holding off on my baptism??? (page 4)

NOLAW

My counsel: Keep on guard about that elder. His eye is wicked.

Remember.

Don't get baptised they will own you after baptism. You will no longer be able to ask questions and you will get disfellowshipped if you ask a wrong question. You are always treated better before baptism after baptism thing change very drastically.

whathappened

You are very fortunate. You have noticed the red flags that will prevent a tragic outcome. Why in the world would you even consider becoming one of Jehovah's Witnesses when you clearly have such doubts? You are obviously too smart for this crazy religion.

To answer your question about the scriptural implications, examine the Ethiopian eunuch. He was riding along with Phillip for a very short while, he asked what is to prevent me from getting baptized? They pulled the wagon over and baptized him thenand there. Please, please consider this account. The elders are overstepping there authority. This is only the beginning. Read some of the horror stories on this site about how the elders have abused people left and right.

it took me a long time to see that this is not Jehovah's organization. You do not want to confuse the Watchtower Society with God, which they clearly want you to do.

My suggestion is that you go to www.jwfacts.com right away. Painstakingly read every word on every page. It will leave you asking yourself "What was I thinking, getting involved with this crazy religion?

Yes, right now you are greatfull for their help in turning your life around. There are many other avenues that could have done the same thing, and they do not demand you dedicate your life to their organizations. SAVE YOURSELF AND YOUR CHILDREN WHILE YOU CAN!!! GET OUT NOW!!!

mamochan13

madcow - I don't want to tell you what to do, even though I agree with everyone else when they say - run for the hills.

But think about it. This reilgion has already made you feel inadequate and unable to meet their standard. That is not going to change. And they are already laying the groundwork for a wedge between you and your children.

I was baptized more than 40 years ago at the age of 13. I've experienced first hand the profound damage DFing causes. I"m not an innocent bystander.

l p

Hi Madcow,

Can I say to you to move away from this organisation. I like others here have seen it destroy families. This is inhumane and fundamentally wrong.

This is a breach of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. See http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/index.shtml#a12

Article 12 states: "No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks."

This simply means everyone has a right to have a relationship with their family member without anyones interference or control.

It is not right to shun anyone, its rude manners and especially your own family. Do you know one aspect of Domestic Violence is to 'out' a family member from the rest of the family etc. So this practice of shunning a disfellowshipped person simply because they don't share the same point of view as you is violence. And domestic violence is against the law.

Can I beg you from one single mother to another, please DON'T get involved in this cult (google 'cult characteristics' - learn what a cult is and if you have trouble understanding these terms, ask the members on this board for their opinions.

Another thing, you changed your life. No one else. However, the organisation strips its members, you, of any confidence in self so that you think you are not strong enough to do anything. Lots of people turn their life around - and you are one of them. Good for you!

Take care

Lp

punkofnice

Hi Madcow and welcome.

I am a former elder and had to resign. I saw how evil the organization is behind the scenes. This is stuff you won't be privvy to as a 'sister'.

I'm not telling you to leave the organization, this is your personal desicion.

I will tell you though it was the watchtower mindset that broke up our family. Basically, once I said I didn't believe it was the 'truth' and gave my reasons she decided to leave me. I have comitted no sin other than disagreeing with some men in Brooklyn who claim to be god's mouthpiece...when it suits them.

finallysomepride

Hi & welcome to the forum, glad that you found us.

I probably can't add any more to what's already been said, but those elders actually unknownly did you a favor, they gave you time to think about the situation, with this time research, research, research as much as you can on the jws both now & their history, using their own liturature and outside sources.

Kevin

jookbeard

I dont think we'll be hearing much more from Madcow, she seems to have already made her mind up, shame she will have to learn the hard way.

krejames

Hey MadCow and welcome to the board

I'm fairly new here too and I know it can be hard to know who to believe. We all have our reasons for being on this board. some of us have had bad experiences. I was born in as a JW and while it was miserable time for me (for doctrinal reasons) I have never had a bad experience with the people - I don't think most JWs are hypocrites or evil. The christians counselled in the bible clearly had serious issues and problems and I don't see JWs, the people, being any worse than them.

My advice, for what it's worth, is if you feel Christianity is the true path, you have to really understand what you're letting yourself in for doctrinally. Look at the christianity described in the Bible and then decide who is adhering most closely to it. The christianity descirbed in the Bible is difficult - it's a daily struggle - Jesus himself said the road was narrow and cramped and to go in through the narrow door. Paul said he pummeled his body to lead it as a slave. I find it incredible when "christians" think the JW daily life is too severe. The christianity described in the bible is severe! So be fair with your critiques against JWs - are any other churches any less reprehensible than the JWs - only you can decide that for yourself based on your own research, knowledge and experiences. There are plenty of arguments for and against being part of "an organisation" so you will need draw your own conclusions on that.

Here you will find a lot of hearsay. But also in the WT publications you will find lots of "quotes" without references. It can be hard to see the wood for the trees. You'll find some interesting articles on JWFacts, which I found shocking when I first read them. Yes the JWs have made mistakes in the past (some would put more weight on these than others, it would seem), and I guess you have to decide whether these allegations are important enough to you to rule them out as being used by God despite any genuine desire to learn and spread "the truth"

As you probably guess, I'm still on my spiritual journey (and have been tending to lean away from the idea that christianity is the truth lately), but I'm trying to make it my personal policy not to believe everything that people tell me - whether JWs or "apostates" - it's a different matter if it's backed up by references and evidence. I haven't ruled out concluding that JWs do have the truth if that's where I feel the evidence leads me in the end (whether I would ever be able to go back there mentally and wholeheartedly live the life is another matter).

Whatever you do I hope you find happiness for you and your family.

144001

<<<< I'm a single working mother of 2 with what i will call a very "colored" past. But over the course of this last year and a half I have dramatically turned my life around and am very pleased to be doing Jehovah's will.>>>>

It sounds like you've made some poor decisions in your life, and getting involved with the Jehovha's Witnesses is just the latest bad choice you've made. Your decisions will impact your kids, and exposing them to a very destructive, high-control group will most certainly harm them. It's too bad that your children are suffering from the decisions you've made in the past. For their sake, I hope you wake up and get away from this cult before your decisions ruin their future too.

holding off on my baptism???