How many former JW witness current this forum (page 3)

Michelle40

I was in for about 25 years. I was disfellowshipped 9 years ago. For the first 4 years, when asleep I would frequently have dreams about JWs. The I started doing some informal research. I read both books written by Raymond Franz; I obtained some information from the Bible Research and Commentary Institute (www.brci.org). After about a month of research, I came to the realization that Jehoveah's Witnesses are not God's orgainzation. They are not the "true religion." Since then I have chosen to never go back. Getting disfellowshipped was probably the best thing that ever happened to me.

lilybird

Hi pyrojoe.. welcome to the forum.. My husband and I were raised as JWS..we made the decision to leave 20 years ago.. We officially disassociated ourselves because we just wanted to have no affliiation with them at all.. We didn't want to be D'Fd as we did nothing we felt warranted that.. We just wanted to be able to have free thinking and live our lives with out being judged by the org..

Lady Lee

A really rough guess: About 80% of the posters here were JWs. Another 10% are dating or married to JWs. And the last 10% are still active JWs - some who are on the fence, some who want to defend the WTS and some who think they can talk us into going back.

jgnat

Never joined, married in to it instead. So you could say that I will be associated with the Witnesses for some time to come. Welcome to the forum, pyro.

Rescripting_myself

Brought up since age 6 in 1969/70 by recently converted JW parents. Never trully believed most of the really important teachings of the org but then did not know what else to believe. Got baptized at age 12. At 21 confided in an "elder" I respected that I felt I did not really understand the meaning of my baptism and felt it was meaningless and a nullity for me. He gave me the the stock JW leadership answer that what I needed was more prayer, "personal study", regular meeting attendance and "field service". I did the most I could to follow his "counsel" including reading virtually every piece of literature published by WTBTS I could lay hold of. I continued with my mental struggle with the faith amidst problems with the org till age 37 when through the intenet the intellectual problems I had with WTBTS teachings were validated by what I learned in ex-JW sites and through reading "Crisis of Conscience" by Ray Franz, "Apocalypse Delayed" by Jim Penton and a lot of other literature. I made my intellectual break with WTBTS then but took no further overt action since I was already disfellowshiped for infringing on one of their many rules though I was on the verge of getting reinstated after having held three hearings with a "judicial committee" that had been constituted to deal with my "plea" for reinstatement.

Following my intellectual break with WTBTS, I did not persue reinstatement. It's over 5 years since then. I'm still dealing with the consequences of the many years I lost leading a dead end life and missing on real living including not persuing my educational dreams and aspirations, career, marriage, raising a family, generating and accumulating wealth and persuing what I thought best for myself.

How old r u pyro? If u r still in your teens or twenties, u could still create the life that u would like to live. It's not too late. It's not like it was for people like Ed Dunlap who were d'fd and forced out of bethel at 69 years of age after a lifetime wasted and little opportunity of creating a new life for themselves.

I believe there r literally thousands and thousands of ex-witnesses on this and other sites and many more who r not on any site. U therefore have a lot of company.

Best wishes in your new journey.

RM

Sunspot

I was in 30 years

left in 1999

The WTS has wrecked my family forever.

I am still glad to be out.

Peace of mind and freedom from lies is where it's at.

The WTS will pay for the ALL harm it has done.....and not by me.

There are about 1 million JWs that have been d/f in the last 20 years that did not return, so don't feel too alone.

I was told by an elder back in the mid 80's that at that time there were approximately 30,000 a year that were leaving by the back door (his words). I would think that since the Internet has now been seen by so many....that this would be a much higher number today.

Annie

Tea4Two

At one time on this board, I read it was 5 million in the last 10 years.

lola28

I left because the food and company upset my stomach.

They fed you?

lola

garybuss

Jehovah's Witnesses chose to provide unreliable information. When I asked about previously mentioned unreliable information Jehovah's Witnesses chose to provide, they chose to shun me. Then I chose to accept the fact that the Jehovah's Witnesses chose to shun me after I asked about the unreliable information that they chose to provide.

fullofdoubtnow

Hi Pyrojoe, and welcome to the board.

I started associating with the jws in 1981, aged 22, got baptised in 1983, and left last November.

How many former JW witness current this forum

Share this