by JH 30 Replies latest jw friends
Attending the church I go to now vs going to a kingdom hall...hm I'd pick my church over a kingdom hall everytime. I dont miss anything about going to the hall, not a thing. The church I go to is fun, enjoyable, educational, spiritual, loving, and has a rockin band...so much better than the canned phoney music of the hall. ew
Josie
defd said:
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I can imagine that is what alot of people said about Noah and his family. "I am glad I am not inside with them and all those stinky animals!"
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And I can imagine this is what many people said about Sodommites: "I am glad I am not inside with those pederasts, awaiting destruction by God the Almighty for their sins, their arrogance, their duplicity."
defd, If you want to use a stupid "Bumper Sticker Christian" analogy, be prepared to receive, as well as give.
BTW, you should be careful you don't get into trouble with the Society: you are confirming the secret that Watchtower does NOT want anyone to know: they (JWs) are an elitist group that thinks that they alone, like Noah and his family, will survive armageddon. It's a secret because, if you go to the jw-media.org website, and look at the F.A.Q., they soft-peddle and back-peddle their exclusivity stance, and imply that they have a much more open belief. Of course, if anyone trained in WTS DoubleSpeak reads the F.A.Q., they will see that nothing has changed and the WTS still thinks that everyone in the world that is not a JW is DoublePlusUnGood and will be destroyed (just like everyone outside the Ark, to use your own above-posted analogy).
So, in order to prevent yourself from getting in trouble by WTS, don't go around telling the world the truth about The Truth. Like many other groups (Scientologist, Branch Davidians, Mormons, Hare Krishnas, etc immediately spring to mind) Doctrine must be taught to new members in a controlled environment, otherwise it will "confuse newly interested persons". Your post above, by factually and correctly relating JW doctrine, is potentially "confusing newly interested persons" because they are not ready to understand that JWs are an exclusivist group. Shame on you. Based on my experiences in doing pretty much the same thing, expect a letter from WTS legal shortly.
JH, I think your question is a rhetorical one... ?
Let's just say...
For a number of months before I left (when I was still very deeply "in" and would have slapped anyone who suggested I would ever be otherwise), I developed chronic joint pain and fatigue. Went to three doctors who didn't want to call it fibromyalgia/chronic fatigue, though a friend of my mother's has it and shared many of the symptoms I had. I would often be at work and could barely sit up straight because of the hip pain, but if I stood for any length of time I'd get back and knee pain. I'd often go home and either collapse in an exhausted sleep (which was never refreshing) or have to lay flat the whole evening. It was really starting to kick my butt.
A week or so after I got "out", the pain and fatigued disappeared. I haven't had a recurrence since.
Could be coincidence...
Dfed, will the ones who died in the flood get a resurrection, since no sacrifice had been paid for their souls and they couldn't have faith in Christ? Did everyone before Christ answer to God on their own righteousness or will they all get a ressurrection? When will the death and sacrifice of Christ go into effect to take away Adam's sin? So far it has made no difference in the death caused by Adam's sin.
The bible doesn't make much sense to me, neither does God's anger when it flairs up and he goes out and kills a bunch of people. Maybe we WERE made in his image or he was made in our image, who knows. Have fun with your faith.
Ken P.
Stress? The problem with groups that have an Apocalyptic focus is that they look for balanced members. The fact is, that living with the impending doom causes a person to become unbalanced. Rational society lives for living. Apocalyptic groups live for dying, or at least they live for a monumental life disruption, a disruption that disables every element of their life.
Many Jehovah's Witnesses secretly don't expect to survive Armageddon. This thought unbalances them and often surfaces as depressions and neurotic illnesses. The ones who do expect to survive know their lives will be permanently changed. Death will permeate the air. Much of the odor of death will be the rotting flesh of their family and neighbors. Their homes may not survive the destruction according to their literature. If their homes do survive, they will be without electricity, cooking and heating gas, water, sewer, and food. They won't have gas for their cars, no telephones, no entertainment and they may be alone. These beliefs unbalance them and often surface as anxiety, anger, and addictions.
Willing Witnesses like the regimen of service, meetings, and conventions. They like the pyramid hierarchy arrangement and they like the legal approach to living. They like being relieved of responsibility to learn and understand and they like being told what to believe and what to do. Changes in doctrine and past error doesn't bother them since they are not associates because of the doctrines. They associate for the social activity and for the company. Truth, right, and reason don't matter. It's something they can do that gives them a short time reward and a long term promise.
Many Jehovah's Witnesses secretly don't expect to survive Armageddon.
That was me. I didn't expect to survive armageddon. In many ways I didn't want to. I was disillusioned by the type of people I met in the organization, and found it depressing to imagine a world filled with people like that.
W
is jehovah a product of the WTS? if yes, then yes i had stress because of them.
if it is not, then it was "god" causing the stress.
TS
| Its the pressure of it all that gets me. You are only accepted into the hive based upon your hours, your placements, your comments and your willingness to submit. I have elders in my hall who avoid me like the plague. One in particular completely avoids me, he and his whole household. And when they try to get you involved, there are probing questions, hints to do more, no real help. Just self-righteous goading. I was out in service a couple of weeks ago, and the brother I was with blew his head gasket on his car. $900 job. I invited him and his wife over for dinner that night. This is the same brother, who breaks my balls for missing meetings for work, and for skipping out on service............... It doesnt matter how hard you try to be a good person, a loving person, if you are not doing your part for the 'slave', you are nothing more than fodder. Its the conditional love that truly makes me sad and stressed. |
Treadmill , treadmill. treadmill... Sunday? conduct Watchtower , Monday? prepare for Tuesday. Tuesday? Group Study. Wednesday? prepare item for Thursday. Thursday ? Meeting . Friday ? catch up with Secretarial work ... then allow for public talks, shepherding calls , field ministry , elders meetings , special meetings callled by the C/o , etc etc
Then try and fit in a normal full time job, a marriage and a home to care for ..... Stress ? what stress????????
[ BTW , it would all have been worth it and a small price to pay, IF ONLY IT HAD BEEN TRUE]
