Posts by Onager

4

I need to know what is truth?

by Chook in

is it a perception only.

Onager

Truth is rare.

What we have is "Working hypotheses", which we call truth until reality forces us to change.

12

Going To A Christening Next Week

by pale.emperor in

so my girlfriends, friend has invited me to her little boy's christening.

6 months ago if you'd asked me this i'd have recoiled in horror.

in a catholic church?!!!

I've not been to a Catholic event, but I have been to a High Anglican wedding. It's interesting to observe but, of course, the main benefit is being a part of your social group and not an outsider. That's what being a JW always denied you, being part of society.

44

The Great October 2016 Invite to the Sunday Meeting campaign ...

by freddo in

jw
friends

well how's it going round your way?

massive increase of interested ones?

did you even know it was supposed to be happening?

Onager

I just had Sunday lunch at my JW parents house. My JW brother was there too and I even went for a walk in the park after with my JW nephew and NONE of them said a thing about coming to the meeting.

If they truly believed then wouldn't they be dragging me to the meeting? This makes me think that they know something's wrong but that fear or inertia is keeping them in.

33

If I Became a JW, Could I Have My Cat on Paradise Earth?

by Cold Steel in

would i?

i wouldn't mind if he slept through eternity (he sleeps most of the time anyway).

i'd just like to be able to move him around occasionally.

Onager

Speaking as a dog lover I have to say that this thread is full of so much crazy that I feel the urge to chase it across the yard and up a tree barking furiously all the while.

50

Elder asking for help

by untruth in

this is my first time posting on here so i’m not sure where to start.

i’m trying to keep it as short as possible since i could expand much more.

i’ve been in the process of waking up in the last year and a half.

Onager

Hi Untruth and welcome! You've woken up but your wife hasn't so is there any reason why you can't take your foot off the gas and sloooow down?

I know that the drive to convince someone you love who you think has wrong beliefs is incredibly strong (keeps me awake at night sometimes), but what really is the rush?

Have you read Combatting Cult Mind Control by Steve Hassan? I found it's methods of gradually helping people useful. It can take a long time, years even, but the risk of rushing things is that you'll push the person even further in and lose them entirely.

Good luck!

Matt

13

Community Outside of a Religious Setting

by What Now? in

jw
friends

this is the one thing that i have struggled with since leaving the organization.

i recognize the need and value of belonging somewhere, being a part of something, showing up weekly to a community where me and my husband and children are loved and utilized and incorporated and cared for.

a place where are my kids qualities are nurtured and encouraged , and then reigned in and developed when needed.

Onager

Move to a small village? They tend to be tightly knit communities. We lived in a village in the Cotswolds for a year. Village fetes, weekly pub quizzes, everyone into everyone else's business... I thought it was great, but it drove the wife mad. YMMV.

18

Singing

by skimthesurface in

jw
friends

despite not wanting to be a jw anymore and not being at meetings for a few months, still have k. songs coming into my head- both from old and new song books - usually whilst working.

anyone else?

how does it make you feel?.

Onager

The tunes were pretty much out of my head, or so I thought, until I started singing nonsense, made up lullaby's to my baby. You know, you start with twinkle twinkle little star and then riff off randomly until suddenly you realise you're singing about dinosaurs and boobies living in peace, their helmets bright against the sky, bid iguanas and pterodactyls fly.

It bothered me a bit at first, but as he's never going to see the inside of a Kingdom Hall I don't think it's a big issue.

13

Facial Hair?

by HereIgo in

now what was the deal with this one?

my cong strictly enforced the facial hair unwritten rule.

alot of bros starting growing soul patches, then the co cracked down on that too, no more, must be clean shaven, especially ms and elders.

Onager

Word on the street is that it started during the Rutherford takeover of the organisation. Rutherford was clean shaven but old Charles T. had a beaut of a beard and a lot of the brothers also had beards. In order to make a clean break with the old guard the Judge banned beards.

Wait, instead of rambling on in my own idiosyncratic way, here's the actual quote I'm thinking of from JWFacts.com:

However, the tide against beards had already started with Rutherford, Watchtower’s second leader. Rutherford’s clean-shaven appearance and imposition upon other brothers was a way to distance the religion from Russell’s leadership. Many did not accept Rutherford as Watchtower's rightful second leader, and Rutherford took insult with brothers sporting beards in imitation of Russell. This is explained in the book 30 Years a Watchtower Slave, recounting an experience from 1925.

“An amusing incident took place at the time of the Judge's visit. The Director of our German branch, as had many before him, had grown a large beard, patterned after Charles T. Russell`s beard. The Judge did not want anything at all to remain which might remind him of Russell - not even the cultivation of a beard. So, sitting at the table for dinner one night within my earshot, the Director asked the Judge for one more large rotary press. The Judge said nothing for a while, merely ate. So, suddenly he looked up, his eyes pinned severely on the Director`s huge beard and said, “I will buy you the press if you take that thing off,” pointing to the beard. It surely shocked the Director`s sensibilities, but he meekly heeded the warning and soon shamefacedly appeared minus the beard.” 30 Years a Watchtower Slave Schnell pp.51-52

98

Steve Hassan. Can some one verify if this is true.

by joe134cd in

https://culteducation.com/group/1289-general-information/8227-disclaimer-regarding-steve-hassan.html.

Onager

I'm a big fan of Cesar Millan, he of "The Dog Whisperer" TV show (bear with me, I have a point). I watched his TV shows avidly even before I owned a dog myself, so when I finally got a puppy I thought I'd check out how much it would cost to have a training session with the great man.

Admittedly I live in the UK, so this was just a pipe dream as I definitely wouldn't be able to afford to fly him over from the US, but I looked up his fees just for fun.

For a 5 day course with up to 45 other people on the course with you, you will pay.... $5,950 for one human and one dog.

That's right, if the course is full then Cesar will make $267,750 in a 5 day course. He runs one course a month by the looks of things on his website.

This is dog training, not saving a loved one from a lifetime of misery in a cult! I still don't think the cost is excessive though. You're getting access to an expert in the field who is also a celebrity and therefore is going to be in great demand. If I had the opportunity I'd pay that money happily!

Steve Hassan is a successful author, a celebrity. If you want his internationally renowned services then you have to pay that sort of money.

58

What's The First "Worldly" Thing You Did When You Exited The Cult?

by pale.emperor in

when you finally and officially exited the cult, whether it be by disfellowshipping, disassociating or fading - what was the first things you did that are considered "worldly"?.

for me, it was like crash landing on another planet that looked like earth but was completely different to the earth i knew.

i wanted to learn everything that i thought i already knew.. first things i did:.

Onager

I smoked... have now stopped

I drank a LOT. have now stopped.

Took loads of mind bending drugs. have now stopped.

Is this because I'm more mature now and disapprove of such things? Hell no! I had a kid!

Just not poss. With said kid,

In twenty years time though, when he's moved out, I'm going to go buck wild!