by BR25 29 Replies latest social current
NO.
I was never df'd - I am a successful fader (long before the internet).
I had a desire to learn and liked to read a lot of different things - that was my "weakness." Add to that the fact that the WT literature was starting to smell fishy - the whole of human history - a mere backdrop for the shenanigans of the Int'l Bible Students? I don't think so! In the words of another poster - "It make me hurl sick!"
The Jehovah's Witness religion is a totalistic system. The fact that there is no room for personal freedom defines much of what it is. To talk of those restrictions and attitudes not being present is to speak of another religion, totally separate from the JWs.
It might be a tolerable place to be if this attitude was not there, but it always will be. It is more than just a set situation, it is a quality that defines their theology!
I joined the JW's as an adult because I thought they taught the truth. When I found out that wasn't true I left. And that was long before the internet.
I find it hard to believe nobody would still be a JW if there was no disfellowshipping or you had more freedoms. With so many stories on here about what you cant do and disfellowshipping there has to be quite a few. Most of the ex witnesses I know left because of being disfellowshipped or because of boredom not because they found out is was false. Most people dont even question the JW faith till they want out and these are 2 of the biggest reasons why people want out. The questioning of faith usually comes later so I think some would still be JWs whether they want to admit it or not.
As a young adult i would say that if their was no disfellowship policies, no celebration of pagan holidays, no pursuit of higher education and no "worldly association" etc, etc had been put in place then yes i would/still be a witness and i would not question anything because JW would not be different than any other religion (not being left out). IMHO but it is not the case though...it's run by men that put so many rigid rules and other non sense and false reasoning.
I never "made the troof my own"!! I don't agree with their teachings, practices, or anything they adhere to. I do not want their "jehovah" as my god. I fired him a long long time ago!!
Long before I ever looked at an anti-JW site, I had already decided to leave because they were getting between me and my conscience; or, as I expressed it back then, "The true religion is making me a liar." So, short answer, no, I wouldn't.
Edited to add:If there were no disfellowshipping, that would require that most of their "thou-shalt-nots" had been repealed:
gently feral
I find it hard to believe nobody would still be a JW if there was no disfellowshipping or you had more freedoms.
So what are you saying, that most here who say they are out because they found out the truth about the "truth" are lying and justifying a selfish need to do their own thing and have more freedom? I think you're projecting, you seem not able to let go of a mostly untrue jw opinion that those who leave are doing so cuz they just can't abide the jw restricted lifestyle and they just want to do their own thing, usually something bad.
I for one did not leave because of a need to be free. I left because it's not the truth. I live a rather quiet sedate life with my husband and four kids. Not much drinking, no drugs, no sex parties, no illicit affairs, no smoking, etc.
I left because of the dysfunctionality.
I saw first hand how the elders treat children who go to them for help because a parent is molesting them.
I remained faithful for many years, even making up excuses for how the elders treated me.
but then I had a daughter, and when she began approaching the age i was when i was abused, the cognitive dissonance became to much.
You can treat me like shit, but no, I will not allow you to treat my child that way.
the older I get, the less I can understand the actions of those elders. They were fathers and grandfathers, how could they turn their back on a child? Not only that, but they also demanded that I not speak of it to anyone else.
How could I possibly allow men like that be the spiritual heads of my innocent daughter? Not a chance!
I have often wondered that about myself. I was df'd for telling the elders that I wanted no part of an organization that insisted I either stay with a dangerously mentally ill jw husband or hang around long enough to prove adultery after almost 7 years of physical abuse and mental terror. Other than the violent marriage, I really liked being a jw. It simplified things for me. For instance, when a wordly person died who I had a liking for, it made me so happy to know that they wouldn't die at Armageddon and would be resurrected. I also became very close to my jw mother. I also loved the door to door work, because I am a very social person. I didn't run away from people who had deep religious convictions, and I can honestly say that none of my door to door experiences where a conversation took place ended badly. However, I always had lots of nagging doubts...i.e. everybody but jws being destroyed at Armageddon, the timeline of 607, 1914, etc., and the way women and children were punished for abusive behaviors of men inside the organization. I believed it was the truth when I was df'd and convinced that Armageddon was just around the corner. I also thought that I must be a special case to have to choose between the long lasting agony of an abusive marriage or the sweet relief of swift, eternal death at Armageddon.
So, my answer is, I don't know. I would hope that eventually common sense and fair play would've intervened and got me out of the whole mess.
