ill introduce myself.
my name is darren, im 23 and live in england.. im having some problems with the "truth".. to start it off and to keep it as minimal as possible because i dont want to bore your minds, i was raised with my whole family as a roman catholic.. after moving around the world, even as far as new zealand, i got myself in a terrible way in guernsey channel islands.
i met some old friends of mine who were into all sorts related to the "crime scene" and i got myself involved with drugs and the like.. i began a spiralling into depression and cutting my arms to feel alive.
Welcome to JWN! We're glad you found us. It really is a good place to discuss what you feel and what you know and what you feel you know about Jehovah's Witnesses and the Watchtower Society.
You've gotten some great responses on this thread and I can't think of anything to add except 'Welcome!'.
-Aude Sapere (meaning: Dare to Know; Dare to Have Wisdom/Understanding)
i just remembered something from long ago..... i moved to california in 1974 after i had been in "the truth" for 11 years, having full-time pioneered and also having served time in federal prison over the so-called christian neutrality issue.. i felt completely confident that my bible education was the best on planet earth.
i had honed my skills by door to door preaching, discussion, arguments and attendance at the theocratic ministry school.. i began working as an artist in a huge company that manufactured all kinds of art, sculpture and wall hanging.
the head of the artists was a wonderful young man, skilled artist and devout christian who took me under his wing.
(marking for later)
LOL @ jiyuu2~!
say hello to an old friend of mine..."hiritoka".... .
we have an old board member back..some of you knew him as japanboy... he is now hiritoka... he is an old friend of mine..we knew each other when we were kids... .
have you ever wanted to ask a member of the wbt$ governing body`s family a question?...
I remember JapanBoy. Welcome back!
-Aude.
this is one of the most aggressive watchtowers i think i have ever read.. four study articles on not "following the crowd" not following unrealities(page 13) not following false teachers, meaning apostates of course(p 15).
avoiding false teachers means "refusing to read their literature, watch tv programs that feature them, examine their web sites, or add comments to their blogs.
(para 7, pg 16).
Marking for later
i am livid right now, so please understand i'm venting, and i don't mean to sound like a troll.
i just found out about the "simplified" wt and the koolaid edition reinforcing shunning.
this is really freaking me out, but, anyway, i just had an epiphany.
marking for later (also ref the July 15, 2011 article on DF Family threads)
i figured i'd start off by just examining the language used in the july 15th, 2011 watchtower, page 15-16, paragraphs 4-7.. apostates are like:.
1. ravenous wolves.
9. their own ideas.
marking for later
last night, completely out of the blue, my 6 year old daughter, asked my wife and i why we don't go to meetings anymore.
she actually said that she misses them.
i know, where have i failed!!!.
I don't think that you need to get into the 'cult' conversation at this point - if ever. *Maybe* when they are in their teens and you can talk about some other 'high-control-group' type religion. I would avoid the word 'cult' if you still have relatives 'in'.
Regarding the why question. Saying that work is more important than god might be teaching wrong priorities.
I think a better approach may be to do like nugget (and others in various JWN threads) suggested. Tell them that after careful thought and prayer, you are feeling uncomfortable with some things that are being done or taught. You think that maybe you were wrong to not celebrate the gift of life - and the gift of your children - so now you want to celebrate things like birthdays because you are so happy. You also want to spend more time appreciating nature, other people, etc.
Admitting you were wrong and have now made a change, is a powerful example to your kids.
I'm missing a key idea that someone else in your position had a few years ago. Hopefully others will give some more insight and suggestions.
If she is missing a few friends, maybe encourage her to contact them. (Might not work if you are fading, as 6-year-olds are likely to blurt out things that you'd rather keep quiet - and you don't want her to have to censor herself too carefully.) Also, I fully agree with Blondie - help her keep making new friends and learning new skills and exploring new talents. Maybe do a little of this before contacting the JW friends.
Good job!
-Aude.
july 15th wt study edition (regular dumb edition, not the dumber one).
god's rest - have you entered into it?.
subheading, when someone we love leaves jehovah.
Marking - to read later.
*sigh*
