Posts by nugget

55

Being pressured and getting increasingly stressed.

by NBird in

hello, i'm a 17 year old born in and i'm done with this religion.

one hundred percent.

i came to the conclusion a year ago that i wanted to leave.

nugget

To buy you time I would say to your mum that you appreciate the effort she is going to with the study but as she says it is your arrangement. You do not feel the current arrangement is helping you to make the truth your own as you feel you are being prerssured and don't have time to take things in properly. This may be ok in the short term but it will not help you long term. Certainbly having others set spiritual goals for you means you are not having an opportunity to build a personal relationship with God or grow to maturity.

You want to take a break form this arrangement to give you time for personal study and reflection so you can build your own foundation. Then you can tell her you will restart the study when you have something to offer rather than just learning lessons by rote.

Do not allow yourself to get into a debate deliver the statement and walk away. If she asks to discuss it just say you have taken the matter in prayer to Jehovah and you are confident that this is the best course.

In the mean time try to find a part tinme job to give you some financial independence and the opportunity to have work commitments that occasionally encroach on meeting attendance.

22

Personality types and religious adherence

by EdenOne in

jw
friends

i was going through the personality types of the briggs-myers test (take the free test here) and noticed how some types are naturally inclined to follow rules and expect order, while others are inclined towards feelings and emotional appeals, other are naturally inclined to help out others ... what do you think?

are there certain basic personality types that pre-dispose the individual to adhere to a certain type of religion ?.

eden.

nugget

I come out as an infp but it was my strong sense of honour that made me see the injustice more clearly.

32

Stuff You Would Lose If You Went Back

by Nosferatu in

jw
friends

so we know all the things the wts prevents us from doing, but that's much, much different than the stuff we've grown accustomed to.. for those who have been out for a number of years, what kind of things would end up being abandoned if you suddenly started going back to the kingdom hall?

you know, stuff that you now do on the nights you used to attend meetings, the things you own, the things you wear, etc..

nugget

I would lose my identity.

3

Does Jehovah's Witnesses baptism qualification info disclose anything about Disfellowshipping

by Watchtower-Free in

does the bible teach book say anything about dfing?.

.

isn't this dishonest?.

nugget

The baptism questions relating to disfellowshipping are very vague and certainly do not introduce the idea of doubts. They certainly do not go into detail of how this affects the disfellowshipped person and family relations. It is worth remembering that at the point of baptism you are not thinking about going back on the decision so will gloss over the 2 or 3 questions with a feeling that it will never apply to you. It is only via the watchtower articles that the true impact of disfellowshipping is discussed.

Also bear in mind that some who are baptised are minors and so discussion of fornication and the like is not something they have ever faced.

34

So where else can we go?

by Julia Orwell in

jw
friends

no, i'm not misquoting peter talking to jesus again, or relating a conversation i had with a jw.. i'm asking something a little different.. i began my fade in jan this year and completed it at the memorial on 26th march.

since learning ttatt and becoming mentally free, my depression has improved, i see colours better, and my anxiety issues have dissolved.

i returned to teaching high school after years away from it, and am a substitute teacher at some local schools.

nugget

I am sorry to hear you are hitting a tough patch especially as things have been going so well recently for you. Have you considered private tutoring as an option. This may offer some financial security and you would not have to deal with so many teens at once. They do seem to have a pack instinct and once they feel weakness then it is a downward spiral. If you are already feeling bad they can make a bad situation worse.

Also talk to your doctor as they may be able to change medication to help stabalise your emotions and help you feel in control. Depression comes in cycles you know from experience things will get better. You also know that you may have episodes in the future and you are right that planning for those whilst you are coping better is so important. If you have a plan you have a degree of control even during the bad times.

