Did you leave Jehovah's Witnesses or Mormons?

Question

If you left the Mormons or Jehovah's Witnesses or Christian Science, would you please tell us why ??

To Simon 6.... and others who say the same thing, I also knew a lady who tried to leave and was persecuted so badly she was a nervous wreck. Folks came into her home and looked thru her belongings and destroyed greeting cards. They phoned her at all hours of the day and night, they came to see her to talk disrespectfully to her. They ended up putting great fear upon her. She told of how many in the Kingdom Hall also had great fear, and had undergone frontal lobotomies.

Answer 1

I was raised as a JW from the ages of 4-18. I left when I got out on my own and my parents were no longer able to enforce my attendance.

Toward the end of my involvement, I found I was taking a very strong moral stance against some of their teachings. My main problems were how they treated Disfellowshipped or Disassociated people who were trying to work their way back into the organization. They were ostracized when they attended the meetings and relegated to the back seats of the building where no one was allowed to speak with them. I thought, did not Jesus teach that, if one were lost, we should leave the other 99 sheep and go out and bring the one who was lost back into the fold? He didn't advocate just letting them go; He advocated pulling out all the stops to help such a one.

My other big problem was the blood transfussion issue. My parents never seemed to have much love for me and I knew that they would let me die rather than go against the organization, if it came down to me needing a transfusion to save my life. I could also remember that, in the mid 80's the WT changed its stance on organ transplants and began allowing them. Up until that time, they had been denying them and saying that it was akin to cannibalism. I couldn't help but wonder how many people lost their lives because of this rule, only to have it reversed later. It seemed conceivable to me that the same thing could very well happen with the transfusion issue.

My doctrinal objections would come a little later, but these were some of the "ethical" issues that didn't set well with me and began my questioning of the WT doctrines.

Answer 2

I even have had this ensue two times form of. i'm a Jehovah Witness, we've been rebuilding our Kingdom hall in Massachusetts merely for the duration of from the Mormon temple. The Mormons, have been style adequate to grant their vehicle parking zone FOR OUR USE. We had all waiting made preparations with the aid of the close by construction Committee of direction. the element is, human beings all human beings attempting to be authentic Christians could consistently greet one yet another kindly. And artwork opposite aspects of the line! LOL

Answer 3

No. I am still a part of the organization. But one thing I have to make clear with you and the others is that, JWs do not force people to their religion and coerce people into following or believing their teachings. You can join and leave anytime you feel like you don't want to belong anymore. It is your choice, just as God gave us choice or freedom to follow what we think is good for us.

I have been with the organization for almost 30 years. I have also been antagonistic against their teachings in the past and have, in fact, been indifferent. I was raised a Catholic, went to an all-girls Catholic school and in college, to a university that was managed by priests. I did not accept what they told me, I was deaf to all their teachings. But later on, when I compared what I was taught as a Catholic with what I have gathered from attending their meetings, it dawned on me the vast difference of the two religions. I was convinced I had finally found the true religion for me. So, here I am.

Answer 4

I left the Jehovah's witnesses
Why is a long story but it probably can be put down as a miss understanding between the elders and me.
My wife had a mental illness and she lied to them and as usual people believe what a woman tells them over a man .
They did not believe me when i told them she had a mental illness.(schizophrenics are the best liars as they believe their own lies)
Anyway she ended up in a mental hospital and escaped and jumped in front of a train an killed herself
I was so upset with it all i stop following there belief and hit the beer very hard and rightly left the religion.
I hated them for a long time but now i realise they are only human and make mistakes.
It's now been more than 25 years and i can not stop thinking how much i miss them . The whole point of the bible is forgiveness and love
Getting on yahoo answers has made me think long and hard about my spirituality and have come to the decision to start attending there meetings again
Once you know the truth you can't turn your back on god
I truly believe the JW's are the true religion and they strive to follow the bible whole heartily but they are human and make mistakes like all of us do


This is hard for me to write as it brings back so much pain but maybe writing about it is a type of therpy as i have hidden the feelong a long time

I Find it hard to beleive the JWs carried out what is in your foot note. They didn't bother and annoy me .
I think it's a maded up bit of revenge ,an urban myth

Answer 5

I left JW's 3 years ago, for many reasons. The lack of love in the congregation was a big one. They didn't seem to care about me going through my divorce, or wanting to help my kids to make friends in the congregation (they had a non-witness dad, so I think they got avoided a lot), or my fall into a deep depression that had me crying for no apparent reason hours on end. The elders knew, and pretty much ignored me. All most people at the Hall cared about was pressuring me into being at the meetings or in service, neither of which I was capable of doing often enough to please them.
I realized that they are no more loving than the others they condemn. My co-workers and neighbors who are mainstream Christians were a lot more supportive. Without them, I never would have made it.
I also realized the Organization does not have the right to say they are The Truth, because their track record shows the complete opposite, and the evidence is all in their own literature. They've taught things to people that they later change, they have predicted false dates for the end, they let people die rather than using a life-saving medical procedure, they break up families...not just for a sin against God, but for a sin against the Organizational policies. They rank themselves as necessary for salvation, which Jesus claims as his sole position.
I am so much happier now that I have broken free of all the manmade rules and burdens the Organization puts people under. I am closer to God, joyful, depression-free, and filled with a deep love and concern for those still trapped.

