COGNAC- It clicked with me over 4 years ago when I saw people , including myself being treated unjustly by the elders. It drove me nuts that they'd give their personal opinions as counsel to me and others - shooting advice off the hip , so to speak , like a shotgun shooting bullets stray- not caring where they hit , or who gets hurt from it ! Didn't counsel you from the Bible - just their damned opinions.
The final nail in the coffin for me was after leaving the witnesses I found out that victims of child abuse were disfellowshipped for reporting offending elders to the police and authorities ! It really helped me to see that men run this organization - not God. Especially when no discipline was given to elders who unjustly kicked victims out of the organization ! It's incredibly sick and twisted. Don't even get me started - I'll keep you here all day ! Peace out, Mr. Flipper
What was it that "clicked" w/ you that this wasn't the "true religion"?
by cognac 47 Replies latest jw friends
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flipper
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oompa
The generation thing 1995 pissed me off, as did so many other manly interpretations. But realizing any religion that would actually CHANGE their Bible to make it say what THEY wanted, could not be trusted. I know I used to bust the Mormans for having their own book, and for doing so and going beyond the Bible, I called them a CULT and damn if we dont too...the NWT........................................oompa
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Spook
For me it was the fact that the JW teaching for the flood and against evolution of any kind were logically impossible to coexist when you scratch beneath the surface. Belief that all animal species we see today came from a limited amount of species at the flood requires a level of saltationary evolution beyond what science claims as a gradual process. The same applies to the belief that all animals ate plants 6000 years ago. 3
JW credit fully collapsed when researching this uncovered that JW's once taught a more reasonable stance of theistic evolution / gradual creation in their often touted photo drama of creation. They gave up that stance for no good reason, forgot it and hid they taught it, started plagiarising fundamentalists (stealing their ideas without quotation) and demonizing reasonable scientists and ultimately condemned other reasonable, moderate, accomodating christians for accepting that evolution was compatible with the bible.
Condemning someone for believing something you once taught without admitting that you taught it AND explaining why you now teach differently is inescapably hypocritical and undefensible.
For me, biblical literalism was gone. Then the validity of christianity as a whole, then the arguments of theism in general. But I was gone before then from the congregation.
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loosie
the blood issue was the first thing. I mean if you can take all the fractions you can have anything.
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Twitch
It was a rather gradual progression of things punctuated by epiphany and decisive choices at some points.
I'd say the biggest thing was that I could no longer wrap my mind around how a "loving" god would kill over 99% of his children just to prove a point. I looked around and saw a lot of people who choose not to be religious but who were still decent people and just as "worthy" of god's love as any other. Kinda whacked if you ask me.
That and I began to see a lot of hypocrisy. But you can find that anywhere really,.....lol
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Olin Moyles Ghost
For me, it was the response put out by the Society's PR department following the settlement of the child sex abuse cases in 2007. I'm sure most of you have seen it; for those that have not, it is here: http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/Sections/TVNews/Nightly%20News/2007/11-Nov/statement.pdf
The deception in that statement appalled me. In particular, the Society seemed to be minimizing the problem of child sex abuse in the congregations by only mentioning *civil* lawsuits (as opposed to criminal charges) against *elders,* not MS, pioneers, and the like. Child sex abuse is a *criminal* matter, and most victims don't even report the crime to the police, and of those that do, most don't file civil lawsuits. Further, as a lifelong JW, I realize that the culture of not wanting to "drag Jehovah's name through the mud" and fear of being DF'd for slander or immorality has silenced many victims. Thus, the Society was taking advantage of the results of its explicit and/or implicit policies to make itself look good. This is not what "true religion" does.
I could not fathom how God's One True Organization could be so coldly and calculatingly deceptive. And, of course, the press release had its intended effect. The few witnesses that even know about the settlements use the press release and the October 2007 Awake to reassure themselves that the Society and Organization are "clean." -
GoddessRachel
- Their unchristian, unbiblical "disfellowshipping" practices is what pushed me to start really questioning it.
- The hypocrisy of it all, which is evident in every congregation if you open your eyes. The exceptions are the honest ones, not the other way around, like JW's will have you believe.
- My inability to explain and understand things such as Daniel's prophecy and how it pertains to JW's. I have always done well in school and I consider myself smart. They said it was because God only revealed it to his true people, but the truth is that it doesn't make any sense, not the way the JW's apply it. So, in a nutshell, false prophecy, I guess.
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tank
Millions now living will never die!! ( The title of the book is a Lie!!! ) This generation ( I predicted they would change that and they did) Vaccinations were once banned - Idiots Miracle wheat - Scam Bottom Line: Man made religion started by Charles Taze Russell
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Samuel Thorsen
The generation thing in 1995 made the snowball start rolling. I read it in a worldly paper before i read it in WT. It WT they called they called the new understanding an "ADJUSTMENT" . A very very unhonest name for a change of paradigma.
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Princess Daisy Boo
As a little kid I used to wonder just how it was that JW's knew without a doubt that they were the only true religion - I distinctly remember asking my mom and I dont really remember what she said but she got so mad at me. This question was always at the back of my mind me and I really resented being a Witness kid.
When I got older, I resented the fact that my parents didn't make provision for me to go to varsity after school. I went through the motions, but I can honestly say that my heart was never in it.
When I got to age 18 or 19, I really started to fade - I guess they would say bad association and all that. Having met a wonderful guy and fallen in love and he not being accepted by my family and friends was also a catalyst. At that point, I just left... I moved out of home and never went back to a meeting.
10 years later, I discovered JWD and realised that my childish question was not a stupid one and I wasn't alone...