JW-Values Anyone?

JAVA

We have a discussion group of 8 or 9 people that meets at our house every 4 to 6 weeks. We’ve been doing this over 5 years and gotten to know each other fairly well. During our last salon a few spoke of religious values that carried over even though they are no longer members of their former religion. Two members were Church of the Brethren, and another was Catholic, and they feely talked about some values that carried over into their lives today as non-church members. I couldn’t think of anything in my JW baggage I considered a value worth sharing with the group. What JW values have others on this forum taken with them as ex-JWs? Am I the only one that drew a blank?

IP_SEC

I got nothing but a big goose egg (0) for you Java.

Honesty

Well, let's see now...

Dragonlady76

snowbird

I was going to mention compassion and empathy, but I possessed those values before becoming a JW. Come to think of it, those values were what caused me to leave the JW's.
Snowbird

steve2

JW values

steve2

To my surprise, I have discovered that JWs have several distinctive values. The following list is by no means a complete list of values JWs hold dear to their hearts:

Being Right
Clarity of labels: Labeling Everything as either Black or White (No In-Between)
Trust: Putting One's Life Decisions in Other Humans' Hands (i.e., Governing Body)
Uniformity at all costs
Doctrinal Flexibility (especially when given "new" light)
Amnesia (especially the error-ridden old interpretations)
Hypocrisy (especially seeing the speck in non-JWs eyes but not the rafter in their own)
Partiality (e.g.,overlooking Watchtower leaders' imperfections, but criticising church leaders' imperfections)
Proof-activatedcompassion (especially requiring proof from at least two witnesses before investigating child sex allegations)
Conditional Love (exclusively through obedience to the Governing Body)

WTWizard

I think there are no values that can be taking from this "religion". One can take something from the mainstream Christian religions, even if they are atheist or Devil worshipers (like kindness and honesty). But, to take a religion that emphasizes nothing but service time and going to meetings, that emphasizes works that spread itself, that emphasizes blowing people off for arbitrary reasons, that emphasizes creating problems where none existed in the Bible that they claim to follow, that gives a double dose of mysticism, that forbids cross-referencing the materials, that forbids children from participating in any activity that is normal, that forbids thinking...

I think I will just do whatever this religion forbids. I already went to college. But I can go online and check out all the "bad" Web sites. I can listen to "bad" songs and watch "bad" movies. I can play around with the Ouija board, knowing full well that any message that I get is about as dangerous as a dream. I can celebrate Christmas, including putting up crosses just to slap the Watchtower and Jehovah in the face. And, just wait until they do finalize a ban on coffee, tea, cola, and chocolate--I will continue eating my favorite chocolate (even at any judicial hearing for eating chocolate, I will get the biggest bar of organic dark chocolate and eat it right at the hearing). This religion created negative value, and I have no respect for it whatsoever.

parakeet

JAVA wrote: "What JW values have others on this forum taken with them as ex-JWs?"

The most important and beneficial JW value I've taken with me as an exJW is never to open a gate that has a sign on it saying, "Beware of dog."

RollerDave

I learned basic Judeo-Christian values from the JW's, but with a twist.

And over the rocks with a slice of lime and a little umbrella in the glass.

Love, faith, loyalty, service, integrity, compassion, they are all there; albeit misapplied and often given mere lip-service.

Once I undid the twist, I found I was left with just that, biblical Judeo-Christian values.

I could have learned 'em from any Christan religion, but I got 'em from the JW's.

Of course most other Christian religions don't encrypt them.

Roller

JW-Values Anyone?

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