by its_me! 31 Replies latest watchtower bible
Ha ha! I like that Outlaw, you always have the funniest visual aides with your posts!
Right before I read your response, I was thinking to myself how angry it makes me that they use your own life to try to persuade you to do what they want. It is like a subtle version of a rapist saying, "Do what I tell you and I won't kill you."
What's worse is when they sprinkle it with emotional blackmail & say things like: "What will your grandfather think if he's resurrected in the new system & you aren't there to greet him?"
When you really think about it, it's pretty evil that people are being driven to say things like that. I don't blame the people who say it though. I blame the fuckers in charge of the cult, it's they who put the evil thoughts in the heads of the R&F.
yes everybody does. When I was planning to go back I told them that I didnt care if I was destroyed at Armageddon that I was doing it because I wanted to be good with God. Funny thing is that the same reason made me investigate and made me not want to go back. Thats why is better for them to go back out of fear rather than honesty.
Wow, good stuff everyone!
Sylvia, I am going to check that thread out.
Mindmelda- I just learned the term Cognitive Dissonance in my Psychology 101 class. I thought about the exact thing that you said! I never realized until that moment what I had been experienceng my whole life! I just thought that I was broken. That something was bad wrong with me.
It's me, you asked:
my question is, has anyone used the "Armageddon is right around the corner, and you should come back so you don't die" reasoning on you? What was your reply, and how did you feel about it in relation to what you know about God?
Growing up in the 60/70 decades, it was the only thing used. We were not taught about God but to follow the Governing Body, be in fear that we would be taken out at Armageddon because of never doing enough and not measuring up to the WTBS requirements...... which in reality no one ever could.
I came to realize very early that I would never measure up, so gave up. Managed to get DF'd at age 16 in the year of the Big A scare.....Oh the horror! In all honesty, I thought I was going to be killed anyway, so why not enjoy life. I wasn't suppose to make it through high school.
The rules and regulations were extensive and "Big Brother" was alive and well established during those years. It was strongly encouraged to "report" to the elders any indiscretions, or thought patterns of anyone no matter how small, so that you would not be considered a party to any one's wrong doing.
It was literal insanity. Unless you were from that time period, there is almost no explaining how bad it was.
r.
"Armageddon is right around the corner, and you should come back so you don't die"
Yes, my mother tried a wee bit of that. I discussed it with her logically and she gave up bothering anymore.
She says I debate too good for her.
It doesn't help to say this, so don't..... but if I had to serve Jehovah of the Watchtower organization after learning more about them, I would rather just be killed with the innocent children of Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Atheists, Christendom and the 99.9% of the world outside of JW's.
On The Way Out---- Ha ha! Good point, I have had tose same feelings myself!
Restrangled---That had to be bad! That is right around the time that my mother came into the truth! Can you believe that she was not born in and decided to join that Org? Then she decided to have kids, and raise us in it. Thanks mom. I mean, I know that she was only doing what she thought was right, but my parents really stuffed the religion down our throats. They basically took away our personal decision in the whole thing.
I love Oompa's response when they start with all that 'W'ere in the last days, Armageddon's just around the corner' crap.
He says 'They're called the last days because they last and last! I've used that a few times, and it's such a good comeback; usually leaves 'em speechless!
For all practical purposes enduring till the end to get the reward is most talked about as the goal. Almost every public talk ends with "if you do this, this and this, then you can survive armageddon and live in the paradise earth".
At the latest Circuit Assembly the CO, drawing a parallel between death from a physical heart attack and death from a spiritual heart attack, said "If you don't want to live forever, then you don't need to listen to this". To me, that sounded kind of like, "If you don't want an inheritance from your parents, then you don't need to care for them in their old age".
I was finally able to become totally free when I realized that YES... I would rather die at Armageddon than take the chance of allowing my entire life to go by while serving a cultish religion, never being free to explore ideas and examine all things for myself. I suddenly just KNEW that life as a JW was just plain wrong (for me). It was a slow painful spiritual suicide by drinking the kool-aid weekly.
I did not want to risk sucking the energy out of my children's childhood for a false promise. I KNEW that God, the Eternal One, was not interested in me proving my love by how many meetings I attended, how many Bible studies I conducted, how many hours I put in knocking doors, or how many assemblies I participated in. He was interested in me living the Life He gave me to the full and co-creating it with Him. I stopped the charade.
