The only advice I'd give you is this. If you want to be DA'd (or don't care if you do) then answer their questions and ask your own. The elders will DA you. If you don't want to be DA'd, keep your mouth shut.
Personally, being DA'd was closure for me and I'm glad that I chose that road. But really think about which one you'll take. Good luck.
roybatty
JoinedPosts by roybatty
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4 more days till I leave the Watchtower
by Leander inin a few more days i'll be making my departure from the wts, part of me is relieved and yet another part of me is dreading the drama i'll be going through shortly.
i've been trying to prepare myself for the deluge of questions that i know are sure to come from my family.
my wife will be the first person i tell obviously and then i'll tell my mother and younger brother.
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roybatty
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HELP! NEED INPUT/EXPERIENCES
by stevieb1 ini have come to the conclusion that so many of the society's doctrines are not scriptural (both major and minor ones) that i can no longer cal it "the truth".
i still go to congregation meetings, but i can't see myself going for much longer - a bit of a crisis of conscience.
however, there seems to be one piece of seemingly logical advice from the elders that i cannot come to terms with despite what i have found.. even amongst the elders that have spoken to me there seems to be some who do not accept the entire body of doctrines of the society, yet because they see the fruitage of matthew 7:17, 20 being expressed within the congregation and not elsewhere they stay and advise me to stay too.
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roybatty
The “unity” topic, as argued by JWs is so hollow. I get so sick of hearing JWs saying that other churches are filled with wicked people. The people that fill the KH are no different. Of course, you can’t find this out for yourself because you’d be kicked out. Kind of a Catch22 situation.
Personally, my kids and I go to the local Methodist Church. I can’t say that I agree with everything they teach but am I suppose to? Didn’t the first century Christians also have disagreements over certain doctrines? But on the topic of unity, I am impressed by the Methodist. They are very organized and do a lot of community work. What do the JWs do? Wow, they go door to door. Wow, they can get a few thousand of them together and not riot. Wow, they all believe the same thing. Look at an Amway sales person and you’ll find the same thing. I suppose they’re God’s chosen people.
I’d remind JW that questions you of one thing. What other religion (Catholic, Baptist, etc.) has gone around time and time again, claiming in God’s name, that the end will come in a certain year. None but the Jehovah’s Witnesses come to mind. And if they use the argument “well, the apostles didn’t correctly understand everything” then ask them to show you where in the Bible they went around and taught as a major doctrine a false prediction or misunderstanding?
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Since leaving the WT, are you a better person?
by roybatty inim not asking from someone elses standard but instead from your own.
obviously jws would view most of us here as the worst of the worst but how do you feel about yourself now that you have left the watchtower?
what changes have you noticed about yourself?
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roybatty
Bummer badwille. Those demons will do it to you every time. But with all those years of experience, I bet they know where to find the best smack and strip joints for you.
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Since leaving the WT, are you a better person?
by roybatty inim not asking from someone elses standard but instead from your own.
obviously jws would view most of us here as the worst of the worst but how do you feel about yourself now that you have left the watchtower?
what changes have you noticed about yourself?
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roybatty
I’m not asking from someone else’s standard but instead from your own. Obviously JWs would view most of us here as the worst of the worst but how do you feel about yourself now that you have left the Watchtower? What changes have you noticed about yourself? The reason I ask this is because I have noticed two profound changes in myself and I wonder what others have noticed about themselves.
The first one I have noticed is that I now truly enjoy seeing people succeed at achieving their “worldly” goals. Upon reflection on my time spent as a JW, whenever someone achieved any amount of success at their job or running their own business, I would question their dedication to God (“why aren’t they aux. pioneering instead of spending so much time at work?” etc.). I believe this comes from all the years of Watchtower conditioning, drumming into my head that ANYTHING and EVERYTHING outside the congregation is under Satan’s control. That any goal other then those set by the Society is a sign of spiritual weakness and would only be temporary because we are in the “last days of this wicked system of things.” Now, instead of questioning peoples motives, it’s so much more enjoyable just to be happy for them. Recently I encouraged a friend of mine with her search for a new job. It was wonderful when she landed one that she thought might be out of reach. It was great to hear her describe the joy she feels working at this new place and the measure of freedom she now has earning her own money after being a stay-at-home mom for so many years.
Another change I noticed in myself is being honest and open with people regarding what I believe in and not being tolerate of those whom I refer to as “weasels.” As a JW, there were so many beliefs I had that I couldn’t or wouldn’t completely share with “worldly associates.” You know what I’m talking about, the WT’s view on who’s going to die at Armageddon, “false” religion, shunning, etc. Whenever a non-JW would ask “Hey, you guys believe that everyone who isn’t a JW will be destroyed at Armageddon, right?” Just about all JWs believe this, but I’d say something like “no, we don’t believe that, only God can read a person’s heart and He will judge them…blah…blah..” What a weasel statement! By it’s own example, I believe that the Society teaches its followers to be liars. The Reasoning book has so many “politically correct” answers and half-truths that do not truly describe what most JWs are taught. Another example is on the WT’s own web site. On it the WT distorts the truth about disfellowshipping and it’s effects on families. Obviously they do this because the Web site is viewed by the public. My belief is that JWs are taught to lie and be deceitful. Even reflecting on the sample presentations in the Kingdom Ministry JWs are taught to “trick” people. They are taught to “hide” and lie about what the WT really believe and teaches it’s followers. It has been wonderful to break this chain.
