Posts by joey jojo

9

Critical thinking

by Freedom rocks in

what kind of questions would you use to get a child'scritical thinking skills going from a young age with regards to the bible/god/jesus/anything to do with the religion??.

my most hated answer jws gave to people when they said you can't see god so how do you know he exists was "well you can't see electricity or gravity but you know they exist".

sorry but that doesn't prove god exists.

joey jojo

Maybe getting them to understand the old saying about truth vs faith.

That is,

'Faith is something you believe- whether it is true or not.

Truth is an accepted fact- whether you believe it or not.'

39

Hatred From My Children for Not Leaving the Organization Earlier

by new boy in

jw
friends

i'm not proud of the fact that it took me over 50 years to realized what the organization really was and to finally leave it.

not proud at all, i feel pretty stupid.

however i didn't lose my children.

joey jojo

At some point in time the child needs to move on and find a way to deal with the circumstances they find themselves in.

However,our reality today is directly related to how we were raised by our parents. For better or worse we are a product of their beliefs, insecurities, strengths, weaknesses and examples.

Using education again as an example, if my parents encouraged me to pursue an interest I loved, gave me financial and moral support and helped guide me - if at that point I fail and blame them, then that's on me.

If my parents made it clear that they were unsupportive of any higher education, and actively discouraged me from pursuing it and I end up working in menial jobs my whole working career, then I am sorry, but that is on them for failing to do their job as a loving parent.

I understand that we can all make changes in our lives but we are severely disadvantaged the later in life this occurs.

14

Evolution of a congregation 1978- 2018

by joey jojo in

our whole congregation was excited as we stood in front of our brand new kh and smiled for the photographer from the local newspaper.. for years we had been travelling 30 mins each way to attend the meetings and now, after a big effort of donations and hard work we finally had our own kh in our own town.

in the picture, there were 45 smiling faces of all ages, from the newborn to the old brother that had turned 100 and everyone in between.

the year was 1978.. the congregation grew and shrank over the years, probably hitting its peak during the 80's and 90's, there was even a renovation in the early 90's that the local brothers donated towards, for the benefit of the local town to hear the good news about the imminent arrival of the end.

joey jojo

Our whole congregation was excited as we stood in front of our brand new KH and smiled for the photographer from the local newspaper.

For years we had been travelling 30 mins each way to attend the meetings and now, after a big effort of donations and hard work we finally had our own KH in our own town.

In the picture, there were 45 smiling faces of all ages, from the newborn to the old brother that had turned 100 and everyone in between. The year was 1978.

The congregation grew and shrank over the years, probably hitting its peak during the 80's and 90's, there was even a renovation in the early 90's that the local brothers donated towards, for the benefit of the local town to hear the good news about the imminent arrival of the end. Some new families moved in, some moved out but overall the expectations were only good for the little congregation in rural Australia.

Then, around 2012, the C.O. told the brothers that their little hall was going to be sold and all the brothers would have to once again merge with the same congregation they used to merge with back in 1978, and drive the I hr return trip to attend the meetings. Some of the brothers were a little hurt and complained to the C.O. but he assured them that the money was to the worldwide work and it would help anyone that the ORG decided needed it.

As I look at the picture taken in 1978, I remember all the names and faces like it was yesterday, when I was only 6.

Of the original 45;

10 have passed away.

22 left the org.

Of the remaining 13, some are very old and the others are a part of the same family.

So there you have it- a brief snapshot of what is probably an average congregation. Over 40 years, only 13 people left out of 45 that were expecting the end to arrive long before now and gave their time and resources for no reward.

39

Hatred From My Children for Not Leaving the Organization Earlier

by new boy in

jw
friends

i'm not proud of the fact that it took me over 50 years to realized what the organization really was and to finally leave it.

not proud at all, i feel pretty stupid.

however i didn't lose my children.

joey jojo

Hi new boy.

I was 19 when my mother left the truth in spectacular fashion. I can't begin to tell you how betrayed and hurt it made me feel. Betrayal because my mother told me she had wanted to leave for yrs and yet still continued to push jw rules onto us right up until she left.

I felt she was a hypocrite. I was so turned off her that it still affects me to this day - and I am now 46. So anyone that says that the kids just need to get over it have no idea what they are talking about.

