Posts by NameWithheld

31

My boyfriend is a JW

by little_red_birdie in

jw
friends

i am just a young teenager, and my first ever boyfriend is a jw!!

at that time i didn't even know what a jw was, no one at school ever really mentioned anything.

i had no idea what i was getting into.

IF, and this is a big IF, as he get's older and can investigate the JW religion for himself, you may be able to open his eyes to the reality of what the JW religion is. Many young people raised in the JW religion have never seen the 'other side' so to speak. If he is already willing to involve himself with a 'wordly' (non-JW) girl, it shows that perhaps he already isn't TOO concerned with the JW rules. Although hormones in a teenager tend to over-ride anything else, and I hope that once the infatuation wears off he doesn't get a 'guilty' conscience and dump you. It's happened MANY times before. Trust me, he's getting or willget SERIOUS grief from his parents about you, and the elders in the JW church if/when they become aware of it.

IF you can open his eyes to the religion, you MUST replace the brainwashing that he has been raised up in with something else. Otherwise he will continue to beleive the JW teachings even if he were to be kicked out (disfellowshiped). Many disfellowwhipped people will go years away from the JW religion, yet still be mired in those beliefs - if they don't learn the 'truth' about the 'truth'.

Best of luck to you!

146

Friends we are too unbalanced.

by sleepy in

jw
friends

well sometimes we are.. look we have the knowledge and experience to help a lot of people.must of us have one time been jw's and understand how many think.so lets not put them off by being too negative.. when we were witnesses most of us were quite happy .

we tried to be good people , to put into practise principles that many people think are good.

we did this sometimes even when we didn't want to , because we thought god would hold us accountable and because we cared for people .

NameWithheld

Some of you are missing the point I keep trying to make ... does the fact that JWs do 'evil' works make them 'evil' people? <shrugs> I don't know. What I do know is that after WWII the trials established that even though the 'peons' of the Nazi system were following orders (and had they NOT done so would probably have been killed) they were NOT excused from blame for their actions. Extreme example? Yes. But it establishes the point that simply being 'mis-informed' isn't a good excuse for 'evil' works.

Do they support an evil system? Again, define evil. Do the ends always justify the means? God would kill 99% of humanity. Is this good? Sure would solve a lot of problems - population control, environment, etc. Perhaps we would be better off living in caves wiping our butts with leaves rooting for plants to eat everyday - wure would be 'better' for the earth. Doesn't mean I want to live like that though. Doesn't make the baby that god would toss into the fire just because it's parents weren't JWs feel any better.

This doesn't mean that I hate JWs. No in fact I feel very sorry for them. If I could I would get them all out. I know/knew a LOT of very fine people in the religion. Doesn't mean that they wouldn't shun me in a heartbeat though. Doesn't mean they wouldn't 'turn me over' to the elders in a heartbeat should they see me perform an 'illegal' action. Doesn't mean they were true friends who would stick by me when I was 'spiritually weak'.

So, do I think they're 'evil'? Not in motivation, but yes in actions. Does this mean I shun them? Never, I know that if it were possible to open their eyes many would come out in a fine manner. Sorry to say I am not as powerful as the WTBTS brainwashing techniques.

19

Things that make you go HMMMMM?

by ashitaka in

jw
friends

regarding the "my boyfriend is a jw" post, with all of the hmmmm's.

the meaning of hmmmmm?

and what makes you go hmmmmmmmm?.

NameWithheld

You pretty much got the definition of 'troll' - you'll have to excuse us we've been burned before by stories like this, but just ignore the Hmmms for now - they'll go away once you've been here for a bit. It's the same on any discussion board - you don't carry much 'weight' until you've been there awhile. Maybe not the best policy, but on the net people can pass themselves off as whomever they please due to the anonimity. So many people err of the side of not beleiveing stories ...

5

MORMON SHUNNING - On front page of LATimes

by bluesapphire in

jw
friends

hey, there is a very good article on mormon shunning on the front page of the saturday los angeles times.

i'm going to respond to this journalist and tell him about the dubs.

i think maybe if many did this, a good story on dubs might come out - maybe even front page too.. go here: http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/la-000095596dec01.story.

NameWithheld

Wow. Could have replaced 'Mormon' w/ 'JW' and the article would have fit to a tee.

18

early marriage

by concerned mama in

in a previous post, some of you talked about your current age and number of years married.

subtract and voila, many of you married young, by which i mean before 20 years of age.

congrats to all of you couples, married long and short!

NameWithheld

??

18

early marriage

by concerned mama in

in a previous post, some of you talked about your current age and number of years married.

subtract and voila, many of you married young, by which i mean before 20 years of age.

congrats to all of you couples, married long and short!

NameWithheld

ItsJustMe: You took the words right out of my mouth. My wife and I married way to young. Why? We were horny and it was the only way to legally 'get some' Do I regret it? Not on your life!!! But we too were lucky to grow as people in the same direction - it could have been bad. And it was rough during the phase where I tried to miss as many meetings as possible and she was feeling guilty about it. Luckly she saw the 'new light' shortly after that.

