Posts by ABibleStudent

61

Have you grown detached from caring about JW family and old friends?

by tootired2care in

jw
friends

after being out of the borg for a year and a half, weve dealt with a lot of nonsense from local elders stopping by unannounced, well-meaning do-gooders trying to encourage us.

somehow weve managed to get through this without getting dfd/dad.

for me the worst part of it all has been that much of my family has shunned me, and stopped talking to me, as soon as they heard through the grapevine that i wasnt going to meetings.

ABibleStudent

Hi tootired2care, You have several options when dealing with JWs who are shunning you. One is to view them as being toxic and forget about them. Another is send them lots of pictures of you and your family having fun and enjoying life. I recommend doing the latter. Now adays with digital cameras, cell phones with digital cameras, email, and FB it has never been easier and cheaper to share what you and your family are doing with your JW friends and family.

I understand if you want to write-off your JW friends and family, but sending them postcards and emails may make their authentic persona be able to control their cult persona someday. Setting up a FB page for your non-JW friends and family will also help your JW friends and family to keep in touch without violating WTBTS rules. Besides you can always post books that you have read recently on FB or current news articles that interest you and may shock your JW friends and family.

Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,

Robert

47

Introduction

by Pyramid God in

i'm somewhat new here, even though i've posted a few times, so i decided it was time i properly introduced myself.

i've been lurking for several months.... .

i was born into the jw and served for 21 years.

ABibleStudent

Pyramid God - My parents were unrecognizable during our arguments. They would be my normal loving parents until the JW were brought up, and then it was like I was talking to a different person.

Hi Pyramid God, I have never been a JW - only did a few bible studies with an elder and another JW publisher. I guess I recommend Steve Hassan's books so much, because he explained everything that I experienced and ways for me not to think badly of my former friend who is a "Spirtually Strong" (non-thinking) JW. He also explains lots of options on ways to bring out the authentic persona in a JW for them to critically think for themselves that I learned too late to use on my former friend .

Although my former friend's cult persona did not treat me like your parent's cult persona, she did switch between her authentic and cult personas quickly enough to send up red flags for me. Also, It kind of hurt when I got shunned/ingnored on a hiking trail when she accidently ran into me and no body else was around. I still remember her walking quickly away after I said only "Hi", and I never did any action that would cause that reaction in a non-JW.

Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,

Robert

28

"They're only human!" (the most common defence of the Governing Body)

by Watchtower-Free in

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkjk3eyd7ee.

ABibleStudent

Were all just human, so why don't R&F JWs cut other R&F JWs some slack for being human? The GB continuing to use BITE control to victimize JWs is not being human, it is being cruel, hypocritical, non-Christian, and evil to just list a few reasons to shun the GB.

Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,

Robert

47

Introduction

by Pyramid God in

i'm somewhat new here, even though i've posted a few times, so i decided it was time i properly introduced myself.

i've been lurking for several months.... .

i was born into the jw and served for 21 years.

ABibleStudent

Pyramid God - I give individual members a little benefit of the doubt, because they don't really know what they're doing and don't realize they're enslaved. I try to remember that I was once in their position.

Hi Pyramid God, If you read Steve Hassan's books, he describes dangerous cult members as having an authentic persona and cult persona. If you start to think in those terms, it may help you emotionally and help you to think of ways to help your JW family's and friend's authentic persona to control their cult persona.

Also, to use the JWN quote feature type what you want to appear in a quote box, highlight the text, and then click on the quote " button to activate the box. If you want to continue to type additional information without it being in the quote box, press the Enter key to add a new paragraph and press on the quote button again. Otherwise DITTO what cofty wrote about the JWN quote feature being quircky.

Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,

Robert

47

Introduction

by Pyramid God in

i'm somewhat new here, even though i've posted a few times, so i decided it was time i properly introduced myself.

i've been lurking for several months.... .

i was born into the jw and served for 21 years.

ABibleStudent

Welcome Pyramid God, I'm sorry about how you have been treated by your JW family and friends. How do you feel about your treatment by JWs? What are your plans for your future?

Do you want to rebuild your relationship with your JW family and friends? If you do and/or want to uncover your WTBTS induced phobias, I would recommend reading Steve Hassan's books ("Combatting Cult Mind Control", "Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves", and (his latest book) "Freedom of Mind: Helping Loved Ones Leave Controlling People, Cults and Beliefs"), visiting his website www.freedomofmind.com, and/or watching his videos.

Best of wishes in living your life free of the WTBTS.

Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,

Robert

45

A mistake in fading 4 months ago is coming back to haunt me... HELP!!

by ILoveTTATT in

jw
friends

so today, two elders from a congregation i was in two years ago came by the house.

they said they wanted to talk to me about things that they have heard, and that they want to talk to me very quickly, as soon as possible.

perhaps before this week ends.. i don't know what to do!!

ABibleStudent

Hi ILoveTTATT, I really liked Lied2NoMore suggestion to tell them that your attonery isn't available on short notice. I would use that excuse if the elders press you either by phone or by showing up unexpectedly at your parents house. I feel that your mom would understand how you feel if you say that you love your parents too much to risk being DF'ed/DA'ed because of being slandered by elders, who are not in your congregation.

