Your letter is not angry. It is direct, and it states it's purpose. I hope family and friends read it through before you become officially shunned.
Well done.
by eljefe 18 Replies latest jw friends
Your letter is not angry. It is direct, and it states it's purpose. I hope family and friends read it through before you become officially shunned.
Well done.
eljefe......WELCOME! JWD gets better all the time because of people like you!
Great first post - A DISASSOCIATION LETTER! my goodness...
Well, all the best on the 'rocky road ahead'.....The only thought I'll suggest elj is to perhaps include the culpability for the abuse problems goes right up beyond the COs to the very governing body which MUST take resposibility for ALL published jw material including the letter that instructs elders on how 'NOT' to deal with sexual abuse cases...
boa.....not da'd or df'd yet....
ps.....do you have to DA? Perhaps there are some loved ones you may be able to 'help' before such a major step....that is essentially what it comes down to for me.....however, if they want to df me for something in the future, i'll likely do a preemptive strike and da at that time. Just my .02
Welcome Eljefe. Quite the first post indeed. I like your letter, especially this part...
Once I realized that Jehovah?s Witnesses are not the true religion much less his earthly Organization, it all made sense. A religion without Jehovah?s backing is no different than any other. So, I am not disassociating myself from Jehovah, but from Jehovah?s Witnesses. The two are very separate despite what the Society wants us to think. My relationship with Jehovah is the same; my relationship with Jehovah?s Witnesses has changed.
Well done, and I wish you well.
xjw_b12 ( be one too )
Great letter. I only hpe that if you send it to your family and friends that they actually read if after the first sentence.
As Jehovah?s Witnesses, we are brow beaten to think of Jehovah and Jehovah?s Witnesses in the same thought. Once I realized that Jehovah?s Witnesses are not the true religion much less his earthly Organization, it all made sense. A religion without Jehovah?s backing is no different than any other. So, I am not disassociating myself from Jehovah, but from Jehovah?s Witnesses. The two are very separate despite what the Society wants us to think. My relationship with Jehovah is the same; my relationship with Jehovah?s Witnesses has changed.
Absolutely correct. Once you seperate the two, you realize that it's just another business masquerading as a religion that's no more special to God than any other.
I think your letter is GRAND!!! Too bad it can't be read by the others. Maybe it would save some and encourage them to put their faith to the test! WELCOME!
Strawberryfieldsforever
I like your letter too. I would bet that a lot of JWs do not know anything about JW molestation cases. I know I sure didn't until I faded away and saw a newspaper article about an attorney in Sacramento suing the JWs in various counties around CA for sexual abuse. I am sure that is just scratching the surface. And of course my mother had to put a positive spin on that one saying we don't know all the facts. Oh brother.
I also like the idea of sending the letter to family, friends, and the elders simultaneously. If you do get feedback from friends, please share it if you feel inclined to do so. Maybe your letter will trigger others who have similar feelings to get out (hey one can be hopeful - right?)
Purza
Welcome elj...
Your Disassociation is well written. Easy to follow
Good job.
sincerely
Special K
Thanks to everyone who read my letter and commented on it. I appreciate the kind words. Now, I wish my parents, family, and friends could do the same.
It has been really difficult for me the past few months. In essence, I lost all of my friends and family. I realized that my friends were only my friends because I was a JW. Worse than that, I found out that my family was only my family because I was a JW.
LittleToe, you are right. I need to re-word the part about my family. What about something like this:
I would have disassociated myself much sooner if it were not for being permanently separated from my family. I knew that the Society?s position on ?apostates? forbade virtually all contact with any Jehovah?s Witness, including their family. My family would follow these guidelines and shun me. I decided to start to leave about 2 years ago. Yet, I chose to give Jehovah?s Witnesses a second look as I knew the repercussions of leaving were to never see my family again. I knew I would never see my nephew and nieces grow. However, this is not reason enough to stay a Witness. And now I will have to say my last goodbye to them.
Purza, my family was directly affected by an abuser. Yet, my family has taken the "wait on Jehovah", "JW's are imperfect", and "you expect a perfect organzation" stance on everything. No matter how I reason on it, they don't seem to agree that JW abuse is business as usual.
Regarding the decision to DA instead of fade away, I have a couple of reasons for doing that. One is in line with the 'get out of her' and I would be completely out. Another reason is so that my family won't bug about going to meetings, etc. Finally, it was eating me up to live a lie. I had no desire to be JW, but went through the motions out of habit.
Well done.
Welcome to freedom.
CZAR