the reason that i ask is, in the two years on this forum and you tube, i've seen ex-jw's either drop off entirely or make fewer and fewer videos.
i know the emotional toll can be high.
is that the sole reason, or is it cost (video) or do you think it's external pressure (legal or family)?
SIMON:
I also observed that there are a small few ex-JWs that see it as a career opportunity. It sure seemed that way.
I noticed that in my early years of ‘fading’ when I went on different websites. I steered clear of them!.. This is probably why the JWs say that people who leave ‘start their own religion or ministry’. This is how it must appear to them.
do you have any evidence that the gb had bad intent?
as opposed to blind faith/cognitive dissonance and honest mistakes.. i'm inclined to think they have the best of intentions and are just wrong (primarily because the bible is wrong), but i'm willing to consider the evidence otherwise..
PETE ZAHUT:
Thanks for the honest post of how you view the GB’s view of themselves and the world.
Since you were there in their company you saw it up close. You’re right about the expression ‘altered state of reality’.. Even though I was never in the ‘inner sanctum’ like you were and was on the fringes with a secular job, I still picked up on that ‘altered state of reality’ that some JWs were in and didn’t relate and had no desire to.
When that 1995 teaching on Generation came out, it hit me like a sucker punch just how unenlightened they really were!.. Since I had not read the article in advance, I heard it for the first time in the kingdom hall. It was crushing to know what an idiot I felt like and I was glad I at least never gave up my job.. I wasted precious time there. We are all getting old but I was determined I wasn’t going to get old sitting in a kingdom hall.
I knew then and there it was over and I had to get out. I was done with unenlightened religious people who had no more insight than anybody else. I ‘faded’ sometime after this!
hi one of my jw parents died recently of old age , after decades of brainwashing of the dead are just a sleep and if we are good we would see them again in paradise .. i fully understand now you have one life and should make the best of it but finding it difficult at the moment to get my head around it .. it's just a bit of a rant but your the only ones that i can try and express how i feel and be able to understand after the years of brainwashing how it affects my thinking process.. thanks for any help and advice..
FADEAWAY1962:
When I walked away from the Witness religion one of the first things I did was purge my mind of the JW paradise earth-everlasting life teaching. I felt it was a cruelty to my brain to keep telling myself this was real. I made peace with the idea of death. Before long I felt normal and I think I never entirely swallowed the JW teaching.
Maybe the fact that I was raised Roman Catholic and joined the Witnesses as a young adult also made a difference in how easily I rid myself of this teaching. When I really analyzed it, the Witnesses DO believe in a ‘hereafter’. The difference is that they think it will be on a physical earth as opposed to Catholics who believe it’s in heaven..No wait! Witnesses ALSO believe in heaven..but only for some.
All these stupid religions have variations of the same few ideas of what they think will happen after death. Why the hell should I make myself crazy over this???
some towns in massachusetts are fining people 1000 dollars for not wearing a mask 😷 outdoors.
starting wednesday, the governor mandates everyone from 2 years of age up, must wear a mask or get a 300 dollar fine!.
of course some governors are recommending that you rat out anyone that doesn’t follow their orders.. i don’t like it!👎🏿.
ROAD TO NOWHERE:
I have seen some of the same things you have seen. The stupidest one being the same dirty pair of gloves all day.
I think people are getting weary of doing all these things. Going to the supermarket and coming home and putting things away, washing your hands dozens of times, etc. You only hope you’re not kidding yourself.
the reason that i ask is, in the two years on this forum and you tube, i've seen ex-jw's either drop off entirely or make fewer and fewer videos.
i know the emotional toll can be high.
is that the sole reason, or is it cost (video) or do you think it's external pressure (legal or family)?
DESIROUS OF CHANGE:
That is mostly why I read ex-JW forums: the newbies.
There are so many newbies with interesting experiences. Even though we have heard The Truth About The Truth many times before, somebody is hearing it for the first time.
my wife is getting regular emails from the cobe ... you know we have the truth, the world is in the dark, we're special, hang in there, read this encouraging watchtower ... blah blah blah ... just wondering if these are coordinated from org.. recent mass email example .... " .... an excellent watchtower article in the july 2020. it is entitled “be convinced that you have the truth”.
the scripture is from 2 tim 3:14. we are to continue in the things we have learned and be persuaded to believe.
reflect for a moment what appealed to you about the truth which drew you to jehovah.
