ok....i am trying to go inactive to fade.
however all my family is in, except for one relative.
i cannot move away.
Thanks Gladiator.
It seems so logical, that if the situation is no longer working for you, you should be able walk away. AND your choice, whether or not understood should be respected.
I see the control and the peer pressure...I just want to live my life, whether or not the agree with it!
ok....i am trying to go inactive to fade.
however all my family is in, except for one relative.
i cannot move away.
Ok....I am trying to go inactive to fade. However all my family is in, except for one relative. I cannot move away. I see them all the time... love them lots. But now that I am awake and I know TTAT, the lingo is driving me nuts.
Imagine me in a room with a hardcore JW family and this is what I hear:
"The slave says...blah-bla-blah..."
(In my head: You mean the 7 old men that create policies that control your life...they are not getting messages from Jah.If they are they have been getting them wrong wrong wrong)
"The end is right around the corner"
(In my head (screaming): REALLY!!!! It's been "around the corner" for 100 years!!!!)
"Jehovah provides!"
(In my head: No! You needed something...you asked for it...you put things in motion and you got it. I stopped asking Jehovah for stuff a long time ago. I just decided what I wanted and went after it. I can show you how it works. SIGH! )
"You know, it's just Satan...)
(In my head: No. Bad things happen to all people. You are NOT SPECIAL!!!)
....on and on and on.
I honestly feel like calling a family meeting, and explaining to them, just like how JWs get folks to walk away from their form of worship to come to the WTBS...so I am walking away from this. People walk away from their religions all the time. It's a personal choice. It should not be a big deal.
Of course I know this meeting will wreck havoc, blow up in my face and a bunch of people will be yelling at me and my mom will faint.
I love them all so MUCH!!! It's just so hard when you don't believe anymore to sit and listen to the madness.
so, i dont know if this has been posted/addressed here...but watching this whole jackson family thing play out in the public eye is surreal.. the press assume that the only reason mj's brothers and janet are contesting his will and want control of the kids, is money.. seriously...mj's bros and sisters dont need his money: his bros get paid everytime you hear a jackson 5 song.
they're all millionaires.. janet is loaded.
but, the media doesnt know what we know...so they assume that the only reason they'd want mj's kids is for the $$$$ that come along with them as part of the deal.. we know better.. i believe a big amount of respect is due to janet and jermaine and the rest of the gang...theyre trying to rescue those kids from a jw brainwashing fate.. i'd bet money on it.. they say janet was trying to convince paris to willingly leave her grandmothers home and come with them.. im telling you...they're trying to save those kids.. and as any of you who have close family still in the cult can attest to, we apostates are some of the most loving, long-suffering people on the planet...as many of us publicly hold our tongues repeatedly when it comes to that cult, because we dont want to hurt mom, or dad, or kids, or siblings.
When it comes to those 3 kids......It's all about CONTROL! Whoever has control of the kids has control of their lives AND $$$$
OT...wait Janet is DF????
why did you become a jehovah's witness ?.
initially upon entering the religion what were the positive things you experienced ?.
how did that particular way of thinking both benefit and harm you ?.
Why did you become a Jehovah's Witness ? Born in
Initially upon entering the religion what were the positive things you experienced ?I left in my late teens and came back in my twenties. I have been sheltered all my life as JW and leaving was a culture shock. I did not lead a really insane, immoral life but the realities of life slapped me pretty hard. So when I came back, I was grateful for a “sense of security.” and “acceptance”.
How did that particular way of thinking both benefit and harm you ? Being a JW did teach me a measure of self-control. And that’s it in a nutshell. I function better under well thought out decisions AND behavior patterns, but NOT UNDER the control of the org. It literally makes me feel crazy, not to be able to think for myself.
And what was it that lead you to leave the religion ? First the routine: Studying, service, meeting, association…rinse and repeat. It became too much. I honestly felt oppressed and angry about all the things we have to do. It was not enjoyable.
Second, my personality: I am way too free-spirited to be controlled and I fought myself constantly… my mind was not accepting status quo. I always would ask: WHO SAYS? I like to think and I have come to appreciate that it is critical thinking that has been my saving grace. I never knew that was how my brain was working the whole time. I am also a very expansive person and I don’t like to alienate people just because they believe differently than I do. I am a lover…
If you didn't convert and were raised in the religion what was it like being raised as a Jehovah's Witness ? My mom even though she is a die-hard JW was always very aware that we should not feel as if we were missing out. We traveled a lot internationally, we were able to interact with JWs and non-JWs alike, I did extra-curricular activities, and had lots of toys. I don’t feel I missed out on birthdays/Christmas because I knew multiple times a year, mom would take us shopping for fun stuff. We were on assembly parts as kids. But we KNEW we were different but balanced.
I don’t look back on my childhood with regret, it was good.
It’s my adult waking life that I want to redirect now….
i am trying to fade...but its hard because i want scream at all my friends: wake up!!!!!
think with the brain god gave you!!!
