Posts by coffee

56

What Made You Leave The "Truth"? Was It False Prophecy, People, Blood, etc.

by minimus in

jw
friends

jw's like to believe that people who leave the organization do it for selfish reasons or due to impatience and not "waiting on jehovah".

there's a variety of reasons for persons making the decision and saying, "that's it!

i'm not doing this anymore".

coffee_black

There was a feeling for a long time that something was just not right, but I couldn't put my finger on it. There was then the issue of organ transplant and the changing policy on that one. It hit home, because someone I was very close to died because of it. I also observed the behavior of a young jw who was friends with my son. He had an elder for a father, and literally spewed hatred at a neighbor of ours when he came for a visit. I knew that teaching a child to hate cannot be a mark of the true religion. I remember sitting in a watchtower study doing the math...25cents per copy of each issue x I forget how many millions of issues twice a month... Where was all the money going? There were other issues too that finally prompted me to do some research. I had all the society's books going back to the turn of the century, and I read nearly all of them. By then, it was undeniable. It could not be, by any streach of the imagination, the "truth"

Coffee

29

Who really writes the talks

by anglise in

hallo everyone.

the earlier thread about the min school reminded me of the number of times that i researched and at least partly put together items and pub talks for 'he must be obeyed'.. this was necessary because he worked full time in a demanding job which left very little leeway for cobbling the many assignments together.

at first being a good dub wife i felt guilty at doing this but in talking to others whose husbands also worked full time and were not part time cleaners or window cleaners i found that several other elders wives had always done this.. not only the talks but also sorting out the school assigments, the schedules, field service arrangements, sorting the auditing, coach and accomodation for the dc and ca, checking the accounts etc.. lots of these sisters also helped their children put together their items.. rather makes a mockery of the male privilege of "taking the lead".. most elders and ms are unable to cope with all the pressures and work if their wives dont do most for them.

coffee_black

I wrote this on another thread:

I was raised a jw, and I went to college for a year. My father, a very prominent elder, believed in education. He was asked to step down because I was attending college. He refused, and because he knew how to stand up for himself, he remained an elder. I was virtually shunned by nearly all in the congregation, including my so called friends. There was terrible pressure to quit, which my dad tried to counter-act. I quit after a year to marry a jw. Our first major argument was one in which he was determined that I would admit that my attending college had been a sin. I stood my ground but my fledgeling education was a rift between us that widened over the years. Many years later, after our divorce, he wanted our son to attend college. In the interum, he had gone back to get a degree himself. I told him that I thought it was ironic that he would want our son to attend college....given his earlier stance on education. He said "the society never said that you couldn't go to college". I reminded him of our early history on the subject. He had nothing more to say. He is hardly ever speechless, but he was that day.

There was a softening of position, although it is still not encouraged. Part of the reason for the change was that the subject of education kept coming up in custody cases, and the society didn't look good by discouraging it. The court would often award custody to the parent who would give the child the greatest opportunities.

I wish I had finished my degree. I had a 3.8 GPA, and I loved the college experience.

Coffee

29

Israel??

by l3gi0n in

what do you think of israel being reestablished in one day on may 14 ,1948?

do you think it is the fulfillment of .

isaiah 66:7 "before she goes into labor, she gives birth; before the pains come upon her, she delivers a son.

coffee_black

Yep, and all the faithful jws will say..."The society never said that!" No matter what's in print they will deny deny deny, and anyone who questions the denial will be labelled an apostate.

And so it goes...

Coffee

17

How long did it take for you to realize it wasn't the truth?

by freedom96 in

jw
friends

so many of us, so many reasons we left or were kicked out.

from that point, how long did it take for you to not feel guilty about things and realize that the wts is not the "truth" as they always claim and that they have no say in whatever happens to us later.. for me, it was a slow fade.

not so much because i was determind to leave it; it was basically laziness in that regard.

coffee_black

It's definitely a process. Very few can just wake up one morning, and walk away from it with no effects. It still is part of what made you what you are, so you have to decide what baggage to take with you, and what you leave behind. It's not an easy process, especially if it's all you've ever known.

Coffee

67

How Sad

by Ariell in

jw
friends

i have a distant cousin, 15 and in a wheel chair.

she's always saying how she can't wait until the new system comes when finally she'll be set free from her handicap and can run around with joyful glee.

it breaks my heart knowing this is never gonna happen and makes me even more angrier.

coffee_black

Northern girl,

It is true that they have eased their position somewhat on education. Part of the reason is because it is an issue that is brought up in custody cases. They have to make it appear as though they support education, and the futures of member children. It doesn't look good to a court to discourage education.

