by OUTLAW 17 Replies latest jw friends
They certainly do. They have their own language,(KH, truth, friends, brothers, sisters etc.) , traditions (assemblies, conventions, memorial, meetings,field service etc), clothing style (clean cut, no beards, flowered dresses, suits, dresses & skirts to the knee) exclusivity, (no one really belongs unless they believe as they do) they control by fear and ignorance. Their culture is all about power and control over its members.
Leslie
They have no real culture so to speak as one would expect from a dictatorial organisation, the two (culture and oppression) don't mix. They basically continue to follow the culture of their national background, making only small adjustments after becoming JWs.
When I think of JWs and the word "culture", the next word that comes to mind is "fungus".
If you mean do they have intellectual and artistic activity- then the answer is No!
If you mean ,unique behavior,beliefs and and institutions- then the answer is Yes!
I would say yes. Especially for those who grew up in and therefore were hardwired with certain ideas and "ways". Probably just slightly moreso than any human group forms its own set ways of being, thinking, etc (because of the ultra-cloistered nature of the group). Witness why we here feel that certain "bond" that we cannot share with others.
Also, they sublimated any racial/ethnic cultural identity supplanting it with their doctrines, ideas and identity--you were to identify with being a witness before being even human.
It's not good, it's not bad, it just is.
I would say yes. And while you are a witness your feel special using "theocratic" vocabulary, having special meetings and behaving in a very specific way that makes you different from the "worldly" people around you and makes you feel special. And I think this is one of the reasons why you feel that other people who never were in the organization dont understand you when you speak about the experience of being a witness. People see the Watchtower society as an organization like others, but for you it meant more, it meant a way of living, a way of thinking.
Abandoned:
They differ just for the sake of being different. This is the reason for all the different names for the things you mentioned.
LHG
Good afternoon JWD!!..Thank-you "All" for your replys!..Good posts everyone!..What got me thinking about this..Was..The fact that Jehovah`s Witness`s deny they are a cult..They have a culture,recognised by themselves and the outside world...What is that culture based on?..Not intellect,music,math or science.Thier Culture is directly infuenced by the Cult they belong to,the Jehovah`s Witness`s...OUTLAW
