I was a born in and I exited before the internet was even around. I have found the content on this site to be very informative. I didn't know for example, about the overlapping generations thing. Any thinking newbie who is just lurking here will find this site very informative to. I tend to lurk here more than post just to see whats going on. I don't think you can read anything in to how many newbies are posting here.
Newbies , Are We Seeing An Accelerated Increase? This Past Year ? Newbies Feel free To Respond Please .
by smiddy 28 Replies latest jw friends
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Ignoranceisbliss
I wholeheartedly wish there was an acceleration but in reality I think it is a slow trickle at this point. -
vinman
Bonsai. You say, "maybe this is the truth". I'm a newbie as well. Just discovered this was not the truth 4 months ago. I cried like a baby. What helped me? Read Crisis of Conscience. Could not put it down. But, a real clincher was In Search of Christian Freedom. Why? You discover that the most fundamental things like door to door work was being debated in the 70's. Wow! I thought that was settled in the book of Acts! House to house not the same as door to door. Counting time was and still is a big issue. I guess that book really opens your eyes to all the things that you knew were problems but couldn't pinpoint why. Encourage you to read it. Very tedious but worth every minute.
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iamlost_
I'm new here... mid to late 20s and freshly married. Once I got married I knew was about time for me to get with the program, wanted to make to MS pass the mic and the like. I honestly never aspired to become those things before. The annual meeting came and we missed it, because we had the wrong time on our calendar. OOPS. So I started looking for where I could get an audio a copy or something. It's the age of the internet and being a sys admin after snowden and such I know someone would leak it. I endup and Cedars youtube and blog. I got severly mindfucked, I didn't know what to think! I knew it was wrong to look at these sites. However, all my doubts and questions from my teenage years and college years(I got depressed and didn't do what I wanted due to a C.O rambling about how stupid it is to go to college) were answered. I spent 3 to 4 days, just learning, reading, watching. I am depressed though my wife just thinks I'm unmotivated and lazy, I haven't been out in service in about 4 or 5 months now. She's blaming for her lack of motivation to wake up saturday mornings and make it to the group.
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bradford
I am new to the site but have been on the way out of the org for a while. I just didn't find this site before. I was regularly on jwsurvey, jwleaks, and jwfacts.
It wasn't until recently that I found this site, wish I found it sooner.
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Seeking agape
Hello Everyone!
I have been lurking on this site for about 6months. I started fading out of the org about 18 months ago. Haven't been to a meeting in about six months other then the special broadcast where Tony 3 spewed his hatefulness upon all who would listen. My dad got up and walked out in the middle of that meeting and walked all the way home. He missed Tony's special part but I was gracious enough to show him all the wonderful places on YouTube he could get filled in. Go Dad, he's 75 btw and has been in the Org since the 1960s.
I love this site. most of it anyways. I just ignore what I don't like. I often come to this site when I feel alone or upset that my sister and mom are still in the org. It really helps to know that I'm not the only one with these thoughts and feelings.
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cantleave
Any response would be anecdotal (unless of course Simon has some numbers). -
FayeDunaway
What does EVERYONE do these days. Who needs to find something/research something? Go to the web! I needed to find info for a talk once, had no source material (they might want to fix that if they haven't already), searched online for info about the scripture provided. Found a Christian dissertation on the scripture, was deeply affected. Gave the best talk ever! It was one of the things that helped me become christian.
When I was going through an issue with the witnesses, I researched online to find out if anyone else had gone through the same issue. A bunch of apostate sites came up. I really tried to be good and only let my eyes go to the subjects directly related to the issue...I failed miserably. :) but what I'm saying is, the internet is a natural turning place these days for anyone looking for info on anything! This will inevitably lead many many witnesses to places like this and their eyes will be opened.
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steve2
Is doubt growing and leading more JWs to visit sites such as this one? Consider this before answering:
To actively question the organization implies a much wider spread "interest" in the organization's doctrines, policies and history than is actually the case.
Sorry folks, but most Witnesses are asleep at the wheel.
When I think about the whereabouts of all the born in JWs I grew up with and all who joined in the pre-1975 stampede, and the baby boom in congregations throughout New Zealand after 1975 and well into the 1980s and 90s, I am struck with this observation:
Why have publishers hovered around 12,500s to the low 14,000s in New Zealand for the better part of over 17 years?
This much I know when I see former Witnesses throughout the country: The overwhelming majority have become inactive or 'disappeared' from kingdom halls NOT due to apostasy but due to apathy.
As I have said so often on this excellent forum, the organization's biggest nightmare is - surprise, surprise - NOT apostasy but pure, unlovely, demotivated, lifeless apathy.
This is bound to be as true in New Zealand as it is in many other Western industrialised "first-world" countries.
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ivanatahan
" My dad got up and walked out in the middle of that meeting and walked all the way home. He missed Tony's special part but I was gracious enough to show him all the wonderful places on YouTube he could get filled in. Go Dad, he's 75 btw and has been in the Org since the 1960s."
The only people who left from our group of congregations were the ones who couldn't understand English. Appearantly, the Watchtower cares so little about non-English speakers that they wouldn't even translate the annual meeting for them, the very event that was highlighted for its "importance" and that everyone was supposed to attend.
I guess I'm technically a newbie, having joined a few months ago. I also have indeed noticed an influx of new members, but since I've only been lurking a month before joining, I haven't really paid attention, since I didn't know how the trend was before I first stumbled upon this forum.