Posts by MerryMagdalene

7

The Way of the Dhamma

by Reluctant Buddha in

the dhammapada"the path of the dhamma".

the dhammapada consists of 423 verses in pali uttered by the buddha on some 305 occasions for the benefit of a wide range of sentient beings.

these sayings were selected and compiled into one book as being unusually worthy of attention because of their beauty and relevance in preparing future buddhas.

Okay: Who is Barb & What's the "news"?

by lynnmelo in

jw
friends

.

i know no one really knows what the content of the "news" is, but i don't even know what news you guys are waiting for.

i've been reading some posts referencing "barb" and "the news," so i wasn't wondering if someone could give me some background (i've looked a few pages back and can't find anything).. thanks.

MerryMagdalene

http://www.freeminds.org/women/barbara_anderson.htm

~Merry

25

Hi to everybody...Hello from Chile

by miker2 in

im miker (well i guess you cant pronounce my last name haha), anyway, im sandro recabarren (a lot of rrrrrrr).

i was jw by 15 years, and i "worked" like pionner and ministerial servant, and sometimes in bethel, and i went to ministerial training shool too.

but since four years ago, i did discover that jerusalem dont fall at 607 bc.

MerryMagdalene

Welcome, Miker And a big hug to you too

~Merry

13

Sanctuary Trauma

by MerryMagdalene in

in a post by ingenous on another thread (scandal frenzy, i think) some quotes are posted about "sanctuary trauma.

" it hit me in kind of a big(-ish) way...being hurt by those who should be protecting or nurturing us is a betrayal of sanctuary.

the trauma experienced is called sanctuary trauma.

MerryMagdalene

In a post by Ingenous on another thread (Scandal Frenzy, I think) some quotes are posted about "sanctuary trauma." It hit me in kind of a big(-ish) way...

Being hurt by those who should be protecting or nurturing us is a betrayal of sanctuary. The trauma experienced is called sanctuary trauma.

It's seems such a powerful way of describing what has happened to so many here, in such a variety of ways.

Our religion was supposed to be a sanctuary, but I grew up with nightmares and guilt and fluctuating levels of anxiety due to not being able to live up to impossible standards, and not having the comfort other Christians have from the awareness of the grace of God through Christ.

Then being DFed and losing most of my family in one fell swoop was another trauma (a bridge here between two types of sanctuary).

Home and family should be a sanctuary, but my mother wouldn't leave my mentally/emotionally unstable stepfather because it wouldn't have been "scriptural." So I grew up with the constant stress of never knowing when and how he might "crack" next.

Marriage should be a sanctuary. Let's just say mine wasn't. Long-term, often low-grade trauma. And yet divorce, as well as being a relief, was also a trauma, as I gave up what I had tried so hard to find and create. Never finding sanctuary in marriage is one trauma, losing the sanctuary one once had, or hoped to have, in it is another (again, I see, so often due to the intrusion of religion).

I want to give my daughter undefiled sanctuary. I hope I can. I hope I have. I wish sanctuary of all sorts for everyone here, and healing from past/present traumas.

Love,

Merry

5

friends >>>>hug

by mouthy in

jw
friends

http://www.jacquielawson.com/viewcard.asp?code=0212320003

MerryMagdalene

Thanks, Mouthy!!! My little one just loves it and has been playing it over and over

~Merry

20

Keep Your Mind Off The "Big News"

by jeanniebeanz in

jw
friends

brothers and sisters:.

i think that we all need to calm down here.

afterall, all of this speculation is 'running ahead of the organization'.

MerryMagdalene

LOL...get thee behind me. I needed a great reason not to get my dishes and laundry done, so don't go tryin to spoil it for me

~Merry

17

Who else hasn't gotten anything done today?

by undercover in

jw
friends

.

i'm so caught up in the "big news" that i keep coming back here instead of working.

i'm getting very little done at work today.

MerryMagdalene

Geico

LOL

~Merry

17

Who else hasn't gotten anything done today?

by undercover in

jw
friends

.

i'm so caught up in the "big news" that i keep coming back here instead of working.

i'm getting very little done at work today.

MerryMagdalene

I confess.

But I did get dressed, at least...and burn breakfast...

~Merry

10

Filling the Void

by demeter in

jw
friends

what do you think has been the most helpful thing you have read, heard, or learned lately?

what helps you get along in a post-jw life?.

i think the reason people go back to an organization that they once rejected is that they find a void and have no experience with filling it.. what do you do to make a new social life?.

MerryMagdalene

What do you think has been the most helpful thing you have read, heard, or learned lately?

"...the most helpful...lately?" hmmm...various thoughts and discussions on this board, reading the Gospel of John on my own w/o WTS interference, exploring the differences between Christian spiritual unity and unChristian religious organization. And I am hoping that I will soon be able to say Barbara Anderson's news is the most helpful thing I have learned lately

What do you do to make a new social life?

Oh dear...I still haven't got this one figured out so good yet. My new social life seems a lot like my old one (I stay to myself a lot and read and meditate and walk in nature) only I don't go door-to-door 4 days per week and sit through 5 hours of "schooling"and I don't make my daughter do any of those things either

What do you do to fill the spiritual void?

I've never actually felt a "spiritual void" so I don't know quite how to answer that one. From the time I was just a child, I relied more on my personal relationship with God than on the congregation or the Society. If the former contradicted the latter, I generally went with God as best I could. That was what led me out completely, for good. What I "do" is read, meditate, pray, and allow myself to just be silent and experience the presence of God.

major trust issues

Yeah. Definitely. I would like to connect with other people, but...JWD is about as close as I've got so far...

I think the key here is turning to God and not to a man-made organization. I think you can have a closer relationship with God if you don't have an organization running interference for you....
It was an interesting and pleasant surprise to me when I found that I felt closer to God when I started using the brain that God gave me.

Right on!

I appreciate your posts, Demeter--insightful observations and thought-provoking questions! Welcome

~Merry

9

Could My Parents Be Softening Up

by Bstndance in

jw
friends

saturday i called my mom and she was telling me about my little brother's robotic competition that he's involved in.

apparently, his team has made the state finals and they had the competition the next day.

i'm starting to think she's softening on the whole wt thing for these reasons:.

MerryMagdalene

I surely do hope the best for you in that regard!

But for me, even though my mom has been a dyed-in-the-wool dub for 55 years, she cycles, but only in her attitude toward me, not toward the Society (doesn't that sounds sinister!?!..."the Society")--for a while she won't have anything to do with me except "necessary business," then she treats me like a normal daughter (or close to it) for a while. I just hope that each "softening" is becoming a little softer...who knows?

~Merry