Reopened Mind

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Posts by Reopened Mind

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  30

  Nugget's Aposta-Birthday Party

  by cantleave in

  1. jw
  2. friends

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  Reopened Mind

  HAPPY BIRTHDAY NUGGET!!

  Looks like it was a great party. If you don't mind, I would like to know which ones in the pictures are you and cantleave.

  Reopened Mind
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  28

  update on my boy

  by Aussie Oz in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  my son came to visit today, he and i are getting a lot closer since he left his jw home and thanks largely to his mother and step father alienating him big time.

  he needs one of his parents to help him out at times and he can't turn to his mother.

  thats sad but its her loss, and his i guess.. anyway, he recently got himself a girlfriend, a worldly girl at that.

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  Reopened Mind

  So happy for you and your kids, Aussie. You have your son, you have your daughter, and maybe a daughter-in-law down the road. Sounds like a family to me.

  The internet is a giant thorn in the WT's side, especially factual sites like jwfacts. It's hard to argue with the facts! Although we all know it is a closed emotional mind which imprisons those in the cult.

  Reopened Mind
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  57

  Rick Fearons wife Inez passed away

  by mouthy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  did anyone hear that rick fearons wife inez passed away???

  ?.

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  Reopened Mind

  Mouthy,

  Thank you for letting us know of Rick's loss. TotallyADD and I send our deepest sympathies. How old was Inez? And how long were Rick and Inez married?

  TotallyADD and I enjoyed listening in on a couple of Rick's conference calls.

  Reopened Mind
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  79

  How ManyYears Did You Waste Being A Jehovah's Witness?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i was raised as a jw and i haven't been to a meeting in about 8 years..

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  Reopened Mind

  I came in contact with 2 Jehovah's Witness girls in school at age 14. Studied for 6 years (parents opposed), baptised at 20. Married a Witness at 21 in 1974 to have someone to go through Armageddon with. Raised 2 boys in the cult. Still married to the same man. Began leaving mentally in 2007. Thankfully my husband has come out of the cult with me. We totally left in 2011 when we moved 1000 miles away to start a new life.

  So to answer your question minimus, I would say I was totally immersed in JW doctrine for 34 years.

  The time spent slaving for the cult, meetings, field service, conventions, in retrospect was a total waste of time. But like others I have met some very good people whom I once called my friends. I am biding my time until my boys and their families escape the cult.

  Reopened Mind
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  97

  Greetings from Candace Conti

  by AndersonsInfo in

  1. watchtower
  2. child-abuse

  candace asked me to tell you thank you for all your kind expressions of support.

  this really means a lot to her.

  she wants you to know that she is coping well with all the stress and excitement, even though she's had years of anger and frustration because of being abused for so long, first by the molester, and then by the wt.

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  Reopened Mind

  Candace,

  You have opened a door that others have only been able to knock on without success. And you have walked through with the courage like no other. Hold your head up HIGH. Always remember you are not bringing reproach on Jehovah, the Watchtower Society, your congregation, or anyone else. THE PERPETRATOR IS THE ONE BRINGING REPROACH!!! You, my brave friend, are the one bringing justice.

  The justice system may seem slow. Keep fighting as long as it takes. You are an inspirition to more people than you know.

  My best wishes are with you.

  Reopened Mind
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  48

  AJWRB---What Have They Done???

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i still never really understood what these phantoms ever did.

  i've read many praiseworthy comments lauding the site or people behind it.

  but in reality, what major good have they done to change jehovah's witnesses' views on blood?.

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  Reopened Mind

  minimus,

  Like yourmomma AJWRB was the first step in my exit from the JWs.

  On the day my second son was born in 1982 I was told he would not live the day out if he was not given a blood tranfusion. Like good JWs my husband and I both refused to give consent for a tranfusion. We were threatened with a court order but since our son began to improve it was dropped and no blood was given. We were the talk of a large university hospital. For many years that cemented our belief that blood was bad and the WT was right.

  Fast forward to January 2007 when an article in our local newspaper by Kerry Louderback-Wood appeared with a reference to AJWRB. Cautiously I looked up the site and began reading. What started turning my thinking around was the letters written by Lee Elder to the Watchtower Society and their replies. From there I followed links to other websites, notably freeminds.org, JWN, jwfacts, and others. Thus began my journey out of the WT. O, and my husband, an elder at the time, was beginning to have his own questions. We had plenty to discuss!

