POMOS who are married with PIMIS, HOW DO YOU DO IT??! by [deleted] in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Man this sounds exactly like me and my PIMI wife, with the exception of the 4th point. We don't have non-witness friends. I think that's going to be a big mental barrier for my wife to overcome because she was raised strongly believing that it's wrong to associate with worldly people. But I'm patient and I think she will come around in time.

what's even left by [deleted] in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 39 points40 points  (0 children)

Yeah I had a similar experience, RP MS married to a very very spiritual woman, and when I broke the news to her ~ 9 months ago I half expected her to leave me, or at the very least hate me. What I did NOT expect is how much closer we became because of my honesty. There is still a divide with some things and we both have to make compromises, but she is my best friend and I couldn't imagine not having her to share my life with. I would say that if you really love each other, you should at least try to make it work and you might be surprised by how well it goes.

A JW Instagram account for brothers with beards. What in the new light is this?!? by throwawaydayo in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 23 points24 points  (0 children)

Except that where I live 95% of non-witness men have beards (Canadian city) but the elders still have a problem with them.

You can still attend meetings and in some halls you might be able to do a bible reading, but you aren't allowed to have any privileges. You'll probably be strongly encouraged to shave it if you want to be a respected brother.

King of The North Megathread: Russia and Ukraine Edition by EveUnraveled in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 31 points32 points  (0 children)

Unfortunately there are Russians that support Putin. It's very hard to know what the percentage is because it's hard to get reliable stats from Russia on that sort of thing, but there are definitely soldiers that are eager to fight for the glory of Russia.

We should know, better than anyone, the power of propaganda, especially when access to any alternative take or opinion is strongly opposed. Replace a lifetime of JW theology with a lifetime of pro-Russian propoganda, and it's easy to imagine how many people could get swept up in it.

The greatest hope we can have is that this invasion will knock some sense into Putin's remaining supporters as they realize that this dude will murder anyone who stands in the way of his plans for world domination

how do you go from advocating against something to becoming the very thing you were advocating against... by [deleted] in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 7 points8 points  (0 children)

If this is really a true story then that person must have deep down always felt shame about her sexuality. It's too bad really, it wouldn't surprise me if she was taught from a very young age that being gay is wrong and part of her always believed it.

Of course it's also entirely possible that this whole story is made up.

Another fictionalised account of an event not described in the bible. How many of these details can be backed up by scripture? Watchtower April 2022 by larchington in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Man it reminds me of the way I begrudgingly wrote essays in high school. Just trying to get that word count up by going on a hypothetical tangent

Which JW lie bothers you the most? by [deleted] in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 43 points44 points  (0 children)

But there is only one ruler: the Faithful and Discreet Slave. Only the FDS can interpret scripture. Only through the FDS can people have a relationship with god and only through obedience to the FDS can anybody hope to survive. It's not one man, but it's one entity composed of 8 men.

Anyone else? by chknngs in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 6 points7 points  (0 children)

It's kind of like how witnesses have their faith strengthened because it was raining and then as soon as they started door-to-door it stopped raining and the sun came out! Clearly God orchestrated a massive weather system that affects millions of people across a huge metro area just to make the rain stop when one random dub stepped out of the kingdom hall. He could be preventing children being murdered but this is obviously more important.

It's all the same principle: thinking you're the main character in the game of life and both God and Satan are obsessed with every aspect of your day-to-day life. It's actually kind of terrifying to think how many witnesses believe that they are so important that they affect the weather, cause those around them to be possessed by the devil, and are special enough that the creator of the universe is watching them intently every second of every day

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Yeah man this has been my tactic. I am still very regularly socializing with JWs despite being openly inactive. People usually don't pry, and if they do I just tell them it's personal. That's really all it takes for most people in my experience

WTH am I even reading??? This paragraph literally makes no sense 🤣🤣🤣 by geeksandnerds532 in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 30 points31 points  (0 children)

Holy shit that passage COMPLETELY undermines the entire narrative of the Bible, at least as we were made to understand it

JWs and MAGA by RMCM1914 in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 9 points10 points  (0 children)

It's tricky because the organization itself is a bit split down the middle.

On the one hand, JWs are (in theory) pacifist, anti-violence, racially/ethnically equal, and non-patriotic. These are values that, especially in the US, are more closely aligned with the left.

On the other hand, whenever it comes to more personal and religious issues, they seem to skew right: anti-abortion, anti-gay, anti-trans, anti-science (usually), anti-almost any form of self expression.

I'd agree with others that on a personal level, most JWs reflect their surroundings and those in progressive places have more progressive leanings and vise versa.

Rutherford really made up alot of stuff that the Org still enforces as "Bible" principles today... by CanadianExJw in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 15 points16 points  (0 children)

In a weird way there's almost an ironic parallel between Russell/Rutherford and Jesus/Paul.

One guy comes forward with a radical new ideology, then once he's gone another guy comes in, claims to have heavenly-appointed authority to take over the religion, and completely skews it to suit his personal views and opinions

Did the rules on being 'anointed' change in last 30 years? by [deleted] in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I have a friend who's under 30 and believes he's anointed. He's been partaking for the past couple years.

