by BlackWolf 42 Replies latest jw friends
BlackWolf:
You are neither whiney nor annoying. You feel you are in a desperate situation and need help. Well, this is a good place to express that and we're always here to liste. Those who have advice will happily offer it so please, don't feel guilty - it's partially what this forum is for. Read all the great advice and apply what works for you. Enjoy!
Blackwolf Do please watch this great allegory about God/Hank, someone posted it on here recently for newbies and it's revelatory. It utilizes a tool philosophers call intuition pumps, believe me by replacing God with Hank and a million quid with everlasting life you will see how absurd the thought an omniscient being is gonna kill you if you don't do what it says BUT you have free will, but only free to choose what he says. Some choice. Get as much info on evolution as you can, read Richard Dawkins book" The God delusion ", in fact any of his books,Jerry Coyne "Why evolution is true" Just spend some time at the library, once you acertain evolution is a indisputable FACT you will loose the fear. This blog is written by a JW and may help initially if the A word is a bit too scary yet!!
http://meletivivlon.com/2013/10/18/orphans/
Hi, If anyone knows to post youtube vids on here can they let me know please, unless its above and not just the link in which case I've done it😃
BlackWolf:
I could live my whole life being a jw even though I hate it and possibly live forever or I could live my life doing what I love and possibly be killed at armageddon.
Do you personally believe in Armageddon? You said that you don't believe in the Bible God anyway (and quite rightly considering there is zero evidence of that specific beings' existence) , so logically..
You are no more likely to die at 'Armageddon' than you are from being struck by a lightning bolt from Zeus!!
The Watchtower tries to reduce intelligent adults to the mental state of a small child, afraid of a bogey monster they have only read about in a story book.. Don't let them do that to you.
If your parents want to live in fear of the bogey man, leave them to it. Don't cause confrontation.
Just be sure of what you believe personally, and keep the peace, as others have said.
There's no need to gamble your life away on a false hope..
To live your entire life around a future event that may or may not come in your lifetime is tragic.
We all know that we’re going to die. We non JW’s accept that eventuality because it happens to everyone eventually.
Jehovah’s Witnesses, however, have found an artificial way to hope against hope that their lives will be spared death and that they will be able to live right on into paradise if Armageddon will only come in their lifetime.
This is the “hook” that the Watchtower Bible & Tract Society uses to recruit their followers.
They have found the one thing that scares everyone to death (excuse the pun) and they propose an artificial solution to it. They imply either directly or indirectly, that the odds are high that anyone who follows them will be spared this eventuality. They do this by focusing on world events that seem to imply that we are living in the end times. They focus on earthquakes, disasters, weather changes, political changes, wars, reports of wars, etc. These somehow give them license to state that we are living in the “end times”.
How long have they been preaching this? Since 1874!
They have prophesied many times about specific dates only to be proven wrong. They admit this. Yet they continue to beat the same drum they started beating way back in 1874.Jehovah’s Witnesses, when recruited, are eaten up with this belief that the end is coming and that it is “just around the corner”.
Ask any Jehovah’s Witness if they feel that the end is coming soon and they will all tell you “Yes!” If you had a time machine and went back a hundred years you’d get the very same answer!
The problem this creates is that they end up living for some future event instead of living in the present moment. Their lives are put on hold.
All of the wonderful things that life has to offer are willingly surrendered and for what?
For some possible event that may or may not happen for them.
Excuse me for saying so but it sounds a lot like gambling to me.
“Okay, I’ll give up all the things that make life worth living:...
marriage [or freedom to marry whoever you choose instead of whoever's in your congregation], a good education, a fulfilling career, and a comfortable retirement all for the hope that if I work hard enough for The Watchtower Bible & Tract Society, I’ll be able to survive Armageddon into this “paradise” that you say is waiting for me on the other side.”
JW's are just another wacky group of people who think they are on the doorstep of a new world (after that whole inconvenient business of nearly 8 billion people being 'wiped from the face of the earth').
If you ever start to wonder if they may have got it right, just remember that Zeus isn't going to get you.. And neither is the big Jayhoover.
Besides, as prophets go, these guys don't have the best success rate.. ;)
Sorry, I'll try again..
BlackWolf:
Do you personally believe in Armageddon? You said that you don't believe in the Bible God anyway (and quite rightly considering there is zero evidence of that specific beings' existence) , so logically..
You are no more likely to die at 'Armageddon' than you are from being struck by a lightning bolt from Zeus!!
The Watchtower tries to reduce intelligent adults to the mental state of a small child, afraid of a bogey monster they have only read about in a story book.. Don't let them do that to you.
If your parents want to live in fear of the bogey man, leave them to it. Don't cause confrontation.
Just be sure of what you believe personally, and keep the peace, as others have said.
There's no need to gamble your life away on a false hope..
www.thewatchtowerfiles.com/jehovahs-witnesses-and-fear/
JW's are just another wacky group of people who think they are on the doorstep of a new world (after that whole inconvenient business of nearly 8 billion people being 'wiped from the face of the earth').
If you ever start to wonder if they may have got it right, just remember that Zeus isn't going to get you.. And neither is the big Jayhoover.
Besides, as prophets go, these guys don't have the best success rate..
Believing the 'end is near' stops a person from living life now ! It wastes a persons true potential .
I talked with a very close JW friend this week who is planning on building a new home -- 3,000 SF -- nice house, in ground pool, etc. I asked how he responds to a JW who says that this is not in agreement with the GB's claim that The End(TM) is imminent. He said someone had done just that, and he told them: "It may not be in agreement with what the GB is SAYING; but is EXACTLY in agreement with what the GB is DOING."
You can use the same kind of excuse for getting an education. The GB has not stopped building and expanding in this "system of things", You should follow their example. Get a good education. Tell them you feel that, just like the GB, you must plan for your future IN "this system of things" and IF Armageddon comes, great! But if it doesn't, you will be able to live (well) until it does (or if it never does in your lifetime). What is your parents' situation? Is their retirement plan based on The End(TM) coming before they are old? So was mine (and many others I know). It did NOT happen that way.
Good luck. Don't rush anything. If you are in fact 16 or 18 years old, you can be patient and cautious in how you proceed.
Doc
You are very young, you don't have to figure this all our right this moment. Of course it's confusing when your parents say one thing, your JW friends say one thing, then you come here and we believe something different. I think you know in your heart and mind where the truth is, you just need time to absorb it all. Put this on the back burner for a while, I think you will gain clarity.
But don't stop asking questions and don't push your doubts away because it's confusing right now. Listen to your own conscience, don't let any one tell you what you should believe, not your parents, not your friends, not even us. It's your life
Right now you are probably going to the meetings. While you are there look for the inconsistencies, the logical fallacies, the things that just plain don't make sense. Question everything. Once you know how cults work you will easily be able to spot see how you and your parents have been manipulated. Knowledge is power.
So for now, just obey your parents, go to the meetings etc., but don't forget what you have learned, be prepared for when you are an adult and can make your own decisions. Don't get baptized, it would be wrong with your current doubts and you need to keep your options open. Focus on your education.
LisaRose, I love your avatar.
Doc
