Did you feel picked on and persecuted?

Virgogirl

As a Dub, did you tend to color every slight and small injustice in your day as persecution? I just learned today, that my elder at work discovered a small error in his paycheck that payroll made. He immediately ran to the Union, as well as any to co-workers who would listen, and said I must have messed up his pay because I have something personal against him, me being an ex Witless, and knowing he's an elder. Therefore, to annoy him, I must somehow be behind the accounting error in payroll. Even the Union steward explained to him I had nothing to do with it but he is determined that because I'm a former Dub, I must want to persecute him. What the heck??? If his customers complain about him, it's becuz they don't like the Witlesses. If his co-workers slight him, it's because he's a Witless. Were we that hyper sensitive too at one time?

Dune

I was never into the whole "PERSERCUTION" things. An african brother or sister being beat over the head with a blunt object, THATS persecution. A group of guys laughing at you for a full 20 seconds as you pass by their house during field service is NOT persercution. I think some witnesses are so condidtion to the thought that they are persercuted that the slightest hardship is turned into a test by the devil. It's really funny sometimes.

Undecided

I never felt this way because I was always treated with respect by my worldly friends and workmates. It could be because I actually had respect for them if I thought they were respectable. Now that I think about my JW life, I probably wasn't as righteous as the congregation thought I was.

Ken P.

greendawn

Me too I never felt persecuted because the worldly people never really made me feel bad for being a JW.

Elise

I left the organization when I was 16 but for most of those years I felt - we as a family felt (I take the liberty of saying that D!) that we were persecuted. I felt it because my parents constantly drummed it into me/us that the teachers hated us for our religious beliefs our school friends were only friends for their own selfish reasons and just about anyone and everyone else did not like us and disliked us even more because our family happened to consist of 2 bi-racially adopted children. For us there were not just religious reasons for people being bigoted towards us but there were also racial reasons too.

OMG, I'm so glad I'm away from it all.

What I've learned since I left is that, in general, people don't give a toss what religion you are. The majority of people in the world just want a peaceful life and they want a happy, healthy family. Before it was mostly paranoia on our behalf. It's so refreshing and lovely not having to worry about it all - to be free of it all.

Good post, thanks!

Finally-Free

As a JW I was constantly persecuted by almost everyone around me. Only "worldly" people treated me well. All of my persecution came from within the congregation, especially the elders.

W

drew sagan

There's an elder in our hall who has made it his personal goal to not quit talking about persection. Ever week is another story about how we might have to wipe our brothers rear end (i'm not kidding, a comment was made to that effect!). Don't they realize that people are persectued for all kinds of things? Not just being a JW.