do you remember the first time you found out "the truth about the truth"?.
yes, it was confronting, shocking and life altering.
yes it was hard to deal with.. but, along with that, many have said that they experienced a sense of thrill, euphoria, or joy when realising the facts about the religion that held us captive mentally and physically for so long.. it was liberating to learn some of the controversial teachings etc.
Oh man, I was so depressed about so much stuff. It was this giant boulder being lifted out of my vision allowing me to see that there was hope and more reasons to not be so depressed.
I remember some time later, meeting someone (AWAKENED AT GILEAD) who just discovered "the truth about the truth" for himself and he was even more excited about it than I ever was. He showed me some blatant examples of Watchtower misquotes and he was thrilled. So I was reminded then how exciting it first was.
so, serving "the one true god" and being "in the truth" are supposed to make jw's better people.
they are bringing their "truth" to people and that probably makes them feel that they are good to "worldly" people.but they do it to "get their time in.
" they do it no longer in any life-saving mentality.
So, serving "the one true God" and being "in the truth" are supposed to make JW's better people.
They are bringing their "truth" to people and that probably makes them feel that they are good to "worldly" people.
But they do it to "get their time in." They do it no longer in any life-saving mentality. They knock on doors when nobody answers and they stand near a cart that nobody walks up to.
They are supposed to support and encourage each other, but it seems that anything they do that they deem "good" becomes a competition among them. "My son is a Bethelite." "My vacations are spent building at Headquarters." "My husband is an elder." "I pioneer instead of seeking more money." YADDA YADDA YADDA!!!
JW's get a smug, superior attitude about themselves when comparing their worship to the "world." "THEY CELEBRATE PAGAN HOLIDAYS.....AND GET CAUGHT IN PATRIOTISM!!! THEY WANT TO HAVE FUN SO THEY LET CHILDREN HAVE CANDY ON A SATANIC HOLIDAY!!!" And it goes on and on and on. Instead of really wanting to help their own children understand stuff, they demonize it. Instead of really wanting to help their fellow man to understand stuff, they condemn them and talk about their imminent destruction.
I have been reading BEYOND BELIEF about Jenna Miscavige growing up as the niece of the leader of Scientology, and later leaving. Scientology has a deeper problem with turning other members in for breaking the rules, but it is definitely present among JW's. The fear that a member will be guilty of something for NOT turning someone in for something is prevalent, and that snitch/tattletale thing is way more important than actually helping someone. In Watchtower, the person turning someone in assumes the elders will help that person, but all the elders seem to be first about is getting a confession or proving guilt and punishing. Help is so secondary.
They say they want Witnesses to be able to think for themselves, but all they do is teach them to parrot the Watchtower and try to know what it says as the answer to any particular question. Instead of saying why THEY shun someone or THEY refuse to take blood or whatever, they answer that "I have learned that Jehovah God feels [the way Watchtower tells me] about the matter."
today is the 49th anniversaryof my parole from federal prison.
in french, "parole" means 'word of honor'.in effect, a prisoner promises the authorities they will be honorable.. in 1967, i violated the u.s. military training and service act.about 25,000 draft age americans simply ran away to canada.i did not run.
i stayed and gave my 'witness.".
Thanks for sharing. And on this solemn anniversary, your shameless self promotion is acceptable.
i am just 17. many of you here are much older than me.. i do feel that offering advice here is like teaching my father how to fuck.
but seriously, i do see the problem here.
we are focusing more on the problem than the solution.. i have been reading mind power books for quite some time.
I am just 17. Many of you here are much older than me.
I do feel that offering advice here is like teaching my father how to fuck. But seriously, I do see the problem here. We are focusing more on the problem than the solution.
Often, we need the refreshing viewpoints of young ones. Sex for the father of a young adult or old teen may be good, but there's nothing like the passion of people just starting out. And we are not really talking about sex.
I am a bit of a pessimist due to a lack of results from my efforts to free my wife and mother, and from reading of similar outcomes. But I need reminders from young ones that my situation or that of some others is not always the case. I am reminded of another male elder with his entire family in who made great strides in waking up his family by remaining in the organization long enough to influence them. They are all out now. So reading suggestions from a young one are always welcome. Just don't be surprised if someone like me shoots down what you say because "we feel we know better." Not always true.
I find that many, perhaps most of us, have given too much power to Watchtower. ...and they did it so easily and willingly.
The pessimist in me will remind you that many cannot show their family how they are happier after leaving because their family totally shuns them. And sometimes that shunning is the very thing that makes them unhappy.
