I Do Not Think Everyone That is a JW Wastes Their Life

by Magwitch 64 Replies latest jw experiences

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  WTWizard

  A few people are unaffected--those who cannot make their own decisions and that need someone else to make their life decisions can actually benefit from this babysitting religion. Others are blithely unaware of something else out there--the child baptized at age 6, who never stepped out of the congregation boundaries, is not going to miss the outside life.

  However, for the majority of us, being a witless impairs us. Intelligent people who can make their own decisions in life have no business having someone else making all the decisions for them. The average person should be able to figure out what is good for themselves and/or society, and should be able to benefit from "responsibility to the responsible". Fully integrated thinking and doing your own research are compatible. Fully integrated thinking, which includes research, is compatible with both atheism and spiritual Satanism (and LaVeyan Satanism, for anyone who is interested in that). It is not compatible with religions that insist on making all your decisions--religions structured like the Jewish Sanhedrin are not suitable for those who want to do their own thinking and make their own decisions.

  However, they might be suitable for those who are too lazy to do their own research or are unable to fend for themselves.
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  cyberjesus

  The aztecs didnt waste their life either, nor the greeks. Actually its only a waste to you if you think it is.
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  jookbeard

  a JW for decades and a pionsneer for decades as well, just think how much misery, death, destruction, shunning, suicides, depression, failure, and hopelessness she would have brought into peoples lives? Sometimes these octogenarian JW's are the very worst.
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  steve2

  No argument from me.

  Some of those old-timer witnesses were something else. They had commitment, drive, resolve and walked the talk. I think of the elderly witnesses I knew when I was a handsome kid. I looked up to them. My JW grandparents - maternal ones were converted to the Bible Students in the 1920s, paternal ones sometime in the 1930s - were simply lovely people who gave their all to the organization.

  The modern breed of JWs is dismal, tired and blindly reactive by contrast. I'm sure though that if we combed our local congregations we'd find a handful who are happy and well-adjusted. But my guess would be that they are in the minority.

  What does it prove? That it's hard to make sweeping statements about the "effects" of a religion on believers' mental health. Some people feel crushed and defeated by their beliefs, whilst others blossom and lead productive lives. Of course, the quality of one's personal life has absolutely no bearing on whether one's beliefs are "The Truth" - but that's another story, isn't it?
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  Phizzy

  I am sorry for your loss Mag, it hurts to lose a lovely person like that.

  I agree that to "wake" her up in the final stages of her life may have been a very unkind act, as it may have made her last days so sad.

  I still think that her lifes work was a waste, see Jookies comment above, also I believe she could have been much happier, I know several elderly ones like her, they now feel under pressure because they feel they are "not doing enough", the WT puts that guilt on all its members, to be free of that, to be the lovely people such ones are and perhaps do some works that actually benefit others would be a happier and more worthwhile life.
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  sir82

  Sorry for your loss.

  I think this account perfectly illustrates that some people can live as happy Christians in spite of being JWs (as opposed to because of being Jehovah's Witnesses).
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  undercover

  Condolences on the loss of your grandmother.

  And I agree with you for the most part. My mom is uber-dub. Her entire support system is built around the JW lifestyle. And she's in her 70s. She likes it, she has never felt burdoned by living as a JW. When I first awakened, I tried talking to both my parents about it, but realized it was useless. She wasn't changing and Dad does whatever she tells him. He seems to be happy, so I let it go.

  Even as much as I despise the WTS, I try hard to remember that a basic human right is the freedom/right to worship as you wish. That includes wacky religions even.

  It's just a shame they can't reason the same way when it comes to us...
• 

  elderelite

  And jookbeard wins jackass of the week!!! Congragulations! In one short post you managed to take dear mags dead grandmother and accuse her of spreading misery and pain for decades and call her the very worst sort of JW. Well played! You are the ultimate example of apostassery and should be proud of yourself :-) I figured it wouldnt be long before one of your ilk found this thread and blessed it with your special brand of venom.

  As a reward for being the asshat of week, may the sacred camel leave a gift in your shoes and may the fleas of a thousand dogs make a home in your head.

  Bastard.
• 

  Quendi

  I want to express my sincerest condolences to our Magwitch for her loss. When you have wonderful grandmothers—and both of mine were such—their loss can be very hard hitting. I still think about both of them with warm and fuzzy memories and realize how blessed I was to be one of their grandsons.

  Like Magwitch and steve2, I also have elderly Witness relatives. One is an aunt (my late father’s sister) now in her eighties. She taught me the religion many years ago and I always loved her. I have never broached TTATT with her precisely because she is content. The religion stabilized her family life and made her husband, Uncle James, a wonderful man to know and associate with. It gave her the needed strength to deal with his Alzheimer’s disease in his last years. She got baptized in 1956, during those heady days of the New York conventions that drew more than 100,000 people. Uncle James had various privileges in the organization but was widely known for being warm, kind, empathetic, sympathetic and a great listener. He was one of those elders who knew how to shepherd the flock with tenderness—a rare gem then and particularly now.

  So I hope that Magwitch will cherish the memories she now has and that these will give her comfort. I’m sure she also appreciates most of the thoughts we’ve shared here. These will help more than the funeral service at the hall would. And thanks, elderelite, for your reprimand to jookbeard. They expressed my feelings perfectly.

  Quendi
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  XBEHERE

  Sorry for your loss. I do agree, for some its a good ride. My grandmother also was in it for over 60 years and pioneered for over 20 of them. She was happy. Ignorance is bliss as the saying goes.