Posts by LongHairGal

24

Watchtower Study 23rd August

by BluesBrother in

the subject is searching for lost sheep.

how do the congregation view the inactive ones who no longer associate?

not with disdain, we are told but as lost sheep “still our brothers “ it is said that god loves them and they too must do what they can to help them.. why have we strayed ?

I walked away from the JWs in a planned ‘Fade’. I wanted to be DONE with it..This reaching out to people who are out is an act of desperation as far as I am concerned. I think money is at the heart of it because they lost so many contributors and wish to entice some back..However, I’m an older and wiser Retiree with No interest in their religion or any other.

OVERRATED:

I feel the way you feel and walked away from the religion too...I have passed carts and was very tempted to tell them off as nicely as possible why I don’t want the JW religion. I didn’t do that but maybe I might have if they called out to me first.

37

Governing Body members will no longer be with us on earth during ''the great tribulation''

by RULES & REGULATIONS in

the watchtower—study edition | october 2019. .

study article 41. stay faithful through the “great tribulation”.

14 during the great tribulation, a change will take place regarding the brothers who take the lead on earth.

LongHairGal

RULES & REGULATIONS:

Raptured up to heaven? Yeah, right!

I cannot believe there are Witnesses who believe that. I don’t think I ever believed this teaching even when I was ‘in’..This was one of the teachings I let go in one ear and out the other..sort of like their paradise earth teaching.

29

Tonight's Meeting

by Studyover in

during tonight's meeting the brother seemed to read out something along the lines of "you may be helping a poor sister who you think may be struggling, but in turn that sister may be getting financial assistance from the government.

it is always best to stick to jehovah's arrangement in these matters so that help can get to those who most need it, including the worldwide work".

i think it may have been an article about social media platforms initially and how they should be avoided and then this was mentioned.

LongHairGal

STUDYOVER:

I read this topic and several threads on Reddit in response to the JW religion speaking against giving charity on social platforms.

I feel it is nobody’s business if someone wants to give to a charity of their choice. (I, personally, would rather give to a person directly, if I so chose, rather than one of these things somebody sets up.)

But the religion feels any charity should go to them/the Worldwide Work, etc. They feel that if people give to somebody in the congregation that person may be undeserving because of already getting ‘benefits’. The impression I get is they want people to think ‘they’ will care for their needs (??). Well, in all the years I was there I never heard of the religion giving anyone anything..MAYBE if somebody was a well-liked pioneer some people would privately take up a collection for them.

If I had listened to the religion and didn’t work full-time until retirement, I’d be screwed! No way would I have gotten any kind of assistance from them! What are they talking about?

Also, as far as JWs getting handouts and being undeserving..I felt that some of them were just plain con-artists who never wanted to work. Since I was criticized FOR working I had no intention of giving any charity to somebody who DIDN’T want to. There were people there who just wanted somebody ELSE to pay for their ‘everlasting life’. 🙄

24

What Is The Position Of Witnesses For People Who Are Inactive And Don’t Want To Be Bothered By Anyone?

by minimus in

jw
friends

i used to have some close friends simply pay me a friendly visit or call to see how i was doing.. i am curious as to whether or not the society instructed witnesses to no longer check on inactive ones and treat them as marked or disfellowshipped..

LongHairGal

MINIMUS:

I’m a twenty-year ‘fader’. Maybe for the first five years or so the JWs were ‘hopeful’ you might return..Once there’s No hope, you are soft-shunned. I remember the ‘cold shoulder’ in stores. Who cares?

I attended the memorial for the first few years and this might have given them a wrong impression that there was ‘hope’. It wasn’t happening.

At this point I neither want nor expect them to look for me..I no longer have anything in common with these people and hardly did when I was in. That was a phase in my life that is over. Glad I got out and also grateful I held onto that job they hated me for. I wouldn’t be Retired if I listened to them.

They might possibly be looking to reactivate a man - especially a man with a good income (= a big contributor); or perhaps a family who opened up their home, entertained and served food. They would be sought out as an ‘asset’. That’s how it works.

I do think this campaign to reactivate people is motivated by their bottom line. In addition to no longer being interested in religion, I would never tolerate the intrusiveness or being targeted for money or favors.

34

World Wide Work Resolution Doubled Overnight

by JW_Rogue in

during covid-19 crisis our hall decides to double the amount sent to hq from our local account.

the resolution is unanimously supported, no questions asked.

has anyone else had this happen?.

LongHairGal

LV101:

Yeah, you got that right about them preferring to ‘waste time in the field work socializing/begging from others to carry them vs. the responsibility of work”.

I did notice though that some older pioneers who worked with some of these types had ‘worldly’ husbands who let them do their ‘thing’ in the JW religion.. Yes, some man worked 40 years so some dopey woman could knock on doors..What was immoral in my eyes was if those older affluent ladies discouraged young impoverished pioneers (who had no business being on the pioneer list) from looking out for their financial future! I would have felt obliged to warn them!

In fact, ALL the older people back then were collecting THEIR pensions..All these older ladies went to their graves after living a cushy life.

The poverty being pushed by the religion was certainly NOT for any of these older ladies. Hell no! The poverty was for some young gullible person who would be at retirement age today..If they didn’t wake up at some point years ago - then they are suffering today. Thankfully I never fell for this nonsense but I am angered that I witnessed this happening!

34

World Wide Work Resolution Doubled Overnight

by JW_Rogue in

during covid-19 crisis our hall decides to double the amount sent to hq from our local account.

the resolution is unanimously supported, no questions asked.

has anyone else had this happen?.

LongHairGal

PISTOLPETE:

So, some genius told an out-of-work JW who needs to watch every dollar..to use their credit card???