106

Video of admitted child molester in Jehovahs Witnesses has gone viral!

by disfellowshipped1 in

notice these two attorneys opining on this case.. http://watchtowerleaks.com/tagged/child-molestation.

nugget

My understanding of the way elders are appointed is that the elders discuss the brothers who may qualify with the circuit overseer. The Circuit Overseer makes the recommendation to the branch and he can block an appointment if he doesn't feel someone should be appointed. There are also occasions when a body is told that someone will not be appointed because the branch has issued instructions to that effect. So although the elders can express a point of view they do not have the final say.

appointed men coming from another congregation are appointed by the new congregation but this still has to be approved by the branch.

This would imply that the congregation may shortlist candidates but the decision rests initially with the CO and then ultimately with the branch. After all if the congregation makes a recommendation that is not approved of by the CO or the Branch the person will not be appointed.

The main issue is that the appointment is supposed to be directed by the Holy Spirit. How many duds have to be appointed before people start to realise that the Holy spirit is asleep at the wheel?

172

Britain | Jehovah's Witnesses hushed up child sex scandal | July 16, 2013

by jwleaks in

church officials hushed up a child sex scandal in their ranks and refused to co-operate with police.. .

jehovah witness ministerial servant gordon leighton admitted sexually abusing a child when he was confronted by his church elders, a court heard.. but during the official police investigation, the 53-year-old who made headlines in the 1990s when wife yvonne, 28, died after refusing a blood transfusion after childbirth on religious grounds denied any illegal wrongdoing.. and when detectives asked elders simon preyser, harry logan and david scott to make statements about the confession, all three refused and said what they had heard was confidential.. for three years, the elders refused to co-operate with the criminal investigation and kept up that stance when the case was brought before newcastle crown court after the victim made a complaint to police.. each was issued with a witness summons which they fought to overturn before being ordered to testify by judge penny moreland citing public interest.. their barrister richard daniels said the men had a duty to god not to breach confidence.. he added: privileged communication between members of the congregation and ministers is an absolute right and duty and there is no power in law to breach such a confidence.. judge moreland said: it is apparent that the three elders who were present when this conversation took place are in possession of relevant evidence as to a point which is of real significance in this case.. they claim the right of confidentiality, they claim that what they heard said by the defendant during the course of that meeting ought to be subject to privilege, as ministers of religion.. judge moreland refused to withdraw the summonses and said: public interest is clearly in favour of this evidence being given.. what was said by the defendant on that occasion is of great significance in the trial.. despite the judges ruling, the men still refused to make statements to police until just hours before they were called before the jury.. leighton, who has since been expelled from the church at lambton kingdom hall in washington, denied two charges of indecency with a child and seven of indecent assault.. he was yesterday found guilty of two charges of indecency with a child and six of indecent assault.

he was found not guilty of one indecent assault charge, on the direction of the judge.. he was remanded in custody until he is sentenced next month but warned he is facing a lengthy spell behind bars.. prosecutor katherine dunn told the court the victim, who is now an adult, broke her silence in 2009.. the court heard how at a special church meeting, leighton admitted sexual abuse and made excuses for his behaviour.. miss dunn said: the elders conducted their own investigation.

nugget

Prime no one is fear mongering just anxious to see the society take a more proactive approach to safeguarding the vulnerable. After all they have influence over millions including the elderly, the vulnerable and children. They assign people to positions of oversight relying solely on the holy spirit and elders judgement to determine their fitness for office. I do not think that background checks for appointed men and pioneers would be inappropriate as these people come into the most contact with members of the congregation.

36

Zealous Witnesses who never had children and regret it now.

by MsGrowingGirl20 in

jw
friends

i had two close friends in the org.

one is in her early thirties and got married last year and the other one is single and in her late twenties.

after reading coc, i couldn't help but feel sad at how ray and his wife felt regret at putting the religion first and not having any children.

nugget

The year we were married there was an assembly talk "responsible Childbearing in this time of the end" which basically discouraged couples from starting a family urging them to wait to the new system. Many of us who married that year waited a good 12 years before starting our families feeling obliged to follow the advice and wait. However in that time I saw faithful ones who had not had children grow old and die knowing that in the new order they would not be married and not have a chance to have a family. I never regretted having children and feel desperately sorry for those that longed to have them convinced they only had to wait a little longer and the new order would be there.

