Mystery

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Posts by Mystery

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  55

  So, what's stopping you from going to the hall?

  by JH in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  2 elders came to my door today, at noon sharp, and i opened the door to let them in.

  they didn't want to come in, so they stood at the door and asked me, "what's stopping you from coming to the hall"?

  they only come once a year and always around christmas time.

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  Mystery

  • The view of "we are right and EVERYBODY else is wrong".
  • Shunning
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  26

  The longest registered newbie

  by greatcrowd in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i am an ex-witness who faded from the religion about 4 years ago.

  interestingly, i am not new to this board because i have been lurking here for over 2 years and enjoying the great wealth of spiritual food here.

  i feel so connected with many of the posters here because of my passive involvement with this board.

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  Mystery

  WELCOME -

  I have found more healing and conviction here than I could have ever dreamed of.
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  20

  Curiousity about current JW Views on going into churches

  by Brymichmom in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've been following a thread on another forum where jw's are insisting that it is ok for them to go inside churches for weddings, funerals, etc.

  they say it's quite ok to go inside any church just as long as they don't participate in the service by singing, praying, kneeling...etc...some of them say that they have seen "guest speakers" in churches who came as watchtower representatives.

  when did this ever change?

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  Mystery

  My dad was an elder - he would not go into a church and made us believe (at a young age) that if we did we would pretty much be "struck down" by Jah.

  Then, suddenly, his brother was getting married and he told us that we could go to the wedding. Myself and my brother and sister were thrilled! We walked up to this HUGE, BEAUTIFUL building and went inside. People were everywhere! My uncle was standing at the front of this room surrounded by candles and flowers and his friends were standing with him. I was absolutely fascinated! (He was only 2 years older than me) It was one of the most beautiful sights I had ever seen. There weren?t any chairs in the room, just these long benches. Dad let us set down but he stood in the back against the wall. The organ music was astounding. A few minutes later the bride stepped into the room. She was absolutely beautiful!

  This was the type of wedding that I wanted!

  As she walked toward my uncle, everyone stood, she reached him, and everyone sat. Throughout the ceremony everyone kept sitting and standing, sitting and standing. I was really confused at this point. I whispered to my mom and ask ?why is everyone standing and sitting, standing and sitting?? My mom answered ?don?t do it, it is the devil that is making them do it.? I was so upset. If we were in a place where the Devil could make people do this, (and smile while they were doing it!) why were we here!!? It was the first ?church? I had ever been in. I felt like I was doing something wrong. Everyone was so happy. But how could they be? they would DIE at Armageddon! How could my parents bring me here!? My dad, in the past, would not go to funerals because they were in a church; but now for a wedding he would? He would let the demons and the Devil get me just because his brother was getting married. (How total ignorant I was!!)

  Another time that we went into a church is when we went to Mexico. My dad loved going to Mexico (we always went during Christmas break). We went to this really small village. There were small shacks everywhere. In the middle of this village was this huge white church. We went inside and there were candles everywhere and a coffin. I went over to the coffin and there was a man in a white robe. I was told that he represented Jesus; but that all these people were wrong, that he wasn?t Jesus. I guess this increased my doubt of JW?s having the true religion. These people, as poor as they were, would bring candles and pray with more conviction than I had ever seen in my entire life. If these people, who were less fortunate than my family, could still have such belief, how could they be wrong?

  But one of the most puzzling things that happened, happened the following day. We had this guy ?show us around? the remainder of the village. He was telling us the history etc? he mentioned that there were Satanic worshippers in the village. My dad wanted to know more about them. The more the guy talked of them, the more my dad was interested. He told us that he could take us to where they worshipped; my dad told him to take us. He said that it would be a long walk and it was not easy to get there. My dad paid him extra. So we went; we walked, we climbed this ?mountain? so that we would be able to see where the Satanic worshipers held their ceremonies. My dad had asthma, really bad at times. The more we climbed, the worse his asthma became. My mom, sister and brother stopped about ½ way up. The guide, my dad and me kept going. We reached the top of the ?mountain? and there was a circle of stones and several small stone ?alters?. When ask about the bones and ashes the guide told us that they basically sacrificed small animals, not anything more. My dad was fascinated by the site. I was completely taken back. Not only had my elder father stepped into a church that had ?Jesus? body!? but he was also in a Satanic ?church?!

  After that my doubts became more and more obvious.
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  42

  Would you do this to your kids?

  by Euphemism in

  1. social
  2. family

  a lot of cell phones now contain locator technology, either in the form of a gps transceiver, or a system based on triangulating cell towers.. some parents are using this to track their teenager's location at all times.

  "before, they might not have told me the truth, but now i know they're going to," said mr. lutz, 46, a lawyer who has been particularly protective of britney and her sister, chelsea, 17, since his wife died several years ago.

  "they know i care.

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  Mystery

  If I had not have ?invaded my son?s privacy?, he may not be with us today.

  If we as parents wait for something drastic ? you may have waited to late. I began looking for ?what was wrong? when the little things began happening over and over.

  I, like LyinEyes, have a house full of kids constantly. We turned our garage into a game/pool/stereo hangout for the boys and their friends.

