Every thing about the WTS identifies it as a cult: it seeks to isolate its members ("no part of this world"); it seeks to control its members and prevent them from seeking 'outside' help and instead admonishes them to devote more time to meetings and field service, hawking its literature "for a donation"; it uses propaganda and outright misrepresentation of medical facts to promote cult practices (refusal of blood transfusions; see attorney Kerry Louderback-Wood's article, "Jehovah's Witnesses, Blood Transfusions And The Tort Of Misrepresentation" in the Journal Of Church And State, fall 2005, Baylor University Press); it even seeks to control its members' toilet habits. See this thread for more about that topic:
http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/6/118508/1.ashx
Madame Quixote
JoinedPosts by Madame Quixote
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12
Is the D/F law the most identifying mark that the WTS is a cult?
by jambon1 inthis doctrine/law is really troubling me.
i hated it when i was in and after examining it in my mind and speaking with current jw`s i am sure that it is an identifying mark of a cult.
i never really liked to call it a cult, even after i left, but the behaviour of jw`s in this area just bewilders me.
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Madame Quixote
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Were you a bathroom breaker?
by Mysterious ini swear my mother used to keep better track of my bladder than i did.
she'd sit me down occasionally for talks such as "i noticed you've been going to the bathroom a lot during the meetings lately maybe we need to cut down on what you drink on meeting nights" etc.
others would go 2 or 3 times a meeting and if i went twice a week i'd get a talk about it!
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Madame Quixote
Yes. The most interesting part of the KH is the bathroom, where teen-age and pre-teen girls like me could go and admire ourselves, apply and re-apply our make-up and be repeatedly "counselled" for our vanity. Of course, the elders couldn't follow me into the loo, so, hooey on them! It was a great way to get through long and tedious hours, I must confess.
Here's my sacred pronouncement: TAKE A DUMP IN THE KH AUDITORIUM. -
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Celebrating holidays
by dobbie injust wondering if you still abstain from celebrating christmas birthdays etc or if you do celebrate them how long did it take to feel comfy with doing it after you'd left the jws?i'm fading at the moment but although me and hubby have talked about spending xmas with our nonjw families and i told him i was going to start sending bday cards to my family, the thought of it scares me like its a big huge sin.does it ever feel natural to celebrate holidays?i used to love all that sort of thing before i was a witness but when my mum and stepdad wished me happy bday last month it felt really odd and i was uneasy.i find it v confusing cos i can sort of see that jesus wasn't born in dec. but maybe he can have 2 bdays like the queen!also not being able to send fathers day cards this year was the final straw for me i felt so bad about it so i have lots of making up to do but just hope i can enjoy it all without feeling bad.
i know they say some bday things have pagan origins but there are things jws can have or do that also are pagan.wedding rings for example.thanks
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Madame Quixote
I am always glad to hear that someone is leaving the JW organization, although it is never fast enough to suit me.
What the JWs taught us about holidays is shame- and fear-based (And Shame without the e is sham). What they teach has nothing to do with true love for humanity or community and nothing to do with generostiy. The Watchtower Society doesn't want us to celebrate holidays, esp. Xmas and birthdays, because that takes time, money and resources away from their greedy and un-Christian organization.
If what we do as individuals is about love, generosity and enjoying our families and friends in healthy ways, then we have no need to concern ourselves with what a cult told us to do or not to do. And that is what your uncomfortable feelings (guilt or shame or fear) regarding the holidays is all about - cult brainwashing.
It is much healthier to learn about and practice the positive aspects of holidays and celebrations; and understand the holidays both from a celebratory and spiritual/ethical point of view, such as giving generously to those in need throughout our communities in general, not just to the witnesses; while sharing good things and good times with our families.
By not celebrating and honoring "worldly" holidays we deny ourselves and our kids the wealth of cultural learning and socializing that goes with these occasions. And that is what being a JW is all about - accepting chronic brainwashing and denying our selves and our families of normalcy and balance. That brainwashing comes in the guise of "education" to enrich the JW cult at the expense of family.
