Never asks me questions of her own...

by onlycurious 5 Replies latest jw friends

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  onlycurious

  My employee and I have a friendship outside of work, even though I am her boss and about 15 short years her senior. Okay, I'm kindof a mentor friend.

  Anyway, she is a jw doing 50hrs a month in service and is a 2nd generation jw. If it wasn't for her mom I swear she would jump ship.

  I talk very openly about my faith, church, youth group, people in need and how we handle that...etc.

  She NEVER asks me anything. She is always polite and listens for a while but never asks a thing. I am famous for asking her all kinds of questions and then I compare how our hall/churches do things.

  I just find it to be interesting that she never even inquires or contributes.

  She did manage to tell my other jw employee (2 years in the making) that she should bring her book of reasonings with her because I ask a lot of questions. lol
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  searching4truth

  JWs for the most don't care bout what happens in other churches, unless it opens up room for preaching or somehow shows it to be false religion. Why because they believe theirs is all thats right, so yours doesn't matter.
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  Jeffro

  As a typical Witness, she likely doesn't want to know anything about your 'false' beliefs (and even if she is curious, she's conditioned by her religion not get involved with it), and she is probably very satisfied that you are showing an interest in her religion.

  If she hasn't already, she will probably mention you at the 'Service Meeting' as an 'experience' of one of her 'calls' that is showing lots of 'interest' in the 'Truth'.
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  Confession

  Imagine that, as a child of about nine years of age, one of your JW parents starts to "study the Bible" with you. You learn that the Trinity doctrine is incorrect. The information you're presented with seems crystal clear and irrefutable. Then you come to understand that almost every other Christian religion believes in the Trinity. You express shock to your parent: How could they all believe in something that's so clearly wrong?! You are told that it's because Satan has "blinded" their minds.

  Most JWs (I'd say especially those in from birth) suffer from the delusion that most people's understanding of God and the Bible is perfectly elementary as compared to theirs. While you have nursery rhymes to mouth, they have Shakespeare to share.

  They cannot for one minute imagine you have anything substantive to say. And if you did, it would be considered suspicious--possibly Satanic--ideas.
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  Confession

  [Sorry! Double post.]
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  J-ex-W

  Actually, since she's not asking any questions, this sounds to me like she is listening to draw you out and establish what feels to you like a non-threatening environment to hear about the teachings that shebelieves, which are new and foreign to you. Eventually, if/ when she discerns that you are even more receptive [at next-phase readiness], she will start telling you that this is the way, instead of just answeringquestions.

  Some JW's, whether weak or strong in their faith, are more comfortable witnessing in a format in which they are SPOON-feed the opportunity to answer questions, rather than having to actively cultivate the [worldly person's ] curiosity. She could be simply quietly enjoying this opportune arrangement which has been placed upon her lap. But the effect of it can go either way from here, especially since you have a friendship and regular dialogue going.

  Be aware of where her mindset must be, though. Witnesses who care for worldly friends may be respectful of how they handle the right of an individual to make their own choice...but always only to a point--unless or until they are on the way out. Based on what I'm hearing, I don't know that she's there yet.