Hard to believe I started this post 11 years ago! At the time I was a relatively "NEW" POMO on the site and was trying to improve the group's SEO with keyword headings. Some of the headings actually made it onto the Google search. I actually thought it would help some JWs get out. The human mind is amazing in its ability to deceive itself. Humans are tribal and will ignore the obvious to remain in a "tribe" be it an extended family, political party, cult, or religion. Thanks for the memory "Newboy". :) When were you a NEWBOY? Farm or Brooklyn?
Balaamsass2
JoinedPosts by Balaamsass2
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12
Jehovah's Witnesses...loyal to God...or to the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society ?
by Balaamsass inthis month is a month of testing for jehovah's witnesses.
individually, each must ask himself: to whom are you loyal?
no doubt in ancient isreal many attended the molech and calf worshiping festivals out of loyalty to the nation, the king, and perhaps in a mistaken belief to "jehovah".
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Can Elders Voluntarily Resign?
by NotFormer inan elder with half a brain (and they must exist 🧐) is going to see the writing on the wall with the way the wt is manoeuvring them into taking the fall over csa cases.
can an elder in good standing step down with no consequences, official or social?.
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Balaamsass2
I told the body I needed to spend more time with our teenagers. I kept my mouth shut about doubts, and half the body tried to keep me from stepping down. The day after I did, half the elders treated me like I was "marked". Quite strange, they wouldn't even call on me for a comment.
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Retirement savings
by TxNVSue2023 inwhat's the current jw stance on retirement savings?
i know it changed.
pre1975 it was an attitude of "don't worry about retirement, this system is ending soon".
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Balaamsass2
Longhair gal Thanks for the pm.
As I said a therapist explained her behavior to me and helped me to grasp why an adult would resist the basic math of aging and saving money for retirement.
She was on the edge of schizophrenia with "magical thinking". MOST adults grow out of believing in Santa, the tooth fairy, Prince Charming, and imaginary friends. SOME never do. Life is a HUGE disappointment for these gullible people as they age, grow old, and eventually die. Their parents die...and no longer support them. Magic money on trees does not exist. Hospitals are not free. Watchtower appeals to people with magical thinking.
A big SKY DADDY does not provide free food shelter and clothing, and it is not safe to pet lions and tigers. A fruit basket lady will not bring you free tropical fruit while you lay forever on the grass overlooking a view in the Alps.
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Is the USA gradually moving to a majority of citizens being non-religious
by Reasonfirst inthis is a topic discussed in a current article in the hongkong based asia times*.
find it at: https://asiatimes.com/2023/09/nones-still-no-match-for-us-christian-nationalism/.
the claim is made in the article, that near 30% of americans are non-believers, and that this number is increasing.
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Balaamsass2
I have had this discussion with an old attorney friend from work. He studied to be a Catholic Priest for a while...but liked women too much. :) He identifies as Catholic but rarely attends church. Calls himself "Spiritual but not religious".
3#rd Gen and I moved to rural northern California 25 years ago from the San Francisco Bay Area. We have a LOT of former Assembly of God Pentecostals who have moved into our town. They (Bethel church) now comprise about 15% of the population. They have added some Hippie- Hindu practices (Kundalini tantric sex), "Prosperity gospel", NAR beliefs and rock music to their religion and seem to be growing. Combined with speaking in tongues, faith healing, and far-right political bent they are very different. They believe god will protect them from illness, yet have a militia.
I read that most Americans are becoming less religious.."Spiritual"....but not religious.
New York Times : America Is Losing Religious Faith
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Do you play the LOTTERY?
by Fisherman injw view gambling as a sin and sadly people get addicted to gambling causing them financial and health problems.
but is playing a couple of bucks a week on some lottery tickets actually gambling?
what do you have to lose?
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Balaamsass2
It was a big deal in the 70s & 80s. A LOT of JWs worked in Nevada Casinos. Construction, Food service, housekeeping, and they were forced to quit their jobs.
Today, not such a big deal.
After we attended our last JW meeting over 10 years ago, 1st Gen bought us a couple of lottery tickets, and me a Cuban cigar for my birthday. lol. :) Lottery tickets are a Cheap price to pay for a pleasant daydream.
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Exes: Would You Rat On A Current JW?
by NotFormer init's an interesting thought.
if you are an ex jw, presumably dfed, and you see a current jw in good standing engaging in behaviour that would concern their elders, would you pass on that information to interested parties?
do accusations from exes and other outsiders carry any weight?
