Future World

Next week we welcome in the New Year and I hope everyone is doing well and will continue to make plans to have a prosperous life away from the organization of Jehovah's Witnesses (JWs). I think this organization truly has had its day and we are seeing that it is losing its influence in our lifetime.

In December 2014, Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin canceled New Year's celebrations due to a severe economic crisis, something no one would do in corporate America. They celebrate no matter what is going on in the nation. In 2017, we saw the complete ban in Russia of the JW organization with properties seized and supposedly, the Watch Tower corporation didn't see a penny from those properties they owned in that country. Yes, I have heard about wheeling and dealing with transferring deeds of properties to the JW membership and trying to hang onto what they have and hopefully sell off the properties so the Watch Tower leadership can pocket some money from those sales.

Interesting that a few years ago is when President Putin was supposedly secretly dating a very famous model and she was raised as a JW. The story goes is that her mother was a well-known dancer and had many suitors while she was a JW. She had an affair and claims to not know the father of her now-famous daughter, who she tried to raise as a JW. Yes, I think you know who I am talking about, it's the famous model Naomi Campbell, raised as a JW when she got her break in modeling and was introduced to American audiences when she had a guest spot on the Bill Cosby Show as a teenager. However, when Naomi grew up and became very famous I wonder if she acted almost like Mata Hari the dancer who was also a spy during WWI, and maybe had a small influence on the decision of President Putin in regards to the Watch Tower corporation operating freely in his country. Who knows, but we know the JWs in that country are still free to worship their own god Jehovah but they can't formally meet and have their own Watch Tower properties.

Ex-JW Naomi Campbell may have influence in Russia and
also dated the billionaire Vladimir Doronin.

There is much speculation on the Internet as to what may happen with the Watch Tower corporation, will it go on-line only, will it just shut down completely, will it downsize and struggle on for many years to come? No, I don't know and probably taking a guess would just be futile. Please know that the corporation is wealthy beyond our imaginations and it can morph into anything it wants since it has followers who live in fear day and night of a god of destruction that will kill them if they don't continue to go to the meetings, preach door-to-door, hand out JW literature, having no true friends only comrades fighting together in a figurative war against this ungodly system of things while they plod on in their lives never progressing, never changing, always under a self-imposed struggle over God vs Satan. It's all a sad cycle of self-abuse going nowhere.

I hope you continue to follow me on this blog site and hope you take some time to support me here and purchase my book if you feel so inclined. I think you will find it interesting to see how I was raised in the organization and read about a few of my personal battles and perhaps you can identify with my story.

In any case, I wish you much health and happiness in the coming year and hope you can find the courage to walk out of the JW organization and make 2018 your year to think about moving the JW policies out of your life and more of your own policies into your life. Policies that involve developing friendships at work, with your neighbors, and think about solid plans for a future right here and now on this planet. Stop thinking about some future world that may or may not exist. Whenever you stop and think about where you are in life and about planning for the future or thinking about past mistakes, you are right here and now in the present. What can you do right now that will benefit yourself? Knowledge is power, not rights, doctrines, edicts, or policies that you may rehearse and memorize and are terrified to defy. Stop and think about the here and now, and you will eventually find your heart's desire.

#jehovahswitnesses

#jworg  #jehovahwitnessactivism

#happynewyear

The Annual Tree Sacrifice

How many trees die for the Christmas celebrations each year? Christmas is almost a global celebration in this day and age, it's not just in Western culture but everywhere since it means corporations make a lot of money with making it almost a law that everyone celebrate Christmas and start buying tons of products and get them gift wrapped and placed under the mandatory Christmas tree each year.

Growing up as a Jehovah's Witness (JW), I only experienced Christmas when we lived near my "worldly" paternal grandparents who were devout Catholics, and Christmas meant midnight mass and having a devotion and reverence to Jesus Christ who died for all of us, that we may have everlasting life in a paradise. My grandparents had a beautiful large Christmas tree in their home that filled an entire corner of the living room where all the presents under that tree were mine. 

The adults didn't exchange gifts but they had lots of food and wine and I still have a memory of my grandfather giving me a taste of whiskey in a tiny glass. I always had a love of horses from birth and one year I have a particular memory of a gift that was a metal truck horse trailer filled with plastic horses, an arena I pieced together and tiny bales of hay. When we left the celebration and got back home, my present was placed in a closet and I never played with it again. My mother told me it was off limits and to not take it out of the box. For kids, time really means nothing so I don't know how long it was after that Christmas with my grandparents that we packed up and moved away from them and somehow that gift they gave me didn't make it into our boxes for the movers.

Since we were now alone without any worldly influences from non-JW family members, we were fully engulfed in the JW congregation we attended and had no friends or contact with any non-JW on a personal level. Any outsider was treated with cold detachment and politeness, but nothing else. Christmases came and went as I wondered if we would ever have a big Christmas tree in our home like my grandparents had. I never asked my parents about it, I just waited and wondered.

Actual photo of the annual Christmas tree
display at Union Square in San Francisco
that I remember seeing as a child.

My parents liked road trips to San Francisco since we lived in the country and I saw the biggest Christmas tree imaginable in a department store. The storefront was all glass leading up to the top floor, it was all open so you could see all the floors and the Christmas tree was on the ground floor reaching up to the top. I never saw anything more beautiful in my life. I told my mom I wanted to see it from the top and my mother said no, we don't celebrate Christmas. My father said nothing as we walked past the storefront and for some reason, it caused me deep embarrassment that I asked to see the tree top, since I wanted to see all the decorations and what was on the top of the tree. I don't know why I had that reaction but I felt cut to the heart. My mother's response was so cold and mean, like I had said something horrible that other people could hear.

