by Chook 12 Replies latest jw experiences
@ Chook:
“The elders only have to fake it for COs visit, then the poor sheep get shorn for anther 6 months and just when publisher Billy thinks the CO will save their souls from these tyrants elders a new CO comes onto the seen, and of course he is trained only to listen to the elders.”
How is this different from any other congregation?
Makes sense to a point...
I'm from an area where multiple congregations exist, and if you stay on the down low, you can go thru JW life not really being known by too many outside your own circle of friends and fellow Hall attenders. I know, 'cause I pretty much did it.
I have family from a small town with one congregation, 4, sometimes 5, elders. Everyone knows everyone. Everyone knows everyone's shit. There are no secrets. There is no privacy. You go out of town, they all know it. You get a speeding ticket, they all know it. You hang out with worldly people in a roadhouse, they all know it. And Elders are quick to 'counsel' and 'advise'. It was so different than my home experience that it felt Orwellian, even when I was still 'in'.
We went to one small town congregation where Stalin was the PO and it was horrible. Maybe 45 publishers, just a miserable place to be. That was the start of my way out the door. Stalin managed to DF the only other alpha male brother one year and that just made things worse. He moved and is now inflicting his special brand of misery on another small, rural congregation.
Here where my Mom is now is also a small rural congregation. Years ago when we were here it was surprisingly progressive with a lot of more sophisticated business owners, etc., but one particularly onerous CO put an end to most of the good mojo going on. Now it's just sad. No education, no business people, no prospects, just a wreck. Fairly nice people though, but messed up and distracted, so they don't fuss with me at all. (There's a plus.) The older ones that I still know I still try to visit and help out (they are all old and sick) which I would do for anyone.
