WERE THERE ANY BIZARRE ELDERS IN YOUR CONGREGATION? (page 3)

Madame Quixote

Of one elder, Greendawn said,"Not really though one had an obsession with demons and would say things like: if you have any weaknessesdon't mention them because they will be revealed to the demons who can then exploit them."

I guess that explains why they didn't do much praying out loud about specific problems, issues or people, huh? I remember only a lot of generalized, abstract prayers about distant brothers and sisters and such. They were afraid Satan would also hear their prayers and use it against them. How paranoid and supernaturalistic is that?

Now is it not bizarre that people who constantly say,"wait on Jehovah," are afraid the demons might know their own fears and weaknesses? Would not Jehovah's love and power overcome such demons, if the JWs actually had the truth?

Their fear of self-expression, even in prayer, is truly bizarre.

Madame Quixote

Okay, how about the elder who told on himself after an exchange of "inappropriate touching" between him and a pioneer woman when he was making a "shepherding call" alone to her? BTW, in typical fashion, the female was publically reproved and the elder was just privately reproved. WTF?!!

Okay, how about the elder with the perfect wife and family who sat on many JCs, disfellowshipping and reproving others for years on end, only to have his perfect wife discover he was cheating on her. Of course, the woman with whom he was cheating was, once again, treated as the evil Lilith.

How about the elder who always verbally abused his wife and kids for years on end, without reproach to him? When his wife finally leaves him aftrer well over 20 years, she's d'fe'd and shunned. Later, he gets a brain tumor and every one feels so much the sorrier for him. Maybe all that verbal abuse created some kind of rot in his own brain . . . Oh well.

How about the young man - future elder material - who gives up both academic scholarships and athletic scholarships in his youth so that he can work in a produce department, marry a retard, and work as an elder for the rest of his life, sitting in on many such JCs and judging others for not being just like him - STOOpid? Yes, it's a nasty dig, but I think some of them really deserve it.

Bizarre, stoopid, assinine, hypocritical, pathetic, sickos. And that's just a sample of ones I grew up with. I don't know much more about the others, because I have chosen to stay out of the loop. It's barely worth knowing, except for purposes of my little, mean-spirited gossipy bitch fests, which I sometimes do enjoy, I'll confess.

Quandry

This was admittedly a few years ago. Three young brothers were announced as df'd at a meeting. A young pioneer sister at the same meeting was reproved. After the meeting a few people went up to the reproved sister and hugged her. At the next service meeting, there was a special needs part given about not hugging someone who was publicly reproved. The elder said, "Would you put dirty underwear over your head? NO!"

For the life of me at the time I thought it was so bizarre. First, how would we in the audience have any idea of the reason why she was publicly reproved? I don't know what his tirade meant unless he was trying to tell us all that she was now considered "dirty" due to perhaps an act of fornication, and hugging her would somehow rub some of her filthy condition on us? I did feel horrible for the young sister.

willyloman

Every congo has its share of elders who are offbeat, dysfunctional or total whack jobs. It was that way in my first congo more than 30 years ago. It was that way when I left. One of the "ah-hah" moments I had prior to leaving was the realization that these bizarre elders, all of whom are loyal company men, have floated to the top because of the standards set by the WTS - not in spite of them, as I used to think.

jaguarbass

They are all bizarre to me. All the elders I know are as old or older than me. They all lived thru amreggedon in 1975 and they still hang in there. It's like they have no memory and no reasoning power in their brains. They all know that the generation that saw 1914 has passed away and yet they still spread the poison.

LisaRose

There was an elder that I used to hate, He was a bitter, smug, know-it-all. His wife used to sit there like a scared little mouse and never said a word. It turned out he was totally abusing her. The kids made her leave him as they feared for her life as she was elderly and in poor health. He then killed himself.

lfcviking

No but we had some right tossers in ours. i.e over authorative control freaks who just loved bossing everyone around.

Hortensia

elders were mostly 'nice' guys not competent to handle the requirements of the position, that is as far as counselling goes. Of course we had one who liked blonde little girls. How do I know? I was a blonde little girl. But they clearly weren't using their brains most of the time. When my mother asked if it was OK to divorce the homicidal maniac alcoholic she was married to, who tried to kill us on a regular basis, they said, and this is a genuine pearl of wisdom and compassion, "oh no, he is your HEAD. unless he has sex with another woman you can never leave him." What g**d*** etc. etc. a**h**** you know whats they were. They should have said they'd drive her to a lawyer and find her a place to hide. Could have saved us more than a decade of abject misery and physical abuse if they had a little common sense and compassion. If they didn't care if she got killed, you'd think they would care a little about the little kids who were living in that situation. Nooooooooo, maintaining male dominance was far more important. That's why, years later when I heard a group of women in a restaurant talking about how they handled submission, I wanted to scream and puke and beg them to wake the hell UP and be responsible for themselves and their children. What did god give us brains for, if not to use them?

exwitless

Three young brothers were announced as df'd at a meeting. A young pioneer sister at the same meeting was reproved. After the meeting a few people went up to the reproved sister and hugged her. At the next service meeting, there was a special needs part given about not hugging someone who was publicly reproved. The elder said, "Would you put dirty underwear over your head? NO!"

That is one of the most cruel and unloving things I've heard being said about a reproved one in her very presence. I find it repulsive that an elder would say such a thing. Comparing one of the "sheep" that they are supposedly trying to offer "loving" redirection and help to dirty underwear! I think I would have stood up and walked out of the KH when he said that.

Dirty underwear. Ah...feel the love. What loving, wise, and tender words to use to help a stray sheep return to the flock.

Save My Soul

One CO said that PAC-Man was demonized. The elders in the circuit said they would disfellowship anyone caught playing. In the same hall, the elders recently said if you went to see the movie "Dreamsgirls" you would get publically reproved. Elders, their wives and pioneers still sneaked out to view the movie.

Serious control freaks, based on their personal opinions.

WERE THERE ANY BIZARRE ELDERS IN YOUR CONGREGATION?

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