Neiman Marcus, San Francisco, CA.

Now that I have left the JW organization, I have never had a Christmas tree in my own home. I still feel a detachment from the celebration. I don't mind that other people celebrate it and string lights around their homes, it can be very pretty, but I don't care about it. I do get a bit troubled by all the trees that are cut down for the holiday and then are thrown in the garbage like trash. I feel that people have no respect for nature and this annual tree sacrifice should stop, but then I stop and think, why? Why do I feel so upset about that? Why do I feel sorry for the trees? They are cut down and dragged into homes and then dumped in the street or in garbage bins like they were never living, beautiful things. 

I find it extremely humorous when I read about people so devoted to their non-belief in God, they believe in nothing, no Higher Power, no Grand Creator, nothing, not even in any sort of afterlife, yet some go nuts if they can't have that Christmas tree in their home whether they have JW family members or not who would object to such a display. Even some ex-JWs who have left God behind race out and buy that Christmas tree. I consider myself a spiritual person and do believe in a Creator of all this but not of the Christian God of the Bible, however, Christmas holds no special meaning for me, I can take it or leave it.

But then I wonder, well, I guess the Christians have adopted this time of year to celebrate the birth of Christ and it's really only a secular holiday to get you to separate your hard earned cash from your wallet and has little if anything to do with spirituality. So there are always two sides to every coin.

What am I doing this year? No, I still do not want a Christmas tree in my home, not even a small one, it holds no value or meaning of anything to me. It's just a tree sitting in my house that I have to clean up and haul it outside to be picked up by the garbage men come the New Year. I do enjoy the colors of the season, scented candles, and gathering with friends or taking a long trip to the snow and renting a cabin and enjoying hiking and sitting by the fireplace at night. 

I like this time of the year with the Winter coming and I cherish the memories I have of my paternal grandparents and of their honest and sincere kindness and religious devotion at Christmas and going to mass. I remember kneeling with my grandmother at her altar in her home with small porcelain idols of the Virgin Mary and tiny religious paintings of the Christ, as she taught me how to pray on the rosary with each bead a separate prayer and her love remains a strong memory that makes me smile to this day.

#christmas  #jehovahswitnesses

#jesuschrist  #holiday  #wintersolstice
#jehovahswitnessactivism

Is there a God?

This is the age old question of the universe. Is there a God? Why did he/she/it create our universe? Ask 10,000 people these questions and you will get 10,000 different answers. Yet this time of year, we think about God and humanity and that since there is so much suffering on the planet, many choose to not believe in God and everything was put here by chance via a Big Bang Theory or evolution or whatever belief system makes you feel comfortable. 

No, I am not an atheist, agnostic, creationist or any kind of ist or ic, but believe something did put us here on this planet for whatever reason, and they are long gone conquering other worlds. I am pursuing a spiritual existence, not a religious one, and have a concept of heaven or wherever we ascend after death. Since no one knows any absolute truths about the afterlife, choose what makes you happy. But this planet of ours is too perfect in how it works for some Higher Being to not have set it all in motion. One slight hairline distance off course would send this planet into a freezing nightmare or a fiery furnace and snuff out all life in an instant. 

A humble person cannot think all the beauty around us and perfect rotation of this planet, the way the ecosystem works, the perfect system of rain, sun, wind, oxygen, how our bodies function, on and on, was all by chance and it wreaks of a fearful person who wants no responsibility for their life now on this planet and no responsibility towards anyone else. They may feel that it's all for nothing, all chance, so let's eat, drink and be merry while trashing the planet or its inhabitants since it all might go away tomorrow and nothing matters anyway.

Surprisingly, Jehovah's Witnesses (JWs) believe this too but in the opposite context. They feel that because they believe in a God they call Jehovah, that they too have no responsibility towards this planet and its inhabitants that it's all up to Jehovah to fix any problems on this planet, whether it's maintaining the environment or providing a better future for its people and animals. They are pacifists that go door-to-door in a preaching work to distribute their own literature and to gain recruits, or to warn people that Jehovah will soon destroy them in a global Great Tribulation leading to Armageddon where every non-JW and their Bible studies or their kids [depending on what the JWs believe as the responsibility of toddlers, whether they will survive Armageddon on mom and dad's coattails is up in the air]. Yet these pacifists do not blink an eye with killing themselves or a loved one that needs a life-saving medical blood transfusion since their God Jehovah is a blood-thirsty being that demands your life, and Jesus' blood sacrifice means nothing, but us humans have to die for Jehovah too. It's a hate-filled belief system that I left and want nothing to do with again. I know, you say religions incite wars and violence too, but I choose to not join other churches either.

However, since the JWs teach an anti-Christian belief system, when people leave the organization, many fall into non-belief, that there is no God, the Bible can't be trusted, it's all man-made stories since that is how you were programmed once you leave the JWs, to deny Christianity as a whole. Mainstream Christianity basically is all the same, the teaching that Jesus died on a cross not a wooden stake, that maybe there is a triune God where Jesus said at John 14: 8-10 that if you have seen him you have seen the Father. So JWs are purposefully anti-Christian to draw you away from the Scriptures or other ancient texts. So when you leave the JWs, you are already programmed to not believe in anything.

Once you decide to leave the JWs, you find you have no real Bible knowledge since the JWs draw you away from Christianity. If you can recognize this early on in your recovery, you may find a way to still have a belief in God and Jesus and find hope that this world is not doomed to destruction and that only JWs will be saved, or maybe there is a Higher Power that is in control and we are all spirit beings having a human experience. 

