Tonight is the night , i have direc tv and going to watch to Fifth Estate.My hubby will be here also. I am realy realy nervous how he is going to react. He could blow up and say it's all lie's, they are apostates and god warned he's people they would constantly be persecuted and lied about.Or he won't even look at it saying they are apostates and i won't look at them they are the devil's voice.He always say's , you can't believe every thing you see on tv or reading the new's paper.I need you'r advice on how i should react with these situations. As some of you were in the org. how do you think you would have reacted? i know you don't know him but if i could be ready for any reaction would help.It's going to be hard enough him wondering how i knew it was on and why i'm watching an international news channel. HELP!
his reaction will be..............................
by kls 21 Replies latest jw friends
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LovesDubs
Remind him that he and the FRIENDS WILL have to account for what happens on this program. He would be better equipped to handle inquiries at the door if he actually WATCHED it...and if he doesnt he will have to answer WHY he didnt...they may assume he has something to hide. He will have to provide proof to people that pedophiles ARE dealt with from the Society's literature and his research will show that they indeed...arent. If there was "no truth" to any of this, why would the program AIR anything at all about it? Why would PANORAMA or DATELINE? Denial from a group that calls itself the TRUTH is translated GUILT.
When Dateline aired...I think it was a Tuesday night...my JW husband would not watch it but I had it on in the bedroom LOUD and he heard every word of it. He would never ever say anything to me...but I know when I was a JW I WANTED to know what "they" were saying about us.
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LB
The average JW will not believe a word of what is shown. That was the case over here for Dateline. It might cause some to doubt a little though and that's important. Don't expect any sudden quick changes. Most won't have that.
Shows like this will kill a few bible studies. I was told that a couple stopped studying at my old hall after Dateline was shown. They didn't like the show and they didn't like the teacher telling them it was all lies. They were smart enough to not buy that.
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Guest 77
Tell him, the truth will set you free, but it hurts. Just kidding. Really, you know him better than I do, what would be YOUR suggestion?
Now, if that were me, speaking for myself, I would tie my wife up really good and gag her so she can listen to the show. No, kidding again.
How about informing him that it would be in his best interest to watch the show because when people question him on this subject, he would know how to answer them. I'm with lovedubs on this one. My best wishes.
Guest 77
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Mum
I hope he watches. But an adult cannot be forced to face facts he/she does not want to face.
If he dismisses the facts as lies, tell him to contact the WTS and recommend that it sue the broadcast network for spreading falsehoods/slander or whatever. Tell him you are interested in facts to refute what is said, not a blanket emotional denial.
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Xander
Honestly, I don't see this scandal shaking anyone loose from the WT. Preventing possibly bible studies? Sure! Damaging their ability to go door to door in any neighborhood? Certainly hope so!
But, I think really, most die-hard JWs already 'know' such things go on. It's just one of those things you "don't talk about" or try to ignore. So, old brother lecherous is a little touchy-feely with all the little kids - that's just "his way", it's harmless. Blahblahblah.
Those not in profound denial will treat it all as lies.
No, I think if you really want to shake him free, the only think surefire to do it is doctrinal issues. Prove that the org itself does not speak for god, and suddenly all these other problems with the org become relevant.
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expatbrit
Well I'll be watching the show, and I'll leave it entirely up to my JW wife to decide if she watches it or not. It's her choice, but I suspect she wont watch.
Expatbrit, who shovelled the delusion of hope into the furnace of reality a long time ago.
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ashitaka
The reaction can go two ways,
like scully said in another thread, (some of my old JW friends said this too)
1. Jehovah is using the media to clean his org.
2. Apostates are behind it, they are all liars, and even if it did happen, they were proably df'd for some other reason (like fornication).
There will be very few witnesses who will take to heart what they see, and then make a decision to leave because of it.
Like Hawkaw said, it's an innoculation for the normal people who could find themselves depressed and then be approached by a JW in that vulnerable state. We want them to say, "No thanks. I won't worship with people who keep selfish interests ahead of a child's safety."
ash
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benext
I had an elder tell me after the Dateline show that reports were coming in to Bethel about the excellent conversations the "friends" were having with ones who had viewed the show. It gave them an opportunity to explain the Witness position on perverts in the Org. The Conditioning goes deep.
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acsot
The average JW will not believe a word of what is shown. That was the case over here for Dateline. It might cause some to doubt a little though and that's important. Don't expect any sudden quick changes. Most won't have that.
For those of us who already had doubts, Dateline was the straw that broke the camel's back, so it is very important for JW's to watch. It's basically what finally got me to see the light - I went on the SilentLamb's website, then others, then here.
One thing that the WTS says on the show (a preview was aired last night) is that the Watchtower Society went through a "learning curve" in how to deal with this issue. The problem with this statement is that according to the WTS, they are God's channel of communication to humans, so they should be way ahead of the game, not on a learning curve because of litigation and so-called apostate t.v. programs. In Psalms (I believe it is the 97th Psalm) it states that God's word makes the "inexperienced one wise". So why isn't the WTS wiser than worldly people in dealing with such shocking abuse?
Also, several months ago a letter was read out to the congregations (I was there and heard it myself) which stated that blah, blah, blah, the WTS condemns child abuse, but they still insisted on having "two witnesses" to the crime. That doesn't come from apostates, that letter was from the WTS. The two witness rule is ludicrous and cruel, yet JWs are still expected to comply with that rule.
As another point, many JWs (and some have already spoken to me about this and are worried about tonight's program) already know of cases of abuse, so this program is just putting out for public consumption what the rank and file already know (many of them, at least).
Yes, your husband should watch it in case people in the territory come up with arguments such as the above. You can ask yourself how he would explain the above.
Maybe the above is not the way to reach him, I don't know, but that's my reaction when I hear JW-speak. And yes, there's a chance it will put a crack in some those automatic defenses.