I have a biological sister, I call her sister. I do not have a biological brother so I do not call any one brother. These are the only ones I would call brother or sister.
Can or Do you call your fellow apostates on this board "brothers"?
by asilentone 22 Replies latest jw friends
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Lady Lee
Naaa we're all just people in here - just related by a common bond I would never use the temrs brother or sister for anyone who isn't a relative
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AgentSmith
Nope, the few that i contact i call by name, but then I have made friends here "that stick closer than a brother" " I dig that scriture....
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Jim_TX
Calling someone 'brother' or 'sister' is a cheesy way to never have to learn first names.
I remember as a JW - those terms were used freely. To this day, I know that there are many JWs I used to know... and I only knew their last names.
Of course... I guess one could say the same thing about calling someone Mr. Johnson, or Mrs. Andrews...
Regards,
Jim TX
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undercover
...cousin whose experience was very similar to mine. He wants nothing to do with any xjw discussions. He once said, "If I had been held down, gang raped and forced to
perform degrading acts, why would I want to keep hashing it over with others? I don't want to do anything but forget about it."
That's pretty profound and I can see his point. And it's a good point. Why keep re-living it when you should just put it behind you and move on. I'm glad he's able to do that. There are some who can walk away completely and never think twice about it.
But...what if the survivor had to live in proximity of those who put him through that ordeal? What if it was family members that he has to keep interacting with to some degree? That's where a lot of us are at. We've put the religion behind us, but we're still affected by it through our family members who still remain JWs and who exert some influence on our lives.
Instead of just re-hashing the horrible experience of being a JW, many of us partake in ex-JW discussions to get support from others who understand what we've gone through and what we're dealing with now - because even though we've put the religion and the experience of being a JW behind, we're still dealing with some of the side effects.
Back to the original question...I never liked the term "brothers" and "sisters". Even growing up as a JW, I thought it sounded too cultish. Having escaped that mentality of group-think, I have a hard time wanting to be part of a group. I'm pretty wary of groups in general. The thought of calling anyone "brother" in a group setting just gives me flashbacks that I don't like.
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crapola
Friends!!
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nelly136
nup sounds slimy/creepy
i have a step sister that i talk to occassionally, i wouldn't dream of calling her 'sister B' i just use her normal name, actually apart from the dub thing i don't know anyone in real life that addresses their own sibs as sister or brother whoever. unless its in a sentence...'my sister did this or that.'
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blondie
I belong to my union and they address each other as brother and sister..........I just can't do it
Blondie
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wobble
I avoided the use of Bro or Sis when I was in as much as possible,when I gave my first Service meeting item,when I was just a teenager,I was counselled afterwards,in a very kindly way,for calling everybody by their christian name.
I t never did sit well with me that true friends had this formal way of address.
The funniest instance I remember was when a guy obviously forgot his own surname,because he called for an answer from:
"Sister er er er Oh dammit Mother!"
Having said that I feel a real bond with those on here,even if we don't agree on everything,JWN is a great club!
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John Doe
I thought the latest term was "homie."