It could take you a long time to find an attonery who makes house calls.

Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,

Robert

19

Why has nobody started a petition or writing letters to congress, etc?

by EndofMysteries in

i can't be in the spotlight as starting this because of a family member.

but i wonder why there is no big change.org type petition going on with hundreds of thousands of signatures, etc.

or putting together a nice letter about how jw's religion breaks up families, claims to want religious freedom but those of us born in, or just in, are forced to accept their lies and anything they say or get shunned, and the devastating emotional, etc, effects on people.

ABibleStudent

Hi EndofMysteries, I tried several times in the last two years to either start a petition or write to the U.S. government. My idea involves the U.S. Congress enacting additional requirements for all non-profit organizations to comply with before donors can deduct their donations to those organizations. From my research 1st Amendment issues should not be violated as long as all non-profits must comply with the requirements and Congress passes the bills. Those additional requirements would be all non-profit organizations must not promote shunning/marking of members and ex-members, and/or all non-profit organizations must promote reporting all violent felonies of victims to local law enforcement immediately and before reporting to the organizations legal department.

The simplest reasons why I was not successful involves the concepts of "trying to herd cats" and very few people care to write to their representatives.

The following links are to threads on JWN that may interest you:

U.S. Legislature is Reviewing Federal Tax Treatment of Charitable Contributions

Congress Investigating AARP's Tax Exempt Status. Why not the WTBTS?

Response from Senator Harry Reid's Office About Tax Exemptions for Dangerous Cults

Need Advice About Letter to the IRS to Revoke the WTBTS' Tax Exempt Status

Help Needed: Reviewing My Letter to the ACLU

URGENT: Please Sign White House Petition to "Protect Americans from Dangerous Cults: Modify USC Title 26 § 501 Tax Exemption Requirements"

Will the IRS Investigate the Watchtower Society?

It's Back! . . . Round 2.

Files Show how LA Church Leaders Shielded . . .

Also, you can search for a petition using the JWN search feature that was started last year to ban the Jehovah's Witnesses in the U.K that Cedars tried to promote. I tried to use the search feature but could not locate it quickly.

Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,

Robert

16

Should I move officially to this new cong?

by will-be-apostate in

jw
friends

so i got in college recently (petroleum engineering), which is 150+ miles away from my home town.

i started to go to the meetings once in a while to please my parents because i hate lieing to them, although i did several times regarding meetings.. last time an elder - special pioneer - came to me at the hall and asked me if i had already thought about transfering my 'files' aka.

publisher card to that congregation.

ABibleStudent

Hi will-be-apostate, Don't go to the KH that is nearest you or you are in there area. Go to a KH that is further away from you and find out if anyone knows anyone in your parent's congregation. Join which ever KH has the fewest JWs who knows someone in your parent's KH. If your parents ask you why you didn't join such and such KH just tell them that there weren't as many eligible "Spiritually Strong" JWs for you (which should be zero in your case). Start slowly fading as soon as your cards are transferred.

Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,

Robert

P.S. - Engineering is a good choice of study for your future.

17

WOW-crazy day at work. Congrats to me???

by TweetieBird in

sharing my wild day at work today because it is 1am and i can't sleep.. i am an assistant manager at an apartment community.

the manager has been a complete nightmare (bipolar and incompetent) so the last 10 months have been challenging to say the least.

got to work this morning and our regional was already there which was a little strange but half expected due to something that happened last week.

ABibleStudent

Hi TweetieBird, Get some sleep, take a big breath tomorrow, and start solving one problem at a time.

Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,

Robert

45

A mistake in fading 4 months ago is coming back to haunt me... HELP!!

by ILoveTTATT in

jw
friends

so today, two elders from a congregation i was in two years ago came by the house.

they said they wanted to talk to me about things that they have heard, and that they want to talk to me very quickly, as soon as possible.

perhaps before this week ends.. i don't know what to do!!

ABibleStudent

Hi ILoveTTATT, How about tell them the truth? Leave messages/texts for them that you are unavailable to meet with them when they want, do not come to your home (i.e., your parent's house) uninvited, and that you may be willing to meet with them in a couple of months.

If you do talk with them individually (not together and not recorded), tell them that you are very busy with your new job, you are under a lot of emotional pressure, and that now is not a good time to meet with them. Tell them that things should be better in a couple of months and that you will call them when you feel well enough to meet with them. If they continue to try putting pressure on you to meet with them now, just go ballastic like you are becoming emotionally unstable, and tell them that you cannot take being harassed by them and to leave you alone or you will go to the police. In other words, make them think that their actions are the last straw in your emotional break-down. It might help to do a little research about symtoms of emotional breakdowns. Even seeing a psychologist might be helpful.

Remember they are from another congregation, you have done nothing wrong, and delay meeting with elders as long as possible. By the way, did you figure out what congregation has your card yet?

Best of wishes for you and your family.

Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,

Robert