Cicatrix

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Posts by Cicatrix

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  23

  The Horrid Lime Green New World Translation- What were they thinking!

  by Witness 007 in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  not very appealing and couldn't sell well.

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  Cicatrix

  "Rainbow colors"?

  ROFL-That's the UU symbol for Welcoming Congregations
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  23

  The Horrid Lime Green New World Translation- What were they thinking!

  by Witness 007 in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  not very appealing and couldn't sell well.

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  Cicatrix

  Guess the black was too Goth for them, lol. My daughter and I were both counseled for wearing black too often when we were in. I just told them I was a lost New Yorker. The joke went right over their heads.

  Heh, "Babylon the Great" already beat them to flourescent colors for marketing Bibles.They have them in lots of flourescent colors-even flourescent camo.
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  34

  Ladies, What kind of flowers do you like to receive from your guy?

  by asilentone in

  1. social
  2. relationships
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  Cicatrix

  A lilac bush. Then I can have flowers every spring.
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  17

  What are the LAST thoughts of a JW?

  by gaiagirl in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  when a jw dies, from results of an accident, disease, or especially, complications resulting from "old age", what do you suppose their last thoughts are?

  would they think they have wasted their lives waiting for something which never did and never will come?

  or do they really expect to close their eyes and open them in a paradise?

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  Cicatrix

  Well, when I was still JW, I was in a couple of car wrecks, and thought I was going to die. The last thing that passed through my mind was that maybe if I went as limp as I could, it wouldn't hurt so much when we landed.Oh, and an expletive.
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  26

  Spiritual labyrinth

  by Word in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the watchtower followers are in a spiritual labyrinth.

  far away from the spiritual paradise of christ.

  in which christ himself is the new tree of life .

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  Cicatrix

  So is it specifically belief in God that causes division and violence, or is it dogmatic belief/defense of a BELIEF?

  It seems to me that communists, who's official state belief was atheism, also have killed a lot of people for a BELIEF.
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  29

  What lengths did you go to, to not miss meetings?

  by exwitless in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i posted this in another thread, but i thought it would merit a thread.

  the elders in our cong.

  likened missing a memorial to an "unforgivable sin".

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  Cicatrix

  Well, since I was forever being counselled on missing meetings, I don't think I actually qualify, lol. I would have times where I would be a diehard attender, then I would get worn out and just not attend at all for a long time.

  During the diehard attending days, I used to get home after working on the road twelve or so hours on Thursdays, and yell like crazy to get five children dressed, get the bookbag packed, and get us all out the door on time (well, at least the ones I could corral, lol, they got better at scattering as they got older). We often wouldn't have time to eat before we left, so I would hit the drive-through of a fast food joint and buy them dinner after the meeting. My kids thought that was the ONLY good part, lol.I remember listening to their stomachs growl during the meeting. GRRRRR!!! I'm the one growling now when I think about it.

  I look back now and shudder at how much I used to yell. The "better to live on a roof than with a contentious wife" scripture used to guilt me to death-only in my mind I always replaced "wife" with "mother". It's only been since we left that I've realized how unbearable the pressure of trying to "be it all" was causing most of that. I was basically a married single mother.My husband thought anything remotely related to children was women's work, and any sign of his interest in church disappeared shortly after the ink on the marriage license dried, even though he'd attended quite regularly with me when we were dating, and even though I had told him that having a husband who would attend church with me was extremely important to me (that's part of the reason I got involved with the JWs. He quit going, I couldn't drive then, and the JWs would come right to my house to study with me).

  Some of the younger gals at the hall tried to help out with my children,but they were usually told flat out by the elders they couldn't do it- that it was my job to keep five squirming, healthy, active children quiet and in their seats by myself.I was counselled that I needed to spank my children more. I was counselled that I needed to use something other than my hand to spank my children with.

  One time when my children were all very young, I had to nurse my newborn, so took all of my children back to the library with me. The elder conducting the meeting actually STOPPED THE DARN MEETING TO ASK WHERE I WAS. Then shortly thereafter, there was a special needs talk about "not using the B school for a nursery." GRRR!!!! THEY couldn't make up their own minds whether they wanted me to watch all of my kids myself or not. Guess I was just supposed to let my newborn scream from hunger through the whole two hour meeting (this particular child had to nurse every darn hour-probably because I was so stressed out all of the time).

