Posts by anewlife

60

Are Jw's the only ones with apostates....

by VioletAnai in

jw
friends

who viciously attack the teachings and beliefs of their resigned religion?.

i was thinking of this last night....i have never in my life seen a movement so big as the apostates against jw's..... no other religion has displayed this....usually people just quietly leave and get on with their lives and there is no anomosity...even if they have been wronged by their religion.... but with jw's it's different...it's an all out and out attack on anyone and everyone who has something positive to say.... makes me believe the bible and the jw's even more...being here is setting the doubt in my mind right....

anewlife

Reborn: You utter my words..."Why are you here posting?" That was my first question when I read her thread.

Violet, What is your goal in posting here? What is your motive? If you are soooooo sure what you have is "the truth", then why waste your precious time on this forum trying to "rebrainwash" those of us who will never go back. You see, we KNOW more than you do. We have been through it!!!

I wish you well, I really do, but I'm afraid that it'll only be a matter of time before you are posting on this site again singing a different tune, wishing you would have listened to us. I honestly think you are really NOT THAT SURE and that is why you're here already! Just my opinion.

35

preventing baptism of minors

by og in

jw
friends

here is the situation: my wife is a very faithful true believer (and a wonderful person, i will add, who really wants to do what's right) i have been da'd about a year, and we have 2 children.

our oldest is 13, and really buys into the witness line ( as, of course, i professed to until last summer) and i am fairly sure she is considering baptism.

here is my question: as one half of her parents, is there any legal doctrine that would allow me to prevent her baptism until she is 18?

anewlife

Og, my heart goes out to you!!!

I have three sons. The two oldest were baptized when they were 10 and 11. (Way too young!) I was DF'd two years ago, when my youngest was 9. He was wanting to be baptized at that time as well. Of course, I was against it, but his father was encouraging him. I told my son it was ultimately his decision and I would love him and support him no matter what he did. However, I did have what I was going through and the shunning and rejection from our "friends" to kind of point out to him. So I said, "Do you see what a big decision..life decision, baptism is? Should you ever "sin" or have a change of heart as to the beliefs for ANY reason, this (being disfellowshipped and rejected and shunned by all) is the outcome. You might want to think about waiting until the next assembly (this way it didn't seem like too far off, but yet it was enough for him to do some thinking) and then see if you still feel baptism is something you want to do. Well, as time passed, his heart went out to me and saw how unloving JWs can be when you do not follow all their "rules." Today, my two oldest (teenagers) have stopped going and tell me how happy they are to be out and to have a chance at life. My oldest has started college and has great potential for making a very happy life and career. The two that were baptized told me they did it at the time because "everyone wanted them too" and they wanted to "do the mikes." At 10, 11, 12, 13 etc. do they REALLY know what they want? I know at 14 I got baptized only to please my dad.

My advice is, find out WHY SHE wants to get baptized? Then if it is a legitimate reason, then tell her you love her and you'll always be her father and there for her no matter what she chooses in life. I promise you this will weigh more with her than anything else you could say.

I wish you the best and keep me posted as to how the two of you are doing.

anewlife

60

Are Jw's the only ones with apostates....

by VioletAnai in

jw
friends

who viciously attack the teachings and beliefs of their resigned religion?.

i was thinking of this last night....i have never in my life seen a movement so big as the apostates against jw's..... no other religion has displayed this....usually people just quietly leave and get on with their lives and there is no anomosity...even if they have been wronged by their religion.... but with jw's it's different...it's an all out and out attack on anyone and everyone who has something positive to say.... makes me believe the bible and the jw's even more...being here is setting the doubt in my mind right....

anewlife

JuliG, your point was well made when you asked the question, "Are there any other denominations or sects that treat those who choose to leave with utter contempt, to the point of thinking of them as walking dead?"

Unless you have personally felt this for yourself you cannot even fathom the idea of how hurtful it is! This utter rejection by those who claimed to love you, those who were your friends, those that you THOUGHT you wanted to "live forever" with. Because one now sees things differently, they are shunned, shunned as if they are "walking
dead." In fact, that is what we are told. We are dead! They say this because they tell us that once the label of disfellowshipped is stapled to our foreheads, Jehovah God will leave us to the "world" with NO ONE, but Satan, who will swallow us up. Does that sound like the words a true religion would utter to its memebers? At a time
when one is spiritually weak, why aren't they encouraged and helped?
Instead the second you ask one question that goes against the JW teachings you are looked down on and "marked." Then everyone starts excluding you and pulling away and eventually you become marked as
an "apostate." JWs love to "label." It seems to make them feel justified in their actions towards their fellow man. Then this "love that identifies them as the true religion" becomes CONDITIONAL.

So, Violet my words to you are to really, really think and research what the "truth" really is. Ultimately it is YOUR life and YOUR decision...but remember it is also OUR own lives and OUR own decisions as well and we may not happen to agree that becoming a baptized JW is in anyones best interest. It's painful!

