The impact and consequences of being born into the jehovahs witness cult.

by RayoFlight2014 74 Replies latest jw experiences

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  RayoFlight2014

  Hi Blondie,

  You are another who is a wealth of information.

  Your commentary is a valuable asset here.

  Your honesty is endearing and I value your opinion.

  Even though my parents were and are both witnesses, we were still affected by the congregation cliques; weren't quite good enough for the KH crowd either.

  There were some JW kids at my school too and you would think we would be in close association but...nope.

  Hugs to you for your past negative experience, but I can see you've come out the other side all the more wiser.
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  Finkelstein

  Its just the inherent nature of organized religions themselves and they have variations of levels of control over its members.
  

  As in you must accept all social behavioral instructions and all construed doctrines handed out without any open scrutiny and criticism or be duly ostracized and punished if you do.

  Religion is very much an endeavoring obtainment of power and control over others, mostly procured through the propagation of fear and ignorance.
  
• 

  RayoFlight2014

  Fink,

  What, in your opinion do you think the average person like myself could do to help counter the religious control over not only our loved ones but anyone we have empathy for?

  I know sometimes gentle mockery can make people think.

  And I appreciate there's no silver bullet but surely we can chip away with something sincere and kindly.
• 

  Simon

  People rarely wake up because of facts and logic, just as they rarely become witnesses because it makes sense.

  Unless and until something happens to shake their world and personally impact them and show them that the WTS world isn't the loving paradise they believe, it's hard to wake people up.

  What you can do is plant innocuous looking seeds, snippets of information that when they do start to question things they can use to join the dots and piece things together.

  Also, I think we make a mistake blaming the WTS for so much. That makes us their enemy and pushes them further away. It also absolves them of their personal responsibility - they are responsible for shunning for instance, why go along with the idea that they "have to because the WTS says to". That just makes it easier for them to do.
• 

  Finkelstein

  You could put out some information in a respective manner to why you stopped being involved with the JWS, such as the established doctrines made by the WTS of setting a time of Christ's return and the end times "This Generation " etc. , something that was notably commercialized by the WTS.
  

  Jesus admonished this activity and scolded ones who would dare to set a time upon god's own sacred time.

  He said that no one knows of the time not even he.

  So from that teaching, the activity by the WTS has been inherently sinful and apostate to the written word.

  Stuff like that
  
• 

  blondie

  @Finkelstein,

  The WTS has done a dance around and says that Jesus has known when the GT will start since 1914 maybe

  QFR 1975

  https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1975930?q=jesus+knows+time&p=sen#h=2
  

  Does Jesus Christ know when the “great tribulation” will begin?
  

  He may, but we cannot say definitely that he does. (but then---)

  Jesus foretold a “great tribulation” that will wipe out the wickedness we see around us. As to the time for this destruction, Jesus said: “Concerning that day and hour nobody knows, neither the angels of the heavens nor the Son, but only the Father.”​—Matt. 24:3,21, 36-42.

  Hence, when he was on earth as God’s king-designate, Jesus Christ did not know the set date for the beginning of the “great tribulation.” He died and was raised to heavenly life at the right hand of God, awaiting the granting of full authority to rule and to ‘dash to pieces’ the nations. (Ps. 110:1; 2:6-9) Fulfillment of Bible prophecy indicates that he received that authority in 1914 C.E.; his “presence” began then. Ours, thus, is the generation to experience the “great tribulation.” (Matt. 24:34; Rev. 11:15-18) Jesus also knows that, just as he knows how far along we are in human history since the creation of Adam and Eve. (but Satan does too since he was at the creation of Adam and Eve per the WTS)

  What is Jesus now doing? Revelation 6:1-8 shows that in 1914 C.E. he “went forth conquering and to complete his conquest.” Mankind’s wars, food shortages and pestilences prove that this is the time when he is moving toward the completion of his conquest.

  Jesus will lead the heavenly armies in the “great tribulation.” We are now deep into the period known as the time of the end, so God may already have made known to Christ the full battle strategy and schedule. But if Jesus has not yet learned the “day and hour” to “complete his conquest,” he soon will learn it.

  WT 2016

  https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2016527#h=12:0-12:894
  

  But Christ has been empowered in heaven to wage war against Satan’s world. (Rev. 19:11-16) Thus, it is reasonable to conclude that Jesus now knows when Armageddon will occur. We, however, do not know. It is imperative that we stay watchful until the tribulation occurs.
  
• 

  RayoFlight2014

  Thank you my friends for your insightful (spelt it correctly this time) replies, I'm a bit time poor this morning so I'll have to wait until after work to reply.

  I just want you all to know that your words are not wasted on me. I'm listening and contemplating.

  Cheers,

  Regards, RayoFlight2014.
• 

  Finkelstein

  Fulfillment of Bible prophecy indicates that he received that authority in 1914 C.E.

  The WTS made up set time(s) (1874 , 1914 , 1925 etc.) by calculating 2520 years after October 607 BC, So the WTS went against Jesus's instructions in preaching the New Kingdom to come, an act of apostasy, Of course one would have to faithfully take in the words of Jesus whole heatedly to accept that.

  This is the reason by the way why the many other Christian based faiths have never set a time as how the WTS did, but then again the WTS is publishing house trying to attract attention to the literature it produces.
  
• 

  Finkelstein

  Just to back step to what Simon said ...

  People rarely wake up because of facts and logic, just as they rarely become witnesses because it makes sense.

  People who start to study the bible with JWS are getting indoctrinated with the WTS own theology albeit many times full of apostasy, this theological imprint gets deeply implanted into people consciousness, unless they themselves are willing to take the proverbial box off their heads and look at other information.
  
• 

  RayoFlight2014

  People rarely wake up because of facts and logic, just as they rarely become witnesses because it makes sense.

  I was thinking that the "Right Hearted Ones" were attracted to the witnesses because they provided a watchtower version of "facts and logic" and that made "sense" to them.

  Hence if they could be reasoned into it surely they could be reasoned out of the cult.

  I'm probably wrong, perhaps I've even talked myself out of it as I'm thinking it through... But there it is.

  Unless and until something happens to shake their world and personally impact them and show them that the WTS world isn't the loving paradise they believe, it's hard to wake people up.

  And I guess the question should be asked....should we wake them?

  Especially if their mental stability is reliant on the illusion and the hopes that false promise provides.

  Also, I think we make a mistake blaming the WTS for so much.

  Agreed, it does nothing to help if we enable them to excuse their inhumane behavior by giving them opportunity to say "watchtower ordered me to do it".