  When we quit meetings altogether, I spent about two months just laying in my hammock in the yard after work on meeting nights.Often, one or more of my children would join me there, and we would just rock, slap mosquitoes, and enjoy the silence.
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  61

  Birthdays are now a matter of conscience????

  by sacrebleu in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i just heard this.

  i can't believe it.

  does anyone know if this is true?.

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  Cicatrix

  Well, that will depend on:

  if the person is a Regular Bible Study who is progressing nicely toward baptism, and who has no known skeletons in the closet that might jump out and cause the congregation or the WTS legal department nightmares in the future, then it might be a conscience matter (if they write quietly to Brooklyn to find out for themselves)

  if the person is a second generation pioneer who has a "Respectable Spiritual Family Legacy" to uphold, then it might be a conscience matter

  if the person is not such a good example, but knows something about one of the members of a Respectful Spiritual Family with which s/he can blackmail them, then it might be a conscience matter

  "conscience matter" is JWspeak for "don't ask, don't tell"
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  11

  Are you part of a progressive Hall?

  by Not Feeling It in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  with the proliferation of the vague concept (to most jws, not me!

  ) of a conscience matter, do you think there are more liberal (i don't mean politically) jws?

  have you come across many or any halls where the boe or the membership are content to really let the conscience decide the small stuff rather than the iron-fisted approach?.

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  Cicatrix

  I was part of a centrist hall and a hall that was very fundamentalist. But in both halls, it really depended on your relationship to the higher-ups in how the rules were applied to you personally.

  I've observed the same type of thing in non-JW settings, though. I think part of it with them is indoctrination, and part of it is just plain old being human.
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  2

  Good News

  by Cicatrix in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  my son and i were talking about our family's past involvement with the jws.

  he told me he can't recall anyone we knew or any specific things we were taught at the meetings.

  the only thing he remembers is that we used to give him answers when he raised his hand, so he could feel like a big boy, lol!i i'm so glad for him and his younger brother that we left when they were young (7 and 5).

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  Cicatrix

  My son and I were talking about our family's past involvement with the JWs. He told me he can't recall anyone we knew or any specific things we were taught at the meetings. The only thing he remembers is that we used to give him answers when he raised his hand, so he could feel like a big boy, LOL!I I'm so glad for him and his younger brother that we left when they were young (7 and 5). There was minimal damage done to them. Not so their older sister and brother:(They have scars like me:(
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  23

  Let's Ring Out the Old.... Tell Us About Your 2007

  by AK - Jeff in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  and your wishes for 2008.. jeff .

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  Cicatrix

  Hmm, let's just say I swallowed the red pill.

  I realized that there is four generations of verbal, physical, and emotional abuse of women in my family.

  I realized that my nuclear family has been affected by this and our JW affiliation MUCH more than I ever realized.

  I realized that no amount of hoping, analyzing, or compromising will ever make the dream marriage I held in my head a reality-it really was just all in my head

  I lost my grandma, who was my best friend in the world, but who's life lessons are in my heart forever

  I stood up to my mother and no longer let her dictate my life path to me, nor do I hold creedance in her opinion of me anymore

  Ditto my father

  I survived nursing school, graduated at the top of my class,passed the NCLEX, and learned that maybe I'm not the serious screw up my parents and husband have always led me to believe I am

  I've learned that it's best to let one-way friendships go

  I've learned it doesn't pay to try and have a close relationship with your children by compromising everything you believe in to placate them, because you feel guilty for raising them in a stupid cult (doesn't work anyway-they just hate you for being a "hypocrite" or "wishy-washy"). You can love your children and not like their behavior, and they can do the same with you

  My Plans for 2008:

  Find a nursing position and get comfortable in it (they say it takes at least a year)

  Get my credit straightened out now that I no longer am at my husband's "mercy" financially (whoohooo! I can finally pay my overdue bills and buy myself some NEW CLOTHES)

  Decide whether I'm going to continue my nursing education, or pursue my advanced degree in another field

  Get to better know a woman who has recently expressed interest in becoming friends with me

  Continue exploring what I want out of my life for me, and practice being more assertive

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