We follow Jesus Christ, not any human leader.?
WHat an upfront lie
Governing Body Nazis - critisize them.. and youre out
do you shun former members of your religion?.
those who were baptized as jehovah's witnesses but no longer preach to others, perhaps even drifting away from association with fellow believers, are not shunned.
in fact, we reach out to them and try to rekindle their spiritual interest.. .
We follow Jesus Christ, not any human leader.?
WHat an upfront lie
Governing Body Nazis - critisize them.. and youre out
while many of the stories are sad, i can't help but feel some happiness that this forum exists and that it is a stepping stone for so many that are hurting and will be better for it on their way to recovery.. every day there are a handful of people that post for the first time, many of them stating they have been lurking for a long time.. i personally have had a dozen ask me for help because of the state of mind and affairs they find themselves in after making or being handed an exit from the watchtower.. i am grateful for this site.
i am grateful for the diversity of perspectives and the willingness for those here to always help.. the best therapy is human interaction with those who know exactly what pains us.. well done jwn.
Yayyy for anyone waking up.
I slowly started waking up 2 years ago.. and just recently fully woke up all of a sudden and everything became soooo clear. I must admit it left me dumbfounded.. And I know that I can't ever go back.
What triggered my waking up was how young JWs are not allowed to marry nonJWs and the society doesn't do ANYTHING for singles! Only restrictions restrictions restrictions. I turned down so many lovely guys who had everything I wanted.. except for this small detail of being a non-JW. I really thought Satan sent them to me. I was depressed about this between age 18 up till 28.. when I suddenly fell in love with a non-JW who is now my husband.
I always disagreed with the complete shunning of exJWs and the ban on researching with non-approved sources outside the Org. I wondered 'What do they have to hide?' That's when I started reading in Forums. Which gave me the SUDDEN B A N G on my head
to: all elders in the grover beach congregation of jehovah witnesses, the watchtower corporation and governing body of "jehovah witnesses" .
from: gregg blasingame.
cc: watchtower inc.. dear brothers,.
Here's a link to the letter written by Doc Bob that was mentioned earlier. Maybe you could add an attachment to the letter listing in details the legal steps you would take against them if they d/f you for asking questions.
www.docbob.org/wordpress/letter-2
what mindblown says makes sense about your letter being long and starting off with questions but then you start to answer these questions.
Keep it shorter maybe by 'leaving out' yourself answering questions. You can still post the rest as a second part to them at a later stage.
to: all elders in the grover beach congregation of jehovah witnesses, the watchtower corporation and governing body of "jehovah witnesses" .
from: gregg blasingame.
cc: watchtower inc.. dear brothers,.
I love this letter! It has a lot of good points, points agianst which the elders won't have anything to say. I pray that this wonderful letter will help other elders / JWs to see the true colors of the org.
Your letter is written in a very humble way. You keep asking the elders to please help you understand. They won't be able of accusing you of 'haughtiness' or 'arrogance' as they love to do with people they disfellowship.
The letter has my blessing..
Sadly.. it is for sure they will d/f you or consider your letter as a d/a letter.
Hang in there and may Jesus show you the best possible way for you
here is a list i've started...but hope will be added to.. .
you know you are in the wrong religion when:.
1. the all important question is not: "do you believe in the lord jesus christ?"....but....
....when you are being told that 'this' is the only group that practices true christianity
.... when you are told to marry only from the same group
.... when you are officially forbidden to be on sites like this
i have been around in this forum a lot but haven't written much yet.. also i had a more or less rude awakening when i realized that the religion i grew up with, the religion i sacrificed a lot for and considered to be the 'truth' is nothing but mere bs.
it's quite a brick to digest.. my parents both are jws, elder and pioneer.
very good people but also very brainwashed.
Thanks @ all for the nice welcome
To answer your questions about my nick.. it is german and means 'trapped one'. And yes, I'm a born and bred german
@Sauerkraut: Are you a german by any chance? Sauerkraut.. thank god we also have a larger variety of food over here in germany than just this but oddly a lot of folks believe that's all we eat
i have been around in this forum a lot but haven't written much yet.. also i had a more or less rude awakening when i realized that the religion i grew up with, the religion i sacrificed a lot for and considered to be the 'truth' is nothing but mere bs.
it's quite a brick to digest.. my parents both are jws, elder and pioneer.
very good people but also very brainwashed.
I have been around in this forum a lot but haven't written much yet.
Also I had a more or less rude awakening when I realized that the religion I grew up with, the religion I sacrificed a lot for and considered to be the 'truth' is nothing but mere BS. It's quite a brick to digest.
My parents both are JWs, elder and pioneer. Very good people but also very brainwashed. They are the reason I haven't jumped out of the closet. First of all not to destabilize my parents who both have been through suicidal stages and second to have some moderate influence in my congregation. I am so afraid to loose my family and more people I care for.
This is why I have chosen to stay undercover for now and am looking forward to getting to know all of you on here.
Some of you may know me from the yuku ex JW forum where my nick is 'stillajw'
attacking from the outside will always prove to be unproductive.
it is more effective to remain inside the domain while raising people's consciousness and letting them see all the flaws behind the farce.
i have tried it and i have gotten 47 people out in 6 months, while i am still seen as a publisher in good standing.. .
I am also an 'undercover apostate' who woke up about 2 years ago. I'm in mainly for my family trying to get them our REAL gently.
It would be great to be in touch with some folks who are in the same shoes.
just got word that my youngest brother died of pancreatic cancer.
he was diagnosed in early august.
this has been really tough for me and my family..
what a terrible tragedy.. I have no words for your loss.
Sending you a big hug all the way from germany.
my elder buddy and i would frequent strip clubs when we wanted to.. a few friends knew i enjoyed clubbing and music concerts and i seldom ever spoke of my private social life to others.. i know many jws, including elders, that drank excessively but that wasn't considered too big a deal..
had sex with my husband before we were married
had oral sex with him
Watched scary movies (the 'the exorcist'-genre)
Lied about my religion towards workmates
Tuned my report slips
got heavily drunk a few times
got high on opiate painkillers (stopped this though a year ago since it became dangerous)
Celebrated birthdays, christmas and other 'pagan' holidays with workmates
had a one night stand with a cute (almost-)stranger
Been active on 'apostate (TM) sites
Slept over at a very old worldly male friend's house (nothing happened, we were just friends 100%). Cooked him dinner for the coming 2 days while he was injecting heroin in his room.