No one I know, and I know jws across the country went to college in the 60s, 70s or 80s. Imagine the wasted potential and the regret. I wish I had finished. I know of lots of jws who wish they had gone to college instead of listening to the org.

Coffee

67

How Sad

by Ariell in

jw
friends

i have a distant cousin, 15 and in a wheel chair.

she's always saying how she can't wait until the new system comes when finally she'll be set free from her handicap and can run around with joyful glee.

it breaks my heart knowing this is never gonna happen and makes me even more angrier.

coffee_black

northern girl,

I was raised a jw, and I went to college for a year. My father, a very prominent elder, believed in education. He was asked to step down because I was attending college. He refused, and because he knew how to stand up for himself, he remained an elder. I was virtually shunned by nearly all in the congregation, including my so called friends. There was terrible pressure to quit, which my dad tried to counter-act. I quit after a year to marry a jw. Our first major argument was one in which he was determined that I would admit that my attending college had been a sin. I stood my ground but my fledgeling education was a rift between us that widened over the years. Many years later, after our divorce, he wanted our son to attend college. In the interum, he had gone back to get a degree himself. I told him that I thought it was ironic that he would want our son to attend college....given his earlier stance on education. He said "the society never said that you couldn't go to college". I reminded him of our early history on the subject. He had nothing more to say. He is hardly ever speechless, but he was that day.

In my experience, jws have selective amnesia when it comes to issues like education, organ transplant, 1975 etc. I think I experienced selective amnesia myself, many times over the years. It's what blurrs the facts, and makes it difficult to leave the org., and makes jws view every criticism as an attack.

Coffee

17

How long did it take for you to realize it wasn't the truth?

by freedom96 in

jw
friends

so many of us, so many reasons we left or were kicked out.

from that point, how long did it take for you to not feel guilty about things and realize that the wts is not the "truth" as they always claim and that they have no say in whatever happens to us later.. for me, it was a slow fade.

not so much because i was determind to leave it; it was basically laziness in that regard.

coffee_black

There were several things over about a decade that raised my antenna. I knew once I started researching those issues, I would have to make some serious decisions. I put that off as long as I could. I was raised in the org., and it's all I ever knew. Once I started researching, it took about a year and a half before I made the final decision. I only sent in a da letter because they started to come after me. I hadn't been to a meeting in over a year by then, nor had I been out in service in over 3 years. I was doing a pretty good slow fade until someone reported that my son had been to a birthday party.

Coffee

40

Howcome the WTS does not include personal testimonies...

by jgnat in

howcome the wts does not include personal testimonies in their meetings (i mean, ones that have not been edited by the writing department)?

oftentimes when i am preparing for an instructional course, i go looking for a sample completed form.

in order that my students are not led astray, i try and find the perfect sample.

coffee_black

Pork Chop,

There were experiences related, but never a "testimony" of one's faith. Most experiences involved literature placement, Bible studies started, informal witnessing etc. Contrary to wt teaching, literature placement is not faith. Those experiences involve bringing people into the organization, not leading them to Christ. The experiences never involved one's personal faith or relationship with God.

I heard those experiences for most of my life. I've since heard "testimonies" in several Churches. There is no comparison. I didn't know what a "testimony" was, in fact, I didn't know what worship was until experienced both at an xjw conference about 10 years ago.

Coffee

29

Israel??

by l3gi0n in

what do you think of israel being reestablished in one day on may 14 ,1948?

do you think it is the fulfillment of .

isaiah 66:7 "before she goes into labor, she gives birth; before the pains come upon her, she delivers a son.

coffee_black

Hi Mizpah,

Around the time I sent my disassociation letter, (1993) I called Brooklyn and asked to speak to someone in the writing dept. I asked that very question..."Who do you say the King of the North is now?". I was told in effect, that they didn't know yet, and would have to wait to see what developed.

So much for being directed by God.

Coffee

35

Having children ??? did the Watchtower have an affect on your decisions ???

by run dont walk in

i remember growing up and thinking that there was no way i would have kids ......... why ???

....... because i did not want to raise them the way i was raised, in the borg.

i went through hell, why put a defenceless child through that.

coffee_black

My parents went together for 10 years before they married, because they were waiting for Armageddon... Then someone at headquarters married, and it was finally ok...

They had me later in life because of that decision. They wanted more kids. I had a brother who only lived a day and a half. My mother had numerous miscarriages, but I ended up an only child. Had they had those 10 years they missed out on, maybe there would have been others. They regretted waiting, and often said so.

coffee

coffee_black

Posts by coffee_black