by The Rebel 20 Replies latest jw friends
Has anyone seen the film " The Fake Mr Ripley?"
The main character says " ITS BETTER TO BE A FAKE SOMEBODY, THAN A REAL NOBODY"
This sums it up for me, why many witness won't " cross the bridge in to the real world"
The Rebel
p.s FayeDunaway:- " Eeeek babygirl I meant like" !!
I also on occasions have given dislike to posters when I meant to give liked. Anyway I gave baby girl a like on " our " behalf.
After 25 odd years following the ever changing interpretations of men, I'm making myself accountable.
I remember my feisty self during my initial bible studies saying 'well the bible can be interpreted whatever way you choose'
I was of course assured by the JWs that the bible interprets itself - remember that phrase? It just so happened to interpret itself only for the JWs.
Hmmm. One of the first 'obstacles' I had to get my mind around was after baptism - the adjustment in the 'interpretation' re separation of sheep and goats.
Current 'truth' at my baptism was that giving a witness was in itself a moment of 'judgement' for the hearer - remember that everyone? If the hearer declined or rejected our message or visit or worse still, our magazines which contained supernatural power with their hidden nuggets of scripture - even if heavily disguised by a front page asking if insurance is for Christians ;-) .....if declined the individual was surely rejecting God himself.
I remember quizzing some elders on this very thing - I dared to say it felt like giving 'a witness' was like handing the majority of the population a death sentence - at the time there was much debate over how those who hasn't had a witness would be resurrected and those who had 'heard the word' from witnesses would have had their chance - and were judged accordingly.
That belief changed - I remember excitedly reading the watchtower that explained that this is not a season of judgement after all - my relief was also disturbed by this sense of 'how come I understood it made no sense, but the FDS didn't get it straight away??'
So, firstly, sorry about the long winded stuff in previous paragraphs - but you see, today, I no longer labour under such insane making disturbances caused by men who claim they alone hold the keys to understanding Gods word.
With that, comes tremendous peace.
And.... I've regained my sense of reality, to the best of my ability! ;-)
By the way - I'm not claiming I had special spiritual insight re the sheep and goats thing - a close friend who like me was a newly converted witness argued the same thing with me - the elders shut us down.
But it just didn't make sense!!!
I remember us both looking at eachother somewhat shocked - so much for being truth seekers - we should have ran!
The foremost good, I think, of leaving the WT religion is simply being true to oneself. It has to do with personal integrity, as opposed to letting oneself be sold on self-deception.
As the famous expression goes, “To thine own self be true.”
SAHS: " To Thine own self be true"
The Rebel." You then can't then be false to any person" Shakespeare.
Alive:- "....but the FDS didn't get it straight away"
The Rebel.:- And therefore " Alive" your correct, why be subservient to these men?
The Rebel
I love having Saturday and Sunday stretch before me and wonder what I should do today?
i love going to the beach instead of a gloomy KH, looking out to sea and thanking a creator with true appreciation instead of forced devotion motivated by fear of man.
i love having the dark cloud of guilt, self-doubt, never good enough finally lifted.
I love seeing people as they really are instead of through the tinted 'worldly' designation, feeling part of humanity again, seeing so much good, selflessness and charity and being able to appreciate it and contribute to it, instead of being told its a waste of time.
i love seeing my kids make natural friendships with normal people, and not have to force friendships with a judgemental select few, for whom they were never good enough.
the only time I feel like crap is when I have to face the decision of whether to attend a meeting for my family and my fade's sake. The guilt and twisted emotions come back. There are some people in the hall I genuinely love, good people whether they're in the org or not, but there are so many ready to judge and point the finger, elders ready to pressure and question...it makes me feel ill.
Alive! - "...I dared to say it felt like giving 'a witness' was like handing the majority of the population a death sentence..."
I suspect that back then, that possibility actually motivated more than a few WT loyalists.
For many hard-core Christian fundamentalists, the Biblical Apocalypse is really their own personal supernatural revenge fantasy.
what do I love about being out, everything is in colour, I love being on the forum, look forward everyday to reading all your post I love the fact that we are all so different married/divorced/straight/gay/men/woman, all different ages/experiences/opinions & yet I`ve noticed that as soon as someone is distressed about something in their lives everyone rally`s to support them with kind words & advise. I tell you I`ve found more comfort & laughter here than I ever got at the kingdom hall. It`s like breathing the fresh air of the country after a lifetime in the polluted city. Thank you all. We are all amazing.
Alive! - "...I dared to say it felt like giving 'a witness' was like handing the majority of the population a death sentence..."
"I suspect that back then, that possibility actually motivated more than a few WT loyalists."
You know, I hate to say this - but the 'relish' in the tone of voice amongst certain JWs was disturbing.
I heard a crazy mix between ecstatic delight that someone was 'interested' to sad, down-mouthed head shaking when a 'study' couldn't go past a certain point...to downright disdain.
Given the appalling 'witness' we have given over the years through decades of poorly scripted 'studies of truths' where the 'study' had to believe this or else - every witness alive today should take pause.
As several prominent elders have said to me in the past as they wiped their lips and enjoyed another glass of wine ' even if it wasn't the truth, it's the best way to live'....
For some maybe.
For some.
Alive " I dared to say I felt like giving a " witness" was like handling the population a death sentence ...." " I am sure this motivated more than a few WT loyalists"
The Rebel:- I remember a little gem " phrase" that used to appear in the W.T, which was " we were giving " A FINAL WITNESS"
And so many years later, that " FINAL WITNESS" is still being given.
The Rebel.
