i'm not sure how to put this news gently to the community here, but regarding my post yesterday regarding chantelle.. thankyou for all of your kind messages and warmth displayed on your parts.. chantelle was only 16 when disfellowshipped.
only 18 years old with her whole life in front of her.
she took her own life this morning at 0400hrs.. i am so sorry not to have been in a better position to get your letters to her in time.. take care all of you & kindest regards.
Mark,
What a hateful betrayal of that poor child -- who is still a baby in years -- first by the WTS, then by the parents! A violent beating would have been kinder than destroying her baby pictures in front of her. Sometimes I wish there was hell after death because I know 12 men from Brooklyn (along with their predecessors) who deserve to rot there.
We are all in shock over this tragedy. So very very sorry.
Faith
well, it's been one week since mom called to tell me that she is reverting back to a previous behavior from 1981, called "hard line shunning".
this is after some ten years now, of having communication with me in a restrictive manner.
(well, as "normal" as it could be for us anyway.
Karen,
I'm so sorry for you, hon.
I went though a similar scenario with my daughter about 10 years ago. She couldn't decide whether she wanted to talk to me or not. About the time I thought all contact was over, I'd get a phone call or letter and get my hopes up that she might have had a breakthrough realizing how wrong the shunning was. But it never lasted. It hurts so bad not to have her in my life. But it's even worse when they make you feel like they're "slumming" by associating with you. Their blind religious arrogance is a inpenetrable barrier to any real intimacy you could ever hope to have with them. Sometimes it's better just to let go and move on with your life. There's hundreds of people on this board who share your grief and frustration. I got teary eyed just reading your post.
Faith
one evening, mom and dad told my cousin.
and i to get ready, we were going to buy some new.
shoes.
My mom was pretty cool for a dub. I grew up in the sixties when the Borg was beginning to criticize pop music and rock n' roll. But, driving to and from the meetings, she never said a word when we changed the radio to our favorite rock station (at that time KRLA from Los Angeles). She even kept time to the Beatles by tapping on the steering wheel. I loved that about her!
for a few weeks i've had this 'sister' on my mind, although she is deceased.. i've heard through the grapevine that her widowed husband isn't doing so hot, so i thought i'd share some memories...... one of my very first memories of attending kh in my old hometown was of hilda.
hilda was one of the older ones even when i was young.
i'm thinking she was in her late 60's when i first made her acquaintance.
Lisa,
I knew a few sisters like Hilda. I think every KH had one or two. Funny how some could get away with being outspoken, even argumentative when other people would get dragged into the back room for saying the same things. I think the elders were afraid of the ones who were a little crazy and outlandish, so they left them alone. Thanks for the memory.
Faith
on a post by jonathanseagull, he was talking about going onto witness sites, posing as one, and talking to them.
i surfed a little on the net, and checking out some of the sites, i noticed that there are bigtime restrictions to get in.
they are very critical, better be a witness, etc to even be considered to get in.
Freedom,
I was able to register on one of those sites under a fake name and fake congregation. Within a few minutes after registering, I received an email with my password. I only did it to see if it was possible, and after checking out the site once, I never went back! Can't remember which one it was but they were all diehard dubs as I recall.
Faith
basically, this is my take on it.
this isn't intended to start a flame war between believer's and non-believer's of god.. god creates angels.
god creates man.
Here's a few more that are disturbing (that is, if you believe any of this really happened):
1. God asked Abraham to slit the throat of his only son, Isaac, who I believe was a teenager at the time. Can you imagine how Isaac must have felt about his father after that? Talk about a self-esteem problem.
2. How about the story of Job? Killed off the man's entire family! Of course, after he helped God win the bet with Satan, he "blessed" Job with an all-new, improved family. Haven't you heard? Family members are so replaceable (at least in God's eyes)?
Yuk!
Faith
driving up the m5 the other day.
i got caught in a traffic jam, so i pulled into the outside lane which seemed to be the one that was moving most rapidly.
in the middle lane, just ahead of me, was the most beautiful car i had seen in ages.
When I hear about someone inheriting a nice sum of money, I admit to being a little envious. My four siblings and I will inherit zip from my mom when she goes. But we have always known it would be that way and whatever we have we have earned entirely by our own wits and hard work. There's a certain amount of satisfaction in that, really. I also look at it this way ...my mom is able to care for herself with social security and her small retirement, and I am grateful for that. Some people are not so lucky and must dole out of their own pockets to help out their folks.
I'd like to leave something to my sons, who are 19 and 21 now, but not much more than $20,000 or $30,000 each, just enough to help them get into a house (if they haven't already done so when I kick the bucket) or buy a nice car. I honestly believe that inheriting a large sum of money causes more heartache and problems than people can possibly imagine. But being poor also sucks ....a happy medium is nice.
When it comes time to retire, I will take care of myself first and travel and spend as I please but keep my fingers crossed that I don't have to spend all my investments so my kids will get something when I'm gone.
Faith
i don't understand why people can't see the truth when it's right there in the bible in black & white.
you can't change it to fit your personal lifestyle or modify it by only applying what intrest or benefits you.
the wt organization has its place just like all the other secular laws have theres to protect & guide us.
Please enlighten me as to the sacrifice God has made.
Also, how bad do things have to get in the organization before you people quit believing the party line of "waiting on Jehovah." If your child were molested by a brother you trusted and the elders refused to do anything because there were not two witnesses, would you just be content to "wait on Jehovah?"
Would you swallow ANYTHING the WT told you to do, hook, line, and sinker, simply because they told you to do it, even if it defied all common sense? If so, I feel VERY sorry for you.
after posting a reply to another thread i wondered if anyone can answer these questions??.
1. why are sisters not allowed to wear trousers?.
2. when sisters where a skirt why have they got to be below the knee?.
I know an interesting story on this subject that occurred in the late 70's after I made my exit.
I knew a very independent-minded elder, rather a super-stoker type, who didn't mind making a few waves now and then. He had a way of getting away with a lot because he was charismatic, well-to-do, and intelligent -- people tended to look up to him and his family ... his wife was the same way.
Things went well for them until they moved to a congregation in a small town (Santa Paula, CA). Then they started butting heads with the elders there. This elder's wife decided to wear a pantsuit to the ministry school/service meeting one night and holy hell broke loose. She was promptly taken in the back by the other elders and counseled. This did not deter her, and she continued to wear pantsuits to the meetings, with her husband backing her up. It eventually led to their not only leaving the congregation, but they left the religion PERIOD. Wild rumors ensued that they were forming their own sect! Too funny. I always wondered what happened to that family.
i returned last sunday from las vegas, where i had been attending a convention for one of my suppliers.
it was a network marketing convention, so the people there were from all over the world.
one day i was walking back (about a mile) from the convention area at the hotel, to the elevators, when i heard a group say "well, we are all witnesses.
Mulan,
My daughter (who doesn't speak to me anymore due to my DF'd state) attended the same KH as Rebi some years back (I believe it was in Thousand Oaks, CA). From what she said, the members were somewhat in awe of Rebi and her celebrity status. Interesting to me that the press portrays Rebi as a nutcase, very emotionally disturbed. It has always amused me how celebrities can get away with "worldly" dress and behavior that would land the average member in the committee room so fast their head would spin. LOL.
Faith
