Posts by Pete Zahut

11

All JWs need to watch this great documentary...it may give them pause for thought.

by deanxxx in

i know how hard it is to awaken people still inside the cult bubble.

there are many reasons for this, chief among them the unwillingness to read or watch anything critical of their religion.

on the other hand, jws love few things more than hearing bad stuff about other faith groups.

Pete Zahut

Looks like it's on Hulu.. but you need to have Showtime as well. Prophet's Prey Documentary

40

Who Picks The Governing Body?

by millie210 in

hey everyone,.

just a simple straight forward question on exactly what the process is.

if a gb member died tomorrow, do the remaining ones choose who gets to be next?.

In the old days, without him knowing about it, they used to put a Bound Volume of the years Watchtowers under a stack of mattresses and have the potential candidate sleep on it (princess and the pea style). If he couldn't sleep that night, they knew he was GB material.

Nowadays with the CD's and all, I'm not sure how they go about it but I'm sure it's all very scientific.

77

Trying To Leave - Im Going Crazy

by pale.emperor in

this is my first post.

i really feel i need to leave the jw's rather than go along pretending everything is perfect etc.

no friends, me at work.

Pete Zahut

That's quite a story P.E. and unfortunately not an isolated one. So much of what you said about the social hierarchy growing up, brings back bad memories and this business of elders discussing with their families what was meant to be confidential, is all too common.

When one lays their JW story out in order as you have, it's obvious that something is very wrong with the religion. All the clues are there an yet as they are happening, we see them one by one as isolated incidents that are easy to excuse on their own. One day we realize these isolated incidents have joined forces and we wake up knee deep in a tangled mess that takes a major life change to get out of.

Anyone reading your story can see that the remedy to this situation very obvious and that you know what you need to do. The trouble is, it's better to live with the devil you know than to face change and the unknown.

Hopefully your wife has stopped going to her father with tales about you. That would have been a deal breaker for me if my wife did that. Since you were so understanding and forgiving about her marriage ending actions with that "elder" she will in return be supportive of your decision to stop allowing this religion to run your life. Most of what you will have to deal with to make this happen, is uncomfortable and inconvenient but the growth you experience will be worth the temporary discomfort.

You knew that showing up to the meeting with a beard would have an adverse effect on your situation. It seems to me that you can drag this thing out by going back week after week for more or you can just stop, say nothing, answer no questions, give no excuses just simply stop going there and let the cards fall where they may.

By the way, what happened to that elder ??? Seems to me he should never be in a trusted position again.

What about your father and his cancer treatments. I'm hoping he survived.

63

Tight Pants

by pixel in

today is friday.

so let's see something refreshing on the new june 2016 study wt.

tight pants!.

Pete Zahut

Remember when we used to go from door to door and place magazines that featured ridiculous topics like this, with the public ?

56

A fresh start

by FormerlySandL in

after the worst introduction i could ever make on the forum i would like to reintroduce myself and make a fresh start on the forum and hopefully over time i will be able to redeem myself.

i have changed my user name which was over dramatic and ridiculous in the cold light of day but for transparency and to show i am not trying to hide anything i have adapted the original name and it now has a more positive feel.

after reading a lot of posts on this forum i am feeling more optimistic about my future.

Pete Zahut

Hello FormerlyS&L,

First off I'd like to say that despite the already enormous pressure you're under, I admire the way you continued to hang in there during your the not so friendly introduction you had on this site. I'm glad you gave us another try and understood the suspicious reaction (including mine) that your first post was met with. It speaks volumes about you and how you must have been as an Elder. Thank you for realizing that we are a large group of folks who were once trusting but were deceived in a very big way and are determined not to have it happen again. We are in various stages of repair and growth and some of us have a way to go yet.

It seems to me that you are the very kind of person who should be and elder yet time and time again, the good ones, the honest and caring ones, like you are eaten alive by the political bureaucratic aspect of the position.

As bad as things seem right now, can you imagine how it would be if you'd have given in to the pressure to marry and were now, on top of everything else, having to go through a divorce and possibly have children involved? In my case, it was the gruesome loss of a family member due to the blood issue, that started my journey into the Jehovah's Witness no mans land, that we all have experienced. I'm glad you don't have that to deal with in addition to what you're already experiencing.

No matter how many experiences I hear like yours, it astounds me how horrible these supposedly loving people can be to those who's life situation for one reason or another has become in their view less than the cookie cutter perfect image they expect to see. When they see someone like you having doubts, it scares them to their very core. Their beliefs and faith are on shaky grounds and require constant bolstering. They cannot tolerate seeing any sort of weakness in others and will go to great lengths to punish anyone who reminds them of their own.

Anyway, it seems like you've been able to set the initial panic aside and are thinking more clearly and positively about your next steps. I'm glad to hear you've been able to backpedal a little with the elders and buy yourself a more time. This time next year, you'll have grown and gain strengths you never had. In the meantime, I hope the advice you have been given so far has been helpful and that you'll continue to keep us posted as to your progress.

