by BEROEAN 141 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Smellsgood,
Background? Where to start? Grew up on the "bad side" of town. Gang. Attempted murder. Mexico. Back Cross border with future wife. Married in Canada. Hustled. College. Kids. Hustled. Money. Seperated. Study. Truth. Family United. Baptized 10+.
Beroean, if you and your family are truly happy, that's good. But since you mentioned psychobabble I can't resist giving you a little of my own (makes me feel important). First, not everyone without religion does drugs, has crazy sex, parties all the time. Some never do. Maybe some jw's need the religion to keep control of themselves. I've noticed that some jw's who were out for a while were total animals while out in the world, then they get all holy when they go back. Point # 2, remember that line " I think she does protest too much". Are you really sure you want to raise your kids as jw's? Maybe all this writing here is to find something to reassure to yourself that it's the right decision. Is there a little denial involved? Hey, think I can get 150. per hour for this? Since yours was unsolicted, Beroean, I'll comp you this time. flipper
I always wondered what I would have done if I had become an Atheist. A life without wondering if there's a "higher authority" to answer to. Chilling
I hate to break it to you BORING but your "higher authority" is that massive ego you lay out to cover up the deep insecurities that are a result of being a "POSER".
It rules you.
You have a personal relationship with Jehovah? Yet you thumb your nose at his "Slave"?
Flip Mode,
I am as sane as a cat stuffed in a washing machine. I'll pass on the couch session. My wife and I have done a wonderful job with or kids. As mentioned in previous posts, they're pretty much adults now. We didn't force any "The world is ending tomorrow" nonsense down their throats. They have fulfilling lives. And they made a dedication when they wanted to. We've always told our kids that they stand on their own merit. If they decided they didn't want to be in the Org. no sweat off my brow. We wouldn't walk aroud the Kingdom Hall with some look of shame. *******Tangent******* It's so easy to pick out the hypocritical parents. All of their kids left the truth, yet they ask, "when is your child going to get baptized?" as if to imply they should have done so by now. Laughable. ******Back*****
Again, just as I was taught, Jehovah wants a "cheerful giver" a person that does things because they love Jehovah, not because some dope in the congregation thinks they should.
I'm content. I don't need a "reason" to leave if I deemed it so. Again, I'm the only one in my entire family that's in the Truth. They would stop avoiding me and throw me a "welcome back into the world!" party. Shoot off some MAC 11's and twist up.
Beroean-
We've already done our research- that's why we left...
I'm glad you've found peace within the society. We all wish you all the best.
I left in 1975 at 17 years old after being raised JW. I realized THEN, at that age, that the numbers just didn't add up. Also, there are a million god myths out there- who's to say the bible isn't just another? In fact, the bible is just a group of writings from different MEN, written at different times, and compiled as the true word of god by a bunch of power hungry good old boys in the middle ages. I have no faith in a book compiled and translated by MEN as the word of god. Besides that, there is scientific evidence that many events as described in the bible never happened. If I can't believe it all, I can't believe in any of it. As well as the fact that, as a woman, I had no future except as mother and housekeeper within the society.
And I must agree that you're taking a confrontational position on this topic.
Beroean, In your original post on this thread, you asked if we ex-JW's were gullible or serpent-like. These two choices are both negative. Look up "serpent" -- you'll find 2 current meanings -- "Devil" or "treacherous person". You didn't ask if we were "cautious as a serpent" (like Jesus was quoted as saying).
My original post was to those who were in the Org. with that starry eyed, "Off to see the Wizard" disposition. The question is if they still have that optimistic view of things or have they become jaded. So guarded and protective of their feelings that they move with the caution of a serpent.
Then you should have asked it that way.
No hidden agenda. No pscho-babble. Just a simple question. Of course, seeking to see if I have some ulterior motive really does answer the question, doesn't it? I don't blame you or anyone else for being "suspicious". For me, I've always been that way. I've never given that much trust to anyone so as to get duped that badly!
I've been on this board almost since its inception, and have seen some come on here and tell us to "get over it" or some other such idea. To more successfully engage people on this board, don't talk down to us.
If the Org. told everyone to sell their belongings because Jehovah said so, I'd still be rich. I'd still own my houses, cars, business, stocks, and life would be "business as usual".
Well good for you that you didn't buy in to everything the WT Society has spouted about the evils of materialism. I couldn't stand it when elders who had more than enough and were successful in business stood up on stage and talked about being "content with just the necessities of life".
It's unfortunate what happened to so many people in the Org. during it's "infancy" and "teen age" stages. I remember asking a girl that went to my school why she always wore skirts. She said it was against her religion to wear blue jeans. I recall a mom yelling at a classmate of mine because we were playing fast pitch. The look on his face was etched in my brain.
Did this "skirt-wearing girl" attend the Kingdom Hall? A lot of JW girls I knew wore jeans. The JW religion makes many people think "Jehovah is always watching", "you might get caught". So your mom's creation of unreasonable playtime rules is not unusual in JW-land, at least not when I was growing up.
I can't understand how that happened. Of course, we can't understand how Jim Jones killed so many people, Adolf Hitler rose to power, and Billy Graham! Lol!
It isn't hard to understand, IMHO. People who want others to make decisions for them will always find willing leaders. When those leaders gain absolute power over people, they defend it - often violently. The three people you mentioned here all had that strange quality of charisma that led people to follow them. JW's don't follow any one leader, but I have seen how they react around members of the Governing Body. It's almost worshipful. And that adoration is very undeserved - in their case and in the cases you mentioned.
