You don't need them. Join a club. Take some classes. Get a job. Do some volunteer work. There are many places to meet new people. If people don't appreciate you for who you are, lose them. Lose them now.
Posts by Mum
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20All my JW friends dont like me.
by Vienna Angelika inthey keep pretending to be my friend, and then i get word that they actually hate me.
they have even slandered and said i not worthy to talk to.
then of course, there are the rumours... needless to say, i am pretty depressed..
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5
The Shunning
by lriddle80 inso, i am not df'd or da'd at the moment and my family knows i attend a baptist church.
recently my husband and i were asked to give our testimony in our sunday school class.
i mentioned the scripture in.
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Mum
It's fascinating that you say the scripture(s) were "aimed" at you, as if scriptures from the Bible are weapons to shoot you down.
It's good that you are making friends and have a church family to be supportive of you as you make your exit. When I was 15, I left the Baptist Church to become a JW. My Sunday School teacher spent time with me to try to persuade me differently and to explain to me that the JW's were a "false cult" as he called it, But I "knew" too much to listen. I wish I could find him now, to let him know he was right.
It is truly amazing that the Watchtower brainwashes people so thoroughly that the are able to turn off the "natural affection" normal people have for their children. I would love my daughter and still speak to her if she became a spy for Al-Qaeda. No, I would not like what she was doing, and I would let her know it was wrong, but I would not cut her out of my life. If you have children, I'm sure you feel the same way.
After all is said and done, we have to accept people where they are. You understand where your parents, but, sad to say, they don't want to try to understand you. If they won't speak to you, it's best just to let them go. Fighting about it only makes everyone more bitter and angry and polarized. Let them know that you love them and are always there for them, and you understand that they're not "supposed to" speak to you, and you will respect their wishes. Be sure they always have a way to contact you; i.e., keep them apprised or your address, phone #, e-mail, etc.
It's hard, but you can let go and accept what is.
All the best.
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32
need help
by Crazyguy infirst post, been lurking for a bit.
i have been seeing problems in the org for a couple of years now and could not come up with any answers.
recently i researched the topics of mediator and new covenant and thats when the sh8t hit the fan.
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Mum
Welcome to the forum, Crazyguy.
You're in a bit of a bind, I see. Besides what the others have said, I think you should consider moving to another location if that's possible. Being in a new town where the elders don't know you could relieve some of your stress. Do you work for a company that could transfer you to another place? If not, do you have a skill that is in demand so that if you start sending out resumes you might get a good job offer. Moving for a better employment opportunity is a great excuse.
Meanwhile, keep researching, but keep it to yourself at first. There are ways to make comments or ask questions so that the other party might start thinking. Be very kind to your wife. If you can, bring her flowers, take her on dates, and reassure her of your love and concern for the family. You have the advantage of being head of the household, so you can tell the children stories that might start them to looking at things from a broader perspective than the doom-and-gloom scenario presented by the JW's. I don't know how old your children are, but age-appropriate activities to encourage development of critical thinking skills would be very beneficial.
I hate to recommend dishonesty with your family, but, as others have pointed out, it's probably the only way to keep the family together at this point. I am NOT saying the recommendations I made in the previous paragraph would be dishonest, but that your doubts and research will have to be done in private. Years of brainwashing can't be reversed overnight, so be patient with your family.
Baby steps . . .
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Every Kingdom hall has a guy named Diotrephes (sort of)
by Terry innote:.
one out of every 100 jehovah's witnesses is tossed out and 2 out of every 3 are never reinstated.
over 70,000 tossed out each year!.
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Mum
More Watchtower doublespeak: Hate is love.
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An Open Letter to the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses
by gcs7000 inan open letter to the governing body of jehovah's witnesses:.
gentlemen:.
all major world religions are accredited to the united nations as non-governmental organizations.
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Mum
Welcome, gcs700. I look forward to hearing more from you.
Awesome first post!
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29
How can anyone who is truly spiritual-minded attend Bethel and not realize it's all a scam
by sosoconfused innot that i was any better(lol - but as i sat back and thought about the time i spent there, and the things i saw i feel disgusted.. i could literally write a thousand stories about the discrimination, favortism and all out dishonest that took place but i doubt anyone would actually care.
the one thing however that really sticks out in my mind is when i was in a nice room with my roommate that he kind of inherited after his previous roommate left.
it actually had a bathroom and we both had space for real beds(not those dang trundle beds like we had in standish).. .
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Mum
You are so rigfht, Sab. I knew many JW's with potential to do great things. We've all heard the stories about giving up scholarships to college and giving up great careers to pioneer.
It takes a personal crisis for most of us to look at the lie we're living and admit we've been doing it all wrong and have the courage to do something about it.
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12-year-old thread: JWS/WTS REACHES CRITICAL MASS - A NON-EVENT!
by steve2 ina few days ago, there was renewed interest in a 12-year-old thread which, among other points, argued the watchtower's days were numbered.
several current posters expressed the view that the wts has not been impacted by any "critical mass" and that it speaks to the immunity of the watchtower to any such "critical mass" event.
i thought the topic warranted a renewal for wider consideration - with the "benefit" of "12-years" hindsight - so have duplicated one of my responses: .
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Mum
Thanks to the internet and a more open-minded, less religious philosophy among more and more people, as well as better educational opportunity and better nutrition for many, the Watchtower way does not have the appeal that it once did for the masses.
Probably the most persecuted religion in history, Judaism, is no longer threatened so much by persecution as by assimilation. Jews are marrying Gentiles at an unprecedent rate.
The times, they are a changin'. - Bob Dylan
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21
" You Jehovahs? Yeah? I knew cuz you're black. If you were white, you'd be Mormans! Ha! Have a good one!"
by Theocratic Sedition injust got back from field service.
white guy driving a delivery truck waived at my partner and i, rolled down the window and yelled this.
he meant no harm, just a jovial fellow working on a saturday.
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Mum
Mormons only wear white shirts . . .
stillin: They wear pants, shoes and socks, usually a tie, probably underwear and a bicycle helmet as well.
Thanks for the belly laugh on a Sunday.
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33
Is this a religion of HATE? Check out what they have printed!
by Terry in"" (the watchtower, 6/15 1995, p. 4).
" (the watchtower, 11/15 1952, p. 703).
" (the watchtower, 10/1 1952, p. 599).
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Mum
Finkelstein is right. I had a child when I was a JW. She wanted to celebrate Christmas, have birthday parties, and be normal. She expressed her wishes, and we told her why it was "wrong."
Children are treated very badly at meetings. They are expected to sit perfectly still for two hours at a time and are often beaten, pinched, or otherwise abused if they don't. I thank God that my granddaughter and great granddaughter have not had to suffer this way.
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68
Inquiry on GB 2.0 member - Did they get married?
by bats in the belfry init's been a while since we heard about their engagement.
did they break it off?
did they get married?.
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Mum
Is this a serious inquiry? Are those two really engaged?
Only JW men can have so many women better than they are. Poor JW women! This poor woman is in for a life of gagging disappointment.