Posts by C.O.B.E.Beef

71

Overlapping generation segment on the new Circuit Assembly program

by traveb in

jw
friends

so there i was at the circuit assembly sunday morning with my eyes glazed over as usual when all of a sudden, bam!

a demo with two brothers talking about the new overlapping generation teaching.

the reason it took me by surprise was because it occured during the second talk of the sunday morning symposium, "sanctify god's name by your speech".

C.O.B.E.Beef

I found it quite telling that these demos were actually provided as a manuscript from the branch, to be delivered verbatim at the assembly.

5

...i wish this was a religion.. i like the possibility of a paradise earth.. i dont believe in hellfire.. i like reading about jesus and trying to imitate him.. i think love of neighbor is important.. i like the concept of being identified by love.. i enjoy daily bible reading.. i pray to jehovah through jesus name.. i feel comfortable teaching my children these things.

i hope they listen but learn to make decisions for themselves and live a good honest , happy life.. but someone wont allow that, and that is the bride of christ.. this bridezilla has made it clear who wears the pants and has rendered her fiance a lame duck.

it seems like she would want to help me teach my kids to be christ-like.

C.O.B.E.Beef

...I wish this was a religion.

I like the possibility of a paradise earth.

I dont believe in hellfire.

I like reading about Jesus and trying to imitate him.

I think love of neighbor is important.

I like the concept of being identified by love.

I enjoy daily bible reading.

I pray to Jehovah through Jesus name.

I feel comfortable teaching my children these things. I hope they listen but learn to make decisions for themselves and live a good honest , happy life.

But someone wont allow that, and that is the Bride of Christ.

This Bridezilla has made it clear who wears the pants and has rendered her fiance a lame duck. It seems like she would want to help me teach my kids to be Christ-like. Instead, she is so obsessed with being " no part of the world" that she misses the point of Jesus example.

She wants my kids to be different just for the sake of being different.

She wants to micromanage their lives the way she has mine. Who to love , who to hate, what to say, what to wear , what to think, how much education, what kind of medical treatment, what to watch, what to listen to,what to read, what numbers on their timeslip makes them a "spiritual person", who to associate with , and who to shun.

Thats her version of Christianity. To her, the term" Christian" is a legal term used to dress up her maiden name. ( C.C.O.J.W.)

I wish this was just a Christian religion, but alas, it is not.

Just thinking out loud, thanks.

118

School for Congregation Elders

by C.O.B.E.Beef in

jw
friends

i attended the school late last year, and it was an emotional and mental rollercoaster for me.

i was already divided in my heart to say the least.

one of the instructors stayed in my home for the week, and my family genuinely enjoyed his company.

C.O.B.E.Beef

@found sheep- Sorry if my words misled you, I am still very much "in" for now, just not worshipping anymore.

21

Here's What We Know About Jehovah's Witnesses

by AllTimeJeff in

the condensed history set, to the music of the william tell overture.... some guy in the mid to late 19th century named c t russell felt spiritually disenchanted.

didn't believe in hell and other traditional christian beliefs that he grew up around.

so he read a lot, and got exposed to a lot of ideas.

C.O.B.E.Beef

Excellent post, thank you.

118

School for Congregation Elders

by C.O.B.E.Beef in

jw
friends

i attended the school late last year, and it was an emotional and mental rollercoaster for me.

i was already divided in my heart to say the least.

one of the instructors stayed in my home for the week, and my family genuinely enjoyed his company.

C.O.B.E.Beef

I have no idea how much of those comments were in the instructors outlines. They did not seem to be off the cuff remarks.

@aristeas- I was born-in. here is my introductory post. http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/jw/friends/214836/1/sigh

118

School for Congregation Elders

by C.O.B.E.Beef in

jw
friends

i attended the school late last year, and it was an emotional and mental rollercoaster for me.

i was already divided in my heart to say the least.

one of the instructors stayed in my home for the week, and my family genuinely enjoyed his company.

C.O.B.E.Beef

I attended the school late last year, and it was an emotional and mental rollercoaster for me. I was already divided in my heart to say the least. One of the instructors stayed in my home for the week, and my family genuinely enjoyed his company. I found both instructors to be very friendly and warm on a personal level, and from the platform they were superb teachers.

