Posts by Adonai438

27

Kind of Depressed, Looking for Someone to Talk to

by Reborn2002 in

jw
friends

some of you on this board know me, or at least part of my story, very likely most of you do not.. i am a 21 yr old male from chicago who finally mustered the courage to da myself roughly 6 months ago.

being a 3rd-generation jw, my grandfather was an elder 45 years, so this developed a reputation and precedence for me that i would one day be a co.. or go to bethel.

such high expectations, which i am happy i never fulfilled.

Adonai438

Hi Jason!
I'm sorry you're feeling down and things aren't great right now. I care & am praying for you. We are all here to talk and just be your friends. I guess that's little comfort when we can't get together in person. Just know people care- I care-- and things will look better. It's hard to feel alone but you're really not --
email for chatting or if you have AOL instant messenger you can talk with me when I'm online (That goes for anyone else too ):
screen name:
AngieGrasonCaleb

God bless, Jason ,
<>< Angie

24

Hello...may I post here?

by KistByQpid in

jw
friends

i've been lurking here for some time now.

i'm not a jw, never been a jw, and don't plan on becoming a jw...however my life has been effected by the jw's whether i like it or not (dad's death/mom's conversion).

seems most here are exjw's or jws...so i'm not too sure if i'm welcome or not?

Adonai438

Hi Qpid & Welcome ((((((hugs)))))))))
I know it's hard to deal with JW family!
My aunt (who I used to be very close to) only started speaking to me after 6 years of JW silence because I became a christian instead of a JW. Same with her-- She can spout off on JWs all she wants but if I reply to her comments then I'm picking a fight. It's hard to not be able to be open with a close relative and have to tip-toe around.
You're right though-- it's totally inapprpriate for her to say anything religious to YOUR kids. She can be what she wants but should not be trying to teach your kids WT against your wishes. I know it's easier said than done but you'll probably need to just talk to her. Either agree to disagree and not talk religion at all or agree to talk religion only among the adults.
WELCOME AGAIN [8>]

37

Apostate Literature

by YoYoMama in

jw
friends

is it possible after researching the net on jw beliefs, background and reading apostate information that a jw would still research the bible and find watchtower teachings as truth?

Adonai438

Apostate literature aside I think that an honest study of scripture would not allow a JW to stay a JW. If a JW truly loves Jehovah and will follow the Bible's teaching alone- that will lead them out of the WT with or without apostate material. Apostate literature doesn't influence the fact of whether the WT is teaching truth or not. Most 'Apostate' literature is very well researched and mostly made up of Watchtower literature copies and scripture so it's what I would call compelling evidence. Never trust any teaching that does not come directly from the Bible no matter what the source (WT, Apostate, christian literature, etc...) <>< ANGIE

7

What did you do?

by jerome in

this is a question that keeps popping up in my mind.. i cant think of a rational explantion myself so i have to ask someone who has been there.. well here it is:.

"what did you when you first started studying with the witnesses and people from the outside warned you about it?.

what did you do when people said it was a cult?".

Adonai438

I have questions for you.
1) When you started to research the 'truth' what was the first thing that syruck you?
2) Oh and another thing is your auant still married to him?
3) And how long were you in the truth before you statred to doubt?
4) What caused you to look?

#1 In a good way or a bad way ?
I liked that they seemed to have an answer for everything. I am
a very logical person and easy answers are appealing.
The first lesson that struck me as weird or wrond was when they
were teaching me out of the What we believe pamphlet. It showed
a picture of Jesus and Adam on a scale (like the balancing
scales of justice kind) and it was balenced equal. They were
saying that JEsus's death made up for Adams sin etc... I
couldn't fathom how they could believe that Jesus was equal with
Adam. Adam had sinned, Jesus had not. Even without the trinity
issue Jesus would still not be equal.
#2 No my aunt never did marry the poor guy. He is now married to
another lady in the 'truth' and very convinced that it was
Jehovah that led him to join up even though he did it for
deceptive reasons in the beginning. She married another winner
but JW and is now in the process of divorcing him-- she was this
ones 3 wife and she has 4 kids by 2 fathers and was not married
to either daddy. Yeah, they have it all together.
#3 I was studying for a year before some friends of mine who were
Christians after sitting through my JW preaching asked me to
study the Bible for myself. I did and learned that although JWs
make a bit of sense sometimes that that didn't mean their
teachings were in the Bible. I learned all the dirty secrets
later after I left and became a christian. Incidentally, My
boyfriend was the one who got me out if that is any
encouragement . He was Christian and didn't realize until
after we had started dating that what I meant by christian was
JWs. He almost dumped me right there but decided to try talking
with me first. Well, 7 years later, he is my husband of 3 1/2
years & we are very happy. Not saying your girl will
neccessarily see the real light but..........
#4 I say God in the lives of my Christian friends and genuine
unconditional love from them. They were very tolerant of my JW
preaching and didn't put me down. They only encouraged me to
study the Bible for myself and see what it said. I did. It
worked for me but not neccessarily for every JW. It depends on
a JWs reason for being a JW. If they are because they truly
love God and think that JWs is the right faith- that can be
worked with. If they have any other reason no matter how much
proof one has that they are wrong- they will have no reason to
change.