27

BEWARE - More force adding on FB

by JRK in

jw
friends

they are doing it again.. a new group trying to boost membership is adding people without permission.. "ex-jehovah's witnesses aka behind the veil of jw.org" added me this afternoon.

they were bragging about how quickly they grew to over 2000 members.

i quickly exited the group.

Pete Zahut

Check your groups on FB next time you are on.

So am I missing something... what's the name of Tim Nasson's group ?

161

I am leaving the JW's . I am alone and scared. Advice and help needed please

by scared and lonely in

i am sorry that on my first post i am asking for help and advice but i am at my wits end.

i have been brought up a witness all my life and it is all i know.

i am an ex-elder and pioneer and i don't know anybody outside of the congregation.. i have been unhappy for so long and wanted to leave.

Pete Zahut

I've got to say, there's a lot about this situation that doesn't add up. Unless you are extremely young, I can't imagine how someone who qualified to be an Elder could be so lost as to what to do. Hopefully you are just being overly dramatic about your situation and things aren't as bleak as you describe.

Assuming this is all true, it seems to me that if in fact you are losing your place of residence and your employment because of a change in your religious belief, you very likely could have a legal case against those who are discriminating against you.

I'd go to the local police and explain your situation and ask them what would happen if your parents told you to leave but you refused to go. It may be that they would do nothing in a case like this and especially so if they know the situation in advance. This could buy you some time to find another place to live.

I'd also look into free legal advice that may be available in your community or one nearby organization that advocates for those being discriminated against and find out what your rights are if an employer fires you because of religious reasons. I'm sure there is a government/labor/ human rights kind of agency in your area that might be interested in knowing what your are going through. You knew enough to set up a gofundme account, it seems to me you'd know that a few well placed Google searches could tell you everything you need to know in terms of human rights and employee rights. Armed with this information, you may be able to go to your employer and show him what he will be up against if he fires you. I'm assuming that up to this point he has been satisfied with your work. It would be highly suspect if he were suddenly claim he wasn't satisfied with it and have it coincide with your leaving the Witnesses. You could also let him know that if need be you'll be informing his customers what he's doing to you.

If any of this is true, it seems like you are allowing this to happen to you as if you are powerless. My goodness, you are virtually letting them run you out of town. These folks only have as much power as you give them. You sound as if you've given your self over to them and are making it easy for them to walk all over you. I'd say no more about your thoughts about the beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses or discuss anything with them until you have your head together, know your rights and have a plan.

In the end, it sounds as if it is high time you got shaken out of your postage stamp sized JW fueled dream world. If this is a hoax, hope you had fun.

26

only 90

by pepperheart in

shucks only 90 teaching books trashed last week still there is a new week starting lol

Pete Zahut

Taking books from the carts makes publishers think they are making placements and doing something worth continuing with.

Not a recommendation because it wouldn't be a kind thing to do, but if these 90 books were rendered useless and then sent to the congregation they came from and identified as having been obtained from their literature cart, it might make a statement but it would also serve to feed their persecution complex and make them feel extra virtuous.

Having their very existence ignored, would be harder for them to take than actual opposition. As far as I can see, people are staying away from these carts, in droves. This literature cart thing might just fizzle out on it's own. Letting time take it's course rather than resorting to these kinds of destructive measures ourselves, keeps us from actually becoming what they believe we already are.

19

A Good Decade

by theliberator in

if you were really into the organization back in the 80's, you have to admit, that it was the peak of the organization.

it was a time of high energy and excitement.

like any nation, it reaches a peak and then it declines.

Pete Zahut

I think your view of a particular time period as a JW, depends on where you are in your life and what you've already experienced. With the advent of the JW dot Org Website, JW TV and shortened meetings etc, people of a certain age are feeling the same way today about being a JW as you were back in the 80's when they came out with videos and cassette recordings etc. As it was back in the day all the evidence is there, yet a certain amount of those involved today who are at just the right juncture in their lives, think everything is new and exciting and still think they are on the right track.

To me after living through the 1975 hype, there was a sense in the 80's of "hey....weren't we supposed to be in the "New System" by now....who wants to read all these new books that explain the same old thing....a thing that never happened?

I think back in the 80's, newer or younger ones likely felt the way you described, because they were projecting their own feelings onto the experience, the way we all do.

37

Notable changes of the JWs org, in the last five years or so

by glenster in

i've been updating the links at my web site and i'm working on the gtjbrooklyn pages now.

what would you say are the several biggest changesin the jws organization/rules in the last five years or so?

Pete Zahut

Hard to choose the biggest change but apart from the changing doctrines, selling the properties and moving out of Brooklyn, laying off Bethelites, closing Branch offices and getting rid of the Special Pioneers etc was a significant indication of deep problems going on.

As far as them appointing themselves as the Faithful and Discreet Slave. I thought this is how they've viewed themselves since the C.T. Russell days. Didn't this idea come from his wife and she pushed her husband into reluctantly pursuing it?