Ahhh yes...DISTRICT CONVENTION TIME IS HERE.....

jimbob

Yes, summer is almost here, and this will be my very first summer that I will not be attending a District Convention. Since the wife and I left the borg last August, I have looked forward to a summer, free from conventions. At last that time has arrived. But as I was thinking about this, something else came to my mind that I thought I would write about.

Every year when I went to the convention, I can remember seeing the "apostates" standing out front with their bullhorns and posters saying how the JW's are false prophets and writing on their posters the years 1914, 1925, 1975..etc..of course with a line drawn through each year of failed predictions of Armaggedon. As I walked past and glanced at them every year, I couldn't help but think..."what truly sad, pathetic dumbasses. They don't have a clue what they are talking about. Just wait til Armaggedon comes and they will see how wrong they are". Of course, year after year I thought this. Now that I am finally out and free of the borg, I look back and see that I was the pathetic dumbass! Perhaps in a way, those little glances I stole at their posters...(no good JW would even look at them, we just ignore them and pretend they're invisible).......stayed in the back of my mind, and when I finally broke free, I realized that they were right!

Now granted, I spent, God only knows, how many weekends trying to get people into my religion. I sure as hell aint gonna spend time trying to get them out. (unless it's my family, of course) At this point in my life, I don't give a rats ass about JW's. I have my life, they have theirs. But I was wondering if anyone else felt the same about those "apostates" they encountered at their conventions, and if they had any impact on you when you finally decided to break away? Would I have been able to break free if they weren't there..? You bet! But I finally had a little more appreciation for what they were saying.........

Gopher

The sign-waving folks -- I paid them little attention. Just like a good dub. I did take a quick peek at their sign to see if there was anything I thought worth reading, but I didn't think so then. I was amused when one sign said "No I am not an apostate!" I wondered what difference that might make, since all the sign-wavers were equally enemies of the truth (so I thought).

The influences to help me out were the Freeminds website by Randy Watters, the book Crisis of Conscience by Raymond Franz and the website you're now viewing.

But now I understand what the sign-wavers were trying to say at these conventions. And I have heard that some folks did actually call the phone number listed and were assisted to leave the JW's after learning more from the folks who took the phone calls.

Austrian

The only thing I looked forward to at the District Convention was leaving for lunch to the mall and "cruising" for some helpless ripe elders daughter

Princess

Hey Jimbob! How have you been?

I basically feel the same as you. Don't care about the JWs anymore. Same quick peek at the signs but have no intention of waving any myself.

Nice to see you posting. Hope you guys feel free enough to come to our apostafest this summer. I'm still working on a date. Looks like the first Saturday in August (2nd) or the 16th. I'll keep everyone posted here soon.

Rachel

jimbob

Hi Rachel. Yes, I haven't posted in a while. But I always check in here each week to see what the latest is. Guess I haven't had too much to add lately. Thanks for the update on the apostafest. I appreciate the invite. I will talk to the misses and see if she feels up to it yet. Take care.

Mulan

Hey Jimbob. I've been missing you, and wondering how goes the battle????

I used to read the signs the apostates held up. They would stand right by the entrance to the RV area, by the hotel at the Tacoma Dome. We parked there every year, and you couldn't really ignore them. The last two years I wanted to talk to them, but I did smile at them, and probably confused them to death.

Is your wife having any family troubles? I heard her brother in law is no longer an elder. Is that true, or just "vicious gossip"?

jimbob

Hi Marilyn. I've been around, just not posting much lately. I recently started a new job..(after getting my first college degree...YEAH!) So I've been busy. Anyway, not much is new here. I wanted to email you, but I don't have your address saved into my favorites for some reason. I don't know why it's not there. Anyway, as far as I know, my brother-in-law is still an elder. I can't imagine him stepping down, because it's such a position of prominence for him, and that's all he has in his pathetic life. But I don't talk to them at all. My wife still does speak with her family on occasion, but they pretty much leave us alone now. It bothered them a lot at first, but I think they are coming to grips with the fact that this is our decision and we ain't changing it. I'd share more if I was writing you directly in e-mail.

As far as my family goes, my mom is okay with our decision. We still talk every week and I go over there a couple of times a month. So no problems there. My wife wishes it was that easy with her family...but her family are the die-hard JW's. Anyway, that's about it. Rachel told us about the upcoming party this summer. I told her I'd talk to the wife and see. Take care.

jws

I remember being a kid of about 10 and somebody passing out mock-watchtowers at a convention. At the time, being a fan of parodies of all sorts, I wanted to get one, not really certain what it was, but my parents wouldn't let me near them. When my parents tried to explain who it was and what was in it, it did make me all the more curious. Being raised JW, I assumed we had the truth and that nobody could really offer any valid argument against us. So I was curious. What could they possibly have to say against us? Surely it could easily be refuted. Wouldn't it be good to get a copy so that I can study and respond to these things? Never did get a hold of one, but kept an eye out for them at every district covention I went to afterwards until I was about 22.

Also heard about Ray Franz when he left the Society, and was curious to read his book for the same reasons. Exactly what could he possibly have to say? But, being about 14 or 15 and not having online booksellers back then, there was no way I knew of to find or order it. When I was about 23, and found a way to get the book, I had no qualms about it. My curiosity about it had been brewing for years.

To sum it up, people like these that let me know that there even is another side of the coin and planted the seeds of curiosity in me, even if I never did get to read the literature they were passing out.

freedom96

For some reason, I never gave them any thoughts. Perhaps I thought about them about as much as when someone is picketing a place of employment. I always thought, don't they have something else better to do.

I for one, will never picket an assembly.

Sunspot

I usually had little kids I was trying to "herd" into the Convention, which didn't leave me much time to look at signs or much of anything else! I DO remember two instances in all those years of attending though...

One was a guy had an old beat-up station wagon with slogans painted all over it.....one was "The Watchtower held me captive 11 years" and it made me laugh. The WTS didn't HOLD anyone captive........or so I thought until I got out. NOW I understand what he meant, but no one else (worldly or a JW) would.

The other was the last one I went to (although I didn't know it at the time) where a group was shouting "You don't KNOW Jesus", and had scriptures (I don't recall which ones) on signs, and it puzzled me why they would say we didn't KNOW Jesus. Now I understand that as well.

Annie

Ahhh yes...DISTRICT CONVENTION TIME IS HERE.....

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