Hoorah for me!!! Officially no longer a JW!!

[RIPP_n_WIPE]

Yesterday I wrote a letter to the congregation of Jehovahs Witnesses telling them I no longer wish to associate with the organization any longer!!

Now for any of you who are familiar with witnesses, no I wasn't baptized, I was still an unbaptized publisher. However the elders in the congregation still wanted me to write a letter so they could announce it and "regain the holy spirit" within the congregation.

For those of you not in the know, basically I removed myself from the church.

It was incredibly anti-climactic. In the past I'd always thought that doing such a thing would result in emotional trauma or somesuch. However it really was as easy as writing a letter. It felt very good afterwards though. It was almost an "I'm free!!" momment, especially for me, a person who's mother has harped him to be a good person in the congregation. Well I'm still a moral individual and I love my species!! Yahoo!!!

[Ayrix]

Congratulations man, "you've taken your first step towards a larger world." Hope everything goes well for you from here on out.

[Durandal]

When my grandma dies, I plan on writing the Catholic Church requesting excommunication. I don't want to be associated with pedophiles and the people who facilitate their twisted desires.

[Anguirus]

Woo, go you!

[Rye]

Now you can accept life saving medical treatment! Whoop!

[Falkenhayn]

When my grandma dies, I plan on writing the Catholic Church requesting excommunication. I don't want to be associated with pedophiles and the people who facilitate their twisted desires.

You have this problem too? I've got an "Aunt and Uncle", very good family friends, who have the Papal Dispensation in case they die without receiving Last Rites. I haven't been invited back to their house since they found out I don't believe in god. Their daughter almost came over the table at me when they asked and I told them.

[Singular Intellect]

Congradulations on your deconversion!

PS: There's no Santa Clause either!

[Kanastrous]

Welcome to the Legion of Heathen Disbelievers.

Your horns and pitchfork are in the mail.

[Durandal]

When my grandma dies, I plan on writing the Catholic Church requesting excommunication. I don't want to be associated with pedophiles and the people who facilitate their twisted desires.

You have this problem too? I've got an "Aunt and Uncle", very good family friends, who have the Papal Dispensation in case they die without receiving Last Rites. I haven't been invited back to their house since they found out I don't believe in god. Their daughter almost came over the table at me when they asked and I told them.

It's more along the lines of "Don't talk about politics or religion when grandma's around", and family gatherings tend to go a lot more smoothly.

[Stuart]

You have this problem too? I've got an "Aunt and Uncle", very good family friends, who have the Papal Dispensation in case they die without receiving Last Rites. I haven't been invited back to their house since they found out I don't believe in god. Their daughter almost came over the table at me when they asked and I told them.

Well, to make ammends, why not give them a copy of Armageddon when its published?

[RIPP_n_WIPE]

Congradulations on your deconversion!

PS: There's no Santa Clause either!

Lol. The last time JW's celebrated Christmas was in like 1903.

I've never had one so no problem!!

[Shroom Man 777]

That whole bit about Jehova's Witnesses not being allowed to accept blood transfusions always gets mentioned in nursing school, and I always find it frustrating whenever it's mentioned and people just go:

"Oh well, we have to respect their beliefs!"

It's really frustrating to hear that, and I can't believe people just buy that whole shtick - to the point of getting people (themselves or otherwise) killed.

So, yeah. Go celebrate your de-conversion by donating blood or something (that isn't kosher for JWs, right?)

[apocolypse]

Now for any of you who are familiar with witnesses, no I wasn't baptized, I was still an unbaptized publisher. However the elders in the congregation still wanted me to write a letter so they could announce it and "regain the holy spirit" within the congregation.

Really? That's crazy. I was never babtized myself either, but I stopped going a long time ago. I never had to write a letter or anything though. That's pretty fucked up. Congrats though.

[Aaron]

Now for any of you who are familiar with witnesses, no I wasn't baptized, I was still an unbaptized publisher. However the elders in the congregation still wanted me to write a letter so they could announce it and "regain the holy spirit" within the congregation.

Is that JW elder code speak for "we need this letter to hold up in front of the faithful so they know who to shun"? Do they still encourage family and friends to disown folk who leave?

[Darth Wong]

That whole bit about Jehova's Witnesses not being allowed to accept blood transfusions always gets mentioned in nursing school, and I always find it frustrating whenever it's mentioned and people just go:

"Oh well, we have to respect their beliefs!"

It's really frustrating to hear that, and I can't believe people just buy that whole shtick - to the point of getting people (themselves or otherwise) killed.

So, yeah. Go celebrate your de-conversion by donating blood or something (that isn't kosher for JWs, right?)

The idea that beliefs automatically deserve "respect" is one of those cultural memes which get repeated so often that nobody ever questions them.

I like to ask why "beliefs" are any different from "opinions". I've never gotten a decent answer.

[Shroom Man 777]

I just hope to hell that when I immigrate and get a job as an actual-factual medical professional, I never have to end up facing a messed up situation like that.

Being reminded of how beliefs automatically deserve "respect" by watching some poor JW bleeding to death and refusing a transfusion would be very... un-therapeutic.

