coffee_black

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Posts by coffee_black

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  19

  "Apostasy" Sucks (sometimes)

  by Maryjane in

  1. jw
  2. friends

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  i'm so frustrated with the challenges associated with "spreading the bad news about jehovah's witnesses" i find when i debate with a jw in the company of "civilians" (people who know nothing of jw's) they come off smelling like a rose and i seem like a disgruntled nut.. just needed to vent!.

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  coffee_black
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  19

  "Apostasy" Sucks (sometimes)

  by Maryjane in

  1. jw
  2. friends

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  i'm so frustrated with the challenges associated with "spreading the bad news about jehovah's witnesses" i find when i debate with a jw in the company of "civilians" (people who know nothing of jw's) they come off smelling like a rose and i seem like a disgruntled nut.. just needed to vent!.

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  coffee_black
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  29

  ***FLUFF ALERT***** Funky Foods

  by Big Dog in

  1. social
  2. humour

  what in your opinion is the funkiest of the funky when it comes to food?

  some of my picks:.

  dinty moore stew.

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  coffee_black

  This is just perfect...I'm about to go to dinner at my best friend's house, and I've entirely lost my appetite. I'll add liver to the list. Can't stand it in any form...something about the texture....Yuck!!!!!!

  Coffee
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  35

  Before or after?

  by flag in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i'm curious, when you made your decision to leave the org.

  did you do it before or after looking at this kind of internet sites?.

  in my case i made my decision without ever looking any of this websites.

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  coffee_black

  I left long before I even had access to a computer.

  Coffee
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  12

  WAS THERE ANY YOUTH WORK IN YOUR KH?

  by badboy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

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  any takers?

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  coffee_black

  Nothing from the organization... Children were supposed to be like miniature adults.

  My parents planned things though. Every assembly my mom would take as many kids as she could fit in the car, and between the sessions we went to local historic sites. For example, at an assembly in Plymouth, MA we went to Plymouth Rock and the local museum. Another in New Bedford and she took us to the Whaling Museum...

  We had lots of get togethers at our home...hayrides, skating parties etc.

  Coffee
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  45

  WHAT'S THE WORST JOB YOU EVER HAD?

  by Mary in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the worst one i ever had was working in a frozen chicken factory.

  there were about 30 of us in a freezing cold room and my shit job was to feel the half-frozen chicken breasts up, to see if there were any little bones in them.

  well after the first 5 minutes my frigging fingers were frozen stiff, so i couldn't tell if there were any bones in there or not........after 20 minutes it felt like my hands were having an out of body experience and if they weren't in front of my frozen face, i would've thought they had dropped off.

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  coffee_black

  Cleaning gas station rest rooms . (with my now x husband) You wouldn't believe what we would have to clean up. That was in 1971...and I lasted about a week. Ewwwwww....

  My son briefly worked as a security guard at a mushroom farm. He will not eat mushrooms to this day.

  Coffee
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  17

  Watchtower control

  by coffee_black in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  ive been thinking about the level of control the organization demands of its followers.

  some of the things listed below are things that normal people take for granted.

  some are the most basic of human desires.

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  coffee_black

  Ok, I spent a few minutes searching the web. I used to have every publication listed here....but again, they are in a box in Florida... I found this at the following website

  http://www.gospeldefense.org/quote_list.php3?keyword=Marriage&group=Jehovah\'s%20Witnesses

  Hope this works...there are a number of quotes.

  Record 326	Marriage	Jehovah's Witnesses	Face the Facts Brooklyn, NY: Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, 1938 p. 46	--/--/1938
  Would it be Scripturally proper for them to rear children? No, is the answer, which is supported by the Scriptures.
  Record 324	Marriage	Jehovah's Witnesses	The Watchtower p. 323	11/01/1938
  If in obedience to the divine command the Jonadabs or great multitude will marry and rear children after Armageddon, would it not be Scripturally proper for them to begin doing so immediately before Armageddon? And should the Jonadabs now be encouraged to marry and rear children? No, is the answer, supported by the Scriptures.
  Record 325	Marriage	Jehovah's Witnesses	The Watchtower p. 324	11/01/1938
  It would therefore appear that here is no reasonable or Sriptural injunction to bring children into the world immediately before Armageddon, where we now are.
  Record 327	Marriage	Jehovah's Witnesses	Rutherford, Joseph Franklin Children Brooklyn, NY: Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, 1941 p. 366	--/--/1941
  We can well defer our marriage until lasting peace comes to earth.
  Record 328	Marriage	Jehovah's Witnesses	The Watchtower p. 199	04/01/1964
  As an example, some prohibit the people from eating meat on particular days and their priests from getting married. Besides restricting one’s freedom, these laws are expressly warned against by Christian apostle Paul. In his letter to Timothy he said that ‘some will fall away from the faith… forbidding to marry, commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be, partaken of with thanksgiving.
  Record 330	Marriage	Jehovah's Witnesses	Awake! p. 11	11/08/1974
  Today there is a great crowd of people who are confident that a destruction of even greater magnitude is now imminent. The evidence is that Jesus’ prophecy will shortly have a major fulfillment, upon this entire system of things. This has been a major factor in influencing many couples to decide not to have children at this time. They have chosen to remain childless so that they would be less encumbered to carry out the instructions of Jesus Christ to preach the good news of God’s kingdom earth wide before the end of this systems comes. - Matt. 24:14
  Record 329	Marriage	Jehovah's Witnesses	The Watchtower p. 31	09/15/1979
  God ordained marriage (Gen. 2:18-25). So his Word speaks of those who ‘will forbid marriage’ as having departed ‘from the faith, giving heed to deceitful spirits and doctrines of devils, speaking lies hypocritically,’… How inappropriate, then to disapprove of marriage, a lawful act in God’s sight. ************************************************************************************************* Sorry for the way it's formatted... it's on a chart on their website. Coffee
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  17

  Watchtower control

  by coffee_black in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  ive been thinking about the level of control the organization demands of its followers.

  some of the things listed below are things that normal people take for granted.

  some are the most basic of human desires.

