This is a phrase that I remember my father saying a lot. I was quite the rebellious teenager, leading a double-life, etc. I remember "promising" to him that I would stop seeing my worldly boyfriends or pull my grades up. His retort was "proof is in the pudding." To this day I hate that phrase. LOL!
But reading some of the posts lately has really made me wonder about JW thinking. SO MANY times JWs are taught to go against the "proof" in the Bible. Elders direction comes before the Bible. The Watchtower comes before the Bible. The Governing Body comes before the Bible. What JWs say they do vs. what they actually do are two different things. An elder's opinion is often stated as FACT. Some elders thought their opinion was fact. (My dad wasn't an elder much anyway, but he is one of those people.)
I've realized that MOST JWs that come to this forum (or some exJWs that still struggle with the JW mindset) have a difficult time figuring out what "pudding" means. Many JWs are quick to jump on a piece of gossip, but when facts are presented either in court or even on TV, they are quickly dismissed.
I've read posts here, where people appear to believe what they are saying is fact...yet they don't bring any facts to the table. It never dawned on me until today that perhaps this is yet another "mental disorder" that is only corrected with 1. leaving the Borg, 2. getting therapy for this "mental disorder", 3. having a support network that understands what you're suffering from.
How long did it take you to REALLY understand what facts vs. opinion is? Did you have to completely reteach yourself after exiting???
Andi