Posts by hybridous

93

Position on College Changed?

by Maximus in

jw
friends

several have made outright statements and others have suggested that the society's negative position on higher education has changed.

'the society does not discourage higher education where i live.

' worse, 'apostates have made it all up--the society has never discouraged education.

Position on College Changed?

by Maximus in

jw
friends

several have made outright statements and others have suggested that the society's negative position on higher education has changed.

'the society does not discourage higher education where i live.

' worse, 'apostates have made it all up--the society has never discouraged education.

Position on College Changed?

by Maximus in

jw
friends

several have made outright statements and others have suggested that the society's negative position on higher education has changed.

'the society does not discourage higher education where i live.

' worse, 'apostates have made it all up--the society has never discouraged education.

Position on College Changed?

by Maximus in

jw
friends

several have made outright statements and others have suggested that the society's negative position on higher education has changed.

'the society does not discourage higher education where i live.

' worse, 'apostates have made it all up--the society has never discouraged education.

hybridous

I think that the official WT Society position is intentionally vague.

I live in an affluent area, and the local congregation is VERY tolerant of young JWs that aim for college. I would even go so far as to say...it is encouraged. I don't doubt that in other areas, congregations are very intolerant. I guess that the opinions of the local elders do a lot to shape the overall attitude of the congregation. Over here, the elders are either college educated or own very profitable businesses.

In terms of dollars and cents, I think that the WTS thinks it could profit more from educated JWs. More earnings mean that the JWs have more to give the WTS. Of course, this is a sword that cuts both ways: formally educated JWs are exposed to many ideas, and are perhaps likely to research their beliefs and WT dogma, therby spiraling head-over-heels into the realm of the inexplicable.

6

Crisis of identity when leaving the WTS?

by Cautious in

jw
friends

hi, just a question about something that i have been wondering about for a while.

did anyone else have the feeling that they had to discover who they were when they moved away from the wts?

for the majority of my life i had been identified as one of jw, that was how i saw myself and it impacted on everything and everyone else in my life.

hybridous

Having been born into the cult, I wonder if there was really a 'myself' to come back to. Every thought, every opinion...sculpted from birth.

I spent my first few years out stumbling around in a haze due to drugs and alcohol. I went from one extreme to another trying to find out who the heck I really was. My sanity was saved when I realized that, when not under outside compulsion, we are free to made up our minds and be the kind of people we want to be. For me, that is the ultimate truth of the matter.

Also, I learned that there is no point on this life where I can sit back and say 'Ahhhh, I made it. I am who I want to be.' I think that it is a continuous evolution of the human spirit. Cautious, you said 'Still working on that one.' Well, don't worry about it. So am I.

43

New Congregation

by Deacon in

jw
friends

ok. we ran a thread recently about starting a new religion.. how about we start an international congregation here on the board.. we need 7 elders.

7 being a sign of perfection..er....yeah.. we need ministerial servants.. appointments will be general concensus..er holy spirit i mean.. p.o.

lets start with him.

hybridous

I hereby request that I be appointed to the position of....

'The elusive Brother Some'

Simply because whoever holds this office always seems to get away with a lot.

10

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD.......

by JW72 in

jw
friends

i wonder would christians (jw's included) still serve god if it were god's will for them to die in this world and not live forever?!?!?!!.

if u think like that, it makes u realise just how selfish it all is to believe that!!.

they may say that they would but i doubt it!!!!.

hybridous

I guess my answer to you depends on what you mean by 'serving God'.

To JWs, 'serving God' is equated with serving the interests of the Watchtower Society.

To many Christians (and other theists), 'serving God' is equated with living a life of love and compassion for other people. If this is what you mean by 'serving God', then yes, I believe that people would continue to do this regardless of any potential reward. Many athiests and agnostics lead lives that mirror the teachings of Jesus more closely than Christians. I believe that, at the end of the day, we have to look at ourselves and feel that we've done some good in the world. Especially if we're gonna die & never come back, it would be a natural desire to want to leave this world knowing that we've done what we could to help someone...in my opinion.

13

Reasoning With the Sisters

by GinnyTosken in

jw
friends

i received this from a mailing list and thought i'd share.. ginny.

a new publication is now available called reasoning with the sisters.

but more likely you are interested in your future.

hybridous

All that work...just to get a piece. It almost seems it isn't worth it. Well,......almost....

51

for those who "grew up in the borg"

by zev in

jw
friends

at this late, middle stage of my life, i've started wondering, now that i know what i know, about the things in my life that i "lived" with.

having been raised all my life in the "borg" i have known nothing else.

when questions began forming years ago, it started me thinking.

hybridous

Wow, this one hits really close to home.

What didn't help me was the fact that my family split up - right in the middle of my JW childhood. What slipnslide said about being an 'emotional retard'...so true for me. My parents went thru the messiest of divorces. My dad DAd himself, but still saw us kids somewhat regulary. Not the best image to have. I was the kid of a single JW mom and a DAd father, boy, were the cards stacked against me in the JW world. I guess that's what helped me quit. I didn't want to play a game I couldn't win.

The elders' sons got away with a lot of stuff, while all eyes were on me. That used to burn me somethin' fierce. I can still recall many happy times, though. Not all of it was bad. I was always encouraged to use my mind, which in the long run, let to my leaving the cult.

I guess the hard part for me was stomaching the fact that I could never have 'real' friends outside of the JW cult. The few friends I made in the 'world' have proven more loyal over the years than the ones at the hall. I also wanted a girlfriend I could fool around with without having to answer to a JC.

Being raised a JW, along with having my parents split up, has rendered me an emotional train wreck. I ride the roller coaster most of the time...up a few weeks...down a few weeks. I'm having down time now. I hope I will rebound soon. I usually do.

I don't blame my parents for my upbringing. They were born under the cult's influence, also. I don't know why the chain of events occured which led to me getting free. Why have I succeeded where my parents failed? Why did I have the logic and fortitide to made the break while my parents did not? Am I not a product of them both?

Believe me, not a day of my life goes by without me asking these questions.

2

"jehovahhatesphred"...bwahhhhhhhhh

by sf in

jw
friends

roflol.

http://www.jehovahatesphred.com/index.cfm?page=jhp.

skally

hybridous

Why not?