Scully

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Posts by Scully

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  9

  help! husband going to convention

  by leftchica in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  hi friends!.

  so my story is this: i married a jw who was inactive and once we got married he got back into "the truth" and i started to "study" with people in his congregation.

  i had many red flags and was hesitant to knocking on doors, but after a year of "what does the bible teach" being studied with a pioneer and having been pressured to go to meetings, i too, became a jw.

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  Scully

  Conventions are powerful reinforcers of cult mentality.

  When you go to a couple of Meetings™ a week, with the same people over and over again, the social aspect becomes a bit stale, and some people have a tendency to miss here and there, because it is the same-ol'-same-ol' pretty much every week.

  Conventions, on the other hand, are like a blood transfusion to someone who is severely anemic. It's a different place from the routine. It's with thousands of different people. You go out for dinners to restaurants with The Friends™, you all get excited about the talks, and there's a ritual when socializing at conventions to share what you felt was a highlight from the talks with everyone else, and everyone else shares their highlights with everyone else.

  People who attend conventions, though they might be physically tired from the experience, always feel they are Spiritually™ energized. They are on a "high" that can last for quite a while afterward.

  You can be sure that there will be talks focused on avoiding Apostates™ or Apostate Reasoning™. So you may want to cool your jets on that front for a bit.

  What I'd focus on has nothing to do with the doctrines or beliefs. I'd ask How many times did they talk about donating? How many times did they bring up giving them money? Because that is the central purpose for holding a convention as far as the WTS is concerned. And the Spiritual™ "high" that many JWs are on when they attend a convention keeps them from noticing the many times that cash-flow is a priority.
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  150

  How many people watched "The Princess and the Frog?"

  by garyneal in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  how many christians?.

  how many jehovah's witnesses?.

  what do you all think of it?.

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  Scully

  I thought it was a silly movie. Released a few years post Hurricane Katrina, setting the movie in New Orleans was probably already decided long before the movie even got off the ground, but still, I wonder if that was a good idea, from the standpoint of sensitivity to the folks who are really trying to scrape their lives back together.

  I feel that Disney's motivation in making the movie the way it did was so that it could be politically correct (BARF) and round out its Princess Collection™ by adding an African American princess. Probably approved by its legal department and marketing department, and targeted at little girls who like to play princess (and their parents' pocketbooks).
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  44

  Should cult members be allowed to adopt or be foster parents?

  by Mad Sweeney in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i'm wondering what you all think..

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  Scully

  Hello Shelby:

  for the most part, these children would be adults by the time such a thing occurred.

  Of course, that part is true. It's damaging enough for those of us who are rejected by our flesh-and-blood family because of WTS dogma, whether we are children or adults. I mean, I'm looking at my 40s in the rear-view mirror, if you know what I mean, and to know that my JW parents would sooner associate with creepy JW people with inappropriate tendencies toward teenaged kids, and non-JW relatives who drink to excess, fornicate, commit adultery, smoke, etc. rather than me - for the simple reason that I cannot, after careful consideration, believe the way they do - is extremely painful.

  When you take the case of an adopted child, whose biological parents couldn't keep them or didn't want to keep them, being made to feel special by their adoptive parents "We chose YOU!!" knowing that their bio parents chose otherwise, I would think the feelings of rejection would be magnified exponentially if they were to be shunned by the adoptive family as well. I can only imagine the mental gymnastics involved when an adopted child, who is raised in the JW religion, figures out that it's not The Truth™, and knows the ramifications if they ever want to leave the JWs. They truly may not have a single blood relative that they know of to turn to - their feelings of isolation / captivity must be extremely poignant.
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  24

  It has been a year since I started school ** an update**

  by noni1974 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  well this time last year i was waiting for my first semester at college to start.

  i had no idea how i would do in my classes.

  my first semester was a complete surprise for me because not only did i do it, but, i did it well ending up on the dean's list with a 3.57 gpa for the semester.

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  Scully

  I'm so proud of you noni!!

  As a 'late bloomer' myself, I remember the apprehension of applying, then going through the qualification tests, and worrying that I wasn't good enough and that it would be too hard to be a full-time student, wife and mom all in one. I was so excited to make the Dean's list each semester and graduate with honours, yet there was always that little voice that would nag at me and tell me I wasn't good enough - that was my WTS indoctrination loud and clear!!

  I'm so excited for you, and wish you continued success in your studies and your career!
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  44

  Should cult members be allowed to adopt or be foster parents?

  by Mad Sweeney in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i'm wondering what you all think..

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  Scully

  Restricting someone's ability to adopt or serve as a foster parent would totally get the agencies in hot water for religious discrimination.

  Now, having said that, I was completely relieved when a baby was spared from being sent to JW foster parents, with the plan to eventually adopt.

  The fact that it is known that JWs will reject their own flesh-and-blood child if he/she eventually is Baptized™ and is subsequently Disfellowshipped™ doesn't seem to me the kind of environment that will serve the emotional best interests of an adopted child or foster child.
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  43

  R.I.P. *animal*... We'll miss you, buddy... :'(

  by VampireDCLXV in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have an announcement to make:.

  rick henry aka "animal" has just passed away.

  on july 26, 2011, rick suddenly fell ill (for no apparent reason at the time) and had to go to hospital.

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  Scully

  Y'know, I was totally freaked out afraid of Rick and his biker persona when I first arrived to JWD, almost 10 years ago.

  I chatted with him on AOL quite a lot for a few months, and he was a better counsellor than any psychiatrist with a bunch of degrees after their name. He got me to examine and reflect on my own beliefs by always probing and asking why I said or thought what I did. I owe him a debt of gratitude for showing me how to do that, and do it honestly.
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  19

  Polygamist child-rapist headed to prison in TX....

  by SweetBabyCheezits in

  1. social
  2. current

  .

  http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/polygamist-leader-arrives-at-1089456.html.

  ... where, in a twist of fate, he will become the "wife" of another polygamist, known only by the name j.b. juggernaut.. enjoy your stay, mr. jeffs!.

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  Scully

  Good riddance. I hope the General Population gives him the welcome he so richly deserves.
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  43

  R.I.P. *animal*... We'll miss you, buddy... :'(

  by VampireDCLXV in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have an announcement to make:.

  rick henry aka "animal" has just passed away.

  on july 26, 2011, rick suddenly fell ill (for no apparent reason at the time) and had to go to hospital.

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  Scully

  oh no.

  Rick was a good guy, one of the best.

  Cancer of the liver is a bitch.
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  207

  On becoming atheist - the tug of war

  by Nickolas in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  perhaps, if you are a theist, you might not want to read this.

  if you are nevertheless curious about how an atheist thinks, then please read on.. i don't think there are any active members of this board who have been atheists all their lives (are there?).

  i think virtually all of us transitioned into non-belief from a religious beginning.

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  Scully

  Well, I can say that everyone is born atheist.

  To be a theist, a person has to be taught to be one.
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  30

  Do you blame Judas.

  by mankkeli in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  how could judas be blamed, for an action pre-planned by god.

  wasn't he destined?, what are your views on the matter?.

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  Scully

  The role of Judas was necessary to fulfill a prophecy. It baffles me that someone so integral to Jesus' ultimate purpose is so hated and reviled.