It does seem that if a JW isn't married by the time they're in their mid 20's then the chances of them getting married begins to drop rapidly. The good ones are always taken early!

Ditto on the pressure to turn dating into marrage as quick as possible - since dating is such taboo anyway, and not supposed to be done for 'fun', but only in leading to marrage.

146

Friends we are too unbalanced.

by sleepy in

jw
friends

well sometimes we are.. look we have the knowledge and experience to help a lot of people.must of us have one time been jw's and understand how many think.so lets not put them off by being too negative.. when we were witnesses most of us were quite happy .

we tried to be good people , to put into practise principles that many people think are good.

we did this sometimes even when we didn't want to , because we thought god would hold us accountable and because we cared for people .

NameWithheld

We go round and round with the word evil ... I don't think the average JW is 'evil' in the sense of the word that they are plotting the destruction of their fellow man. I think their actions and the effects they have on others have 'evil' results though. We go round and round with motivation vrs actual results. They may feel motivated out of love, even the ones that are so 'loving' they shun their children/g-children/parents whatever. They feel very justified in their actions. Doesn't make them 'right'.

By applying this definition of 'evil' you have to come to the conclusion that most people are 'evil' since the majority of their day to day activities are spent on providing for themselves, not fellow humans. But the JW carry it to a further extent by denying themselves all avenues of truely helping others - at least the busy non-JW business man (for example) sooths his conscience by donating $100 to Red Cross/whatever. While the JW sooths their conscience by waking you up at 9am sat morning to tell you to 'convert or die'.

146

Friends we are too unbalanced.

by sleepy in

jw
friends

well sometimes we are.. look we have the knowledge and experience to help a lot of people.must of us have one time been jw's and understand how many think.so lets not put them off by being too negative.. when we were witnesses most of us were quite happy .

we tried to be good people , to put into practise principles that many people think are good.

we did this sometimes even when we didn't want to , because we thought god would hold us accountable and because we cared for people .

NameWithheld

Yes, larc, but another point to consider is if you were 'lovable' as a JW and you left - instead of knocking on doors preaching a message of death perhaps now you spend time helping charities? Instead of being a drain on society you now give at least a little back? Just one example.

16

Pioneering

by ItsJustMe in

just out of curiosity, was anyone here ever a pioneer?

what motivated you to pioneer?

what made you get off the list?

NameWithheld

I did it 'cause I was young and it was the only way my parents would allow me some freedoms - my own car, no one to answer to during those times I was supposed to be out in the field. In other words, being out in FS was better then being stuck at home. Also, all the other kids were doing it And finally because it made me look better to the congo. Like you said, was a way to try and get into the think of things, though I still always seemed to be excluded from much anyway.

I got off because it was so freaking hellasious, boring, stressful, repetative. Also because I wanted to work and make some money. And because I felt hypocritical being out in FS when I hated it more than I could say. And the fact that the last 2 years of my pioneering I was out for long 10 hours days alone - fun fun fun! All the other pioneers were freaks. And I felt it was a useless waste of time, which it was.

Do I regret it? I don't know. I wish I had been in school instead. It did acomplish goal #1, getting out of the house. But once that novelty wore off the downside was worse than being stuck at home.

As for driving up and leaving when seeing which cars where there - you'd better beleive it!!!! I ran like a scalded dog. Or sometimes was purposfully 'late' so as to miss the arranged meeting ...

146

Friends we are too unbalanced.

by sleepy in

jw
friends

well sometimes we are.. look we have the knowledge and experience to help a lot of people.must of us have one time been jw's and understand how many think.so lets not put them off by being too negative.. when we were witnesses most of us were quite happy .

we tried to be good people , to put into practise principles that many people think are good.

we did this sometimes even when we didn't want to , because we thought god would hold us accountable and because we cared for people .

NameWithheld

Tina described what the general consensus of humanity would consider 'good'. Just because lot's of non-JWs are 'bad' (as evidenced in the newspaper) doesn't excuse the 'bad' the JWs do. In a simple sense they suck the blood out of their community and give nothing back (literal blood and figuratively). That's not 'good'. That helps nobody.

As for the newspaper, of course there's lot's of 'bad' there - that's what sells papers. You don't read in the paper about the person who just donated $100 to Red Cross. Or helped a homeless person w/ a meal or a $1 or 2. Or the shelters. This concept of the world being SO evil is left in your mind from JW days - where they pounded that into your head. Yes, the average person makes themselves priority #1 - you have to to surive. But the vast majority of people in the world are not out trying to harm others. If they were we really would be in a mess.

When it somes to community responsibility the JWs take, take, take, take and return nothing. Not even among themselves - where the standard response of the elders to a Jw in need is 'what gov't resorces have you checked into'?