Something I learned from being born-in (page 2)

dinah

BFD,

It turned out beautiful!!!

I've been meaning to pm you about this but.......You were raised thinking God would kill you Dad for not attending meetings. I remember you posting that.

Is that not the most f'd up thing ever to tell a child??!! Praise the Lord (yes I still believe just not like WT told me too) that my Dad is still here and he helped me and hubby paint. We've enjoyed the last two days. Just think I would have never believed I'd still be here, and have my UBM father still hanging in here with me.

When I think of everything they took from me, I hate that I was 30 years old before I appreciated my Dad. That was just evil. No he didn't knock on doors, was raised Baptist. Good man? Yeah, he is. I wish we would have been closer when I was young instead of writing him off as dead already.

Thank God, we get to make up for some lost time.

Tired of the Hypocrisy

I rejected being an elder over and over because I was very non-judgemental and still am

oompa, the more I read your posts the more I am being convinced that you and I are of a kind.

In respnse to the post, I feel the same way. I have become more understanding of people too. I have always been making an effort to be kind and understanding even to "worldly people". Maybe that is why I never truly fit in with the jw's

Namaste

What a good point you make Dinah, something I feel too although I find it difficult to explain, especially to my husband.

He was never a JW, raised sorta kinda catholic, branched off into doing his own interpetation thing, researched Judiasm and Kaballah and a bunch of other stuff before he ever met me, then decided he was a Christian and that was it. He thought he was getting this nice very conservative christian female when we met.....whoops!

Yes, I was that way when we met and married, but things kind of changed after a few years and my brain started functioning after being away from JW's for a long enough period of time.

These days I find myself represented very much by that COEXIST bumper sticker. Believe what you want and feel drawn to and I won't bug you or try to change your mind about it!

My fiercely conservative Republican husband just shakes his head at me and calls me a "moderate" when he wants to get my dander up. I'm okay with that and wear that label with pride. I've tried to explain to him that when you come from such a controlled environment where, for people like me, you were told you had all the answers and to not think beyond them the idea of having freedom of thought is so precious and I wouldn't want to do anything to take that away from someone else.

dinah

Maybe that's why more kind and understanding people aren't elders. They would actually help instead of towing the party line.

Everybody needs mentors. I applaud everyone who has ever been an elder, a MS, who just couldn't stomach the hipocrisy.

Tefferin Laux

Hallo all! I can't see that there's a specific new member forum so I guess I will just jump right in.

I wasn't born in but my mother converted when I was two, and it took me til about 14 to get out. So I have far too much time invested in having been constantly judged and judging. I have always liked non-JW's better than the JW's so it wasn't a real problem for me socially getting out. I do enjoy talking to other ex-JW's though because as you all say, we definitely have a shared experience.

It is difficult to explain to my other friends that I was raised honestly believing I would not live past about 22 so there was no point in trying to achieve my goals and ambitions. It's difficult to explain that I was raised believing I was a bad person who was not going to have an afterlife no matter what I did. Only ex-JW's know what fun the doomsday experience is.

Nowadays, I look forward to my 80th birthday, far far into the future. It's a nice change :)

Layla33

I totally agree. Being "born in" has such a different aspect to it because you didn't exactly choose to be in that religion and it was so indoctrinated from birth that it brings with it, a lot of unique challenges. I also believe that when you start to question something that was so inbred in your thought process that it is like being reborn and it is so refreshing. It's hard to explain to someone who may never have had that kind of experience.

Quandry

Welcome Tefferin Laux

ibme

Welcome Tefferin Laux.

Tefferin Laux, Let me say, “enjoyed your blog EDUCATION DESTROYS CULTS”

Me would like to add a thought.

In a paragraph starting with -- If anyone comes knocking on your door. You state,

“I wish I was allowed to talk to you, but I’ve been told I’m an apostate”.

Tefferin Laux me believes it would be better to say, “I wish that you were allowed to talk to me, but the WBTS has said that I am an apostate and I respect your rights not to speak”.

Why does me say this?

The WBTS has no control over non members (apostates, etc.). Non members can speak to anyone they wish. However, WBTS members are forbidden to speak to apostates or disfellowshipped/disassociated.

By making this statement in this matter one lets the WBTS member(s) or any other organization know that you are not hostile. That you are a peaceful person, etc. All hostility is placed on the other person.

Sometimes

Me thinkin’ me talken’ too much.

Thanks

Maddie

I wasn't born into the JW's but I can understand how being so can make you detached from people on the outside and perhaps lacking in empathy for them. In a way its like living in a goldfish bowl.

Maddie

Mincan

I never fit into the judgmental crowd much either, and held different views of homosexuals, crimincals, etc, than that of most witnesses whilst in it. I too am a born in. I guess there is just something about some people that won't allow them to go along with that sort of thing.

Something I learned from being born-in

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