(still working on gods existence...).
Rocky_Girl....YEEEESSSS..... I almost dropped the phone when I saw that text!!! I was like: Does she realize how IRRATIONAL that thought is? WOW!
Billy: First let me say... I have been reading a lot and I have read posts that you have commented on and between you an Leoliana(I may have her name wrong) my brain is fried!!!! You guys have an awesome wealth of knowledege..I feel like a JW dunce. And yes...I think have actually been slooooowly waking up from the day I got baptized 20 years ago......LOLOL!
I had this conversation with a friend when I first got baptized( ...I was born in ...left...came back...got dunked) I asked her: What would she do if she woke up one morning and found out the WTBS was dismantled and decimated? She said: Well that would not happen because it would not have been the truth. The weird thing is, I NEVER FELT THAT WAY.
Now I should have known THEN.....ugh...I wish someone had SLAPPED me completely awake much earlier.
I am go glad I found you guys. Now I know I AM NOT THE CRAZY ONE!!!!
i am trying to fade...but its hard because i want scream at all my friends: wake up!!!!!
think with the brain god gave you!!!
(still working on gods existence...).
freeflyingfaerie: Yes.OMG!!! She totally shut down! I was never like this when I was inside. I always gave other people a chance to share their POV. Maybe I was just way to liberal. And looking back I see the distinction I created for myself by being OPEN to all different thoughts.
..I was going to buy Steve Hassan's book today but then I realized that I can't read it openly at home around my JW soon to be ex-hubbie...ARGHHH....But if I find the PDF I can read on my iPad later...
Lozhasleft : I feel you. I did not decide to leave because of doctrine...so I won't try that avenue with my loved ones. I just ask them to THINK about things. And I have been dropping hints about how once I learned and honed my CRITICAL THINKING PROCESS my life got even more better. You have to drop the positives about being able to use the brain to see things from different angles and the fascination behind it! I am hoping that is what will get folks to investigate....
I feel a lot of people do THINK. I see in it my friends, but once you challenge them the brain-washing kicks in...it's FEAR!
i am trying to fade...but its hard because i want scream at all my friends: wake up!!!!!
think with the brain god gave you!!!
(still working on gods existence...).
I am trying to fade…but it’s hard because I want scream at all my friends: WAKE UP!!!!! THINK WITH THE BRAIN GOD GAVE YOU!!! (still working on God’s existence…)
I just had a conversation with a JW friend. She is upset with some JWs because they are friends with a DF person on Facebook, me included. Frankly, the person has been gone for so long, I consider them a ‘worldly’ person. My friend is angry because someone went to the DF person and was asking questions about JWs and of course the DF person gives them the low down, based on the horrible things they experienced.
So I try to get my JW friend to think critically. I asked her if the DF person should not be able to share their POV with someone just because it differs with the her JW stance? I told her, rational thought process should allow for someone to get all POVs on a subject and then let that person decide what to do. And why should she worry, if she, my friend has “the truth” then the person asking will see it clearly.
Well ya’ll can guess what happened! My friend’s brain shut down. She said that she “will NEVER leave the org and trash it…she’s had HORRIBLE experiences and she’s still not leaving and trashing it…too many bible accounts that expose the folly of that…”
I tried to get her to SEE that the DF person is NOT bashing Jehovah but is speaking out about her experience in the org. If you had a bad experience, are you not supposed to talk about it…?
Siiiigggghhhh!!!!
I wish people on the inside would not be so afraid TO THINK for themselves. Just reason things out….think with logic...but they are so controlled...now I see I would not have lasted very long. The longer I spent on my "spiritual vacation" the clearer my mind got. I wish I could take my friends and family away from all of it for ONE YEAR...I think they would see the difference and start asking the right questions....
Thanks for letting me vent, guys!
*Sweetly uncontrollable*
grandma jacksons is mia in arizona, but la police are not allowed to see her.
reported she had a mini-stroke last week.. family members are trying to get temporary custody of michael's children.
could be money involved, as only mj's kids and the guardian of mj's kids get money.
I think Rebbie is the only one who is an active JW.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bf0gnpcjps.
.
cedars.
Having been to a Special Convention...and being completely exhausted from the travel/insane schedule/group control/over hyper-spiritualness/frantic thoughts of lunchtime....
I GUARANTEE NO DELEGATE GOT THAT!
you know what i'm talking about: the trite, often-repeated phrases that convey the person offering the prayer has drawn a mental blank, and utters these words while their brain desperately searches for the next cliche', so they can conclude the ritual with the required tag, "in jesus' name we pray".... (is that like the postage stamp?).
ok, i'll kick this one off, and take the most obvious:.
"forgive us where we fall short....".
"We leave this meeting in your care and keeping..."
That just made me twicth....
"We come before your lofty presence..."
Please forgive me...<mind in the gutter>
