Things I have heard about California JW's (page 2)

Leolaia

I never thought about any California effect before, but my JW aunt who's in her 70s has a gay daughter and although my aunt is an uber-Witness, and field service and meetings and everything JW-related is his life, she has never shunned her daughter (who also was raised a Witness but left when she could). In fact, she has accepted her long-time partner as family. This has particularly come clear to me after the two broke up; my aunt wishes they were back together and still does lunches with her daughter's ex.

cyberjesus

I would like to know where those bikini jw girls go swimming.

White Dove

I'm from the NW'ern U.S. and moved to the east.

Total culture shock.

There was even less respect for women in the east than in the west.

The east was LISTEN AND OBEY THE ELDERS WITHOUT QUESTION!

In the NW, it's listen and take it with a grain of salt, obey if it is reasonable to do so.

I hated the easts congregations (Delaware is a mix of northern and southern sensibilities).

honorsthesis

I have been a witness in the midwest during HS and in Florida for college.

Florida is FAR more lenient and liberal than up north, especially the grown ups. Associating with non-JW's is not frowned upon with some much angst. The term, "happy birthday", is often even used without shame. Not the prototypical cryptic, "oh I am glad you were born today xx amount of years ago!"

The intensity of gossip remains the same though.

SirNose586

The nature of your congregation really depended on what part of town it was in. San Diego seems to equally represent conservative and liberal viewpoints (the county usually votes 50-50 Rep/Dem every election). You've got the military influence, plus a lot of midwest transplants on the conservative side. Then you've got the usual California effect on the liberal side.

I was raised in a very stodgy congregation of retired dubs--it was so stuffy that other congregations commented on it. I visited people in wealthier congregations, and you'd have people discussing auto purchases and business deals. I went up to Temecula for a party where the kids are bored, and it seemed like there was always talk about "the dangers of the double life." Spanish congregations usually had a more conservative lean.

I did see the difference between local dubs and dubs from the midwest or east. There was a couple coming in to see a friend from the midwest, and they were shocked that one young brother had education (Master's degree). They felt that "education was dangerous for most" and would lead to fading away.

Reality79

I went to LA years ago, but even here in London we used to hear all kinds of wild stories about witnesses in LA - wife swapping as someone mentioned, 30 people reproved in one cong, girls who are not married by the age of 21 seen as 'damaged goods', people who have been married four times by the ago of 30, people having affairs like there's no tomorrow, excess swearing, drugs, women getting boob jobs and plastic surgery etc you name it, lol.

Snoozy

yourmomma, thank you for the link..

I didn't know about the "splinter groups".

Snoozy

StoneWall

Dear Leolaia,

This didn't make sense to me;

"I never thought about any California effect before, but my JW aunt who's in her 70s has a gay daughter and although my aunt is an uber-Witness, and field service and meetings and everything JW-related is his life, she has never shunned her daughter (who also was raised a Witness but left when she could). "

Is the underlined "his" supposed to say "her" ? Or am I mis-reading it?

Leolaia

Yeah my aunt is a woman lol....guess I had a brain fart there...

flipper

Having been born and raised in California until getting out of the JW cult in 2003- I can pretty much tell you that it depends on WHAT PART of California you live in as to whether or not standards are lax. I think the rest of the United States looks at ALL of California as the " Canaanite land " of the west- however not necessarily.

Demographics come into play. I attended meetings in a Central valley town where it was VERY strict. In the Central valley it comprises of lots of religious people, lots of churches up and down the Central Valley. So JW congregations tended to be absolutely VERY strict in telling Witnesses what clothes to wear, elders harassing sisters on short skirts, or telling brothers their hair was too long , or too long of sideburns. It was even this way up near Sacramento- the capital. Even in the Sierra mountain areas it was strict, except Lake Tahoe. It was a resort area where fun, sin, and gambling were common- so JW's didn't make an issue there about things that valley JW's would.

I found it to be VERY lenient regarding dress in the Big city areas. San Fransisco or the Bay area , or Los Angeles area - lots of nightclubs and liberal tendencies in Big market towns. Sometimes I wish I WOULD have been a Witness in those larger cities so I wouldn't have gotten harassed so much when I was a JW by elders. It was just my dumb luck I was raised in a strictly religious, conservative area. Being a liberal- I was like a fish out of water over most of my life , especially around the JW's I was surrounded by.

But- I'm happy now in the mountains near a liberal mountain town where the arts and music are popular. And I found my liberal right woman - finally ! LOL! Peace out, Mr. Flipper

Things I have heard about California JW's

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