the first thing I celebrated was my duaghters b-day, about 6 months after I stopped going. her bday is november so I just kept on going with Thanksgiving, Christmas etc. I will have to say, it took me a while to feel comfortable, not because it felt wrong, but because I didn't know what I was doing...but I do love holidays!!!!!
mama1119
JoinedPosts by mama1119
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26
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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mama1119
There was a couple in our hall who had left there husbands/wives for each other, caused a big scandal...then after about 10 years, he started stalking this married woman at work, calling repeatedly, threatening the husband, grabbing her etc...so the wife did this huge makeover thing and tried to spruce up thinking her husband would stop his obsession wioth the woman at work, but it didn't...he ended up df, they divorced and she remarried for the third time just a few months later to some dude on the internet.
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What Should I Do???
by dottie inmy mom, a jw, tells me of her friend from the kh(who i know pretty well, nice lady) whose daughter has decided to move out with a "worldly" guy.
she is only 17 and has some post secondary education ahead of her (her parents are quite supportive of the education just not the "outsider" b/f).
more of a "know of her" scenario.. my mom told me that her parents have told her that if she is going to see this guy that they have to set an example for her 4 younger siblings and she would have to decide between the family or the guy...basically if you want to be with him you have to leave.
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mama1119
I agree, just let her talk and don;t get all advice-y on her, or she will shut down, let her know you were there once, that may open her up a bit to listen to you.
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RAY FRANZ vs WT PSYCHOPATHS (news)
by DannyHaszard injehovah's witnesses wish you'll answer the door
the grand rapids press, mi - 1 hour ago .
... he holds the answer to all your problems.
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mama1119
It is so frustrating to read stuff like this. It is the same rehearsed answers we were taught to give all those years.
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I love my saturdays......
by freedomlover ini woke up this morning and made coffee and we are planning on eating a big breakfast and then doing a hike to a waterfall where we can play in the water and pick wild blueberries.
it got me thinking how wonderful it is to have my weekends to myself now.
when i was a dub i would skip out on service a lot but the whole day was ruined for me because i'd feel guilty for not going out in service.
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mama1119
My Dad is the same way, he used to go out every Saturday, and if he didn't he would feel so bad. Now he does as he pleases...breakfast, working out, works on the house etc. He is so much more at peace now it is amazing.
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Regrets of Being Brought up as a Witness
by chuckie77 inive never really been one to say a whole lot against the organisation, even though i was really unhappy in the years leading up to getting out of it, i still think theres so many good, peace loving and genuine people in it.
that said i was brought up as a witness and sometimes feel like ive been robbed of a true childhood.. my dad was a lot older than my mum, and was almost 50 when i was born.
he was the po in the cong and being a witness was, and still is, everything to him.
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mama1119
If it makes you feel any better, alot of people on this board have the same feelings. I , at times can get very bitter about my childhood as a witness. Not because of my parents, I think they did their best under the circumstances, but the org in general..I think they treat kids terribly, in order to get them under control at an early age. The use guilt, shame, and encourage young children to "stand up" for the truth, which seperates them from the other kids making them targets for ridicule....and then the kids have no choice but to rely strictly on the org. One thing I m so thankful for is that I saw the light before I raised my daughter in it. I look forward to her being able to participate in school activities of her choice, celebrate the holidays and go to college.
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REALLY, Why Do People Remain Jehovah's Witnesses???
by minimus ini think it's all about fear.
they are always afraid of displeasing jehovah god, the elders, the circuit overseer.
witnesses are always walking on eggshells, hoping that they'll be good enough to make it thru the great tribulation.
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mama1119
Habit, fear, guilt...not knowing anything else is out there, and being told that anything that is out there is BAD. I think most are raised in it and don't know how to get out of it without tearing their whole world apart.
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Jesus said his load would be light, the Witnesses made that load very heavy
by free2beme ini always remember being told that the load jesus expected of his people was not something that should be a burden and basically if you think about the core to christianity, it is not.
basically, jesus said to love one another and to treat others how you would want to be treated and to respect the life you have.
i don't ever remember jesus saying, "have 5 meetings a week, two assemblies a year and one convention.
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mama1119
Absolutely, in fact I feel I can serve God freely and be a better person now.
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Not enough words to tell you about it.
by Sparkplug inso at work i am a pretty chicken kind of person as far as the rules.
i usually walk the line and follow all of the code of business conduct things put upon me.
well last month the declared a surplus at my job.
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mama1119
Here is my advice....Klonopin
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Were the "Annointed" that got disfellowshipped still "Annointed"??????
by mama1119 inwhen i was a teenager we had these two annointeds in our hall, man and woman, very very gung-ho elder, pioneer type.
well, they had an affair for many years and then got df...i always wondered, if god chose them to be annointed, did he now reject them.....or did they just take a break, because as soon as they got reinstats they were partaking again?????
what was the official stance on that???
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mama1119
Quandry,
I was probably 17 or 18 when it happened, I am 27 now. The woman was in her late thirties and the man was in his late forties. The affair was over a time period of about two years, they were probably df for about three years after, they partook the whole time.
No, my parents do not shun me. Thank goodness for that, I don't know what I would do with out them. They are soem of the rare witnesses that view family as something that cannot be broken. They have both done their research over the last two years and thankfully have come to the same conclusion as me, that it is not the truth.
While I was resentful for quite some time about what the elders did to me, I think now, it happened for a reason, so that my family and I could be free. I firmly believe if I hadn't got df, we would still be under there control, I am so thankful I never got reinstated.
I feel the same way as you Quandry, the doctrines are bothersome, but it is the mind control and playing with peoples lives that I cannot live with.
Thank you for your reply!