they have made so many strategical mistakes it's hard to keep track.
some changes within the last decade or so that are contributing to declining numbers of jws:.
1. elimination of book study groups, the most informal, enjoyable and sociable of the jw meetings, contributed to loss of sense of community among jws.. 2. policy of consolidating kingdom halls.
Elderly ones having to buy 'tablets' and not understanding how they work, those that don't, feeling left behind.
Older COs being made redundant, and leaving them feeling exactly that!
The big Bethelite clearout. Nothing like being kicked out on the street with no money, job or home to make you 'wake up'.
The wacky broadcasts, that although may appeal to the die-hards, for anyone with a few doubts, it'll just add a few more.. then a few more...
this really works.
i've already applied the basics of this with one elder who "offered" us a shepherding visit.
we've been totally ignored since!!!
It's worked well for me... my elder husband has told the other elders that I have issues and doubts but I don't want to talk about it. They've not tried anything. Maybe my husband is my 'firewall'!
I went to the meeting the other day, first time in a couple of months and an old friend came and talked to me. She was my pioneer partner decades earlier who had moved elsewhere but was now back in the congregation for a while and she said she'd not seen me on her visits. I told her I don't go much anymore and she asked me why. I told her I had my reasons but didn't want to talk about it. She was fine with it, she thought it was sad but never said anything more about it. It really doesn't matter who wants to know the 'whys', if you don't want them to know, then don't tell them! Be firm that it is your business and not theirs.
I've been fading for five years now and not had any problems at all. It takes patience and self-control (not spilling the beans!) but it's worth it when you can keep your family and close friends and even be on speaking terms with everyone else.
"blue" lives matter!
- sheriff david clarke at the rnc.
this bs really makes my blood boil.
Would be good if more could happen as in Wichita Kansas where the police and the community got together
i remember sitting on my daddy's lap and driving an imaginary car, i also remember sitting on my mummies lap on the front seat, without a seat belt whilst my dad drove a real car.
i remember we bought fish and chips from the chippy wrapped in yesterday's newspapers.
i remember bouncing up and down on my space hopper in the garden.
Rebel, you can't beat fish and chips wrapped in newspaper can you? Today's are not the same!
Some of my memories...collecting as many creepy crawlies from the garden as I could and putting them all in a jar and getting bitten by a centipede. Even though I was a 'girly' girl, insects and other creatures fascinated me.
My dad's cars (always bangers) never failed to pack up when going on a long trip and being stuck by the side of the road for hours while he (or more likely a mechanically minded friend) fixed it.
Teasing a little boy and pinching his schoolcap (they wore them back then) and flinging it into the older children's playground so he couldn't get it. (my way of showing I liked him... I was only five) and one day his mum finding me and giving me a good ticking off. I never did it again!
The first episodes of Corrie in B&W... I've watched it ever since! Elsie Tanner and Ena Sharples...
i read the word "spiritual" sometimes on the site.
what exactly do the jw's mean by it ?.
Being 'spiritual' to a JW is really 'religiosity'... in other words sanctimoniously religious. It really has nothing to do with spirituality. If they are seen to be doing everything right according to WT then they are considered 'spiritual'. It smacks of what Jesus condemned the Pharisees for.
this site is such a great and valuable resource and simon is to be commended for running it for so long.
when i first came i was in such a bad state and really needed support and friendship.
so many posters commented on my threads and showed genuine care some are real life friends, some are facebook friends, some i talk to on the phone and some are forum friends.. i have just realised though that everyone online is not your friend.
I think it's very easy to get hurt online because all you have are words. It's easy to take offence at what people write and become oversensitive about it. What you don't have is body language, voice intonation, facial expressions, any of those things that you get in real life. If you join a forum you have to develop a thick skin. I remember over a decade ago I joined a forum and made lots of 'friends'. It was non-JW mutually interest based. I remember being in floods of tears over perceived hurts, until I realise it was stupid. Why be hurt by something, someone (whom you've never met) says? Most people you meet online are simply acquaintances, if you're lucky a handful will become good friends... as you've found.
as the title says--i'm out of here for good.. the site is full of atheists, communists, 7th day adventists, creationists, believers, deceivers, receivers, football supporters,.
dodgy types, cantleave---and assorted wankers.. so no place for me--because i'm none of the above so dont fit in.
so--this is goodbye forever my friends--its been almost average knowing you.
See you soon Stan... LOL
so ... i don't know if any of this is even of interest any more, i know i'm getting kinda bored with it :) so many other more interesting stories out there.
anyway, limped my way through 17 years being a jw until now.
not a good jw mind you.
Hi LifesNotOver... I'm pretty much in a similar situation to you, though my husband seems to be rather more accomodating than yours! I've been doing the 'fade' for nearly 5 years now and it's been hard going. At first I wanted to tell him everything I found out but these days it's become more of the elephant in the room. I slowly stopped going to meetings and doing FS. I'm now inactive and maybe go to one meeting every couple of months. At the moment I'm psyching myself up for the RC. (Only going one day). I wish I could just stop completely and if it wasn't for him I would. I have adult children that don't go anymore and my sister and my best friend are all very negative towards the organisation so I can still be myself around them. Basically I've told my husband I don't want to go anymore and he's passed it on to the other elders and he's also passed it on that I don't want to see anyone about it. So far they've left me alone and if they do see me they only talk about everyday stuff. Fine by me! :) I'm lucky that I'm an introvert and don't need people around, family and close friends is enough for me. I think the secret is being firm and assertive. Trying not to be negative but just letting others know you have boundaries that you don't want them to cross. As has been said many times on here, the only power anyone has over you is what you allow them to have. Hope you find your way!
hey all, .
so i recently posted for the first time and introduced myself.. i have been spending time reading various posts.
some informative, some not so much.. since i've been reading on here, i've read a lot from atheists.
Welcome Sevan. The Beorean Pickets website and the Jwstruggle forum are both good for exJws who still want to stay christian. I have found both very helpful.
how did such a weighty decision get put directly in the hands on the average citizen?
and with only a simple majority required?
in the usa the biggest thing that people vote on directly is city building projects or infrastructure.
Brits felt they were being micromanged by the EU in the same way many JWs feel micromanaged by the GB. At least Brits get to vote...
