Posts by Retrovirus

54

I am new here too!

by NVR2L8 in

jw
friends

for a long while i have been coming to this site on a daily basis and i think it is time to introduce myself.

here we go: my parents learned the truth when i was 4 and i don't have childhood memories of how life was before they converted.

i was a model jw child, although quite mischievous at school.

I've seen how older jw's cling to the hope and the routine. My older jw visitor has Parkinsons, and tells me every visit that she believes that "soon" she'll have a perfect healthy body. I asked here on another thread if it wouldn't be better not to disturb her beliefs.

Trouble is, they go in service to the poorer people and to new immigrants. If they gain converts, and the converts or their kids wake up, every chance of another broken family. Hard to know what's right sometimes.

I do hope it works out for your family; that your wife gradually comes to understand, and that there are no confrontations.

Retro

54

I am new here too!

by NVR2L8 in

jw
friends

for a long while i have been coming to this site on a daily basis and i think it is time to introduce myself.

here we go: my parents learned the truth when i was 4 and i don't have childhood memories of how life was before they converted.

i was a model jw child, although quite mischievous at school.

Retrovirus

NVR2L8,

Hi again. Yes, I saw that article too (more earthquakes will come), it was in the issue that had a lot about Haiti, wasn't it? When you realise that the wt has admitted there is no increase in earthquakes in the last 100 years, it's clear that the intention is to deceive honest members.

Based on my family and friend jws, I'm sure that you family that are "in" are made very afraid by your change of heart. Sometimes I have to avoid all religious subjects for weeks, just to keep the relationships alive. I try to concentrate on "broadening" the friendship by looking for other topics, or meeting them in a different place and just having a good time together.

I live in hope that the many restrictions on reading and entertainment, and lack of socialising within the wt might lead them to wonder why they enjoy themselves more somewhere else, and that if they do awaken, they'll know they have at least one friend out there.

Retro

54

I am new here too!

by NVR2L8 in

jw
friends

for a long while i have been coming to this site on a daily basis and i think it is time to introduce myself.

here we go: my parents learned the truth when i was 4 and i don't have childhood memories of how life was before they converted.

i was a model jw child, although quite mischievous at school.

Retrovirus

NVR2L8,

It makes perfect sense - and btw, English wasn't my first language either. I found it amazing that the jws would blindly accept such claims in the wt literature, and then be confident to "teach" me the "truth" without any further checking.

And when I pointed out the retraction in 2002, they checked it, and were equally confident that the biblical reference to earthquakes as a sign meant that they affected more people, or caused more damage, or more distress - of course, none of which can be verified in any way.

Now I understand better, I've learned a lot here about the jw mindset, and also that jws are scared away from reading anything outside wt literature and discouraged from getting a good education.

As you keep reading, you'll find the shoddy claims extend to anything that contradicts the current beliefs. I find it quite difficult to chat with my jw friends without offending them by pointing out too much too soon. A little at a time, and much patience is needed.

All the best, Retro

54

I am new here too!

by NVR2L8 in

jw
friends

for a long while i have been coming to this site on a daily basis and i think it is time to introduce myself.

here we go: my parents learned the truth when i was 4 and i don't have childhood memories of how life was before they converted.

i was a model jw child, although quite mischievous at school.

Retrovirus

Hi again NVR2L8,

have you looked at jwfacts.com yet? (www.jwfacts.com).

The section on eathquakes lists all the times the wt said the frequency was increasing, and also the vague and hidden retraction in 2002.

The jws that visit me still believed that there had been a massive increase this century.

Retro.

54

I am new here too!

by NVR2L8 in

jw
friends

for a long while i have been coming to this site on a daily basis and i think it is time to introduce myself.

here we go: my parents learned the truth when i was 4 and i don't have childhood memories of how life was before they converted.

i was a model jw child, although quite mischievous at school.

Retrovirus

Welcome!

Congratulations on being strong enough to follow your own conscience! I'm not a jw but have some idea (less than many here!) of how hard it is.

Be patient with your wife, and I devoutly hope the situation improves over time.

Retro.

206

I need a show of hands: who believes the Bible and to what extent?

by Terry in

i'll start off.. i don't believe anything is divine about bible writings.

i believe there may be some marginal history although not much.

i think alot of folk tales and regional myths are contained in the old testament.

