JW's are they worse then any other religion????

by VeniceIT 7 Replies latest jw friends

VeniceIT

I know that most of us have asked out self this question at one time or other! How bad are they, really!!! Well I ask all of you to read this objectivly and hoestly. Maybe even use a pad of paper to mark down which ones apply to the WTS. I think you might be surprised!!!!
___________________________
Mind Control - The BITE Model
From chapter two of Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves *
* © 2000 by Steven Hassan; published by Freedom of Mind Press, Somerville MA
Destructive mind control can be understood in terms of four basic components, which form the acronym BITE:
I. Behavior Control
II. Information Control
III. Thought Control
IV. Emotional Control
It is important to understand that destructive mind control can be determined when the overall effect of these four components promotes dependency and obedience to some leader or cause. It is not necessary for every single item on the list to be present. Mind controlled cult members can live in their own apartments, have nine-to-five jobs, be married with children, and still be unable to think for themselves and act independently.
I. Behavior Control
1. Regulation of individual’s physical reality
a. Where, how and with whom the member lives and associates with
b. What clothes, colors, hairstyles the person wears
c. What food the person eats, drinks, adopts, and rejects
d. How much sleep the person is able to have
e. Financial dependence
f. Little or no time spent on leisure, entertainment, vacations
2. Major time commitment required for indoctrination sessions and group rituals
3. Need to ask permission for major decisions
4. Need to report thoughts, feelings and activities to superiors
5. Rewards and punishments (behavior modification techniques- positive and negative).
5. Individualism discouraged; group think prevails
6. Rigid rules and regulations
7. Need for obedience and dependency
II. Information Control
1. Use of deception
a. Deliberately holding back information
b. Distorting information to make it acceptable
c. Outright lying
2. Access to non-cult sources of information minimized or discouraged
a. Books, articles, newspapers, magazines, TV, radio
b. Critical information
c. Former members
d. Keep members so busy they don’t have time to think
3. Compartmentalization of information; Outsider vs. Insider doctrines
a. Information is not freely accessible
b. Information varies at different levels and missions within pyramid
c. Leadership decides who "needs to know" what
4. Spying on other members is encouraged
a. Pairing up with "buddy" system to monitor and control
b. Reporting deviant thoughts, feelings, and actions to leadership
5. Extensive use of cult generated information and propaganda
a. Newsletters, magazines, journals, audio tapes, videotapes, etc.
b. Misquotations, statements taken out of context from non-cult sources
6. Unethical use of confession
a. Information about "sins" used to abolish identity boundaries
b. Past "sins" used to manipulate and control; no forgiveness or absolution
III. Thought Control
1. Need to internalize the group’s doctrine as "Truth"
a. Map = Reality
b. Black and White thinking
c. Good vs. evil
d. Us vs. them (inside vs. outside)
2. Adopt "loaded" language (characterized by "thought-terminating clichés"). Words are the tools we use to think with. These "special" words constrict rather than expand understanding. They function to reduce complexities of experience into trite, platitudinous "buzz words".
3. Only "good" and "proper" thoughts are encouraged.
4. Thought-stopping techniques (to shut down "reality testing" by stopping "negative" thoughts and allowing only "good" thoughts); rejection of rational analysis, critical thinking, constructive criticism.
a. Denial, rationalization, justification, wishful thinking
b. Chanting
c. Meditating
d. Praying
e. Speaking in "tongues"
f. Singing or humming
5. No critical questions about leader, doctrine, or policy seen as legitimate
6. No alternative belief systems viewed as legitimate, good, or useful
IV. Emotional Control
1. Manipulate and narrow the range of a person’s feelings.
2. Make the person feel like if there are ever any problems it is always their fault, never the leader’s or the group’s.
3. Excessive use of guilt
a. Identity guilt
1. Who you are (not living up to your potential)
2. Your family
3. Your past
4. Your affiliations
5. Your thoughts, feelings, actions
b. Social guilt
c. Historical guilt
4. Excessive use of fear
a. Fear of thinking independently
b. Fear of the "outside" world
c. Fear of enemies
d. Fear of losing one’s "salvation"
e. Fear of leaving the group or being shunned by group
f. Fear of disapproval
5. Extremes of emotional highs and lows.
6. Ritual and often public confession of "sins".
7. Phobia indoctrination : programming of irrational fears of ever leaving the group or even questioning the leader’s authority. The person under mind control cannot visualize a positive, fulfilled future without being in the group.
a. No happiness or fulfillment "outside"of the group
b. Terrible consequences will take place if you leave: "hell"; "demon possession"; "incurable diseases"; "accidents"; "suicide"; "insanity"; "10,000 reincarnations"; etc.
c. Shunning of leave takers. Fear of being rejected by friends, peers, and family.
d. Never a legitimate reason to leave. From the group’s perspective, people who leave are: "weak"; "undisciplined"; "unspiritual"; "worldly"; "brainwashed by family, counselors"; seduced by money, sex, rock and roll.
______________________________________________________
Does any of that sound familier????? Maybe you should have kept a list of what didn't apply, heck you could have used a sticky note!!!! There's more to come all. Please give feedback. I think this is something that really needs to be discussed. I think if we can all talk about it and face the reality that we were involved in a destructive mind control cult--then we can really start to heal!!!
Venice
conflicted

