Wow. This is a wonderful book. Love it. Found it by accidental reference in another thread. So I"m bumping. A Must READ that should be at the top of the JW Times Bestseller list.
mamochan13
JoinedPosts by mamochan13
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65
The Atheist's Book of Bible Stories
by RunningMan inover the years, i have posted all of the chapters from my atheist's book of bible stories on this site.. however, since the original posting, many of the chapters have been polished and updated.. the complete book is now available for downloading, if anyone is interested: http://www.sendspace.com/file/qwpjol.
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Being DF'd - A Twisted Badge of Honour
by mamochan13 ini had this funny thought tonight that my experience having been df'd has somehow made me feel like i have more to offer in a forum like this.
it's like going through dfing has allowed me to see the absolute worst this religion does.
i've seen the ugliest and come out of it.
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mamochan13
I had this funny thought tonight that my experience having been DF'd has somehow made me feel like I have more to offer in a forum like this. It's like going through DFing has allowed me to see the absolute worst this religion does. I've seen the ugliest and come out of it. I suppose in a way it has made me stronger. No crisis of faith and no family loss can equate to what I went through in those 14 months.
It made me think about how you earn badges for Girl Guides and Scouts each time you accomplish something successfully. I managed to survive being DF'd. I feel good about that, because many, many of my brothers and sisters did not.
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do you remember the Last assembly you attended?
by crystlew123 ini dont remember the date.
or the year or if it was a district or circuit.
what i do remember is that we rode up with a car full of other female witnesses.
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mamochan13
For a long time today the only last assembly I could remember attending was the one when I was still DF'd. I knew I must have attended others, I just could not recall.
Now a few have come back, but they kind of blur.
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I need help with Free Minds - volunteers who are reliable and fun-hearted
by Dogpatch init seems like i never give up looking for volunteers.
they can be hard to work with, dry out, or are unpredictable.
some get downright nasty and become very undesirable.
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mamochan13
Randy - I'd love to help, but I need to be careful not to overload myself. I do a lot of writing for the web, blogs, etc., so that might be an area I can assist with occasionally. Please keep me in mind as a possibility, I just can't make any firm promises at the moment. I'll send you my email so you can keep in touch.
You have done so much to help people, I'm glad you have been able to keep it going for so long now.
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Leaving Jehovah's Witnesses is NOT the same as the doctrines leaving you
by Terry inif you grow up speaking english and you move to mexico you don't automatically speak spanish, know customs, understand currency, possess skills.
for self-support or have any special insight into latino mindset.. .
why would you expect leaving jehovah's witnesses would leave you any less ill-equipped to navigate the real world?.
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mamochan13
Great thread, Terry. Thanks. We really do need to constantly monitor our thinking and behaviour and root out the false doctrines and attitudes. That's what I find so helpful about this forum. Being able to read the truth and have all the inacurracies brought to the light of day cleans out the nonsense. University helped a great deal, too.
I was born in, but my dad and many relatives were not JWs, so I think that helped me always realize that there were good people outside. I was also a rebel and pursued music and dance for myself and my daughters, in spite of being censured for it. I did a lot of reading, so I knew more about the religion itself than many of the elders. Perhaps that kept me a bit more open-minded. Although I did swallow most of the anti-science crap, I was open to learning other perspectives.
I do see signs in my eldest daughter, however, that sometimes worry me, as she was about 13 when we left. She is very drawn to high-control groups and cult thinking (i.e. pyramid scams). I think it's because she has never replaced the thinking and has not critically examined the teachings. Self-esteem is a big issue for me and my girls as well. We've all been drawn into dysfunctional and abusive relationships, and a lot of that is rooted in the lack of value given to women in JWs.
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September 11, 2001- Where were you?
by SophieG ini work at a major airline in the in-flight training department.
i was sitting at the desk on the computer, i kid you not... writing the security (hijacking) curriculum for 2002, when someone came in and told me a plane flew into the wtc.
we all thought it was one of our planes.
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mamochan13
I was at home studying. My daughter phoned and told me and I turned on the TV. It was surreal. I had only just reconnected with my daughter after she disappeared for several years (JW crap, long story), so in a way this event brought her back home.
I never had any thought that it might be the big A, although many around me were saying WWIII. Fairly early on, though, when news reports began to identify who had done it, my thoughts were that JWs were in favour of doing exactly this kind of thing to nonbelievers. Yet how horrific the reality.
Like Jgnat, I lived through the tornado. The terror of that day is forever printed in my consciousness. When you have an experience close to home like that, other disasters seem more real - not just something you see on television.
