Posts by truthlover

55

Do your elders care at all?

by Mr. Falcon in

i currently have an elder body who, for the most part, seems utterly complacent and disinterested in actually "shepherding" anything.

i can't tell if they are lazy or just oblivious to their responsiblities of being "teachers".

it seems like they are the last to know anything and always procrastinate on everything.

and then you have elders who are on the RBC lists to run their vehicles 2-300 miles to quik builds, every weekend for weeks on end, to put gas and upkeep the vehicle to haul others who will not pay towards any gas used.. using their time and then get dumped on by the elders left behind that they are not keeping their hours up to cong level... wonder what will happen now that gas is getting so highhhhh it will soon be out of reach to travel anywhere - even to assemblies to give their parts....

Those elders who are doing their best on the RBC are still expected to do parts in the cong and be out in service and be at the elders meetings and do shepherding calls - that the at home elders are not doing -

Tired? Yes Discouraged? Yes Disgruntled? Yes Enouraged by their fellow elders? No

and the responsibility keeps piling in from "head office"

11

Did you get a spritual family in compensation for your own?

by highdose in

jw
friends

theres a scripture much touted by the jw's, goes somthing like " who has not lost brothers, sisters etc and not got tons more etc" ... no i ain't going to bother to look it up.. this was always offered as a great compensation for upsetting your family with your extreme jw beliefs.

but i never found it to be true.

yeah you went to the meetings and your so called spritual family was there.

truthlover

Well, I thought it only happened in my congregation Nugget:

my Family is/was not in the truth -my parents now dead and I must say when I came into the truth, I kinda left them behind...for several years .. my mate grew up in it, I got baptized - all was fine with the world -- the years passed ..well, being an older person now, my grown up child is and has not been baptized - choice as a teenager,does not live close, my mates family - parents dead, well, hear from the brothers once in a while--one brother and sister in law- not for over a year - they are in the "truth"-live 1 hour away, other brother and sister in law - not often either.. guess I was a bad person.. seeing that my mate has now died... it's awful hard being a fifth wheel at parties and get togethers - hang out in the kitchen or find a spot in a corner somewhere....

All the folks we once hung out with in the truth are either divorced or out of the truth...no contact there either as we were in when they left to pursue other interests......

you can build a picture out of the rest -- those in the cong who are "friends" would not be so if I left - same story as most

Conclusion: No spiritual family! The only spiritual I get is studying the scriptures myself...............am very close with my kid tho -- on the phone daily..

Jesus may have said it, but the brothers and sisters - for the most part --do not live it

98

Discussion involving my Dad & other long timers - Mood is definately different

by Doubting Bro in

jw
friends

i've seen several posts relating to the mood among longtime jws here recently.

i thought i would add to that collection and recount a discussion i recently had with my dad and a small group of folks about his age.

quick background on the group:.

truthlover

Mood change -- yes!

As a side issue - in our area we have been hit by many snowstorms lately on meetings nights/days -- several in a three week period - it was discussed that we have the meetings on the Family study night, but no takers - elders agreed to say "no" too busy --consequently, no extra meetings were planned at any time to make sure the congreagation had their "spiritual food at the proper time!!"-- I see that as a great comment on the times being spoken of - the desire is gone, people are only putting in mediocre service - attendance or service - not many have signed up for the April push on aux pioneers... it will be a slow descent, but one nevertheless

people are tired - there is no real heartfelt smiles or anticipation of seeing new faces at the hall - cause there isn't any unless a family moves in from another congregation....more publishers are getting sick, physically, families are tied up with each other and their illnesses, and those who are single or widowed are on their own.....

In speaking with others in various congregations, its the same -- no growth, no interest by the community at large...

If Bethel is monitoring this site - they should be aware they better change and soon, I once heard this system was like a freight train running out of track, well that applies today to the society, they are out of track, its panic time!!

26

Disfellowshipped for eating FATTY FOODS, BEING FAT, BAD DIET

by free2beme in

jw
friends

heart desease is the leading cause of deaths in this country.

bad diets are leading to an ever increasing population of diabetic and fat children and adults.

if we keep this up, more and more people will be too sick to work or live a normal life.

truthlover

Also - in the new Elders book - if persons are not cleaning their houses, messy, etc. they too can be brought up to a JC..

I guess the hoarding issues are starting to indicate some type of emotional illnesses that have to be addressed.. Chapter 5 Elders Book - Pg 65

• Extreme physical uncleanness

Chapter 5 - Pg 67- Gluttony

54

Do you think a lot of JWs are ashamed of their beliefs?

by I quit! in

jw
friends

the reason i asked this is because i'm going to the funeral of a man who wasn't a jw.

my mother-in-law has lived in the same neighborhood as him for years and knows his wife.

i asked her if she was going attend the funeral service.

truthlover

Sad -= cause I thought this was the one

embarassed - because of flaunting the fact that no one who committed a crime would get away with it, as they would have to confess to the police before becoming a JW - only to find out that child abusers were committing the most horrible of crimes -molesters,physical abusers, emotional abusers (male ) and allowed to get away with it by other men,elders -- -saying we all sin, go your way and sin no more- yah right!

They do hot have training to deal with these issues - protect jehovah's organization??? Jehovah would not want this to happen - He has to be very upset that His name is attached to such things. And then, the organization has to pay off those who want to bring justice to light...using our contributions to pay off the unfortunate abuse victims....this eats me up!

embarassed - as a woman to think we are second class citizens in an organization that tells us God is not partial and who also says that "even" woman have been chosen to be of the annointed, yet the female gender cannot hold any position in the "governing body" of men... nor give them counsel being a woman, they are in subjection.... so what about Deborah-the prophetess???

sentimental- when I came into the truth, it was not like today - we sat around the dinner table and had real conversations about the bible, gave our impression about talks and points without being afraid someone would run to an elder to tell them we are becomning apostate

Mad - as to how the governing body is usurping Jesus' role as our mediator, how they have dropped the holy spirit from the baptismal vow

I think I will take a break..

