Posts by passwordprotected

i've been taken aback a bit the recent developments but i'm making a new strategy...one that depends more on sticking to my guns and laying the cards on the table.

passwordprotected

Or - they're gonna have to circule the wagons, withdraw into itself and plan on having a small core group of believers.

I completely agree. What's better;

7 million + Witnesses of whom 45% or more aren't "wholesouled" in their devotion to the "slave" OR
1 milion hard-core (literally) die-hard Witnesses who only ask "how high"

Which of the two groups is easier to control? Ok, there would be less money coming in, but with smaller everything they won't need as much. Plus, how many of the 7 million + actually contributes these days?

A time of winnowing is coming. Perhaps this year's DC will be the start.

27

Not called the Memorial this year?

by jwfacts in

i just received my invitation to the memorial this year and noticed that the word memorial does not appear anywhere on the invitation.

it refers instead to the anniversary of jesus death.

is this a new thing, or is it always marketed as an anniversary rather than a memorial to unbelievers?.

passwordprotected

Interesting that they chose to show Jesus on the cover of the tract alive!

41

The trouble with fading as your leaving strategy

by eyesthatsee in

whatever your chosen strategy for leaving jws, the fundamental truth is that there is no clean / simple exit.

the mind control, the manipulation of normal family relationships etc will make any strategy very difficult at times.

the key issue is to know this ahead of time and be prepared, as best you can.. we've all chosen leaving strategies acording to our personal circumstances, preferences and learning from others.

passwordprotected

@besty - you've been away from Perth for too long.

17

I Attended the Memorial Last Year Disfellowshipped and Partook

by Clint Bussey in

check out my video about why i did it and what the response was by the elder who handed me the emblems that night..

passwordprotected

If you're a Christian it's probably worth remembering;

Ephesians 6:12 (New International Version)

12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

41

The trouble with fading as your leaving strategy

by eyesthatsee in

whatever your chosen strategy for leaving jws, the fundamental truth is that there is no clean / simple exit.

the mind control, the manipulation of normal family relationships etc will make any strategy very difficult at times.

the key issue is to know this ahead of time and be prepared, as best you can.. we've all chosen leaving strategies acording to our personal circumstances, preferences and learning from others.

passwordprotected

I couldn't sleep at night for a while, worrying over the flicker of hope I knew existed in my old cong that I'd return to the "fold" one day. I couldn't handle giving people a false sense of expectation when ultimately I knew I'd let them all down. I worried that my anxiety over this may even drive me (kicking and screaming inside) back to the congregation.

I quickly saw, though, that the whole idea of fading just so that some semblance of a relationship with these people could be maintained was bonkers; their friendship with me was absolutely, 100% conditionally based on me living the life of the Watchtower magazine. I couldn't live that life anymore. So I would have to be a phoney so that I could continue to 'enjoy' their phoney, conditional approval?

I've been outspoken here before (as has Besty) about the problem of faders/fading. I usually get tossed back the line, "well, I've got family that are still in". Guess what? So do I! My entire family is still in the cult! Every single friend I ever had - apart from 2 - are still in the cult.

One problem with the fading strategy is that you don't speak up about your reasons for no longer going to the meetings. You become impotent and are reduced to creating hilarious fake Facebook profiles so that you can act out your passive aggression towards the Witnesses on Facebook (how many pages did that thread run to?) while real ex-JWs are going from door-to-door, toe-to-toe with the JWs handing out 'apostate' leaflets to householders. Only one of these actions has any real impact or effect; guess which one it is.

Here's the real trouble with the fading strategy; you're still handing all of the power back to the hands of the Governing Body and their representatives in the local congregations. 14 years before you can get some of your life back?? Being scared to answer the phone in case it's an elder? Hiding behind the sofa when the JWs are in your street? Not letting your kids celebrate birthdays or Christmas in case a local JW finds out? But at least Auntie Betty still gives you a curt smile as she passes you on the frozen food aisle in Sainsburys. Really?

If all of the faders took a stand for what they now believed, the WTS would experience a tsunami from which they'd struggle to recover.

42

2010 DC" Remain in Gods Love"...Most Unloving Yet??

by JWFreak in

jw
friends

the talk outlines for the summers conventions are only being printed over the next 2 weeks or so.. the finished outlines were ready in the middle of december 2009, however sources that i trust tell me that at least 5 of the talks were returned for last minute rewriting which is highly unusual.

this has held up the printing until now, a delay of over a month.

this is a fact!!.

passwordprotected

I've been convinced for a while that the GB needs a new tentacle of control. On this post I posit that this will come through inculcating a fear of leaving the Organisation;

http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/beliefs/172677/1/The-WTS-need-a-new-tentacle-of-control

In this thread I argue that 2014 is the catalyst for the tightening of the cult handcuffs;

http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/beliefs/180595/1/Tightening-of-the-Cult-Handcuffs

I'm certain that the WTS needs to start moving away from anything approaching a "loving, Christ-like" way of ordering their adherants if they want to keep financially afloat....

13

The New Songbook, Joe Biden and 49% Less Jesus !

by metatron in

jw
friends

jesus is treated as a redundant, almost minor character in watchtower- land.

he sat around heaven with nothing to do for almost 2000 years until "the truth" was re-discovered by an american haberdasher.

he never seems to get any personal mention/appreciation even in life stories by the supposed "anointed" as published by the society (in contrast to the apostle paul and other early christians).

passwordprotected

Whenever a Christian organisation asks "How do we know Jesus will be loyal in his reign as King?" (as it did in a 2009 WT) we know we're in trouble.

31

DESTROYING the Individual: the goal of Watchtower Authority

by Terry in

jw
friends

the governing body wants to disable individuality.

individuality is evidenced by self-expression.

no self...no expression of self.. personal desire leads to expression of personal desire.

passwordprotected

Good, you'll feel better soon.