Posts by JAVA

61

We should hold our own memorial right here on JWD

by JH in

jw
friends

.

wouldn't it be funny if on memorial night, we all opened a bottle of wine and drank some of it while posting.

.

JAVA

Rats -- I missed another memorial. It's a day late, the wine is gone; what will I do . . . what will I do?

67

The end is close! - Look at the pictures! Hilarious

by truth_about_the_truth in

here is a chain email that i got that has been circulating among the jws.. you have to be kidding me right?.

fw: something to think about wow!!!!!.

this is quite interesting seeing the progression of the stone hitting the false religious babylonish image at the base.

JAVA

JH--that is way too funny! Thanks for the fun.

86

My Story

by XJW4EVR in

i was adopted into a jw family in southern california.

my birth mother gave me up after 6 months (the terms mom & dad refer to my adoptive/real parents).

she gave me up due to the fact that she already had a three year old boy, and back in the late sixties it was not as socially acceptable to be a single mother.

JAVA

He spoke to me quietly and asked me to please go see a counselor after the retreat.

evita,

Can't you just see a JW elder saying something like that--not! Hats off to that priest, and hopefully there are a lot more like him.

86

My Story

by XJW4EVR in

i was adopted into a jw family in southern california.

my birth mother gave me up after 6 months (the terms mom & dad refer to my adoptive/real parents).

she gave me up due to the fact that she already had a three year old boy, and back in the late sixties it was not as socially acceptable to be a single mother.

JAVA

Thanks for getting back to your story -- this has been such an interesting post.

I got there, and I began to weep like I had never wept before. Heavy sobs. But I believe that what happened that night was the release of the pent-up frustration, angry, resentment, and every other negative emotion I had suppressed in my soul. I left there with a feeling of euphoria and relief that I had never felt before.

The same thing happened to me about 20-years ago when I attended a two-day meeting of mostly former Witnesses in Chicago. That was the first time I allowed myself to meet with a fairly large group (about 100) of ex-JWs, and when it was time to leave, I had to run to the car because I couldn't stop the heavy sobs. Driving back to Dayton was unreal; everything was beyond wonderful, and the euphoria lasted about 3 or 4 hours. It was something I've never experienced before nor again.

I agree with you about it being the result of pent-up frustration, anger, and suppressed negative emotions. Doing a little research I've found that many folks have similar reactions of uncontrolled crying following by a feeling of euphoria after exiting a high-control group. It's easy to understand why many folks believe it's a gift from Jesus or God or some other spirit. It's also easy to understand why non-believers believe it's an emotional release that frees the mind out of the state of being stalled. Who knows . . .

Thanks again for the update; I look forward to more.

64

Who has or has not been invited to the memorial?

by misspeaches in

jw
friends

well the memorial is tmrw night and time is running out to give out invitations.

(au time that is...) .

last night my mother asked me if i've heard from any of my old jw friends.

JAVA

JWs don't even show up in my neighborhood anymore since I started doing door-to-door work when they show up. It's only happened twice, and it's been two years since I've seen them on the street. I would meet them as they're getting out of the car and say, "Hey brothers, are you going door-to-door work or making return visists?" At this point they look like a deer caught in the head lights. I follow up with, "I'll take the next door and let the householder know that you shun me for the sin of voting, and you can show them from the Bible why you do that." I've never seen the Witnesses walk so fast in the door-to-door work and drive off.

No, they haven't invited me to the memorial--I don't know why.

32

Comments You Will Not Hear at the 4-9-06 WT Study (Recreation)

by blondie in

(a) why is it difficult to find acceptable recreation?

q 6, 7. what can help you decide what is acceptable or unacceptable.

9 at times, christians ask: "what is acceptable recreation?

JAVA

** We will be visiting some friends we found here on JWD. Have you been able to re-create with some of your fellow posters? **
Blondie--That's a very interesting read; I always appreciated your posts. Yes, I will be visiting some JWD friends this Sunday in Dayton, and "re-create" over pizza and beer. :)) I look forward to the "atmosphere for an interchange of encouragement" when DanTheMan burns another "Watchtower" at the table!
Thanks for another great post, Blondie.

16

A comment my Mom made

by Junction-Guy in

jw
friends

mom and i were discussing some recent books on the catholic church, and mom said that supposedly the catholic church was holding some major secrets on the bible and that if the catholic people were to ever find out, they would literally destroy the catholic church and there would be rioting in the streets.

i told mom, "look at all of the children who have died from no blood, look at all of the people who forsook college education, look at all of the families destroyed, look at all of the children molested, look all of the lies of the wt society, and yet the wt society still flourishes, the catholic church would probably get through that too".

she just told me that they would tear that church apart.

JAVA

I read an article at Salon.com titled, "Jesus: The Coverup," by Laura Miller. It starts off with this remark:
"Holy Blood, Hold Grail," the source for "The Da Vinci Code," is a masterwork of paranoid pseudohistory. Now its author is back, arguing that Jesus faked his own death and ran off with Mary Magdelene. Verily, there's a sucker born every minute."
I copied the 9-page article for your mom, and will bring it to the meet-up in Dayton tomorrow.

3

My wish list

by Junction-Guy in

jw
friends

it would be so cool if one very wealthy xjw would step forward and willing devote time and money to exposing the wt.

there are several things i would like to see.

billboards on major interstates.

JAVA

As former JWs, we know the harm caused by this cult-like sect. However, most folks don't give a rat's ass about Jehovah's Witnesses or the Watchtower Society. In the whole scheme of things, the Tower doesn't really matter when looking at the big picture. Spending huge sums of money exposing the Tower for what it is wouldn't really matter to the world at large, and the true belivers would consider it the work of Satan.
There are many cult-like sects out there, and folks will join and leave for various reasons. If I had millions to spend as a former JW, I wouldn't waste too much money on the Watchtower issues.
However, I would give a lot more money to sites like this! :)

3

Da Vinci Code (fluff alert)

by sass_my_frass in

jw
friends

just finished 'hyped-up-bestselle-of-the-year' the da vinci code.

it was a lot of fun; a great long chase scene disguising a lot of narrative about the birth of christianity.

what i liked was the new perspective on so many things.

JAVA

The "Da Vinci Code" by Dan Brown was a fun read.
However, I'm amazed at the number of people who take the book seriously. It's a novel based on some places and things that are real with a lot of fiction between the lines--all the makings of a good novel. Even the Catholic Church was foolish enough to recommend that members not read the book; which I'm certain increased its sales by millions. :)

36

"Evil Slave" or Apostate which term do you prefer used on ex-JW's?

by booker-t in

i hate both terms to describe ex-jws.

i know most people say "apostate" when they refer to an ex-jw that is an opposer now but some will say "so and so" is an "evil slave" now.

evil slave sounds so "boogie man under the bed" that i just laugh when i hear the term.

JAVA

The term "Enlightened" is preferred.