Are They Losing the Old, Too?

by metatron 20 Replies latest jw experiences

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  metatron

  I was quite surprized when a relative of mine needed a ride to the district assembly and couldn't find one.

  What surprized me was two older sisters, who have been utterly faithful over the years,separately said they aren't going.

  We already know the Watchtower is losing Witness kids enmasse but this looks unusual.

  What's left for old-timers anyway? All the urgent depth of doctrine is gone - the Society can't defend anything

  with any degree of scholarship and the remaining platitudes are sleep-inducing.

  metatron
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  cruzanheart

  They lost me. I'm old.

  Nina (47 years old; 46 years a Witness; baptized for 37 years before I left)
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  minimus

  My mother is not going again due to ill health (3rd yr,), and she feels terrible guilt and cries over it. She seldom has been to meetings because she's been too sick. She hears the meetings via phone hookup. I think some don't get to the meetings or conventions because very few want to burden themselves with having to pick up elderly, handicapped people and taking care of them. Plus, there's nobody left to give rides.
• 

  Loris

  They lost me too. I bailed over the UN issue.

  (age 56, out for a year, 37 years in) I am really old!

  Loris
• 

  borgfree

  As I have posted before, I was born into the org., believed it for 54 years, then left. I really didn't question the org. most of my life. It wasn't until I had personal trouble, and was in committee meetings, and saw the "love" of the witnesses in general, that I decided it could not possibly be "Jehovah's organization"

  I am thankful to the elders and other "loving" JWs for helping me "out".

  Borgfree
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  simplesally

  A lot of the elderly ones were considered "pillars" of the congregation when they were in their 30's and 40's. Unless you are an elderly person who has brought in 50 people or most of the people in your hall, you are tossed out with the trash. No one pays attention to these elderly ones. Well, there are exceptions, you might have one person who notices the widows don't have rides and will get a carpool together, but its the rare individual who does this. Most of the time, you hear the elderly sisters are lonely, they spend many hours at home crying, just wishing they would get a visitor........ they are treated no differently than worldly old people but its sadder for them because they still read the magazines and hear talks about how JWs are supposed to honor ones with the crown of gray-headedness.
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  kgfreeperson

  This makes me, who has never been a JW, incredibly sad. I wish this could be an xjw project--to go visit and comfort the elderly JWs who have been abandoned by the org. Not to convert, just to visit, bring a meal, listen to memories.
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  metatron

  It's sad. I used to be the Gary-Cooper-in-High-Noon elder to instantly pounce on these situations. Since I've quit

  no one's filled that position.

  what a 'devil take the hindmost' organization! God help you if you get impaired. The loving brotherhood

  will forget you like yesterday's trash.

  metatron
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  simplesally

  I know what you mean. I used to have weekly "dates" with a brother who was in his 90's. He'd call my ex-husband, politely chat and then say, "I need to talk to the Doll." We'd go out to lunch, I drove of course, but he always paid. Once a month, we'd go to dinner with my husband and they took turns paying. I used to have an elderly sister I'd take out in service once a week and another who I went to her house and did her WT with her. She was of the "anointed" and still got few visitors. 100% of the time, she'd either be crying or telling me she just got done praying for a visitor when I had popped up at the door.
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  neyank

  "I wish this could be an xjw project--to go visit and comfort the elderly JWs who have been abandoned by the org. Not to convert, just to visit, bring a meal, listen to memories."
  
  Kgfreeperson. This sounds like a good idea however,If the elderly JWs are still believing in the rubish the WTS spews, then they won't have much to do with an unbeliever.
  
  Even if the unbeliever acts more like a Christian than the so called brothers and sisters.
  
  There was a statement I heard from an older JW when I was still entrapped in it.
  
  He said to a person that was just coming back into to the org.:
  
  "I'll asociate with you as long as you are attending the meetings."
  
  Well needless to say, that person no longer atends meetings and because this elderly person put a price tag on their associating together, that elderly person lost out on a friendship.
  
  neyank