14

Gas Prices Not Cooperating with Governing Body "Arrangement"

by LostGeneration in

jw
friends

we all know how the governing body has "lovingly arranged" for 30 hour aux pioneering in april.

but oil prices are going up, and $4 a gallon gas will probably be here by memorial day, and $5 gas by the summer.

http://www.wgntv.com/news/wgntv-gas-may-hit-5-dollars-by-summer-feb24,0,7527696.story.

truthlover

As of today, in one part of Canada - the east coast - pricing ranges from 112.8- 118.2 per litre -- so would that be about $5.08 - $5.32 per gallon??

So far, in my cong - not a lot of folks have signed up for the 30 hour push

74

CO's putting the screws on elder bodies, and ministerial servants to auxilliary pioneer this April.

by miseryloveselders in

jw
friends

i have such a love/hate, 50/50 relationship with this organization any more, but a letter was read to the elders and ministerial servants that has pushed me to the 30/70 range in favor of hate, if even momentarily.

most of you if not all are aware of the auxilliary pioneering initiative for this upcoming april.

it's no secret that i'm not real fond of pioneering as its unscriptural for one thing.

truthlover

***jr chap.8 pp.94-95 par.7 Will You "Keep Living,"as Did Jeremiah?***

Consider first that Jeremiah was to remain childless. Jesus did not command his followers to abstain from having children. Yet, it is noteworthy that he pronounced "woe" on pregnant women or those nursing a baby when tribulation came on Jerusalem in 66-70 C.E. That time would be especially difficult for them, given their situation. (Matt. 24:19) We now face a greater tribulation. This should add a dimension for Christian coupleswho are deciding whether to have children. Do you not agree that it seems harder and harder to deal with these critical times? And couples have admitted that it has been very challenging to raise children who will "keep living" through the end of the present system. While each couple must decide if they will have children, Jeremiah's case is worth considering.

Once the brain sees this -logic fails and if the org is hinting at this - it becomes ingrained and then law!!

Going back to MLE first comment -- talking of sisters having 1 -4 kids to grow the org.. not today -- ain't happenin -- they want pioneers -- eunuchs - commanded not to marry outside the Lord -- therefore, many single sisters have no hope of finding a mate since the ratio is 20-1 in favour of the male who has his pick of the litter... the older brothers can snag any sister -- mostly young uns.... the Muslim religion is growing leaps and bounds - why?? they are having up to 8 kids per family -- not so with the org...

This growth in the Muslim religion is going to put every religion in jeopardy - churches closing due to lack of patrons -- the older generation is dying off, no one is going to church, no growth in families that support the church finances... so goes the org too....

74

CO's putting the screws on elder bodies, and ministerial servants to auxilliary pioneer this April.

by miseryloveselders in

jw
friends

i have such a love/hate, 50/50 relationship with this organization any more, but a letter was read to the elders and ministerial servants that has pushed me to the 30/70 range in favor of hate, if even momentarily.

most of you if not all are aware of the auxilliary pioneering initiative for this upcoming april.

it's no secret that i'm not real fond of pioneering as its unscriptural for one thing.

truthlover

Well, this is a corporation, is it not?

My guess is that each CO/DO for a particular circuit is betting how much they can outdo the next circuit/district... in that way they can say to the higher ups how well they run their circuit/district, no problems there, every thing is being handled so well all pubs and elders are out there following instructions and taking care of the sheep... maybe getting special privledges for their hard won efforts???? Therefore, they are working to get as many elders/COBOE's out in the field for April...

I, for one, will not be out there

22

"If this 'system of things' goes on..."

by Franklin Massey in

jw
friends

i have been hearing more people saying this now than ever.

especially those in the over-40 crowd.

i just got off the phone with an older jw family member who was reviewing options for golden years living.

truthlover

Funny you should mention this today - I was speaking with a friend who is taking classes to improve their education and I asked what is your plans for the future as you have a little girl to bring up.. the answer was" my school,my child, our future"-- we are in the truth, yet have the same outlook.. we know things are getting bad -- Jehovah's Witnesses are not the only ones saying that in religious circles-- yet we (JW's) do not know when this system will end, certainly the older brothers and sisters did not think it would go this far, I can remember thinking our son would not have to go to school....he is now 42 , so we can only try to live for today to secure the future should the system not end in our lifetime.. a BIG COMING OF AGE -- no longer do we think the society has the answers to this one!!

And I do not think we are alone - people just won't say what they believe about this anymore - otherwise they are labelled.. and yes, they do add that little blurb "Jehovah can't let this go on much longer"....

36

Anyone want to share emails that they wrote to the BBC about the program this morning?

by brotherdan in

jw
friends

i know many of you have sent emails to emma britton, who hosted the show this morning with our own cantleave and angus.

(btw, you guys did amazing!).

i sent my email to her as well and wanted to see if anyone else wants to share their emails.

truthlover

Mad Sweeney -- sorry about that, it was you who gave the link, thanks

I did listen to the interviews and thought they did an excellent job of expaining their situations, and the letter from the society hid the fact of how strict they really are when dealing with relatives who are DA's or DF'd - my child did not want to go to meetings at 14 years of age and being a minor, we did not force him to go - not kick him out of the house- hence he never got baptized and thankfully today, we have a great relationship one that the soceity can do nothing about..

If there is a groundswell of support for this issue, the society will have to bend to the will of the people - or at least loose some of the restrictions... hopefully -- people are depressed,ill,suicidal (2 that I know of) because of this harsh directive