If You Were Wrong About The JWs, Maybe Your Current Beliefs Aren't True

by serotonin_wraith 75 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  exwitless

  Excellent point, serotonin! I have often expressed similar sentiments about religious beliefs status-post JW.

  When I was a "good" and "strong" dub, I felt I knew in my heart that I was doing the right thing, what God wanted me to do, and that he was pleased with the sacrifices I made to do it. I was infinitely sure of it. But now, my faith in faith has crumbled. I'm not looking to fill that "void" anytime soon. I'm not a Christian, I'm not agnostic, I'm not an atheist. I'm just exwitless, plain and simple, and kinda like it that way.
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  avishai

  I like the whole film "Dogma" quote on belief. Quick paraphrase, beliefs=bad, ideas=good.
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  OnTheWayOut

  I don't follow any religion and I don't believe in any god.

  While I fully agree with what you said, I leave room to be wrong about my current beliefs.
  I am confident that the God of the Bible doesn't exist, the Bible is Man's creation.
  But there is so much I have no idea about. There may be a "higher power" that had
  something to do with creating life, the universe, and everything. There may be several
  "higher powers" that are involved. They may care or not.

  I doubt that any of that is true. I now live as if there is a purpose to life, but I determine what
  that purpose is. My grandfather put his trust in Nature, not as a god, but as the thing
  of beauty to respect and take care of.

  I don't 100% dismiss the idea that Christianity or some other belief system is correct.
  I just know that any supposed "God" would forgive me for not spending my life worshipping
  him after I tried, but was tricked into a mind-control cult.
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  Maddie

  Being a believing JW and then finding out it is a cult has left me doubting my own judgement. I am wary of getting taken in again and making the same mistake as I did when becoming a JW. There is a difference in having a belief without fear of recrimination if that belief changes though.

  Maddie
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  steve2

  Yes, once bitten, twice shy.

  I think there's nothing wrong with having beliefs (and, in fact, all people have them even if they don't dressed up their beliefs in religious language).

  There's an old saying that goes something like,

  " Applaud the person who is searching for the truth

  But beware the person who claims to have found it"

  The person who is searcing for truth is presumably open-minded, but the person who stops searching and claims to have found it, becomes closed minded. That's when the real trouble begins!
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  yesidid

  I don't follow any religion and I don't believe in any god. How do I know I'm right to dismiss them so easily? I see no reason at all to believe in a god. I dismiss the god idea the same way I dismiss fairies, monsters and other mythological creatures. I dismiss the god of the Bible the same way Christians dismiss every other god without a second thought. I think I'm being consistent, where others aren't.

  I magine you have also left open the possibility that you could be wrong about all the above.

  yesidid
• 

  serotonin_wraith

  Chalam,

  I can't speak for anyone else, but I've never believed in any other god apart from the god of the Jehovah's Witnesses, when I was too young to know any different. These mainstream Christian beliefs have always looked silly to me, because I wasn't indoctrinated to believe in them. I can't just look at select scriptures from the book and see that as God speaking to me, same as you couldn't see Allah speaking to you from the words of the Koran.

  OnTheWayOut,

  I leave room to be wrong too. If someone ever gave me a good reason to believe in a god, I would. I can't be dishonest with myself. So far though, the 'reasons' are complete rubbish, and easily debunked. I don't need or want there to be a god, but as with everything, I try to be open. When you're unwilling to question, that's when you're trapped.

  Maddie (and another poster who mentioned this, can't check right now),

  For me, what happens in my social structure as a result of my changing beliefs isn't as important as believing reality. I want to be as close to reality as possible. If I was fooling myself, yet no one in my circle of friends was going to expel me, I'd still be concerned about fooling myself. I find it more important to be honest with myself than look for favour amongst others.
• 

  moshe

  I ran into trouble when I applied the same critical thinking that got me out of JW's to organized religion. One former Jw who is now a minister refuses to return my emails/phone calls. I guess he still remembers our last conversation. If I was not for his orthodox dogma, then I became an opposer to it.
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  Chalam

  Hi JoinThe Dots,
  Forgive the tone of the text here, Romans 1 is pretty heavy but I think it explains something clearly.
  
  Romans 1:20 (New International Version)
  For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
  
  David puts it a bit more poetically!
  
  Psalm 19 (New International Version)
  
  For the director of music. A psalm of David.
  
  1 The heavens declare the glory of God;
  the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
  2 Day after day they pour forth speech;
  night after night they display knowledge.
  
  3 There is no speech or language
  where their voice is not heard. [a]
  
  4 Their voice [b] goes out into all the earth,
  their words to the ends of the world.
  In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun,
  
  5 which is like a bridegroom coming forth from his pavilion,
  like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
  
  6 It rises at one end of the heavens
  and makes its circuit to the other;
  nothing is hidden from its heat.
  
  So if you want to know God you don't even need the Bible (though I wouldn't be without it)!
  
  All you have to do is gaze at the stars, the awesomeness of the magnitude of the universe right down to its creative and intricate details and you will see God's invisible qualities. Call out to Him and He will speak to you. Maybe not as you might expect but keep listening and seeking and you will hear.
  
  All the best,
  Stephen
• 

  steve2

  Some ex-JWs appear to have swapped one set of intolerant teachings for another. Quoting scripture, chapter and verse, but now arguing a different view. Oh dear! A case of out of the frying pan and into the fire.