I am now Anglican, raised a Jehovah's Witness. When I was young, boyfriends were very important. They are. You can be your own religion and marry someone of a different faith. YOur spirituality should reflect your traditions, your family, your beliefs, and your life style. I was raised a JW. Holidays, simple things, such as saluting the flag, and viewing all society as the enemy are part of the culture. NO religion can be further from C of E. C or E is am umbrella religion. The Book of Common Prayer uses English so well. JW lit is very low brow. The Church of England does not focus on specific doctrines anymore. One can be Anglo-Catholic, HIgh Church, Broad Church, and Low Church. You can support gay rights or polygamy.
If your bf loves you, he will respect your decisions. YOu can die if you need blood. Your children will never know a birthday of Christmas. Even if you divorce, you still have to worry if he will have them die rather than ok a blood transfusion. They will be taught that the earth is bad. People are horrible. Government, the engine that builds roads, maintains order so chaos does not run, will be mocked. Any other than a voc track high school degree will be mocked. I attended college despite the Witnesses. You will never be able to use your mind --and admit to it.
Women are treated very poorly. Men are told that they must dominate women. If you are raped, tough luck. The most intimate details of married life are spied on by the Witnesses. Only a short while ago men with no training penalized married couples who had any oral sex or one assumes genital stimulation, short of missionary intercourse. Birth control will be unavaile - if you are a loyal Witness. No matter how many years you study, no matter how well you know JW doctrine, no matter how many hours you spend in field --any man, even one so mentally challenged as to have a one year mental age will have supremacy over you. You must obey your husband even if he beats you or abuses you emotionally.
Your children will be forced to attend several JW meetings a week. Sheer boredom for adults. No provision will be made for their age appropriate settings. They will hear how a completely wrathful God will destroy all at Armageddon. I still fear demons, even tho I do not believe they exist. Years on end my sister and I could not sleep b/c we scanned our room for demons. Demons whose only quest seems to be to rape women. I have yet to hear of a demon attracted to a man. No gay demons.
This would be sad but I guarantee it will be very difficult to sustain over the long run b/c your parents provided you with a decent Christian education. 98% of all Christians agree with the basic tenets of the C of E. Jehovah's Witnesses are only self-reported Christians. Christ is a very minor figure in their theology. Basically, the Witnesses want to be ancient Israelites. Notice that they are not Christ's Witnesses, but Jehovah's Witnesses. Jehovah is not the personal name of God. YHWH is. or the name of God for a while in the Bible.
If you want proof, I suggest that you just sit with your Bible and read it in consecutive verses as it was meant to be read. YOu need no commentaries or historical knowledge. Ask what you think the author meant. What is the context over several chapters or the whole book. Doing this opened my eyes. If you read the WT, take a copy to someplace with an academic database. Read the articles cited and ask if the Wt reported it accurately.
I suppose the grass is always greener. I love my parishes. We have a glorious, welcoming tradition. I also know of very unChristian behavior b/c my father was a bodyguard at Bethel, the main HQ. They are not godly. I will admit this, however. I believe any religoius HQ is corrupt.
A good relationship would mean that you give up a bit for your boyfriend and he gives up a bit for you. There is no reason why you cannot be Church of England. He should respect what you are now. When I was your age, however, I would never believe what older people told me. Don't be burdened with a husband and children before you find what you can tolerate. I am a New Yorker. Many couples marry with different faiths. Few change their faith. Many Jews attend Easter and Christmas services at the Anglican Cathedral. Their spouses/partner attend synagogue or temple to show respect. You can remain essentially you.
The sad part is that my statements are factual. When I attended Anglican confirmation class, my teacher said the Church required our all. All our intelligence, our art, our music, our business sense. All the Witnesses require is for you to obey. I never, ever have heard any Anglican priest, no matter whether Anglo-Catholic or low church, suggest that the C of E was the only way. Other traditions are valued. Our local Cathedral schedules sermons by Catholics, Buddhists, and Shinto priests. The Anglican tradition is only a tradiiton, One approach to the universal Christ. No such tolerance exists with the Witnesses.
