If it were really about teaching/learning about Jehovah you'd be absolutely right. It's a social club in which everyone submits to a few hours of uncomfortable and boring lecturing in order to have common ground.
OneEyedJoe
JoinedPosts by OneEyedJoe
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28
No Reason For JWs To Go To The MIdweek Meeting (CLAM)
by JW_Rogue ineverything that is done at the midweek meeting can now be done at home.
the videos are online, the first talk is scripted, the bible highlights are scripted.
you could get the same experience by just reading and watching the material from your tablet.
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Good news to Judgement message?
by punkofnice ini noticed in the 'bunker video(tm)' from the latest a$$emb£y/con-vention whatever it's called, that the patronising bloke with the greasy hair, said that the great tribulation(tm) started after their message changed from good news to judgement (i think he did, anyway).. does the watchtower corporation really think that anyone listens to their propaganda?.
do they really think they are able to stand behind a trolley and give a message of judgement?.
how do they think the message will change?.
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OneEyedJoe
I could be wrong but I don't think they have any intention of changing the message. I think they like to just give little tidbits of details about what the GT will be like (and done in a way that requires no citing of scriptures) so that the members will get excited and it will make things seem more real to them. A specific future threat creates more fear than a vague one.
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"how awful it must be to be dying as an apostate!"
by purrpurr ini heard today about a former jw/now apostate who is dying in hospital.
this information was accompanied by the comment of "wouldn't be awful to be lying there in hospital,dying as an apostate!
knowing that you have no hope!?
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OneEyedJoe
I'd rather die an apostate than live as a JW.
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The best way for a witness to wake up, is to simply read the societies own older publications!
by stuckinarut2 inonce again the society is on a push to scare witnesses away from doing any research, or "stumbling" upon any "apostate" material (from workmates, neighbors, or online).
however, the most enlightening, mind blowing and eye opening things are found simple by reading the early publications themselves!.
read how ct russel, (the supposed channel god was using) had the most far fetched and laughable ideas, such as obtaining pivotal dates by measuring the pyramids of egypt!...
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OneEyedJoe
What did it for me was actually reading stuff they've quoted in the original context. That doesn't even require sourcing hard-to-find old publications, and in many cases they actually (brazenly!) cited the source, practically daring you to fact-check.
Honestly, I don't know if reading CTR's stuff would've actually woken me up. It's all so obviously insane and idiotic that I would probably have convinced myself that an apostate wrote it and was trying to pass it off as having been written by CTR. Since it's so old, it would be difficult to verify authenticity (at least to the satisfaction of a paranoid, indoctrinated cult member) so it would be easy for the indoctrinated mind to dismiss.
Everybody's different...what does it for one person won't even make the next guy flinch.
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Need some help: Existential crisis in full swing
by Freeandclear inso is anyone else having an existential crisis after becoming fully awake?
let me explain.
about 2 years ago i read coc, still believed and tried to get back in da troof.
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OneEyedJoe
It can be tricky, can't it? I tend to agree with most everything you've said about religion - mostly a way to make the weak feel somehow empowered, those without control to feel things are being controlled. It has been accurately described as the opium of the people. So what is one to do when one kicks the opium habit?
I was lucky, my mind has the tendency to wander and I always spent a lot of time (even while in the cult, and I suspect this was a big part of my eventual departure from it) contemplating hypotheticals - including things like "if god doesn't exist is there still any value to morality" or "if there's no afterlife, is life worth living." Things like that. So by the time that I actually realized I was an atheist, I'd already pretty much come to terms with all that entails.
One thing in your post stood out - the characterization of life as pain punctuated by happiness. I think a lot of life is about your outlook. If you really think your life is mostly pain, then you need to start looking at the reasons why and addressing them as best you can. Maybe your life does suck, but maybe it's just that you're focusing on the wrong things. If, as you pointed out, all there really is to this life is trying to enjoy it and not be too much of a dick to everyone else, then there's no time like the present to start trying to make your life look like you want it to. Also, while you're taking action to that end, you'll have less time to ponder the meaning of it all which would probably be beneficial for you at the moment.