I encourage you to learn as much as possible about the nature of that brainwashing and learn to enjoy all the holidays (and ooey, gooey Easter bunny marshmallows and snowmen you can stuff into your mouths).
Just do what feels like fun and enjoy your family. (And brush your teeth after the marshmallows). Bake some Xmas cookies with the kids, dance around the maypole in springtime, learn about the positive origins of celebratory living, rather than focusing on all of the negative or "bad" as the Watchtower would have you do.
There is no room for JW judgmentalism in any aspect of celebration. Try to let that go. That's what modern "paganism" and worldliness really entails anyway - celebrating and honoring life and the forces of nature and letting go of fear and the sham of shame-based religion.
Celebrate life and the holidays. Live, love, laugh! I do and have been out of the JWs since I was 15. Believe me, my 18-year-old is glad of it, too. -
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BLOOD BAN BOMBSHELL summer 2006
by DannyHaszard injehovah's witness convention
cleveland plain dealer, oh - 29 minutes ago july 29 2006 .
final weekend sessions of the jehovah's witnesses district convention are from 9:30 am to 4 pm today and sunday at the cleveland state university wolstein ...
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Madame Quixote
(2) Since the Jehovah's Witnesses ultimate sacrilege has been modified,and parts or fractions of a forbidden substance are now permitted... Would it now be permissible to have sexual activity fractions as long as whole copulation intercourse is abstained?
Danny - If the chair I was sitting in did not have arms, I would have fallen out of it laughing; alas, I was so busy practicing sexual fractions (masturbating) that I would have cracked my skull. Instead I've cracked my ribs and I'm still laughing.
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X-JW Cruise
by uwishufish inhas their ever been an xjw cruise?
i wonder if there would any intrest?
i read somewhere that cruise lines do specialty cruises on their normal routes.. uwuf
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Madame Quixote
My JW family, young and old, elders and not, go on JW-oriented cruises quite regularly. I have been maintaining no contact with them for about a year now, but previously, they just gushed about what great fun they all had doing it.
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Do you REALLY want to know?
by serendipity inis it important for you to know how many sexual partners your love interest had before you would consider him/her for a long term relationship, leading to marriage?
why would that info be important to you?.
that's a question i don't think i'd ask, or answer.
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Madame Quixote
Having a (physically, mentally, emotionally) healthy partner is more important than his experience; and knowing that I can trust him to respect himself enough to protect us both from unwanted consequences by using protection is a priority, not his (or my) past "conquests" or disasters.
We can teach each other what we like & don't like. Asking about the number of previous partners is an invasive question; asking it can lead to unfortunate consequences for a new relationship, where most of us may already feel a bit insecure.
Everybody has a past and everyone has something they might not want to share, esp. in the beginning of any relationship, platonic or otherwise.
Where there is enough safety and trust, people can elect to discuss what is appropriate in that regard. I don't think the question needs to be asked of or by healthy, secure, stable people; however, there's nothing unnatural or unhealthy about being a bit curious, and certainly if you expect to have a monogamous relationship with someone who has a history of philandering, you might want to think twice about it and ask yourself if you've chosen the most compatible person to "settle down" with.
But just because a person has such a history, it doesn't mean they're incapable of settling down; or that that isn't what they were looking for all along. You just have to have trust and faith in your partner and be lucky and smart enough to settle on someone whose behaviour and attitudes about sex are compatible with yours. And that really does involve a lot of luck and some smarts.
I personally have not been that smart or lucky yet, but I know people who are.
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New Forum Member-exJW in South Africa
by Cathiew inmy name is catherine and i live in south africa.
i am not too sure how this forum works but i hope to find it a pleasant and supportive network.. if you have any tips on how to use this, i would be grateful.. just some background:.
my mother was pregnant with me when she started studying with the jws 48 years ago and her sisters, my cousins, nieces, nephews, sister, brother, brother-in-law are all jws.