I found a YouTube video that helped me with this subject. It is from the British comedian Russell Brand. He provides commentary on every subject imaginable and also provides help from addictions of any kind, not just certain substance abuses, but it can be related to any type of addiction. But he clearly provides examples of why he believes in God, maybe not strictly the God of mainstream Christianity, but I will summarize his statements here. 

Russell mentions Stephen Fry, the British comedian, commentator, writer, and activist, and he is a famous non-believer in God and points out all the atrocities of this world and why any loving God would allow all the suffering so it proves there is no God at all. 

Granted, we don't know why but it seems that we are all under a microscope and God is watching what we do and say and how we act towards one another since he is making all things new, a new heavens and earth where we shall all reside after this life is done [my thoughts, not from Stephen Fry or Russell Brand].

Russell talks about Joseph Campbell, a cultural mythologist, who stated that all religions are true in that they are metaphorically true. Religion is an attempt to explain the unknowable. The same way science is an attempt to explain the unknowable. Science can explain the mechanics of the universe, the mechanics of biology and anatomy, but can it ever explain the why? Why are we here? Why is all this happening? What is the reason why we are here. What is the nature of the universe? 

I thought those points made sense. Science cannot explain the "why" of anything, just explains how things work yet science cannot create life. Yes, they can create certain strains of bacteria or plant life and interbreed animals to develop knew breeds of dogs or cats, but not from the dust of the ground can they create a human or animal yet believe everything is just chance with no meaning, so why bother. Why have any motivation to do anything? Which is why you see groups of people doing nothing but existing.

In a book called Biocentrism: How Life and Consciousness are the Keys to Understanding the True Nature of the Universe, by Robert Lanza, MD, it addresses that creation has flaws in its doctrine and in received physics. In the last few decades there has been discussion of a basic paradox in the construction of the universe as we know it. If the Big Bang Theory had been one part in a million more powerful, it would have rushed out too fast for the galaxies and life to have developed. If the strong nuclear force were decreased by 2 percent, atomic nuclei wouldn't hold together and plain vanilla hydrogen would be the only kind of atom in the universe. If the gravitational force were decreased by just a hair, stars including the sun would not ignite. These are three of more than 200 physical parameters within the solar system and universe so exact that its strange credulity to propose that they are random even if that is exactly what standard contemporary physics boldly suggests.

Terence McKenna, an American ethnobotanist, said that the perspective of contemporary science is that give us one free miracle and we'll explain the rest. That free miracle being the universe sprang into being with these exact rules that are required for life and consciousness to exist. Russell Brand [in his commentary] believes that what Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Jainism, etc., are trying to do is to make sense of our position, our perspective as wake, conscious sentient beings within the infinite. 

Russell says he believes in God and that his understanding of God is that his consciousness emanates from a perspective that passes through endless filters, the subjective filers of the senses and his own biography choosing what he likes and doesn't like, what he wants and doesn't want, what is good or bad. But behind of all that, there is an awakeness and awareness that sees it all, and its in Stephen Fry, in all of us, an interconnectivity. None of us can know if there is a God, but we do know there is an us. None of us can know if there is a wrong or right but we do know there is an us.

Stephen Fry believes we should abandon God to be free yet Russell believes the opposite, that we should embrace God to be free. Not embrace dogma or doctrine but look at what is in religion even conventional religion has beautiful thoughts. Stephen Fry brought up the story when Jesus told the scribes and pharisees that wanted to punish an adulterer by stoning her, which was the law of Moses at the time, that Jesus said that he who is without sin to cast the first stone. So there would be no judicial system if we followed God.

Russell brings up the opposite point of that Biblical story. Jesus was saying that the pharisees thought of themselves as perfect and without sin, so why were they condemning a woman who had sinned. So how could you apply that judicially with contemporary times. Well, you could say that when you are condemning murderers to acknowledge that within us all is the capacity for evil. I think this fact makes us take a step back and look at the root of evil, how it develops in some people and not others and we can influence people for the good of society.

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, a Russian novelist, believed that the line between good or evil runs not between nations, religions, continents or creeds but through every human heart. So when you are judging the worst criminals possible, to acknowledge that the thing within them that has manifested this negativity is also within us. Our first duty is to negotiate the negativity within ourselves and if we can successfully negotiate that, then we can create a better society and know how to deal with the negative elements of society.

I believe the sentiments of Russell in that we are temporary manifestations of something greater, something timeless and spaceless and absolute. Every dogma including science has tried to explain this and has failed. We can contribute to the good of others and help alleviate suffering.

To see the full video on this topic by Russell Brand, 

click on the link below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Run1jpZvS4&list=PL5BY9veyhGt4wDkOHf2UU-xIUInj3ZPs2&index=4

I think as we head into this holiday season, we should be mindful of our thoughts and actions and realize we can influence this world for the better, and not give up on the hope of a Creator of all this. Don't cop out as they say, and think your life doesn't matter, when it matters a great deal. Why do atheists procreate? What's the point? Why is it so important to leave a legacy on an earth that can be gone in a second based on mere chance, maybe on another Big Bang explosion. Because someone has a master plan for all of this, there is God within us and something greater than us does exist, not a Big Bang theory of random acts of nothing that mean nothing. Nothing is random my dear friend. You matter and we all matter on this planet and our actions now will impact future generations.

#russellbrand #stephenfry

#bigbangtheory  #creationism

#jehovahswitnesses  #jwactivism

Survive or Thrive?