As the week began I remember thinking that this could be a turning point for me, either restoring my trust in the slave or hammering the last nail in the coffin.

Admittedly, I enjoyed certain aspects of the school. But, it was less the curriculum than it was visiting with brothers I hadn’t seen in some time and the food was actually really good.

The afternoon session featured a part on organization and the “JW pecking order” was written out on a dry erase board on the stage behind the instructor as follows;

JEHOVAH

JESUS

F & DS

LEGAL ENTITIES

BRANCH

DISTRICT

CIRCUIT

ELDERS

PUBLISHERS

This was written on the board each day of the school, even though a few days didn’t even have parts referring to it , it was still re-written. I think it bothered me most when it wasn’t referred to, it was a giant , looming, not-so subliminal billboard demanding obedience and submission.

As I stared at it each day it dawned on me how far removed the average JW is from Jehovah and Jesus. As an organization who tells me they offer the closest possible relationship with God, the picture they drew for me on that dry erase board begged to differ. Having this diagram of how to reach God written 5 days in a row burned me like a branding iron. For the first time in my life , I felt like there must be a shorter route to Jehovah.

On Thursday , a few statements from the instructor were made that may prove to be the “nail in the coffin” at least mentally for me. These are a nearly verbatim recollection of his statements;

“ Brothers , if the slave asks you to do something that seems wrong in Jehovahs eyes, and you obey, how does that leave you with Jehovah? That’s right, your good with Jehovah. The slave will account to Jehovah for their decisions.”

“ You see, Jehovah can bless any decision made by the slave, even if it is a bad one, but he will never bless your disobedience to his organization.”

“ How does it feel to be the only people on the planet who can never be wrong?”

As a scriptural reference for a command that seems wrong, the account of Abraham being told to offer Isaac was cited.

This information was not new to me but for some reason it seemed to cast new light on my life .

We are not just a sincere group of bible students with the occasional overly eager expectation for the end, and a few embarrassing pictures of Rutherford.

With the issue of “ right and wrong” taken away from me , all that’s left is allegiance to the Effin DS.

The slave has put themselves in a position to demand the same sacrifice that Abraham was by Jehovah. They have already done so in a practical sense with disfellowshipped family members.

I would not pass that test.

My lifelong practice of unwittingly worshipping men has come to an end.

Thanks for listening.

21

Freshly dead JWs were NOT living "in the time of the end"!

by Nathan Natas in

i picked this thought up elsewhere, and it's been worming its way through my brain.... a friend of a friend was notified not long ago that one of his jw peers since childhood had died.

in itself, this is not too remarkable, because these guys are now into thier 60s, and mortality certainly does begin to raise its ugly head at about that time in one's life: either your friends die and leave you, or you die and leave them.. but the question came up, "can we say that roger, personally, was living "in the time of the end" if the end didn't come while he was alive?".

it seems obvious that poor dead roger was not living in the time of the end.. the question that flows from this is, "am _i_, personally, living in the "time of the end"?.

C.O.B.E.Beef

The" time of the end" has been used as an idiom, much like "the time of my life". It is equally subjective. It will have no concrete meaning unless it is ever used in retrospect. IMO

50

sigh

by C.O.B.E.Beef in

jw
friends

this is my first time participating in a site like this , so please.

forgive me if my approach is clumsy.. my story is not extraordinary and hardly interesting, so thanks.

in advance to this forum for extending the bandwidth for my own.

C.O.B.E.Beef

@zoiks- Good suggestion and I sure can relate to your poker face comment. Im not sure of my external countenance, but internally the result of my hypocricy has been routine punishment of an innocent party, my liver. I need to appoint a new whipping boy.

@punkofnice-Sorry to hear of your situation, I hope it improves. The WT trained conscience is a supreme mechanism. Its reaction to Fluid Intelligence is a predictable shutdown similar to Transmarginal Inhibition. Ive been guilty of such a Pavlovian response many, many times in the past.

@FranklinMassey-Thanks for the complement. My formal education ended in my early teens, but I have a hungry mind and wont rule out further education at this point. Id venture to say Im not the only obtuse feller' online hiding behind a QWERTY block-wall facade.

