Posts by Anders Andersen

18

Call for investigation into JW child abuse in the Netherlands

by Anders Andersen in

after yesterday's newspaper articles about how jw (mis)handle child abuse cases, today the newspaper reports that both members of the national house of representatives, and the national commissioner on human trafficking and sexual violence against children are petitioning the minister / secretary of state to launch an investigation into jw and other closed religious communities.. the newspaper article (in dutch).

the newspaper also published the personal story of a victim, and how he fought for justice within jw to no avail.this story is from my home town (just few years before i move there), different congregation in the same hall..

Anders Andersen

BTW (Dutch) people who wish to share a story about (mis)handling of child abuse within JW are invited to contact [email protected]

I guess that every fact that emerges adds to the arguments to start a government investigation...

18

Call for investigation into JW child abuse in the Netherlands

by Anders Andersen in

after yesterday's newspaper articles about how jw (mis)handle child abuse cases, today the newspaper reports that both members of the national house of representatives, and the national commissioner on human trafficking and sexual violence against children are petitioning the minister / secretary of state to launch an investigation into jw and other closed religious communities.. the newspaper article (in dutch).

the newspaper also published the personal story of a victim, and how he fought for justice within jw to no avail.this story is from my home town (just few years before i move there), different congregation in the same hall..

Anders Andersen

After yesterday's newspaper articles about how JW (mis)handle child abuse cases, today the newspaper reports that both members of the national House of Representatives, and the National Commissioner on Human Trafficking and Sexual Violence against Children are petitioning the minister / secretary of state to launch an investigation into JW and other closed religious communities.

The newspaper article (in Dutch)

The newspaper also published the personal story of a victim, and how he fought for justice within JW to no avail.
This story is from my home town (just few years before I move there), different congregation in the same hall.

18

Russia Ban = Armageddon?

by HereIgo in

something tells me that the russian j dub's are secretly rejoicing, having private study groups and convinced that armageddon is upon us.

they will be sadly disappointed.

thoughts?.

Anders Andersen

I have heard similar bs from JW outside Russia: the ban is a sign that Armageddon is near (isn't it always since Paul and Peter wrote their lines?)

The JW conveniently forget that for the last decades they have always claimed

First the UN+political powers destroy all false religion
After that these powers finally turn to kill the JW
Armageddon

In this case,

it's only the Russian government (not the UN)
JW are first to go (besides Scientology that was banned some years ago), not last
The UN has condemned the ban (instead of initiating it)
JW are appealing to political powers to help them (instead of these powers destroying them)

So, no Armageddon any time soon!

JW should really learn what they actually believe.....

21

Huge article(s) in Dutch media on JW child abuse

by Anders Andersen in

so today the well-respected and serious newspaper trouw.nl came with child abuse within the jw as their topmost frontpage article.. the articles are well researched and aim primarily at the dutch jw situation.. afaik at least on member of this forum assisted the newspaper with the articles.

.

other media are picking up as well.....

Anders Andersen

So today the well-respected and serious newspaper trouw.nl came with child abuse within the JW as their topmost frontpage article.

The articles are well researched and aim primarily at the Dutch JW situation.

Afaik at least on member of this forum assisted the newspaper with the articles.

Other media are picking up as well....

26

What happened in 1995?

by pale.emperor in

i was born in 1984 so was only 9yo in 1995. i read on various posts on here and on other websites about false expectations about 1975 and 1995. i'm aware of the 1975 failure but what was said in 1995?.

Anders Andersen

They changed the understanding of 'this generation' from 'those who witnessed the events in 1914' to 'every person alive during the time of the end'.
Which meant that effectively Dubs could not longer calculate 1914 + ~80/90 years and think about how close Armageddon was (again).

Basically the whole idea of 'it will happen within the 20th century' was dumped.
Apparently a lot were disappointed about Armageddon being delayed yet again?

https://jwfacts.com/watchtower/generation.php#1995

40

Some Good News About Me (Although Anthony Morris Will Be Furious)

by pale.emperor in

just wanted to share with you some good news i'm really excited about.

i have been accepted for university to study psychology and counseling.

my goal is to become a counselor and, in time, to specialize on treating those who have left high control relationships/groups like we all did.. it'll take a few years before im qualified but studying in university has been a dream of mine since i was 12, which was systematically dashed to pieces by watchtower.. .

Anders Andersen

Congrats on being accepted, and kudos to you for having such a wonderful plan of using your future time, energy and knowledge to help people!

119

Do I have to believe in Jesus to be saved?

by unsure in

do i have to believe in jesus to be saved?.

i was raised as a jehovah's witness.

i was born in.

