Posts by Oubliette

9

Toss a smart bomb

by Giordano in

i meet regularly for a bro lunch with a couple of friends of mine.

the conversation is usually first rate and free flowing.

one day we were talking about education and i mentioned that having been raised in a cult i had passed on college...... to pioneer.. .

Symptoms of Spiritual Weakness - Elder's Manual

by cappytan in

lack of self-control in eating, drinking, and pursuit of pleasure;.

so, let me get this straight.

enjoying a fancy meal, appreciating the finer qualities of libations and deciding to enjoy life by pursuing pleasures (bike riding, hiking, camping, fishing, reading, movies, golfing, etc.

Oubliette

Morpheus: Once they are labled they can be dismissed and their ideas dont have to be consodered [sic] as valid.

Yes, it is this dismissiveness that is essential to their manipulation and control.

It is a passive-aggressive assertion of authority.

30

Symptoms of Spiritual Weakness - Elder's Manual

by cappytan in

lack of self-control in eating, drinking, and pursuit of pleasure;.

so, let me get this straight.

enjoying a fancy meal, appreciating the finer qualities of libations and deciding to enjoy life by pursuing pleasures (bike riding, hiking, camping, fishing, reading, movies, golfing, etc.

Oubliette

It's informative to analyze this as the manipulative tool that it is.

The WT leaders make a list of behaviors that they don't like and label them with a denigrating term: spiritually weak.

Note that the list includes a variety of behaviors and attitudes that an individual might have. These are indiscriminately lumped together as if they might have the same root cause. This is clearly NOT the case.

A person that has a drinking problem should not be categorized with someone that has doubts (lingering or otherwise) or someone that has legitimate complaints about the actions of the elders or the WTBTS.

And yet they just lump them all together. Why? Because the WT leaders have learned the power of conflating different issues as a means to manipulate and control.

This expression can then be used to paint someone unfavorable. When a JW calls another JW "spiritually weak" it frames the situation such that the one doing the labeling is assuming a position of strength and authority.

Usually, the one so labeled will not contest the phrase. They may even believe it themselves due to their indoctrination. But even if they don't, they know that arguing the point will only cause them more trouble.

The reality is this: when an individual realizes that JWs do NOT have "the Truth," and that they religion is a sham led by hypocritical cowards and liars, they have some serious decisions to make. A person that is emotionally and spiritually strong will leave the religion.

Often, what the WT labels as "weakness" is actually strength. The heroes of the Bible stood up against wrongdoing, hypocrisy and lies. Those in power never like that.

Some things never change, just the names ...

BTW, apparently the phrase, "spiritually weak" does not appear in the rNWT. I did a search on jw.org and got this result: Sorry, the search returned no results.

30

Symptoms of Spiritual Weakness - Elder's Manual

by cappytan in

lack of self-control in eating, drinking, and pursuit of pleasure;.

so, let me get this straight.

enjoying a fancy meal, appreciating the finer qualities of libations and deciding to enjoy life by pursuing pleasures (bike riding, hiking, camping, fishing, reading, movies, golfing, etc.

Oubliette

Cappytan, great thread!

So I wanna know one thing. Since I'll be labeled as "spiritually weak" if I am "overly critical of elders and the organization," what amount of criticism is acceptable?

How critical can I be without it being "overly"?

lol

51

NEW 2012 Elders book with 2015 Amendments

by Newly Enlightened in

thanks to jw archive wiki we have a pdf of the new elders book.. https://www.dropbox.com/s/mz9z38909t3fh7c/2012-shepherd-the-flock-of-god-ks10_e.pdf?dl=0.

Oubliette

Millie, I'm not sure I understand your questions as they seem to be asking different things.

Let me take them one at a time:

doesnt that have the potential to be stabbing themselves in the foot?

Well the WTBTS and their leaders are always doing that, aren't they. They don't really know how to motivate, but they do know how to manipulate, so that's what they do.

Less men reaching out?

This is always a problem in pretty much every congregation.

When I was an elder, I always wondered why so many long-term "brothers" simply coasted along at the status quo and wouldn't "reach out." Although they didn't seem content to just coast, they would never "do enough" to be appointed as a MS or elder.

Now I believe it that they actually do NOT want to be actively involved. Probably they have serious doubts, maybe they don't believe any of it at all, but they are not willing to take a stand and quit the religion. I'm sure it's usually the family pressure, but likely most of them have not sorted through all the psychological manipulation and control. They simply know they just don't want to do it and are ok being labelled as "spiritually weak" as long as they don't have any "responsibilities" in the congregation and they aren't getting disfellowshipped. It's JW limbo.

Is the new light on brothers not being MS =not being marriage material going to be enough of a carrot to counter the general apathy and lack of reaching out?

I doubt it. It might work on a few individuals. The WTBTS is forever making silly little rules and then saying, "But we aren't making a rule about it!"

Let's review: It's a cult!

51

NEW 2012 Elders book with 2015 Amendments

by Newly Enlightened in

thanks to jw archive wiki we have a pdf of the new elders book.. https://www.dropbox.com/s/mz9z38909t3fh7c/2012-shepherd-the-flock-of-god-ks10_e.pdf?dl=0.

Oubliette

Splash: So you CAN associate with disfellowshipped relatives without fear of being DF'd yourself, so long as you don't discuss spiritual things!

Yes, but anyone that does that "would not qualify for congregation privileges, which require one to be exemplary."

So the elders have a tool of manipulation to hold over anyone that breaks their precious rules: don't let them give talks, hold the mic, pioneer or whatever. Although to most of us here, those things are not important, we know that status is everything in the KH.

Only recently, one of the GB members said in a talk that if a young man was 23 and not yet a MS, then he was not marriage material. Just imagine how congregation members view someone not even qualified to carry a microphone. It's social death.

Let's review: It's a cult!

23

A Subtle Factor That Keeps Witnesses Silenced

by freemindfade in

had an interesting thought this morning.

when a witness is 'in' they think everyone else is following and trying there best all in unity.

i believe the reality is there are a lot of us 'in' who know different.

Oubliette

HB: One of my closest friends is outwardly a JW, but hates the religion, it sickens him, and he feels he has wasted his life in the cult but remains for the sake of family peace.

That is a wasted life.

It's bad enough for a person to be imprisoned by this belief system, but once they've become aware that it's a high-control, authoritarian cult, to willingly remain is spiritual and emotional suicide.

It takes courage to stand up for what is right. It is a shame for a person to allow their personality to be crushed by another.

3

"How many mistakes in one paragraph?"

by Doug Mason in

does the following paragraph on page 22 of the june 15, 2015 watchtower magazine provide an accurate assessment of charles taze russell?

does this paragraph contain mistakes and omissions?.

when the time approached for gods kingdom in the hands of jesus to start ruling from heaven, jehovah helped his people to understand the timing of events.

Oubliette

Doug, thanks for the very detailed analysis.

The WTBTS "traces all things with accuracy" and then publishes whatever the hell they want.

Truth is irrelevant. The Bible is a prop.

Let's review: It's a cult!

21

Do JWs suffer from Stockholm Syndrome?

by campaign of hate in

jw
friends

this topic is what what it says on the tin.

do jws suffer/are suffering, from stockholm syndrome?.

getting abused (mentally) and then seem to form a relationship with the captives (wtbts).. there is also a condition called oslo syndrome, but haven't read up much about it.. personally, i think i might be suffering from the former.. would love to get a few opinions.....