but of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven but my .
we are commanded to watch!
we are commanded to be ready!
It is my heartfelt desire that Jesus raptures all of you Christians. It would be nice to have some peace and quiet in the world.
FreePeace
"The World is my country, and to do good, my religion." --Thomas Paine
TruthQuest: http://beam.to/truthquest
Who Am I? -How to Reinvent Yourself After Leaving the WTS
calling all lost sheep!
it is not too late.
i have been an observer of this site for some time now.
No, no, no, no! The H stands for Horatio!
Ok, now I'm NOT going to go back to meetings!
FreePeace
"The World is my country, and to do good, my religion." --Thomas Paine
TruthQuest: http://beam.to/truthquest
Who Am I? -How to Reinvent Yourself After Leaving the WTS
calling all lost sheep!
it is not too late.
i have been an observer of this site for some time now.
Jesus H. Christ! I just saw this...(heavy sigh)... Not another one.
Ok, tell me what the "H" in "Jesus H. Christ" stands for and I'll think about going back to the meetings.
FreePeace
"The World is my country, and to do good, my religion." --Thomas Paine
TruthQuest: http://beam.to/truthquest
Who Am I? -How to Reinvent Yourself After Leaving the WTS
well, i am the pot stirrer, a**hole, back-stabber, coward, et all.
it certainly was not my intention, and i did the very thing that repulses me in others.
in one sentence, i spread gossip that hurt another poster.
There is nothing so beautiful as a person who accepts personal reponsibility for their actions and attempts to make a matter right without excuses. Such a person has Greatness to Deliver.
My highest commendations to you Andee.
FreePeace
"The World is my country, and to do good, my religion." --Thomas Paine
TruthQuest: http://beam.to/truthquest
Who Am I? -How to Reinvent Yourself After Leaving the WTS
well, i'm moving away across the country in 2 months and my mother wants to spend some time with me.
being a pioneer, her idea of spending time with her oldest son is working out in service for a morning....i've decided to go along with her tomorrow morning because i really couldn't think of a good excuse, since i'm presently laid off from my job and collecting $$ from the state of pa. i haven't been out since about march and am not looking forward to this at all.
hopefully i won't have to talk or say much.
Yeah...what Comf and MrMoe said!
FreePeace
"The World is my country, and to do good, my religion." --Thomas Paine
TruthQuest: http://beam.to/truthquest
Who Am I? -How to Reinvent Yourself After Leaving the WTS
i came here by chance...looking for none other than jw material:) i am currently studying with jw's and attend the kh but am not baptized, as are none of the members of my fam...yet.
i've been studying for almost 4 years with the witnesses.
i am confused...that's the simplest way of putting it.
Hi Sadie and welcome!
They really seem like good people...and everything they say does make sense...but then again it doesn't...did that make sense??:-)JW's, as a group, are generally good people, just misinformed and under-informed.
Your confusion is the classic response to cult-thinking and attempts to brainwash. I urge you and your husband to think very seriously about becoming Witnesses. Please make an informed decision.
Remember, once you become a Witness, you can never leave intact. Just ask any of us how much we have lost by leaving, not to mention the pain involved.
There is a lot of great info available online that will broaden your perspective. Please look at the bottom of this screen for several links.
Also read the personal stories of many ex-JW's here on this site and others. My story is at http://beam.to/truthquest.
My best to you and keep reading and posting!
Doug Kelley
FreePeace
"The World is my country, and to do good, my religion." --Thomas Paine
TruthQuest: http://beam.to/truthquest
Who Am I? -How to Reinvent Yourself After Leaving the WTS
we have a close relative who has left her jw husband.
he is extremely controlling, and emotionally abusive.
their children are grown.
Hi Marilyn,
With all due respect and credit to you, what Comf said is actually the nuts-and-bolts of any abusive situation. Comf’s comments actually champion her cause. He is telling the absolute, truth from an unemotional point of view.
That being said however, it is usually very difficult for an abused person (especially a woman) to detach enough to see things clearly. This is understandable, because of the nature of abuse, the abused person usually has lost much of his/her self-esteem. Furthermore, as you indicated, the abused person is almost “addicted” to the abuser.
What Comf said was actually in defense of her human rights. Perhaps the tone could have been a touch kinder, but the essence is valid. Sometimes it takes a little “shock value” to bring us to our senses in such a confusing and emotionally draining situation.
The most important message your friend should take from Comf’s comments is that she is so valuable as a person that she should never concede to abuse from ANYONE. Furthermore, WHO she is and HER feelings are every bit as valid as anyone else’s.
Comf was not attacking her, he was simply calling it like it is. Please accept his comments in this context.
In actuality, there really is nothing your friend can say to her husband that will make one bit of difference. I know. I tried myself in vain with my ex-wife. Actually, my continuing efforts to “give her something to think about” were very codependent. I learned to stop trying to control another person.
In doing so, I learned 3 important lessons, which I call The THREE IMMUTABLE LAWS OF SURVIVING AN ALCOHOLIC RELATIONSHIP. You can substitute “abuser” for alcoholic if you wish:
1. You CANNOT control the alcoholic or his/her drinking.
2. If you want COMPLETE relief from an alcoholic relationship, you only have two possible alternatives:
The alcoholic recovers; or You leave.
