Posts by Ucantnome

19

Are people free to leaving the Witnesses, and shunning.

by ThomasCovenant in

is it true, as bro jackson testified to the australian royal commission, that people can leave the religion freely?.

in my own case, yes.

i just stopped going and was never announced as ''no longer one of jw's''.

Ucantnome

I left and I always speak to the witnesses if I see them in the area and a few I stay in contact with. Some are more friendly than others. Some seem not to see me until I say hello. I haven't been invited to any social gatherings tho.

I spoke to the elders when I left, at my request. It took them 7 months from the initial request and several phone calls to them until they were able to find the time to come round. We discussed my concerns and I asked them if they wanted to disfellowship me and they said no. In the 7 months whilst waiting I stopped attending the meetings.

Since then I have had two elders call on me. One came round quite regularly and we discussed lots of different points, he changed my view of the trinity. Strange.

I don't think that it would be the same for everyone but I could be wrong.

32

Have you ever believed something that turned out to be wrong?

by slimboyfat in

apart, of course, from the obvious example of believing the evidence-free assertion of the governing body to be god's representatives on earth.

not to side-step that issue, but i wonder if it might be interesting to relate that huge mistake to other things i've been wrong about and how they compare and contrast with the big one.

a couple of examples of things i was wrong about:.

Ucantnome

I believed i was quite clever

28

Part of Growing Up - Saying Goodbye to Invisible Friends?

by doubtfull1799 in

i don’t remember having any invisible friends when i was a really little boy, i don’t know if such a thing actually exists, i’ve only ever seen it in movies?

of course it might have looked to others like i was talking to someone on occasions, but i’m sure it would have just been me talking to myself.

the thing is though, i got introduced to an invisible friend in my pre-teens, and i kept the relationship going well into adulthood.

Ucantnome

I have two in my life.

46

How many years did you waste away in the Org?

by Tallon in

in my case; 27 years.

7 of which were as a ministerial serpent ... sorry, i mean 'servant' ;).

Ucantnome

I don't think that I wasted any years in or out of the org. I made some bad decisions based an false beliefs, but I had a purpose of serving God to the best of my ability. I still do.

I was baptised at 13 and prior to this my parents had raised me as a witness and I had witnessed to school mates and teachers and done pioneer days. I left the org over 25 years later.

28

Part of Growing Up - Saying Goodbye to Invisible Friends?

by doubtfull1799 in

i don’t remember having any invisible friends when i was a really little boy, i don’t know if such a thing actually exists, i’ve only ever seen it in movies?

of course it might have looked to others like i was talking to someone on occasions, but i’m sure it would have just been me talking to myself.

the thing is though, i got introduced to an invisible friend in my pre-teens, and i kept the relationship going well into adulthood.

Ucantnome

I’ve always considered myself a very mature person, I was very serious and driven, even as a teenager. But I’m just now realising that one doesn't fully grow up until one says goodbye to their invisible friend!

I pray.

I pray that I always appreciate prayer and God has always answered my prayer.

I believe I read on a previous post that you were an elder. When I was a witness I believe some thought I was not spiritually mature as I was not an elder.

I think that a large proportion of the world's population pray

28

Were You Ever A True Believer?

by minimus in

jw
friends

i was raised in the religion and for the most part believed that my religion was truth.

i recognized some mistakes were occasionally made but felt that nobody is perfect.

then i smartened up and realized how dumb so many of the beliefs are....was there ever a time that you truly believed you had the "truth"?.

Ucantnome

Was there ever a time that you truly believed you had the "truth"

Yes. Otherwise I wouldn't have joined in preaching something that I didn't believe

69

What food are you grateful for?

by punkofnice in

jw
friends

i'll start: stilton cheese.. (it was a toss up between that and sweet pickled beetroot).. thank you folks..

Ucantnome

chocolate, some scotch single malt whiskies, English mustard, the oat breakfast cereal that I go to bed excited that it is only a few hours till I get another bowl full and chocolate and sugar

29

What's your degree of anti-JWness?

by Landy in

so, on a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is absolutely pro-jw, 5 is neutral and 10 is youtubing nutjob apostate, where do you stand?.

i'm probably around a 6. i have the view that jws are a nothing marginal religion.

if i hadn't been brought up as one i doubt they would have ever entered my consciousness.. the reasons it's a 6 and not a 5 is that i have some concerns over their child baptism and safeguarding procedures, but i think it's down to them being a bit dim rather than any pro child abusing ethos.

Ucantnome

I don't think that I would say I am anti, or opposed.

I'm not a witness as i'm not convinced anymore of what they are preaching. At times I have to explain or defend my views in relation to having been a JW. and sometimes on this site I have posted things and read things that i have found helpful.

As to what JW's do or don't do isn't of too much concern to me.

I have watched the video's of the ARC and feel glad not to be part of it anymore and hope that more care and help can be given to those who have suffered hurt.

I would think that from the perspective of the JW I'm opposed.

45

How did you feel when you got baptized?

by Schnufti in

back in 2005, i remember sitting in the stadium in the special rows with 42 others.

8000 people were looking at us - maybe even with a binocular - while listening to the speech.

my family and my friends among them, being all proud of me.. i don't remember being enthusiastic.

Ucantnome

I feel happy to get baptised although it is a long time ago now and I can't remember what year it was. I felt nervous and would rather have done it privately in the bathtub. I hated the thought of having to say prayers at the hall and stuff like that. I feel I was already a JW before I was baptised.

22

Shunning - Are Mothers Most Fanatical?

by Lostandfound in

on many posts by those with experience of df or da shunning, it look to me that the most fanatical observers of the shunning practise are mothers, and when a person approached parents about their own doubts or intentions, approaching the mother the most daunting prospect .

odd that visiting warwick leaflet has a picture of a meeting of some sort with a room comprising men only, given the subordinate role given to women, one might think they would be more liberal over shunning close ones, but not so.. what drives this, is it grabbing an opportunity to be more visible by their loyalty, or low level of education of a lot of dubs so that the sisters blindly accept direction or authority.

i might have expected some kick back against the shunning practise by sisters giving evidence to their independence of thought.. our real thinkers here will be able to explain this fanaticism of loyalty better.

Ucantnome

I think everyone is different.

My mother was very reluctant to have anything to do with my brother. He was in a bad situation. My father spoke to her about it, and the elders. She meant well. If it had been me it probably would have been different with my father but it wasn't so maybe i'm wrong.

I think one of my kids is so much like my mother and means so well.