Posts by compound complex

26

Hashtag "BESTLIFEEVER!!"

by Lostwun in

is it just me or does it grind your gears when you see #bestlifeever hashtag after every damn jw post on fb and instagram?.

i rarely get on instagram anymore because i dont want to deal with the jw propaganda but i swear sometimes i just want to comment on one of those pics 'jw life is the worst life ever wake up already'.

does anyone else know what i'm talking about?

compound complex

"Allowing" our eldest to stop going to meetings as a teen was the best decision we ever made. Result? True love, affection, obedience was regularly shown towards the otherwise fanatical JW parents. Thirty years later, this adult offspring is kind, thoughtful, and non-judgmental.

Would you expect the above from an atheist? One should wish such a genuinely good, authentic personality from one's JW children. Sadly, for us disenfranchised Witnesses, the adult JW children's so-called new personality (along the lines of JW indoctrination) is barely tolerant (if at all) towards their inactive parents. We love all our children dearly but, surely, cannot reason with the in-cult ones. This is not to say that all young JWs I know are unreasoning.

Such unbearable sadness.

Trying to make sense of it all . . .

CoCo

Oh, yeah . . . I hate those canned presentations of the best life ever.

59

Sweet 16 - Happy Birthday to Us !

by Simon in

it's the forum's 16th birthday today!.

amazing that not only have we lasted so long but we're still thriving and growing.. thanks to all the people and often colorful characters who've contributed to the site over the years.

some are still here with us, some have since moved on, but all have touched each others lives in some way along our different journeys.. .

compound complex

Thank you, Simon and Angharad, and all the moderators! Off and on here (but mostly on) for some nine or ten years, I have grown and mellowed. You have contributed to my new sense of purpose and, in good measure, happiness.

This site has been a sight for sore eyes. I could cite examples, but I digress . . .

Love and best wishes,

CoCo

18

New Memorial Songs Were Very Good, IMO

by RubaDub in

i guess we can agree to differ, but i personally found the new memorial songs (147, 149) to be very good, at least from a musical perspective.

.

rub a dub .

compound complex

I, a musician, was pleasantly surprised. The orchestration was impressive. It was necessary, of course, to have those handouts.

CC

24

Did You Get Invited to the Memorial?

by Ding in

i'm just wondering if jws keep inviting you back or if they've given up on you.. they haven't invited me for years..

compound complex

I went to two back-to-back Memorials. A sister whom I knew (but didn't recognize me) handed me an invitation to the special talk. I said, "Hi, sister X," and she did a double take. I do not look like a JW.

It was good seeing old friends again.

CC

24

Did You Get Invited to the Memorial?

by Ding in

i'm just wondering if jws keep inviting you back or if they've given up on you.. they haven't invited me for years..

compound complex

YES.

Many JWs on Facebook responded to my words of thanks and love for their kindness to me over the years. I live a long ways from the KH and was assured I would get there tonight if I had no transportation.

I will be attending two Memorials because I need to see friends and family before I die. I say that in all sincerity, without wishing to sound maudlin. These people have meant the world to me, going back as far back as 50 years. If they were in trouble because of their faith -- the one that I have abandoned -- I would be there for them.

Despite the butterflies in my stomach, I am hoping that, by this evening, the winged creatures will all be flying in formation.

Best regards, whatever you end up doing.

CoCo

7

In regards to memorial, what I am going to do

by Truth and Justice in

jw
friends

wow!

what a list of new friends we have on this forum, i don't know if i'll ever be able to keep up, but that's ok.. i wanted to dive in to the post to talk about the memorial.

i do not have any intentions of going, even if i was invited.

compound complex

Wonderful, bittersweet posts, all!

I wrote in Steve2's thread about NZ's already concluded Memorials that my mother partook for the first time when I gave the memorial talk decades ago. That created shock waves amongst kith and kin, yet my ever kooky, dearly departed mum was beloved in the congregation. I have no clue if's she's currently asleep in the grave or watching down over us . . .

My opinion on worries over rejecting Jesus is that many here do not consider the JW version of the affair theologically sound. You go tonight for friends, family, for yourself -- whatever. Have your own memorial privately afterwards, as some already are wont to do.

Best.

CoCo

43

2016 Memorial Done & Dusted

by steve2 in

well on this side of the planet, the southern hemisphere/ new zealand, the 2016 memorial service in local kingdom halls will be over for another year.

another great big anticlimax.

some family and relatives will have gone - but unless i ask my sister, i generally have no idea about attendance and partaker numbers.

compound complex

Hi Steve:

Your OP reminds me that I have been some 18 hours behind rather than ahead on the clock of my addlebrain. It's been about 18 years since I was in Auckland, and I had forgotten that you folks are about three-quarters of a day AHEAD of us in California.

I have vacillated over what I should do re tonight. This is a time fraught with emotion for me. When I gave the Memorial talk some 35 years ago, all my family was present; Mum partook and, henceforth, never stopped. I awoke this morning, at 4:30, with firm resolve. With no further waffling on the significance of my personal point of view, I wrote a piece appropriate to the occasion on social media.

More later . . .

CoCo

7

In regards to memorial, what I am going to do

by Truth and Justice in

jw
friends

wow!

what a list of new friends we have on this forum, i don't know if i'll ever be able to keep up, but that's ok.. i wanted to dive in to the post to talk about the memorial.

i do not have any intentions of going, even if i was invited.

compound complex

Beautifully expressed, Truth and Justice!

I, too, read what Ray Franz wrote in his book about individuals celebrating the LEM in their homes and the harassment they received. It's our business, not anyone else's!

Thank you!

CoCo

84

I COLLECT QUOTES. . . Here are some of my favorites

by Terry in

jw
friends

please post your favorites too.

my favorite quotations:.

you cannot change what you refuse to confront.. sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.. don’t think of cost.

compound complex

"No one should be forced to worship in a way that he finds unacceptable or be made to choose between his beliefs and his family." -- AWAKE!, July 2009, p. 29.

22

Don't Accept the Blame for Being Shunned

by cofty in

our family and friends blame us for the fact that they shun us.

imagine an abusive husband who threatened his wife that if she leaves him he will hunt her down and kill her.

eventually she finds the courage to leave and he carries out his threat.

compound complex

Thank you, cofty, for this thread.

To some JWs, I have endeavored to explain my points of view on religious life style and doctrine. Since I have become what is now "old school," I see that many of the old teachings have been tossed aside: types and antitypes, among others.

I had a special place in my heart for the anointed remnant and their position in different classes, i.e., "Naomi and Ruth," etc. Younger ones cannot understand the basis for my now obsolete faith. So then, it would appear that my inability to grasp onto and revere the new, slick religion -- JW.ORG -- makes my relationship with Jehovah (if such remains) suspect.

If I cannot wholeheartedly jump in and support current JW dogma and practice, I am avoided and, yes, on occasion, shunned. It may not be my fault -- thanks for the reassurance, cofty -- yet, it still hurts.

CoCo