Anyway, I hope I don’t sound as if I’m tooting my own horn but I’m just wondering what changes you have noticed in yourself since leaving the WT. -
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JW opposer conversation stoppers
by Leander infor some reason on my way to the meeting last night i was thinking what if there was a reasoning book for talking with jws.
in particular a section with rebuttals for common jw thinking.
jesus disciple's made false predictions too.. jehovah has always used an organization.. the light keeps getting brighter.. who else is doing the work that we are?.
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roybatty
Name, excellent point about them not shunning Thomas. Never looked at it from that point of view before. Thanks!
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How many here are still active JWs? If not.....
by Leander inwhen did you leave?.
what prompted you to doubt/leave the organization?.
for those who are still active, do you plan on leaving soon?
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roybatty
Mister Biggs, I'm not sure that "every situation" is really all that differnt. I have read Leander's posts for a few months now and I've seen the same thing over and over (including my own exp.). You know what it comes down to? You have to make a stand, plain and simple. I agree for some it's easier than others. Heck, some like my brother don't have the balls to make a stand and I find that sad. I find it sad and "living a lie" when someone who knows that not only it isn't "the troof" but doesn't even really believe in the Bible, stand before a group of people and give talks. Maybe that's a bit rough but it's the truth. Leaner, do you feel good or bad when you're writing the talk? Do you feel good or bad when you are giving? Why continue to do something that tears you up inside? Enough is enough. I'm not saying run to the elders and say "I'm against the WT" but hey, stand up for what you believe in.
My story? In short, I was praticaly born a JW, did the pioneer thing, married a pioneer sis, became an elder at the ripe old age of 27. It was then that I saw the real double-standard and noticed that the Society is just a business. Nothing more. A business built on empty promises. I stepped down as an elder and made known my feelings. Did I pay a price? Oh yeah, DA'd and wife divorced me. But you know what? I haven't been happier in my life. Why? Because I did the right thing. I look back on I think to myself "why was I so worried what the other elders would think, they're just little men." Or "why was I so worried what my JW family would think?" If their love is so conditional, I can do without it and find those who love me for being ME and not a JW. It's powerful stuff my friend. A whole new world awaits you (as corny as that sounds, it's true.)
If you want to know more, please feel free tp e-mail me. -
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How many here are still active JWs? If not.....
by Leander inwhen did you leave?.
what prompted you to doubt/leave the organization?.
for those who are still active, do you plan on leaving soon?
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roybatty
I can't imagine anything worse then living a lie. I feel sorry for anyone who doesn't want to be a JW but feels a need to stick with just a little while longer. I don't mean this as a slam because I know what you're going through but if you can't be true to yourself, who can you be true to?
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Help with "APOSTATE"
by moman inwe call the wt the "borg" & their followers "dubs" etc., these are describtive words that (we) have given them.. my question is this: why do we refer to ourselves as "apostates"?
this is their (derogatory) name for us.. what can we call ourselves, how bout "liberators"?
, this is difficult.
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roybatty
I consider myself an "ex-Jehovah's Witness" not an apostate. But if JWs want to refer to me as an "apstate" that's fine with me. I've been called much worse, like "Jehovah's Witness."
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The collapse of the WBTS? - I don't think so.
by dmouse indo we apostates fall into the same trap as jehovahs witnesses when it comes to blinding ourselves to the truth?.
how often have i confronted jws with overwhelming evidence that the so called signs of the times are simply not being fulfilled in our day only for them to bring up some barely relevant snippet of information, which, to them, shoots my argument down in flames?
it is incredible how jws can ignore the camel of evidence that contradicts what they believe and then exult over the gnat of evidence that supports their view.
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roybatty
>>No JW in good standing will touch it with a barge pole unless it is necessary for work or ‘bona fide’ research.<<
I enjoyed your post and the warnings contained within. However, I wouldn't agree with the above statement. Maybe the older JWs can avoid the Internet but no way can the young ones. I was a JW kids when I first heard about 1975. I was curious about it, want to know what it was all about but how could I possible research such a "taboo" subject. Now a days any JW with even an ounce of curiousity can find as much information about it as they want. I like what someone else said in their post. The more the Society tells their followers not to go on the internet, the more people will be curious to find out what's on there.
I don't think that the WT will go away anytime soon, but what has happened in countries such as the UK, Holland, France and Germany is a sign of things to come. -
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Public Talks
by radar inpublic talks .
here is a list of talks that was spoon fed to the congregation in 1998.. for some reason there was no talk number 100 back then.. but can you spot which talk that is missing from the list, the one that should have never been missing from the list for jws?
it is still not on the list even today.. and do you know why?
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roybatty
Mak,
Didn't you just hate it when a speaker cancelled last minute or better yet, didn't show up and you had to cover?!