the feb 2015 broadcast finishes with a stupid "reminder" to remain united in worship etc.... the real definition of witness life though should be : uniformity!.
there is no room for individuality....there is no room for anything except complete mindless adherence to whatever the 7 in power dictate!.
.
Maybe CONFORMITY is a better word?
Uniformity indicates that we are the same, but CONFORMITY indicates not only do we believe the same, but we have to conform to WTs version of the truth.
They would never conform to any other version of truth but their own.
it has been mentioned on here by quite a few posters that when they let go of the pressure of living up to the standards set out in the wt publications, they felt relief from a strangulating set of rules and regulations which do not truly reflect the kindness and love displayed by jesus.. as more than a year has gone by since i first read the ray franz books and started reading posts here, i recently stepped back and thought about how i now feel.
having always been a boy who can't say no (theocratically speaking) i have just now realized that, yes, i can refuse talks in the tms if i either can't do them or (gasp) don't want to do them.
just last week a well-meaning but misguided elder put me down to take a fs arrangement without asking me, despite the fact that i resigned as an elder last year and had asked for the pressure to be taken off.
i am pretty stunned as i write this post.
i guess i shouldn't be after reading years and years of similar incidents on these forums, but here i am nonetheless.
he was convicted in 2001 of possessing child pornography and sentenced to 1 to 2 years in prison.. .
Glad he couldn't make bail.
It's interesting that you said he had piercing eyes. They say the eyes are the window to the soul.
Sometimes you can look at people and just see that their eyes are dead, no conscience, no human compassion.
http://www.geocities.com/zpg1957/narcissists.htm i've had some narcissistic types in my life and boy, does this article ring true.
(this is not true of my mother but just like a mirror image of my sister.
also reminds me of the dynamics of the wt org.
Though not every detail fits my mother, she did pull off an incredible incident of self absorbed behavior when she was staying with my sister to "help out" after my sister's first baby, a preemie was born.
Her idea of helping out was to basically just take care of the baby. She never thought that helping to cook meals, wash laundry or just, in general help out with household chores should be something she should do.
She lost her s**t when my sister asked her if she'd make lunch. She complained she felt like she was being "used." Then she demanded that my sister and she drop everything and have a discussion about how my sister's behavior made my mother feel.
I caught this conversation and blew up, telling my mother that it wasn't about her and how dare she pull this crap when there's a new mother and a preemie that needed taken care of.
She screamed back at me, telling me it was none of my business and that she would just leave if she wasn't wanted. She went and hid in a room and called my father crying about how she wasn't appreciated. Then she left.
When I was driving home that evening, I called my father and told him the real story, that my mother was out of line, that she was acting unstable and that she really needed to see a doctor (again). He just listened non-commitally.
So, years later, I found out that my dad took my mother's side (classic enabler) and I will yet again go down in the annals of family history as the black sheep.
I was always the scapegoat. Maybe because I always have stood up to her. I have always felt the need to protect my little sister from her because she tends to be more conciliatory towards her and she gets hurt again and again.
What works with people like that? Going low contact or no contact, especially after egregious behavior like the above. She's been behaving okay recently so I am in contact. My sister thinks she behaves better towards me now because I don't need her. And I don't. I can survive just fine without her. And that drives her self-centered self crazy.
when asked, my mom denies that they do.... do local congregations pass along gossip or reports on householders in the area?
specifically, i am wondering if they might report on (unbaptized) family members that live in other towns?.
since the abrupt ending of my bs with miss k, i have not heard from the jw's at all.
Well, Clambake and Aroq, you just don't have a good heart and you're not humble enough to accept the truth, doncha know.
That's why they won't preach to you anymore. You've simply been written off as hopeless.
i read here regularly and although i haven't joined in, i really appreciate all the wonderful contributions from those who are willing to share their experiences.... .
i was a convert.
i won't go into the whole history ( perhaps another day) - my story could easily be recognised in the small town where i live, with my husband.. so, we stopped going to the meetings around a period of time when we were going through severe emotional difficulties - at that point, we needed unconditional family love - the hectic, forced jw dinner parties and social occasions gave no real comfort.
