As a JW Did you Feel " Guilted " to go to Meetings /Service if Injured /Sick ?

by flipper 45 Replies latest jw friends

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  AggieNostic

  Great thread Mr. Flipper!

  This topic underscores how fanatical JWs are. This martyr mentality is a hair's width from lashing backs with barbed whips...

  Case in point: my wife's parents' house (next door to our house at that time - fortunately we live 10 miles away...) burned down early on a Thursday morning. Burned completely down. 25 years of history wiped out. With the ashes of their lives smoldering in the background, they were more concerned that they both had parts on that nights School and Service Meeting... and didn't want to cancel! I look back at that with mixed thoughts: at least they had the distraction of the meeting and at the same time they are so brainwashed that material things, memories, photos and the years of effort making a home really mean ZERO to JWs. They are ready to CNTRL ALT DELETE their "old system of things" lives away at the drop of a hat. That disturbs me because it wouldn't be a much of a stretch with that mindset, if commanded by "Mother" to do anything. ANYTHING. Jonestown comes to mind....
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  flipper

  AGGIENOSTIC- Good points you make for sure. I think the witnesses ARE a hairs breath from being as fanatical a cult as the Jonestown situation. Your wife's parents example bears that out ! I mean, what normal, sane human beings fret and worry about attending a meeting to do their parts when their entire house burns down and they lose ALL their earthly possessions ? That's not NORMAL behavior- that's cult behavior. I really do fear for our relatives in the witness cult- I think the WT society is capable of influencing witnesses to do ANYTHING they say. And THAT is a scary , fearful thought ! Peace out, Mr. Flipper
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  tresdecu

  reading some of your experiences, I shudder. At least I was part of a liberal congo, with 90% nice elders who never browbeat me for not doing more. I did get some nice little 'reminders' about beefy up my 8hr average while being a frequently used MS, but that was about it.

  So I never had that extreme guilt feeling like many of you. I am sorry so many of you have had to deal with gestapo elders.
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  flipper

  TRESDECU- You are lucky you had elders who didn't guilt you too much about missing meetings. But like you said you STILL got reminders to let you know you weren't DOING ENOUGH. Them reminding you to beef your 8 hour average was an evidence they were trying to make you feel " guilty " about not doing enough. So although your elders were more subtle- they STILL used guilt to influence you. Make you feel like you weren't measuring up
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  pat1060

  always felt guilty.Never did enough.Even with babies to take care of.No matter what this is Jehovah's will.But isn't it nice to learn that the burden they put on every one isn't even a Bible teaching.Went out many times even if I was sick.Every one does.or your not a wittiness.
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  flipper

  PAT 1060- I understand how you felt about taking children to meetings and how difficult it was. In the 1980's my three young children in 1989 were 4, 2 and 1 year old. Let me tell ya- that was a challenge and a half. But none of us young parents EVER got credit for sacrificing so much going to meetings under adversity. Glad that's over
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  shopaholic

  I rarely missed meetings when I was active but once I got some type of virus and was in bed for a few days. I couldn't believe the drama I caught for missing two meetings. Several people actual told me that I didn't have a reason to get sick and was faking it...never heard such craziness in my life. A few folks even told me that going to meetings would have made me feel better. When I explained that I was dizzy and could not stand up for five seconds, not to mention driving, they said someone could have picked me up and as a pioneer it was important for me set an example.

  So glad to be done with all that now.
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  flipper

  SHOPAHOLIC- I'm so sorry you were treated so badly. It is incredible to me how insensitive many JW's are to the fact that people get sick and don't feel well making them miss meetings. I bet it was quite an eye opener for you at the time to see the insensitivity of these people who you thought were your friends. I know I had my eyes opened several times to the insensitivity of people inside the witnesses. Aren't you so glad we got out ? !! Peace out, Mr. Flipper
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  Heaven

  My Mom tried to guilt me into going out on service as a teenager even though she never went. I guess back in the '70s they went even though they weren't baptized. I said to her "You don't go so why should I?"

  She said "I'm a smoker. I can't go." To which I replied "Oh, ok. I'll start smoking then."

  She didn't quit smoking until she collapsed and was forced to years later. I never started smoking... and I never went out on service.
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  flipper

  HEAVEN- It is amazing that parents expect more out of their children than they do of themselves, isn't it ? I'm glad you never started smoking , better for your health. I'm glad you never went out in service as well. Believe me - it was an utter waste of time