Posts by LongHairGal

42

Should a Christian celebrate Christmas?

by Samsie in

hello, i'm new here and have woken up to the real truth concerning the org.

i'm sort of fading away at the moment.... i need help with something, i used to as a child celebrate christmas and have always had amazing memories of it (my husband hasn't as he was born into the org) but i gave it up when i learnt the "truth".

my interest was only in pleasing god and still is.

LongHairGal

SAMSIE:

Welcome to the forum.

I am somebody not raised a JW so my feelings about holidays are different from most people here. I associate my childhood and pre-JW life as a happy time. I am forever grateful that we celebrated Christmas. I love the smells of the tree and the wonderful smells of cooking and baking, the lights and colors, seeing relatives and the excitement of opening presents.

The Witnesses prevent people from celebrating holidays and claim it’s because they are ‘pagan’. Well, everything is pagan - from the days of the week to wedding rings. Nah, the REAL reason is they don’t want you associating with non-JW friends and relatives. They are afraid that if you experience unconditional love and friendship from people who aren’t judging you - you might not want the JW religion anymore!

It is all about isolating you from people not in the religion.

Of course I celebrate it now..When I left the JW religion the first thing I did was make contact with long lost relatives before it was too late. I am so happy I was able to do so.

18

Nosey elders and Pioneer wife's

by Foolednomore in

jw
friends

i bought a pre-owned mercedes m class .

my second car.

and the day i drove it to the hall i was told by an elderrette that is a showy display and too much car.

LongHairGal

Hi FOOLEDNOMORE:

This isn’t quite the same but similar:

Back in the day I needed another car because the one I had was on its way out. A nosey older sister piped up and said something about ‘not getting a two door’ I believe because of the ‘friends’ and FS… To which I replied: “If the religion is willing to make my car payments I’ll get any kind of car they want.”

61

Elders hounding members to quit their jobs due to missing too many meetings

by RULES & REGULATIONS in

how many times did you see elders hounding congregation members to quit their jobs due to missing meetings?.

my brother worked at a grocery store at 16 years old.

he would miss tuesday's ministry school due to his work schedule.

LongHairGal

HOSER:

Thanks. I actually have two JW friends who privately told me I did the right thing by looking out for myself. I have No regrets there.

As far as Witnesses with taker type personalities: you are right but I came to believe that even if these people weren’t ‘Users/Takers’ when they joined - they learned HOW to become very adept users because of the ‘culture’ there. It’s very shameful. It made me sad when some JWs I liked were ‘used’ by some of the snakes there.

The religion is really a hostile environment if you think about it. Can’t trust anybody, have to be guarded in what you say and do, etc.. I certainly don’t miss any of it.

61

Elders hounding members to quit their jobs due to missing too many meetings

by RULES & REGULATIONS in

how many times did you see elders hounding congregation members to quit their jobs due to missing meetings?.

my brother worked at a grocery store at 16 years old.

he would miss tuesday's ministry school due to his work schedule.

LongHairGal

HOSER:

I’m sure you are correct and oftentimes help might have an angle to it. But, the fact is that it IS help - to certain people.

I suffered from a double whammy when I was in the JW religion. I wasn’t just disliked because I had a full-time job. I wouldn’t do favors for the Users there. You don’t criticize me and THEN imagine I’m gonna do favors. It doesn’t work that way.

Some people there acted like I ‘owed’ somebody something. Don’t know how else to describe it. Whether it’s just a hatred of certain types of women and I wasn’t the 1950s Stepford type wife.

Nah, make no mistake about it. It is what it is. I had no illusions about anything there. Because I was subjected to the harshest type of treatment because I was a single working woman and ostracized because they couldn’t manipulate me, that’s why I feel the way I do about how brothers with businesses are going to have to help out all those JWs who never worked. Don’t even talk to me about them.

Isn’t it ironic that now it’s MY turn to run from the Witnesses.

61

Elders hounding members to quit their jobs due to missing too many meetings

by RULES & REGULATIONS in

how many times did you see elders hounding congregation members to quit their jobs due to missing meetings?.

my brother worked at a grocery store at 16 years old.

he would miss tuesday's ministry school due to his work schedule.

LongHairGal

RULES & REGULATIONS:

That’s very good of your brother and others to help out this former CO..I would never presume to tell somebody else not to give if they want to..However, I’m not interested.. Maybe you are still in the religion so you feel sorry.

All the JWs including circuit overseers knocked me for having my full-time job. They are responsible for people like me being ostracized in the congregation. SO, Let their ‘spiritual’ brothers help them out!! You know, the people they hobnobbed with..This religion and its policies has created too many problems for people.

You forget: If I had been so foolish as to give up my job back in the day, I would not be retired now…Do you IMAGINE for one minute that any brothers would be taking up collections for ME like they do for the former CO you mention??? Don’t make me laugh. If I was stupid enough to still be trapped in this religion, I’d be the last person alive there to get any kind of assistance from anybody. Nobody would feel sorry for me..Sorry, but my opinion on the matter is that brothers with businesses who were ‘buddies’ with types like him are going to have to help him and that’s the way it has to be. And that goes for all the other ‘needy’ types there who never worked and have their hands out.

61

Elders hounding members to quit their jobs due to missing too many meetings

by RULES & REGULATIONS in

how many times did you see elders hounding congregation members to quit their jobs due to missing meetings?.

my brother worked at a grocery store at 16 years old.

he would miss tuesday's ministry school due to his work schedule.