It was reading something like this that got me asking questions about and looking into WTS past/present.
I was fine just not attending meeting, but when I read a similar list it really struck home - but the question I have is:
How many regilions out there DONT apply to most of these?
I cant answer, as I have only experienced JW - nothing else.
somebody

Great post and great food for thought. My answer is YES though. Only because if you attend other churches, they don't judge other religions and the people that attend the churches as being part of satan's crowd, as the WBTS teaches. Other religions don't hop on every mistake other religions have made by printing " what does it's history show?" and then not allow people of their own religion (JW) to not even view it's own history. My opinion is that even though religions are religions, some are WORSE than others.
That's probably why Jesus wasn't any religion. Religion and politics DO go hand and hand. The WBTS hold hands with the CROOKED politicians. To aviod losing their SUPPORTERS, they'll say what they have to say.
I agree with "religion is a snare and a racket". But I believe that God isn't a snare or a racket.
God is free. And requires NO mind control.
and so there are my thoughts. :-)
peace,
somebody
somebody

conflicted, how many PEOPLE(as opposed to religions) apply morals and values taught in the bible? Religion has NOTHING to do with the hearts of INDIVIDUALS. Do individauls have to have membership to a religion for salvation?
peace,
somebody
Moridin

I think that the JWs are worse than most religions and the reason for this is that it totally robs you of your life. It does this in many ways
1) Taking all your time for your children and for yourself.
2) Taking any friendships and memories you could have had with
relatives that aren't witnesses.
3) Robbing children of a normal childhood
You know if I had to list all of them I would still be typing in the morning. But this shows enough.
VeniceIT

12 Rules Of The Community Leading Con-Man
By Peter Forde
1. What you've got is mine, and what I've got is mine too. (This is forcedly rule one because the world expects to see this, and is why they stay away in droves).
2. I own you too, and you don't own yourself, since you have vowed yourself into being my obedient serf. I will hold you to this even after you leave.
3. You're required to be meek and obedient, never angry, and constantly asking my permission to exist.
4. I can do anything I like, because I'm the leader- God's gift to Mankind. Undemocratic, Unimpeachable. The Holy Spirit representative (circle whichever applies, but note that "God's gift to mankind" is compulsory). For this heavy burden of leadership I, of course, have unlimited extra privileges and income.
5. The community actually exists for these purposes: Give me power over you: Make me lots of money: Make me powerful in the world: Flatter my vanity: Flatter my vanity again: Exist from moment to moment simply to pump up my ego.
6. One hint of criticism and you're out, and note rule #1. Your spouse, children and friends. (Community con men try to make suppression of criticism rule one, and stress it hard).
7. All critics of me are sinners and have gone the world's way. (It?s a feature of all con men to preemptively accuse their marks of what they themselves are doing, as a way to confuse the opponent.)
8. Members are to confess their life's sins to me, preferably tape recorded, for use in shaming them into groveling subjection and for defamation and blackmail if they happen to leave and speak out.
9. Members are required to be dependent to the point of inability to cope if they should leave. This especially applies to children of members.
10. Priority of loyalties are: A) to me; B) to God, meaning me again since I am his representative C) to the community, meaning me again since the community exists to serve me D) to spouse and children but they are required to hate their relatives and spouses and to have a relationship with me before them.
11. Its fine to tell lies about who we are and what we actually represent. I wax lyrical about piety and morals since I don't have to actually practice what I preach - those rules are for YOU!
12. People who annihilate my enemies without blame falling on me are liable to get promoted and to share somewhat in my power, always of course being mindful of who is boss.
Thus are the commands of Jesus carried out, and the Kingdom of Heaven promoted.
These can both be found at Steve Hassan's website. He is the worlds leading cult-exit counsler and has writtent two wonderful books. "Combating Mind Control" 1988, and his 2000 "Releasing the Bonds", in which JW's are mentioned and a not from Randy Watters is in the forward. Both great reads for anyone who was a JW, or has family or friends who are/where!
http://www.freedomofmind.com/
RedhorseWoman

At one time I would have definitely said that JWs were worse than any other religion. However, I think I've located one that is at least as bad, if not worse.
There is a fairly new cult that originated in Boston, called International Church of Christ. I found out about them because a co-worker had been approached by several members who offered her and her husband a Bible study and who had invited them to their church services.
Alarm bells started going off in my head as my co-worker talked about this lovely couple. Initially, I thought they were JWs, but as more details came out, I realized it was a different group. I started doing a little net research to discover what they were all about.
They hold to almost all of the destructive tactics practiced by JWs, but their spying/disfellowshipping/shunning practices seem to be more severe. There are multiple support boards set up for ex-members, and they've even gone so far as to set up "safe houses" for those trying to extricate themselves from the cult.
They tend to concentrate their preaching efforts in campus areas, and are getting a large following of young, educated professionals. If they keep going as they have been for the past 20 years, they may become the JWs of the 21st century.
DriveslikeJehu

Does any of that sound familier?????

Actually, yeah. I think someone else posted that a few months ago.lol

JW's are they worse then any other religion????

Share this