BenRichards

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Posts by BenRichards

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  2

  What's the new donation policy?

  by BenRichards in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i faded a few years ago and haven't been to a meeting since.

  i've seen a few threads here about the new donation policy and mentions of congregations having to send money to the mothership but i don't have all the details.

  can anyone explain what the new policy is?

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  BenRichards

  I faded a few years ago and haven't been to a meeting since. I've seen a few threads here about the new donation policy and mentions of congregations having to send money to the mothership but I don't have all the details. Can anyone explain what the new policy is? Thanks,
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  8

  Has Anyone Read This Book?

  by berrygerry in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  stumbled upon this book on ebay.

  anyone read it?.

  http://www.ebay.ca/itm/jehovahs-witnesses-and-the-united-nations-how-the-watchtower-society-fooled-mi-/381046838260?pt=lh_defaultdomain_71&hash=item58b82953f4.

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  BenRichards

  Which series of articles are you all referring to? Do you recall specifically which issues they appeared in?
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  28

  Famous Witnesses

  by startingover13 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've been doing some research about famous witnesses.

  some were raised and eventually left, while others came in as adults.

  they range from sports players, musicians, and entertainers.

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  BenRichards

  Chet Lemmon of the Detroit Tigers would show up at our hall from time to time when the Tigers were playing at home.
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  38

  First post

  by BenRichards in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've been lurking here off and on for a few years, figured i would introduce myself and share the clif notes version of my story.. i'm in my late 30's and was born in.

  mom was a jw, dad wasn't.

  got baptized in my teens and started dating my eventual wife.

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  BenRichards

  Vidiot - Exactly :) You're the first to get it.
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  17

  Is there a list of JW contradictions / double standards anywhere?

  by BenRichards in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  as i mentioned in a recent thread, i've relatively new here.

  have been lurking for a few weeks and just started posting.. one of the things i'm finding interesting about this site is how often someone posts a set of jw published material that contradicts each other.

  for example the other day someone posted about lecithin.

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  BenRichards

  As I mentioned in a recent thread, I've relatively new here. Have been lurking for a few weeks and just started posting.

  One of the things I'm finding interesting about this site is how often someone posts a set of JW published material that contradicts each other. For example the other day someone posted about lecithin. There was a KM that advised the brothers to call manufacturers if they had concerns about the content of lecithin. And then a few years later there was another KM that stated "some brothers have been compelled to call manufacturers..." in which the WTS clearly tried to absolve themselves of any accountability around the advice they gave. Then of course there's the Awake (I think) where they talk about name calling and how the person calling names is insecure and trying to cast doubt on the person whom they're name calling, yet the WTS turns around and casts all sorts of names at "apostates".

  So anyway what I'm curious about is, has anyone ever documented any of this? I realize none of the items I mentioned are major doctrinal beliefs but I think it would be interesting just to see the sheer volume of occurences of the WTS clearly speaking out of both sides of their mouths. I know there's some of this on jwfacts but those are mainly occurences that relate to major doctrines. I'm more referring to all the little stuff, just to provide scale to how much double talking there really is.
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  38

  First post

  by BenRichards in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've been lurking here off and on for a few years, figured i would introduce myself and share the clif notes version of my story.. i'm in my late 30's and was born in.

  mom was a jw, dad wasn't.

  got baptized in my teens and started dating my eventual wife.

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  BenRichards

  Thanks for all the kind replies.

  To address a couple of points that came up...yes, Ben Richards is an alias. :)

  After thinking about it, I agree with what several of you have said about how I approach my mom. Instead of "coming clean" all at once, it probably makes sense to ask questions to her over time, questions that could introduce doubt. Let her try to answer the difficult questions herself. I'm in no particular hurry to make any changes. As I've said, we've been fading over a period of several years and are already pretty well distanced from the local congregation so it's not like I need to make any moves anytime soon. But of course I'd like for my extended family to wake up to TTATT.

  There are a lot of great resources recommended in the responses, I'll start checking them. Thanks again.
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  38

  First post

  by BenRichards in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've been lurking here off and on for a few years, figured i would introduce myself and share the clif notes version of my story.. i'm in my late 30's and was born in.

  mom was a jw, dad wasn't.

  got baptized in my teens and started dating my eventual wife.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  BenRichards

  I've been lurking here off and on for a few years, figured I would introduce myself and share the Clif Notes version of my story.

  I'm in my late 30's and was born in. Mom was a JW, dad wasn't. Got baptized in my teens and started dating my eventual wife. Her family was heavily involved: her dad was the PO, she had an aunt & uncle at Bethel, and lots of other aunts and uncles in our cong and neighboring congs that were MS's or elders. My heart was never too deeply into the religion and I never progressed past publisher. I didn't necessarily have doubts, I simply didn't want to go to meetings or out in service. Religion - any religion - just wasn't really my thing. I'd rather sleep in on weekends or find something else to do with my time. But I played along. Was in a congregation that had tons of people our age so we had a lot of friends. Lots of trips, weekend cookouts, that sort of thing. Life was generally fine.

  Then about 6 years I was transferred to another state for work. We never really fit into our new congregation. It's in rural Ohio and the congregation is generally older, very few people our age. So we became less and less regular to the point where for 2 years we only went to the Memorial, and this year we didn't even go to that. My wife and I didn't really discuss it or make a conscience choice to stop going, it just sort of happened. We have great neighbors that we spend a lot of time with, we both have friends through work that we travel for leisure with, etc. Basically we're enjoying our "worldly" friends and have mostly fallen out of touch with our childhood witness friends, except for 1 or 2 close friends.

  I recently stumbled across the CoC book, which I read. It made me sick to my stomach that I had been apart of this organization for so long. I mentioned it my wife, not exactly sure how she would react (sure, we haven't been regular for a long time, but she comes from a strong witness family and was even a full time pioneer herself for several year after we got married). She was very interested and asked for the book, and now she has read it and feels the same way I do. I also started reading Carl Jonsson's stuff and feel strongly that the 607 belief is absurd.

  I'm not really sure where I go from here. For the most part I think I continue doing what I've been doing. I'm not closely associated with the local congregation and as I've said, we don't go meetings. But my mom, sister, and close friends still occassionally pester me to go to meetings. Especially my mom. She's always telling me when the CO is town, when the assemblies are, the Memorial, etc. When she asks why I don't go, I honestly don't have a good answer other than "I don't want to." But now I do have a good answer and I want to tell her. And my sister. So I'm trying to decide, the next time my mom brings it up, do I tell her that I've learned the TTATT and neither my wife nor I want anything to do with JW's again? I do think there's a fighting chance that my mom could react positively and with an open mind, and it's entirely possible that she'll see TTATT too. My dad passed away awhile back and she looks up to me for my opinion on things so I think she would hear me out. But, maybe she won't. Telling her could spawn a series of events that leads to sheperding calls would which undoubtedly lead to DF for apostasy because I wouldn't hide my feelings. And honestly I don't think I'd care if I got DF'd. Part of me wants it to be widely known that I've learned the TTATT and don't want to be associated with the JW's anymore.

  So anyway, that's my story. It's nice to have somewhere to vent like this.