Returning to "the truth" after DAing

by exwitless 19 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  exwitless

  No, I'm not returning to da troof, in case I scared anyone.

  But a recent thread got me thinking about this: I wonder how many people who DA actually return and get reinstated, versus how many who were DF'd get reinstated. You'd think if you DA'd, there's no way you'd go back. They would have already calculated the consequences (i.e. losing contact with family, etc.) before DA'ing.

  It would make more sense if you were DF'd because heaven forbid you weren't perfect, and wanted to submit yourself for more torture. Does anyone know of others who DA'd and returned to the dubs? I wonder what it would take for someone to get talked back into returning from their DA-ness.
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  IP_SEC

  Da for apostacy? Very few.

  Some used to DA just because they didnt want to be called DF'd. I imagine those go back at a rate just under DF'd people.
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  Sassy

  I wonder though if it is harder for those who DA'd to be allowed back in...
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  exwitless

  Just a side thought-is DAing considered the all-mysterious "Unforgivable Sin"? And if so, that should mean one's DA status is permanent and unforgivable, therefore they shouldn't be accepted back in.

  I don't know though; I'm sure the "Unforgivable Sin" is just another vague scare tactic among the dubs to keep everyone silent and cooperative. I never understood the "Unforgivable Sin" concept. I was always told "If you're worried about committing it, then you probably won't", implying that it's a willful sin. Any thoughts?
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  Little Drummer Boy

  I've been thinking about going back. Maybe Jehovah will forgive me?
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  greendawn

  Perhaps they go back because they finally couldn't do without their family members. They miscalculated in thinking they could live without them. Otherwise why go back to being a JW drone in a loveless society?
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  exwitless

  I've been thinking about going back. Maybe Jehovah will forgive me?

  Someone please slap some sense into Little Drummer Boy. He's gone off the deep end.
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  Little Drummer Boy

  No, no, really. I have a hole in my heart because I can no longer give praise to my Grand Creator alongside my Brothers and Sisters in the Truth. My life is so vacant and empty since I left. I have no purpose anymore. Without the privilege of praising our Great God Jehovah, what use am I?

  How can I have fallen so low as to turn my back on Jehovah? How did I come to the point where I count his blessings as nothing?

  If only he would forgive me and take me back.
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  poppers

  My understanding of the "unforgiveable sin" is this (according to pastor Arnold Murray): when you are brought before the anti-Christ and you deny allowing the Holy Spirit to speak through you. That's just his take on it; I'm sure there are many others, but here's one more:
  
  "God has given us all free will and whether we accept Jesus Christ is eventually left up to us. But the Holy Spirit spends your entire life trying to bring Jesus Christ into your life, and if you die still rejecting his efforts, then you have committed the unforgivable sin. If you leave this world still having a unrepentant heart, then you have committed the unforgivable sin. And God will not want those in heaven with him who have been so contemptuous and rebellious" .... from http://members.tripod.com/~robertwells/unforgivable.html
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  ozziepost

  G'day exwitless:

  Congrats on a thought-provoking topic!

  FWIW I've always maintained that there's a heap of difference between those who are expelled because they were "found out" and those who left because they'd found the Borg was not "Da Troof". The way I see it, the person DFed is always liable to be taken back into the fold of the congregation and accepted as "a repentant sinner" (aren't they all?) whereas the person who DA has made that deliberate course which could only be changed by a complete reversal of conviction accompanied by a "I was so terribly wrong" confession. Even then, I doubt the JC would readily accept that and even if allowed back in, I'm sure their life would be hell as they live daily under watchful eyes and constatntly hear hushed whispers.

  Of course, we can easily think of exceptions. For example, a person DF for say, adultery, may later be just as convinced about the real nature of the Borg as is the person who DA; in other words, we can't generalise.

  I think it safe to say though that a person DA for the 'right reasons' will never be duped into going back.

  The "unforgivable sin" ? Like you say, another in the arsenal of the Borg's scare tactics. You may find it interesting to know that the expression "unforgivable sin" is not found in the Bible (not even the NWT !) . What is there is this recorded teaching of Jesus:

  "Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in this age to come" - Matt. 12:32 (NIV) In the context, this is referring to attributing the source of Jesus' miracles being Satan rather than the Holy Spirit. Much has been written about what Jesus may have meant but the WTS have taken this uncertainty by adding a certain 'mysticism' to it that has the effect of being a controlling tool.