LongHairGal

Very interesting experiences everybody. I’m really shocked by some of them. What I take away from all this: a concerted effort probably starting around the time of that 1969 Awake with Baby Boomers (and continuing until now) to get young people in the JW religion to not get college/careers and to purposely pursue poverty in the full time ministry pioneering.

If a person already had a decent job or career, they were told to get rid of it and pursue poverty (like I was told to quit my job and take up housecleaning/pioneering). I refused. Some were ‘threatened’ with loss of privileges, friends (not being invited). I was pretty much ostracized but that’s okay now since I’m retired and these older hypocrites passed away. I regret I never got a chance to tell these people off.

ALL the older people in the congregation back then were collecting THEIR pensions from when THEY were in the workforce. These people went to their graves living an affluent life after they pushed poverty for everybody ELSE in the congregation (mostly young gullible people). Is there anything just about this? Does anybody see anything wrong with this picture???

It would seem only those back then who refused to follow this ridiculous and hypocritical advice (myself and some others) ended up with a Retirement today. Anybody who caved in to the religion’s requests is suffering financially today in their old age and the people who pushed poverty not even around to Help them!…So, What did the religion accomplish?? They have congregations filled with all sorts of needy people who I am Glad to be nowhere near. Congratulations.

61

Elders hounding members to quit their jobs due to missing too many meetings

by RULES & REGULATIONS in

how many times did you see elders hounding congregation members to quit their jobs due to missing meetings?.

my brother worked at a grocery store at 16 years old.

he would miss tuesday's ministry school due to his work schedule.

LongHairGal

THOMASMORE:

The fact that the religion knows that it creates a problem for people (according to the remark from the GB member you mention about ‘helping people find an exit door and place to land’) is one of the most sickening things I have heard!

So, they know full well that there is no place in the job market for people who are untrained - especially an older person. But, yet, they still are knocking higher education and careers. There is no forgiveness for these hypocrites.. As you mentioned, our years of ostracism in the congregation paid off with a reasonable retirement.

Now, the Witnesses are going around asking for money for those of them who never worked or only had a nodding acquaintance with the workforce..Meanwhile, I would run from these people.

A spotty work record means not much in SS benefits. Can you imagine? It’s hard to believe so many Witnesses checked their brains at the door and were all taken in by promises of Armageddon coming to save them that they took such a gamble!!

Even the Bible in Proverbs talks about the lowly Ant and how it stores up and saves! ..So, JWs ignored basic wisdom, threw common sense out the window and were all caught up in peer pressure and the fervor of ‘pioneering’..(Boy, do I hate that word) and I’m sure glad Today that I never followed the crowd back then.

17

Rosemont Cemetery II

by RolRod in

okay, so here's a follow-up to my post a while back regarding the society tearing down the pyramid monument.

they cleared the area and this is what they did.

notice ... nothing about the watchtower connected to it, just slabs of cheap concrete..

LongHairGal

THOMASMORE:

Yes, it’s true there is no loyalty to anybody there.

I always wondered if any of those people there you describe who are up in years think getting sent packing will never happen to them.. I do not envy anybody who is dependent on the JW religion for their room and board nowadays. Their situation sounds very precarious!

These people may also figure Armageddon or them passing away will solve the problem. But, when you think about it, being ‘kicked to the curb’ at that age would be a nightmare. What, if any, relatives would be left to take somebody in? This would be so cruel.

15

Preaching the Good News with Rising Gas Prices?

by truthlover123 in

jw
friends

i fear this could put an end to travelling a territory due to rising prices- where i am located in canada, we are now paying $2.08 per liter .

now since there is 3.79 litres in one gallon that equates to $7.88 per gallon... .

how many in a car group will kick in?

LongHairGal

THOMASMORE:

It was about time that the so-called ‘rich guy’ left the room. These JWs didn’t deserve you! All you were good for was to give freebies to people who don’t want to work.

You don’t even need to be a ‘rich guy’, just somebody who doesn’t know how to say no. I am glad you finally did. The way you were treated when you stopped dishing out goodies says everything! These idiots can go fly a kite.👎

41

Fascinating Quotations of The Faithful Slave

by Vanderhoven7 in

do you have any amazing quotations that have been produced by the faithful slave over the years?.

remember it's important that we should learn to love and value truth for it’s own sake; to respect and honor it by owning and acknowledging it wherever we find it and by whomever presented.

a truth presented by the faithful slave himself is just as true as a truth stated by god.. share some of those amazing quotations that have fascinated you.

LongHairGal

VANDERHOVEN7:

Yes, how can we forget that infamous 1969 Awake article telling young people back then that they’d never grow old and who needs college or a career??

How many countless Witnesses made foolish and life-altering decisions based on this and who regret this every day in their old age which they have surely reached. I wasn’t yet in the JW religion when this article came out.

When I came in some years later with my full-time job I was assailed with every sort of nasty remark about how I better ‘quit that job’ and ‘take up housecleaning and pioneering’ and it shows I’m ‘not spiritual’.. Meanwhile, all the older people were collecting THEIR pensions and living in decent homes while pushing poverty for some young person ..If anybody doesn’t see anything wrong with this picture they have a problem.

Anyway, their foolish talk never made any sense to me and I am forever Grateful now that I ignored all those hypocrites in the religion years ago who tried to interfere with MY life.. Thank God for my ‘worldly’ upbringing and fatherly wisdom from the School of Hard Knocks which prevented me from making a stupid mistake.