26

Memorial policy. Is that true all over?

by Mulan in

jw
friends

i was interested in the post earlier today, about how the 'emblems' were not passed to the disfellowshipped people at the memorial.. does anyone know if this is the policy now, or was it an isolated incident?.

my husband, a former elder, said he had never heard of that being done before.

but we've been gone for 4 years too.. marilyn (aka mulan).

anewlife

JT

I completely agree with you! Why would ANYONE put themselves through YET ANOTHER rejection by the supposed friends? My father actually came by my work and invited me to the Memorial this year. (He hasn't spoken to me in over a year so that was something in itself.) However, I told him I didn't want to see those people. It's bad enough running into one of them at Wal-Mart, let alone a room full of them so they can find another way to make me feel like an outcast. I, too, believe this rejection put upon people can cause psychosis and depression in some individuals and also believe there will be a lawsuit against the organization one day with the shunned individual winning the case!!!! (This is a form of discrimination, of which there are numerous laws now!)

8

Shunned, twice in one day

by Mulan in

jw
friends

this is so funny.

i giggled all the way home.

mom had asked me to buy her some pretty stationery at the hallmark store.

anewlife

I understand the "shunning" all too well. My favorite is how they go back to the other witnesses in the congregation and say "how bad" you look. Of course, we all know that once you leave the organization you begin to age faster, not care about your appearance, let yourself go etc. Even if you look better than you ever looked in years they will never admit it! I admit at first being shunned was hard...now I just lift my head up and shun them if that's what they think they have to do to me. I'm a really wonderful person so I consider it their loss to not talk to me!!

55

Why don't people like me

by joelbear in

jw
friends

i've recently discovered that the great majority of my problems are my own fault.

which leads me to conclude that it is also my own fault that people don't like me very much.. y'all have pretty much seen me at my best and my worst.

why do you think people don't like me?.

anewlife

Joel,

I'm new but recently read your "story" on another post. I had the utmost respect for you for just "stating it like it is!!" I admire those that can be true to themselves and not let what other people think, say or feel bother them. Good for you for being open about your homosexuality. Everyone has the right to love whom they want to. It sounds like you and Mitch have a wonderful relationship...Obviously he likes you A LOT! and just "getting to know you, I like you too!

Reborn2002 I think what you said about Joel was really nice! You sound like a good person yourself!

25

JW internet warnings

by larc in

jw
friends

folks,.

don't they know how dumb their advice turns out to be?

you tell a teenager not to go to the internet, and that is the first thing they will do.

anewlife

Your point Cellomould is so true.. i,e. parents withdraw their support and watch their kid's lives become miserable and then saying, "Jehovah has withdrawn from them." In any circumstance or situation if parents did this to their kids, failure is almost surely eminent. Jehovah "withdrawing" from them has nothing to do with it. This is just something the witnesses say to keep an element of "control."

This is just like the threat they told me just before I was disfellowshipped...."You'll be in the world without anyone and Jehovah will withdraw his spirit from you leaving you completely alone for Satan to get a hold of."

32

SOMETHING BIG IS GOING TO HAPPEN APRIL 19-20

by new boy in

jw
friends

the stars are in alignment.. the time is right.. this weekend will change the world.. i just love to make prophecys, it reminds me of someone i know!.

"failure to respond to the direction of the organization indicates a rejection of divine rulership"---[2/15/1976,p.124].

"jehovah's witness are not infallible or inspired prophets."[5/15/1976,p.297].

anewlife

DB: If I didn't divorce two years ago it would be my 22nd wedding anniversary as well.

Something big ALWAYS happens on April 19-20, i.e. the Waco, Texas incident (people died), Oklahoma City Bombing (lots of people died), The Columbine School Shooting (lots of kids died).

Personally, I'm hoping something GOOD finally happens on the 19th or 20th. We've had enough tragedy those two days!

47

I called Patterson today.

by Mulan in

jw
friends

someone please post a phone number where i can call the wts.

will explain later.

i guess i need the service desk.

anewlife

I'm new here, but have read several of your postings elsewhere and have seen the strength you have, but this was really something...so much I had to write!

I, too, thought your "come back" about the sins of David and the fact that he was not disfellowshipped was an EXCELLENT point!! I applaud you for standing up for your mom and taking care of her just as she once did for you!

25

What did you do during the written review

by truthseeker1 in

by far the most boring part of all meetings is the written review.

what kind of stuff did you guys (male and female) do to pass the time.

i either to write computer programs, sleep talk to my wife or sleep in the car.

anewlife

I'm new here (2 days) and I enjoyed the responses, especially Yumbby's, (I laughed out loud at your husband's response!) Simon's and 144thousand and one.

I used to answer the T/F and the Match the Scriptures and then I'd get out my date book and see what I had coming up to do or what I needed to put on my calendar. Then if I still had time, I'd balance my check book.