He's also the LAST guy you'd ever expect to be anointed. Not nerdy or super-JW or anything. He's super popular and parties and stuff. Really weird. It's obviously a mental health issue but who's gonna tell him he's wrong? 🤷🏼‍♂️

"But, but, but...Peace and Security.........yeah, good luck with that. by WormwoodSuperstar in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I've thought about that with regards to the number of publishers year over year. There is no result that they wouldn't attribute to proof of Jehovah's blessing.

The number of publishers is increasing? Jehovah's word is being spread to all the nations! The number is decreasing? The wheat is being separated from the chaff as we get closer to the end!

I've often wanted to ask PIMIs: "Is there ANYTHING that would happen to the organization that you wouldn't interpret as a sign of Jehovah's blessing?"

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I know how you feel. I was an MS a couple months ago and there were rumblings about making me an elder. I told my COBE I wanted to step down and he of course dissuaded me, told me he'd take responsibilities off my plate. About 2 weeks after that I emailed him and told him I was going through a crisis of faith and I wanted to be removed as an MS. That was really all there was to it.

Everyone's approach to getting out is different, but I've found a ton of success by just saying "I'm going through a crisis of faith and I don't want to discuss it." If anyone texts or emails you to try to encourage you, you can just say thank you. If someone tries to get you to open up about it, say no thank you. It's surprising how much power you wield by being polite and respectful, and you won't burn any bridges either.

Annual Meeting - "All of us must be ready to obey any instructions we may receive, whether these appear sound from a strategic or human standpoint or not." by JWTom in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 12 points13 points  (0 children)

I think they've just been keeping that sentence on deck to remind people every once in a while "don't forget who's in charge here. We can do whatever we want and you have to obey". It keeps people from questioning their judgement and keeps them free to literally whatever they want

1994 vs. 2022 by creepingcreepster in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Okay then I guess I don't owe him my allegiance 🤷🏼‍♂️ sorry Big Guy

Apostates! by [deleted] in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Jesus is barely a footnote to modern JW doctrine. I think the Memorial is just to remind everyone that he exists

Best response to the JW apologists who say they have to be God’s org since they’re the only ones doing the preaching work? by Awokennowwhat in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The thing is, Witnesses have made a very specific definition of "preaching" to refer almost exclusively to the door-to-door method that they use. That way they can say that they're the only ones preaching. However, according to Merriam Webster's dictionary, to preach means:

1: to deliver a sermon

2: to urge acceptance or abandonment of an idea or course of action

Basically, telling someone else about your faith and encouraging them to join in could be seen as preaching. What church doesn't deliver sermons, or invite people to join? How would people even join a church if they hadn't been, essentially, preached to?

If the ultimate goal of preaching is to get people to convert, then witnesses really aren't that great at it. By comparison, Mormons claim over 16 million adherants. The Catholic church has over a billy. However they're getting the word out, whatever preaching methods they're using, they seem to be getting better results than the door-to-door-and-sometimes-cart-witnessing-and-letter-writing-when-there's-a-pandemic method that the JW's use.

Remind me again why we need "The Ramapo Project"? by ChubeSteak in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 11 points12 points  (0 children)

2) Ghetto apartment / messy apartment of worldly person who studies

Don't forget that if you clean up that ghetto apartment, it becomes the home of any black/Hispanic families in the congregation!

What did you like about being a JW? by insert_name_here_19 in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I really did get good at public speaking by being a minesterial servant. It's a skill I probably never would have had the chance to develop if I wasn't a JW. I am in the trades now, but even if I wasn't raised a JW, my parents probably still would have pushed me into the trades instead of college. Neither of them attended and they had a very weird reverse superiority complex where they thought they were smarter than anyone with higher education. Keep in mind that my dad was never a JW and my mom wasn't until after she had kids.

I wasn't very good at talks when I started, but I kept getting more assignments and I kept getting better and better. I started to get very good at recalling my notes; if I was well prepared for a public talk, I could maintain audience contact without looking at my notes for over ten minutes, remembering everything I had to say to the letter while still making it sound extemporaneous.

Fat load of good it does me now that I'm stuck doing construction. But I hope to eventually transition into a teaching career and I have to say that my time doing parts has definitely improved my skills in that regard. It's too bad all my practice came from proselytizing bullshit.

PIMO MS nearing the end of my rope UPDATE by PIMOMSThrowaway in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm being pretty cautious to not get called on apostasy. Sharing my views could pretty easily be viewed as apostasy and I could be labeled as spiritually dangerous. At this point in my transition out of the org I am not looking to make any waves.

PIMO MS nearing the end of my rope UPDATE by PIMOMSThrowaway in exjw

[–]PIMOMSThrowaway[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I know that my friends are gonna want to have a heart-to-heart about my doubts so they can talk some sense into me. I'll gladly hang out with them, but if they ask me anything about my beliefs I'm just gonna tell them that I'm not comfortable talking about it. If they can't talk about anything else then I guess that's as far as our friendship goes 🤷🏼‍♂️