I also would like to state that I wholly reject the notion that the brevity of life makes it somehow not worthwhile at all. When I buy a brand new car that I optioned just the way I wanted it and I'm inhaling that new car smell, I know somewhere in my mind that this car will one day be in a junkyard crushed and shredded for recycling. Should I not have bought the car? Is the car completely valueless because of that knowledge? Chicks love it when you give them flowers, even though they will be in the trash in a few days. I can enjoy a meal even though I won't be eating forever. Brevity may limit the value that something has (i.e. a car that will die tomorrow is worth less than one that will last 10 years) but it doesn't make things completely valueless.
Regarding the notion of "nothing you do matters, so what's the point?" - this is largely up to you. IMO we all have the freedom to define the meaning of our lives. You don't have to pick one thing. You can devote your life to a family, to having new experiences, to developing some skill or talent, to learning new things, or any combination of any number of things. You don't have to look to anyone else to tell you the meaning of your life. If the purpose you chose isn't doing the trick, pick something else. Just keep going as long as it's fun, then when it stops being fun figure out why and find a way to make life fun again.
Also, I would like to point out that a little bit of nihilism can actually make life a lot easier. When you screw something up, just remember that nothing really matters anyway. When you get something right, maybe it doesn't matter but it still makes you feel good, so who cares if it doesn't matter?
I would definitely encourage you to try to ease off the drinking and find some hobbies or something that keep you interested. Remember that there's no rush, and you don't have to figure out this existential stuff right now, and it's probably not super helpful if that's what you devote all your time to. Find some things to put some energy towards and you may find that the existential crisis resolves itself as you realize that every day is worth living on its own merits.
And for some levity:
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I got a new JW tract on my front door called "Who really controls the world?"
by Iamallcool inhave you received the same thing on your door?
i wish that i am still at the gated community where i lived there for more than 6 years, i received zero jw garbage!
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OneEyedJoe
Well I can't find a picture of the old one, but it looked pretty similar. Might've been called "Who really rules the world." Same gist.
The one you got was released at the 2014 convention with, I think, 4 other tracts. They're the same ol' crap, though.
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I got a new JW tract on my front door called "Who really controls the world?"
by Iamallcool inhave you received the same thing on your door?
i wish that i am still at the gated community where i lived there for more than 6 years, i received zero jw garbage!
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OneEyedJoe
That's not a new one, that one has been around for decades.
Edit: looked it up on jw.org and I guess it is a new version of the old one.
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"Please consider contributing" -- is this for real?
by Nathan Natas ini have started seeing requests for contributions at the bottom of the screen.. why the change?
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Dress and grooming
by stuckinarut2 ini know this is an old topic, but it came to mind again.... yes it is appropriate for people to dress neatly and respectfully for a dignified religious gathering, but why does it have to be a full suit with collared shirt and tie?.
why does it have to be a full dress or skirt and jacket?.
sure, we would find it distasteful for a person to arrive in swimwear or work overalls or other inappropriate attire, but why does it have to conform to strict standards?.
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OneEyedJoe
I completely agree that the dress code is all about control, but as far as gripes against the WTS are concerned, this one is about number 10,001 on my list. There are at least ten thousand better things to go after these guys for
It's a big picture thing. I get that it can seem petty to criticise a requirement to dress like a salesman from the 50s, but it's about more than just that. They use the requirement, and the average JWs acquiescence to it, as a stepping stone to ensure that JWs follow other requirements. More insidious requirements. Requirements like shunning their children or dying for want of a blood transfusion.
Research shows that if you can get someone to do you a small favor, they're more likely to do you a big favor later than if you jumped to the big favor straight away. It's a significant part of human psychology that all cults take advantage of. It's about more than the clothes, it's about what they use the dress requirements to accomplish, and I suspect that most of those 10,000 grievances of yours are in some way related to their control, and a big part of their control is rooted in getting people to make small sacrifices early that eventually escalate into bigger and bigger sacrifices.
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Are You Raising An Introvert?
by darth frosty inits not easy being an introvert in an extrovert worldespecially when youre a kid.
it is even more difficult if none of the adults in the kids life recognize that the child is an introvert.
this doesnt happen only when the childs parents are extroverts, but also with introverted parents who have never understood their own introverted nature.. .
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OneEyedJoe
Google knows me all to well - the other day it stuck this in my recommended news links:
https://represent.com/itsgrace6/grace-helbig-currently-introverting
