Posts by jwfacts

61

Thoughts on going back, am I the only one that feels this way?

by excaliber in

jw
friends

hello everyone, i know you have heard this topic before and your probably thinking.

...not again lol.. but i was wondering if anyone has thought of going back for the same reasons as myself, i don't think its the truth but i searched and my conclusion is that other religions don't have the truth, they are all wrong in my opinion.

if there is no other religion to go too, why leave were i was born and raised.

jwfacts

If there is no other religion to go too, why leave were I was born and raised.

It would be more sense to phrase it "If there is no other religion to go to, why be part of any religion?"

I understand it is easier to remain a JW for friends at your age. But few people can remain part of a lie for their entire lives, and the longer you put off leaving, the harder it becomes to find new friends. Finding another JW to fade with is also fraught with risk.

If you leave now, over time you will assimilate with normal people, and hopefully be able to get married and have a happy and heathly environment to raise the next generation of your family line in.

57

oh dear I think I messed up and pushed too hard

by Frazzled UBM in

reading all the posts on the wt study on higher education and careers really fired me up yesterday.

i have 2 undergraduate and 2 postgraduate degerees and a career as a result which allows me to provide well for my jw wife and son.

i was already unhappy because after 5 or 6 weeks of not going and appearing to be making progress she went back on sunday for the second sunday in a row and as usual was away all day.

jwfacts

I remain concerned that in a moment of cult-inspired madness she may try and take my son with her to the Philippines to remove my Satanic influence

Philippines is not an easy country to live in, so I find her comments that she may move back there for a quiet life unlikely. She may leave you for a quiet life if you do not ease up on her, but going back it less likely. Then again, I don't know what the situation is with her and money, or residency status. In Australia, after 2 years they can get permanent residency with ease, and easily find a job, or support themselves off the government and child support, so few ever choose to return to Philippines.

Why are you so worried about what she believes? For the sake of your son, the best thing is to make sure you educate him so that he does not fall for the cult. But pushing her away due to her religion, one that she had before she met you, is putting your relationship with your son at risk.

Helping Someone Leave Jehovah's Witnesses provides advice on helping your wife. Until you fully know why she is a JW, why she believes it is the truth, and how much faith she has in it, what you say to her could do more damage than good.

57

oh dear I think I messed up and pushed too hard

by Frazzled UBM in

reading all the posts on the wt study on higher education and careers really fired me up yesterday.

i have 2 undergraduate and 2 postgraduate degerees and a career as a result which allows me to provide well for my jw wife and son.

i was already unhappy because after 5 or 6 weeks of not going and appearing to be making progress she went back on sunday for the second sunday in a row and as usual was away all day.

jwfacts

'She's a Filapina? None of my business, of course, but this wasn't a relationship/marriage arranged over the internet by any chance, was it?' Nice comment. Talk about racial stereo-typing.

I married a Filipina in Sydney 16 years ago, who was already living in Sydney when I met her at the kingdom hall. She is 3 years older than me. The reaction was amazing from people walking down the street, with people looking repeatedly back and forth. At that time, the only men married to Filipina were generally old with very young ones. It is very different now. There is so much diversity in Sydney that mixed relationships are normal.

Filipinas are very communal as a people, so you will struggle to get her to leave the religion unless you are able to get her to find other groups of Filipinas to socialise with. They should not be too hard to find though, as they gravitate together. My wife left shortly after I did, and instantly had a large group of new friends, through a couple of Filipinas she had at work. However, if her family are JWs, then it will be hard for her to disappoint them by leaving. You can also subtly introduce new ideas to her, through the upbringing you provide to your son, when teaching him about alternative viewpoints and critical thinking skills.

21

Fate of Jehovah's Witnesses?

by Thoughtless in

jw
friends

it disheartens me the most when there is a possibility that faithful, hardworking, honest witnesses may be destroyed or be put out of god's favor.

a lot of brothers and sisters have risked their lives because they thought they were doing the right thing to please them.

so for those who still believe in god/afterlife, do you think that these witnesses are out of god's memory?

jwfacts

For those that believe the Bible, you can pick and chose which bit you would like to believe. I would say that since there are scriptures showing Jesus was Ransom for all, and "the wages sin pays is death" JWs would have the same opportunity as everyone else for everlasting life. Many religions concentrate on the more negative scriptures of punishment for people that do not belong to their organistion, and the above concepts to people that belong to their organisation, which I see as nothing more than a marketing ploy to grow their own religion.