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Madame Quixote
Hi there, Cathie. Welcome to the board. Thanks for showing up and sharing your story. I too have no pre-cult identity. That is a very interesting concept, I must say! I never thought about it in those terms.
I wish you all the luck in the world with your recovery. It's not easy, but it is best to leave the JWs because, as you now realize, staying in the organization leads to an unhealthy cult life for most.
You mentioned that you like to read. Me too. I started reading a lot in middle school to escape all the teasing and loneliness of being a Jehovah's Witness in the deep south right after integration. I think there are three things that have saved my sanity, if not my life: good books, good people outside of the bOrg, and Prozac!
I broke my foot a few weeks ago and have been doing a lot more reading than usual. I read Mystic River last week and just finished reading another novel about Zaire, called The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. (I had no idea she is such a good writer. She reminds me of Doris Lessing). It's one of the best stories I've ever read (and I read a lot). It's the story of a southern Baptist minister who brings his wife and four daughters to minister in the Congo. Have you heard of it?
I would love to talk with someone familiar with African writers, including South Africa. I particularly enjoy the anti- and post-colonial stuff. What do you enjoy reading most? Right now I'm reading another Lynley mystery. I enjoy crime drama and mystery a lot. Would love to talk with you about what you're reading. Feel free to email me on this board. Also, if you'd like, we could chat and/or I'll send you my email addy. I don't use chat much cuz my computer's a bit old and slow, but I would be delighted to try and talk with you, if you'd like.
Best wishes and welcome to the board again!
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Stay up all night researching lymphocytosis
by MsMcDucket inoh well, it was my night off.
so, i posted a new topic on here, and then started looking up my latest lab results.
i still have elevated lymphocytes and have developed neutropenia.
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Madame Quixote
Anxiety can be exhausting in and of itself.
Did staying up all night help you in better understanding or did the research add to your anxiety? Just a thought.
I have trouble sleeping myself and have a bit of an anxiety disorder, so I can relate to the tiredness; but being sick or anemic certainly adds to it.
I don't have any great advice, except that you might want to discuss your anxiety with your doctor as well, and figure out what kind of info is helpful to you and what kind of info is hurtful to you.
Sounds like you need to focus on hope and encouragement and positive treatments with your doc!
Knowledge is power, yes, but sometimes too much info at once can be overwhelming, esp during times of high anxiety.
So sorry you're going through this now. We're here for you, Mrs. McDucket. -
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HAPPY FREAKING BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!!
by unique1 inok, so i turn 29 today.
i get a call from my mom.
i assume it is her non happy birthday call.
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Madame Quixote
I wish your first birthday out of the bOrg didn't turn out to be such a bummer. But you did not choose that. They may try to make you feel responsible for their mean-spirited acts, but they (the elders) are under-handed and manipulative in what they did.
They probably expect you to come crawling back in repentance, after their decision to shock the hell out of you and your family! Did they even bother to forewarn your parents about the public announcement? Probably not, I'm guessing. Whatever their strategy, I'm sure they're entertaining themselves, turning it into some sordid affair.
Anyway, none of it is your responsibility! Your parents are responsible for their own happiness and comfort and you're responsible for yours.
Try to find some healthy comforts and entertainments of your own. Happy birthday. Here's a big, triple-layer cake of your favorite flavor, to you. And a nice hot toddy (or 3) to go with it! Cheers!
Happy belated birthday to you! -
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Ip idipidation My Operation
by Crumpet infinally the nhs have given me a date for my operation - 6 june - to remove the pins and plates and rods from my lower leg and ankle.
means i can't go to the aposta-bbq in july as i won't be able to walk - so i am not a happy bunny (but then was i ever!).
totally gutted that i have to miss the get together this year - i hope there will be soemthing else organised later in the year that i can go to!
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Madame Quixote
Sounds awful! Sorry to hear about that. I hope the surgery and recovery goes well. You can't make it to the fest in a wheelchair, I guess? Sorry. Hope you have a great recovery and make it to the one next year, Crumpet.