Posts by StrongHaiku

26

Charity

by aintenoughwiskey in

jw
friends

we know the wt interpretation of matt 25:40 is support of the anointed.

since most of us here are no longer in that situation, what, if any forms of charity are you involved in?

sorry for the awkward framing of the question, it's not meant to imply atheists, or non-christians are not charitable!

I think you ask good question and you hit on a profoundly human need to help each other. Since I have left the JWs, I work with a number of charities for health, justice, and a better planet. One of the best times I had was serving food in the local shelter during Christmas. We are wired to do good beyond what any religion and scripture prescribes.

However, if you are looking to help and don't know where to start, act locally. There are lots of people around your vicinity that need food and services. In addition, the so called "worldly people" have a better handle on what things to contribute to than most JWs. Asking the people around you is a good place to start.

One thing I realized when you leave and want to help is that the problems in the world can seem overwhelming and makes it hard to know where to start. Start locally, simply, and do a small thing every day.

On a side note, one of the things I have been working on in my spare time (for fun) is to develop a set of heuristics that will help evaluate what people care about (via a simple guided questionnaire) and match them to a charity. I think, people want to help but are often overwhelmed. Also, I have also changed my investments so that I support companies that improve the world and/or have strong socially conscious policies, even if it means a loss to my bottom line. Act locally. Think globally.

57

Did you make stuff up without realizing it when you were in the 'truth'(TM)?

by punkofnice in

recently, since my d/aing, i've heard the same old cobblers has been said to and by my family members.

(more than likely referring to me).. ''jehovah(tm) will judge.

he knows who will survive and be destroyed at armageddon.

StrongHaiku

My mother is anointed and for years she would have some wild speculations. Some were pretty crazy, while others made pretty good sense. She would make us swear not to share with anyone lest we stumble someone or go too far ahead of "Jehovah's Chariot" or simply, not look crazy.

One that stands out was that she firmly believed that we would eventually master interstellar travel in the new system (i.e. that this would be "New Scroll" information). She knew that the billions of resurrected people (~100 billion if you start at ~50,000 BCE) would not fit the Earth and there was a large universe out there. I totally agreed with that at the time. She also speculated that perfect humans would be revealed technologies not yet imagined.

I am convinced that wild speculation is one of the coping mechanisms for people who stay in...

14

Normalcy bias keeps JWs from leaving

by zimunzucz in

i have been frustrated by the inability of most jws to escape their bondage to the kh, despite repeated exposure to negative information about their religion and belief system.

perhaps it's due in part to something called normalcy bias- a definition i have found is:.

normalcy bias is part of human nature and, to some extent, we are all guilty of participating in it.

StrongHaiku

Good post. I would also add the human bias for "loss aversion" as a contributing factor. Once you begin to be invested into something (even if it is a losing proposition) it is very hard to stop. Our brains are wired this way (and, apparently so are other primates). The more you become invested (e.g. time, resources) on something, the least likely you are to quit EVEN IF one realizes that it is a losing proposition. This bias is what keeps Las Vegas humming day and night. This is why people often screw up their investment and stock portfolio. It is also what may keep many people in the Organization from walking away.

30

The Verdict: God is Not Good.

by cappytan in

jw
friends

not sure if this video has been posted before here or not, but it is a powerful scene.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dx7irfn2gdi.

i haven't watched the entire movie yet, but from this scene alone, i will be..

StrongHaiku

Thanks for sharing, cappytan. I will look that movie up. Very powerful. I wished more people would have that moment of lucidity and introspection. I wish it would not require horrible suffering to realize we are better and more moral than God. We all are.

7

Things that make you go "hmmm"

by leaving_quietly in

got a phone call last week, but i didn't recognize the number, so i didn't answer.

no voice mail was left.

or so i thought.

StrongHaiku

I agree with sir82. It is very likely that they are behind schedule.

However, one question that would make things a bit more clear to me is "what skills are they asking for?". That might help determine their rationale.

9

Interesting RC Experience

by Blackfalcon98 in

i recently attended the rc for my area.

while there, i encountered a old family "friend" who recently lost her jw husband.

as the interaction proceeds she relates that her grand daughter, who's around my age (early twenties) has "left jehovah".

StrongHaiku

sparrowdown - If you do not educate yourself on WT history and policy you are in danger of returning later in life.

So true. Many who leave, don't get an adequate education on not only in WT history/policy but other topics (e.g. science, critical thinking). I find it a shame that people who wake up to the idea that they have been indoctrinated to be so sure of beliefs would not be able to take just take 5 minutes of their time to learn how to question all their beliefs. To me, these seem the most susceptible to either going back or ending up in yet another religion/cult.

That is what happened to my brother. In the time he was out (~10 years) he neither examined the problems with the JWs and with religions and Gods in general. He didn't fill his head with science and critical thinking, etc. He was never able to fill the spiritual/superstitious void so, he went back.

41

Missed it by that much ----------23

by John Aquila in

i almost had a freaking heart attack.

i even threw my coffee cup at the wall and starting yelling like crazy when i got the the 5th number correct.

i was checking my texas lottery ticket for this past saturday.

StrongHaiku

Unlikely that my $5 bought me the winning ticket. But it did buy me 5 minutes of a fantasy where I take my winnings and set up a foundation to put ex-JWs through college. Priceless...

43

Change to dress and grooming rules for JWs in USA soon?

by RayPublisher in

my guy with the lurk account on jwtalk (where all the kool-aid drinking jws go to talk about how wonderful 'the twoof' is) sent me some more interesting threads, here's one:.

spoiler: starting new the new service year september.

"there will be new directives from the branch through the circuit overseer on dress and grooming that will disqualify one to be a congregation publisher.

StrongHaiku

Soon, JWs won't be able to wear wool and linen together... Oh, wait... That's been done...

41

Missed it by that much ----------23

by John Aquila in

i almost had a freaking heart attack.

i even threw my coffee cup at the wall and starting yelling like crazy when i got the the 5th number correct.

i was checking my texas lottery ticket for this past saturday.

StrongHaiku

I went out and bought a few lottery tickets in your honor...

10

How long will it take?

by John Aquila in

at some point in the future, it has to finally dawn on people that something is seriously flawed about the idea of jesus coming in the clouds to save everyone who believes- and kill everyone who doesnt..

will people still believe in jesus in another 1000 years?

will people still be saying in the year 5015;.

StrongHaiku

John Aquila - The doctor tells him he has beginning signs of throat cancer.He either need to quit or face the consequences. The cognitive dissonance that was causing him to rationalize away the information that smoking is bad, it now out the window. Now he realizes he needs to do something or he will die earlier than he anticipated.

I totally hope that "Cognitive Dissonance" has its limits. I really, really, really do. And, I hope that there are large numbers of JWs who have limits and will wake up. You named a number of JW scandals that may have shaken some, which is good. But experience has shown me that there are people who, no matter what, will "ride that bus all the way to the end". My grandmother smoked even when she was in an oxygen tent. Some people never learn.

I really have no hope for my family. But I truly wish that there will be many who will run into limits of their cognitive dissonance.