What an Anointed sister Said to me…

by Cassandra Cain 53 Replies latest jw friends

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  amac

  Yeah, we used to get those talks too. But that was because kids really were passing out flyers at district and circuit assemblies and having 200-300 people at a party with plenty of alcohol. We haven't had a talk like that in years, but that's mainly because people don't pass out flyers anymore...they just have the parties (but I have seen a few web pages put up with open invitations.)

  I agree there is a definite difference between West Coast JWs and MidWest JWs. Maybe that's why I haven't had the bad experiences that others on this board have.
• 

  unique1

  WOW somebody was allowed to RAP a version of Coolio's Gangsta's Paradise!?!?!?! Isn't that wrong? Don't they know rap is bad? They tell us that at every d@mn convention. It ranks right up there with Hard Rock.
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  Cassandra Cain

  Thank you everybody for posting ^_^ (specially Blondie for keeping this thread going)

  SwordOfJah and amac why I felt so shocked when I heard about this is because:
  
  When I was a devout JW girl A “elder’s wife” (who was one of the dearest and sweetest people I have ever known. I’m not being sarcastic she is) would always remark on how she thought I would walk like a supermodel (LOL) and she got all excited when talking to me and said that her and I should throw a talent show (we had many talented young people in the cong) she said “Young bro” could dance “young sis” Could sing, You can model and play your interments… and as she was getting so excited thinking about it… her husband (who was sort of listening in) Came up to us and sternly said “NO” now He was not the kind of man to ever talk to anyone that way at all specially his wife (I was really shocked).
  
  And there were numorus times my mother suggested having a talent show or get together and was turned down. (with even simple poetry and scripture readings so nobody could be left out and the elders said “NO ABSOLUTLY NOT” we were told the society said that a talent show would make those bros and sis who did not have those talents feel bad and it could cause “contentions among brothers.”)
  
  Even for my 8th grade graduation party we wanted to invite the whole congregation so no body could get left out, so my mother went to the elders with invitations and asked if they could hand them out after their book studies (the invites said we require your presence not your presents). And they turned her down and said she would have to deliver them herself so then she asked if she could get different peoples addresses and they again refused. So we had to call people around getting addresses…and it was a pain. so mom included all graduating children of single mothers so the Elders could not turn down the party (because I think they really wanted to just tell us not to have it) and THEN THE ELDERS them selves arranged to have other elders conduct and watch the gathering.
  
  ~Cassandra~
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  undercover

  my mother went to the elders with invitations and asked if they could hand them out after their book studies....And they turned her down and said she would have to deliver them herself....

  I never had a problem with this thinking. Elders are busy guys. Asking them to deliver mail for us seemed a little intrusive to me. Though the thought was well-intentioned, it infringed on the reason we were there to begin with. Now when they mentioned that the friends themselves shouldn't be passing invitations between each other at the hall, I wondered about that. If I see someone somewhere and I give them an envelope, it's nobody else's business. It was those kind of little rules that made it hard to be like a family at the hall(though the WTS wants everyone to think it is). I remember one elder saying we shouldn't pass out invitations at the hall, because someone who wasn't invited may see the invitations floating around and feel slighted. That summed up a lot about the witnesses to me right there. So many had such low self-esteem that it was wrong to give an invitation to a friend because someone else was going to get upest about it.
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  Cassandra Cain

  Another reason why I started this thread was because How Bethel treated that anoited sister I couldn't belive how horible they were to her it made me want to puke 1st Bethel makes her and her husbond reapply after they got married (wich I don't see why they had to because bolth of them had been working there most of their lives) Then after they reapplied They were not permitted to come back because they were toooo old (and they had been there all their lives!! so it sounded like a bunch of BS to me) so they had to become special pioneers.. on thier own. they didn't get any help from bethel in their old age (plus her and her husbond are anoited). Then they didn't even get invited to this thing by Bethel they almost didn't get to go, only reason they got to go was because their friends decided they were going to invite them. and all the Anoited sister could tell me was she was sooo glad she stayed with Jehovah and Jehovah had blessed her and then when my "friend" had brought out about her loseing her position the "anoited" sister said well I just do what Jah tells me. (yeah Like Jehovah himself kicked her out of her positon!!). the whole thing was just messed up.

  (undercover as for the invatations: my mother had wanted to have this gathering because the elders themselves were passing out invitations for their own children after bookstudies to a selcect few in their own cliques and many in the congragation were feeling bad. She wanted to do something that would help everyone feel better, and they would not do for her as they allready did for themselves.)

  ~Cassandra~
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  sf

  See if you can spot the silent lambs here among the 'happy people':

  News - Family Day 2001
  ... The Artists at work, In what’s becoming a annual event, over 200
  people gathered for a Family Day at Bethel Centre. It was a cold ...
  members.iinet.net.au/~bethel/ cgi-bin/index.cgi?news&1 - 4k - Cached - Similar pages

  sKally
• 

  bluesapphire

  I remember we planned a "family night" in our congregation. We were going to do bible skits and make costumes and everything. The CO put the nix on the whole idea because while we were rehearsing it would take time away from the field service.

  Can't do anything nice for the kids ya know!
• 

  undercover

  (undercover as for the invatations: my mother had wanted to have this gathering because the elders themselves were passing out invitations for their own children after bookstudies to a selcect few in their own cliques and many in the congragation were feeling bad. She wanted to do something that would help everyone feel better, and they would not do for her as they allready did for themselves.)

  Now that's a whole nuther can o worms there. Hypocrisy raises it's ugly head yet once again. I see your point a little clearer now.
• 

  sandy

  I remember my mother wanted to put together a talent show sometime back in the late 80's(in Los Angeles, CA). One of the Elders told her no that the society strongly discourages these types of gatherings for the reasons already mentioned by some of you.

  A couple years later, after that elder moved away, we had a talent show. But we didn't give out prizes because we didn't want to hurt anybody's feelings.

  So I think ultimately is depends on the elders in your congregations. Some can be real hard Asses.

  I remember back in the mid 90's our congregation got counseled for flyer parties. But it was the young ones heading up these parties it was the adults. Most of the young people in my hall were very holy.
• 

  herk

  A major reason the elders didn't pass out those invitations is a policy stated in letters they received from Brooklyn and reminders they got from their circuit overseer from time to time:

  'All social gatherings should be supervised by the elders.' The elders were even expected to examine carefully each and every song that was to be played at such gatherings. Rather than put themselves through the trouble, elders generally discouraged group gatherings.

  With all the devotion and loyalty that the WTS has enjoyed, it had a glorious opportunity and let it slip away. By the blessing of God, it could have won the everlasting admiration of the world and become a vast and splendid monument of Christian wisdom, peace and liberty. Instead, honest observers have more and more reasons to gaze upon it scornfully. May the day come soon when most people see it as many of us now do - as a pathetic burial chamber that houses millions of oppressed captives who are allowed to think for themselves not much more than robots can.