The holiday season might bring up some sad memories for persons who have left the Jehovah's Witness (JW) organization and left close friends and family members behind. It could force you to think about actually going back to the organization just to appease family or if you want contact with them, otherwise, you will face being cut off from associating with them, perhaps forever.

For those of us who have left and choose to never return, we still might feel uncomfortable around the holidays and are afraid to celebrate them in some way. Just know that any fear that arises, comes from your years of indoctrination and rhetoric pounded into your brain that celebrating holidays is evil and you will die for it, that some "true God Jehovah" will kill you in the end. Just realizing this fundamental truth will help you with navigating the holiday season. Remember, no one has to do anything they are not comfortable with. This is a foreign belief to JWs. If you leave the JWs, it doesn't automatically mandate that you have a Christmas tree in your home, there are no rules but your own. Think about it. Suddenly, you do have free choice and can put away any religious dogma that may be haunting you or forcing you into one path or another. 

First of all, if you made that life-changing decision to walk away from the JW organization forever, then you need to think about the direction you want to take in life. Did you leave behind family? Is the JW spouse gone along with any children you might have? Well, we are in the holiday season so why not drop them a friendly card wishing them well and provide them with your contact information? Obviously, you don't have to contact a spouse if the relationship did not end well, but if you have children involved, there is nothing wrong with sending them a card to let them know you are thinking about them and love them. I realize your spouse may block that card from ever reaching them, but later when they are old enough, you can tell them you sent them a card every year wishing them well and telling them you loved them.

If you left friends behind in the JW organization, you can do the same. With modern social media, it might not be too hard to check in and see where they are and send them a note wishing them well. I realize it might be a big step to do this, because if they are fully indoctrinated JWs, they will view your reaching out as maybe trying to come back to the organization, or that you are pitiful and lonely with no friends.

My suggestion is that you write those notes to friends and family you wish to remain in contact with, however, include a recent photo of yourself doing something fun. Maybe if you have a new spouse or girlfriend or boyfriend, send a photo of yourself with that person. Maybe say something like...we want to wish you a happy holiday season and hope we can meet sometime and catch up on our lives...I am interested in what new things you are doing and hope to let you know some interesting things I am working on and the travels I have taken...something to that effect.

Reaching out is never a bad idea, however, be positive in your communications with any current and active JWs, giving them an idea of how you have moved on stating that you are looking into traveling more, or maybe you have a new job where you are meeting interesting people. Don't fabricate any stories, be honest yet positive in your communications. 

At the very worst, they will send you back some JW indoctrination message where they copy from JW literature or the JWs' official website and try and tell you how you are doomed to destruction. So fine, you can just take the message and do nothing with it [don't keep responding or trying to coerce indoctrinated JWs to communicate with you], or you can do a yearly friendly message reaching out to them anyway and let them know you are still around and doing well. Sometimes a current and active JW might soon begin to question their faith and you never know what is going on in their lives. So reaching out with an annual card with a positive message may have a positive effect on them in the future.

Again, if children are involved, I realize that is more difficult. However, I encourage you to write a note, send a card, maybe telephone them if you will not cause problems with an ex-spouse, but let your kids know you are still around, that you are doing well, and that you love them. If you get back hatred from the ex-spouse, then do not respond in kind. Drop it. However, next year, send those cards, letters or notes to your kids even if they never see them or end up in the trash. That's okay, since many things are out of our control. Yet, as the kids grow up they may remember mom or dad sending them cards, trying to contact them, and they may reach out to you when they are adults and can make their own decisions.

It is about thriving and not simply surviving through this holiday season or any time of the year even though you might be labeled as "worldly" since leaving the JWs and you might feel sad or alone. I love to journal, and have many different notepads, journals, even sketch pads that I keep handy, even a small notebook in my purse in case I meet someone and want to jot down information, or someone says something at work that is a good idea I want to remember.

Start keeping your own journal. There are no rules to this. It is your thoughts and feelings, and sometimes drawing pictures is a good way to express yourself if words don't come easy to you.

Now is a good time to write down how you want next year to read, how you want to script your life for next year. Is there a certain job you want? Maybe a sport you want to learn or take some classes to further your education. Anything you can think of to enrich your life will show the people around you that you are not just surviving outside of the JW culture, but are thriving. It will draw people to you, they will want to know what you've been doing, what interests you, and you will start developing a personality that you never could develop while still a JW drone.

Don't let current and indoctrinated JWs make you feel like you made a bad decision when leaving that doomsday cult that goes nowhere but is on an endless treadmill of fear. The organization is not moving forward as they claim, they are on a mouse wheel, accomplishing nothing but rehashing and recycling the same old rhetoric that some God in heaven wants all of us dead if we don't follow the edicts of the JW organization. They do not own God, they do not own the Bible, they are not a "true" religion, the Bible is not the only book or set of texts we can read and adapt for our own lives. Some people suggest that the "Jehovah" mentioned in the Old Testament of the Bible was a God of War, with the true God Jesus appearing in human form on the earth in the New Testament that only preached love and life, not death and destruction. 

I also suggest that you don't argue doctrine in any letters you might send to JW family members or friends. The point of communicating with indoctrinated JWs is to spread a positive message, that you are doing okay out here in the big scary world [which isn't really that scary once you decide to join the human race]. If they press you with their archaic and outright wrong policies of the JWs, have a few words to say on the subject and nothing more. For example, ask a JW what the penalty was in the Bible for disobeying the "no blood" policy. Was the penalty death? No it wasn't. What about medical uses of blood in the Bible, what does it say? Nothing, it is silent on that subject. Many fears of using blood for medical purposes was before there was blood-typing, and a person could die in the procedure if the blood types did not match.

