What Are Most JWs Disillusioned Over?

by minimus 60 Replies latest jw friends

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  Double Edge

  Garybuss:

  I enjoyed reading your story.... true friends are one of the real 'blessings' of life - they're something rare and valuable. You were lucky, and so was your buddy.
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  garybuss

  Thanks Double Edge, I'm happy I had a lifelong friend. I'm sorry he's gone.
  The Witnesses made it impossible to have any long term relationships with other Witnesses. They did that on purpose. Witnesses I talk to resent the intrusion by the other Witnesses into what they consider their personal business. Of course for a Witness, there is no personal business. . . It's all company business. A Jehovah's Witness can walk up to another Witness and inquire where they are secularly employed and then if the place of employment is not on the approved list, the Witness can order the other Witness's children to shun their parent. The children will comply
  
  
  
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  outoftheorg

  Gary I can recall times in my own life as a jw, that sound like yours. There were several times when I was a jw, that I could have used some help.

  Even if I called them and asked, I was usually told that they had some excuse to not show .I remember helping one elder to run the elec, wiring in his new house and he promised to return the favor.

  Even when I asked for his help he never showed up.

  My dad told me once that if I had two or three GOOD friends I would be lucky.

  Last week we had some flood warnings here in sw Idaho and with out any phone calls 5 friends showed up on their own.

  One brought a tractor and they all helped to place things higher in the garage and haul things to higher ground.

  Spent most of a day doing this. These evil worldly guys are the real "good friends".

  Outoftheorg
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  minimus

  I believe that RULES really do get to Witnesses. You're always breaking a rule or a principle and you're going to get "disciplined" for it. You can never enjoy life NOW. You're told this is not the "real life". Only the future is and your future depends upon you obeying all the rules.
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  tazmaniac

  I know for me that it was a lack of concern or action toward ones needing real help in the congregation. We had a much respected sister in the cong who suffered from a stroke. At first there was some response from a few. Then as the months passed it was difficult to even get friends to visit this poor sister. It seems to only be the few that really extend themselves to others in times of need.
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  DannyBloem

  1) What I hear most is that so many JW's do not take the religion to serious any more. It was so different in the past the dubs complain. "Before we were really living for the truth, now we just take the truth as some kind interuption to our normal lives.

  2) Very few really think the new order is coming very soon. Wghen you ask about it it is always: some day or likewise.
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  AlmostAtheist

  All of you complaining about lack of love must just be in the wrong cong! My husband says that's all he can see, is all the love in the cong.

  I know this was tongue-in-cheek, but JW's do put on a front to the world. It's only among themselves and in the company of "worldly" people that are both nice and clearly never going to become Jw's that they will open up a bit.

  I was talking to a high school friend that knew me as a JW and she mentioned that I seemed like a very happy person, like I enjoyed being a JW. That was actually true, but I put on that same happy face to the world as I grew older and the JW burden became much more than I could bear. It's only those on the inside (and ex-JW's) that really see the two-faced-ness of it all.

  In answer to min's question, I would say lack of love is number 1, and the delay of the end is number 2. The "delay of the end" cuts them twice, since they WANT the end to come, expected it to come, and it hasn't, so they're disappointed. Then to make matters worse, to want something to come sooner than Jehovah has already scheduled it is to rush Jehovah and actually WANT people to not have more of a chance to get on "the Ark". More guilt for the poor JW.

  Dave
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  minimus

  Yeah, JWs are no different than any other group. Love is NOT their ID.
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  IT Support

  Good question, Minimus.

  I've spoken to a number of JWs recently and the one thing on which they all disagreed with the Society was higher education. They all felt sufficiently strongly about it to openly say they were going to university no matter what the Watchtower says.

  Good on them. Nice to see some independent thinking. No doubt they'll soon also be posting on JWD...
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  minimus

  I believe the newer generation sees that education is a necessity and that "theocratic education" will only get you a good career in window washing.