Posts by Reopened Mind

25

a sense of responsibility

by Ruby456 in

do parents here feel a strong sense of responsiblity for raising their children as witnessess?

an xwitness friend was saying she and her husband feel very bad for having brought up their children as witnesses and they feel they want to make amends but are unable to do so.

what advice would you give them.

Your thread has really hit a nerve with me. My husband and I are xJWs who raised our 2 boys in the cult. Our boys both married in the cult and are raising their children as JWs. We didn't wake up until after our children had grown and married. We told both our boys what we were learning when we were waking up. For a while we thought they were listening and we had the hope they would follow us. But the cult (and we suspect wives & in-laws) had too strong of a pull on them. Since our oldest wrote us a scathing letter about how horrible we were as parents we have had no contact with him or his family. Sad, he has 2 lovely children we would like to be a part of their lives. We do have some contact with our youngest son but only to discuss "family business". He, too, has 2 lovely children whom I see only on facebook.

To answer your original question; yes, we do feel a great sense of responsibility for raising our boys as witnesses. One thing we keep telling ourselves is that we did the best we knew how at the time. We will bide our time and always be positive whenever we do have that rare contact with them.

Reopened Mind

27

New Job

by LouBelle in

jw
friends

i was fortunate to be recommended for a sales position by a former colleague.

the company phoned me and we set up an interview.

i accepted their offer - it is nearly double what i earn at the moment.

Reopened Mind

LouBelle,

Your perserverance has paid off. So happy for you.

Reopened Mind

63

First Post...Hi everyone! Thanks for all of your help over the years!

by stuckinarut2 in

jw
friends

well... as they say on talk back radio "i'm a long time listener, first time caller"(poster in this case!).

i have been a "lurker" for several years, but never had the courage to take the step and join up...until now.. i really want to thank everyone for their insights and comments throughout the forum.

although i have not contibuted to discussions, i have benefitted very much from all of your comments and observations on all topics.

Reopened Mind

Hi stuckinarut2,

Of course we're interested in your story. Post away. Looking forward to hearing more. As others have said, be cautious. If you would be more comfortable you could post in the members only section.

We all know how much courage it takes to come on this public forum, especially if there are still concerns about family.

You have taken the first step toward living an authentic life. Not saying it will be easy but it will be rewarding in so many ways.

Reopened Mind

23

40 Years Today

by Still Totally ADD in

jw
friends

yes that's right reopened mind and me have been married 40 years ago today.

we had a little party today at our uu congregation.

we brought wine for the pot luck dinner we had today.

Reopened Mind

Thank you all for your kind wishes.

Still Totally ADD and I were married 40 years ago in a kingdom hall in Florida. Before they would let us use the hall we had to be questioned as to whether we had done anything to bring reproach on Jehovah, ie, did we have any form of sex? And was everyone in our wedding party in good standing in the congregation? I walked down the aisle in a pink satin wedding dress. My husband told me later, much later, that the rumor mill was working overtime speculating whether or not I was a virgin!!!

I am so much happier in our UU congregation; no condescention, no judgment, just genuine happiness for us.

To my husband: We've had good times and we've had rough times and we've been made stronger and closer for it. I couldn't have chosen a better life partner. My love and respect and admiration for you has grown so much over the years and especially since we left the cult together. Love you very much.

Reopened Mind

55

One of the big reasons I left the JW Cult

by Still Totally ADD in

jw
friends

he would love to see you.

i would tell them please come out anyway he would just love to see you.

i saw the lack of love and could not believe it.

Reopened Mind

And this is one of the big reasons I left with my husband, Still Totally ADD.

Reopened Mind

64

I'm not trying to brag, but being an EXJW is awesome!!! Status Update-

by Coffee House Girl in

jw
friends

hello jwn!

i don't get to check in here or comment as often as i would like because i have been working so hard at school...but i just have to share my news in hopes that newbees can see that taking the leap to enroll in higher education is worth it-.

i am graduating this spring with a bachelor degree in art history, minor anthropology...many people (including nonjw's have given me flack for choosing a "dead end" career path) but since leaving the watchtower organization's group-think mentality and "leaning on my own understanding" instead... i decided to say fuck everyone else's opinion...i am going to pursue my passion to work in a museum as a curator or archivist-.

Reopened Mind

I'm so happy for you Coffee House Girl!!! Living your dream is awesome.

All my best to you and Coffee House Guy.

Reopened Mind

21

HAPPY WEDDING ANNIVERSARY MR & MRS SMIDDY

by smiddy in

53 years ago we got married in a kh by a bro.

about 20 years ago my wife and i, and two children left the cult , and have never been happier .. wifey was happy with the flowers i gave her and this evening we will go for a quiet dinner at a restuarant with a bottle or two of champers and if i`m lucky i may even get desserts , or not.. smiddy.

