Posts by tiki

14

Finding our true identity after spiritual abuse in the Watchtower

by Faith after Deception in

i personally find that when you’ve been around toxic people long enough, either in a family environment or as part of a cult or a highly controlling church, (or worse, both!

), you tend to get a very twisted view of your own identity and also human nature in general.. in a religious context, you may end up feeling that you are a “lowly worm” and that in general, people can’t be trusted.

since all you’ve known of relationships has been painful, complex and tiresome, it can give you the impression that this is the norm and that’s all you can expect .

tiki

I relate very strongly to the third and fourth paragraph.....neuroscience proving that our set brain circuits impact our view of self and others. I have lived a life accepting toxicity in relationships as the norm and it is indeed hard to reform those perspectives.

Spirituality I see differently.....the human, the life we lead, is one thing...our intrinsic self...the spirit....something else and elusive to the human mind. There is much we simply cannot grasp about eternity....the spiritual....as we are currently locked in the human condition.

19

Personal story of bethel, sexual abuse and child baptism

by GetMeOutofHere in

born into a strong jw family in the early 80s.

my father died when i was 4 and that left a huge emotional scar on my tender mind.

with my mother, i went to live with family members and was sexually abused between 4 and 10. he was an ms but when elders later found out, all that happened was he got his privileges removed.

tiki

Welcome...and good to hear you are disentangling from the destructive cult. It horrifies me that so many as innocent child victims in that religion have been subjected to sexual abuse...and more often than not no just punishment to the perpetrator. You are smart to get your education and make decisions based on reality. Keep up the good work! And I do also hope you follow through and talk to a therapist...there are scars and wounds that need to be addressed.

8

Dec 2019 Watchtower - Two Witness Rule

by Listener in

the watchtower has attempted to address their two witness rule and the case of the raped woman in a field found at deuteronomy 22:25-27all the tireless work that so many ex jws and concerned worldly people have done by phone calls, cart crashes, demonstrating at assemblies, questioning jws and so on, is paying off.

it's not the doting jws that have been questioning the two witness rule, it's apostates.this is a "question from reader" in the december, 2019 watchtower.

the bible says that at least two witnesses are needed to establish a matter.

tiki

The scream thing presents problems. What if the rapist gagged her and she couldn't scream.

Does the scream have to be heard to be a viable "excuse"?

What if sheer terror rendered her mute?

Rape is a crime of violence fueled by anger and in many cases misogyny. The Deuteronomy verses seem to lean to more of an overly aggressive male with a female unsure or frightened...it was a different culture altogether. Rapes rarely have eyewitnesses but these days proof positive can be medically obtained. So...imho....using these verses to justfy 2 witnesses is pretty flimsy.

37

highlights from Circuit Overseer Guidelines

by neat blue dog in

i just finished looking through the circuit overseer manual, so here are some highlights.

first up, regarding circuit assemblies:.

if a brother is so extremely overweight that others would be distracted if he had a part on the program, good judgment would need to be used in deciding whether to give him an assignment.

tiki

You gotta love the totem pole list of specially blessed elders...there is a fabulous loophole for favoritism and or nepotism.....and the dude that hasn't watched porn for two years....wtf??? If he is going to watch the stuff he's going to announce...hey 4 months back I watched butterballs and nympha getting it on? Seriously? And the woman thing. A lowly female pub gets to go d-d with the co...but his wife can't be seen with a lowly adult male pub? Why? Ohhh the crazy cult crap.

3

Aposthia

by peacefulpete in

ok, this place is getting bogged down with eternal debates about politics.

lets have some fun.

regarding the birth of moses..... ex 2:2 : 2 now a man from the house of levi went and [a]married a daughter of levi.

tiki

Oh you guys....seriously?!?

31

Big Meat Eaters?

by peacefulpete in

i was wondering how many of us have switched to a vegetarian or vegan diet and why.

i'm not doing it but have friends who do.

lovely people and seem very healthy.

tiki

I've been ovo-lacto vegetarian....then also done no red meat phases...I do eat limited amounts of red meat these days, but locally grown and fed animals. I do not trust the mega agro industry and all the chemicals they are insinuating into our bodies. Chicken...not a fan of Chicken particularly but will eat local farmed birds. Love seafood....it is abundant in our area and we are able to get it good as it gets locally. I do believe that the human body needs amino acids acquired from meat proteins and that a totally vegan diet is insufficient for robust health.

23

GB wifes

by asp59 in

with the talks abouth tight pants in men and now samuel herd abouth fat women are better then fit .

this are topics women talk abouth.

you think its the gb wifes running the show now?.

tiki

Omg....sad and outrageous all at once. In effect they are saying to marrigeable men find a mama....somebody to clean up after you and feed you. And how offensive to an intelligent self-possessed woman. If a guy wants a maid let him hire one.

20

Museums growing at the branches especially Warwick

by benny in

i am not sure if this has been discussed but last night mid week meeting about organisational accomplishments really got my goat as the example of the temple was used.

people contributed to the building of the jewish temple and now the museum and bethel in warwick.

this supposed .be evidence of god s guidance.

tiki

Oh good grief. "Museum" is a misnomer. Exhibition...imho

23

How Affected By Jehovah’s Witness News Are You At This Point In Your Life?

by minimus in

jw
friends

i’ve been out for many many years.

i still like to know the latest jw news although i find myself not as excited by things..

tiki

Well.....I keep tabs via this website. On one hand I do not care one whit...but after 40 some odd years inveigled I feel like I want to see how they continue...and the downward spiral is interesting on some level. The religion is not the one I was raised in...and it angers me that so many of us lost so many good years of our lives to foolishness. What they present today seems just plain useless and pathetically stupid. But...people like comfort zones and apparently there is a cross section of humanity that finds that comfort in this particular cult.

17

clinking of glasses

by sosad1 in

hello all - long ago i posted under sosad..... cant get back under that name so hello again.

i though i remember in hte last couple of years that there was a change in the strict practice of not clinking glasses and toasting,,, that it was more of a conscience decision.. was i dreaming this?

any help towards printed information on this subject is very much appreciated..

tiki

Here's to you all...clink clink clink....cheers! A votre sante! Skoal!!

(never paid any heed to that silly "rule" anyway..)