[FSTargetDrone]

Is that JW elder code speak for "we need this letter to hold up in front of the faithful so they know who to shun"? Do they still encourage family and friends to disown folk who leave?

That does seem suspicious. Either that, or maybe they want to know who to pray extra hard for? Who knows, but I certainly wouldn't write any letters to church "elders." I wouldn't do anything at all to do them a favor. But then again, Catholicism didn't require me to give a letter of resignation.

[Molyneux]

That whole bit about Jehova's Witnesses not being allowed to accept blood transfusions always gets mentioned in nursing school, and I always find it frustrating whenever it's mentioned and people just go:

"Oh well, we have to respect their beliefs!"

It's really frustrating to hear that, and I can't believe people just buy that whole shtick - to the point of getting people (themselves or otherwise) killed.

So, yeah. Go celebrate your de-conversion by donating blood or something (that isn't kosher for JWs, right?)

Why not counter that with, "It's my belief that to NOT save a life when I have that ability is tantamount to murder"?
After all, they have to respect your beliefs, too!

[Rye]

Uh, if you think the doctor has more consent to patient treatment than the patient themselves, you've probably not thought this through. Patients denying their own treatment isn't a right that's going to be waived outside of special situations. My only wish is that JWs lose the right to condemn their children to death in addition to themselves.

[Shroom Man 777]

They have to respect medical "professionals" who can chose to withhold contraceptives because of their beliefs. But if anyone disagrees with a JW and urges him/her to take life-saving treatment despite his/her dumb beliefs, then it's deep doo-doo. Zuul/Rye has a point, but still.

It kind of sucks that in order to be certified as competent, other countries' hospitals have to mimic and emulate the crappy American system



RIPP_n_WIPE:

You should tell your loved ones and next of kin and parents and other significant others that if you ever get into a serious accident, that they should consent to having blood transfusions and other non-kosher treatments done to you and not get you killed on grounds of their religion (cause that would really suck)


In America, when you are admitted at the hospital, would your religion be already in your medical records? Or do you have to state it? Cause it would really suck if you de-converted, but your documents still say that you're a JW. And then you get into an accident - wherein you are unable to say "I'm not a JW anymore" - and a blood transfusion is withheld because of your out-of-date papers. And then you die.

[Kanastrous]

That whole bit about Jehova's Witnesses not being allowed to accept blood transfusions always gets mentioned in nursing school, and I always find it frustrating whenever it's mentioned and people just go:

"Oh well, we have to respect their beliefs!"

It's really frustrating to hear that, and I can't believe people just buy that whole shtick - to the point of getting people (themselves or otherwise) killed.

So, yeah. Go celebrate your de-conversion by donating blood or something (that isn't kosher for JWs, right?)

I'm obviously not cut out for nursing, because my instinctive response to we don't accept transfusions is fine, less work for me.

[Darth Wong]

Uh, if you think the doctor has more consent to patient treatment than the patient themselves, you've probably not thought this through. Patients denying their own treatment isn't a right that's going to be waived outside of special situations. My only wish is that JWs lose the right to condemn their children to death in addition to themselves.

However, if the patient is deemed to be mentally incompetent, professionals can take over. The problem is that no Abrahamic religious belief, no matter how delusional or idiotic, can ever be considered a form of mental incompetence.

[Rye]

However, if the patient is deemed to be mentally incompetent, professionals can take over. The problem is that no Abrahamic religious belief, no matter how delusional or idiotic, can ever be considered a form of mental incompetence.

It also doesn't help that the JWs have a systematic disinformation machine in the Watchtower, as well as whole organisations set up to reemphasise "JW patients' rights" and promote alternatives to transfusion. If you're a doctor and you're going to approach a JW mother that's about to go into labour (and very likely become anaemic), there's a good chance you'd get a programmed creationist "talking points" barrage in response. My stepdad is a GP and he experienced this firsthand from a JW (that later died), legally, there's not much you can do to say someone is unable to recognise what they're doing when able to recite legal arguments off the bat.

That said, a lot of them will confess that they don't know whether they'd give transfusions to their kids or not, I'd wager that most of them know it's sensible when it's in the child's best interests, and I suspect a lot of them might "give in" and take a transfusion themselves when faced with mortality. In all fairness to the JW cults, they will usually forgive someone for taking a blood transfusion to survive, so long as they repent of it and say the desire to have blood transfused, even for survival has left them and it was "moral weakness" on their part which made them do it.

[Melchior]

When my grandma dies, I plan on writing the Catholic Church requesting excommunication. I don't want to be associated with pedophiles and the people who facilitate their twisted desires.

You cannot request excommunication, but you can, AFAIK, request to have you baptism revoked (they are still not eager at all to comply, on the other hand).

[Themightytom]

When my grandma dies, I plan on writing the Catholic Church requesting excommunication. I don't want to be associated with pedophiles and the people who facilitate their twisted desires.

You cannot request excommunication, but you can, AFAIK, request to have you baptism revoked (they are still not eager at all to comply, on the other hand).

What is the purpose of that beyond momentary gratification? What is even the point of writing a letter to the church? is it supposed to give you closure?