You won't believe he invited me to a cong light refreshments on Saturday night and said we were invited I said I think that might be a bad idea ,because if someone asks me why I no longer go I don't want to tell them the truth .I think he only invited me was for the sake of the wife and son who turn up 20 minute before the "burning "ended . My son is long haired apprentice tradesman who puffs to much weed and loves meditating, I think the party might not end well.
Posts by Chook
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45CO visits me today
by Chook ini'm at home and hear knock on door , i sneak and look i see two men and recognise one voice and go back into lonunge and ask wife ( who is inactive believer) does she want to speak to elders ,she says no ,then literally 3 minutes has pasted another knock the 3 minutes seemed like an eternity.
so brave heart me think fuck it i'll answer ,i invite them in for coffee, i recognise one older man he is a unique elder who i genuinely was fond of when i was in his name is andrew ,the other guy i didn't recognise we will call harry ( not real name australia doesn't have that many cos with his same name).
so i think to myself i will tread lightly and not cause to much of a fuss for the wife's sake, but my personality is very the opposite of treading lightly ,as you read my threads you will realise i'm not timid.
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19
What is your story?
by HereIgo ini thought it would be fun to get to know each other's background a little better.. what brought you into the "truth"?
were you born in?.
what caused you to have doubts?.
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Chook
I had a truly free childhood even to the point of to much freedom. My father was a hard working man who gave us a comfortable life ,the big " BUT" is he wasn't real emotional or warm to us ,he was from a family that was that way , and he loved beer I mean lots of beer, so volatility was at times lurking. My mother is a rockstar of a woman she worked like a dog for years as nurse on night shifts which bring there own problems ( like having nannies before school ) and sleeping when we were playing, she done years of 4 hours sleeps so me and my two brothers could have a comfortable life.
Of us three boys I was the wild one, and I truly believe wild ,for example when JW pioneers girls I went to school with said they skipped my house witnessing. I grew up around hippie culture that surrounds the hills of my childhood , you know the music of Jethro Tull, Bob Dylan , Neil Young ect ect. My childhood friends were loyal to point of extreme. Police never got us as children to collaborate stories," no comment " was tattooed into our hearts. These friends would literally give their last $20 if I asked ,one day when I was eighteen I rang a friend and asked could you come and get me I need a ride home ,he said I'll leave this afternoon for the 1900 km drive to pick me up , 3 days later he was there. These friends did not reject me because I became a JW ,I left them because of a JW teaching . Why I hooked back up with these guys again they held nothing against me for disappearing from there lives for 27 years, JW friendships are not of the same calibre.
My brothers are good guys one is a catholic priest who is Australia's priest for the army, my other brother is the boss of an Australian state heritage department as the head architect he is gay with a really nice partner who is a rockstar anesthetist. And mighty me a degree in window cleaning. My mom said that if she writes a book about us boys it will be called " The Priest,The Prophet ( me), The Poof ".
I when I was twenty I go off the rails ,to much drugs and emotional probs , I start asking the big life questions of why are we here? Then I get a worldly female friend of mine give me a red book called " paradise book" , I read this book in 3 days and went to KH on my own in shorts and tee shirt, the girls from school informed their dad the elder to watch this bad apple, i was that keen I literally went to a door to door with an elder 7 days after going to the hall. The elder wasn't that keen on taking me, but I done a deal which went like this , he will take me down one street and I will agree to two studies a week and no more witnessing I agreed. My real childhood nickname is chook ,when I first when to the KH the girls from school who were even in my same class didn't no my real name because even my teachers called me chook.
Then the prophet evolved called chook who took all the wrong turns in giving my children a life of child abuse in the form of no birthdays, no school camps, no sports teams, no worldly friends when the kids lived on rural properties which can become prisoner camps for these kids ,but I let the kids do soccer but I was to late on a lot of the cults behaviour reversals, I let kids when they were young to have guns,motorbikes, and I encouraged adventure,but I gave to much TIME to the JW church at the expense of the kids.
Now I'm at the crossroads as a inactive, not disfellowshipped apostate , who won't go down quietly, its the least I can do as a return favour for the church is to return the same zeal I gave them, I went witnessing by myself when I was in, also I was a regular pioneer . I've had people say I'm crazy in the head , I say you have know idea what is in this crazy head.
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45
CO visits me today
by Chook ini'm at home and hear knock on door , i sneak and look i see two men and recognise one voice and go back into lonunge and ask wife ( who is inactive believer) does she want to speak to elders ,she says no ,then literally 3 minutes has pasted another knock the 3 minutes seemed like an eternity.
so brave heart me think fuck it i'll answer ,i invite them in for coffee, i recognise one older man he is a unique elder who i genuinely was fond of when i was in his name is andrew ,the other guy i didn't recognise we will call harry ( not real name australia doesn't have that many cos with his same name).
so i think to myself i will tread lightly and not cause to much of a fuss for the wife's sake, but my personality is very the opposite of treading lightly ,as you read my threads you will realise i'm not timid.