When you said the elders approached the family with the ‘dire’ situation and asked if they could contribute a little more..I wonder what the criteria was that they were approached? 🙄 I’m sure anybody who looks halfway decent/responsible is going to be hit up for money like they were an ATM machine.

I’m not surprised a scenario like this is happening..I predicted long ago that the religion was going to have problems in the future when the shit hit the fan about all the JWs who never wanted to be in the workforce - and who knocked ME for working full time..They thought they were going to knock on doors daydreaming without any preparation for the future!

Even if Covid had not happened and the economy ruined, some other scenario would have happened with very specific people in congregations being targeted to give money for every damn reason under the sun!

25

Witness reaching out to me after 20+ years...

by SouthCentral in

jw
friends

a few weeks ago; a witness couple from the midwest reached out to me after 25+ years.

they said they were doing a letter writing campaign and decided to reach out to me… they called on my personal cell phone, which was a little surprising.

a few days ago, a couple that i knew from over 40 years ago, sent me a text, again to my personal cell phone.. i assume that they just googled my name to get the personal info.

LongHairGal

SOUTH CENTRAL:

Yes, there must be a campaign to reach out to people who were formerly JWs. I heard it from two women who are out for years.

The religion has lost probably thousands of members over the last two decades. I was a casualty of the 1995 Generation teaching. This was the final straw. I think many others felt the same. The reaction to this teaching was evident by the loss of so many people in the several years following this.

Others left for other reasons. Maybe bad treatment or seeing the hypocrisy and deciding they had enough..I could be wrong, but I am inclined to think the religion would rather seek out somebody who was disfellowshipped rather than somebody who walked away.

The religion probably figures the person who left voluntarily (like me) saw things they didn’t like and they would be threatened by this..Whereas somebody disfellowshipped they think really wants to belong but they have a ‘weakness’ perhaps.

25

The women that abandon “The Good News” are a large army

by Aimee.Padilla in

to be born a woman is a great disadvantage in many parts of the world and much more if she is part of a destructive sect like the jehovah’s witnesses where she is submitted to the “theocratic order” being the base that sustains the corporate pyramid, displaying submission at all times before male authority.

those of us that have been part of this cult can verify that the woman has to carry out a series of practices that for the rest of society is somewhat incomprehensible.

i’d like to draw your attention to the act of head covering, if for any reason a woman has to pray in public while a male is present, who is not available to lead the prayer, she must cover her head because she wouldn’t be respecting the arrangement of authority if she didn’t.

LongHairGal

APOSTATETHUNDER:

I was one of the women who worked full time.

I was raised Catholic and it was a given that I should be confident and have self-esteem. So, Witnesses harping on the ‘headship’ 🙄 thing sounded a little silly to me.

I didn’t feel it applied to me personally because I was single and supported myself. I was my own boss. I also didn’t care about silly titles and certainly wasn’t looking for any attention.. I kept to myself. But, yet, I apparently ‘bothered’ some insecure JWs because of my very existence..Maybe it was my intelligent answers coupled with not seeking approval and not allowing Users to target me.

They held it against me because I wouldn’t let busybodies tamper with my life..Who tells a young person to quit a decent job and pursue poverty and drudgery doing favors for affluent older people collecting THEIR pensions??..I would not be Retired today if I fell for this.

What a trap I stepped into when got involved with this..So glad I got out.

12

Miney under the table and retirement

by road to nowhere in

i know several older retired witnesses who comolain abiut how little social security pays.

all of them made more than i ever did but were self employed.

they fudged the amount t they reported on taxes and thought they would never get old.

LongHairGal

ROAD TO NOWHERE:

Thanks, I appreciate that...How ironic it is that these JW friends of yours are seeing the fact that they worked or reported so little NOW coming back to bite them!

What gets me is not just the fact that the religion knocked careers/college and promoted full time ministry (pioneering) for impressionable younger people: It is the fact that ALL the older generation in the congregations were collecting THEIR pensions!..These older JWs were in the workforce in their younger years! ..Why then would I NOT have been as well?..This is why I’m glad I never listened to to the nonsense floating around.

The people suffering today were my age and knocked me and considered me ‘unspiritual’ because of my full time job..They pioneered and killed themselves doing cleaning. Their reward was that they were invited to gatherings I was not invited to. These gatherings were hosted by ‘great ladies’ who in many instances had a worldly husband who let them do their thing!...Yes, some man worked 40 years so they could go door to door sounding pious - and privately knock somebody like me for working full time.

These older wonderful sisters have passed away (after living a comfortable life) and are not even around to help any of those gullible younger pioneers who have now reached retirement age unprepared and struggling. I am Retired today and very glad I was unpopular back then.

22

Did You Have Good Relationships With The Elders?

by minimus in

jw
friends

my experience was that most jws wanted to have an elder “friend” just in case they got into any “trouble “.kinda like knowing that certain cop who might get you out of a jam.

.

of course there was another group who did everything they could to either kiss the elders’ ass or stonewall them anytime they came snooping around.. how did you and the “older men” get along?.

LongHairGal

MINIMUS:

I had to look at the date of the thread because I know I answered this question before.

When I was new in the JW religion and not wise to the real story, I was friendly to elders...But, as time went on though, I came to see them as ‘company men’ who were just there to find fault.

Worse, was the attitude I picked up towards single women and working people who didn’t pioneer.. The mentality was also that I was there to be targeted to do favors for older people and other Users. I got news for everybody: I would never go anywhere I was the target for anything!

After the negative treatment I received because I had a full time job, I made sure I was never available to do favors for anybody.