But again, don't get bogged down with doctrine since a JW wants you to do just that. They are backward thinkers [if they can think on their own at all], they are not connecting with the spirit of the Bible, of Jesus' own words of love and forgiveness, but are caught up in the God of War in the Bible that killed everyone who disobeyed him. The Bible is filled with metaphors, fables and parables that the JWs take as literal. Fine, that is there choice, but not yours. 

If you believe in any God or Source or Higher Power, then research that more and find a belief that makes you happy. No one person or organization has all the answers of why we are here, what our purpose is, or the answer to a host of questions us humans have. Choose life and love over the laws and policies of the indoctrinated JW. Yet, you can show them you are thriving now and will continue to grow and learn while they stay stagnate and do nothing but preach doom and gloom to people, and especially prey on the weak, lonely and disconnected people that they meet in their so-called preaching work.

But that's not you. You have left the JWs and their indoctrination and false teachings. You are thriving in your life right now, and are not simply surviving.

#jehovahswitnesses  #jehovahwitnessactivism

#exJWactivism   #freedomefromwatchtower

#jwactivsim   #jworg  

Male Dominated Societies

I am not sure there exists any culture in the entire globe that is not male dominated. If you go back to the cave man days or even to the Bible times of mans' creation, the male of the species was generally physically stronger and provided for his family while the females gave birth to that family. 

So whatever grand creature(s) created all this and put all this into motion felt that there needed to be a dominate male and a submissive female in order for life to flourish and have generations of humans always inhabiting this planet. Now, in the animal kingdom everything is sort of out of control, with female lions hunting and providing food for the dominate male lion and amphibians changing sex to suit their environment, and a host of organisms that procreate no matter what happens. But with humans, we've basically got a dominate male over a female. However, in our modern times females are not bound to this rule. They can survive and flourish on their own without a male telling them what to do to function in this world. Even in the gay communities it is the males who take the leadership roles. I know, there are exceptions, but especially in the entertainment industry it is no secret men control it, whether they are straight or gay, it is a male dominated society.

It is also no secret that [being born and raised in the Jehovah's Witness (JW) Society] the JWs are a male dominated society in the shape of a pyramid. Recently the JWs have been getting attention for publicly reiterating their two witness rule in cases of sexual misconduct, there must be two witnesses to the act in order for a congregational committee to take action. Normally, it is two men forming a fact-finding committee. If they believe there is guilt they can place on someone, then the official Judicial Committee will be formed consisting of three men. 

The basic scripture they use for the two-witness rule is from Deuteronomy 19:15 where it states that no single witness should rise up against a man respecting any error or any sin...At the mouth of two witnesses or at the mouth of three witnesses the matter should stand good.

The JWs also quote verses in Leviticus about how sexual immorality was handled in Bible times:

The JW leadership say that they do not enforce the rules quoted in the scriptures above from the Old Testament about stoning a person who is guilty of sexual immorality and somehow they think they are lofty in this decision, yet still enforce the two witness rule for any sexual misconduct, whether it's egregious crimes against minors or not. Why? Because if the JWs started stoning wrongdoers, they would be put into prison for murder. It's that plain and simple. [Not counting some countries that uphold severe penalties relating to sexual misconduct and rules about women being virgins upon marriage.]

You see, the JW leadership of men are cowards. They want zero responsibility for taking action against anyone in the congregation who commits sexual abuse or misconduct and places the responsibility on the victims to seek any justice. Even the no-blood policy is not the responsibility of the JW leadership of cowards, no, that is a decision of the person rejecting the blood for medical purposes for themselves or their family. Each individual refusing a potentially life-saving blood transfusion for themselves or a loved one is blood guilty, not the JW leadership who made up the policy and enforce it by shunning or disfellowshipping the flock for disobeying this edict. Yet when cornered by the press, they say it's a conscience matter on the part of the membership and their no-blood policy is Biblical, etc., yet if you kill yourself, you are at fault, your family can take no legal action against the JW leadership. I think you get the message here. The JW leadership of cowards run and hide from responsibility even if it involves crimes against children and it's extended to their no-blood policy where they mandate genocide of their own membership.

However, what the JW leadership fail to reveal is that any Judicial Committee ruling does not mean justice is done in any matters brought before that committee. Yes, they follow instructions given in their "Shepherding the Flock of God" book, which is an Elders' manual on how to handle problems brought before the committee; however, it does not mean justice will be done. A side point is that any alleged misconduct by Elders themselves are always handled privately, where no public announcement will be made to the congregation, nothing happens basically, if it involves an Elder and his own family. I know this, my father was an Elder for almost my entire life until he finally stepped down from that position due to age-related health problems. So there are nuances to the JWs' two-witness ruling no matter if it's stealing petty cash to molesting a child.

The general public may not be aware that the JWs view crimes against a person as "sins". However, if an Elder comes home to find his home has been broken into and he's been robbed, does he form a fact-finding committee of two Elders to handle the problem? No, he immediately calls the police. 

