OnTheWayOut

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Posts by OnTheWayOut

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  41

  That One Defining Moment That Changed Your Life.

  by new boy in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  it seems that many times in life there is a moment or an action that changes your whole world.

  it could be just a look that someone gives you.. many times it can be something rather small.

  something hardly noticeable by anyone but you.

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  OnTheWayOut

  There were several important moments for me. One of the biggest, despite me not leaving for quite awhile after it, was when the 1995 study article about the generation came out and it rocked my world about needing to have a career and a retirement plan because I was probably going to die "in this system of things." But it wasn't just the article. I was deeply put off by this abrupt change and talked to an older elder about it. His simple answer to my questions about this humongous change was "Eh, the society changes things once in a while."

  That was the beginning of the end for me. It totally changed my outlook and my way of being an elder. Again, I started planning for living to old age, but I also learned to tell others to do the same and not to tell the elders every last thing they are doing wrong, but to just "fix it" on their own if they wanted to stay out of trouble. And I started to question things freely, at least to myself and eventually did the research that freed me after a few more important moments in my life.
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  25

  Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!

  by ttdtt in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i hope you are all having a nice day with family and friends.. :).

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  OnTheWayOut

  Happy Thanksgiving to all. I am thankful I can participate in such a holiday. It's at the firehouse this year, so that's good- Deep fried turkey and all the side stuff.

  I was invited to my dad's Thanksgiving feast (never a JW) but will have to visit him tomorrow.

  I embrace holidays such as this and Christmas and birthdays. It's something to be thankful for.
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  34

  Why didn't God also reveal himself to the Canaanites just as he did to Moses in the burning bush?

  by deegee in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  why didn't god also reveal himself to the canaanites just as he did to moses in the burning bush so that the massacre/genocide of the canaanites could have been avoided?.

  why didn't god also invite the native palestinians into his covenant, giving them the same laws he gave the israelites, and establish an egalitarian society where people of all races could live together in harmony?.

  instead, he ordered his people to invade and slaughter the natives, killing them to the last man, woman and child, specifically instructing them to show no mercy to anyone under any circumstances.

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  OnTheWayOut

  I like Crazyguy's short version. But to add a thought to David_Jay's comments- there was a time when Jews assumed the stories were literal. But as time went by, as more was shown to be just stories, there came to be thoughts that these stories were allegories, fables.

  They still mostly believe that much of it is literal.
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  37

  How does an elder become an elder ?

  by Drwho in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i was never a jw , so have millions of questions .

  please, how does an elder become an elder and how much trust does or should a jw put in an elder .?

  simon.

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  OnTheWayOut

  To become a elder, a male first becomes a ministerial servant. To do that, you have to kiss the elders' asses and do whatever is asked of you- handle chores at the Kingdom Hall, take the elderly to and from the meetings, and highlight all the answers to questions in your study materials.
  
  Beyond that, to work toward being an elder, you have to get plenty of recruiting time in every month, not have any incidents of being too drunk or going to R-rated movies or getting into any trouble of any kind, be very careful about how you talk to women whether you are married or not. One extremely important thing is for you to be able to spew out doctrines from the platform in various talk assignments.

  If you are the son of an elder and are squeaky clean, you can make elder faster. If you directly kiss ass to the Circuit overseer and donate money to him (the green handshake), you can make elder faster. (I wish I was kidding.) In many cases, if you do all kinds of ass-kissing to the local elders and act like you don't really think you are qualified to be an elder, you will typically make elder faster.

  Even when I was an elder, I told people not to tell the elders everything, not to confess to everything you do that is against JW rules. Now, I would say it stronger. Say nothing much about anything personal or beliefs to them. Learn to say "I am fine. No, I will call you if I need you."
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  20

  Taking the Step

  by beardfreedom in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  first time posting after years of reading, the things i have learned here have gradually helped to open my eyes to the reality of this religion.

  though i have been mentally out for some time, lately i have stopped going to meetings and service.

  the elders are calling and i have been ignoring them, i am trying to get up the courage to finally break free and never go back.

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  OnTheWayOut

  In the long run, after a few problems with the elders and maybe some others, you will wish you had made the clean break sooner. Soon, you won't be able to sit through a meeting, let alone an assembly.

  It's good not to have JW friends. I was an elder and many treated my like a friend, but I only really had a couple of JW friends and I lost them over my fading away. They need to beware of me to keep their family safe. It's easier that way. And I retain "fellowship" with my JW mother and my JW in-law family.
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  13

  Update on MIL shunning

  by BeautifulMind in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  hello on this beautiful sunday!

  just a quick little update to the post i made a few months ago about my mil shunning us.

  quick recap: during a convo after she attended the rc and was going on and on about how powerful it was and how great the videos were, blah, blah, blah...i couldn't take it anymore and told her that's not our lives anymore and i didn't want to hear anymore about it and to please respect that and move on to something else to talk about.

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  OnTheWayOut

  I do love your response text. she is also putting more "blame" on you rather than her son. You spoke up first, so she decides she can briefly soeak to him.

  Stay strong.
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  9

  When leaving was due to "Sin" and not Apostasy

  by Cat2016 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  it has been 18 years since i decided to leave and fade away, and at that time i was feeling a lot of pressure that i wasn't doing enough, didn't fit in with the folks in my congregation, and was unhappy in my young jw marriage.

  needless to say i recklessly went and had an affair that left me pregnant.

  i did not know what to do, i panicked and got major anxiety.

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  OnTheWayOut

  Discovering that virtually everything you know to be true is a lie is very disturbing. While recovery is a long road, you started it. That is a huge accomplishment.

  It's okay to not know what is "the truth" or the path you will (or should) take from here. Relax about that.
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  19

  "It's a cult, mom."

  by schnell in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  my mom has been extensively texting me, trying to argue that the un ngo scandal is not a big deal and that the child abuse scandal is to instigate the great tribulation.

  even worse, she kept saying how great it is that the gb is imperfect and fallible and that teaching changes all the time.

  maybe it was aggravation or impatience, but i finally just snapped and told her, "it's a cult, mom.".

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  OnTheWayOut

  Sorry to read of your woes with family. Judas Iscariot (the way he is written) deliberately betrayed Jesus for personal gain, then regretted it too late. I would tell my loved one that called me Judas that my intentions in saying things are out of love and concern with no personal gain and I only regret waiting so long to say such things in my attempt to retain family peace.
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  9

  10 Years on this forum!

  by StephaneLaliberte in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  10 years on this forum.

  10 years.

  wow.

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  OnTheWayOut

  I came here ten years ago in the summer. I had just resigned as an elder, but had not been removed officially yet. Many many many changes for me, too.

  Happy anniversary, and continue on.
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  17

  Forget about him on this thread, let's talk about something else!

  by Iamallcool in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i am no fan of donald trump at all.

  i am getting tired of seeing trump topics here on jwn.

  i was hoping that hillary clinton would be elected so i can forget about donald trump once and for all.

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  OnTheWayOut

  At least the Cubs won in November.