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Serena Williams wins....but as a Jehovah's Witness will not toast.....New York Daily News Story
by Balaamsass inu.s. open sponsor moet leads champagne toast to champion serena williams, a jehovah's witness who does not drinkreporters on tight deadline wait for inappropriate-feeling homage before williams can begin press conference.comments (7).
by filip bondy / new york daily newsmonday, september 10, 2012, 12:00 am.
howard simmons/new york daily newsserena williams is thrilled about winning the u.s. open, but she will not celebrate with a champagne toast due to her religious beliefs.. there was an awkward interval sunday night in the press interview room, when the u.s. open sponsors, moet, delivered a trolley of small champagne bottles to the assembled media who already had waited an hour to ask post-match questions of serena williams.. before williams could begin answering questions, usta ceo gordon smith led a toast that basically called williams victory the greatest match in open history.. .
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mamochan13
BTW. what human being forces mediocraty on their child? oh, the witnesses, duh
Fakesmile - that is one powerful statement. So many talented children lost to the borg.
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At what age do people 'wake up'?
by Splash ini was thinking about this question recently after being at the meeting when new pioneers were announced for the 2013 service year.. we have a dozen or so pioneers in the congregation, and most are in their 20's.
some absolutely love the things they are taught and can't wait to spread the good news.. others in the congregation are going through the motions, tired of hearing the same old same old but have no way to change things now.
then there are a couple like me.
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mamochan13
As Captain Obvious says, I don't see any wholesale waking up either. My family is all devoted and have no reason to consider leaving. It is their whole life, friends, lifestyle, etc. So even if they had doubts, they aren't going to act on them.
But like many others here, it was a series of events that woke me. DF'ing was the first step, but it was the reinstatement that really brought home to me how wrong they were. Then my family's glee when my "wordly" husband left me and their subsequent attempts to force my children back to the religion when I started to quit going to meetings. I was around 40. Even when I had left, I was still not "awake". That took several more years, mostly due to my finally going to university and becoming enlightened.
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I'm a stepmom to a little JW.... need advice...
by LKM ini am a new stepmom to an 8 year old boy whose mother is a jw pioneer.
my husband has been disfellowshipped for 2.5 years now.
i was part of the reason he left the organization for good, although he had stopped believing long before being kicked out.
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mamochan13
Just a thought - if the ex thinks your husband MAY come back, she will enlist the little guy to help and convince him that if he goes along with JWs it will be a good thing for his father - compounding the guilt he is already feeling. It's important that your husband take a firm stand and make it clear that returning is not an option.
Something I did with my grandchildren to counteract the JW propaganda they were hearing from my mom was to treat the religion as if it was just one of many (which it is). JWs are not "special" and do not have "the truth" and there are all kinds of different beliefs and religions. I taught them that many people believe other holy books, like the Koran, and that it's okay to hold different religious beliefs. When they would repeat some belief she had told them, I would say, "well, your grandma believes that, but here's what other people believe" and give them a broader perspective without necessarily labeling a belief right or wrong.
I also explained the reasons why I disagreed with her religion, for example, the idea that I was a bad person and god was going to destroy me. They all agreed that was wrong, of course! I tried to use common sense things, but always doing so in a way that validated her right to her beliefs. The common message was always, "we believe differently, and we are good people, too."
Always reinforced the good in the world (as opposed to the negative viewpoint JWs hold). Zid mentioned science - I also make sure I talk a lot about scientific advancements and the wonderful things people can do when they are educated. Use teachable moments. For example, I take my grandkids with me to vote and explain about democracy and that it is an important responsibility as a citizen. Poke small holes in things like celebrating birthdays - where they have absolutely no logical support or reason for, adding a positive, "we are so happy you were born and we want to celebrate that and make it special"
But as has been mentioned, kids do want to please both parents, so you have to walk a fine line. Not be critical of the other parent, while at the same time helping them see that the belief system doesn't make sense. Kids are smart.
My grandsons also get some twisted beliefs from their father who is not even a JW, he's just a psycho lunatic. But he is similar to JWs in that he wants to keep the boys completely isolated, with no friends, only reliant on him. However, what complicates things here is that JWs are a cult and use cult methodology to keep people enslaved. I would say one of the best things you can do for your little guy is make sure he has lots of non-JW friends, gets to go to parties and school events, has lots of opportunities to get involved in things like sports, arts, group activities where he really gets to know people in "the world" and can see that they are not evil.
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It's the 46th anniversary of Star Trek TV series
by moshe ingoogle reminds us how long ago this was, 1966 (or was it 67?
) - i was a teenager in high school and guess what?
i never saw one eposode on local tv.
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mamochan13
duh. Even though Jgnat commented on it, it just dawned on me today that the Google Star Trek doodle was interactive! Very cool, specially the red guy.