A huge red flag for me when I worked that one out a few years ago.......HUGE.
It can't be reconciled, it can't be excused away.
Abstain from blood? On pain of spiritual death?
But.....?
Alive!
JoinedPosts by Alive!
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Contradictions of the "no blood" policy....
by stuckinarut2 inso according to witnesses, the bible states that all blood is sacred, and once it leaves the body's circulatory system it must be "poured out on the ground" to show respect to jehovah.. it mustn't be eaten or transfused.. so how do they justify it being ok to take in fractions of blood components when these have been produced from donated whole blood?.
the whole blood was not "poured out".
it was taken to a laboratory, stored, manipulated, put through processes to separate parts of it, broken down etc.... it certainly was not "dealt with in a sacred way".. and yet these blood fractions are deemed "ok" by the society?.
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Where did Jehovah go ?
by Deleteandrestart infor the many years i was mentally " in " the congregation, i equated the organisation as interchangeable with the persona of jehovah, in effect whatever the organisation said or thought, that was what jehovah thought and that was what jehovah said.... it was that simple.
so when i found out the ttatt and the cynical moves of the organisation over the years,including 1975 , the donation arrangements, the united nations, etc i was devastated and thought " where's jehovah in all of this?".
the god who i'd poured my heart out to on many occasions and who i thought was silently listening and hearing my pleas ..... was not there , .
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Alive!
One of the best OPs I have read on the painful effects of seeing the 'org' as not the representation of the very persona of God, 'Jehovah'.....because that is exactly how witnesses are manoeuvred and manipulated to think....and that spiritually rests on delusions and half truths, and too many rules and edicts that have no basis in Love....
It is a 'scorched earth' scenario in the aftermath.
'Keep knocking, keep searching' - Those words have meant much to me - I believe they are written for a reason....it's a journey.
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Angst and the Jehovah's Witness Mindset
by cofty inthere is no typical jw personality type.. any of us who were in the religion for a number of years will remember all sorts of individuals.
there is as much variety among jws as there is in the general population.
some were arrogant and judgemental but others were humble and kindly.
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Alive!
The mind and heart twisting angst that is part of the JW belief system can be picked up from conversations about Armageddon - noted Simon's comments. So true.
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“Even if this wasn’t the Truth, I need the structure.”
by Londo111 ini remember many years back a fellow ministerial servant saying this to me.
he felt that even if jehovah’s witnesses were not the only true religion, the regimented routine of meetings and field service and the strict rules and enforcement provided a beneficial structure for his life.
at the time i thought if this wasn’t “the truth”, i’d have no need for all that “structure”.
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Alive!
Doubtfully yours,
A hug to you - it sounds like it's very hard for you at the moment.
Just keep putting one foot in front of the other - and remember that you are not alone.
Take care,
Alive x
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“Even if this wasn’t the Truth, I need the structure.”
by Londo111 ini remember many years back a fellow ministerial servant saying this to me.
he felt that even if jehovah’s witnesses were not the only true religion, the regimented routine of meetings and field service and the strict rules and enforcement provided a beneficial structure for his life.
at the time i thought if this wasn’t “the truth”, i’d have no need for all that “structure”.
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Alive!
"Even if this isn't the truth, it's the the best way to live' - I heard said many times - I didn't realise it was a version of a global slogan amongst JWs.
Personally, we struggled when we finally said 'that's it, this isn't the only true religion', it felt like our emotional and personal world was subject to a massive earthquake.
BUT, whilst our tidy and very well presented little world has undergone a massive upheaval, we have and are emerging with more insight, more love for each other....we have both taken our own time to travel along our own spiritual journey - our lives have changed beyond recognition, unsupported and not propped up by a highly regimented structure and a human network.
Its been tough.
Tough love - and I'm grateful.
I can't sit with those and identify with those who decide who 'Jehovah' favours and who he doesn't based on non scriptural edicts. To me, that doesn't feel right any more.
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Forget Prince, the chimp from the PG Tips advert died.
by punkofnice ini always liked the pg tips adverts on uk tv.. cooeee, tea mister shifter?.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-36103383.
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Alive!
Nooooooooooooo!
Cooo-eee Mr Shifter.