However, if a woman reveals to an Elder she had been attacked and violated, what happens? A two man fact-finding committee is formed and they determine if the matter should proceed to a three-member Judicial Committee [all men] to determine her measure of guilt in the attack and formally charge the victim and decide her fate. Does she have at least one witness to her attack [as she can be the second person as the witness in the two-witness rule]? No? Then she will be put on trial for her sin and most likely will be disfellowshipped [expelled from the congregation and shunned] or at the very least, put on public reproof where her crime will be of conduct unbecoming of a Christian and she will be shunned. If by chance her attacker confesses, he will again face the same outcome. But both the attacker and the victim can work their way back into the good graces of the congregation by sitting in the back of the Kingdom Hall and the membership will treat them as invisible for at least one year. By that time the gossip mill is in full force and they will be humiliated into leaving the congregation and then they have to try and find a congregation that doesn't know them and be reinstated back into the flock and most likely will be damaged goods and marked anyway and they will fade away from the JW religion. Again, this is a general overview as it matters if the male involved has a lot of friends who will welcome him back to the flock and he will say the woman was at fault, etc., but the female in any case is the one who will shoulder the blame. Same with a child, they shoulder the blame as a victim of a crime that happens against them.

So, why would an Elder immediately call the police if his own home were robbed? Why not handle it within the congregation as they do with sins of the flesh? Because it's all about establishing guilt. The Elder has to prove someone robbed his house, he calls the police, they gather evidence and he hopes to get his stuff back. If a fellow JW robbed his house, same scenario, even though a brother is not supposed to bring another brother into court, somehow that is lost on the membership when it involves money and possessions. In crimes of the flesh, well, too bad, but the victim is responsible for the "sin" [not a crime] first, then the attacker comes second.  

The JW leadership claim that if there are reporting laws in their region about any crimes against persons under legal age, then they will immediately contact law enforcement authorities. In most cases I can assure you, this is a fallacy. They say they will inform the authorities when it's up to the victims to do this. Again, how do I know? My father was an Elder and as I have stated before on this blog, I read his notes from his Judicial Committee meetings and my mother shared information with me of her private conversations with my dad about everyone in the congregation, especially what goes on in the committee meetings. Not once was law enforcement involved when dealing with molestation against anyone, whether they were adults or children. It was deemed a family problem and they needed to deal with it. There are also countless testimonies on the Internet from JWs involved in these matters that can tell you that it's up to the victims to seek out law enforcement, not the congregation Elders; they will not help you, you are on your own.

One time in one of the congregations where we were assigned, a Judicial Committee matter involved an Elder and his daughter, the Elder simply said his sin against his daughter happened many years prior, and she was dredging up old stories that had nothing to with his life now and that she is emotionally unstable. End of story. The gossip, however, got around in the congregation forcing the Elder to move out of our area and transferred to another congregation miles away from us so hopefully no one knew of his past "sins" with his daughter, and yes he remained as an Elder. No sanctions were taken against that Elder, it was swept under the carpet. He eventually divorced his wife and he never saw his wife and daughter again until many years later when the daughter re-united with her abuser [her father] as an adult and forgave him. Such is the sick warped view of a person whose father molested her, sometimes the victim somehow becomes dependent on the abuser and tries to reconcile. But maybe that is just my viewpoint.

But what if the victim is male? There is a buddy system in each congregation and it depends on the clout of the victim. If it's a random child, then the mother deals with the incident and will be marked and ousted from the congregation if she dares bring the alleged abuser to court. If it involves men, sometimes the men take action and have the alleged abuser arrested and have the governmental authorities deal with him. If the alleged abuser is friends of the Elders, well, the victim is out of luck. Again, the same scenario as described above. The victim and the family will be marked and shunned, and will have to move out of the congregation and keep silent if they want to remain a JW. Otherwise, they will need to handle matters with law enforcement, but either way, they will be shunned and ousted from the JW organization.

If you feel trapped, lonely and depressed for being ignored by the Elders in your congregation because of suffering abuse, you must first seek help from a licensed psychiatrist or psychologist. They can guide you on how to heal yourself first, and then help you to bring the abuser to justice if that's what you wish to do; some victims do not want to proceed in that direction, but that's a personal decision. Do not bring the matter before a group of men in your own JW congregation. They are not on your side. They are protecting the congregation from getting a bad image, protecting themselves from lawsuits, and they don't want bad publicity either by word of mouth or if the matter would actually get into the news because the victim decided to take her abuser to court to seek justice.

Will adding women on the JW Judicial committees make things better? Not really, since they would have to follow the rule book published by the JW leadership on how to handle all matters brought before the committee. Change starts with the top ruling class of this organization and that is not a likely scenario. They are protecting their global wealth and want to sweep problems under the rug. If an individual wants to seek justice, they need to go to the "worldly" authorities and they will be marked and shunned by the JW Society and will be forced to leave.

So the solution to all this is to recognize a victim will get nowhere inside the JW society unless they have some clout in the congregation. Are you wealthy? Do they have high level business ties with the Elders or within your community? Do you have Elders who are relatives? If you answer no to all of these questions, you are isolated and will be alone in your battle. The solution is to leave the JW male-dominated organization that cares little about your well-being and a lot about their bank accounts. 

Not all religious orders, even though many are male dominated, treat victims as responsible for being attacked or abused, it is truly all about the people you are dealing with inside of any organization. In contrast, the JWs are very vocal about being a male dominated society and are proud of it, where women and children are to be seen and not heard and can serve the male leadership as they see fit. The JWs are very vocal about their policies that protect abusers and not victims. They are vocal about their mass genocidal policy on refusing medical blood transfusions. So it is very plain that the first step you can take to not be victimized is to walk out of those prison camps called Kingdom Halls of JWs.

So as stated, seek help for yourself first from licensed professionals, then decide on how you want to proceed to feel empowered and to move forward with your decision. If you are in any religious group that tells you to keep quiet because there are no witnesses to your assault, to feel guilty for being a victim, then walk away from those people, they are not there to help but to place blame on you and victimize you further. 

