Ripping a person’s faith away, a heavy responsibility?

by Seraphim23 207 Replies latest jw friends

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  *lost*

  If peopel want to carry round their bag of rocks for the rest of their lives .... let them off, it's their choice.

  what they don't have - is the right to start chucking them rocks at other people who have nothing to do with their life situations..Just because they are hurting, they don't have the right to hurt others.

  They are not little kiddies, they are grown ups. Act grown up.

  It's one thing to be asking for help and needing assistance, everyone will rally round and do their very best to help them. But to see them treat others in a nasty fashion is not acceptable.

  If they don't like something, anything, tough, get over it, dont make others suffer and infect their lives with your poisin. Life is too short, we have finally broken free and we want to make the very best of everyminute we got left, being happy.

  Some people know what is wrong in their lives, but for whatever reason they don't have the strength or want to deal with it. that is their perogative, their choice, their life.

  Liking people and caring about people and being a good person means you put others first, bite your tongue and keep your nastyness and bitterness to yourself. don't infect others with your poison.

  the old adage - if you cannot say anything nice ....

  It is a massive shock to the sytem for some people to find out the truth, it takes special care and handlling.

  This place should be a place where you would think, being ex-jws, cult members, knowing exactly how bad it is and what they are going through, it would be a safe haven whereby newbies don't have to be frightened of what they say - incase they get stoned to death.

  There are a lot of truly wonderful, kind, genuine people here ... and there are a few shats. who just like throwing their rocks.

  Maybe it makes them feel better, maybe it give them a sense of power, maybe because they are weaklings in the real world and so bitter and unhappy and lazy to sort their sht out. maybe they got issues - so what, get over it, who hasn't, are we not all trying to rebuild our lives and make the most of the little tidbits of happiness that come our way.
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  *lost*

  dble post
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  mrsjones5

  Is this about discussions or debates between adults? I would hate this place to become something where folks are afraid to voice opinions that some may not want to hear simply to spare those who are that sensitive or fragile that they cannot handle disagreement of their precious points of view.

  Stumble anyone?
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  Seraphim23

  Onthewayout and mrsjones5 getting all upset works both ways, so the question of who should be here works both ways.

  I don’t think this is about censorship though, it is about tact and tact is more effective in getting someone to hear us than leaving it at the door in the race to convince.
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  tootired2care

  @Seraph - perhaps some concrete examples would help with the point you're going after with this thread.
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  OnTheWayOut

  I would hate this place to become something where folks are afraid to voice opinions that some may not want to hear simply to spare those who are that sensitive or fragile that they cannot handle disagreement of their precious points of view.

  You mean it might become like this:

  Your recent thought that Jesus was an ancient alien from another world is very unusual. I want to disagree with you politely and still thank you for offering such a unique point of view, albeit without evidence. While it is true that I cannot prove a negative, so I cannot prove that Jesus was not from another planet, I think it is important that we agree to disagree on this matter.
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  mrsjones5

  I disagree. This board had been here a long time. It has worked well and survived much more than you're aware of. Folks are tactful here but folks will call BS when they see it. Yeah that may hurt but that's life. We're all adults here, right?

  Happy happy joy joy OTWO
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  return of parakeet

  I remember when I first began to realise the JWs world view was floored and wrong. It was devastation to me and my entire world view. It felt like being lost with no lights on to show the way.

  Everyone who leaves a cult feels that way at first. My own metaphor was a raft drifting on the ocean with no horizon in view. It's a painful but necessary step toward freedom.

  I would not want to damage someone as a result of carelessly kicking their rocks from under them and watching them drown ...

  I'm plenty bitter about the WTS, mostly on account of the damage it did and continues to do to my mother and sibs. But I have never tried to pry them away from their beliefs. Whenever the subject comes up (very rarely now after all these years), I merely defend myself if attacked without attacking in return. If they had ever offered to discuss their beliefs with me, I would have been glad to speak up, but unfortunately, that never happened.

  What about a realising that any world view can be wrong?

  I agree that trying to force other belief systems onto others is wrong. But one does not have to push their own "world view" onto another in exchange for the cult's world view. The goal, if the cultist is ready to hear it, is to free them from their bondage and allow them to form their own opinions in a state of freedom. Getting to that point can be traumatic. But living as a slave is even worse.

  I hope no one is offended by what I have written here.

  No offense taken. However, whenever one sees others in a state of bondage, one wants to help. I find it hard to ignore the damage the WTS does to its adherents. That's why I find it hard to stay away from this site for any length of time. Every day newbies come here to ask for advice. They're already questioning the WT beliefs. It would be wrong NOT to help them.

  Do you, Seraphim, regret leaving the WTS because it was a painful process? Would you rather have stayed and been content with lies?
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  tootired2care

  I tend to think that anyone that has come to this site has had their faith ripped away to some degree well before coming here.
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  Seraphim23

  In my first post in this thread it was a call to balance not indifference to ignorance. I trust that clears up the confusion.