'worldly' events vs JW events... the fear, and the reality

by undercover 3 Replies latest jw friends

  • undercover
    undercover

    I went to what a JW would call a 'worldly' wedding a couple of weeks ago.

    Having been raised a JW, I had never been to a 'worldly' wedding until I was in my late 20s or early 30s. The horror stories of 'worldly' people in general kept me from associating with 'worldly' people, except as necessary through work, etc. As I became more willing to associate with workmates and other 'worldly' people, I started to realize the fear that had been instilled in me was mostly false. A big to do over very little.

    Now, as a JW, I went to a lot of weddings. And at almost every one (that had alcohol - many didn't because of the fear of someone having too much fun), there was invariably disaster waiting to happen, and later elder meetings and local needs parts. Some times it was justified (somebody got drunk and did something stupid) but usually it was just people having fun, letting off some steam, trying to enjoy one of the few happy moments in an otherwise drab life of a JW. All the while, the WTS painted all 'worldly' parties, wedddings, events as invites to Satan and the demons, with perverse sexual activity, drug use, pregnancy, and general mayhem running rampant, since there was no holy spirit present.

    Well, let me tell you about the 'worldly' wedding I attended. Multi-cultural, multi-national, all ages, from babies to octogenarians were in attendance. Didn't see any demons, or Satan worshippers. Not even any terrorists. The serman was short and to the point...good job Rev, it's hot in here, let's get this party going. The reception was well organized, and yes with an open bar...wine, beer and booze. And guess how many people got drunk.... not one. Not a single person acted stupid, got sloppy, fell down, grabbed the minister's wife, or tried to cope a feel of the bride. Everyone was well behaved...even the groom's birth mother, who was not really loved by anyone, but who was invited because she was family (He spent most of his life with his step-mother).

    And the music. Oh my god... it was... just fine. From classics of the 40s to the 60s to 70s disco to modern hip-hop and EDM. No controversial songs, no bad lyrics. Just good tunes to dance to. Oh, the dancing. Was it one big orgy. Nope. Just a bunch of people who rarely dance, pretending to be disco kings and queens for a little while. Fathers with daughters, sons with mothers, little kids with grandparents. And young people pairing off, but keeping it classy.

    In short, everything that the WTS fears in large gatherings of 'worldly' people failed to materialize. It's almost like the WTS has exaggerated the lifestyle of non-JWs in order to keep their followers from realizing that everyone out there isn't really any different than they are. Imagine that...

  • joe134cd
    joe134cd

    I have to say for the decades that i was a witness and to the few large witness social events e.g balls dances that I attended. I can only ever recall one incident where was an issue when the child of a witness turned up drunk and he was very quickly sorted. Other than that all went with out incident. I believe for the +ve that it creates e.g socializing far out weigh any negatives.

  • sarahsmile
    sarahsmile

    I do not recall any problems with JW weddings.

    I am just curious about something.

    The fear of stepping outside the organization and associating with "worldly" did you noticed how different you were? I am sure the "worldly" ones did. It actually took me years to shake off those internal feelings. I know from talking to people from thirty years ago, they knew something was off because of not allowing a deep genuine friendship. Always stand offish yet friendly, and never willing to tell about my religious up bringing. I pretended to be open but was actually closed off. I am guessing it was too much shock and not enough understanding into false WT teachings. I thought worldly people were what the JWs taught,until some worldly ones were more compassionate, loving, and more strict than JWs.

  • poopsiecakes
    poopsiecakes

    *pokes undercover*

    Glad you had fun at the wedding!

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