.
now that i am no longer a jw, i can associate, and celebrate holidays and other family traditions with my non-jw relatives.
however i am sometimes bitter because i missed so many experiences as a child with my relatives that they seem almost like strangers rather than relatives.. does anyone else feel this way, and how have you bridged the gap?
My worldly Dad was very happy when I told him about my exiting the Org. We are now trying to patch together our relationship that was seriously strained by my JW involvement--I have confessed that I was wrong in my thinking and he has forgiven me. It is getting better that and I am starting to ease back in with old friends and families, holidays and events.
Just be you.
cybs
i'm just wondering what everyone's thoughts on this are.
do you feel that it is possible to obsess about the past (in particular about history as a jw) to the point that it hinders you from living a full life?
if you think this is possible, how do you know when the past is taking over?
Yes, I admit I obsess, I obsess, I obsess about the WT Org, but it is hard not to when it keeps being thrown in your face by members of the Org (much like a continual attack). Every encounter sends me realing in one directions or another. Sometimes I want to DA myself just to get them to leave me alone, but learning to set up some boundaries now to protect myself. I hate the WT Org for what it has done to many people's lives and it is frustrating to know that people in there are suffering because of the Org, but not recognizing the reasons for their pain. When I watch their pain I relive mine...it's hard...I haven't figured it out yet. I am working on it though. Hope to get past it one day, but doubt if I ever will completely.
I think this board is helpful in the sense that we can purge some of this stuff out here. I stuffed so many things for so many years and the posts do trigger many unpleasant memories that are stuffed in there. At last I can get these things out in the light and air them out. It validates my feelings about things being wrong were real and not just my weakness or lack of faith. Why did I feel ill when brother-so-in-so said such in such--because brother-so-in-so was a control freak! why did I feel horrible when sister-so-in-so said such-in-such--because sister was not a nice person! I knew it then, but I stuffed it and it helps me to come out of the daze I had been in for 20 years. It is hard and painful at times, but part of becoming human again too.
cybs
hello,forum.my name is dallas and i live in oklahoma.i left the jehovahs witnesses in 1998 after a former member showed me the 1925 false prophecy.i knew circuit overseer william osbeck very well,he left my circuit only to be replaced with brother"if you knock the society i will scream"boatz.he was nothing but a first class coward.he wouldnt even meet with me after i had disassociated myself.i have no regrets about leaving,why didnt my conducters bring up the 1925 failure while i was studying?they failed to mention it.anyway i am glad to be free.god bless you all.-dallas
aloha Dallas,
will look forward to reading your posts.
Love, cybs
i work on a busy surgical ward in the nhs.
the other morning during handover the night staff handed over that a certain woman in a particular bed was a jw.
her hb was low at 7dgb following surgery etc etc.....and she was just silly for not accepting a blood transfusion.. i spent most of the day busy, but kept a mental note to go and see her in particular, to let her know that i understood where she was coming from.
Scooby,
Offering a bit of support in a time of need lets people know that they are not alone--this kind of support is a powerful medicine. Thank you for being there in support of a fellow human being.
Love you for that,
cybs
just one quote from the brochure which appears on the 2001 cd watchtower library, what do you notice...?.
jehovah?s witnesses are interested in you and your welfare.
they want to be your friends and to tell you more about themselves, their beliefs, their organization, and how they feel about people and the world in which all of us live.
Do they believe that they are the only ones who will be saved?
No. Many millions that have lived in centuries past and who were not Jehovah?s Witnesses will come back in a resurrection and have an opportunity for life. Many now living may yet take a stand for truth and righteousness before the "great tribulation," and they will gain salvation. Moreover, Jesus said that we should not be judging one another. We look at the outward appearance; God looks at the heart. He sees accurately and judges mercifully. He has committed judgment into Jesus? hands, not ours.?Matthew 7:1-5; 24:21.
Bluesbrother,
I remember someone asking me this question and then giving them this brochure with the above quote to explain them to them that "no we don't believe that only JWs will be saved" and then feeling really weird about it--like maybe I was telling a lie or something?
w89 9/1 19 Remaining Organized for Survival Into the Millennium ***Only Jehovah?s Witnesses, those of the anointed remnant and the "great crowd," as a united organization under the protection of the Supreme Organizer, have any Scriptural hope of surviving the impending end of this doomed system dominated by Satan the Devil. (Revelation 7:9-17; 2 Corinthians 4:4) They will make up the "flesh" that Jesus Christ said would be saved through the worst tribulation of all human history.
Blondie,
Guess this is why my conscience was bothering me. Funny, when I was in the Org I forgot how to add 2+2.
indeed, in his name nations will hope.
paragraphs 10-12.
paragraphs 16-17.
Jehovah does not communicate directly with anyone today.How can the WT write this and in the same breath expect their members to be following the leadings of the FDS? If they aren't communicating with God on these things how they expect their members to trust and follow their directions? JWs are taught that obiedience to the WT Org is an absolute and equivolent to obiedience to God. How does that add up? PS, thanks again Blondie. Great study as usual.
my boyfriend and i (or i should say ex-boyfriend.
) have been dating for about 5 1/2 months.
this is not a long time i know but within this time we had both fell deeply in love with each other, it was very fast and very strong, heartfelt and beautiful.
Karissa,
I just wanted to send you my best. I think the above posters cover the topic very well. While leading a double life is not exclusive to JWs the religion seems to breed many of these types of personalities. I am really sorry to hear what you have been through, but do realize that if you did continue on with this man and you did eventually marry him he would expect you to conform to his religious standards. If you read on in this site you will see this Organization is not favorable towards women and there is much abuse of power by JW men.
Again, I am sorry for your heartache.
Please continue to reach out and get some help and support.
Love, cybs
i've enrolled in a religious studies class this term focusing on christianity and the more i read, the more i'm getting the impression that the wtb&ts actually has more in common with the jews than mainstream christianity as i've illustrated below:.
main stream christianity jews jehovah's witnesses.
trinity - 3 god's in one one god: yahweh one god: jehovah (english version of yahweh).
I have often thought about this especially with some of the emphasis on the old testament books (the newer Isaiah book, etc) Christ of course was spoken of and we were supposed to imitators of him, but many times it seems as if the teachings of Christ were thown out the window and the old law ruled.
today i called someone i've known for many, many years, since i was about 5 years old (dim will know who -- josephine), to see how she was doing.
when i was little i was in awe of her and thought she was the most fashionable person i knew.
her parents were old school witnesses who thought nothing of taking the train to new york to argue a point of doctrine with freddie and nathan.
Thank you Nina...
Love you!
Public talks are sandwiches (this is a term that a sister told me that the elders used in here area when talking about how to give council, but it is the same with a public talk). Sandwich translation according to the elders: You start off with the soft stuff-- the bread --commending the wayward sheep and making them feel all comfortable. After that you hit them with the meat (the hard council stuff) but you end the council with the soft stuff so that the meat is all wrapped up in the center and the whole package of council is easier to swallow. It's a typical brainwashing tecnique.
As far as the public talks go the food is prepared a bit differently. The talk ususally starts off with something to grab you, sometimes a horror tale about miserable world conditions. After you are really depressed then suddenly it takes a sudden turn to God's Kingdom being the solution to these problems and every thing lightens up a bit and gets all covered with a powdery sugar coating. At the end of the talk it's all wrapped up like one big burrito guaranteed to give you a bad case of spiritual indigestion. this is one of the very popular formats. It is a sales pitch really. The WT is marketing religion and uses the same manipulating tactics as advertisers.
