Did you ever feel let down by the Bethel tour? (page 4)

NewYork44M

Walking through the halls of a sterile office building is not my idea of fun.

"I never went on any Bethel tours, but on the day of my wedding, my parents took my brothers. I called, "are you coming to my wedding tomorrow, mom?" Mom: "No, we will be taking your brothers to Bethel to show them what is really important."

That was 1993, neither of my brothers attend the meetings, and I'm still married to the same man."

lisa, I'm sorry for that. It sounds like something my father would do. I had to walk my sister down the aisle when she got married because she stopped going to meetings years earlier and married a "worldy" man and there was no way he was going to give her away to the world. So I did it. They are still happily married 14 years later.

Bluegill

undercover

It's too bad you didn't find the secret bunker

hahaha...maybe that's where Rutherford is buried. Can we get Dan Brown on this?

I toured back...well, a long time ago... I don't remember a lot of details. It was just another factory. Big deal. It was clean, I remember that.

We did get to go up to where the GB had their offices. One was on a trip so we got to step inside and see the inner sanctuary, so to speak. I remember being impressed by the size and decor, compared to the meager rooms that everyone else had, but others in our group were about to have an orgasmm they were so excited.

I had always been encouraged to go to Bethel, but being from a small town, I wasn't excited about living in NYC. Then after touring, I was so glad that I never applied. So institutional, so regimented. Sharing living space with no real privacy. Even the cleaning people were snoops and would rat you out if they found improper material. It left me with a bad taste in my mouth for this so-called spiritual haven. I wondered if living in the New System would be like this. If it was, then it might not be the paradise we were hoping for.

Soldier77

I went to Brooklyn Bethel in '94 when I was 17 yrs old. It was done by my family to get a firsthand look at where they wanted me to go and spend my life...

On the trip, after the first day of touring, my mom asks me what I thought. I looked at her for a second gathering my thoughts, and told her flatly, "I'm never coming here again." She asked why, I said, I don't know, but it's definitely not for me. She just gave me that look and I thought I was goning to get my ass reamed out, but after another odd moment, her face let in a small smile. She said, good, I didn't think you'd like it. It is a strange place.

Oh and whoever said that the witnesses on the streets didn't even say hi to the visitors was the same thing I experienced. I mean they all knew we were in the tour group so why the attitude?

I guess you could say from that tour on I had no interest in what the organization had to offer, even if it took 16 more years for me to realize it.

Soldier

St George of England

Germany: huge, impressive. Very clean, modern. Kingdom Hall, nice architecture. Remember a small signboard giving the weekly times on visits from dentist, psychiatrist and doctor.

psychiatrist - in Bethel? You mean they have mental health problems there also?

George

IMHO

Last time I visited the London Bethel most of the tour was sitting watching a video.

And most of the printing was screened off so we didn't get any 'sneak previews' of the Kingdom News that was soon to be released.

lisavegas420

Thank you Bluegil.

My son walked me down the isle. My daughter was my maid of honor. When asked who gives this bride to this man, My then, 7yr old son said, "My sister and I do." I was very proud.

lisa

sacolton

Never went (thankfully) ... someone would try to collect enough money for the bus transportation and expenses ... something like $350 per person, I think. The thought of riding a bus from Oklahoma to New York didn't appeal to me.

out4good3

Knew of people who went, but I never did. One of my relatives tooka a bus ride up there from Texas. They talked up the bus ride like it was a pilgrimage when actually it was a bunch of people tip toeing around each other to appears more spiritual than the other and of them cowtowing to the most stringent witness there.

JWoods

I went on a group tour in 1972 - as I knew one of the bethel guys he took us on our own tour, so we missed the official thing. I don't recall anything about dress & grooming. The main thing I remember wondering was WHY they had just bought the Squibb pharmaceutical buildings when there were still empty spaces in what they had left over in the original buildings.

Ed and Betty Dunlap had me plus the two old ladies I was escorting there over for drinks in their apartment afterward. The two old ladies were allowed to stay in an unused apartment in the same building (one of the restored brownstones) because the hotel was a fleabag. I was expected to hack the fleabag because I was a young turk.

There was also a bus trip out to Walkill - the main thing I remember about this was doubting that this fairly modest farm (at least at that time) could really provide all the food for Brooklyn Bethel.

Did you ever feel let down by the Bethel tour?

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