Posts by RogueLeader

23

Crisis of Conscience Raymond Franz

by Disassociated Lady 2 in

this book has been recommended to me a few times.

is it worth reading?.

how could i get a copy without paying the massive amount stated on amazon and ebay?

RogueLeader

This is THE book that sealed the deal for me Disassociated Lady 2. It definitely IS a good read, not to be missed. I'm now reading Apocalypse Delayed (by M. James Penton) which is another good book. But read Crisis of Conscience first. You won't regret it!

29

dealing with religion after leaving the witnesses

by joker in

i’ve noticed many people posting on this site seem to have completely given up on religion/spirituality.. but some have attended services at another religion, or just follow their own heart regarding what to believe.. my question is how does anyone deal after leaving with all of the witness crap that we believed about babylon the great, the great harlot, spiritual prostitute, etc., etc.

i’m finding out that i seem to have built myself a pretty solid wall regarding religion.. some people can just chuck all beliefs into one basket saying that they are all basically garbage,,, and that is ok, no problem i respect that.. but for myself there is a certain part of my personality that needs a spiritual belief not like the witnesses in any way, but something to meditate on, and contemplate.. being a witness taught me how bad it is to actually think of god in any other way besides what the jw’s believe.

and now when i attend any other service, the dark jw side seems to pop out and seriously makes me believe that everything i see/do/say is wrong.

RogueLeader

Well, now I know JWs aren't the correct religion, so I need to find the right one...
Which Christian religion is is?.....
Is it a Christian religion?...
Is there a "one true religion"?
Does God even want and/or need to be worshiped?
Does God even exist?

This is the exact place I'm at right now A Ha... I had doubts for a few years but managed to sweep them under the rug, like other JW's. But now, I'm searching for some sort of spiritual stability. Does God even exist? Is religion just a scam? Is there one 'true' religion? Were we created or just a chance happening in the cosmos? Questions, questions... I should be the 'Riddler' LOL

24

Hello - New Member

by NotAnointed in

jw
friends

i just wanted to intoroduce myself.

i have been lurking for some time and finally decided to register and hopefully contribute to this great forum.. i am in my mid 30s and have never been in the truth.

my wife became a jw several years ago and since she is a (mostly) stay at home mom my two boys are also jws.

RogueLeader

Welcome NotAnointed, I'm relatively new here too. Lurked for a week or two before posting.

Now that I'm out of the JW's... I now have serious doubts even if God exists! I've gone from the 'company man' believing in God and the Bible, living my life according to the Bible and JW standards — to — now doubting the existence of God and wondering what our purpose is to be here.

But hey... I'm happy you decided to join the forum and post an introduction. WELCOME!!

15

Letter about changes in book 100 year kingdom

by Rather Be the Hammer in

yesterday a letter was read in our congregation.

it said that there have been doctrinal changes in many chapters of the book 'god's kingdom rules' so everyone but especially the conductor must be sure to use the latest update of the book.. this book is only ...how old?

two years?

RogueLeader

Any idea what the doctrinal changes were? 'New Light' within two years of printing??

20

Brother with a beard on jw.org!

by neat blue dog in

ok, slight exaggeration: specifically, an official recording of the july 25th, 2016 midweek meeting in german sign language downloaded from stream.jw.org, (log-in required), includes a brother with a beard giving one of the talks:.

.

RogueLeader

One sister came up and asked me "what is that on your face!?"

LOL that's a good one! Did you tell her that she should study her publications a bit more?

7

Kamikaze

by new boy in

jw
friends

there are many people out there willing to die or kill for what they believe in.

i was one of those in my early twenties.

i was a self righteous pioneer and bethelite willing to die for what i thought was "the truth".

RogueLeader

There are many people out there willing to die or kill for what they believe in. I was one of those in my early twenties. I was a self righteous pioneer and Bethelite willing to die for what I thought was "The Truth".

What I found hypocritical was the fact that we should have been ready to die for our fellow brothers and sisters. Yet, I'm sure 85% of my congregation didn't know the slightest thing about my personal life or character, and this after over 10 years in the same congregation. The question I asked was, "Would they die for ME, if push came to shove?"

The scary part is, I'm sure, if the Governing Body told everyone tomorrow to drink poisoned Grape Kool-Aid (as in the Jonestown massacre), there would be some who would drink it in a heartbeat.

21

What steps did you take to free yourself from the cult? mentally or physically?

by HereIgo in

first i ignored all of the elders phone calls to send my recommendation letter to my new congregation, truth is i had already started my fade and moved across town and didn't have a new congregation.

i deleted all jw friends on facebook.

i also threw away all of my public talks recorded on cd, all literature, even my book bag and my bible.

RogueLeader

Mentally 99% but still angry and frustrated about the waisted years. Not sure how much anti-Jw activism it's all worth at the risk of being disfellowshipped after all.

I understand what you mean redpilltwice. I'm still angry and bitter about the years of deception and treatment from so-called friends and those 'taking the lead'. But I'll be officially DA'd next week, so not worried too much about the risk. Just worried for my teenage children who are still in the 'organization'.

I deleted all jw friends on facebook. I also threw away all of my public talks recorded on CD, all literature, even my book bag and my bible.

I did similar HereIgo. I started blocking JW friends on Facebook and Instagram, since I realized that some were visiting my social pages either to report back, spread info among family members, or just curious. I figured, if you're so curious about what's going on in my life, why not call or text me instead? All of a sudden, you're curious about my life but never took steps to maintain a decent friendship or association (like invites for coffee at least) during my years in the 'truth'. I blocked as many as I could figure out, except my children of course.

As for discarding literature... I've done the opposite. I've kept my 'revised' grey Bible, along with the previous versions of the NWT like the black and green editions from the past decades. Also kept my Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures, as I've heard that this proves valuable to refute some of the changes that were made in the NWT. I also have my own King James version of the Bible and plan on obtaining other Bible editions. Now that I'm out, I feel this spiritual void in my life... I need to search for truth. This all has to make sense for me.

20

Brother with a beard on jw.org!

by neat blue dog in

ok, slight exaggeration: specifically, an official recording of the july 25th, 2016 midweek meeting in german sign language downloaded from stream.jw.org, (log-in required), includes a brother with a beard giving one of the talks:.

.

RogueLeader

I have heard about 'brothers' having beards in European countries, but this is the first time I've actually seen it 'officially'. I've never understood why it wasn't allowed, especially now that beards are more than just a passing fad, but here to stay. It's common to see people have beards in everyday life... from teachers to judges to business people. Keep it clean cut and shaved and there should be no problem, right? The issue I have is the double standard, especially if we were all one UNITED group of witnesses. I remember as a teen getting counselled by a brother in the Hall for having the "5 o'clock shadow" (or in other words, hadn't shaved in 2-3 days and had short stubble).