Posts by castlelover

19

Was leaving easy for you?

by Preston in

i was contemplating today on how easy it was for me to leave the congregation compared to what many people here had to deal with.

i mean, all the letters, judicial committees, family breakdowns were not really something i had to deal with.

the worst thing i had to deal with was when a couple of elders inquired if i ever "acted on" my being gay.

I had been slowly not going to meetings after having done so for 20 years. Then when my husband became terminally ill, I just didn't have the time. It took everything to take care of him. No witnessess helped. Then on his deathbed he was promised by a prominant elder that he would take care of his family and it was all right for him to go.

That never happened and then I wrote a letter and disassociated myself. In that letter I told them to not come see me I didn't want to talk to any of them. Imagine my surprise 7 years later when I run into this elder who by the way he says Jehovah has blessed and he says don't we know you? Shows his promise was sincere.

Thank God that I am no longer associated with the hypocrisy.

It was easy to leave and I never plan to go back and God has blessed me with a new husband and a faithful congregation at a little church in Oxford, Pa.

I have read the horror stories and am saddened by the people who have been so condemned by their families. Fortunately for me none of my family had ever become JWs and I had them to go home to.

27

Love amongst the "brothers"

by Thirdson in

the one thing that jws claim is the love they have for one another.

i am well aware of some of the things that have been done in the congregation for members and i believe real love was shown.

in times of natural disaster jws have been very good at caring for their own.

castlelover

Well on May 5, 1994, a leading elder from my congregation came over and told my dying husband that he didn't have to worry he would take care of his family. My husband died that evening at around 8:00 p.m. This same elder gave my husband's funeral talk and it was awful and me still a JW thought it was awful. I was furious. He stood by me at the viewing etc. and acted all concerned.

Did he ever call me again? Did he help my children as they dealt with the death of their father? Did he come and ask why we weren't coming to meetings? Did anyone come over to help mow the grass? Did anyone contribute anything to my family other than a few dishes from some? The answers to all of this is NO!!!!!

I disassociated myself that same year.

Well imagine I ran into them at a store just the other day and they said aren't you someone we know? Now I was in the same congregation with them for 10+ years. I look basically the same, right. Well I said yes you know me. Asked me where I was now? Boy they must have really been interested in helping my husband's family when they didn't even know where I was. They acted all friendly then and then came the question......Are you still in the way? Must be a new terminology we used to say in the truth. I answered absolutely not.
I then offered them an out saying I'm sure this affects you talking to me. They said well no. Then asked me why and I just told them that I had no use for it anymore. But that I still had faith just not theirs.

They hurried on then.

To me if I made a commitment to a dying man that I would look after his family, I would. Where is the love that they say they practice? Don't know was never shown to us much over the 20+ years as a JW. Did they take care of my children and invite them to gatherings? No. Did they keep a deathbed commitment? No.

Good riddens to them all their example of biblical love is disgusting.

If I think of anything else, I reply later.

Hope this is what you were looking for.

6

Dropping off incriminating info to Kingdom Hall?

by stocwach in

jw
friends

i am still fairly new to this site (was raised a jw from 4 til i just stopped going to meetings and moved out of the parents' house @ 17 in 1985).. fortunately i have a good relationship with my parents (i am an only child, which probably helps, not to mention the fact that they continually can't wait to see their grandchildren --3yr old boy and 7 mth old girl) even though they still diligently are full fledged dubs (my dad was an elder for many years before stepping down due to the extremely heavy load of preparing for talks, elders meetings etc, due to time it was taking away from our family).. after reviewing the numerous sites on the web and learning the truth and hypocrisy surrounding the watchtower, there are so many issues that i want to raise with the folks yet haven't mustered up the courage to do so, but that's another topic.. my question for you all is this: what do you think about the idea of anonymously dropping off incriminating documentation at the front door of the kh?

imo there are so many down in the ranks have no clue the stuff about the un, silentlambs info, etc.

someone would be bound to see this stuff, and it could cause a domino effect if received in the right wavering hands (of course the opposite i know could occur with a devout jw who immediately sees it as apostate and discards it down the toitet).. love to hear your thoughts!

castlelover

Well from what I can remember, they will only discard it. Usually an elder unlocks the door and of course they wouldn't pass the apostate literature on to others. Unfortunately brainwashing starts at the top and they are constantly told to read other literature would damage them to the truth. What baloney! Some of their doctrines are preached in other demoninations and are bible based but the majority of their hoopla is garbage made up as they go. When they are wrong they blame it on themselves and say that God let their stupidity continue until he wanted to make it clear. God always wants us to know the truth and it is up to us to investigate and prove what we are taught. The dictate to avoid other literature allows them to continue to feed people garbage and they don't even know it because they can't research and find out about it. What a shame.

Try talking to your parents. If they haven't shut you out of their lives then God is leaving the door open. I'll pray that they listen. I did and life is good again!

12

Why Do JW Leave and Want Nothing to Do With God

by castlelover in

jw
friends

i find reading this information from different individuals that being a jw and then leaving has people not wanting anything to do with god.

did god tell us to become members of a cult?

i think it is a form of programming that is given over and over that we would be like a dog returning to its vomit.

castlelover

I find reading this information from different individuals that being a JW and then leaving has people not wanting anything to do with God. Why? Did God tell us to become members of a cult? I don't think so. But I was the same way. I think it is a form of programming that is given over and over that we would be like a dog returning to its vomit.

Well I guess I like vomit according to them because I have gone back to GOD but not on their unholy terms. It has been a struggle but I continue to deprogramm over time and have been able to heal.

Here's hoping that healing will come to us all that have left and now that the world is free of their intense mind control it is good to be alive.

See ya!

7

Life Cycle of a JW

by Wren in

this is an introduction.

my jw life, i admit now, is typical.

in ways its typical for: jw demographics, life passages, time in a high control group.

castlelover

I read with interest your history and see myself in it a good bit. Heavy into it in the seventies, eighties still there, but in the nineties no way. After my husband died (not a witness) and the terrible talk given by an elder and that same elder promised by husband on his deathbed that he would take care of his family and then him not even stopping by to see how we were doing was the last straw. Thankfully my family were not JWs and I didn't have to put up with this aspect. Where is the love that they so preach. Not within their organization. I too am thankful that blood never came up with my children because if I had lost one and now how to deal with the stupidity of my decision it would be too much to bear.

I'm sorry that now there poison still can sometimes infect us with the programming that they instilled. For instance the first time I read this sight I felt guilty and felt like I sinned or something, when really all I am seeing is that others have broken away as well.

I am also thankful that God had a purpose for me and when I remarried by new husband was able to help me come away from this madness and find out that I can worship God without all the rules and regulations that they lay upon us.

My prayers are with you and thank you for sharing your story.