Here are some quotes on the subject of examining beliefs that every JW should know:
(It's not apostae Literature so it's purely WT-- fair game!)

An impartial investigation of God's Word, comparing it to the teachings and practices of Jehovah's Witnesses, will provide the evidence that God's spirit is indeed backing them, and that he is using them as his instrument for proclaiming truth today. However, all persons who have a love for the truth are invited to examine this claim that Jehovah's Witnesses really do have the truth. In doing so, they should imitate what those persons in the first century did who listened to the preaching of the apostles: "The received the word with the greatest eagerness of mind, carefully examining the Scriptures daily as to whether these things were so." - Acts 17:11 (The Watchtower; 7/1/1979; pp. 25)

On the other hand, if young people are to lead rewarding lives, they must look to Christ, who 'left them a model for them to follow his steps closely.' (1 Peter 2:21) Appropriately, they were asked: "If you were raised in the truth, you know what you believe, but do you know why?" They were encouraged to make the truth their own by proving that the Bible is God's Word and that Jehovah's Witnesses really have the truth. (the Watchtower; 1/15/1990; pp. 27)
But what is really the command from the WT?:
And what if a different view about some belief is presented to you? Loyally adhere to the Scriptural information provided by God through "the faithful and discreet slave." (The Watchtower; 11/15/1989; pp. 17)
What about the changing doctrins?
It is a serious matter to represent God and Christ in one way, then find that our understanding of the major teachings and fundamental doctrines of the Scriptures was in error, and then after that, to go back to the very doctrines that, by years of study, we had thoroughly determined to be in error. Christians cannot be vacillating - 'wishy-washy' - about such fundamental teachings. What confidence can one put in the sincerity or judgement of such persons? (The Watchtower; 5/15/1976; pp. 298)

I guess that rules out the WT-- oh, thats right, it doesn't apply to them!
This is what they really do:
[quote]But what is not so generally appreciated is that the principle of caveat emptor should be kept in mind when one is buying ideas, that is, when he is reading articles or books that are trying to "sell" him on a certain viewpoint, philosophy, or religious idea. Writers of such articles or books may, for reasons of their own, be just as likely to be tempted to take liberties with the truth. This may be done very subtly, at times simply by ignoring certain pertinent facts in discussing a certain subject. (The Watchtower; 5/15/1963; pp. 293)

I had a specific quote COMMANDING THAT JWS examine BOTH sides to determine the truth but I will have to look for it again- can't find it right now !!!

catchya later! <>< Angie

7

What did you do?

by jerome in

this is a question that keeps popping up in my mind.. i cant think of a rational explantion myself so i have to ask someone who has been there.. well here it is:.

"what did you when you first started studying with the witnesses and people from the outside warned you about it?.

what did you do when people said it was a cult?".

Adonai438

"What did you when you first started studying with the witnesses and people from the outside warned you about it?
What did you do when people said it was a cult?"
The warning came from people I didn't particalarly like and they couldn't explain the 'why' are they wrong part so I ignored them. I actually may have even 'rebelliously' taken heart that I was being persecuted [8>]

I heard of them telling you that your family may object and that this objection to your studying is all a result of persecution for true Christians for His name sake, fortold in the bible and that you may have to make sacrifices.
Ahhhh.... yes! They rejoiced with me after I was kicked out of my grandma's home because I wanted to be a JW --- Yay, a true mark of doing God's will--- suffering!
But when I later researched and found out the truth about the 'truth' then I was to be kicked out of my aunts house for not lieing and pretending I was a JW. That was 'Jehovah's Judgement'. Yeah, anyway!

But what when people handed you a bit of apostate literature, or an old watchtower.
Did you actually look into it?
Or if you did look into it how far did you go?
Did you blindly accept the we do not entertain apostate literature statement?
No one ever did that with me-- I got out comparing their beliefs to the Bible and finding them n error. It did happen to a 'brother' I knew very well though. In fact he joined the WT because he wanted my aunt to marry him- no other reason-- but started believing what they taught gradually. His (real brother) gave him a book outlining the JWs errors and he did read it-- it shook him up bad! I remember being there when he explained with great pride how when he took it to his study teacher for answers, his study teacher took it by the corner--like it was contaminated-- and held it over a trsh can and proceeded to set it on fire before him. That was his answer, end of discussion. Such a tolerant society they are too!

