i'm sure we could all write long paragraphs about this question, but in a few words, what is your biggest regret, or frustration in life due to being a witness?.
what missed opportunities did it cost you?
.
I would say the biggest regret is that I NEVER pursued any of my interests or talents because they were "bad" and the end was so close. Now my youth is gone. It's not that I regret all of my life choices, it's just that all my choices were never really mine. I was allowed to "choose" from certain items that were already picked out for me, so to speak. Everything from recreation to a marriage partner was strictly regulated. My "choices" were picked for me.
You nailed it !!
22 characteristics of a cult.. .
source : http://thewatchtowerfiles.com/destructivecults/.
if the leader or leaders write their own material and claim that it is from god or inspired by god or from the mouth of god then they are a cult.if the leadership tells you that you cant read anything written by any other church or religion and only can read what they write then it is a cult.if you are forbidden to speak to or read anything written by someone who has left the group for reasons of conscience or belief then it is most definitely a cult.if the leadership has to write its own version of the bible and call it improved or more accurate and the use of that translation is unique to that religion then it is most definitely a cult.if personal choice and independent thought is considered to be evil then it is most definitely a cult.if asking difficult questions is discouraged then it is most definitely a cult.if, when finding a particular question difficult or impossible to answer you are told to just have faith or wait on the lord then you are probably in a cult.if it is forbidden to disagree either privately or openly with the leadership on any point then it is most definitely a cult.if you are encouraged to sever ties with anyone not affiliated with your religion then it is most definitely a cult.if the group actively solicits membership it is probably a cult.if an interested person is only given enough information to pique their interest but not enough information to scare them away then it is most definitely a cult.if you are told to teach just the good stuff during the initial phase of a person studying with you then you are most definitely in a cult.if there are aspects of your teaching that are purposely kept hidden until the student is very far along in the indoctrination process then you are most definitely in a cult.if the members are instructed to be especially nice to new visitors then it is probably a cult.if the leadership teaches that they are the only ones with the truth and that everyone else is deceived then you are in a cult.if the members are encouraged to turn other members in for infractions then it is 100% most definitely a cult.if you are given a litany of rules and regulations to follow then you are most definitely in a cult.if your schedule is booked with group activities to the point that you have little or no time to yourself then you are most definitely in a cult.if you are told to have little or nothing to do with anyone, including close friends and family members, who choose to leave the group, then you are most definitely in a cult.if your leadership is nameless, mysterious, aloof, unapproachable, unaccountable or otherwise nebulous then you are most definitely in a cult.if your leadership doesnt have to report their income to you or the government then you are most definitely in a cult.if higher education is considered evil and strongly discouraged by the leadership then you are most definitely in a cult.bangalore.
Thanks for posting this....now where's my facebook page.
my mother has been through a lot in her life, some bad before the truth, then following through during and after.
almost all of which she never shared with me until the past few months when i had to have my questions answered to get past the events i was stuck on.
i feel i am aging in years every month now, and was curious as to why.
We can't mentally revisit the time when we were taken advantage of by an older stronger person, revisiting with our current knowledge and strength and fortitude. We are eternally at that stage in our lives in that memory.
Isn't this condition called "Arrested Development" ? It happens to drug addicts, alcoholics and trauma victims. Their emotional development or maturity stays at the same level they were at when they first starting "using" or were first "abused" and doesn't progress beyond that point until they face up to whatever reality they are numbing themselves to.
I suppose a religion could do the same thing if you were using it as a means to hide from or delude yourself the realities of life. That's one of the reasons JW's have such a rough go of things when they leave. They suddenly have to get used to the idea of growing old and dying and have to rid theselves of the magical thinking they've been engaging in for so long.
"Die Religion ... ist das Opium des Volkes".... ("Religion is the Opium of the People" -Karl Marx)
for all the moms who never get to hear this from their disconnected family:.
happy mother's day!
.
I just posted a tribute to my lovely Mom who we lost to cancer when she was only 57. I was thinking about how stupid it was that we never did anything for her on Mothers Day. Wasn't it because there was something Pagan about worshiping women or something weird like that?
After I posted my tribute, I saw this article on Yahoo. Apparently Mothers Day is only 100 years old today. How was it that they thought it had to do with the Pagans?
Leave it to the JW's to find some religious significance to the occasion and ban it. Yet another "take away" brought to you by the good folks at Watchtower.
both jws and former jws dont seem to remember that up until 1990, jws sold magazines, books, and brochures from door to door.
you went to either the magazine or the literature counter and bought publications that you were going to sell.
pioneers would get a slight discount.
Yep...we were all "Publishers" and this forum is The Publishers Clearinghouse.
i often times wonder what happened to certain bethelites that i ran around with during my 1990s tenure there.
while there are still a few left there, the greater majority of them aren't there for various reasons (marriage, disillusionment, left the borg, etc).
a couple of cats i wonder about - there was one brother who i believe was from kansas, who got his fingers cut off in a printing press.