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Balaamsass2
Serious crime, I would call the police. I would never contact the elders or get involved.
My "half-in" aunt's "unbelieving husband" took delight in reporting JWs in town for ANYTHING he thought might be illegal, or unchristian to the cops, elders, or anyone who would listen.
When I was an elder he would aproach me at family reunions to try and bend my ear with a litany of complaints on a long list of people.
Strange bitter guy. His 30 + grandchildren would not visit him...or anyone else. Died alone. I never once repeated any of his venomous accusations.
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Retirement savings
by TxNVSue2023 inwhat's the current jw stance on retirement savings?
i know it changed.
pre1975 it was an attitude of "don't worry about retirement, this system is ending soon".
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Balaamsass2
Long hair gal
Well, They left a message. I called them back about 7 hrs later and they had released her on her own. No doubt because an insurance company was unwilling to pay...or Medi-cal wouldn't foot the bill.
They did not have a forwarding address or phone. I asked around but no one knew what happened to her and she evidently disappeared into the morass of big city homeless. I only knew about her situation from phone calls from current and ex-Jws in the SF Bay Area who had seen her with her bags in coffee shops.
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Retirement savings
by TxNVSue2023 inwhat's the current jw stance on retirement savings?
i know it changed.
pre1975 it was an attitude of "don't worry about retirement, this system is ending soon".
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Balaamsass2
My only income in retirement is from ignoring Watchtower. Saving, investing, and buying a home all starting in the 90s.
In the 70s I hung on the Governing Body's every word i.e. "1975!!!!" Pioneered, Bethel, Pioneer, need greater.... until.... we needed health insurance and rent.
Got a steady corporate job in the late 80s and my wife number #1 the Pioneer, went to the elders to report my "lack of faith" because I attended night college PT, and she saw my paycheck stub deductions for an IRA, Disability insurance, and a 401k. She got me removed as an MS. She was Pioneering and left me a year later because of my "lack of faith" that the "End was right around the corner". At that time the "Family Book" gave the green light for divorce for "Spiritual endangerment".
Wife #1 was SHOCKED after she left me that "JEHOVAH and Watchtower DID NOT "provide" and she actually had to eventually get a job in Lui of Pioneering. lol. :) She continued to never save money or get reliable employment believing Watchtower's "Armageddon was "just around the corner". When she got too tired, crazy, and haggard in her late 60s to get another husband or continue working, she became a homeless bag lady sleeping behind Kingdom Halls and begging at Coffee Shops while reading her Watchtower on her tablet with free WIFI. ( A San Diego mental hospital called me last year looking for someone to release this homeless 70-year-old to since her "Worldly family" and local JWs refused to. Exhibit A... The result of BELIEVING Watchtower BS 100%.
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So, 60 Years Ago
by titch inso, folks, 60 years ago, starting on september 1st, i believe, we, local witnesses in southern california, had the "privilege" of attending the "around the world assembly", at, of all places, the rose bowl, in pasadena.
(i think that it was an 8-day assembly) i was 9 years old then, almost ready to start 4th grade.
so, was anyone else, on this site, at that assembly?
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Balaamsass2
Do I remember? YES. I was 8.
Pasadena was hot and smoggy....until it rained. We all wore dry cleaner plastic bags and sat in the rain. I got sick from the smog and heat. Mom fainted in the heat. But I DID get one day in DISNEYLAND I never forgot.
The Mexican food in the cafeteria was good. :)
All the adults in our hotel had cocktail parties and got hammered. lol.
The teenagers had pool parties.
Oh... and the Babylon Book. Who could forget all the years of boring book study nights spent on that book?
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Aftermath of being Reinstated
by TxNVSue2023 ini'm in the process of being reinstated ( my df'ing story is on here).
because i've never been in this position before, i don't know how i will be treated once i'm reinstated.
i moved to a new city/state and i don't know a single person here or in my new congregation i am attending.
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Balaamsass2
If... you really WANT to reinstated....each hall will be a little different.
Since most JW elders are not the world's most literate group...moving a few times (for work, sick parents, etc.) tends to improve the chances of records being lost and letters becoming more brief.
I have seen a number of people get reinstated and accepted over the years. Like with most any group, donating $$ visibly in the box by CHECK seems to help since a couple of brothers will see them and possibly discuss them. Visibly participating, spreading a bit of $$ around (meals, etc.), telling a few funny stories, G-rated jokes, and being generally low-key, and amicable.
Personally, as I have aged, I can no longer stomach kissing up to people I do not like or respect...it makes me ill.