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  coffee_black

  Hi Danny,

  I used to have the book "Children". I read it as I was researching when I was in the process of leaving the borg. It is now in a box in my daughter's garage in Florida. I'm in MA...1300 miles away....so I won't have access to it any time soon. ..until my next visit anyway. I haven't tried looking it up on the web...but I will as soon as I get a little free time....

  There may be cultural differences in the organization from one country to the next. There was a brother from England who moved here, and was floored when he heard the attitude of jws on education. He had been to college...didn't see what the big deal was.

  Growing up (I was born in '52 ) there were very few kids in my congregation. That changed as families were converted into the organization. There were still only a handfull until I became a teenager. None of my jw friends went to college. More than half didn't have children because of the organization...and the ones who did waited until 1975 was safely behind them. (except me, of course...as I said I was pregnant in 75)

  Coffee
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  17

  Watchtower control

  by coffee_black in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  ive been thinking about the level of control the organization demands of its followers.

  some of the things listed below are things that normal people take for granted.

  some are the most basic of human desires.

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  coffee_black

  Sorry DannyBloem, but you're wrong. Read the book: "Children". Marriage may not have been forbidden... but nearly so. As I said in my post , they have changed it... but my parents dated for 10 years because of that one. Ask anyone who was around in the 30s & 40s if it was ok to marry. Knorr got married and it opened up the floodgates. My parents would have married much earlier had it not been for that.

  In the 60s & 70s having children was a huge no no. You were considered very, very spiritually weak if you did. I know tons of couples who gave up having children for the borg. I lived through that period.

  College? I went for 1 year, but the pressure was almost unbearable from the congregation. There were tons of articles and talks on the subject. I was treated like I had leprosy. (except for my dad and mom who were thrilled that I was going)

  Beards? I didn't make it up. They even portrayed Jesus as clean shaven. We had one black circuit overseer with a beard. He said it was ok for black brothers, but not for white brothers. Even gave a talk about it.

  Re: subjection..I was talking about within the congregation...not in the home ..and women definitely are not considered equal.

  Some of these things were in the past ( I think I said that) They still effected a lot of people through the years though.

  Maybe I should have used the word "shouldn't" instead of could not....but I think for most jws...especially the hard core it doesn't make much difference. If the society says it...it's law to them...

  By the way...what does ; mean?

  Coffee
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  17

  Watchtower control

  by coffee_black in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  ive been thinking about the level of control the organization demands of its followers.

  some of the things listed below are things that normal people take for granted.

  some are the most basic of human desires.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  coffee_black

  I’ve been thinking about the level of control the organization demands of its’ followers. Some of the things listed below are things that normal people take for granted. Some are the most basic of human desires.

  * Cannot vote

  * Cannot serve in the military

  * Cannot salute the flag

  * Cannot celebrate Birthdays

  * Cannot celebrate any holidays

  * Cannot have a blood transfusion

  * Cannot go to college

  Earlier in its’ history the society’s teachings involved the following, but changed over time:

  * Cannot marry (I know because my parents put off marriage for 10 years because of the society’s teaching about marriage)

  * Cannot have children (I was pregnant in 1975…imagine the reaction that prompted!)

  * Cannot have a vaccination (my parents put off vaccinating me until 4 th grade because of this.)

  * Cannot have an organ transplant (dad died because of this one)

  And the behavioral control

  * Cannot associate with or even talk to family members or friends who leave the organization

  * A woman must be in subjection according to the society’s definition of the term.

  * Cannot question the organization or its’ teachings for any reason.

  * Must attend all meetings and assemblies

  * Must prepare for all those meetings

  * Must go from door to door and report that time

  * Must dress according to jw standards

  And the information control…

  * Internet use strongly discouraged

  * Research outside of organization publications strongly discouraged

  * Absolute forbidding to read any anti-jw literature

  * Strongly discouraging reading of old literature…their own publications!

  Then there were silly things like…

  * No aluminum cookware

  * Daily sun baths…while bouncing…

  * No beards

  There are lots more…but even this short list is enough to alarm any thinking person.

  Just how much freedom and how many rights are jws willing to forfeit in order to remain in good standing? Some of these policies have resulted in death, others in broken families, unfulfilled dreams and wasted talents. If a government imposed these laws on their subjects, every human rights group on the planet would be all over them. But, it’s a “religion,” so it gets a pass.

  And what does a jw get for all this sacrifice? A life of mental and spiritual slavery…with the “hope” of life in a “new system” that seems to get further away with each year. How does conforming to this list have anything to do with a relationship with God?

  Coffee