I found my Bethel roommate, John (Johnny) Tender, on facebook about 2 years ago. He was so happy that I found him. He'd been looking for me for years. Our paths crossed many times without knowing it.
It was great to talk to him and get caught up and review all the mischief we used to get up to. Apparently he left Bethel after 4 or 5 years and became a Pioneer and also of the Annointed (unbelievable) he never married. He later developed an enlarged heart and eventually passed away (mid 50's) recently after dealing with that for about 13 years I think. He was a transplant candidate but told me he wanted to be with "his Lord and his God" as soon as possible. He didn't care that I wasn't a JW anymore and had complaints of his own about the Org.
What about:
Mike Lewis from Maryland (Bindery and later, the Legal Dept.)
Herman McMickens from Winston Salem S.C.(Bindery) Became a C.O down south somewhere.
Clarence Scott from long Island (Bindery)
David Davis Washington State
John and Sarah Mackey Washington State
Ed Robinson from Seattle
Rick Ricker
Tibor Weise
Milton Carrion from Puerto Rico
Hector Mendez from Puerto Rico
Ernie Grice from Seattle (waiter)
Paul Oakes from Seattle
Gary Ellis
Lance Canada from Poughkeepsie NY
Alvin Morris from Detroit
Gil Acasio from Hawaii
Randy Saike from Hawaii
were there ever specific occurrences which you or those around you thought might be the start of "armageddon"?.
i remember 9/11 being such a day as it happened right as the meeting for field service ended.
it was the week of the c.o.
I saw a bumper sticker that made me laugh " I Don't Want To Brag But This is Like The 5th End Of The World I've Lived Through "
Besides what everyone else has already mentioned. I remember coming out of the meeting one Sunday morning and the spring time sky was eerily darkened...all the street lights were on and there was rumbling in the distance. The Kingdom Hall parking lot and all the cars were covered with grey powder. Mount St. Helens had erupted and the sun was blocked out by the ash plume. To us, ever-so-watchful JW's, it was like a localized version of how things would be at Armegeddon.
Another time was when they dumped crude oil into the Persian Gulf and then lit on fire or when Bagdad was rained down upon with SCUD missles. Overnight we all became experts on the middle east and everyone thought this was the start of the Trubulation. Now I can't even remember name of the crazy Dictator who orderd this to be done.
xjw protests & videos.
.. i am disturbed by some of the more aggressive apostates posting videos on youtube,like "a jw memorial to remember" where a drunk man goes to a memorial and downs the whole glass of wine as a sort of protest.
this video and others like it received positive comments from aawa members.
The voiceless and the Invisible often act irrationality out of sheer desperaiton.
Former JW's are virtually voiceless. No one outside the organization understands their plight . To those still on the inside, they are intentionally and purposfully kept invisible. Many of them have spent decades engaging in cognative dissonance and are still approaching the whole JW issue with certain cognative deficiencies that sometimes make things worse for themselves and the rest of us.
every year when it comes time to get my car inspected i start sweating it out.. my car is a 98 honda accord.
it runs well--maybe better than well.. but, like me--the car is getting older and the miles are racking up.. .
every year i spend about a thousand dollars getting it to pass inspection.. in the last three years that amount has gone up and up and up.. .
Terry,
Aren't you in Texas ? If so, here's a link that may be helpful.
Apparently you can get extensions and waivers if you qualify income wise etc.
https://www.txdps.state.tx.us/rsd/vi/consumerinfo/waiversTimeExtensions.htm
If you are'nt in Texas, maybe your State has something similar.
My State lets you off the hook if you've spent something like $200 and still can't pass their test.
an email forwarded to a friend.
what do you make of it?.
below is a report about preparing for the seattle, washington international convention.
Jehovah had noting to do with it, their first choice was Safeco and Centurylink Fields which are walking distance from downtown Seattle. The reason they were able to get Husky Stadium on the 4th of July is because it's far from downtown, it's a University it's less expensive and because it's Summer...no one is there...no one else needs it. They're all out having fun on the Holiday except JW's who are sitting for hours on a beautiful summer day, listening to talks about the end of the world and how they shouldn't want to be educated in horrible places like the University of Washington (known for it's impact on the medical world especially Cancer research).
As far as Cruise Ships and their demand on hotel rooms, Cruise Ships are floating hotels that are full of people who have already paid for a room and meals...why would they be booking up hotel rooms especially ones near Husky Stadium which is a good distance by bus or car from the waterfront where the ships come in.
They always manage to put a spin on things so they appear to be underdog who is being opposed by the big bad world yet miraculously things go their way.
