jp1692

Joined

• started 45 topics
• posted 2,020 times   see topics posted on
• send a message

Posts by jp1692

• 
  30

  Why is the approval of family so important?

  by jwfacts in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  one of the reasons people remain pimo is fear of losing family.

  those that are disfellowshipped and shunned regularly comment about how devastated that they have lost the approval of their parents.. when i respond to emails from people saying how difficult it is being estranged or looked down on by their parents, i would like to say that over time they will come to terms with it, except i not sure that people ever do.

  i cannot shake that feeling either.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  jp1692

  WakeMe, those are great questions.

  Rather than hijacking this thread by going off on a tangent, I'll answer you in a PM.
  

  JP
  
• 
  22

  Jehovah's Witnesses denial of what they are supposed to believe from Watchtower

  by jambon1 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  one of the most frustrating things.

  when you confront jw's about what they believe they will often deny it.

  such as "if your child is disfellowshipped then you can't have contact with them ever again".

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  jp1692

  Jambon: Why can't they just own what they are?

  Because that would require admitting that they are in a cult.

  I bet you knew that!
• 
  30

  Why is the approval of family so important?

  by jwfacts in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  one of the reasons people remain pimo is fear of losing family.

  those that are disfellowshipped and shunned regularly comment about how devastated that they have lost the approval of their parents.. when i respond to emails from people saying how difficult it is being estranged or looked down on by their parents, i would like to say that over time they will come to terms with it, except i not sure that people ever do.

  i cannot shake that feeling either.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  jp1692

  Wake Me Up: What does PIMO stand for?

  PIMO = Physically In, Mentally Out.

  At the risk of stating the obvious, this refers to people that no longer believe that JWs "have the truth," but continue to attend meetings and pretend to believe for various reasons--usually to avoid being shunned by their family members.

  As jwfacts wrote: "One of the reasons people remain PIMO is fear of losing family." I would contend that that is the main reason, if not the only one.

  "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." - Edmund Burke, Irish political philosopher (1729 - 1797)
  
• 
  30

  Why is the approval of family so important?

  by jwfacts in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  one of the reasons people remain pimo is fear of losing family.

  those that are disfellowshipped and shunned regularly comment about how devastated that they have lost the approval of their parents.. when i respond to emails from people saying how difficult it is being estranged or looked down on by their parents, i would like to say that over time they will come to terms with it, except i not sure that people ever do.

  i cannot shake that feeling either.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  jp1692

  The short answer is that we are made that way. Hundreds of thousands of years of evolution have left their imprint on us: we are social animals. We need to belong.

  Belonging has been a survival instinct for us and our pre-human ancestors. Ostracism, or even the threat of it, has always been one of the most powerful tools of control of social groups. This dates back to our tribal past.

  It is an interesting sociological question to ask: Why do some people leave a group when the personal emotional cost is so high? This is something I've been pondering and researching for a couple of years now. The answers I've found are not so clear-cut and are largely anecdotal. One this is clear, there is only a weak correlation between intelligence and cult involvement. There are highly intelligent people that join cults and remain in them their whole lives. Conversely, there are individuals of less than average intelligence that seem to somehow be resistant cult propaganda. Interestingly, some studies show that creative people are actually more likely to fall for cult beliefs!

  What does seem to make the difference is that people that leave high-demand, authoritarian environments (that's academicese for "cults") tend to be more personally self-aware of their own thoughts and motivations and have a higher commitment to self than the group. Additionally, they possess sufficient personal integrity and courage to live separately in spite of the emotionally painful consequences associated with leaving.

  I also suspect that many that leave a cult naively think that somehow their ties to their family is so strong that they will be the exception and their loved ones will not shun them when they leave. Agains, it's anecdotal evidence, but my personal experience has been confirmed by reading the stories of literally hundreds of JWs that have left the religion.

  So many people think that if they "just fade" their still-in families will continue to treat them as before. Although it does work out positively for some few, the majority seem surprised to find that they are cut-off completely simply because they no longer "go to meetings."

  To add another perspective to this thread, it's not just painful when parents shun their children, it is also very difficult when children shun their parents.
• 
  28

  Have You Ever Found Yourself Really Not Liking Someone Here?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've been on this board for years.

  99% of the posters here i do not personally know.

  a few, maybe not so much...lol..... do posters here get you upset to the point that you really don't like them?

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  jp1692

  Oh, yeah, but not anyone that's posted on this thread ... at least so far!
  
• 
  30

  Coffee Mugs

  by Iamallcool in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i am thinking about buying coffee mug(s).

  maybe i will get my coffee mug personalized.

  any suggestions on what should be on my coffee mug?

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  jp1692

  How about an image of the caffeine molecule.
  

  
  
• 
  11

  JW Sound System Hacked During Meeting . #jworg #jwonly

  by TTaTT4U in

  1. watchtower
  2. child-abuse

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdfs5b-ant4.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  jp1692

  Psychological warfare!
  
• 
  24

  Do WT Publications Make Us Feel Unworthy, Unlovable and Helpless?

  by jp1692 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  it is my contention that the wtbts, (as do all high-control, authoritarian cults), deliberately cultivates dysfunctional beliefs among its members.

  in particular, the most destructive of these beliefs are those that undermine one's feelings of self-worth.

  for a research project i am doing, i am looking for direct quotes from wt publications that seem to be specifically designed to manipulate the readers into feeling: unworthy, unlovable, inadequate and/or helpless.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  jp1692

  Thanks to all for your replies!

  JW_Rogue: Thanks for the tip. I actually have done that. I was hoping in asking the JWN community that perhaps individuals would share WT comments which personally struck them as manipulative. My thought was that some, maybe all of these, would be quotes which I did not find.
  
  OUTLAW: As always, good pointed commentary concisely stated!
  
  Pete Zahut: I'll try that. Thanks for the suggestion. (Also see my response to JW Rogue above).
  
  Tor1500: Interesting comments. Thanks for sharing. You raise an interesting question: do cults attract mentally ill people or create them. From my research the answer is unequivocally that they do both.
  
  Drearyweather: I agree that the Bible itself is filled with manipulative language designed to control. However, I am looking specifically for quotes from WT literature that deliberately cultivate dysfunctional beliefs among its members. Many "Christian" religions have become very mainstream and effectively only use the parts of the Bible which are socially acceptable. Cults like to use the scriptures to reinforce their controlling agenda.
• 
  44

  I appreciate "our" free speech.

  by The Rebel in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i had given serious consideration too leaving the board.

  i rationalised my views on " muslims" we're not held by the majority so i should leave.

  but this would have been wrong thinking, instead i should appreciate the platform i was given to debate with free speech.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  jp1692

  DOC: The WTS required us to all "think in unity as one". You don't have to do that here!

  And aren't we grateful for that!
• 
  44

  I appreciate "our" free speech.

  by The Rebel in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i had given serious consideration too leaving the board.

  i rationalised my views on " muslims" we're not held by the majority so i should leave.

  but this would have been wrong thinking, instead i should appreciate the platform i was given to debate with free speech.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  jp1692

  The Rebel: I truly appreciate having that voice, having come from an organisation that denied free speech.

  Good for you. Often people that leave a cult have a hard time listening to views that differ from their own. Sometimes it interferes with their ability to even hear or understand what the other person is actually saying because they (unknowing to themselves) filter everything through the lens of their own biases and misperceptions.

  I can't tell you how many times I've been accused of holding ideas and beliefs which I have never even thought let alone expressed.

  Glad you are sticking around!