The way the meetings are designed shows that children are very much an after thought. They have recently included more material for family worship night but it is often inappropriate and delivered with a heavy hand. The number of publications for young children is very limited (not necessarily a bad thing considering how appalling it is). It is clear that they do not use childcare specialists to prepare their materials and just go for what they think will appeal.

45

Do you remember your Baptism Talk?

by bildad in

jw
friends

do you remember anything from your baptism talk or the brother who gave it?.

nugget

All I remember was that it was the worst one I had heard with no highlights.

172

Britain | Jehovah's Witnesses hushed up child sex scandal | July 16, 2013

by jwleaks in

church officials hushed up a child sex scandal in their ranks and refused to co-operate with police.. .

jehovah witness ministerial servant gordon leighton admitted sexually abusing a child when he was confronted by his church elders, a court heard.. but during the official police investigation, the 53-year-old who made headlines in the 1990s when wife yvonne, 28, died after refusing a blood transfusion after childbirth on religious grounds denied any illegal wrongdoing.. and when detectives asked elders simon preyser, harry logan and david scott to make statements about the confession, all three refused and said what they had heard was confidential.. for three years, the elders refused to co-operate with the criminal investigation and kept up that stance when the case was brought before newcastle crown court after the victim made a complaint to police.. each was issued with a witness summons which they fought to overturn before being ordered to testify by judge penny moreland citing public interest.. their barrister richard daniels said the men had a duty to god not to breach confidence.. he added: privileged communication between members of the congregation and ministers is an absolute right and duty and there is no power in law to breach such a confidence.. judge moreland said: it is apparent that the three elders who were present when this conversation took place are in possession of relevant evidence as to a point which is of real significance in this case.. they claim the right of confidentiality, they claim that what they heard said by the defendant during the course of that meeting ought to be subject to privilege, as ministers of religion.. judge moreland refused to withdraw the summonses and said: public interest is clearly in favour of this evidence being given.. what was said by the defendant on that occasion is of great significance in the trial.. despite the judges ruling, the men still refused to make statements to police until just hours before they were called before the jury.. leighton, who has since been expelled from the church at lambton kingdom hall in washington, denied two charges of indecency with a child and seven of indecent assault.. he was yesterday found guilty of two charges of indecency with a child and six of indecent assault.

he was found not guilty of one indecent assault charge, on the direction of the judge.. he was remanded in custody until he is sentenced next month but warned he is facing a lengthy spell behind bars.. prosecutor katherine dunn told the court the victim, who is now an adult, broke her silence in 2009.. the court heard how at a special church meeting, leighton admitted sexual abuse and made excuses for his behaviour.. miss dunn said: the elders conducted their own investigation.

nugget

I was a JW for forty years and in that time I was asigned to work alone on field service with other members of the congregation in rural settings regularly my mother never went on field service at the weekend and my father was not in the organisation. I was encouraged to study alone with another congregation member to "help make the truth my own". I attended study groups specifically for children held in private homes (it later turned out the father was molesting his daughters). JWs do on occasion separate children and parents and therefore they should have CRB checks done. After all for charities it is free to do and if there is nothing to hide there is nothing to fear. The Watchtower encourages mature christians to help out spiritual widows and provide role models by studying with children on their own.

They say they are more moral, and have higher standards because they are in a spiritual paradise so to comply with a law shows good faith and reinforces their high standards.

This fudging the issue and falsehood by stating that because there are no Sunday schools it is all ok is a fallacy. Things are not ok. Children have been molested by brothers they trusted, children have been molested on field service, children have been molested in kingdom halls. The purpose of the rules is not to persecute the innocent but to make it harder for the wicked. The present culture and rules DO NOT WORK. They have never worked except to protect the reputation of the society. The checks won't catch everyone but they will help.