Mum

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Posts by Mum

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  39

  Going to Kingdom Hall for first time

  by InChristAlone in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  since my family is out of town, and i am alone this weekend, i have decided to attend this once to see these things for myself.

  have no fear, i have absolutely no interest in joining.

  my goal is simply to better understand how to reach those who are on the inside, and i feel i could better do that by observing it.

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  Mum

  I haven't been to a KH in many years, but here's what I remember.

  The music is recorded. There won't be any pipe organ emitting glorious sounds.

  At the front of the hall will be a stage with a lectern on it and most likely a mural of a scene from nature, probably trees and/or flowers of some sort, no crucifis or altar.

  There won't be pews, but some kind of cheap chairs to sit in.

  The guy who gives the public talk may be semi-literate and mispronounce and/or not understand the meaning of some of the words he is reading from the prefab "outline," which is very detailed, and not what any of my English teachers would have considered an outline.

  After the public talk is the Watchtower "study." I saw an online article that compared this session as a kind of hypnosis. One guy stands at the lectern and one guy sits in a chair off to the side. The guy at the lectern asks the paragraph-specific questions from the bottom of the page of the magazine, whereupon people in the audience raise their hands to answer. The answers are always read directly from the page unless there's a pseudo-intellectual or rebellious one answering. Then the guy in the chair stands up and reads the paragraph. This process is repeated for each paragraph until paragraphs have all been covered.

  People in front of you might be pinching or otherwise abusing their children. Give them dirty looks. Offer to take the child outside or give it some kind of relief from the droning drivel.

  Then you will listen to a song sung in a "barking rhythm" (as described by George Orwell in 1984) and realize these put-upon people have no musical education either.

  The others have told you about the love-bombing and opportunistic "friendly" gestures. Be nice to these poor, enslaved folks, but don't pander.

  Then go home and drink a pint or a fifth or whatever it takes to get over what you've just been through.

  I'll be looking forward to your post about the experience.
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  93

  Scary Stuff

  by Farkel in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  today's high school students in the usa:.

  less than 1/2 of them cannot identify the century when our civil war happened.. one in four thought columbus discovered america sometime after 1750.. one in three cannot name one right enumerated in the bill of rights.. three out of four cannot name the first us president.. two out of three do not know the length of term of a member of the house of representatives.. half cannot find britain on a map.. one out of four cannot find america on a map.. when my oldest daughter, who is now a physician was in 9th grade in this once-great state of california, i asked her about the three branches of our federal government.

  she was clueless and told me she would take civics in her junior year in high school.

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  Mum

  Here's some anecdotal stuff:

  I used to have a job where we hired kids from job-training programs. They could do anything on the computer, but could not answer a simple math question (such as, What's 60% of 80, or 80% of 60) without significant figuring. One kid told me the answer was 75! Geography was even worse.

  I used to watch a French TV show called Télématin. They were laughing at a cartoon from a French magazine one day during the Presidential campaign between George W. Bush and Al Gore. In the cartoon, a French teenager is telling an American teenager that France are following the U.S. presidential campaign with interest. The young American replies, "France -- where is that?"

  It is not the kids' fault. It's the parents'. If we don't read to our kids or encourage curiosity and love of learning, they are left only with their peers.
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  40

  JW attitudes to women

  by Frazzled UBM in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i would be very interested to hear from you ladies on this one.

  i know that the society keeps women in subjugation through the headship cr@p but didn't ahve any sense about hoew prehistoric the attitudes are until the other day when we were driving out of the supermarket car park and my wife spotted a woman dressed in tight shorts (it has been very hot here) and she commented 'they say that women who dress like that dserve to be raped'.

  i did a wtf and overreacted 'how can you blame the victim like that - such attitudes give men a lciense to commit rape and make women feel they are to balme if they get raped which in turn means that rape doesn't get reported and it gopes on with impunity.

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  Mum

  My sperm donor hated women, and I grew up in a backward area of the country, so I internalized the attitude of inferiority. One of my high school friends wrote in my yearbook, "[Name}, you're a nice girl. Lose that inferiority complex." I was very withdrawn and had little confidence.

  I became a "publisher" for the JW's at age 15, the only one in my family to do so. They loved me. I overheard some of them talking about how "good" I was when they took me to an assembly without my family.

  I married an elder, and he told me I had a "good attitude."

  Then I started hearing women on television and in print media talking as if they were just as good as anyone else. I was fearful of such talk, and resisted believing it. But living with an arrogant, autocratic JW elder can start a gal thinking.

  Some ridiculous things happened. For example, I was told what brand of bread to buy. I switched to another kind without permission, and was told to go back to the other brand. I did. THEN, a month or two later, my husband had a conversation with the "sister" who he thought was "pretty" and she recommended the kind of bread I had switched to. He told me to switch, per his conversation with her. That was it! I actually raised my voice to him, and told him I had already switched and he vetoed it, and that maybe the reason he wanted the kind of bread I did was because it was recommended by a sister who was "pretty!" He backed down. Soon after that, he told me that this sister "needed to be put in her place." No, she didn't. HE DID!

  Another sister in my congregation was told what brand of cooking oil to buy. She told me that she asked permission to buy the brand that was on sale, and permission was granted. How ridiculous.

  Once I was watching Eric Clapton (I think that's who it was) on television and was told it was inappropriate. A few days later I saw Bess Meyerson (I just dated myself!) asking a man about which TV programs he let his family watch. He began his statement with, "First I want to say that I would never tell an adult woman what she could watch on TV." Bingo! I was starting to wake up!

