Posts by cyber-sista

19

Question on DF'ing

by Agent Smith in

jw
friends

.

ok...if 2 dubs divorce just because they hate each other, they are not free to remarry.. if one of them does remarry, he or she will be df'ed.

lets say that this person gets married with another dub....what happens to that person?

I knew of a situation in my former congo where a bro and sister who were both divorced married each other (the sister claimed that the bro from her first marriage beat her). The story was they were not scripturally free to marry each other and they were both Dfd. After a period of time they were reinstated, but on full restriction (can't answer at meetings or have any parts or positions in the congo) but they can go out in FS, but can't conduct a bible study. If they find someone who wants to study they have to turn it over to another JW. Truly a crazy making relgion.

16

Can they be excused, in all honesty????

by BLISSISIGNORANCE in

over the period of time i have been posting on this forum i have noticed how differently we feel about the borg and dubs.

i guess our point of view is based on our own particular situation and experiences, our upbringing, our culture, our gender, our relationships etc.

but i think i can safely say that we all agree on one point, that the borg is a corrupt, greedy, hypocritical, dishonest, controlling, unloving, brain-washing cult!

cyber-sista

(((Bliss)))

I was 29 when I was indoctrinated into the Org, so I can relate. I was suffering from post partum depression and in a very vunerable state of mind. I read into the religion what I wanted to at the time and what I was lead to believe at the time and that stuck with me for many years after. When anything bad happened I just thought it was apart from what should be happening and lived in a state of denial. I thought about the loving nature of Jesus and the amazing creation of God and rather lived in my own little "la la land". In the end I cried to an elder who had been torturing me for several months "I don't even think we believe in the same God!" And I don't think we did. I began to find out that everyone had something different going on in their heads and those who were true followers of the WT teachings were not nice people. I think a lot of JWs are in denial about their beliefs and live with their heads in the sand. Once you figure it out though I don't know how you could stay in there, but reading some of the posts I see that many raised in the Org are so programmed with fear that they are afraid of losing their families and support group and it is major for them because they know of nothing else. I hate the WT Org for screwing over so many people and feel for those who are still stuck in there because they are too weak to leave, though I don't give the GB any slack. I am sorry you had such a rough go of it Bliss.

Love, cybs

29

JWs and 9/11

by kgfreeperson in

i couldn't find anything using search, so maybe somebody just needs to point me in the right direction.

but i don't remember any discussion about what jws thought was happening when planes started flying into buildings and the hysteria in the nation began to build.

i do know about the reaction of the watchtower, locking their doors against people in need.

cyber-sista

My thinking changed 180 degrees on 9-11, when I realized the WTS got it wrong, that when unimaginable disaster struck, "worldly" people would not in fact turn on one another but would raise the bar in terms of humanitarianism. Watching on TV, I recognized this was worldly people's finest hour, and I longed be with them. The "truth" was over for me.

Much of what I felt Willy.

I do remember that there was a small surge of half hearted witnesses came back to the meetings after 9/11, but most of them didn't stay. One elder commented (from the platform) that some inactive witness tend come back to the KH during times of trouble and reffered to them as "submarine witnesses" because they surface during times of trouble (he was never very tactful).

I know one sister who had a mental breakdown after becoming obsessed with watching the 9/11 tragedy on T.V and started to have great fears about the big A. Many witnesses thought that this would spur the public on to be more responsive towards the religion (9/11 being proof of the "end is near") and their was a surge in field service for a short while. One poster here commented a while back that when he saw all the death and destruction on 9/11 he thought of how this type of tragedy was only a small glimpse of what the JW religion taught that God would be doing at Armegeddon and after that he couldn't stomach the WT any more. Is Armegeddon really what JWs are looking forward to? Still being a JW at the time I didn't put this together, but like most other people in the country (including most JWs I knew) I was shocked and horrified by the event. It didn't make sense when witnesses would say after that how they couldn't wait until this system came to the end. Guess they didn't think too deeply about what their religion taught about Armegeddon, which the WT depicts as being one worldwide 9/11.

32

Is the Watchtower Part of the "Antichrist"?

by metatron in

in the apostle john's day, a variety of religious sects appeared in christian congregations called the gnostics.. many of these gnostics thought that matter and flesh were bad and anything 'spirit' was good, so they believed.

that jesus couldn't have been flesh and blood.

so, john condemned them , in his letters, as the "antichrist" because.

cyber-sista

Let's say Christ entered into a KH today and preached the same message that he did 2000 years ago. Would they welcome him as a brother? Would they approve of his manner of dress? Would they criticize him for his choice of associations? (He did hang with prostitutes and others who were down on their luck). What if he told the elders they were straining gnats in their dealings with others when the right course was to be merciful? What if ? JC's personality doesn'f fit with the WT image of a Christian. JC wouldn't make it as a JW.

19

A Short Story I Wrote, About Witnesses

by SYN in

i know i haven't posted anything substantial here for a while, but damnit, this idea just grabbed a hold and wouldn't let go until 4500 words later!.

if you like it or hate it, please post a comment.

also big thanks to valis for allowing me to host stuff on his ftp.

cyber-sista

Hey, I liked this a lot--kept my interest going to the end. Was thought provoking in many ways. great descriptions--loved the way you described the music...very good. write more!

