It's working...she's listening...what NOW?

by Gig 10 Replies latest jw friends

  • Abaddon
    Abaddon

    Hi Gig,

    Having a look as you asked; I almost responded yesterday, but it's difficult question to answer for you. I have my 'beliefs', you have yours, and my natural set of advice is based upon my 'beliefs', and if you followed them too closely you would not be true to yourself, as I'm a humanist and you're not.

    You see, you have every right to believe what you believe. However, I think you should be concious (and I think you are), that trying to be too specific in WHAT she replaces her Dubby belief structure with could be dangerous.

    All she really needs to be shown is that it isn't THE Truth. Gently, in a way that won't push her culty 'hot buttons'; I thought of that when you said;

    "SHE WANTS TO LEARN and admits that she gets unreasonable in response to some of my questions or statements. "

    Have you read Steve Hussain's Combatting Cult Mind Control? Beware using the term 'cult' until she introduces it, as that is a MAJOR hot button; "WE are not a cult. It says so in the Watchtower". Almost funny if not so sad...

    For example, if you just believe that the Bible provides an illustrative non-literal account of creation, then you can be selective about what programs you watch, so you're not forcing an issue, but bringing clear scientific evidence that the creation account in Genesis cannot be literal.

    You can ask he how she feels about some issue that effects JW's, especially if you are prompted to by the news or some such, like blood, child abuse, or the UN thing.

    If you attend another religous meeting, or read some article or some-such, again, it's natural to discuss something that came up you found interesting in a non-oppositional manner.

    Getting her to explore and illuminate her beliefs using non-JW sources 'whenever it comes up', rather than storming the battlements of her belief is very important. Over time, she will realise that JW beliefs only works when using JW viewpoints, and that other viewpoints exist that are equally true.

    You have to give her the tools to break free, not to try to break her free, or 'push her buttons', as if you do that, you will find out you have two people in a relationship with you.

    One is the woman you love. The other is a mad cultist. They share the same body, and as you are NOT the mad cultist, you're the responsible adult. I deal with my PARENTS like this. They are wonderful, but if I push their buttons they become mad cultists, and as I'M the responsible adult, if things go wrong, it's normally cause I mismanaged it, not because they're bad.

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