Is it emotionally damaging to those who shun others?
Shunning
by Honesty 25 Replies latest jw friends
-
-
MidwichCuckoo
Yes - I believe it can have the same psychological effects as MILGRAM'S famous Obedience To Authority Experiment (1974?) - where there's a conflict between obedience to authority and personal conscience.
-
OpenFireGlass
when it's close family members.... Yes, Definatly..
-
Moomin
A lady at my congregation had only been a witness for a couple of years but managed to shun her df daughter.
I imagined that it wasn't that difficult for her as she would still go to family get togethers when her daughter and grandchildren were there but ignored them all.
She didn't feel bad about missing out on her grandchildren as she believed that when Armageddon comes and her daughter has gone, then Jehovah will give the children to her to bring up.
Moomin
-
diamondblue1974
She didn't feel bad about missing out on her grandchildren as she believed that when Armageddon comes and her daughter has gone, then Jehovah will give the children to her to bring up.
Yeah right...doesnt she know what kind of god she worships and that children too will be part of his mass genocide? Obviously not considered that as a possibility as she?
Ah well.
DB74
-
Finally-Free
I believe it is. There are people I avoid, mostly for my own good, but that doesn't mean I refuse to acknowledge their existence or be civil to them. If someone says "hello" to me I respond civilly; it's automatic and natural to do so. To go to the extreme JWs go to takes a conscious, deliberate effort. It requires that the shunner make a mental judgement of the shunnee, deciding their existence is not worthy of acknowledgement, and then acting upon that judgement.
Doing that often enough will make a person judgemental and hateful, even if that were not previously a personality trait.
W
-
ButtLight
Doing that often enough will make a person judgemental and hateful, even if that were not previously a personality trait.
My thoughts exactly. It is a hateful thing, for both! But its an act of love right?
-
Mary
It is a hateful thing, for both! But its an act of love right?
Ah yes, it's "Agape love"! After all, we have to "keep the congregation clean" at all costs.....right?
-
ButtLight
Which goes hand in hand with getting dfed. "Dont look at this as a bad thing, really, its a good thing!!" Got a barf bag handy?
-
unique1
I am willing to be my parents have cried long and hard over shunning me. They think it is my choice to have them shun me though, so I guess in their minds, they are in the right. They do not realize they are able of making decisions for themself and that the choice to not speak to me is theirs and theirs alone.