I was thinking today about how I no longer have to fear the attack of satan against the JWs. I used to fear being rounded up and beaten by mobs. Seeing my family tortured. I realized it feels great no longer having this fear. did anyone else use to have the same fears?
Anyone Here Used to Fear Persecution?
by kneehighmiah 43 Replies latest jw friends
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cultBgone
The only fear now is being cornered by elders trying to get a d.a. confession...
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clarity
Oh yeah big time ...... getting thrown into concentration camps,
like the Jews in Germany ...OMG. Maybe have J hunt me down
cause I wasn't good enough. Watching my family get shot .....
what a big relief to know the real truth about that!!!!AND damn you
watchtower for all those wasted days & years!
clarity
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Band on the Run
My family was persecuted. Great aunts went to prison for going door to door.One uncle spent WWII in Danbury prison. My mom and uncle were expelled from high school. My father had to sit in the Bethel lobby with a shot gun. He also broke up a gang of criminals setting off ammonia bombs in Madison Square Garden. My mom was present. Until the day she died, she would get upset about Fr. Conklin. The American Legion was a major force in the JW persecution. The FBI kept calling on my uncle who was very young b/c he was an overseer.
Also, my gm made my mom practice witnessing to the Gestapo. She told me we were losing the war. U boats were in NY harbor.
Every American owes a debt of gratitude to the Witnesses for fighting back. The situation has certainly changed. Of course, the WT would deny the same rights to anyone else.
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JWdaughter
As a child I was fascinated with every holocaust story I read. "Escape to Warsaw"was worn thin. I read about every aspect that seemed to apply when I was a kid. I freaked out when I read that "trespassers will the proscecuted". I just saw the big word and it instantly translated to persecuted. I refused to wear contacts because I figured that when the persecution came, I wouldnt have access to fresh ones or solution. Seriously. I was a messed up kid.
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A.proclaimer
I remember thinking about this as a kid. I use to imagine how the persecution would be like, similar to what was done in Nazi Germany. I use to fear it and prayes to God several times to protect me and my family when that time would come and help us make it into the New World. My parents would use the persecution idea so we would not leave food on our plates or not to get picky about it. They said something like: "eat your food because what are you going to do when the persecution comes around? You won't have anything there to eat but old bread." Looking back at it now it's just crazy, I can't believe I thought that as a kid. Witnesses are still expecting that day when they will be persecuted.
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GrreatTeacher
I kid you not, I was terrified that during whatever persecution that I wouldn't have any razors. I was terrified at the thought of having hairy legs.
How messed up is that?
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NewYork44M
I grew up in the 1960s and the primary focus of every meeting was discussing how the tribulation was going to be worse than what happened to the witnesses in concentration camps. They loved to go over every detail of rape, starvation, beatings and etc. I remember my mother reading a watchtower article how that the brother did not feel the punches or whips - it was jehovah's way of protecting the faithful brother. It really scared me to think that I would not have enough faith for jehovah to protect me from the beatings and I would feel the punches. I wanted to be faithful, but did not want to die. Because as we all know, if you die you will not be able to get married in the resurrection.
So, yes, I was a little boy that was fuc*ing scared about my fate. Pardon the language, but you bring up a piece of my life that as I reflect as an adult I get very angry. As far as I a concerned, this was child abuse.
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love2Bworldly
I used to have nightmares about it, and I used to have panic attacks now that I think about it. I used to practically get sick thinking about all the what-ifs that would happen to me during the Great Tribulation
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zebagain
I recall one elder who would go over what "they" would do to 'us'. He taught his little daughter to sneak off and study. To what end i cant imagine.
Yes as an adult i was distressed as our first born came along. As for parents enforcing eating with persecution threats they are beneath contempt.
The elder concerned later died quite young suddenly, without any life insurance leaving his wife and many kids (!) in a rented house to live off the govt provided pension.