WAKANDA:
Yes. These Users are only concerned if people who are a material asset leave. Then they will make an effort to find them.
As you have mentioned: people who do services for Free for certain JWs (fixing cars, doing taxes, cutting hair, etc.). Also, people who entertain and open up their homes, serve meals are an asset they hate to lose. Let’s not forget big contributors.
Anybody else can get lost. If you’re a woman they don’t care since there are too many. If you didn’t do favors for these Users, they are especially not interested.
1. and this is most important, everyone listen up: dress up like you normally would for meeting!
-oh, gawd.. 2. if you use a zoom background, make sure it is not distracting, or something crass like prison.
stick with something dignified and subtle.
BLUES BROTHER:
From what I have read on some posts, both on this forum and on Reddit, the brothers are upset at people who won’t let themselves be seen on Zoom.
They try to ‘encourage’ people to let themselves be seen..In my opinion, I think they are afraid that more people will turn their cameras off and they will have very few visible and answering.
If they keep up petty criticisms and remarks about people’s home decor or clothing, they are only going to make even more people switch off...As it is, they’re pushing it already with people having to be dressed up just to be home - and being self-conscious because of being even more on display than if they were in the actual hall. You don’t know who’s checking you out or fixating on your expression or whatever... In the hall, you saw the back of people’s heads and could daydream.
Nah, I would never go for this.
firstly for anyone leaving is don’t get involved in alcohol, drugs, parties, and sleeping around, because it will just come back and bite you in the arse.. i have a theory that those who leave the religion at an older age do better than those who leave at a younger age.
i think to that the reasons for leaving are quite different between the age groups.
i sometimes wonder if many of the under 30’s use the short comings of the religion, as an excuse to pursue the above mentioned life style.
JOE134CD:
You are probably right that the outcome is usually better when an older person leaves the JW religion. They have the wisdom of having lived longer and are probably past the point in life of doing stupid things. Although there are probably exceptions to the rule for both.
I was in my 40s when I left the JW religion but I also was not raised in it. I also came in a member of the workforce so I wasn’t ‘afraid of the world’ like a lot of Witnesses are. My main reason for deciding to leave was the 1995 Generation teaching. But, I had other reasons - both secular and intellectual as you say.
I also never succumbed to vices when I left partly because I dabbled a bit before I joined the religion and was not attracted to it. I like a healthy lifestyle and do things in moderation.
1. and this is most important, everyone listen up: dress up like you normally would for meeting!
-oh, gawd.. 2. if you use a zoom background, make sure it is not distracting, or something crass like prison.
stick with something dignified and subtle.
WAKANDA:
I predicted when this Zoom thing got started that some JW is going to get criticized because something in their home is perceived to be offensive to some busybody who can see into their home!
Sure enough! There is a thread on Reddit by somebody who was criticized by a brother who could see a picture of a sports figure hanging on their wall and is offended by it!!! MEANWHILE THIS IS THEIR HOUSE.
I hate being right all the time but this Zoom is in some ways worse than being at the hall. At least when somebody is at the hall, their home is still private. Not so with Zoom.
Not only are you expected to be dressed up to sit in your OWN living room, but you will be the recipient of unwanted commentary by an idiot brother who imagines that what is in YOUR home is his business!
i'm not totally new here, as i'm reading since some time...then i tried to sign up but had some technical issue with the email,eventually recovered..... i'm from north italy, for your info from the region where the covid is worse.
i'm male, generation millennial(...unfortunately not the overlapped generation :))) ) ..sorry to don't go in so much details, but i'm pimo ;).
hope i can contribute to this community and help as much i got from you guys.... have nice weekend!.
ITALIANCALIPSO:
Welcome to the forum. I am also Italian descent and have been to Italy three times over the years.
I am sorry for what happened there with Covid. I hope the tourist industry and the economy can recover to some degree soon.