3. You only have one decision to make: You can take care of the problem now, or suffer longer and STILL take care of the problem later... Either way, you WILL take care of the problem eventually, or die from the pain. Your choice.
Period. Case closed. ( http://www.empoweredrecovery.com/articles/3laws.htm )
I hope this helps somewhat, and I commend you for your efforts in helping your friend.
FreePeace
"The World is my country, and to do good, my religion." --Thomas Paine
TruthQuest: http://beam.to/truthquest
Who Am I? -How to Reinvent Yourself After Leaving the WTS
(Edited for clarity)
we have a close relative who has left her jw husband.
he is extremely controlling, and emotionally abusive.
their children are grown.
Hi Marilyn,
I went through a divorce while still a JDub and I can appreciate how difficult and confusing it can be--especially when one factors in all the religious "stuff."
I have since decided that there is no valid reason to remain in a relationship that is not healthy, or is otherwise abusive. I wrote the following Bill of Rights specifically for someone in an alcoholic relationship, but many of the points may apply in principle to your friend's situation.
----------------------------------
The Non-Alcoholic’s Bill of Rights
Empowered Recovery believes in each person’s human rights. In a codependent-alcoholic relationship, individual human rights are not respected, and this is the primary devastating factor to families dealing with alcoholism. Therefore, Empowered Recovery outlines a code of basic human rights applicable to the non-alcoholic.
You and your children have:
1. THE RIGHT TO a loving and secure relationship based on healthy mutual dependence;
2. THE RIGHT TO peace and harmony in your home;
3. THE RIGHT TO a stable, secure, and nurturing environment conducive to personal growth and self-discovery;
4. THE RIGHT TO a healthy self-concept, knowing you are worthy, valued, and loved;
5. THE RIGHT TO human dignity; to be respected and treated as an individual human being, and not be put down, demoralized, and dehumanized;
6. THE RIGHT TO not live a life of “always waiting for the other shoe to drop,” never knowing whether it will be a soft slipper or steel-toed work boot;
7. THE RIGHT TO a life free of the fear of emotional terrorism, physical abuse, and constant arguing;
8. THE RIGHT TO a life free of nightmares, day terrors, and insecurity;
9. THE RIGHT TO a life free of guilt and shame, and free from manipulation through guilt and shame;
10. THE RIGHT TO not be emotionally drained and “all used up” from the rigors of a codependent-alcoholic relationship;
11. THE RIGHT TO use any possible means (short of physical assault) to positively change your own circumstances;
12. THE RIGHT TO leave a physically abusive alcoholic relationship immediately and without advance notice to the alcoholic;
13. THE RIGHT TO leave any relationship that is not healthy and not actively improving;
14. THE RIGHT TO not live life on a roller coaster, going from one alcoholic crisis to another;
15. THE RIGHT TO go to work or school without dragging all the baggage of codependent-alcoholic dysfunction;
IN SHORT: A life free of codependence and alcoholism.
(Taken from http://www.empoweredrecovery.com )
FreePeace
"The World is my country, and to do good, my religion." --Thomas Paine
TruthQuest: http://beam.to/truthquest
Who Am I? -How to Reinvent Yourself After Leaving the WTS
the watchtower society dates noah's flood to 2370 b.c.e.
they do this by following bible chronology quite closely, counting backwards from 607 b.c.e., their date for babylon's destruction of jerusalem.
however, as we know, the society's date for that event is in error.
AlanF: Great logic and valid points!
Plus, the logistics of the whole Noah's Flood story are impossible to reconcile. It never happened. But I am apparently preaching to the choir.
FreePeace
"The World is my country, and to do good, my religion." --Thomas Paine
TruthQuest: http://beam.to/truthquest
Who Am I? -How to Reinvent Yourself After Leaving the WTS
let's paint a little picture.. it's spring 2002. at 1200h gmt a radio and tv announcement is broadcast on almost all conventional frequencies, in appropriate formats according to the medium and the area.. it's from a bunch of pale violet humaniods who have come "in peace for all qw'z'x>kind".
they say they want to meet up with the un in full cnongress.. disbelief rapidly turns to amasement when cnn and other news-services provide footage of a large alien vessel descending into the river near the un.
large in this case means 5km long... and wisely, none of the sac jets sent to have a look pull a will smith or anything stupid, although one gets nudgeed gently away by an invisable beam of some sort when it gets too close.. let's say it becomes apparent the aliens are utter benign, happy to hand out technological aid, scientific knowledge, and hope to welcome the people of earth to your typical peaceful federation of planets (about 5,00 different species all told).. how do you think people would react?
Hey Dana,
Hmmmmm...would these aliens be anatomically compatible with humans??Of course they are compatible! Tracy is an example of an alien-human hybrid! I refer you to our visit last year to see her relatives at Area 51 in Nevada: http://www.empowerthespirit.com/a51/area51.htm
Here is her cousin Bob:
I guess he's your cousin too, huh?
By the way, how come you weren't at the family reunion? We'll have to change that next time!
FreePeace
"The World is my country, and to do good, my religion." --Thomas Paine
TruthQuest: http://beam.to/truthquest
Who Am I? -How to Reinvent Yourself After Leaving the WTS
