Guess I did not express myself well when I sed "still doing the JW thing." I'm firmly convinced JW's and their Organization do not have "The Truth" and never did. I've been out for over a year now but have had to struggle to balance out my 25 years of self- and Borg-induced brainwashing with my spiritual need or lack thereof, whether I believe in God/Jehovah, and who I am. When I sed "Doing the JW thing" I did NOT mean being a JW, going to meetings, avoiding unnecessary conversation with my "worldly" coworkers, reading the Daily Text (really the daily WBTS brainwashing additive), going out in service, speaking to Sister So-and-So about how weak she is in the Truth, counting time, hassling publishers about their TIME report, giving talks from THE OUTLINE (you remember: "The outline sez...." [I never said that]) etc etc AD NAUSEAM. I finished all that and regret I did not question it all earlier. I DO mean visiting the various websites dealing with JW's, Ex-Jw's, reading Ray's books, thinking about things I feel so bad I participated in as a JW and How can I make up for it, and now associating with y'all guys on this site, as opposed to becoming an atheist or meditating with the shaved-head guys in the orange robes or going back to worshipping the Sacred Host in the golden monstrance or fingering the Rosary or watching EWTN on TV or sitting in some Methodist church on Sunday listening to the minister prattle on about how patriotism is godly or simply not giving a crap anymore about anything. Imagine!!! that when I started staying home from meetings it was simply to stay with my wife who had become terminally ill from cancer and I knew that my hours of actually being with her were diminishing with every tick of the second hand when a MS commented: "Oh, you're not going to the meeting tonight?" Things began to fall into place with great help from that simple comment. Thanks MS and now Elder. May Jehovah's judicial decisions be carried out ever so spiritually by the likes of you.
ricoananas
JoinedPosts by ricoananas
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FELLOWSHIP
by ricoananas ini've been reading lots of messages in just a few days of logging on to this site and have to say that in the beginning it was bothering me to still be doing the jw thing.
i dropped out after 25 years, the last 14 as an elder.
now, however, i'm beginning to realize that the posts have been giving me a feeling of fellowship with many people who have gone/are going through experiences similar to mine, a kind of fellowship that i rarely if ever felt being among other jw's.
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FELLOWSHIP
by ricoananas ini've been reading lots of messages in just a few days of logging on to this site and have to say that in the beginning it was bothering me to still be doing the jw thing.
i dropped out after 25 years, the last 14 as an elder.
now, however, i'm beginning to realize that the posts have been giving me a feeling of fellowship with many people who have gone/are going through experiences similar to mine, a kind of fellowship that i rarely if ever felt being among other jw's.
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ricoananas
Eyebrow, you're right about that. Don't worry. I can use my job's high-speed computer connection whenever I'm not hard at it, so it makes it even more fun. Amazing how I'm Learning New Things from all of you, and having chunks and pieces of my own already falling into place because of your fellowship. BTW, that reminds me how WBTS changed "New Things Learned" to "Continue in the Things You Learned" some years ago. Guess "New Things" was too scary for them in that somebody might actually look forward to some "New Things" in eager anticipation. That could put one in grave danger of being happy and excited about being a JW, for, "We must banish All Eager Anticipation From The Minds And Hearts Of Those Who Would Usher In The New World Order Lest They Actually Have Some Enthusiasm Which Could Lead To Something Sinful As It Always Does, DOESN'T IT, Brothers?" (Theospeak Manual 95:10-15)
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FELLOWSHIP
by ricoananas ini've been reading lots of messages in just a few days of logging on to this site and have to say that in the beginning it was bothering me to still be doing the jw thing.
i dropped out after 25 years, the last 14 as an elder.
now, however, i'm beginning to realize that the posts have been giving me a feeling of fellowship with many people who have gone/are going through experiences similar to mine, a kind of fellowship that i rarely if ever felt being among other jw's.
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ricoananas
ANANAS is pronounced "ah nah NAHSS." It's a South American word that means "Pineapple" in Guaraní. Interesting that ANANAS is also the word they use for "Pineapple" in modern Israeli Hebrew. Guess none ever grew there.
A warm hello to Mum, LB, Undecided, alliwannadoislive, Eyebrow, and Naeblis. Naeblis, I guess I was spending too much time on stuff like How Many Elders can Dance on the Pinkynail of a Circuit Overseer to even read The Lord of the Rings. Maybe now is a good time. Thanks. Rico.
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It's just dawned on me...
by Billygoat in...that jw's have a hard time forgiving others because they themselves are rarely forgiven for their own sins.
according to their beliefs jehovah keeps track of every detail of your life...good and bad.
that even if you are humble and repent of your sins, that there is still no true forgiveness until the new system.