  Once my elder ex was going to conduct the Watchtower study. During the public talk he whispered to me that he wanted me to write down the names of everyone in the Kingdom Hall who he did not know. I did it. I could practically read his mind. I did a lot of clerical things for him. I also tutored him so he could take the GED. I'm pretty sure he failed it anyway, as no certificate was forthcoming.

  Loving my freedom,

  Regards,

  Mum
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  11

  My daughter asks about the Bible

  by laverite in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  my 9 year old asked me yesterday about the bible.

  some of her friends in school last year spent a lot of time talking about hell and it really scared her.

  i dealt with it with her, so she is reassured and comforted and realizes she doesn't need to worry about going to hell.

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  Mum

  If you want to teach your daughter something about the Bible, I recommend my ex-husband's curriculum. He taught Bible as history on the high school level. His entire curriculum is at TeacherWeb.com. His self-created syllabus, workbooks and quizzes are there, too. Everything is printable.

  Google "teacherweb Bible history," and it should pop right up. This is an excellent way to learn a lot about the Bible without indoctrination.
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  21

  The Fake "Joy" Of Jehovah's Witnesses

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  do you observe this "joy" when you see witnesses going from house to house, in the kingdom halls, out working, or during theocratic wholesome recreational activities?.

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  Mum

  I almost never see them. I've seen them once since last November, two of them, and they looked rather neutral, not joyful or sad.
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  56

  My Judicial committee

  by label licker in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  it was six hours long.

  at the beginning of the week i had four accusers and by the time i went (half way throught the week) i was up to twelve.

  i was charged with apostasy, malicous slander, lying, revileing.

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  Mum

  label licker: Be sure to get copies made of those tapes. Give at least one to a third party for safekeeping. Don't send out the only one you have and then not have one for yourself.

  If you take one of the tapes to an attorney and have him or her listen to it, I believe (IMHO) you might have a good case to sue them for harassment and/or stalking. You can't go into court without some kind of evidence. Do you know someone who can listen to the tape and transcribe it for you?
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  3

  Michelle Knight is a giant

  by Marvin Shilmer in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i just watched michelle knights comments to the court regarding ariel castro.

  this woman is big, brave and resilient beyond imagination.

  very inspiring.

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  Mum

  My heart went out to her. I can't imagine how she suffered. It's wonderful that she's free now and can rebuild her life.
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  11

  IMPORTANT QUESTION REGARDING JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES

  by jw04 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hello.. i would like to know about jehovah's witnesses, what they can cannot do.. i am interested in the truth, although it seems a bit confusing.. i have seen a few of jehovah's witness on facebook, and would like to know, why in the literature it says that it is dis-encouraged to have a profile on social network sites, yet many have profiles, why is it like that?

  also in commenting on photos on the site, i noticed swearing inappropriate words and behavior from comments on some photos.

  is there any knowledge gone to heart to the ones acting this way?

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  Mum

  Welcome to the forum!

  If you are thinking of becoming a Jehovah's Witness, please take it slowly. Ask a LOT of questions. Ask the local elders the same questions you are asking here. Most of us on this forum have been JW's and no longer believe in it because of things that were not consistent with truth.

  Personally, I could no longer stand being married to a JW elder who monitored my every move. I wanted an education, and I was derided and ridiculed for that.

  I did not grow up in a JW family, so I'm one of the lucky ones. I have been free of the JW's and their hypocritical nonsense since 1979. I have never looked back or regretted getting out.

  Don't you already know what JW's cannot do? Just in case you have not been observing them closely, here's a partial list: celebrate holidays (New Year's, Valentine's Day, any day honoring a person, 4th of July/Independence Day [American], Easter, or Christmas); associate with ex-Jehovah's Witnesses, question anything the Governing Body says (no matter how bizarre or inconsistent with current or past doctrine); salute the flag of their country, serve in the military, accept a blood transfusion (even if it's a matter of life and death), and many others.

  If you have children or plan to have children, you would be creating a life of misery for them. JW's are baptizing kids at younger and younger ages. By the time they're in their teens, they have pretty good odds of being disfellowshipped (for being normal teenagers), causing a rift and strife in the family. It is the policy of the WT Society to blame the victim in cases of teenage rebellion and rape.

  I wish I could give a better recommendation, but, alas, facts are facts. Keep reading this board. People here have been through a lot!

  Best wishes with your decision.
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  50

  Really enjoyed the CONvention....why?

  by punkofnice in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i remember when i was a mind cleansed(tm) jw i would listen to the talks when i wasn't napping.. on the long tiring drive home i'd say how i ''enjoyed(tm)'' the sessions and felt ''encouraged(tm)''.. .....and yet i couldn't recall a single ''point(tm)'' made.

  i couldn't remember what it was that actually made me feel good.. on one occasion i asked the family what they found ''encouraging(tm)'' or interesting.. tumble weed.

  no examples.

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  Mum

  Once I was watching a movie about the Mafia, narrated by a Mafia wife. She was lamenting the fact that they couldn't or didn't associate with anyone outside the group.

  Then she got to the part that reminded me of conventions. She said something like, "We even went on vacation together." The assemblies used to be a way to soak up dubs' summer vacation, but, to give it somewhat of a positive spin, it might have been the only way many of them would have visited another place. At any rate, it took away any opportunity to be around non-dubs on vacation.

  Organized religion, particularly cults, and organized crime have a lot of similarities.
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  56

  My Judicial committee

  by label licker in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  it was six hours long.

  at the beginning of the week i had four accusers and by the time i went (half way throught the week) i was up to twelve.

  i was charged with apostasy, malicous slander, lying, revileing.

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  Mum

  So you're forced to live in the 17th century for the time being. Welcome to the 21st, where it's much nicer, especially for those of us who have freed ourselves from this b***sh**!

  I'm sorry about your loved ones who passed on.