JW response to CNN article

by dubla 22 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  dubla

  i just showed the (bill bowen) cnn article to my father(active jw), and he started defending the jws before he EVEN FINISHED READING IT. why are they always so averse to looking at possible flaws? its frustrating to see them constantly defending the faith, BLINDLY. ive run into the blind defense many times with a close jw friend of mine (i just emailed the article to him as well), but every time its more and more frustrating. why is it so hard for most jws to simply OPEN THEIR EYES? i still personally struggle with "is it a cult?" or isnt it from time to time.......and when you grow up a jw, there are certain beliefs you will ALWAYS struggle internally with, to some extent(they are ingrained in your mind). but things like this, seeing the jw reaction, which is instant defense with full blinders on, its just insane to me. cultish behavior is exactly what that blind faith is......unwillingness to believe there can be a fault......unwillingness to believe there is any other possibility other than "this is gods only organization". ugh.

  aa
• 

  MikeMusto

  this hollywood who's who has had blind faith
  I had blind faith in Versace
  and I was rewarded with the treads of
  his sister.

  blind faith is nice sometimes
  but not when it is a Warrant song.
• 

  RunningMan

  It is not a simple matter of "opening their eyes". JW's believe their org is god-ordained and perfect. Anything short of perfection destroys the whole house of cards.

  So for JWs, it is all or nothing. If the org is not perfect, it is garbage. So, anything that shows them as not perfect is discarded.

  However, every piece of evidence, like this one, adds up. Somewhere in every JW brain is a running tally of organizational mistakes and sins. Each individual has a threshhold of what they will accept. When the evidence passes the threshhold, they have a crisis.

  It may seem pointless, but we must keep heaping on the evidence.
• 

  Matty

  RunningMan, this really hits home:

  Each individual has a threshhold of what they will accept. When the evidence passes the threshhold, they have a crisis.

  After a lifetime of serious doubts this happened to me. The paedophile issue finished it off and knocked the nails on the lid of the coffin.
• 

  concerned mama

  It is the inabliity to question, and mind control that just scares the heck out of me about JWs. When I see examples of it in real life, it truly gives me the shivers.
  Running man, what if it doesn't even get into the brain? How what is obvious to the rest of the world is so wrong to them...how they don't even TRY to think for themselves. Scary, scary.
• 

  Dutchie

  Hi Dubla, I empathize with you because I also know how frustrating it can be. My sister told me that at the hall recently she learned that to disobey the elders is an attack against them and an attack against the elders is an attack against the organization and that is like an attack against Jehovah.

  Great way to keep people in line and not questioning, heh?
• 

  Matty

  Dutchie, All of my family have been diabolically treated by elders in the past, but it’s amazing how these ones are forgiven. The “Wait on Jehovah” tack is always used. The attitude is that it is God’s own organization. That is a given. People who leave “God’s Organization” because of being badly treated are not “doing it for Jehovah”, i.e. they are too concerned with individuals within the congregation and do not have a “personal relationship” with God, they are giving in to Satan. Faith, patience and a prayerful attitude would make a person stay.
• 

  happy man

  I think you hitt the point there Matty, i think it not so good to go out in public, try to solv this inside is more aceptebel,i try this whay. But if this SSmen inn the topp are continuing this golgata for them selfs it is tragick, anda prof of that satan has afoot in, as widh some of the kings in Israel, who putt trong burdens on there peopel, perhaps someone can tell who is the topp man , is it jaracaz,
  or is it someone els.
  We as are inside feel something is wrong, at least widh the dfd thing, who they draw to ther one end battel i think.
• 

  dubla

  now that hes read the entire article, he calls it "disturbing", and said he can see both sides of the article, but that usually you never get the "entire story". he then went on to tell me they discussed it at the book study the other night (the subject of child abuse), and the elder assured everyone that it is strict policy to make sure any abusers or alleged abusers are never put in a position of power in the organization (i.e., elders, servants, etc).

  aa
• 

  bboyneko

  I showed it to my cat, he gave me his typical blank stare and non-reponsive attitude. Although sometimes arguing with my cat is more productive than arguing with a JW