Welcome Ariell, I think many people stay within a comfortable circle of religious beliefs mainly because the human mind seems to have a propensity for anthropomorphic deities. This should come as no surprise as the minds cherished and beloved, human-like, person gods -- are created in it's own image. They are easy to relate to. No need for the deep pondering and meditation often required to step into unknown territory. Plus, there is an intense amount of fear and guilt often built into the worship of the Christian-type god. So it seems not out of the ordinary for people to often continue down a similar religious path for fear of some form of severe punishment. I agree with Francois in that your statement "because if this isn't the truth than nothing is" shows that some sincere research into other ways may be in order. In my view a group of kindergartners could easily come up with innate wisdom far closer to the "truth". You said Ariell "if I were to ever leave". Does this mean you are still in? JamesT (edited because your average kindergartner can spell better than I can)
Explain this to me
by Ariell 24 Replies latest jw friends
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jgnat
Ariell, welcome to the forum. I guess I am one of the "warped" Christians you talked about. One of my core beliefs comes from the Bible,
Mar 12:30
and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength.Mar 12:31
The second is this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.Ariell, how does following this bible instruction make me warped?
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caligirl
Welcome Ariell! You raise some interesting questions, although I am of the opinion that you need to read a little more before making broad statements about what you feel people here believe. I think that you will also find once you read more in depth, that if people are using the name Jehovah, many are referring to specific things they were taught during their time as witnesses (i.e " We were taught that Jehovah will destroy any one who is not a witness at armageddon") and simply recounting an experience the way they heard it stated from the platform, or in a publication and not meaning to imply that they still use it as part of their vocabulary or hold that belief any longer.
As for myself, I do not feel that I hold any witness beliefs nor do I ever refer to God as Jehovah any more in my personal life - I am in fact, very as uncomfortable using that name as I once was referring to Him as God. I spent several years clearing my head of what I had been taught. I certainly felt for a while that being a witness had destroyed any measure of faith I might have had. Fortunately, this was not the case and my faith in God and Jesus has emerged from the ashes created by my upbringing. The difference is that my faith is now firmly grounded in the bible, where it belongs, rather than in what I am told by men who had and have no right to step in and claim that they are the mediator between God and man, rather than Jesus as the bible clearly says.
When I left the witnesses ( I just stopped going) I knew that I did not believe that the witnesses have it right, but that is all I knew. I still do not belong to any specific church and don't know if I ever will, but I have attended some non-denominational services from which I gained more comfort and inner peace than I ever did in 24 years of being a witness and attending multiple meetings and knocking on doors.
Try reading non-watchtower published information on religion, and research the witnesses in depth as well. It may surprise you, and even induce a few panic attacks along the way because you have been taught that it is so wrong to research on your own and read other publications. But you will, if you read with an open mind and are honest with yourself, discover without a doubt that the witness literature and checkered history contains every bit as much, if not more, hipocracy than they have represented other religions suffer from.
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pr_capone
Ariell - I was a dub for 15 years and a Reg Pioneer for 2. I dont even believe in god plays any active part in our lives anymore and I offen refer to him as fucker. (apologies to those who believe in god... no offence intended, just showing how far away from JW beliefs I am now) I am now in the military as well. I think I am about as far away from who I was as a JW as one can get. Hope that helps in clearing up your thoughts on how most if not all believe here.
Kansas District Overbeer
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freein89
Welcome Ariell from a fellow newbie,
I think that if you look carefully you may see that many of the posts here refering to Jehovah are using the term in jest. Many of us are agnostic or athiest in the wake of our unfortunate lives as JW's. We use the various terms, titles and JWisms as a sort of bonding agent, sort of like super glue, it gives us a sense of being attached to something-each other for example, in the wake of the horrific knowledge that for many of us our previous lives were built on lies-that is the lies fostered and touted by the WBTS. At this point you may be too frightened to contemplate that you are more one of us than one of them. Don't be scared, read on with an open mind and you will find what you seek. You are here for a reason my dear.