As someone who almost got sucked into the JW's, but never joined,I was wondering how did those of you here that were or are JW's respond to people who labeled you as a cult? Did you view them as ignorant or did it make you feel more justified in what you followed because it was "persecution"? Did you even listen to the arguments of people who viewed you as a cult member as to why they thought of you as such?
The "Cult" word
by kojo 11 Replies latest jw friends
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Warlock
I looked up "Cult" in the dictionary and would respond with this. " If I'm in a cult, then by definition, so are you". I only used it a few times, but it was so long ago, that I forgot their response.
Warlock
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fullofdoubtnow
Hi kojo, and welcome to the board.
When I was a jw, I would never acknowledge I was in a cult, I was convinced it was the truth.
Now I have left the jws, I know for sure it's a cult.
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RubaDub
It sort of confuses me here when someone mentions the "C" word.
Rub a Dub
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M.J.
I think the stereotype of a "cult" is quite extreme in the minds of most people, including witnesses. So for the most part they laugh it off. But the thing is that members of ANY cult would laugh off the suggestion that they're in a cult.
BTW, if I may ask, what made you change your mind about joining the JWs?
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Lady Lee
Most of the info I had about cults was the Jim Jones tragedy. Cults forced people to live in communes. JWs didn't live in communes therefore JWs were not in a cult.
Seemed perfectly reasonable to me....
at the time
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free2beme
I did like most good little Witnesses and used the reasoning provided by the society to tell me that I was not in a cult. Which is, of course, a sign of being in a cult. Yet, it took leaving to see that and now I say, "I was in a CULT!" Yet, I also consider several religions cults now; Mormons, Church of Scientology, etc.
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Honesty
"How can JW's be a cult when Jesus is our leader?"
That was before I found out He is the leader for only 144,000.
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Darth Yhwh
I always shrugged it off as nonscence. I always felt that us JDubs were pretty normal and that cult members were really waked out brainwashed type people. Looking back I can say I was young and truely nieve.
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jwfacts
Witnesses hate the C word. I said it my father once and he flipped, totally destroyed the conversation. Mind Control doesn't go down much better. High Control group I find the most acceptable.
Another approach I tried with dad was to ask "Do you think Mormons are a cult?" except he didnt answer as he knew where I was going with the question. Anyway, I then went on describing how the JWs and Mormons use very similar methods of control.