what is a cult and what is a religion?
its open to debate.
who has the authority to say for certain what is a cult and what is a religion?
Even fading or walking away comes with its cultish fallout.
You can't just walk away, family flips out friends flip out, they say really weird and preachy things to you non stop, the elders FORCE themselves into your life, yes you can say no, but they really make it inappropriate how much the push, and use emotional manipulation and private investigating interrogation techniques. To avoid all this, your best bet is to disappear completely. Someone tell me how that is not a undue influence cult?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iauhr-trkhy.
check the link above.
theramintrees did a better job at explaining cognitive dissonance than me.
"stop and smell the Koolaid" lol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iauhr-trkhy.
check the link above.
theramintrees did a better job at explaining cognitive dissonance than me.
what is a cult and what is a religion?
its open to debate.
who has the authority to say for certain what is a cult and what is a religion?
"Cults" (high control groups) have "survivors"
This board and all the other JW survivors are living proof it is what it is. They didn't just change religions, they survived undue control.
its been a little over 2 years since i left the watchtower.
in that time the magazines have been cut, the birth of jwtv, jw-org.
carts for preaching, removed district overseers, cut assemblies, demand all the money from the congregations, stop construction and layoff bethelites, change the format of the tmschool .
what is a cult and what is a religion?
its open to debate.
who has the authority to say for certain what is a cult and what is a religion?
Meditate on the double speak
We don't call it the rapture now...
We weren't wrong, we are just more refined now...
We are not permissive to pedophiles...
One of the best was the summary of TM3's morning worship, this is what it amounted to and is classic watchtower thinking:
We are not dogmatic, of course you should be able to question what you believe, that is why you must obey us, because we already questioned things for you.
When you are in and not thinking about it, these types of presentation just don't sink in, when you see it for what it is, wow, look out. I can't even sit through the meetings and watchtower without being mad at myself for hearing all this for so many years and not really "hearing" it. Does that make sense?
what is a cult and what is a religion?
its open to debate.
who has the authority to say for certain what is a cult and what is a religion?
what is a cult and what is a religion?
its open to debate.
who has the authority to say for certain what is a cult and what is a religion?
What happens is many will have a threshold for the questioning. How its said and whats said. When you realize as a member how much you actually have to censor your words and thoughts, you start to realize they had way more control than you ever thought.
When you see the Cognitive Dissonance alarms go off full blast the first time, there is no doubt in your mind what the JW organization is. It looks like John Aquila's pic which made me laugh out loud
what is a cult and what is a religion?
its open to debate.
who has the authority to say for certain what is a cult and what is a religion?
If you want to find out if your religion is a High Control cult or not, find out what it takes to leave.
what is a cult and what is a religion?
its open to debate.
who has the authority to say for certain what is a cult and what is a religion?
Also since i do feel you are sincere in your questions, something to start to really dwell on is the way they speak about things. Often referred here as "double speak". Not that double speak makes you a cult in of its self, but it lends to things they use to deny being a High control group that fits the model.
Ie; our leader is jesus. When you really get attuned to the way the phrase things you realize they flat out lie about things, or present it in a way that does back flips to make the answer seem correct. Just because they say does NOT mean they practice it. At your baptism you swear yourself to THEM (the gb), if you tell your elders you disagree with THEM, THEY will have you banished.
At the ARC Geoffery Jackson made it seem like he had no idea what was going on, and doesn't have anything to do with policy, in fact other GB member on the stand have similarly played as if they were nobody, but within the group... we know what really goes on, they are calling shots, making policy, enforcing it.