53

Sighhhhhhhh, the Draw Close to Jehovah book again for the Congregation Bible Study.

by Stand for Pure Worship in

jw
friends

check out this gem from the dec 2013 km which explains why it's good to over this book a second go round.. "congregations previously considered this book during 2004 and 2005. however,for many of the approximately two million publishers who have come into the truth since then,this will be the first time that jehovahs endearing qualities have been discussed in detail.for those who studied the book before, the review will help them to deepen their appreciation forjehovahs attributes.ps.119:14".

i gotta kick out of this because i can only think of maybe two or three new ones in our congregation who weren't present when this book was first studied.

at the same time, going over jehovah's qualities isn't something new.

jwfacts

However,for many of the approximately two million publishers who have come into the truth since then,this will be the first time that Jehovah’s endearing qualities have been discussed in detail.

They are trying to put a positive spin on it, but it does not hold water. Interestingly they mention that 2 million have come in, not that there are only 1 million more. Many of the 2 million that came in over the last ten years will have already left. Also, a large portion of those 2 million are JW kids that did study the book whilst children. It is unlikely that there are more than 500,000 out of the 7,500,000 JWs that have not studied that book before. Being a JW is mind numbingly boring.

95

I think my faith might be returning. Feeling very confused.

by jambon1 in

jw
friends

i've been out the organisation for around 8 years.

when i first left, im positive that i suffered from some sort of post traumatic stress.

i was very angry at myself for accepting the really bad parts of the religion that i strongly disagreed with.

jwfacts

I've found it hard to separate myself from my belief that there is a creator. This was one of the main things that made me grasp life as a JW.

Don't confuse a belief in a creator with a need for religion, particularly a need for an organisation.

There is nothing wrong with reading the Bible. If you read it again freed from indoctrination, you will see it as an interesting insight into the progression of culture, from the Barbaric evil promoted in the Old Testament, to more enlightened ways in the New Testament, based on the progression of thought due to Alexander and the Greek empire.

I have read a lot of "holy books." The Perennial Philosophy by Huxley is good, as it summaries the main theme of all religion, and particularly the mystical thinking in them. However, eventually I got sick of reading men's opinions on spirituality, as that is all it is, and it all starts to sound very similar.

20

Just caught my 7 yr old watching 'Calebs Aeroplane' think I overreacted

by not bitter in

jw
friends

at least i think thats what its called.

she was watching it at my parents house just now.

i asked what she was watching on my mums tablet and mum said whilst laughing 'oh sorry but she wants to watch bible stories' then all i heard was something about jehovah and keeping rooms tidy.

jwfacts

There are plenty of great cartoons that your child can watch with the grandparents. It is fair enough for you to ask your parents to respect your wishes to watch something neutral.

63

The " HIGHER EDUCATION" thread!!!

by DATA-DOG in

jw
friends

alright.

let's have the ultimate discussion on "higher education.

" let's talk about the good, the bad, and the ugly.

jwfacts

I went to university in 1987, when it was unheard of in my district, and received a lot of negative comments. I do not work in the area that I did my degree in, but going to university has been important in my career, as having a degree has always been a requirement in selling complex software. I now have a great job that I enjoy, earn good money, and work with amazing people.

http://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/higher-education-university.php goes into a lot of detail on this topic, including providing statistics on JW income levels and education attained.

45

is all religon crap?

by thesaint in

jw
friends

like jw are crap is there any religon dat is atally conneced to god?.

jwfacts

u wull have to check all religs to see icf one conect to god

That would be impossible with in a human lifetime, due to the large number of sects. You could research the main ones, but it takes years to fully understand a religion, so even that is not practical.

45

is all religon crap?

by thesaint in

jw
friends

like jw are crap is there any religon dat is atally conneced to god?.

jwfacts

There are of 35,000 religious sects on earth at the moment. It makes no sense to think just one is correct, and all those people with no access to that religion cannot have a relationship with God.

Every religion is started by a person. A man, or occassionally a women, thinks they know what God wants, that they have superior knowledge of his requirement, or a special connection with him. Some write a new holy book, others re-interpret an existing holy book, but claim only their interpretation is correct. They set up a religion, and for some unknown reason, other mindless humans actually believe them.