Hello All,
I must admit I've been lurking on this and other boards for about two years. One of my favorites used to witnet until they closed their site. I'm not a JW, but about three years ago I had a JW roomate and because I was going through some tough personal issues I agreed to a book study in our apartment. After a few months of this I started attending the local Kingdom Hall on Sundays. I knew very little about the bible and looked forward to my weekly book studies and Sunday meetings. About six months after I started studying I was given a list of WT contradictions and failed prophesies(sp?) by an ex-JW at work. At the bottom of the list was the name of a book he thought I should read. The book was Crisis of Conscience by Ray Franz. I brought out the list my friend had given me and asked my roomate and the visting elder about them at our next book study. They looked at me like I had just farted in a quiet library. First they told me that along my path toward the TRUTH satan would try to stumble me by occupying my mind with such triviaities(sp?). Then they gave me the New Light speech and told me to stop going down this dangerous path. Needless to say all this did was to make me curious about waht this dangerous path was all about. The next thing I did was to borrow Crisis of Conscience from the friend who had given me the list. Over the next few book studies I kept asking "dangerous" questions. My roomate told me that not only was I risking my destruction at the big A, but I was throwing away the "Spesial" gift from Jehovah that I had revieved by having an elder conduct my study. Finaly about a monthe after I started asking these dangerous questions the elder came to call on me one evening while my roomate was out. He told me that my study was not progressing because I did not show the proper humility, and that I was not coming to to Jehovah with an open heart. I reminded him that he was the the one who told me that I should examine the the words of men atributed to Ja. He replied that I was being rebelious and he was not going to waste his time with me.
The book studies ended, and my roomate moved out a week later (leaving me holding the bag for the rent). I have not been to KH since. I have been researching the WTS ever since, and the internet has been a wonderful tool. Seeing that some of the posters here were those who's posts I had realy enjoyed over at witnet convinced me to subscribe to this board.
Ciao,
CoolBreeze