I also remember the change in people's mentality after 1975. They managed to convince themselves that it all 'never happened' and what ever did happen had been the fault of 'others' who dared to speculate, but certainly NOT the bOrg! Crazy!!!!
Jehovah`s Witness Memory Loss.....BrainWashed or Selective Memory
by OUTLAW 21 Replies latest jw friends
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fullofdoubtnow
When they publish a new thought, or even completely change a doctrine, the wts seems to have the power to introduce collective amnesia amongst its' followers. When I first became interested around 1980/81, no one had any clear memory of 1975, they all "knew" that the wts never said armageddon was going to be then, it was just a few brothers reading things that weren't there.
I had the same amnesia after the generation change, I just accepted the new light and never gave the old a thought. I guess its the way they keep pushing it in their publications, there is so much required reading as a jw most people don't get much time to read the older publications, and if you never read the old light, you just forget you ever believed it eventually.
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jaguarbass
If a person allows himself to be brainwashed or have selective memory, then he doesnt have to be responsible for his life. The call themselves sheep. Sheep are very stupid. Its better to be a pig or a dog or a wolf, or a dolphin.
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restrangled
I have an uncle who moved to a small town in Wisconsin, leaving a good job and nice home in Illionis during the early '70's because of 1975. To this day he denies this was his reason, but he professed otherwise to family members at that time. He denies the society ever said a thing about 1975.
He is 76. His sister, my mother aged 73 does not deny the '75 thing and gets quite furious when present elders start squawking that it was never mentioned.
On the other hand, she being raised a witness by her mother, brought up on Russell's and Rutherfords rantings, even owning the books at this point, denied that pyramids etc., were part of the picture when confronted by my husband.
When he made her pull out the books and showed her she started laughing and said pay no attention to what the Society puts into print.
So what is that? Denial, Brain Washing or Selective memory, ...... is there another catagory available?....you tell me.
r.
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garybuss
As a Witness I was trained to accept a certain dishonesty as "truth". An example was the way we were instructed to present the Watch Tower Publishing Corporation produced literature at stranger's doors as "non-denominational".
Another dishonest thing the Society trained me to do was introduce myself as a Bible student. They specifically told me not to introduce myself as a "Jehovah's Witness".
Well, I wasn't a Bible Student, and my literature WAS denominational. The first two things most people at their door heard from me, a visiting Jehovah's Witness were lies.
So we could present two absolute lies at every door and claim only we had the "truth". That was dishonesty and trickery and it was all done on purpose with coaching. I don't think Jehovah's Witnesses are brainwashed, I think they're crooked. The Kingdom was set up in such a way that I had to lie to get in and lie to produce the life saving literature placements. I was going to lie my way to salvation. -
BrentR
My enlightenment started happening when I was in my grandma's basement and found some publications from the early fifties. Just some quick casual reading and I had to check that this was indeed a WTS book. The info was so completely alien to what I knew at the time (mid 80's) that I started wondering how much is going to change in the next few decades?
That was the straw that started to break my camel back. After that I had more and more suspicions.
I say they use brainwashing without any doubt. Thier own publications advocate "inculcating" the info and to start with kids at a very young age. Making sure that kids have no iddle time to be distracted by worldly influences.
I have a friend that is a psychologist and out of curiosity I started asking her about a hypthetical religion without betraying which one. She said that is brainwashing without any doubt. Granted she is only one of many in her profession but I am convinced especially since I was born into it.
If it is not brainwashing then why it is so very hard to leave them?
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choosing life
They are definately brain washed. How else could they keep changing "the truth" and have so many intelligent people just keep going along with it? When they changed the generation doctrine, I asked a so called annointed sister about it and she said they didn't change anything, they just clarified it. About as clear as mud in my mind. And yes they did change it.
When I went from just having doubts to realizing the whole thing was a sham, I felt as if I had awakened from a bad dream. I couldn't believe I had not seen it for what it was all along. Now they all seem like robots saying the same things and never thinking for themselves.
That, my friend is brain washing.
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fokyc
How's this for selective memory/amnesia or what:
10th August 2006. A letter written by a congregational secretary to the Branch office said,
"XXXXX is one of Jehovah's Witnesses..."
11th August 2006. In a meeting with me said,
"XXXXX is
NOT a Jehovah's Witness"
same elder, different story in 24 hours!
of course he didn't expect me to get a copy of the letter!!
fokyc
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TopHat
I was so bored at the meetings in the last years....I sat there and day dreamed....
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belbab
N.H. Knorr, told our Gilead class in 1960 that we didn't need to keep any publications older than eight years.
Today that would mean no need to keep any publications published before 1998/99.
belbab