There are no easy answers, but the first step is to realize there is a way out, there are medical professionals to help, and you are not alone with whatever decisions you make in your life but a good start is to realize you have been victimized first by the JW leadership of cowards and that my friend, is a big first step. The rest is easy, it gets better once you get out and start exploring your options in life, and the best time to start is right now.

#twowitnessrule  #jehovahswitnesses
#jwactivism  #jwbloodpolicy #shunningpolicy
#exjw

Speaking Out

Some ex-Jehovah's Witnesses (JWs) might be feeling pressured to speak out publicly against the JW religion, whether they were evicted via disfellowshipping or walked away from the organization after becoming inactive in their congregation and are known as a "fader". 

May I suggest that you distance yourself from people who are pressuring you into any one direction. Sometimes when you initially decide to never return to the JW organization, you feel very emotional and may want to lash out at someone and feel you need to take some sort of public action. Please know that you do not owe anyone anything, you do not even owe anyone an explanation as to your personal reasons for leaving the JW organization. If you were disfellowshipped for committing some action that was deemed a crime by the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, you do not have to share that with anyone. Once you are disfellowshipped or you walked away never to return, that ended your baptismal contract with the organization. Yes, some choose to return because they want to have contact with JW friends and family and that is a personal decision. However, by staying in the organization, a person would have to face the fact they are still supporting their edicts, policies, and tenets, many of which involve letting loved ones die for refusing potentially life-saving medical procedures involving blood or blood products. Many of the JWs' policies support alleged perpetrators of abuse, whether it be against a spouse or a child and place the blame and responsibility on victims to either keep silent, or leave the organization and seek help from law enforcement and other governmental authorities deemed as coming from "Satan's world". However, again, these are personal choices. I could not stay and support a religion that has these abhorrent policies. Just by sitting in a Kingdom Hall, you are showing your support for this destructive religion even if you stopped supporting them monetarily, you are still supporting them by your presence which is something each person needs to think about.

If you are like me and faded from your JW congregation and have decided to never return, I was silent with everyone including my own family members. I simply said it is no longer my truth and left it at that. No JW Elders hunted me down or wanted a firm decision so they could mark me as an "apostate" or to force me into writing a disassociation letter, I wasn't important to the congregation being a single woman, we are at the lowest level of the pyramid. I simply left and never returned and eventually moved out of the area of my congregation and never reconnected with the congregation in my new town. I am here to encourage ex-JWs to not do anything rash when you first leave the organization. After some time, you may want to engage in some sort of anti-JW activism, whether that is talking to people at work, your relatives who may or may not be active JWs, or blogging about your own personal experiences as a JW to help others to see what the religion is really all about. If you feel like setting up a YouTube channel, you must deal with the repercussions of going into the public arena and may face criticism. But again, do not feel pressured to do any sort of public anti-JW activism.

The most important step is to first think about your own recovery from the damaging mind-controlled JW religious group and then think about if you want to engage in any sort of activism. It can be therapeutic for yourself, to share your experiences with like-minded people. But don't be forced into anything or feel inferior simply because you choose to stay quiet. 

Facing the fact that the Watch Tower corporation isn't going anywhere anytime soon with or without us so-called "activists" whether we are quiet or very loud about expressing our opinions, can help you in your decision on whether or not you want to engage in anti-JW activism. I don't say this to discourage anyone, but you've got to face reality. Even the richest people on this earth suffer heartache, loss, depression and setbacks and you are no different whether you were born in the JW organization or not, or whether you joined later and have now left. Think about healing and recovery before you go out and face the dragon, perhaps alone and unarmed.

At the end of the day, you've
got to look in that mirror and
be okay with where you are in life.

It is your personal journey to freedom that is important. Start looking at paving your own way in this life. Your happiness comes first but not at the cost of berating others, even current and active JWs have a right to stay in the religion. Turning your focus forward and not looking back at the JW religion or the people who choose to stay, is what will eventually reduce the power and influence of the JW organization. The more people who have the courage to walk out of those Kingdom Halls and never return, are the ones that have a strong impact on those still sitting there who wonder if they are in the right place after all. Your simply walking away might be that one action that will wake people up in your congregation.

Any activism you choose is to benefit yourself and your healing process. Do not think the Watch Tower corporation is going away for good, they are too wealthy for that. Even if their entire membership left today, they can survive on mountains of cash carefully invested in various banks around the globe. They will not suffer, but you will if you don't start planning your escape and think about making a life for yourself and your family right now.

#exjw  #jehovahswitnesses
#jwactivism #freedomfromwatchtower

The Empty Chair

Jehovah's Witnesses (JWs) are generally discouraged from getting any type of therapy or counseling from anyone who is not a JW. When I was a JW [born and raised in the organization] seeking help from anyone not a JW was against the rules and you will quickly find yourself on the opposite side of Elders in your congregation in a shepherding call [the first step in their court system, which is just a fact finding mission]. If the Elders don't like your answers it could proceed to a formal Judicial committee meeting where you will be judged as to your standing in the congregation. It might lead to a probationary period, or full out disfellowshipping depending on your crimes, meaning, how much you have gone off course from the JW teachings, rules, rhetoric, and ever changing policies.

Therefore, the programming is in place to be fearful of seeking any type of formal therapy out in the "world" which of course means anything not sanctioned by the JW leadership who set the rules for the entire global organization. However, many JWs exiting the mind-controlling organization often miss this step in their recovery process and acclimating themselves to the outside world of reality. If you miss this step, you find that you might not deal with the rest of the population in a rational way. You might take things too seriously, or not be able to read someone's intentions. 