  Minimus, I was an active JW when I first visited AJWRB. The site may not influence JWs view of blood as a whole, but as you can see it does influence individuals like myself to begin questioning the whole fabric of JW teachings. I would say that is a good thing indeed.

  I would like to thank those of you who work hard to keep websites like AJWRB up and running. You never know how you will affect people's lives. You have certaianly affected mine!

  Reopened Mind
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  61

  I made it!! I'm just so freaking happy!!!

  by Rocky_Girl in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as some of you know, i started college 5 years ago for the first time at age 27. i had been out of the "truth" for 9 years at that time, but had just broken free of the mentality.

  well, on saturday i walked across the stage with the 130th graduating class at rocky mountain college!.

  after 5 years of working several jobs, taking care of two little boys as a single mom, and trying to get the most out of my college experience, i earned my master of accountancy, bachelor of science in business management, and minors in writing and organizational leadership.

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  Reopened Mind

  SO HAPPY FOR YOU!!!

  Reopened Mind
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  30

  To Attend or Not Attend JW Relative Funeral - Experiences You've Had ?

  by flipper in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i was moved to put this thread out after talking to a board member here who was treated very disrespectfully from her jw family after her own husband died.

  my question isn't trying to pigeonhole anybody or i'm not saying there's a right or wrong answer - the question is designed to just openly discuss the negatives and positives of going to a jw funeral or not, and the implications or ramifications for doing so or not.. i believe it's definitely a personal decision based on different circumstances for each individual.

  for example : let's say a person is an inactive jw and they were sexually abused or treated in other inhumane ways by still active jw relatives .

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  Reopened Mind

  Hello, the wife of TotallyADD checking in here.

  Thank you to ziddina and flipper for your comments concerning my MIL. When TotallyADD's dad was alive he was able to keep her under control much of the time. Being an elder helped. But when he died we were left to "handle" her as she lived next door to us. As TotallyAdd said the elders in the local congregation sided with her. I called the police when she attacked me. They told me I could press charges and if I did they would take her to jail. I did not think that would help her at all so I declined. They then suggested we go to the courthouse and file ex parte papers so she could be evaluated. So we did. She was taken involuntarily to the nearest facility and released the next day, finding nothing wrong with her. We were flabbergasted!!

  zid, you are right. My MIL does have a mental disease but because of cult induced fear of psychologists she would not get a proper diagnosis. Her doctor told TotallyADD she could not diagnose but was pretty sure the woman suffered from paranoid schizophrenia. I did find a mental health facility that would admit her but she would have to come in voluntarily. That just isn't going to happen.

  flipper, we, too, noticed the effects of the increase of homeless, helpless people when Reagan decreed that people should "pull themselves up by their bootstraps". It has gotten so bad that one city in FL passed a law making it illegal to panhandle inside the city limits.

  Would TotallyADD and I attend his mother's funeral? That's a question we still have to contend with as she is still alive. As of now we feel it would dredge up too many bad memories. There is no reason to honor her memory or face the ones in the congregation who turned against us even though at the time we were considered in good standing. I really don't know how they consider us now.

  flipper I'm sorry for hijacking your thread.

  Reopened Mind
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  22

  I never thought I would

  by Kool Jo in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  well.....what can i say...after lurking and much research and eventual signing up on this forum...i filled out my fs report for april with average hours and magazines, but i never went out in the ministry.. it feels odd, and i feel bad for filling out time that i knew i never did...i hate the idea of going out to people's door and telling them a lie...not sure how much longer i can do this for .

  just had to vent!.

  peace.

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  Reopened Mind

  They want you to feel guilty about not doing their brand of ministry. I agree with OnTheWayOut. Your ministry is personal. The WT has been lying to you and lying to the public, calling it "Theocratic Warfare". You are beating them at their own game.

  The most effective tools a cult has are FEAR AND GUILT. Make no mistake, the WT is a cult. So come here and vent. It will help you lessen the fear and guilt the WT has been laying on you.

  Posting here is a form of ministry. My dictionary says that minister is to give aid or service. You are aiding and serving others by sharing your story.

  Reopened Mind
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  65

  A Brother Died At Bethel

  by MrFreeze in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i got a text from my mom when i got into work today saying that a brother i've known for a while had died.

  he was a bethelite and they found him dead in his room.

  he was the same age as me.

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  Reopened Mind

  Deepest symapthies from TotallyADD and Reopened Mind.