<>< Angie

PS: Hi Jerome-- Don't think we've 'met' but if you want to chat, vent, research, etc.. please give me an e-mail OK? GHoing through all this is no fun and is hard- it's nice to talk with people that have already done it

11

lds.org or watchtower.org - where's the truth?

by fodeja in

jw
friends

http://www.watchtower.org .

http://www.lds.org/.

most people here will know the first website, but probably not the second one.

Adonai438

Double Edge---
But do they really believe Jesus is the Christ?
What is 'the Christ' to them?
*To them he is the brother of Satan, literally.
*He is not their savior- he is their example only.
*They are to follow Jesus' example which they believe will lead them on a path of exultation to Godhood. Yes, physical Godhood in which they will literally have their own planet to populate with their literally Godess wife. They don't preach that door to door and many other rather shocking beliefs you don't find out until you're 'in'.

Yes they use the KJV in word but do they in deed? No. They have also added books that are supposed to be scripture that is in direct opposition to the Bible -KJV or not. Aside from argueing if it is allowable to have more books of scripture the book of mormon's content is directly against biblical teaching let alone full of errors etc...

I don't 'rant' about this to hurt anyones feelings as I respect everyones personal freedom to study and choose but on a purely biblical and scholarly level-- LDS is not christian. It's not a denominational issue-- all christian denominations are equally God's children and equally saved, I don't have a problem with that. It's not about intolerance or different oppinions on small things- it's about the big stuff- you know, God. How many are there and who is he etc... LDS says there are an infinite number of gods past and future and that every mormon will evolve to godhood. That is not biblical
(or for that matter, even in the Book of Mormon.).

Anyone interested in discussing can e-mail me-- I try to be impartial in discussion with individuals-- when posting my opinion I tend to ramble more . I have read the Bible in it's entirity and I have read most of the Book of Mormon as I have discussed with over 200+ missionaries in our area. I also have a close friend that was mormon and became christian who knows a lot of the inside info. I am not infallible and encourage personal study of God's word above all else but do feel that I have studied this almost as much as I have JWs and am decently qualified to discuss it intelligently.
Ok- I'll let it go for now <>< Angie

116

Whats the dumbest thing you were counselled for?

by Beck_Melbourne in

jw
friends

i was once counselled by the elders for watching 'knots landing'....it became widely known in the congregation that me and a few other sisters would rush home from field service to watch our favourite soapie.

if we missed it, we would ring each other up for an update...or...if we weren't near a tv we would ask someone to put the phone handset on the top of their tv so we could hear it...pathetic huh...but that was all the excitement we could scrounge up in our otherwise dull and uneventful lives.

one of the elder's wive's conscience got the better of her...and she confessed to her husband..lol.

Adonai438

I was once yelled at for wanting to participate in a charity walk-a-thon my school was doing. The $ was to go to kids with AIDS and of course this meant I would be supporting the Homosexual lifestyle. Go figure- I just wanted to help the kids. <>< ANGIE

19

URGENT: alamb needs your prayers TODAY

by SUSCARRA in

jw
friends

friends, alamb, desperately needs your prayers today.

she is going back to court today to try and get her 3 girls back from the jw dad.

it's been a trememdous battle for her and her husband.

Adonai438

(((((((HUGS))))))))) LOVE & prayers her way!!!
<>< ANGIE

11

lds.org or watchtower.org - where's the truth?

by fodeja in

jw
friends

http://www.watchtower.org .

http://www.lds.org/.

most people here will know the first website, but probably not the second one.

Adonai438

True--
LDS do claim to be biblically based but be cautious.
Without getting into a debate here I'll just say that just because they claim to have Bible support and display that prominently doesn't mean it's the truth.
In personal experience with Mormons they many times over use Christian/Biblical terminology but switch the meaning without telling anyone-- their tactic-- which is openly admitted among the LDS is to assimilate with the Christian church and look as much like it as possible. They win converts that think they are joining another denomination and it's encouraged to portray that. They are not the same thing or even close as one finds out the longer they study with the elders.
As we have learned as ex-dubs-- be cautious and study the Bible ourselves--
trust no person to teach you the truth
<>< Angie

11

question about racial demographics

by Iris10401 in

hello...i hope this is the proper place to pose my question.. i've been meeting with a fine jw couple for several months now and i have attended meetings with them twice at the kingdom hall.

a large segment of the congregation were people of color and it also seems that whenever i meet a jw on the street, they are more often than not african-american.

i was wondering if there was some explanation for this, or is just coincidence?

Adonai438

The congregation I attended was actually mostly white with a few different nationalities mixed in. I think it has to do with the population makeup of the area. Of course they preach the paradise earth thingy so peace on earth in very appealing to everyone and calms racial differences among them mostly. They have not always openly accepted other cultures though and you may find the site listed above very interesting for quotes on the subject.

Latter-Day-Saint, huh? Very interesting. I would think JWs are about as opposite to your beliefs as you could possibly get (besides biblical christianity). It would not go over well with them. I respect your opinions and would have to say, it would be interesting to chat with you sometime -- <>< Angie