Posts by LisaRose

40

Question about an elder and if I am crazy

by life is to short in

ok so i have a question.

i was a very, very true believer until i saw the child molesters in my hall and how that whole thing was handled.. my husband is older than i am and had been an elder for 12 when we married.

so fast forward to 06, we are in a hall where i thought all the elders were ok at the worst and great at the best.

LisaRose

My question is am I crazy or is this just truly nuts and insane. So much of the time I doubt myself and think did I do something to cause this. I will not back down on my stand about pedophiles.

You are not crazy. This IS totally nuts and insane, but did you really need us to tell you that? It is, however, typical behavior of people in a cult. They cannot acknowledge that the religion's treatment of pedophiles is wrong, because that would force them to confront the fact that they are in a crazy cult. Since they are not honest or strong enough to face reality, it's easier to focus attention on you and make you the problem.

You can do nothing about them, they are going to do what they are going to do, you need to help yourself. It sounds like you have post traumatic stress disorder. You thought you had gotten over all this, but having the creep at the memorial follow you around brought it all back, so obviously you have not gotten over it. I think you need to get professional counseling to deal with this. Buried emotions don't really go away, they just build and leak back out in destructive ways, so do what you need to do to come to terms with all this. Counseling can help you confront all this and deal with it and move on.

In the meantime, do not go to the kingdom hall, not even for memorial. If you happen to see this creep again, tell him you do not wish to speak to him and walk away.

101

Are Gods true worshippers on Earth today? If they are not JWs then who are they?

by Formerbrother in

is there gods true worshipers on earth today as jesus said there would be?

if they are not jws then who are they?.

who else comes close to being gods true followers today?.

LisaRose

Who else comes close to being Gods true followers today?

You are making an assumption that Jehovah's Witnesses come close to being Gods true followers. What makes you think that?

How does making multiple false predictions about the end of the world make you a true follower of God, being as the bible says no man knows the day or the hour?

How does breaking up families by forcing people to shun make you a true follower of God?

How does protecting pedophiles make you a true follower of God?

How does using cult mind control make you a true follower of God?

29

dealing with religion after leaving the witnesses

by joker in

i’ve noticed many people posting on this site seem to have completely given up on religion/spirituality.. but some have attended services at another religion, or just follow their own heart regarding what to believe.. my question is how does anyone deal after leaving with all of the witness crap that we believed about babylon the great, the great harlot, spiritual prostitute, etc., etc.

i’m finding out that i seem to have built myself a pretty solid wall regarding religion.. some people can just chuck all beliefs into one basket saying that they are all basically garbage,,, and that is ok, no problem i respect that.. but for myself there is a certain part of my personality that needs a spiritual belief not like the witnesses in any way, but something to meditate on, and contemplate.. being a witness taught me how bad it is to actually think of god in any other way besides what the jw’s believe.

and now when i attend any other service, the dark jw side seems to pop out and seriously makes me believe that everything i see/do/say is wrong.

LisaRose

seriously makes me believe that everything I see/do/say is wrong. And it is like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde it just come out. It’s really quite a big drag that keeps me from moving forward in a positive way.

That's the cult mind control kicking in. The JWs have implanted the idea that only they have "the truth" and everything else is wrong and evil, and that doesn't automatically go away because you now realize they were wrong, and even though you know intellectually that it's not logical. It does get better with time and as you expose yourself to different beliefs systems and as you learn more about cults work. I highly recommend the book Combating Cult Mind Control by Steve Hassan.

But for myself there is a certain part of my personality that needs a spiritual belief not like the witnesses in any way, but something to meditate on, and contemplate.

That's understandable and I think a lot of people feel that way. There is certainly nothing wrong with seeking the spiritual. For some people that is a religion and if that is your inclination there are some better churches out there. I like the United Church of Christ (the United part is important, there is a Church of Christ also that is not at all the same). They have no doctrine, which works if you aren't ready to declare a belief in traditional church ideology. They are quite liberal, so not for those who are against homosexuality, for example, but they are very warm and welcoming and do a lot of charitable work which I like. There are other good churches out there, you just have to look and keep an open mind and find one that works for you. Everything is going to seem weird and different at first, you just have to give it a chance. The JW's study with people for at least six months before they get baptized, because they know it takes time for people to adjust to their way of thinking, and it takes just as long on the other end, if not longer.

In the end I chose to just go it alone, as I just couldn't believe in the God of the bible anymore. I still feel spiritual, it's just that it is a more loosely defined spirituality. If I had to name it I guess I am a humanist, but I don't care much for labels.

I am sure you will figure out where you need to be also, I wish you well on your spiritual journey.

6

Do you meditate?

by nicolaou in

i don't have any particular method or system but i'm often happy in my own company.

i value periods of solitude when i can just drift off and follow my own thoughts.. maybe it's not much more than daydreaming but a glass of scotch and some tunes can sometimes light up a memory or bring a hazy idea into focus.

peace and quiet are my luxuries, what about you guys?.