Reopened Mind

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO YOU!!!

Like you my husband & I were married in a KH almost 40 years ago. Unlike you though we raised our 2 boys in the cult. We celebrated our wedding anniversary as a family day where we gave presents to each other and the kids. We felt bad that we were "allowed" to give each other presents but there was no day for the children. Since our grown children are still in the WT cult we can only celebrate our anniversaries with each other. At least we made it out together.

53 years together is a great accomplishment. Congratulations to you both.

Reopened Mind

32

What has happened to AJWRB?

by Haelcer in

does anyone know what going on with ajwrb's website?.

"this domain maybe for sale!

buy it now!

Reopened Mind

I was an active Jehovah's Witness when I first read the information on ajwrb.org. I found a reference to the site in an article in the Gainesville (FL) Sun. It was my first venture on an "apostate" website. It changed my mind completely regarding how I felt about accepting a blood transfusion. It also opened the door to exploring other websites and eventually walking away from the organization.

On the day my second son was born in 1982 (before HLCs) the head of the pediatric intensive care nursery told me as I was awakening from an emergency C-section that my baby would not live the day out if I did not let him have a blood transfusion. Well, not only did he not get a transfusion, but he lived and thrived. That experience made me a strong supporter of the Watchtower's ban on transfusions. When I read Lee Elder's letters to the Society and their dodgy replies I began to realize that transfusions of whole blood were necessary in certain instances to save a life.

I am very grateful to Lee Elder for his very informative site on blood. It is a reasonable and informative site. Glad to hear it is coming back.

Reopened Mind

8

Interview with an apostate: Hillfy54321

by Hillfy54321 in

tell us a little about yourself and your family.. im sixty years old, and i am a second generation jw.. were you a born in or a convert?.

i was a born in.. are your parents / family jws?.

my parents were both witnesses, as also was my oldest sister, though they are all now deceased.

Reopened Mind

Hello Hillfy54321 and welcome to JWN.

I too am 60 years old. While I was not born into the JW religion but my 59 year old husband was. I have learned a lot from him what it was like growing up in the Organization. Unfortunately we raised 2 boys in the cult before we started waking up 6 years ago.

" I had health problems and became quite depressed with the lack of genuine love shown by the elders and the congregation in general." I understand your position here. As you well know this is not the fault of the individuals in the congregation. You must lay the blame at the feet of the governing body. They are the ones who set the policies of keeping everyone so busy in "theocratic activities" that no one has time for anything else. Lack of concern was one of the straws that broke the camel's back for us. We took care of a brother in our home and when he died just before the district convention the Witnesses were too busy to show genuine concern. My nonJW cousin and her husband came to our house every day to show their support. They were appalled that our fellow Witnesses said in effect, "Keep warm and well fed."

I enjoyed your experience. Better late than never to wake up.

Reopened Mind

16

Interview with an Apostate: Reopened Mind

by Reopened Mind in

were you a born in or a convert?.

i loved science so naturally the conversation centered around the topic of evolution.

they placed with me the book did man get here by evolution or by creation?

Reopened Mind

Xanthippe: Having read Steve Hassan's books and other information on cults I have learned that all who exit cults share a commonality of experience. I too hope that someday I will be able to see and talk with my children and grandchildren without dancing around the WT.

freddo: Our oldest son sent us a scathing letter to cut off all contact with us, that is, unless we met his conditions. We replied with a card telling we loved him and his family unconditionally. We have talked recently with our youngest concerning "necessary family business".

cofty: It was my pleasure to share my story.

crmsicl: I would love to live closer to you as well. It never made sense to me that God would kill all those at Armageddon just because they had never been preached to. Couldn't he tell them personally?

LoisLane looking for Superman: You're welcome Lois and thank you for all the geneology info you have sent me.

TD: Fascinating? Really? The stories of others have been more interesting to me. I share mine because I think it is important for potential converts to read and for those who were converted to not be ashamed of being taken in by WT recruiters. Mind control is insidious and powerful.

Coffee House Girl: TotallyADD has been unable to post for a while as his computer died. He sends his greetings. How are you and Coffee House Guy doing?

love2Bworldly: Thank you for your concern about my children. I too hope someday for a relationship. Maybe when the grandchildren become adults.

happy@last: You're very welcome.

never a jw: It is for people like you that I posted my story.

Phizzy: I think personal stories combined with "the truth about the truth" are a powerful combination.

GromitSK: You're welcome.

Rip Van Winkle: You are welcome.