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Oh happy people
by zeb inwhat is it with meetings?.
so often she comes home throws her bag down and stomps around the house.
there are times it thoroughly gets me down.. + supportive comment welcome.
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Alive!
As a wife, I keenly felt the angst of 'not being a model family' if I went to the meetings on my own -I'd feel terrible sadness and...resentment... my husband was not appointed, no responsibilities assigned ......and in JW world it means you are spiritually 'shite'...
The sad thing is that my husband was a generous and humble type, before he let the JW 'male' culture rub off on him - the association of the cynical elders and hard nosed bullies messed with his character development - I'm sure of that.
We are having real quality discussions these days, we are unravelling the mess and finding peace. Reclaiming our identities, getting grounded in the good parts of our characters.
The culture of JW land is geared towards unnatural tension, blame and frustration.
Hugs to all spouses that are suffering and hurting from the crazy stuff.
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Faith, where now?
by Theburstbubble inso for the first time ever i went to a church service at my local church (coe) and i have to say it was awful!
it was just like a ritual.
the vicar would say something and then the congregation would all say a phrase in unison back to him.
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Alive!
Regarding ritual - there is a certain beauty in sacred, reverential observance of rituals.
We are all on our own journeys.
I have been regularly moved to tears by being more deeply involved with 'people' who care, are courageous and reverent.
This has been the hardest journey of my life since turning away from meetings and the inevitable loss of close association with my community of some 20 years.
Yet just yesterday, I met several people involved in a community work who glowed with a spirit that reflected true service and humility at the same time.
To me, God is everywhere. I don't understand or yet know the dimensions of eternity and time - but as someone said earlier, spiritually finding the absolute present in your heart is in itself being in the 'Kingdom' moment....
if we are indeed made in the image of a dynamic and eternal God, then surely there is enough information in that very phrase for us to trust that we have a journey to something beyond our present understanding.
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Faith, where now?
by Theburstbubble inso for the first time ever i went to a church service at my local church (coe) and i have to say it was awful!
it was just like a ritual.
the vicar would say something and then the congregation would all say a phrase in unison back to him.
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Alive!
I've been to a few baptist services - it seems there is room for diverse perspectives within the congregations - I don't see it as a future 'home'...but I'll visit.
I have a very strong spiritual hunger.....I used to love the JW bible studies way back, I just can't stomach that I had no choice but to accept teachings as current 'truth' at the time, when later, much is adjusted and changed, after I had seriously worked hard to study and make a particular 'old' interpretation 'work'.
I hated religion when I first met the witnesses.....I thought they were 'different' - over the years I couldn't live with a hurt conscience when I strongly could hear manipulative language and unloving guilt tripping.....and so much more.
Be patient. Church of England is extremely ritual based, so no surprises there. It wouldn't be for me as a 'home'.
I'm not looking for a church 'home' right now - but I find beauty and spiritual richness in participating in life and trusting that a greater purpose exists....
The org frightened me towards the end. Maybe I could have lived in the bubble if I had kept my head down, but I couldn't in all good conscience represent an organisation which I believe has a dangerously damaging culture.
Try getting involved in community driven aid, joining groups who are committed to helping fellow folk. You may find like minded believers who you can comfortably build friendships with....and at the same time, serve. But this way, you don't get to count hours.....how terrible was that?!!!!
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Jehovah's Witness Church Release Statement
by truthseekeriam in"we are saddened to hear about the death of prince rogers nelson, who was baptized as one of jehovah’s witnesses in 2003," the church said in a statement obtained by people.
the church said that prince "found fulfillment as a witness and in sharing his faith with others.
http://www.people.com/article/prince-dead-jehovah-witness-release-statement.
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Alive!
Really? I wonder if he too was conflicted, and disturbed by elements of JW.org.
Did Prince hear about the ARC? Did he too watch the live testimonies from the leadership?
I wonder, did Prince feel comforted and at peace with the direction of the organisation? Did his heart thrill to listen to the manipulative phraseology of the G.O.D.? Was he like many, disturbed and hurt?
How does anyone know what was really in his heart....? Certainly, the 'spokesman' for the church wouldn't truly know - or would they?
I hope he found peace and joy with hope for the universe.
RIP Prince.