But otherwise, I wholeheartedly appreciate what you say and hope those of us that can show family how much better off we are, do so.
I have met many former JW's who put love for their family ahead of privileges and then eventually came out of the Watchtower because of the treatment they received for doing the right thing.
so 9 months before i started pioneering, i had a hot and heavy moment with this player witness who was just trying to string me along and talked to a lot of different girls.
we made out and he grabbed my goodies a few times you know the regular stuff all teens do at least once.
anyways i never saw him again because when i refused to send him nudes he dropped me.
Privileges schmivleges. Beyond the touching the boobs, you don't have to say anymore.
Yes, they can take away such a privilege just based on an accusation and your denial to meet and clear it up, or based on your confirmation of the accusation. I think you already came to terms with losing your pioneer status and will be fine with that.
If you desire to avoid a judicial committee, you can deny anything else happened. No matter what the guy says, you say "HE WISHES THAT HAPPENED." Stick to your guns with "I never saw him again and went straight to Jehovah with this."
You may never get past the judgement of the elders and the whispering. So make what you will of it and get on with your life. I hope the best for you.
hey, i would like to share my experience, it is kind of long but i really appreciate whoever reads.
last year i was a devout pioneer sister.
well, i am naturally an imperfect 20 year old women.
The local rules are beyond organizational rules. Yes, the things are what they call good suggestions, but chaperones are not definitely a requirement and the only solid rule about being alone is actually that you would be guilty of (some technical form of) fornication if you spent the night alone together. But even the harshest enforcement of the suggestions allows for publicly being alone together and riding in the same car together without a judicial matter being formed.
I would give you my opinion on continually dating a PIMI, but you are young and probably in love (or something close to it). You may know how close he is to getting out and hope to help him. So I will just say good luck with that.
hi - first some context - i have been pimo for about 20 years now and so have been to a lot of assemblies in that time.
last weekend i went to a circuit assembly and for the first time afterwards i was able to talk directly to someone who knows i'm out.
i realised then that although i didn't agree with any teachings (i sat picking holes in the arguements as usual) the experience of being there had affected me - the way of life started feeling normal as did the overall way of viewing the world.
I recently went to a "memorial talk" for a person I knew in my mother's congregation. Because of the confusion with the recent annual Memorial of Jesus' death, I had to refer to it as a funeral talk. When I slipped and did that in front of active JW's, they would correct me. (You know, calling it something normal would make them freak out.)
So that allowed me to see how the typical talk, the familiar scriptures, the love-bombing, all that contributed to the feeling that "this is the place to be." Oh, it didn't get to me. I was immune from deprogramming, but I was able to see how they want people to keep going to meetings and keep being bombarded by this stuff to keep them from having free thoughts about doubting it.
ok.. we have often heard secret recordings online of jc hearings.
but, what i would like to know is if individuals are entitled to the right of officially recording their judicial hearings?.
supposing i was to attend a judicial committee and i explained up front that i would like to record the proceedings and then place a dictaphone on the table.
I would figure that any group of 3 elders would not let a JC proceed with a recording device.
So I would not even insist/suggest such a thing.
I would instead insist on rigorous note-taking. I mean, one of the 3 is going to take notes, so I would say that I am going to do so also. "If YOU take notes, why can't I take notes?" I would slow the process down extremely in order to get in writing, whatever anyone says. They would probably want to halt the process because of how much I would slow it down.
i ask because i'm working in a 28 day residential addiction treatment center and one of my co-workers is studying with the jw's.
he does not know i'm an xjw.
i suspect that at some point they're going to tell him he can't go to aa meetings anymore.
Adding to what Blondie has said, Watchtower officially takes no stand against such groups as AA.
In order to prove that a particular person was involved in interfaith or false worship, someone would have to attend the AA meeting he/she also attends. And they would be violating the anonymous part by reporting to any group of JW elders what took place with another AA member. Too many problems for them. I am sure Watchtower lawyers would say to "drop it."
Keep in mind that no matter what reasons they give, such as not wanting to interfere in treatments, the real reason Watchtower would take no stand is so that they are not sued over preventing such a needed personal treatment and someone committing suicide or a crime afterward or being disfellowshipped for their drunkiness alledgedly because Watchtower banned their needed help.
so many of us have had (perhaps well-meaning) jws ask us questions about our inactivity, or lack of attendance at meetings.
they may pry about why..... how is this for a simple, yet straight to the point response?
to a sincere person, it may play on their mind and make them ask more questions.
"Thanks, but my God-given Bible trained conscience doesn't allow me to associate, now that I know a multitude of disturbing facts"
