Specifically for those of you who have been in the JW religion many years and still attend -
Do you see a difference in the brothers' and sisters' demeanor (facial and otherwise) and attitude from years ago?
Thank you for your input.
Juni
FOR THOSE WHO GO TO THE KINGDOM HALL............I HAVE A QUESTION.
by juni 25 Replies latest jw friends
-
-
nvrgnbk
Specifically for those of you who have been in the JW religion many years and still attend -
Do you see a difference in the brothers' and sisters' demeanor (facial and otherwise) and attitude from years ago?
Thank you for your input.
Juni
I have not gone for many months. Having said that I was still an elder just a year ago. Yeah, I move fast.LOL!
What I did notice is that many seem to be preparing mentally for not seeing the "New World" in their lifetime.
It's as if they've been so disappointed so many times, they just can't take anymore. Yet, they still march on,
muttering the mantra,"Where else shall we go?"
Nvr
BTW great thread juni!
-
OnTheWayOut
Oh, there is definitely a difference over the last 2 decades. In the 80's and early 90's, the JW's
were mostly fired up that Armageddon was "right around the corner." Now, even firm believers
live as if the end is far off.The biggest demeanor change is noticed at District Conventions. The rank and file used to be
excited about the subject of the new releases and who the guest Bethelite might be, what the
Drama was about. Now, that's fake enthusiasm in many of them. Some don't even bother to
give fake enthusiasm. Most are not really excited to learn what the latest release is about.
Many still manage to muster up excitement over the subject of the drama, but they don't really
care about the modern-day application of the message, just how they did the ancient setting.There are still many who have some of the fire inside, but it mostly left in the late 90's. From
what I have read, it is cyclical. There have been different periods of such excitement and then a
settling down period. I think that they had such a wave of excitement prior to 1975 that they tried
to duplicate it in the late 80's as everyone speculated that the 1914 generation was ready to kick
the bucket. This would be why they held out sooooo long before changing that. I think they will
never duplicate that past excitement ever again, but will try. Expect something soon. -
mrchuffster
Yes, i still go. Definitely seen a lot of change. There is no sense of community anymore, our congregation hasn’t done ANYTHING together for at leased 10 years. A lot of people are miserable but don’t want to admit it. Its all about the preaching work, that’s it nothing else. Its not a social club were told but people need some sort of social interaction. There is absolutely zero love, especially for anyone who is weak. I don’t think this is just in my hall, we have friends elsewhere in different congregations, some are better than others but the trend is the same. Yes the wheels are certainly coming off the chariot. At the book study group the other night (Revelation book) the silences were almost embarrassing during the study, three of us don’t answer anyway (because were secret apostates ) or give double meaning answers during the group and the rest of the rank and file were just looking perplexed. Sorry to be so negative but that’s just the way I see it, I’m not alone either.
Mr C
-
juni
Thank you for your posting.
Why I ask this is because I had a discussion w/a friend who is a fader. They brought to my attention that the bros' and sisters' demeanors have changed from years ago. I have been out for 14 years so I'm not "up to date". I was baptized in 1971 and left in ' 92. During that time I can say there was a change. Not the vibrancy as I noticed in the ' 70s and ' 80s.
Juni
Thank you mrchuffster for your observation. Never apologize for your opinion especially when asked for it. So far this has been a real eye opener for me.
Juni
-
-
OnTheWayOut
mrchuffster says:
There is no sense of community anymore, our congregation hasn’t
done ANYTHING together for at leased 10 years.That's so correct. The congregation I attended in the late 90's noticed the waining attitudes.
The individuals had many gatherings, events, fun stuff for everyone to do. They were trying
to keep a sense of "family" in the congregation. As more WTS instructions came out about
gatherings, putting responsibility on a host for the actions taken there, and being careful about
stumbling each other, saying that the congregation doesn't sponsor any events- these events
occurred less often. Now the congregations go from one wedding or baby shower to the next
similar event. The only fun gatherings are restaurant dinners after the Sunday meeting or in a
convention city, therefore no real host, no person responsible for others. It really is not a
close-knit group like in the past.My current congregation is better than most at still having gatherings, but even they only have
something maybe twice a year. -
-
Gayle
I remember that "where else is there to go" syndrome, back in the early 80's. I envied a new gal so excited about the "truth",,I had wished I hadn't already been in 20+ years already, I was beginning to wish there was a "Reorganized" Jehovah's Witness group or "Second" Jehovah's Witness group.
It took me about another 5 yrs or so to set myself free of that trapped syndrome. -
Zico
To offer an alternative viewpoint, I'd agree with the above that my Cong did appear to be dying until the last year. A large increase in Polish workers coming into the UK has seen an increase in my Congregation, and recently a Polish group started up, with almost 30 Polish in my Congregation now. Due to the marked increase this has caused, and the happy attitude Polish people seem to have, it's caused a real buzz in my Congregation, really livened it up again. This, coupled with a large generation of young JWs coming through the ranks and starting pioneering has meant that Congregation statistics, such as average hours, return visits, studies, publishers, pioneers etc... are higher now than at any point in the last decade. The GB's push for the end during the last year may have also contributed.