Odrade

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Posts by Odrade

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  39

  Trashed WT's found in Dr.s' waiting room Friday. Do you trash literature you find?

  by Wasanelder Once in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  took the magazines in the waiting room and dumped them in the trash.

  was a great feeling.

  to think many witnoids wont dare throw out the surplus magazines they have in stacks around the house is amazing.

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  Odrade

  Also, I now refer to the literature almost exclusively as "propaganda material." Makes me feel better to call it what it is.
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  39

  Trashed WT's found in Dr.s' waiting room Friday. Do you trash literature you find?

  by Wasanelder Once in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  took the magazines in the waiting room and dumped them in the trash.

  was a great feeling.

  to think many witnoids wont dare throw out the surplus magazines they have in stacks around the house is amazing.

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  Odrade

  Yep, I trash them, usually in the bathroom, because people will dig things out of a paper trash, but not usually out of a bathroom can. If there's no bathroom trash available, I take them home and toss them in the recycle bin.
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  33

  what type of faith do you REALLY want?

  by atheist_R_stupid in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  i find that when talking people who say they "used to be a jehovah's witness" they say words that show they have in fact, never been one.

  it's like a man that worked for the post office for 30 years in a main major urban hub like chicago or new york... and you ask him, "in your last position, what was your rdo?

  " and the man says "whats an rdo?".

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  Odrade

  I've made a deliberate effort to discard JW-sanctioned terminology as part of my personal recovery. I say: 

  "left the watchtower" instead of "no longer one of Jehovah's Witnesses"

  "church" instead of "kingdom hall"

  "door-knocking" or "proselytising" or "evangelizing"

  "converted" instead of "learned the truth"

  "indoctrination" instead of whatever ridiculous explanation for following the FDS is in the latest WT

  "propaganda meeting" instead of Congregation Book Study

  "recruitment training" instead of Theocratic Ministry School

  "tent revival" instead of Circuit Assembly...

  
  

  See how that works? I refuse to abide by their terminology. 
  
  One last point: Independent Thinking is now a badge of honor.
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  28

  A Mind at War

  by cappytan in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  right now, i feel like my mind is at war with itself.. on the one side is reason, logic.. on the other is tradition, hope and fear.. reason and logic are challenging life-long beliefs.

  they are telling me, "is this any more believable than the story of the lord of the rings?".

  certain doctrines of my belief system are crumbling.. my mind still wants to hold on to the belief in a creator, his son jesus and the bible.

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  Odrade

  cappytan, most people arrive at their core beliefs over a lifetime of small decisions. When we leave the JWs, we get a crash-landing in "what do I really think?" It's okay to be confused, and it's okay to believe one thing today and something completely different tomorrow until you get things somewhat sorted. After awhile, you will find you're no longer deciding foundational things, but fine tuning. For right now though, it can feel a little bit like "what's behind door #2?!"
  
  
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  11

  Help with an entrenched family memeber

  by budbayview in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  wanted to send this to my "active" sister in hopes of awakening her, comments welcome.

  she thinks i am a heathen apostate.... losing my religion.

  preface.

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  Odrade

  It's beautiful. But if she is a devoted supporter of WT, this is going to be way above her paygrade. What you've written is heady stuff, and while it may perfectly express your passion on belief, if your intent is to open the door to discussion with your sister, you need to figure out what HER passion is on belief.
  
  To do that, you need simplicity. Her spiritual maturity level is similar to a toddler who hasn't yet learned to see grey areas or spot lies. You cannot teach a toddler with a treatise, as lovely as it is. 
  
  And yet, your simplicity is threaded through the letter, and that is love. So imagine you are having the conversation with a very intelligent child - who if given enough simple ideas, can develop a complex understanding. 
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  8

  Did Guy Pierce Disapprove of All These Changes?

  by thedepressedsoul in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i have been wondering lately if guy pierce did not approve of all these changes like jw broadcasting, the new jw kingdom halls and the direction that they are currently moving in.

  i know that some changes happened while he was alive but a lot of these changes seemed to be pushed right after his death..

  for example, jw broadcasting almost sounds like it was rushed out within 2 months.

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  Odrade

  It was almost as if Guy Pierce wasn’t in favor when one or a few really wanted a JW Broadcasting type thing.

  Doubtful. Pierce was always really pro-technology. If anything, if he were involved in that project, it might have been held up because he would want them to "get it right," which would probably have included not using such a boring old drone for the roll-out video.
  
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  40

  Need advice on a comeback to my wife: when she is in cult mode she says faith without works is dead.

  by goingthruthemotions in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  so i have gotten into arguements with my wife in the past about this cult.

  now a days after reading steve hassan books...i just try and avoid anything jdub with her.

  try to keep her in authentic mode..(not sure she really has one).

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  Odrade

  I think this is one of the things that keeps JWs locked in. They have absolutely no comprehension of the concept of Grace. They truly believe that they can never be worth of God's love, but at the same time, God expects them to earn his love - the love that they can never be worthy of, even when they are working hard to earn it. Etc, etc, etc. It's the most pernicious example of circular reasoning, and I believe it derails their ability to think critically. 

  It's not unique to JWs, this subversion of Grace, most of the high control groups teach the same or similar, that you must prove your devotion and earn your salvation. It's quite incompatible with the concepts of Christ-centered christianity, although wholly in line with Pauline Christianity. 
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  67

  Good Netflix shows to watch

  by Simon in

  1. social
  2. entertainment

  in the long winter nights you need some good tv shows to watch while you wait for the eternity between seasons of game of thrones.. we've watched marco polo (pretty good) and have just started watching orange is the new black which is not at all what i imagined (didn't know it was funny!).

  house of cards is on the list too as we've heard good things about that.. anyone have any others that are worth seeing?.

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  Odrade

  The Fall with Gillian Anderson. Next 5 episodes are about to drop. 
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  7

  JW Doctor mis-Illustrates a Blood Doctrine

  by Marvin Shilmer in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  today i added a new article to my blog addressing an article written by a jw medical doctor in a regional medical journal.

  it's part of an initiative giving attention to how licensed medical professionals among jws have dealt with the blood transfusion subject.

  what they say, how they say it, and what they don't say are all very telling.

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  Odrade

  Poughkeepsie, NY. Pediatrician, and founder of Center for Bloodless Care at Vassar Med. He seems to have his bonafides. Appears he is a convert, came from a Catholic family, so most likely educated and in practice before converting. Interesting that his practice bio says he's a single dad with two adopted children. Just FYI.

  It takes a special kind of mindless devotion to dogma to be a practicing pediatrician and still determined to uphold the ban on blood. Very sad.
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  22

  What if.....the impossible happened?

  by sparrowdown in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  what if the almighty gb announced that all shunning will cease, and next minute all the people who have shunned you start calling and texting saying "hi, we're baaaack, we can talk to you now!".

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  what would do you do, and how do you react?.

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  Odrade

  I can't see that ever happening in reality, but if it did, there are very few people I'd allow to be a part of my life again, if they came around, and I certainly wouldn't go looking for them. Many of my so-called "friends" when I was in, behaved in horrible ways, completely aside from WT doctrine or policy, and I would never choose them to be friends if I met them now, so a shared history is not enough.
  
  The problems with my family also exist partially outside the realm of shunning, but at least if they would stop that crap, there would be a chance of communication in the future, although I'm 44 years old now and they are in their late 60s, so I question whether it would be a matter of "too little too late."