Retrovirus

As Quentin said:

Is the Bible inspired and inerrant? No. Can you read the Bible and be inspired by it's contents? Yes.

The Bible contains a lot of good stuff, but also is clearly influenced by customs and beliefs of the time and also agendas. Additionally it contradicts itself all over the place.

I trust my own conscience more than any particular interpretation of Bible "truths".

6

I am no longer a "study"

by kurtbethel in

jw
friends

i posted this in another thread, and when i saw how much detail i had written i decided it deserved its own thread.. my study ended in december in this manner.. the two guys came and we slogged through the usual questions i have and the non answers i would usually get.

discussions that went off on tangents not relevent to my question and would sometimes circle back around, but still with no answer.. on this particular day they wre ganging up on me about attending meetings and my progress not going forward unless i did that.

i asked the bullying one how he would know about my spiritual progress and what qualifications he had to make that assesment, since i was not obligated to report to him on that matter.

Retrovirus

The bullying resonated with me. Yet the lady who did it was otherwise so pleasant, it didn't seem to be her nature. Is it trained, or just that they are so sure they are right?

My jw ladies also called off the study, although they expressed regret, and still come aound occaisionally. My "failure to progress" was not attending KH meetings or conventions and not using the name "Jehovah".

2

Wasps in Awake

by Retrovirus in

jw
friends

the "was it designed" articles in awake usually annoy the hell out of me, but the one in the march issue (p25) is a real gem and i can't wait to discuss it with my jw ladies.. the musta-been-designed is the ovipostor of the wood-boring wasp.

so i can ask, if it's so evidently ( .

and that would include the wasp familiy pompilidae, right?

Retrovirus

The "Was IT Designed" articles in Awake usually annoy the hell out of me, but the one in the March issue (p25) is a real gem and I can't wait to discuss it with my jw ladies.

The musta-been-designed is the ovipostor of the wood-boring wasp. So I can ask, if it's so evidently ( ) designed, all wasps and their ovipostors must have been designed?

And that would include the wasp familiy Pompilidae, right? The wasps that paralyse spiders, inter them alive, lay an egg in or on them (with the designed ovipostor), so that the larva can eat the living spider? What did the spiders do to upset Jehovah so much?

If "after the fall" is attempted, then I can say "so they did evolve, right? If Satan gets a mention, I can ask where in the Bible does Satan create anything?

And then, as always when I'm prepared, I finish off by asking "you will find out for me, won't you?"

One straw at a time.

Retro

195

Is Forgiveness Overrated?

by leavingwt in

jw
friends

.

is forgiveness overrated?.

if i'm being completely honest with myself, there is a short list of folks who i haven't forgiven.

Retrovirus

As a non-jw who has a lot of issues with family, thank you all very much; this thread has clarified my thinking.

On sin and not-sin, I'm still uncertain. But for me, forgiveness comes with understanding where the person-who-needs-to-be-forgiven is coming from. This certainly does not mean instant return of trust (wish it could! )

It can also mean understanding what I did to contribute, or allow it to happen. And forgiving myself, which is the hardest of all.

To bring things back to something relevant to the forum, I'd also say that my fixation with keeping contact with my jw SIL had a lot to do with avoiding these painful areas. And I can see how attractive the wt could look to someone lonely and trying for a new start without doing the hard work of forgiveness.

Retro

20

Earthquakes....

by SatoriCE in

the topic of earthquakes marking the "last days" was brought up with interactions i have had with a few different witnesses.

can someone please explain the exact significance of earthquakes that jw's have?!

can you please also include any links to actual facts that contradict their views of earthquakes.

Retrovirus

Hi SatoriCE,

I used the information on jwfacts to tell my jw ladies that there hadn't been an increase in earthquakes in the last 100 years. They did think otherwise, because the wt said so many times, and then did a deliberately obscure retraction (it's all in jwfacts).

And yes, in 2009 they make a big deal about eathquakes, but just don't specifically say that they are increasing. Sneaky!

The jw ladies were quite happy with the wt's suggestion that earthquakes caused more grief these days because of higher populations affected, and this was the part of the "compound sign".

Retro