Posts by Phaedra

LOL, it is one of the best red pill books, but contains a very kryptonite-like substance that JWs, who have not picked up the book themselves out of their own will and curiosity, that will immediately react with their cognitive dissonance with flashbacks of WT illustrations showing where that apostate-like material should be properly filed, in the nearest receptical.

I read COC and was forevever changed. And I had to get it the "long way around" before it was available online as a PDF... I had to request and check it out from the library. And yes, it felt like forbidden fruit that I dare bring into my home with a believing spouse, but I devoured that book in the privacy of my own reading room. When finished, I KNEW the JWs were a sham and I could never go back.

It's natural to want to share such enlightening stuff with loved ones ~ JWs trapped in... but it's a delicate issue of trust.

When I thought I KNEW my husband would trip and gape over the same info I read, and be ready to join me hand in hand on our mutual exit into the sunset, I was dismayed that he narily got a paragraph in before declaring the "twisted things" of apostates as he lopped the book back in my direction.

A close mind snaps shut like an iron gate if it's not ready to be opened.

Well-written posts printed out on neutral paper and friendly links to ambiguous web pages with good articles likewise tripped the iron gate. Over the span of several years I finally accepted that good intentions weren't enough to keep that iron gate from snapping shut.

Many battles, large and small, have been fought on our home turf about JWs, their beliefs, failed predictions, and control over people's minds and souls. Somehow we declared a truce and decided "going there" was detrimental to our relationship. We live and let live (of course, he has no qualms about letting me know I'm wrong, although he has his own reservations).

I still have a copy of COC on my shelf. And I believe he will never touch it. I've learned it's not for me to force him to, although I really, really, really, wish he would just approach it with an open mind.

Phae

16

I had a Tarot card reading

by LisaRose in

jw
friends

so, i am in washinton state visiting my son and his family and we went to a concert that had a fortune tellers booth, actually a gypsy wagon.

i decided to do something no jw would ever do, have a tarot card reading.

i wasn't really expecting anything, as i don't believe they are connected with the satan, but i don't believe they can actually read your future either.

Phaedra

handling negative thoughts that come up and things like that. I am not saying I believe in it, but I certainly got my $5 worth, it was certainly better advise than I ever got from an elder.

Lisa,

How interesting! $5 for a little fun is worth it.

I'm interested in hearing more about the advice she gave about handling negative thoughts. I can sure use some right now. Are you up to sharing?

Phae

42

My Elderette returns for a final Bible Study session, after I avoided her for 2 months (very long post)

by Faithful Witness in

some of this will be repeat, since it's been a little while since i posted about my "bible study" sessions with miss k, my elderette.

we are talking about the name of jehovah.

thanks for talking with us today.

Phaedra

Diana paused and looked at her, and said, "Noooo... I am here, because I think you are lost, and I wanted to try to win YOU over to the Lord."

LOL ~ what a lead balloon moment!

Thanks for sharing the wrap-up session. I can see where you're both coming from.

This scenario reminds me of that quote that goes something like, "Two convinced of their own arguments won't be swayed by the other."

If I were to be Christian, I think BA is the way to go over being a JW.

Hopefully it was worth your time and effort to engage Miss K all this time.

Interesting reading!

Phae

42

God listens and RESPONDS to your prayer if you know how to log on to Him! Here is the proof.

by exWTslave in

all my family members and friends (that include some elders) advised me to divorce my wife whose only joy was to pick up fight with me for everything i do, except my grand-mother who said: when you married her, you looked for only her good pointher regular pioneering despite having an opposing family.

for being good, you will ultimately reap something far better through her.

stick on to her.

Phaedra

Four months back, I met a former CO (Ex JW) who is now a motivational speaker to the corporate employees. He helped me with some meditation tips which were like a help to log on to God, and said: “Try this,...

Hi exWTslave,

Is there a particular program the motivational speaker uses with corporate employees? I'm interested in learning more.

Phae

24

Bethel experiences sound like a prison sentence.Why even go?

by goingthruthemotions in

when i read about bethel experiences my mind go to the show locked up raw!.

why would someone subject themselves to this without commeting a crime.. the wife and i went to see bethel in broklyn a few years ago and it was unlike anything i expected.

very cold.. went the bosert hotel and was talking to a brother there and asked how long he had been there, he said 25 years...i asked how old he was.

Phaedra

Oh, and forget any aspirations of going to Bethel of you're a pat lowly sister, unless you marry a man with a highly-sought skill for recruitment.

.... and then if a baby comes, zapp! you're both out.

Phae

24

Bethel experiences sound like a prison sentence.Why even go?

by goingthruthemotions in

when i read about bethel experiences my mind go to the show locked up raw!.

why would someone subject themselves to this without commeting a crime.. the wife and i went to see bethel in broklyn a few years ago and it was unlike anything i expected.

very cold.. went the bosert hotel and was talking to a brother there and asked how long he had been there, he said 25 years...i asked how old he was.

Phaedra

It's amazing how JWs frame "Going to Bethel" as some grand privilege ... when in reality it's not much different than someone selling their possessions and joining a cult while living at the compound giving away their time, energy, and youth in return for poverty, highly-structured activities, and living in a closed-group environment.

The number of Bethelites who've burned out and left and their harrowing accounts while there pretty much affirm this. Others who hang in there for years (I know of a particular couple who have been there since the late-80s) hoping for the end to come are in for a rude awakening when they will eventually be downsized out with the best years of their lives gone and nothing to show for it.

If all JWs had to leave their lives and live in a closed community like Bethel, there'd be no denying they are a cult. Problem is, they need the working class funds to feed the machine... which is why congregations are convenient means of support.

Phae

27

Volunteering.

by Jeannette in

since i left the watchtower a couple of years ago, i started volunteering 3 hours a week at a wecare center.

it's like goodwill.

well, i've been there approximately 9 months, and yesterday i received a lovely thank you card from them.

Phaedra

Volunteering for a worthy cause, especially when you are authentically invested and can see the fruits of your labor, is a soul-satisfying activity.

In stark contrast to the endless hours of door-knocking volunteering we did as JWs that left us ambivalent, stressed, and depleted.

Good for you, Jeanette!

Phae

75

JWs getting "Footloose" at the Kingdom Hall

by AndDontCallMeShirley in

i hope no one here get's injured when they see this and their jaw hits the floor:.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=689701664435095&set=vb.100001858044479&type=2&theater.

Phaedra

just wow

43

Could it be that Jehovah is punishing me for leaving his religion?

by Julia Orwell in

jw
friends

i know it's a completely absurd thing to say, but something happened to me today that triggered the old cult reaction.

my mind instantly lapsed back into that of a jw and for a split second i thought that because i wasn't doing jehovah things that jehovah's blessing had been removed from me and this is why my life seems to be running into so many dead-ends.

as a jw i attributed anything good happening to me to being the result of my being a good jw and dutifully doing everything the borg teaches.

Phaedra

Well, today I lost that cool job I got back in May and wrote about it.

Julia,

Aww, that job sounded like a lot of fun, too. Did you say it was at an amusement park?

One of my dream jobs is to be a dress-up character at Disney World. I'd love to be the source of many smiles.

You said:

and can't work on a theme park ride because I made a mistake

Did something happen while you were operating a ride? A safety thing? Or something more mundane?

Phae