46

Dubs who shun those not DFed/DAed who fade

by gumby in

lately i have been reading alot about those who cease the dub life, and though they are not officially dfed or daed, are treated as though they are by dub family and friends.

when i was a dub , i remember viewing those who did not come to meeting's anymore nor field service......as simply "weak" or inactive.

never do i remember shunning or snubbing those who seemed to fade away.

cyber-sista

As an active fader this past year I have recieved mixed reactions.When I encounter some they look at me with pathetic puppy dog eyes and say "we miss you at meetings." Some are friendly, but guarded. Nobody calls to see how I am, mostly I am invisible. To the Org fading means fading away into invisibility. Some act very uncomfortable and try to not make eye contact or act as if they don't see me when we run into each other. I smiled and waved at one sister one day who was walking in front me (sun in her eyes)--she smiled and waved back, but then when she saw it was me she got a pained expression on her face and quickly turned away. The last time I talked to one old time JW friend not living in the area she very pointedly asked me if I was attending meetings and then freaked out on me. "meetings and field service are not optional in serving Jehovah" she said--she felt their were no excuses whatsoever that should keep you away from the meetings (even though I tried to tell her I was hurting because of what had happened to me and others in the congo) She hung up shortly thereafter and rather in a huff with no sympathy whatsoever. My closest friend and confidant wrote me a goodbye letter telling me if I did leave for a while to not throw away the key to the truth, so I would be able to come back someday. She totally stopped communicating with me after that--after almost daily communication for several years. My own JW sister avoids contact with me--except for an occasional email extolling the virtues of JWism, but no phonecalls. AND I have done nothing wrong--I have commited no WT sin. I think the Org is getting more paranoid about those weak ones going apostate now that there is a stronger push to cut them off. It is hard to believe that my life is of so little concern to these people--I shared years with some of them and now it's over just like that just because I am not going to meetings. I admit it hurts, but I shall carry on. I have old friends who are not JWs and I am meeting some great new friends too. It is all rather surreal at times and it bothers me that people who belong to this Org can emotionally detatch themselves like this--I was a good friend to many, but I found out the mediator to JW friendships is the Organization--They are the parent that says "you can't play with so-in-so anymore because we no longer think they are good association for you."

49

Honest mistakes? The Governing Body's excuses for their actions

by Terry in

jw
friends

the governing body tells us they are not false prophets because they admit their mistakes.. they only err because they are zealous to see the new order commence.. they are on the watch and warning everybody just like they are supposed to.. their doctrines change (new light) because they see and admit their errors.. what more can we expect of them?.

is the governing body honestly doing the best they can?

they are only human; how can we expect them to be perfect?.

cyber-sista

They are control freaks no matter what they do and do not believe. It is a double standard all around. If anyone else makes any human errors they are considered wicked and if they are related to another religion they are considered false prophets. But it is OK for the GB to make mistakes because they are imperfect but privleged men who God is using to run his Org. You have to be strongly conditioned to believe that line of thinking--I know because I was and I did.

22

Swearing on the platform

by sleepy in

jw
friends

did you every hear anyone say something really dodgy from the platform when giving a talk?

i heard a couple of stories of people getting really enthusiastic when giving a talk or pray accidently swearing.

one time in my book study group a sister called someone a dickhead in her answer, it was very hard not to laught.

cyber-sista

There were some elders who used weird expression--some of which just sounded weird when they tried to fit them into a JW talk. One elder used this one expression quite a bit "you have to strike while the poker is hot" Somehow when he said it it sounded a little off to me and I don't really have a dirty mind--it was just the way he used to say it.

12

Encouraging thoughts of former J.W. Elder

by lawrence in

these thoughts were emailed to me by an old friend, who was a j.w.

elder, and left the wts.

hope others might find something of value:

cyber-sista

Lawrence, I related to this writing a lot. I too was a damaged vessel when I pulled into what I thought was the safe harbor of the WT Org. My ship sat there for several years, while I tried to make repairs with what the WT provided me with. In the end they didn't have the right tools for the job and I knew I had to leave. The channel to the harbor had narrowed and it was a harrowing ride to get out to sea again. Even though my vessel is still in need of repair I am working hard to keep it up and running. But it does feel good to be sailing free again.

Aloha,

cybs

45

The Internet and Apostasy

by CakeMonkey in

has the internet and forums like these caused an exodus from the j-dubs?

when i left in the early 1990s i met support groups through the yellow pages but it still felt like i was the only one in the world who was an apostate.

i've come to this forum in the last year to browse because my brother has now left.

cyber-sista

There are over 10 TIMES the amount of "opposing web sites" against the WTS as there are for the Catholic Church!

Wow--interesting factoid--the catholic church is huge compared to the WT, but this shows they have less dissatifaction among their members--interesting.

Welcome CM. And yes, sites like this make a big difference not only to help those clarify their doubts, but also the support group at sites like this can be a lifesaver to some and a great part of their recovery after breaking away from the cult. This site was a lifesaver to me in many ways and the help I received here was crucial at the time of my exiting.

cybs