  Next year begins the ?I can drive now?.?; will I put a GPS on his car or have a locator cell phone? I haven?t decided yet. Will I at the first sign of any difference in my son ? absolutely!
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  18

  After JW, do you hunger for all the things you didnt do..simple things

  by LyinEyes in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  being raised a jw, i honestly did not know what a great big world we live in.

  all the places i never went to see, things i wanted to do,,,, because i figured , i will just do that when the new world gets here.

  there was always going to be forever to do all the things that make life interesting.. i settled for the here and now as a good jw, meetings, field service, studying the same material over and over in the wt publications, and that was my life.

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  Mystery

  I agree with everyone.

  The only problem I have now is telling my teenagers "you just don't know how well you have it - I never could........ (fill in just about any social activity)". It is difficult for me to let them do the things they want to do, because "I want" them to do it all; because i couldn't.

  But I am fulfilling some of my "childhood wants"; I am involved with my sons. I coach & have not missed many games of any of their sports. Most of their friends call me "mom". I don't go on their dates ; maybe that is one "JW thing" I should have stayed with . "not letting them date until they were 30.

  All and all, I like most of you, am living each day instead of existing; Billygoat stated one of my favorite saying, and I completely try to live it.
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  84

  The Elders Are Getting Opinions About Minimus

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  my mother told me that her bookstudy overseer asked his group this question---"why do you think a mature brother in the truth would just suddenly leave and stop coming to meetings?

  any ideas?

  " the group gave different opinions and finally he gave what he thought could be the reasons.

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  Mystery

  You must have been pretty special at the hall and had a lot of respect from "publishers" for them to try to destroy your integrity and honesty.

  Just think of anyone else in the hall that has questions in their mind about it being the truth. All the sudden this well respected brother just suddenly walks out and hasn?t returned. Maybe their questions are gnawing at them even more so now?

  By elders bring it to light - just maybe it will make the more intelligent ones think a little harder about "the real reason" why you really left.

  Maybe you are helping someone else out that you don't even know about.
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  22

  After Baptism Was There Anything That You Didn't Comprehend About The Truth

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've seen a lot of persons that got baptized and go thru 100 questions with the elders say that they did not know that such and such a thing was a disfellowshipping offense.

  or that they would be counseled or looked down upon for a certain thing.

  did you ever experience that type of thing?

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  Mystery

  Sentinel said "Actually, at age thirteen, it all sounded like the best promise of hope one could have. To live forever on a paradise earth. It seemed simple. It wasn't. It became very complicated the older I got. Too many rules and regulations that kept "changing".

  I agree. At 14 it was "the best promise" I was ever given! Hey! we are better than everyone else. (Wasn't better than other JW's - but I was than everyone else on the earth!) We were going to live forever! And I had the knowledge and the power to convert them to be the "only true religion"! I knew the "truth!!!" and "they" didn't. Who would ever want to go to heaven??? We were going to live here in a paradise, play with lions, tigers and bears and things....

  What a bunch of hogwash!
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  17

  Field Service Hours

  by Mystery in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  my "jw" family came down for the "thanksgiving" holiday.

  my mom & sister - my sisters family - my full time pioneer niece (17 years old).

  we were sitting around playing cards and my niece was writing letters inbetween deals.

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  Mystery

  asleif_dufansdottir - Good point, Euph. In our old cong there were almost no new converts (and only a few kids baptised) the whole time we were there. We thought it was just our territory...you always heard stories about people in other congs who had studies and made converts...

  It seems to be the same way in my families cong. I hear a lot of stories about the same people that were there when I was but nothing about new baptised publishers - except unfortunately my 3 nieces. Thank God they live 700+ miles away!

  Thank you fo the insight on other field service hours.
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  15

  An allegory: The Twelve Brothers

  by seattleniceguy in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  when i first was beginning to see the light, i wrote this allegory as a spin on the old "what if you found a house in the middle of a desert" illustration witnesses use all the time.

  i wrote it to explain in non-threatening terms to my witness friends the way i was seeing the universe.

  just thought i'd see what you all think..... * * * .

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  Mystery

  One boy looked inward by sitting daily in quiet contemplation of his thoughts and feelings.

  I am not a boy but......
• 
  17

  Field Service Hours

  by Mystery in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  my "jw" family came down for the "thanksgiving" holiday.

  my mom & sister - my sisters family - my full time pioneer niece (17 years old).

  we were sitting around playing cards and my niece was writing letters inbetween deals.

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  Mystery

  My "JW" family came down for the "Thanksgiving" holiday. My mom & sister - my sisters family - my full time pioneer niece (17 years old).

  We were sitting around playing CARDS and my niece was writing letters inbetween deals. My mom ask her what she was doing. She answered "I am writing letters to put into Watchtowers. I am behind on my time this month."

  I was completely floored! She put in "three hours" while we were playing CARDS!!!!! I don't know about anyone else, but when I grew up as a JW we had to BE IN field service. Not playing cards and writing letters.

  The following evening my niece ask my mother if she could count her time if she was on the internet talking to a possible JW? Apparently the girl she was talking to wasn't baptised yet, but she planned to be soon. My moms answer: Yes - if she isn't baptised you can count your time.

  Is this really what "field service" has came to?

  I really don't expect much response to this post but this has really bothered me since they left. Is everything about field service hours now? Then again - maybe it always was & I was just (at the time) to ignorant to know.

  Something else that was VERY strange during their visit (4 days of staying at my house) - my sister ALWAYS bought liquor (she likes frozen drinks) during their visit (for the past 5 years) to my house. This time she didn't bring or ask for anything. I offered her a glass of wine and she looked at me like I had lost my mind! Is there a "new light" on drinking as well?

  Just a personal account of my life with my JW family.