A few years ago I did some research and came across the fundamental principles of a gestalt. It's a German word meaning shape or form and was developed by German psychologists in the 1920s. People tend to organize visual elements into groups or unified wholes. A football team can be considered a gestalt because it works as one unit, not as individual players.

This principle can be applied to persons who are Jehovah's Witnesses (JW). Their whole social structure is one unit. The membership all think alike, act the same way, and have a unified belief system. To break free from this JW gestalt, you need to replace it with a new one. I know, it's not as easy as it sounds. But when a person decides to leave the Watch Tower corporation, they can't simple exist as a healthy, whole person and move on with life as if nothing happened to them. 

A common mistake many persons make when leaving the corporation, is they continue with life as a JW, yet are not going to the meetings anymore, they no longer believe in the tenets of the Watch Tower Society, and they may be disfellowshipped or just simply fade away from their congregation and never return.

Why is this important? Well, you are still a JW if you don't realize you have changed. If you made that decision to never return to the JWs, then you probably came to a conclusion that the JWs are not the one and only true religion, that the leadership are not emissaries from God or Christ. You should take that next step and realize that no religious or non-religious group knows for a fact how us humans ended up on this planet; it's all conjecture and what you choose to believe. Yet if you don't establish a new social gestalt, it is impossible to heal and recover from JW indoctrination. This will prove true with being associated with any high control group.

For myself, I had no idea I needed therapy at first, until I found myself going around like a zombie, going to work everyday, handling my personal affairs, but not acting much different than when I was a JW. I had a few non-JW friends, yet was still living a life as a JW just sans the meetings and field service. This was leading to an empty life with no direction. 

So what do you do? You need to seek therapy. Now I know that sounds scary and aside from that, maybe you just don't have the funds. Then go online and start your research. I have links at the footer of this blog that will get you started on your deprogramming journey from the Watch Tower Society. As you take a look at the video suggestions, then start looking at various books to read on the subject of psychology and how the human mind works. If you are having problems dealing with social and work situations, then seek out books on the subject from a non-JW perspective. Broaden your scope and you will discover a whole host of people ready and willing to offer help, and will push you onto your next level of success in your work and personal life.

The therapy that helped me along my journey to personal peace, is called the "empty chair". It's one form of therapy where you sit or stand facing a chair and imagine anyone in your life is sitting there and you vent your feelings and pent-up frustrations to that person. You can do this with anyone in your life and then switch places and imagine you are that person and defend yourself which can be quite revealing since it forces you to consider why that other person acted the way they did.

For example, I could place my mom in that chair and tell her off, then when I switch places with her I can say, "I thought I was doing the right thing," or "I was raised very strict and raised you the same way," whatever the case may be. It can be a very cleansing type of therapy and is often used along with hypnotherapy, where you are sitting with your eyes closed imagining anyone you want is in that chair, even God.

Therapy and self-help videos will be that link to a new social gestalt. If you have unresolved conflicts, trauma, or suffering severe emotional or physical abuse, then please seek help from a licensed psychiatrist. I suggest you don't speak to anyone you know since some past trauma and abuse might be embarrassing and some friends or family should not be privy to all of your personal feelings. If you do have a trusted non-JW friend to speak with, then start there. Ask them to help you select a psychiatrist in your area and many licensing boards have online verification of the license to see if any formal disciplinary actions have been taken against that doctor.

When I finally found the courage to walk away from the JW organization as an adult, I was truly lost and simply having people tell me to now go out and celebrate Christmas and birthdays, was not the solution. It was like telling someone whose house had just burned down to go the movies and forget it. Don't over-simplify what happened to you as an indoctrinated JW. So I sought out self-help videos online and in books, mostly unrelated to the JWs. As you progress through your own personal therapy, you will find you are less invested in tracking everything going on with the Watchtower corporation. You can have a healthy detachment from them, even if you have family still in the organization. So when you hear something is going on, you will not react emotionally, but can listen and take it with a grain of salt. You are out of that organization, you come first, then if you can, help others to leave by helping them find a new social gestalt to replace the old one when they were a JW.

As you progress through your personal development, you may find that there was a hobby you used to do before you became an indoctrinated JW or maybe engaged in recreational activities while you were a JW that you can explore further. Maybe you had a love of animals, painting, drawing, or you enjoy helping people, maybe teaching or volunteering at a local charity. You need to develop a new social gestalt after leaving the JWs to restore your mental and emotional health, and it will lead to promoting good physical health too.

Self-discovery and cleaning out the cobwebs of useless information implanted there by years of Watchtower indoctrination, can only benefit you and you might uncover the reasons why you may be reacting to everyday life in an unreasonable and negative manner. You might find where you are struggling and why you can't come to a resolution and feel lost in life. 

But, don't put undue pressure on yourself. The first step is just realizing you were indoctrinated and conditioned as a JW. You were their recruiting robot that went door-to-door coercing people to join, to skew the beliefs of the JWs to attract people into the organization. Think about it as a journey to a new you and becoming a better person and to not think solely in black and white, but in shades of grey. 

This universe is a vast storehouse of knowledge, information, wisdom and beauty. Start exploring the world you are in and don't be afraid to dig into your personality and find that awesome person hidden inside of you that is just waiting to get out and explore the planet. Start sharing what you have learned with other people that are just like you, on a spiritual and personal journey to freedom.

#jehovahswitnesses  #watchtowersociety  #jworg
#freedomfromwatchtower #selfhelp   #thrive  #therapy #gestalt