regarding the impossibility of naturalism or materialism being able to account for life as it is observed :.

  evolutionists against darwinism.

  most, while sympathetic and respectful of their more committed colleagues, are disparaged as morons for not carrying the materialism banner as a religion, as a matter of faith.

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  vinman

  Love this commentary!! Yes, New Atheism equals new religion. Like I said before, their are two sides to every story. The one thing I learned in my 9 month exit from the Borg is that as soon as I read something that seemed reasonable and the person is trying to convince me of the truthfulness of his words, I would suddenly find many articles counteracting his arguements. One minute I'm being swept away into atheism, the next minute I'm totally engrossed in a scholarly discussion of how unique the Bible is from any religious book on all levels. All I can say is that I appreciate ones on here like Faye who express that they do accept Jesus and the Bible but don't really push it. On the otherhand I am annoyed by many atheists that call other people ridiculous for believing in God. Sometimes it seems that they talk much like a JW. Saying whatever, to convince themselves ( not others) that they have the truth.
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  6

  I've heard 2 people have found the RC hearings

  by Dagney in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  one "brother" was just texting me how good the regional convention was 2 days ago, when today it was "did you see what is happening in australia?

  jackson was interviewed!

  " lolololol.

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  vinman

  All it takes is one of us to mention it in our area and it WILL spread. First, JW's love juicey gossip. What can be jucier than Jackson on trial? Any sane witness would be curious to the bone. Second, I feel it is important for witnesses to know that the entire world can download the Shepherding the Flock book. Because that really tells us how dire the situation is. That should be told to at least one elder. I know that my body elders knows all about it. And now it will spread like wildfire.
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  39

  What went wrong in your congregation?

  by The Rebel in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the target is converts.. why does it seem such an outrageous aim for a congregation to recruit new converts?.

  in my old congregation, the enthusiasm was there but the knocking on doors produced zero " baptisms" in my final years.. a) why so little interests?.

  b) was it the internet ?.

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  vinman

  I was in sign language for 4.5 years. 40 publishers. Out of that, 22 were regular pioneers. Average Meeting field sevice: 8 including kids. And not always that many. Most counted time driving to the for winds. Some would send an email in the morning at 7 just to get time started.. Others would work at jobs that involved driving. Well they would ask the first person if they knew of any deaf and count time throughout the day. Out of the 40, maybe 5 were go getters.Facts are, most JW's live counting time. But ministry? Nope.
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  26

  My 67 Year Old Elder Brother Is Depressed Because The Younger Elders Are Taking Over

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  he was the school overseer but they relieved him of that to allow younger elders the privilege of the job.

  now he is depressed and actually shed tears, believing his worth has diminished.

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  vinman

  Sad. But his worth has diminished. Like any corporation, no one wants to hire any one over 50. My wifes grandfather, was a CO into his older years. When his health declined, family had to cook meals for him. I helped with that. He died a lonely and sad man. I asked if people stop by to see him. He mentioned one older couple. He would just sit in his wheelchair and look out the window. When I tried to encourage him, he would respond simply with a yeah. I view myself as a compassionate person. But with all honesty, I must say that cult affects your thinking so bad. With hindsight. I can can say like most, with my lips I would honor the elderly. But in my heart, it was about me and what I can accomplish as an elder. Older elders were truly viewed as baggage by the majority. That is why the elders assign OTHERS to perhaps drive an older one or mow their lawn. They were never hands on. It is interesting that for most of us, the things that woke us up, aren't the things that keep us out. When waking someone up, it is hard to speak to them because you want to give them the complete picture of what is really going on here. You want to explain the forest , when you really need to show the trees so to speak. What a sick climate the Watchtower is! It is deceptive on all levels.
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  30

  Life after the witnesses, friends, faith etc

  by Theburstbubble in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hi everyone, this is my first post so go easy on me :) i have been a witness all of my life (i'm 37) and truly believed it until 3 years ago.

  my husband and i had become spiritually weak and over time i began to question more and more until i came to the conclusion that the witnesses were not the true religion but just one of many religions and that if god is there then there are many paths to get to him.

  anyway, i've battled with keeping going as my husband still believed and i didn't want to be in a divided household as we have a young daughter and thought it would be very confusing for her (and us).

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  vinman

  I agree with OnTheWayOut.

  "As far as your need to believe or not, take your time. If God doesn't understand your need for time out, then he is not who they say he is."

  When I first left, I panicked. I wanted answers now! But now I can see that you need time to recover from shock. That will take time. As time passed, I began to see that for me personally, God felt natural. I had felt his presence in the organization. I have learned so much in the nine months I've been out. I am still working on seeing my path.. And I feel somewhat distracted. But I totally agree that God understands. The Watchtower was like drugs for me. It was an absolute nightmare to learn TTATT. I personally loved the organization. But I love genuine truth more. It will take time to heal. This article and the entire website helped me in my recovery:

  http://thewatchtowerfiles.com/?s=Atheist&submit=Search
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  10

  Fading and finding our REAL beliefs

  by BeautifulMind in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hey all.

  i hope you are all having a good day.

  just a quick update on our fade.

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  vinman

  When I first left, like most, total confusion hit. I was reading anything online to find answers. Two links really helped me to get my bearings. I am very grateful for finding them. While I am still learning, I now feel I am where I should be. The dust is beginning to settle.

  http://www.biblebb.com/files/ryle/inspiration.htm

  http://wernerbiblecommentary.org/?q=book/print/2
  
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  83

  What woke you up?

  by Israel Ricky Gonzales in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  in march of 2014, i was a very active jw, a ministerial servant, gave a public talk, was an attendant for the memorial, and one of 4 cleaning captains for an international convention of 40,000+ attendees.

  so what woke me up?

  an innocent comment from a co-worker about the candice conti court case rang a bell that could not be unrung.

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  vinman

  Finding out we worshipped Jesus till 1954. Come on!! You can't get that right and you call yourselves Jehovah's Witnesses?!! What the heck!
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  41

  The elders of the 1980s are now in their 60s and 70s

  by truthseeker in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  having just come back from the uk and spoke with some witnesses to find out how my old congregation is doing, i realized i am now the age that my elders were when i was a kid.

  and i wonder what the elders who are now in their 60s and 70s are thinking when they look in the mirror and an old face looks back at them.

  many of the elders in my old hall are now retired.

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  vinman

  I think of this all the time. All your comments are spot on. A lot does have to do with age. Being forty five, I realised I had to act swiftly and not ignore reality. I still have a lot if energy. It is sooo depressing to contemplate this subject.