It is late and we just had guests leave but I had to check the mail and wanted to try and answer you all, Y'all that is! Wendy, Waiting, it is always a pleasure to see your names on a post. I am honored to share a board with you. People like you are the ones who should be talking to these poor cult members. You know, we are all they really have to help them out. We have the goods on them and know whereof we speak, this experience came at a high price and I really do try to help them anytime I get a chance by sharing, not my story but my information.
Wendy, thanks for the hugs and my daughter is still putting on a normal look when we are thrown together as at weddings and such. She seems a little warmer and now when she writes (she asked me not to e-mail) she sometimes addresses it to my wife AND me. Sad situation. I have been pretty blunt with her and said all I know to say so for the sake of my wife and my relationship with my parents, I let the game go on.
Frank, my only point was in telling an experience I had, and hoping to encourage others to talk to any witness they see in service and try to help them out a little. As many of us as there are, we could really make a difference and at least make them have to study up and get beyond the regurgitation of the simple messages they have prepared. Most know very little about their real history and most don't understand the mediatorship and how low they are on the totem pole at all. With the ones I've talked to it is usually a shock, they usually respond with denying that Christ isn't their mediator according to the Society. The key is trying to keep them thinking about what you are saying and don't get them thinking about who you are. I feel deceptive, trying to deliberately make them think I am a pentecostal or whatever without really saying that, but otherwise everything you say doesn't count and you can't help them. I am sure you could help me out in methods, and I would appreciate any advice you could give me as I am a one man show, and just a novice at that.
Waiting, so good to see you on the board and I will double check that on the high priest tomorrow. I am pretty sure that they not only deny he is the "other sheep's" high priest but they even deny (if I remember right) that he is an "eternal" high priest even for the 144,000 which contradicts scripture also. They say all the poor old Other Sheep get is what the 144,000 "render" for them, the "overflow" of blessings that pours off the Kings and Priests. After all, Jesus is not their lawyer, but he is the 144,000's lawyer, according to them.
Jayhawk, it doesn't take courage at all, just compassion and a lot of patience. You have to hope for the delayed response that you won't get to see. You have the information, and they NEED to hear it.
OutnFree, I hope you do talk to them. Like I said the only hard part is keeping them from asking if you are an ex-witness, you have to be careful to avoid catch phrases that only witnesses use. I wish you well. If the high quality people on this board were out in front of the car groups it would make for a morning they could all go back and talk about. I like to take the conversational lead and ask them the questions, it humbles them some. I see their two class christianity and contradiction of the whole premise of the new covenant as ONE of their many weak points and it is one most don't understand well and you can get them to realize they have views at odds with the organization over. Ah well, I have to go to bed. Thank all of you (allayall) for responding.