Answer 6

I left Jehovah's Witnesses when I turned 18. I realized there were things I wanted to do that were not compatible with what I had learned. I felt it would be hypocritical to do what was considered sinful and either pretend I hadn't done it or continually ask forgiveness if I intended to do it again. I know the difference between right and wrong.

Answer 7

My parents were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (more commonly known as the Mormons) up until I was about 9 years old. My father is still fighting to have their names removed from the church's files. (Their names are still being used as statistics for how many members are in the Mormon church. I was 19 when my father finally managed to get my name taken off.) I did not go through baptism at the age of 8, so really, I was never a member to begin with.

My mother left first. She was brainwashed into the church by my father and two missionaries. When my parents were first married, my dad was in the army and they lived in Germany. My mom only spoke a few words that she picked up here and there, but not enough to have a decent conversation with anyone. The only English speaking people around were Dad and the missionaries. They all refused to speak to her unless it was about the church. Those were the circumstances she joined under and when they moved back to the US, her brainwashed fanaticism began to fade as she was able to talk to her family and friends again. By the time I was nine, she was bitter and resentful. She told my dad that if he wanted to divorce her, go ahead, but she wasn't staying in that church anymore!

My dad left a few years after that because of ill treatment by the other members, as well as odd hidden doctrines and dubious church origins.

As for me, I refused to be baptized at the age of 8 because I didn't like the way the church was treating my mom. And I told them so. I still remember the satisfied smile on my mom's face as she waved her hand towards my dad and his home teachers and said, "The hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world. Remember that." (I had no idea what she meant at the time. I know now that she was informing them that she has more say in matters than they gave her credit for.)

Later on, I found out about the hidden doctrine. That's enough to keep me away. I feel that if a religion is true, then there is no need for hidden doctrine. Since they never tell prospective church members about god's origin, that god has a wife, that a man can become a god, etc., they obviously have something to hide. It is lying by omission.

Answer 8

I studied with the jehovah's witness for almost 2 years and was told that I had to make up my mind if I wanted to be baptized as a witness, I said I was not sure and was told that I was taking too long, so I decided to leave and join a church.

Answer 9

The Bible has been proven true by archaeological findings which have been found to backup events & people that are written in the Bible.

Prophecy that has been written in the Bible which is for our day has come true & is still coming true. No human can know what's in the future, so it can have only been God who inspired the Bible to be written.

2Timothy 3:1-5
3 But know this, that in the last days critical times hard to deal with will be here. 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, self-assuming, haughty, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, disloyal, 3 having no natural affection, not open to any agreement, slanderers, without self-control, fierce, without love of goodness, 4 betrayers, headstrong, puffed up [with pride], lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godly devotion but proving false to its power; and from these turn away.

This is exactly what the world is like today.

Matthew 24:1-7
24 Departing now, Jesus was on his way from the temple, but his disciples approached to show him the buildings of the temple. 2 In response he said to them: “Do YOU not behold all these things? Truly I say to YOU, By no means will a stone be left here upon a stone and not be thrown down.”

3 While he was sitting upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples approached him privately, saying: “Tell us, When will these things be, and what will be the sign of your presence and of the conclusion of the system of things?”

4 And in answer Jesus said to them: “Look out that nobody misleads YOU; 5 for many will come on the basis of my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many. 6 YOU are going to hear of wars and reports of wars; see that YOU are not terrified. For these things must take place, but the end is not yet.

7 “For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be food shortages and earthquakes in one place after another. 8 All these things are a beginning of pangs of distress.


http://www.watchtower.org/library/w/1999/7/15/article_02.htm

Hope this helps!

Answer 10

ex-mormon. Too many reasons, I was abused by my parents, I stopped being seduced by the doctrine of becoming a Goddess and having magical powers and clared my head long enough to think for myself to realize that I was being brainwashed and mind controled and indoctrinated. There belief that is not a belief in the Journal of Discourses about Mary being married to God in the pre-existance and Jesus comign from the Holy Ghost coming over her, helped me to understand why my dad had adopted me as a daughter/wife. I didn't like the concept of God being a wimp and sending his son to die for our sins instead of himself, so I became a christian when I heard of the trinity. And so on and so on...