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Chook
No Lou, l said in my final parting that my beliefs are the same as Geoffrey Jackson who said it would be " presumptuous " to believe JWs are the only Chanel.
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26
Finding out that jws are not what they make out to be
by nomorepain13 in*warning this is long* it all started on the last day of the "remain loyal to jehovah" convention.
a little background story, i've been raised as a jw, been in and out of the religon, never baptised but was made an unbaptized publisher about 3 years ago, always felt out of place in the congregation, blamed myself for this because if i had just went to meetings and did all the right things then i would have friends and not be in the mess that i was.
right after becoming an unbaptized publisher i met my now fiance, end up leaving my mother's house to live with him, elders haven't contacted me about my situation even though i'm sure they know as my step father is an elder...but anyway on the last day of the convention my fiance came with me as i was visiting my mother and had planned to go with her and her husband to the convention.
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Chook
If it saddens you what is taught can it really be teachings from god .Gods teachings should only bring joy. As Lisa is Rose said trust your instincts, its this invisible intuition that has saved many humans their lives in emergency situations, trust it. Also remember there is a large possibility that if God really cares about his people ,then this group is not his people.
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45
CO visits me today
by Chook ini'm at home and hear knock on door , i sneak and look i see two men and recognise one voice and go back into lonunge and ask wife ( who is inactive believer) does she want to speak to elders ,she says no ,then literally 3 minutes has pasted another knock the 3 minutes seemed like an eternity.
so brave heart me think fuck it i'll answer ,i invite them in for coffee, i recognise one older man he is a unique elder who i genuinely was fond of when i was in his name is andrew ,the other guy i didn't recognise we will call harry ( not real name australia doesn't have that many cos with his same name).
so i think to myself i will tread lightly and not cause to much of a fuss for the wife's sake, but my personality is very the opposite of treading lightly ,as you read my threads you will realise i'm not timid.
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Chook
I'm at home and hear knock on door , I sneak and look I see two men and recognise one voice and go back into lonunge and ask wife ( who is inactive believer) does she want to speak to elders ,she says no ,then literally 3 minutes has pasted another knock the 3 minutes seemed like an eternity. So brave heart me think fuck it I'll answer ,I invite them in for coffee, I recognise one older man he is a unique elder who I genuinely was fond of when I was in his name is Andrew ,the other guy I didn't recognise we will call Harry ( not real name Australia doesn't have that many COs with his same name).
So I think to myself I will tread lightly and not cause to much of a fuss for the wife's sake, but my personality is very the opposite of treading lightly ,as you read my threads you will realise I'm not timid. 30 minutes pass of small talk then the warrior rises to the challenge ,this sheparding call went for nearly 3 hours . I don't no where to start ,it might not be in exact chronological order but it's all absolutely true. CO assured me what I say would not be used against me ( I didn't care at this point) I say my faith is challenged, CO why? I ask him will god hold responsible religious leaders who go beyond what's written and it costs the believer their life , to which the CO said yes, then I proceed to tell him my experience of being bitten by second most venomous snake in the world and needed antivenom which I go on to explain that JWs used to forbid , it fell into category of vaccinations and blood fractions ( it's made from horse blood). I say to CO if I was bitten 40 years ago as a JW I would have died based on a man written rule of a governing body that went beyond what's written. I proceeded to tell him how brothers lost their life on the issues of organ transplants, blood factions and also marriages were destroyed when they made rulings on oral sex ,then I asked did they go beyond what was written,of course you could see him feel uncomfortable. Then I tell him about the blood issue and reason with him how god made exceptions to the rule when the soldiers ate the unbled meat and Jesus in no uncertain terms made it clear that breaking gods law to save a life ( when sheep fell in the well on the sabbath ) was the greater good. I proceed to tell CO that if god holds these guy responsible for the deaths of these mislead parishioners then I don't want to be any where near mr Morris or Lett when the flames hit Warwick. I said the legacy of broken marriages and children without parents due to elders making rulings on things like oral sex , I told him the church ( I always referred to KH as church ) has made dozens of rulings over the years which literally cost people their lives and marriages.
Then I tell him about the disfellowshipping practice which in 1947 awake said it was a pagan practice, I ask him which is it , is it pagan or was god not directing the brothers when that article was written. Then I tell him about the suicides after people have been disfellowshipped for crimes that the leaders went beyond what was written. I go on to explain how I arrived at my best friends house an hour after he cut the rope from his child's neck and I then explain how this boy had emotional demons caused by the religion, I go on to explain how the boy was having trouble getting reinstated once due to hardline elders. I said if the clergy have a firey judgement , then there a good chance fire and sulphur could be headed to Brooklyn. My wife was kicking me under tithe table during all of this.
