Comments on: On the Web: Freeminds.org

By: Randall Watters

Randall Watters — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 14:50:11 +0000

Thank you all for your comments, especially Rhona, a wonderful friend near Perth in Australia. She has been in helps for ex-JWs for many years, and we took similar pathways. 30 years later we have both grown much and recognize that life is more complex than we thought. It helps me to not focus on what is invisible or merely conjecture, but to focus on people and life and love and happiness. Also to believe people less and love them more.

By: SHARON

SHARON — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 01:28:27 +0000

Thank you for all the detail!! Still another first class blog post, this can be why I come for your webpage time and again…

By: nik

nik — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 03:15:12 +0000

i wann join

By: Alex

Alex — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 20:48:54 +0000

On October 8th, the House passed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act as part of the conference report on Defense Authorization for FY 2010 (HR 2647). In April, the House passed these provisions on a bipartisan basis by a vote of 249 to 175. This legislation will help protect Americans against violence based on sexual orientation, race, religion, gender, national origin, disability, or gender identity by extending the federal hate crimes statute.

All Americans have a fundamental right to feel safe in their communities. Passage of this conference report by the House and Senate sends the federal hate crimes legislation to the President’s desk to become the law of the land — affirming the ideals of our founding fathers extending the protection of its laws to all:
Can we sue Watchtower for promote discrmination againts gays?

By: John White

John White — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 02:31:16 +0000

A lot of people, including myself, owe a great amount of gratitude to Randy. It became apparent very early on to me, as I started reading his web-site 4-5 years ago, that Randy doesn’t have a hidden agenda. He, along with the other contributors, just want to expose real “truths” (that you won’t hear from the JW’s official channel) and allow you (the reader) to draw your own conclusions. The conclusion I have reached (30 years associated with this religion) is that JW do not (and never did) have the truth. What a shame that they try to control people’s minds into thinking they do. The change in the generation teaching in 1995, was the beginning of me thinking outside the “JW” box. I’ve learned, too, that JW’s can never really say they have “the Truth” as their ever-changing teachings (i.e. New Light) means that at any given moment the so-called Truth can change. Of course, REAL TRUTH doesn’t change.

By: Rhona Johnson

Rhona Johnson — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 05:49:25 +0000

Hi Randy
It is me again! I have just found the New JWRecovery E Magazine and found your story re your Freeminds Ministry. We go back a long, long way. I remember when I was a new born again Christian, wanting to DO something for God, and was told that “God does not need you!” That shocked me. First of all, I needed to know that what I had found, or Who I had found would not be lost, like I lost my trust in the Watchtower way back after being a member for ten years and then disfellowshipped for opposing the anti blood transfusion teaching. After searching for the “truth” I found “God” not in a church building, but in my room, when I was told to make a decision to follow Jesus. John 5:39 Jesus says to us, “you refuse to come to ME for life!” I do believe it was the work of the Holy Spirit talking to my mind and giving me the last chance to make that choice. So that is now a long time ago. It happened in July, 1975 the Year that the J.W.s thought would be the END. For me it was just the beginning! A new life at the age of 38 yrs.
Well, now Randy, I was asked to start a branch of the Help us Jesus Ministry to help Christians to speak to J.Ws instead of shutting the door in their faces! That was in Western Australia. That was when we worked with Ex Mormons for Jesus and we contacted those in the USA and Canada who were also working in counter cult Ministries as well as those in Australia.
Some of those have now died and some of us are still here many years later, still working where we can and sharing our stories.
One thing I did not realise, is that just like a marriage, there can be a separation between a follower of Jesus. Like Jonah, I ran away from my ministry and my marriage and got divorced and then started a another new life at the age of 48. I had a second chance to grow up, learned to drive a car and went to University and after six years of study, I obtained a degree B.A. in Religious Studies. I had to learn about other belief systems and it was a shock to find out that there was a world outside the fundamental Christianity that I had accepted. Many of the students could not cope with other belief systems, but I could, I had already had my belief system shattered when I left the J.W.s but now I had to challenge all my Christian beliefs too. You never know how little you know until you start doing research. I still do research on the Internet, I learn something new every day. I do not believe that when we have faith, that we cannot use our minds and our intelligence to question everything.
I do understand that year after year we change and grow in all ways. When young, we want pat answers, later on we learn that we need to open our minds and consider other world views. We cannot live in our little boxes and hide from the wicked world. We are to live in it but not be part of it. With T.V. and the Internet, we are now a Global Village. We are all mixed up together.
There is a problem that we can be like J.W.s and just live in a “paradise” of our own. Then as fundamental Christians, we can do the very same thing.
I am so grateful that I went on to study other belief systems, it did not change my faith, but it made me more understanding of the belief systems of others and their world views.
The trouble is that many Christians never move beyond their own fellowships.
They are afraid of any challenges from other belief systems. It takes some courage to face up to the real world and the differences and practises of other religious beliefs.
I read books of other belief systems. There are Universal wisdoms in many of the religions of the world. However, the one difference is that most if not all other faiths, depend on their own good works to “save” them. Grace is not understood. It was Grace that changed my life.” God’s riches at Christ’s Expense”
How sad to see so many millions trying to be good and do good in their own strength. Reading the story of Moxie and her struggle to be good and do good in her own strength and never feeling relief or comfort in her faith in Jehovah of the J.W.’s It can take many years to be free of that conditioning and taboos and paranoia that is dished out by the books and magazines of the Watchtower, only those of us who have recovered after many years can understand the terrible fears that keep members enslaved to the control and the power of the Cult.
Well Randy here we are in 2009. We have both had years of growing and learning and helping others. We all have our own stories to share. We are all different. We can decide that it is too difficult to cope with others and their beliefs, or we can be brave and deal with the world that we have now in this amazing time, of communication and Global interaction.
It is a challenge indeed.
Rhona.