Anders Andersen

A very on-topic video by ThereminTrees: https://youtu.be/QRbnws-zITg

Btw all his videos are well worth watching for recovering ex-cult-members.

119

Do I have to believe in Jesus to be saved?

by unsure in

do i have to believe in jesus to be saved?.

i was raised as a jehovah's witness.

i was born in.

Anders Andersen

@unsure,

What the (i)F ;-)

In this thread you have mentioned several times that you 'what-if' everything until you exhaust yourself.

But do you really? And should you?

As for the first question, I assume you really don't what-if everything until exhaustion.

What if Zeus and his homies really exist?
What if Jehovah is the deceptive and evil one who has labelled the True God as Satan and makes Him look bad?
What if the spirits of my ancestors will get mad at me for not offering them food?
What if leprechauns can really give me a pot of gold?
What if the Thetans are really? Should I join Scientology?

My guess is that there are enough topics where you don't what-if too much at all, but reject the claims as baseless or nonsense quite quickly.

It looks like you're hung up on the Biblical/Christian what-ifs. Imagine you were raised in a strict Muslim cult, you'd be having the what-ifs on Quran/Muhammad. It's your background and past that give an air of credibility and validity to your many what-ifs. Change the topic to Mormonism, Islam or Scientology and you're quickly done what-iffing.

Now to the second question: Should you what-if ad nauseam?

Of course you can, but it's a waste of time and energy.

What can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence.

We do this all the time. Doing the opposite would be unworkable. So up to and until you have seen some credible evidence wrt the foundations of your what-ifs, there is no (logical) need to entertain them. But it may be a psychological process that helps you break free from the Watchtower chains....

Good luck!

119

Do I have to believe in Jesus to be saved?

by unsure in

do i have to believe in jesus to be saved?.

i was raised as a jehovah's witness.

i was born in.

Anders Andersen

@Unsure

Lately I've been reading a bit about communication, and (the difference between) abusive and healthy relationships.

Except sometimes I think, what if this draw I have to Christianity is Gods way of drawing me to them? That God, Jesus love me, you know the same tired explanations you hear all the time. What if?

You ever tried to be in a relationship with someone who didn't straight up made clear what they wanted by telling you, but tried to make you do it by 'giving hints'? Or worse, they became grumpy or gave you the silent treatment without you even knowing why?

It doesn't work, does it?

Why would an intelligent, loving God use freakin' hints (like 'drawing you with a feeling') and get angry when you don't get it? Doesn't sound like a healthy relationship to me!

Yes it doesn't make sense, but what if the same old tired explanation of Divine Will cannot be understood by imperfect minds is true? My issue is that I always "what if" each side.

Well if we are incapable of understanding God's will, it would be quite unfair if he would hold that against us, wouldn't it? Like punishing a two year old child for failing to pass for a college exam.

Or maybe God should try harder at explaining his will to us?

It's really not that hard for him. Write it in the sky. Or make everyone hear his voice at the same time. Whatever. As long as the message is clear and available to everyone.

Imagine you'd communicate with your colleagues the same way God supposedly communicates with humans. You'd be fired within a week.

Hopefully, if there is a God, they do not fault me for not ignoring my own logic.

If he would, he wouldn't be worth worshiping anyway. And the very fact that you have no idea whether any gods actually exist, nor what they want, and may or may not punish you for being you...shows that either they don't exist at all, or don't really care what you do and think, or they do but won't punish you for it. Or maybe they would because they're like any other abuser: fault you for breaking rules they never even told you about.

Ah well, my religious feelings are long gone. They were probably already gone when I was still a JW. I never 'felt' God either. Maybe I'm the defective one :-D But at least I'm not doubting, feeling guilt nor anxious. And if whatever type of god wants to have a conversation, my conscience is clear.

119

Do I have to believe in Jesus to be saved?

by unsure in

do i have to believe in jesus to be saved?.

i was raised as a jehovah's witness.

i was born in.

Anders Andersen

The fact that you are even having these questions may be an indication in itself.
If those questions were really, really important - say a matter of eternal life and death - shouldn't the answers have been made abundantly clear to everyone millennia ago?

Would any loving God leave people in doubt about if the answers made the difference between 'salvation' and 'destruction'?

Do the many people in countries with a non-Christian culture (like China, India, etc.etc.) have any chance a finding these questions, let alone the answers? They may never even meet a Christian or see a Bible in their lifetime...

Or...what if it's the Christians who are mistaken, asking the wrong questions - about Jesus - therefore never finding the true way to salvation?

So many questions, and the lack of answers from above is both overwhelming and convincing...(at least to me)