CO goes on to tell me it's gods organisation to which I respond by asking that if God chose the WT then is he aware of some of the crackpot beliefs back when it was founded, I explained in finished mistry book signs for end of world barbed wire ,push bikes, then I tell him about the WT that said about fondling babies genitals leads to the child becoming a masturbater.
Then I ask why does he think it's only JW who will be saved when it was a catholic monk who put the vowels into tettrigramiton( my spell check is shit ) or that the bible books were compiled by people who we would consider as Babylon the great.
Then I proceed to explain my wordly childhood verse the one I subjected my children to ( no sport, no wordly friends, no school camps no no no no no.) Then I tell him how my children observed how an elder stole the family trailer and another elder physically shoved one of my children verse their uncle who is a clergyman who took my kids on holidays with them and treated the children with respect. I said ask my kids who reflected Jesus more. I go on to explain how I sat at my kitchen table in the past and had a CO lie to me and when I pointed out to the CO and the elder with him I didn't believe their statement and the we should approach the person together to see if this is actually true the CO refused to go. I tell Harry the CO at my house today that that I have no fear of their boogeyman Judical procedure which I'm in agreement with the 1947 wake and think it's pagan, also I told him the father of the prodigal son didn't wait six months for the family BBQ wither the son.
Also I raised the issue of the preaching that didn't reflect first the century , I said could you imagine them standing on the cobblestone paths with a cart not approaching people with their scrolls and counting hours that have to be sent to Jerusalem for record collecting.
Then I ask if Jehovah witness is gods true religion why did Jesus never utter the name Jehovah , also I said I think if God wanted his people to be called that his son would of mentioned that.
I go on to tell this CO that an elder told me once I was sinning against gods Holy Spirit , and I replied that if my wife was in agreement with me is she sinning against the Holy Spirit to, to which the elder said yes. I go on to explain to Harry the CO that the fear factor has no power over me, then I say the clergy may have hell but your guys have your own name version called Gehenna where the fire never goes out.
It went on in this manner for 3 hours ,to which Harry the CO as leaving assured me when leaving that nothing I said wouldn't be used against me. To all my prophetic friends on here I want to see who of you guys can predict what will happen to me in the future regarding the church.
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21
Do Jehovah's Witnesses view the governing body differently since seeing them on the TV?
by jambon1 ini think this may be a bigger issue for the society than we realise.. when you consider that witnesses have now had well over a year of regularly seeing their 'channel to god' with their own eyes, what do you think they're thinking?.
i'm going to put this as respectfully as i can; these men are clearly a bunch of utter clowns who are laughably inadequate to present a tv show, but also, they are now ridiculously discredited due to the absolute shite that they've spoken in these laughable productions.. consider things from a jw's perspective; tony morris, stephen lett & geoffrey jackson are 'the channel' that makes their religion 'special'.
these men are the channel god is using to lead his people in the modern day.
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Chook
It doesn't say much for God choice of his representatives, when these men are seen at assemblies it gives the audience a free circus. Think of the 12 apostles then think of the 7 apostles, it hurts the brain. Appearing on tv is dumbest public relations move or gods on OUR side by revealing the truth of these guys
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16
What happens to the elders?
by Worldling9 inwith so many khs closing and congos consolidating, what happens to the elders?
clearly there won't be a place for all of them.
would the older ones be the first to go, losing their long held positions of 'power'?.
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Chook
It just means more dickheads gather in one spot
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IF the elder were paid, how would it change the organization???
by James Mixon inthere would be lot more brothers reaching out that's for sure.....
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Chook
The CO are paid, you can see the finished product.
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25
Is disassociating worth the hassle?
by HereIgo ini have been out now for 6 years but lately i have been giving some thought to da.
i just kind of feel that chapter in my life is still open and for some reason i feel like da'ing might close that chapter but i'm not entirely sure.
im not df either, when i left i basically faded and disappeared.
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Chook
There's the thought it would be waist of a postage stamp. If you have any family that's a consideration. Then there is the thought of not having to answer to them (which is my line of thinking). If DA floats your boat sign it with a amen from me. DA would be ok if you got off there database, but I think the cult has everyone on it for life. You could say in your letter you will change your mind if bro Lett rings you to discuss your doubts, I promise ph won't ring.
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Going To A Christening Next Week
by pale.emperor inso my girlfriends, friend has invited me to her little boy's christening.
6 months ago if you'd asked me this i'd have recoiled in horror.
in a catholic church?!!!
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Chook
Even when I was in I didn't fully believe in the boogeyman effect of Christendom and its churches ,my brother being a catholic priest has introduced me to dozens of good hearted and honest clergymen, I even used to stay at the church residence with my family when I would visit my brother ,the Catholic Church in Kiama Australia has a rockstar view on absolute oceanfront . My brother now is the Australian army chaplain for catholic boys ,he done time in Afghanistan reassuring the boys gods on their side. Some of the best architecture is found in church's, even JW on holidays in Europe visit the cathedrals. As pointed out earlier at least the catholic child baptised can change religions later in life and still have family relationships.