I'da been 'da %#@k 'outta dere'
If You Had Internet Access Years Ago----Would You Have Gotten Out Sooner?
by minimus 58 Replies latest jw friends
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garybuss
I might have escaped from living for 18 years with a nagging feeling of impending doom. Actually Crisis of Conscience freed me from that 3 years before I got Internet access. I think the Internet connections helped the loneliness that went with the initial recovery process.
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Darth Yhwh
My heart always questioned. My father, being a computer advocate, has always had the internet since its inception. I can remember him using bulliten boards back in the 80's on his old TRS80 radio shack computer. I can remember, years ago, first searching on line regarding JW's and the WBTS and not getting too many results.
So the answer to that question for me is no. I got out as soon as I could. Legally becoming an adult had quite a bit to do with that.
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MsMcDucket
Hey, MsJones! Love the pic.
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yaddayadda
Very interesting hypothetical question. Quite possibly yes! It depends on how long ago you are talking about. 15 years ago was before the 1995 change in the 'this generation', which was the thing that completely took the wind out of my sails. And it was the NGO thing that finally acted as the tipping point for me and allowed me to walk away more or less guilt-free. If I had been surfing the internet re JW's before those 2 things it may not have been enough, although I would have to say that all the false 'prophecies' i would've learned about might have caused the wind in my sails to have left me sooner and sped up the whole leaving process.
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Madame Quixote
If I had access to an internet, I suspect it would have been hard to resist, but it's hard to say for sure if it (the internet) would have influenced me or not. I left the borg at 15 while still living at home with an extended, devout JW family, a father who was an elder, etc. I was rebellious, to be sure. Bohemian life style was more appealing to me than intellectual or biblical arguments. The arguments for atheism just made it easier to choose the worldly things over a friendless, dull, insipid, tedious, and lonely JW lifestyle. Preaching the "good news" on the weekends had to be the dullest. I guess, if I had access to the web before I got baptized, I might never have gotten dedicated in the first place, and would never have had to cope with the ramifications of getting disfellowshipped. If one can do nothing more than to minimize the number of JW baptisms with the info provided on the net, I think that's very important. People in the cult need to understand how devastating it is to be disfellowshipped after a baptism; and how easily it can happen, even if one is not "headstrong" or "rebellious." It's much harsher than not being baptized, no matter how much social pressure is put on one to "dedicate" oneself "to Jehovah." Sure, the "real Witnesses" who took the dunk can avoid you if you don't get baptized; but they also have no claim on you, on your beliefs or on your business if you don't take their silly dunk. Anyone can dedicate themselves to god in any way they wish, any ole time of the day or year. For that matter, I think I'm going to start calling myself a Witness again, just to piss some people off. (Yeah, right). Imagine what would happen if all the people disfellowshipped from every cong in the country started showing up and proclaiming that they were still devoted and dedicated to Jehovah and started preaching door-to-door, right behind the "real" Witnesses! Imagine that! That would put a serious damper on their so-called ministry and on their disfellowshipping practices. I think it would be great to start going door-to-door with that article on the tort of misrepresentation. And, by the way, it's a free country. Who can prevent it? If they can go knocking on doors, so can the apostates, LOL!
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Purza
Nope. I had already faded when a therapist told me to look up ex-jw groups on the interent. I recoiled in horror just thinking about it. Back then, fear would have held me back.
Purza
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Aiesha Harley
I only had the guts to Google on Jehovah's Witnesses a couple of weeks ago. I'd been told there were books written by ex-witnesses in the past but didn't feel ready to start delving into them - guess I was afraid of what i'd find out and that it would bring all the bad memories back again.
I'd left the godsquad fourteen years ago on Boxing Day just gone, fortunately one of my friends took me under her wing and even though i was still living at home for the following two years she was my rock. That said, if i'd been able to talk to you guys back then i would have done it sooner and have had the ammunition and strength to keep them at bay instead of having my parents send people up to my room to try and reel me back in !
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Sunspot
YES!
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Gretchen956
Early on I would have been afraid of it, but I think if I had actually come on here I would have been shocked into opening my eyes sooner.
Sherry