The entire time I studied the Bible, my BSC etched in my brain, "We do not follow any man, we follow Jehovah. If it isn't found in the Bible, it goes against what God teaches.".
Your Bible Study Conductor was feeding you typical JW feel-good stuff. Have you examined the Jehovah of the Hebrew Scriptures, the violent, blood-thirsty god of war? Dashing children to pieces against rocks, and let not your heart feel sorry? Maybe JW's really do follow him -- delighting in the upcoming death of 99.9% of humanity who do not listen to Jehovah's "faithful and discreet slave" whose wisdom is expressed only through the pages of WT literature.
I guess more than anything, I would encourage everyone to ask questions. Get a second opinion. Do research. Listen to your instincts!
I've done that. That's why I will never return to Jehovah's Witnesses. My instincts tell me they are leading people astray, and are just one more man-made religion among many -- not the worst in the world, but certainly not my cup of tea.
As the study became more "enlightening" I took it seriously. I started appreciating who Jehovah is, His qualities, attributes, and His love. I culitivated a personal relationship with Him first and found like-minded individuals in the Org.
You post this but then state that you do not see yourself being led by the nose by the Org.
Well, there were different types of people in the KHall when I went. My family, however, were the ones who were sincere. We did not put our own interests first. We took as gospel all the WTS writings in every publication. We did NOT go to churches for any reason. We did NOT stay home from field service. We tried diligently to do ALL that was asked of us. We always went when the CO came, and gave money till it hurt.
Why is that so unusual? Why do you make out ones who actually did all the things expected as the gullible ones? Don't you realize that the WTS says that anything else is less than whole-souled service and could lead to death at the big A? You describe yourself as one who my elder husband would have looked on as a less than desirable publisher in the congregation. One that bent the rules that were not meant to be bent in any way.
It sounds to me like you want to have things YOUR OWN WAY instead of the way directed by the WTS but think that according to their rules, you are OK. You are not. Why not tell them you won't be led by the nose, but instead you will come to sites on the internet such as this one. Then we'll see whose rules you will play by.
This guy's so obviously a troll it isn't funny. Just tryin' to push people's buttons.
Quandry,
If i'm a less than desirable publisher, Jehovah and the Org. have a funny way of showing it; seeing that i've been an Elder for the past 5 years and MS before that. As I mentioned in other posts, I don't miss work to go out in service with the CO., I don't contribute money, ****Tangent**** That was the one thing I hated about the baptist church. Tithing! God created me, but he needs my money more than I do? Bunch of crap. When I became a witness, voluntary offerings meant just that. No letter, plea, sob story was going to compel me to donate money.*****
Just maybe, the Org. is made up of imperfect individuals that will control and manipulate others if given the chance. I remember being at a meeting early on and a Brother (from the platform) announced I would head the congregational cleaning assignment without asking me. Before he was done, I raised my hand to interrupt him and when he stopped, I shouted out, he was misinformed because nobody had asked me and I couldn't do it. To cover his mistake, he volunteered on the spot. And guess what? I wasn't dissed, marked, ostracized, or removed.
Again, i'm not here saying the Org. is perfect. Far from it. But, as an Elder I see gullible "sheep" being taken advantage of by others often. They come crying to me asking if I can do anything. Sure. Let's read Proverbs 14:15, Job 34:3, 1 Thess. 5:21. So many are untrusting when it comes to "worldly" individuals, but let their guard down when they walk through the KH doors. Didn't Jesus say there would be wolves dressed in sheeps clothing?
Please, please, please......I am not talking down to anyone here and i'm sorry if I come across that way. I get so angry when adults inside or outside the Org. are mad that other adults took advantage of them. I say adults because those of you that were kids in the truth are innocent. Personally, I wish I could take a baseball bat to your parents and whack some sense into them. It's their idiocy and their offenders that gives JDubs a bad name.
Jehovah said he would take the foolish things of the world to put the wise things to shame. Some of the foolish idiots in the Org. are too stupid to get out of their own way. Imagine what they'd do if the Org. wasn't around?!!! ******Tangent***** quick story. Recently there was a couple that allowed their daughter to go on vacation with a family that had just moved to the local cong. No forwarded publisher record cards, no elder body contact, nada! By the time the daughter came back ,the damage was nearly irreversible. The vacationing parents were coke addicts. Profanity, drug dealing, fighting, and the father making passes at the girl when he was "high" was enough to send that poor little girl over the edge. Her parents reasoning? "How would we have known? They're in the Truth."!!!!!!!! I could have given a roundhouse kick to the side of both of their heads!!!! ******Back*****
Quarterly meetings, CO meetings, DO meetings, Bethel visits. I treat each person I meet like a "good for nothing slave". When we went to Patterson, there was some old brother in a wheelchair about to get on the elevator. Other visitors were like "Wow! He's on the writing committee." It was like they were in awe of him or something. I walked up to him and started messing with him, "How many miles to the gallon does that thing get? What's in the basket? Campbell's soup? I thought everything is made from scratch around here?" ect.. He laughed and joked some more about the food, got on the elevator and left. No big deal. I don't care who you are. I don't get starry eyed. Unless Halle Berry walked in the room! Lol! She would definitely get me sweaty and nervous! Yowza!
