How many of you joined to placate family members ?

by bocephus 13 Replies latest jw friends

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  bocephus

  I was just wondering how many of you might have joined the organization to placate family members . I can say as a teen I was baptized for the sole purpose of quieting my father . how about you did you do it for the fear of losing family members
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  Virgochik

  I got baptized to get my relatives, especially my parents, off my back. There was lots of pressure. They were worried, because 1975 was coming fast.It was something you just sighed, resigned yourself and got it over with.

  They pushed us teens so hard to get baptized when it was really them, and not us that wanted it. Now, they throw it at me: "You were the one that wanted to get baptized, nobody made you do it! Don't forget you dedicated your life to do Jehoopla's will, did you forget your promise, bla-bla."

  Can't win!
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  bocephus

  Thats funny those are all the things tney said to my sister when she disassciated herself . I avoide all that by just leaving allways the strong willed one I guess have barely spoken in the 19 years or so since
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  serendipity

  My father threatened to kick me out of the house, so at age 18, I got baptized.
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  Balsam

  
  When my 1st husband and I became JW's back in 1971 I believe my mother became a JW just so she could stay close to me her youngest daughter. We moved to NC and my parents moved here too because I wanted them too. Mom became a JW and looking back on it now I think it was just because she loved me so much. She never thought much of JW's and would make funny comments about them sometimes. But she was active in it mostly, going door to door and going to the meetings. She was nearly 65 when she got baptized. I think too she was just bored being retired and wanted something to do and people to hang out with. My Dad never joined her and I in the insanity but tolerated it. In the beginning he was quite opposed to her going out to meets at night by herself.

  Yes I'm sure she only did it because of me. She died at 85 but spent about 20 years in it. Toward the last of her life I took care of her and my beloved Dad in our home. She loved a good joke about JW's. LOL
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  Woofer

  I got baptized at 16 to shut my parents up. My cousin at I were supposed to get baptized together (she was my best friend at the time and we were only a year apart) but she chickened out so I got baptized by myself at a circuit assembly. She ended up getting baptized that summer at the District Convention.

  It was probably this way at your congregation, but the feeling was that if you were 16, 17 or 18 years old and you were not baptized yet, that was a signal that there was something "wrong" with you.

  I remember once I was late arriving home to go over the questions with an elder and I was wearing a U2 t-shirt and he saw me in it because he was already there. I thought I was gonna get a scolding from him, but I didn't.
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  XJW4EVR

  I didn't join, but I stayed in longer than I should have to placate family.
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  divejunkie

  I got baptized at 14, just because it was expected and there was some serious pressure to do it early. And of course after that it was also expected to spend my summer vacation doing some auxiliary pioneering. BLAH!!!!!!
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  crazyblondeb

  I got baptized at 16 to make my parents happy and get them off my back. But then I was DF'd a year later. I got reinstated 2 years later cause I missed my little brother and sisters SSOOO much. But that lasted only 3 months. Got DF'd again!!!

  shelley
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  Highlander

  I think I might be the dumbest one here. I didn't receive any pressure to get baptized, yet I was baptized at the age of 18 or 19, I forget the exact age.

  No pressure to do it, yet I willingly took the 'plunge'

  However I did see that others in the 'congregation' were pressured into it.