i finally stopped attending the meetings about 4 months go.
i won't be going back - ever.. but i've decided the best reply to the watchtower is to be happy and i do try to be happy every day even thought i wasted my entire life on this religion.
i cherish every day, practice mindfulness and do my best to be content with the life i have.. it is only now that i see that most jws i know are deeply unhappy people.
I dont know, I spent many happy years as a JW.
I dont think it is fair to paint them all with that brush.
Especial in the 70s and 80s and 90s, when it still seemed like the JW timeline was working and the end was in sight.
But I get what you are saying.
will they draw a new name out of a hat or do a kiss test i don't know..
Never - they will want to keep POWER concentrated as much as they can.
That's why they decided the FDS was them and not ALL the anointed.
12 have empathy for unbelieving relatives.
while we may be overjoyed about the bible truths we have learned, our relatives may mistakenly believe that we have been tricked or have become part of a cult.
we should show empathy by trying to see things from their viewpoint and by listening carefully to discern their real concerns.
Maybe it will have the effect of some JWs reading "apostate" info they would get from the family that is Terrified they are in a Cult.
most jws i know claim they are happy being in the great crowd.
they'd rather live on a paradise earth and pet lions than go to heaven.. heaven is a place they can't relate to, a place where they don't expect their friends and loved ones to be.. so why are more and more jws claiming to be of the anointed?.
aren't they looked down upon as if they are crazy, proud, ignorant, or engaging in apostate thinking?.
The question of WHY there are more now really hasn't been answered.
The reason is that when they changed the GENERATIONS - and have the new Overlapping Generations - and did away with the number already been sealed - it was an opportunity that people are taking (and that's how many of the comments above fit in)
we all know that the governing body claim to be "god's representatives" and the "faithful and discreet slave" that dispenses spiritual food..... but where is the proof?.
according to the bible (if we just for a moment take it as a reliable source), all of god's representatives in the past furnished proof of their appointment - not just self referential claims or statements.. for instance, moses and aaron performed miracles before pharaoh (such as the snake staffs.).
other prophets performed signs and miracles such as making the sun stand still, healing sick people, making walls fall down, etc etc.... even jesus performed miracles as proof of his divine appointment!.
Well the have ALWAYS been right!
...
Except when they are wrong.
when i joined this site at the beginning of this year, i was serving as an uber-zealous regular pioneer and ms in a foreign congregation where the need is greater.
i was giving public talks and having parts at regional conventions.
had started to have doubts but i hadn't time to focus on them, i simply was overcharged with so many activities and things to do.. i started by quitting pioneering but couldn't think i would give further steps for a long time.
Skepsis - Good for you!
That is a giant step for you. FYI it doesn't get easier but hang in there.
You will face many challenges, moments of confusion, sadness, and worry.
It's all worth it to not be part of a devious cult!
We are all here to help!
we just realised that everyone has had it wrong!
the bible even got it wrong.. noah didn't build an ark that stopped in one place.
no my friends, it was actually more of a shuttle ferry that had multiple stops on its journey.
OneEyedJoe - its like shooting fish in a barrel:)
so one of the things witnesses have been saying for years is how marriage is under attack, typically marrying the word "soaring" with the words "divorce" and "rate".. here are some metrics that suggest that for those who do get married in england and wales this assertion is not actually correct.. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40524156.
sure there are less marriages than there used to be and more people cohabiting but it does throw some water on the argument that the sky is falling in as far as marriage is concerned..
One of my last appearances on STAGE included me telling the Congo to make sure their facts were straight when they gave talks or were in service.
On of them was about divorce.
I pointed out the rates in a number of countries, some who have divorce in single digits.
Also pointed to the actual rate in the USA and how that statistic needs to be understood.
Mentioned how even in our congregation a few people have been divorced 3 times and how that changes the statistics:)
The point was to try and get people to think - and not just vomit from the mouth.
And check their sources.
It was fulfilling to do even though it fell on the deaf ears of a cult.
a lot of religious folks can have an open-minded discussion about their beliefs without getting defensive.
some can actually consider things from another point of view and point out the validity in the other person's point.
obviously, a lot of jws may just be scared to think/speak in a semi-detrimental way about their religion.
Religion tends to make people closed-minded. They are often told they have the only way to god (truth).
Most religion has historically put all human relations and actions into Black & White context. Not good for fellow feeling.
JW are amongst the most closed minded, not because they are religions, but because they are a CULT that force feeds its members to NOT think, to NOT investigate, to NOT ask questions, to NOT be open to anything anyone says but the GB.
I hate all religion by the way.