Why does it still hurt a bit?

We trust our parents and like to think they are putting their children's interests above their own. They know how hard life can be and therefore would want their kids to have a decent education instead of holding them back, just as an example.

Then there are all the things you would have loved to do when you were young but were always stopped from doing. There are so many jw kids with talents that went completely wasted, yet we just had to suck it up and find a way to kill off the burning desire to pursue activities we were drawn to and that we may have excelled in.

Your son may be feeling that if he had a chance to chase his dreams, life would be better for him. Of course, this is debatable, however, it's something that we'll never know.

As we get older we realise how important it is to start early when trying to accomplish anything and unfortunately, it's a chance most young jws don't get. We are then in the position of being years behind others before we start.

I hope this helps provide some insight.

51

Drop Off in Mentioning 1914

by steve2 in

videos from the summer jw conventions ("be courageous) show the "urgency" about the end racheted up several notches.

paranoia rules supreme!.

curiously, though, very few, if any, statements in the convention program about 1914 and the overlapping generations.

joey jojo

The 1914 single generation teaching is still there, in all its outdated glory, in the online version of the reasoning book on the jw.org website. The same article also explains why the teaching is not wrong and can't be changed. 🤣

46

Paranormal stuff: is it a cultural thing? Rant ahead

by Whynot in

paranormal stuff is common where my family is from it's almost expected.

native american background, my great grandmother was a witch doctor a damn good one too, my non witness relatives dabble in it.

so i have seen stuff and experienced stuff.

joey jojo

DoFP,

Interesting to hear your story.

Historical side-note, for anyone that didn't know, Gary Gygax, the creator of Dungeons and Dragons was raised a JW. Those original role-playing fantasy board games inspired the online genre with games like Everquest and World of Warcraft.

As a born-in, I have heard stories similar to yours and as a kid, I wouldn't even listen to AC/DC music because it was supposed to be evil.

46

Paranormal stuff: is it a cultural thing? Rant ahead

by Whynot in

paranormal stuff is common where my family is from it's almost expected.

native american background, my great grandmother was a witch doctor a damn good one too, my non witness relatives dabble in it.

so i have seen stuff and experienced stuff.

joey jojo

I have never replied to a thread on this subject, I don't usually even read them.

I just want to ask a genuine, respectful question. Have any of you guys that believe you have experienced paranormal activity ever taken psycho-active drugs- either medically or recreationally?

Also, amazing claims require equally compelling evidence to back them up. Wozza, you mention being able to manipulate objects and turn on lights like its a bodily function. Do you have any evidence of this?

For almost 100 yrs, various sceptic organisations around the world have offered hundreds of thousands of dollars to anyone that can demonstrate paranormal activity under controlled conditions. Have any of you guys cashed in yet? If not, why not?

I am not calling anyone here a fake. I am very much aware that its possible there are mysteries in the universe we don't fully understand yet. Its just that the 'evidence' I've seen about this stuff is like the 'evidence' for bigfoot, or UFO's- it always seems to be a bit blurry.

34

Active witnesses? Please help?

by Ahava in

hi,i'm lost and a little sad.

i actually like the jw faith.

some might call this faith cold, strict, dogmatic but they're just trying to follow rules and give back to god.

joey jojo

19

12 june 2018 what to say

by LostAdam in

hi eveyone, my sis told me something like where will i be after that day.

i couldnt realize at first what she meant, but i found this on net donald-trump-kim-jong-un-meeting-singapore-june-12/.

i found her reaction so pathetic, but i think she is really sorry for me leaving.. so how to do you reply to jw family or generally when news about world peace comes out?.

joey jojo

Hi LostAdam,

My super-dub friend also sent me this with along with the caption : 'are you ready'?

I reminded him that 1986 was designated the 'year of peace'. If that was not a worldwide proclamation, then what is?

The prophecy about peace and security is so vague that it would take a brave person- or maybe a group of 8 people to perceive when it happens.

World leaders literally talk about peace all the time.

34

Active witnesses? Please help?

by Ahava in

hi,i'm lost and a little sad.

i actually like the jw faith.

some might call this faith cold, strict, dogmatic but they're just trying to follow rules and give back to god.