Regardless of whether you find your witness "friends" to be true or not, the decisions should have more to do with your personal faith and not others. If they are not right for you, then don't feel guilty. I personally wouldn't recommend jumping to another clone group either, but I do not presume to know what is good for you. But if you are in that much doubt, you should run the other way, before you are in to deep to make an "easy" escape.
About me
by Bryce 34 Replies latest jw friends
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Pickled
Bryce, I also studied with the Witnesses and decided that it was not for me. I don't understand the individual who is claiming that he has a lot of Witness friends who are content with spending time with him without the intention of "Witnessing" to him. That is a large group of unusual Witnesses all in one place. The highest priority of every Witness is to be able to record hours on a time card. Those hours are turned in, and are viewed as a measure of how faithful they have been. No witness wants to be viewed as unfaithful because that causes others to begin talking about them in a negative way, and those conversations can lead to a sheparding call that will be the talk of the Kingdom Hall.
Every witness has to spend a lot of hours every week in an effort to increase those numbers on their time card. That is a lot of work and it often takes away from other things that they would rather be doing like spending time relaxing or time with their family. So to think that they would be willing to spend that time with you and not get time card credit for it, instead of spending it doing other things that have had to neglect, is quite a stretch.
Noni is exactly right. She is not speaking out of bitterness or some warped thinking now that she is an ex-JW. The Witnesses spending time with you will be very reluctant to admit that they have recorded every minute of that time on a time card. They are generally reluctant to admit anything at all that would create a crack in the facade. This is not a sinister motive I am talking about....it is just a fact. When you are straightforward and state clearly that you would still like to spend time with them, however you would like to take a break from any discussions about the Bible, they will stop spending time with you until you change your mind. There will no longer be a benefit to spending time with you.
Standing up for yourself may be a very important lesson you need to learn. It sounds as though this is an area in your life that maybe could use a little strengthening. It will come up over and over in your life in different ways and this particular time happens to be easier than you are imagining. Easy because all you have to do is continue to state your true thoughts and they will do the leaving for you. -
isaacaustin
Johnnyc posted this om 3/9:
johnnyc Re: About me
Post 1 of 76
since 08-Mar-08Just tell them the problems you have with JW's...and perhaps they have some answers. Don't get caught up with everything you see here. I am not a JW, yet I know there does not exist great truth somewhere else. Sure, I have some major problems with certain things about JW's, but I just can't help looking at the little things they do. You have to make the decision on your own though, and if its not for you, its not for you. Its not for me now either - but yet there is something that keeps me from cutting all connections. Here he says he is not a JW. Yes now he is saying in his recent post that he is applealing disfellowshipping action against him. Care to do some explaining johnnyc?
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Farkel
5thGeneration does make a valid observation. There are many good, caring active Jehovah's Witnesses, but I believe it is not because of their religion but in SPITE of their religion. The same can be said for any faith.
Our confused young man stated:
:How can you prove that the name Jehovah was not used in the NT? Since manuscripts do not exist old enough to prove anything conclusive on the matter, then the argument can me made both ways.
Jesus never used it in his model prayer to God, not even in the New World Translation. Dubs use it dozens of times in public prayers, but Jesus didn't use it once in his prayer.
:The truth is that there are many ancient Christian churches who have the name Jehovah inscribed all over them - which are old enough.
"Old enough?" HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! The name "Jehovah" was first used in the 14th Century A.D.!
:Since these are not Temples (or Jewish Establishments), ancient Christians must have thought there was some relevance to using the divine name - instead of Jesus.
How do you know what they "must have thought?" Did you talk to those ancient Christians, or channel them?
:I will agree, based on my research, that the name Jehovah perhaps appears too often in the NWT.
If you've done ANY research at all, you will find that the name "Jehovah" appears this many times in the most reliable of NT manuscripts (according to experts on the matter): zero!
If the Creator thought using his name was a big deal, he would at least have made certain we had manuscripts of the New Testament that contained his name. But two thousand years later that is still not the case.
Farkel -
J-ex-W
johnnyc:
Its not for me now either - but yet there is something that keeps me from cutting all connections.
Haven't we all been here at some point, or most of us? It's been a long process for me to sort through all the conflicts, personally. I certainly can't fault johnnyc for being at any point along his stream of process/ progress. Each must find their own. Mine was to eventually move away from the JW teachings but still hold to some of the positive principles I see there--which I also see among other positive belief/ social systems, religious or not. Let johnny sort it out. Let johnny learn. It's what this is all about.