Thanks for sharing, WingCommander. I've heard your story before, but thanks for posting again for the newbies.
Having grown up in the same circuit, I know that it is rife with cliques and materialism. Many business owners who own not only large homes, but large vacation homes. You work for them, make decent money yourself, or you're out of the clique of the "cool kids."
There's a large amount of pioneers, too, but that's just a gate of exclusivity to keep out the "lesser" ones. It's really just a social club that gives you access to the grapevine of gossip
When I'm visiting my mom and someone from the hall calls, you should hear how quickly her voice changes to a syrupy, fake tone that sounds like the talks at the hall. It's all such a sham. She's always done this. She could be screaming her head off, but would turn on a dime when the phone rang, sounding like the most kind, "Christian" person in the world. But it was play acting and fake, fake, fake.
And then there's the bragging about attending large anniversary parties or baby showers or sales parties where you can buy expensive handbags. Or stories of large groups of people vacationing together in a brother's large vacation home which he deducts as a business expense.
I had it out with a sister about ten years ago because she threw a large anniversary party for my parents and didn't invite us children. Even me who is not currently disfellowshipped. Normal people don't do that. They don't have a large anniversary party for a couple and not invite their children! I held them to the same standard of decency as the rest of the world and threw a fit about the rudeness of it all. They are such morally bankrupt people.
i read here regularly and although i haven't joined in, i really appreciate all the wonderful contributions from those who are willing to share their experiences.... .
i was a convert.
i won't go into the whole history ( perhaps another day) - my story could easily be recognised in the small town where i live, with my husband.. so, we stopped going to the meetings around a period of time when we were going through severe emotional difficulties - at that point, we needed unconditional family love - the hectic, forced jw dinner parties and social occasions gave no real comfort.
Hi, Alive! I just wanted to let you know that I hear the amount of pain you are in and you're in my thoughts.
I suffer from bipolar disorder and sometimes the depression gets bad. Psychological pain is real pain and I can empathize.
My advice is to be kind to yourself daily. Go outside and get some exercise in the sunshine. Eat healthy food. Go to the produce section and buy beautiful, colorful fruits and veggies! Take a warm bubble bath. Drink chamomile tea before bed. Get plenty of sleep. Leave your shades open so you wake up to sunshine!
And, please go see your doctor if you begin to feel absolutely hopeless. Depression is common, but a diagnosed major depressive episode can be deadly.
You will be able to build a new life. There are sooo many others on this board who have had their young adult years stolen and who are now building a positive and even exciting new life.
Thank you for dropping in. It will be such a pleasure to get to know you better!
do you help or is this a woman job?
have you change your ways since.
leaving the borg.
do you help or is this a woman job?
have you change your ways since.
leaving the borg.
You're right, cappytan it's a pattern and humans are creatures of habit.
If you make a new habit/pattern to come home from work and just do one small chore before even sitting down, it will become just as natural to you in time.
You've got to harness the human tendency to habitual behavior to your advantage.
For me, I throw in one load of laundry as soon as I come home. It's just like an extension of my work day.
And then you will come to understand why women don't feel their stress go away when the work day is over. Their stress levels are just as high because they are thinking of all the work that needs to be done at home. (the second shift)
do you help or is this a woman job?
have you change your ways since.
leaving the borg.
My husband does the grocery shopping and cooking. When I have to cook, it's very simple fare which he doesn't really care for. I usually do the dishes and clean up the kitchen.
I do most of the indoor cleaning with the exception of the bathtubs. Even with Scrubbing Bubbles, it takes me forever to get the grime out of the tub and he can knock it out in a few minutes!
My son, who is 14, helps with the vacuuming sometimes and yesterday he helped mow the lawn.
My husband does exterior maintenance, but the gardening we do together. He has done the snowblowing in the past, but my son now also helps with that.
I do all the laundry. I also do the finances. These are things I like to do, though.
He does the car maintenance though I pump my own gas.
Home improvement work we work on together, though anything that has to be assembled is my job. I was the one who always stayed up late Christmas Eve assembling various large toys!
I feel like our arrangement is very fair and we both seem to be satisfied.