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ricoananas
Hi Andi
Your realization and the thread about Forgiveness has just floored me because I guess it was my "food at the proper time." Now all I can do is go home for lunch. Is there some good spirit working in you or what? -
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FELLOWSHIP
by ricoananas ini've been reading lots of messages in just a few days of logging on to this site and have to say that in the beginning it was bothering me to still be doing the jw thing.
i dropped out after 25 years, the last 14 as an elder.
now, however, i'm beginning to realize that the posts have been giving me a feeling of fellowship with many people who have gone/are going through experiences similar to mine, a kind of fellowship that i rarely if ever felt being among other jw's.
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ricoananas
Thanks Angharad. BTW, I'm also encouraged by the names, handles, aliases, that everyone is using. I got so SICK (even from the beginning) of having to be addressed by JW's as BROTHER Ananas rather than as Rico. Once a cute little kid sed in a WT "review" that he was impressed by how all the men had the same first name: BROTHER. I even tried calling people Brother John, Sister Mary, etc, but most thought I was just weird.
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So many questions, whose got the food?
by Will Power inactually i'm only in the mood for a snack.. can someone help me sort this out?
i'm trying to figure how all these pieces fit the "story" .
satan & bad angels kicked out of heaven before time & universe began?.
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ricoananas
Try this one on for size: The God of the Hebrews had people slaughtered (so His followers could practice loving-kindness?). The God of the NT is now a "God of love." (1) Is He schizoid? (2) Did He repent of His badness because He allowed His Son to be tortured? (3) Or is he multiple (elohim) Gods?
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FELLOWSHIP
by ricoananas ini've been reading lots of messages in just a few days of logging on to this site and have to say that in the beginning it was bothering me to still be doing the jw thing.
i dropped out after 25 years, the last 14 as an elder.
now, however, i'm beginning to realize that the posts have been giving me a feeling of fellowship with many people who have gone/are going through experiences similar to mine, a kind of fellowship that i rarely if ever felt being among other jw's.
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ricoananas
Andi, it seems to just be getting better. I definitely to plan to stick around. Thanks for the encouragement. Rico Ananas.
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FELLOWSHIP
by ricoananas ini've been reading lots of messages in just a few days of logging on to this site and have to say that in the beginning it was bothering me to still be doing the jw thing.
i dropped out after 25 years, the last 14 as an elder.
now, however, i'm beginning to realize that the posts have been giving me a feeling of fellowship with many people who have gone/are going through experiences similar to mine, a kind of fellowship that i rarely if ever felt being among other jw's.
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ricoananas
Thank you so much for the fine welcome, Nathan Marilyn and Andi. BTW Nathan, you sure look like someone I saw once in a crowd. Andi, what is a "Jedi Member?"
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FELLOWSHIP
by ricoananas ini've been reading lots of messages in just a few days of logging on to this site and have to say that in the beginning it was bothering me to still be doing the jw thing.
i dropped out after 25 years, the last 14 as an elder.
now, however, i'm beginning to realize that the posts have been giving me a feeling of fellowship with many people who have gone/are going through experiences similar to mine, a kind of fellowship that i rarely if ever felt being among other jw's.
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ricoananas
My post just reminded me of one Sunday morning after the meeting when it was the usual din of voices from conversations that another elder sed "Just listen to that buzz. Isn't it great to have so much fellowship?" So I thought, "Buzz. Hmm, like at an assembly or convention before or after a session where you can't even hear yourself think as you walk in the corridors (Sort of like that Mexican JW wedding reception my wife and I went to where the music from the loudspeakers was so loud she couldn't hear my voice even though my lips were one inch from her ear and I was screaming at the top of my lungs as my stomach reverberated to the bass beat of the music) Every new person talking makes the sound louder so that when so many are talking it builds into a deafening crescendo of ... spiritual topics? I don't know if I ever heard a spiritual topic in the Assembly Hall (where I also felt a similar sickening stomach reverberation) or Kingdom Hall din; everyone seemed to be AVOIDING talking about spiritual things..........Why am I even DOING this?"
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FELLOWSHIP
by ricoananas ini've been reading lots of messages in just a few days of logging on to this site and have to say that in the beginning it was bothering me to still be doing the jw thing.
i dropped out after 25 years, the last 14 as an elder.
now, however, i'm beginning to realize that the posts have been giving me a feeling of fellowship with many people who have gone/are going through experiences similar to mine, a kind of fellowship that i rarely if ever felt being among other jw's.
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ricoananas
I've been reading lots of messages in just a few days of logging on to this site and have to say that in the beginning it was bothering me to still be doing the JW thing. I dropped out after 25 years, the last 14 as an elder. Now, however, I'm beginning to realize that the posts have been giving me a feeling of fellowship with many people who have gone/are going through experiences similar to mine, a kind of fellowship that I rarely if ever felt being among other JW's. From a site of quotes dealing with religious thoughts I found this priceless gem: "While traveling near Tampa, Florida, I passed the
'Jehovah's Witnesses Assembly Hall' and was struck by the fact that that must be where they make them." -- Gene Spafford.