50

sigh

by C.O.B.E.Beef in

jw
friends

this is my first time participating in a site like this , so please.

forgive me if my approach is clumsy.. my story is not extraordinary and hardly interesting, so thanks.

in advance to this forum for extending the bandwidth for my own.

C.O.B.E.Beef

Wow, thank you all for your kind welcome and support.

AnneB-Thats insightful, thank you.

Sizemick-"There's more involved than simply being true to ourselves . . . we need to make personal sacrifices to be true to those who depend on us."

That spoke to me deeply. Perhaps not so eloquently spoken, that thought is the core of my recent modus operandi. "Strateegery" if you will.

Scripture encourages an inspection of the fruitage of a religion. We see bad fruitage and always blame it on the weather ( critical times h.t.d.w...).

However technology has made an inspection of the roots possible. Still think its the weather??

Sorry if I ramble, I feel like Truman Burbank sitting in his basement contemplating life outside Seahaven.

50

sigh

by C.O.B.E.Beef in

jw
friends

this is my first time participating in a site like this , so please.

forgive me if my approach is clumsy.. my story is not extraordinary and hardly interesting, so thanks.

in advance to this forum for extending the bandwidth for my own.

C.O.B.E.Beef

This is my first time participating in a site like this , so please
forgive me if my approach is clumsy.
My story is not extraordinary and hardly interesting, so thanks
in advance to this forum for extending the bandwidth for my own
therapeutic purposes.
As a 2nd generation born in, my life has been marked by a flurry
of “theocratic” activities. I pursued with all sincerity the goals
set ahead of me by my parents and enjoyed the feeling of their
approval as I progressed in the truth. I was grossly undereducated
(dropped out before high school), as secular education would do
little to prepare me for the new system, which was sure to arrive
before my manhood.
As I grew up doubts surfaced , and I quickly tried to drown them
by studying Watchtower literature. Any lingering feelings of doubt
that remained I wrote off as a personal weakness that should be
ignored. I never considered consulting outside sources which were
sure to be spiritual poison.
So as an adult I have lived with full trust in the things I was
taught , full speed ahead to keep pace with the JW momentum. The
result has been decades of many assignments and responsibilities,
privileges of service that brought me joy and affirmation that my
worship was acceptable.
My life was not likely to change…but it did.
With the birth of our child, I was so excited to teach him the
truth about Jehovah and raise him in the best way of life.
But a strange thing happened , the words that I read to him hurt
me, words I had taught for years to others were causing pain and
anxiety to me as I spoke to my precious son. WHY?? The feeling I
had was exactly what I felt when I had committed a wrongdoing. Why
did it hurt my conscience to teach sacred truth to my firstborn?
As time went by , it occurred to me that what I was feeling was
guilt. It was my choice to suppress my doubts earlier and continue
trusting what I was told. But what of my son? He trusts me above
anyone else. Im now building the foundation for the most important
person in my life.
Could I really teach him something as absolute truth, if I haven’t
thoroughly researched it myself??
I’ll take no such gamble with his future. His future is far more
important than my heritage.
My research has led me to few real answers. It has rocked to the
core things I have long considered as Divinely Certain .
Uncertainty is probably the most terrifying feeling for a witness.
Now as I sit here today, I feel like someone with multiple
personalities. The new me needs to protect my family from the old
me. I know the consequences for what I must do, but strangely I do
not fear them.
The only result I will not accept is losing my wife and children.
I wont leave her in a burning building because she doesn’t realize
it is on fire. I would have little influence from the outside. Im
unsure what course I will take but I know it will take some time,
because the roots are very deep , and there are few things more
powerful than familial approval.
I understand some here may label me as a hypocrite because of
still holding position, I’ll wear that badge of shame here if need
be . My resignation and exit is forthcoming , but it will have to
be a calculated one.
Waking up to the truth hasn’t brought me any happiness yet, but I
am hopeful. The only joy I have is knowing for a certainty that my
kids wont have to make the same decision that I just did.
Thanks for listening.
P.S . Out of paranoia,for now I will only be able to post while
out of town for work as I am now.