LisaRose

I practice meditation, I find it very helpful in reducing stress and helping with my ADHD.

I also like a glass or two of wine on the weekend.

43

May 22 1969 Awake!

by zeb in

jw
friends

"if you are a young person you need to face the fact you will never grow old in this system of things.. why not?

because all the evidence in fulfilment of bible prophecy indicates that this corrupt system is due to end in a few years...as a young person you will never fulfil any career that this system offers".

may 22 awake!

LisaRose

I was one of those young people that magazine was aimed at, I was baptized in 1969 at age 13. Sadly I did take that terrible advice and didn't go to college. I don't dwell on it because I might have had problems with higher education anyway as I have ADHD, something I didn't know at the time. And I ended up doing pretty well in my career, I was a systems analyst for a major corporation. I am on a second career now selling antiques and making vintage style signs out of reclaimed wood. Life is good, I feel very happy with how my life turned out.

I don't plan to go to college, as I am already doing what I love, but I consider myself a life long learner. I read a lot and am currently enjoying learning about science, genetics and evolution. You can learn just about everything on the internet these days.

Life is what you make it.

2

The Nurture of Nature, how to get from genes to behavior

by LisaRose in

jw
friends

one thing i have enjoyed since leaving the jehovah's witnesses is learning about science and evolution.

it's so great to be able to look at things without the fog of religious belief clouding things.

of course i have learned a lot from cofty and his threads on evolution, but one thing i struggled with was what causes instinctual behavior in animals for example, what tells birds to fly south for the winter?

LisaRose

One thing I have enjoyed since leaving the Jehovah's witnesses is learning about science and evolution. It's so great to be able to look at things without the fog of religious belief clouding things. Of course I have learned a lot from Cofty and his threads on evolution, but one thing I struggled with was what causes instinctual behavior in animals For example, what tells birds to fly south for the winter? Obviously there isn't a "fly south for the winter" gene per se, so how do birds know to do that? I think Cofty tried to explain it to me once, but I just didn't get it.

So I came across this article from Nova which I think explains it pretty well for us non scientific types.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/nature/genes-behavior.html

3

Did anybody this week mention that JR Brown died?

by ShirleyW in

jw
friends

was just mentioned on rick fearon's (yes i know a lot here don't care for him) videoconference.

LisaRose

There was a thread about it.

15

Have not had a visit in over a year

by dogon in

i have been out of the cult for over 20 years.

i left when the idiots changed the meaning of generation in 95 and the internet came to life giving me the links to see just what a mind numb bunch i was with.

i now live in a populated area where there is a hall about half a mile away.

LisaRose

No, I wish. I had to ask six times, write a letter, call the kingdom hall and threaten to call the police before they stopped knocking on my door.

20

Are quality restaurants even slightly aware of the concept..

by The Rebel in

jw
friends

of providing high quality food?.

personally i prefer the small restaurants with a owner who cooks the food.

often the food is equally imaginative and just as tasty as the more expensive restaurant.

LisaRose

Good for you JW daughter. I too make everything from scratch, but only because I have to. I have an intestinal issue and the only way to not be sick all the time is to follow a very strict diet, no sugar, grains or potatoes at all, I have to make my own yogurt, mayonnaise, seasoning mixes, salad dressings, etc., because sugar and starch are in everything manufactured, often even when not on the label. It's not as bad as it sounds because I usually made my own food anyway, but it does require a lot of extra cooking, especially as my husband doesn't eat that way. It did cause to get more creative with what I do eat, and I eat a ton more vegetables.

But it's worth it, the two years I spent before I figured out what was wrong was miserable. I consulted a GP and a specialist, neither of whom diagnosed me correctly. It's called the Specific Carbohydrate diet. The idea is that many people cannot digest certain carbs, so they sit in the intestines and feed bad bacteria causing a whole host of bad things to happen.. You can have fruit and honey because those carbs do not need to be broken down to be absorbed. As a plus I have lost weight and my fibromyalgia is gone, no muscle tenderness at all after thirty years.

583

What is the purpose of life?

by slimboyfat in

while reading the magazines the other day it occurred to me that jws never really had a very good answer to that question.

because it was aimed at young people and it said something along the lines, "if you believe in god you have a purpose, but if you don't believe in god your life has no purpose or meaning".

i think that is a faulty analysis of the situation.

LisaRose

I like that poem. The older I get the more I realize that the little things are really what life is all about. The chance encounter with a stranger that somehow makes your day even though no words were spoken. The opportunity to be there for someone at the right time. The hug of a friend. A moment of time spent with someone in perfect harmony. The moment you complete a creative work and are happy with it. The purr of a cat