Unwritten rules at the Kingdom Hall, what were yours ???

by run dont walk 38 Replies latest jw friends

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  run dont walk

  Every one of us who attended the Kingdom Hall, must have went through this at some time, and noticed things you were not supposed to do, even though it wasn't wrong.

  The biggie at our hall was DO NOT SIT IN THE BACK ROW, I always did, what was the deal on that, why put chairs there.

  - don't back you car in, someone would go out and check this nightly, ???

  - going to the washroom during the song, I remember we had a 30 min service meeting part on this, so I guess we have to hold it in.

  - women think they had it bad, when it came to the way you dress, (actually they did it was a bit ridiculous), but guys who did not wear a suit jacket, even if it's a 100 degrees out were talked too.

  - standing at the back of the hall with your child, trying to relax them, how come elders expect a 3 year old to be quiet during the whole meeting ???

  - we also had a major talk on your kids bringing toys with them to the hall.

  so what were some of your unwritten rules at the hall ??? or assembly ???
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  Nikita

  Always check to make sure my skirt was not tucked into my pantyhose before leaving the rest room.

  Nikita

  of the sleep-deprived and being silly class!
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  Holey_Cheeses*King_of_the juice.

  Where cheeses lives is described as temperate climate, meaning that there is not a big variation between the four seasons, but still, it does get quite hot in the summer months.

  cheeses thought the sensible thing to do would be to wear a short sleeved shirt while giving talks in the ministry school - oh no, he was mistaken, it wasn't to be. It lasted for a couple of talks, but, although I have very respectable lower arms, the powers that be decreed that it was a sin to wear short sleeved shirts while giving a talk. An early nail in the coffin for cheeses' confidence in the correctness and rightness of the borg.

  cheeses - a hater of trivial and non-sensical (is there such a word?) rules and regulations.

  Oh dear, where are those emoticons when you need them most?
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  SYN

  There was never any "jacket rule" in my KH, but then again, South Africa tends to get supremely hot during the summer, so no surprises there...I've even given a couple of talks in short sleeves.
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  Holey_Cheeses*King_of_the juice.

  Syn,

  Short sleeves were acceptable in field service and it was alright to give a talk with just a long sleeved shirt (jacket not a requirement), but short sleeves for a talk were taboo, though they were alright for brothers giving demos on the platform.

  P.S. I much prefer your avatar of the guy with the missing tooth - quite handsome if it was you.

  cheeses - still no emoticons when they can help you.
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  Reborn2002

  The Kingdom Hall I attended in the Chicago suburbs was extraordinarily conservative. The elder body in this congregation took Watchtower regulations to a higher level and imposed rules which had no scriptural reasoning whatsoever. I am thankful for it in hindsight. Their heavyhanded imitation of the Pharisees aided me in realizing the Jehovah's Witnesses were nothing more than a mere cult. The following is a short list of "rules" imposed in the congregation I formerly attended.

  • Brothers were forced encouraged to wear traditional business colors when wearing suits. Grey and blue were preferred. Any radical colors that some men like such as purple, red, brown, green, etc. were frowned upon and considered too worldly and fashionable.
  • Men could wear sideburns ONLY to the middle of their ear. Anything longer than this was construed as a sign of rebellion and grounds to lose slave labor jobs privileges such as microphone carrying, reading at Book Study, etc.
  • Sisters would never, ever wear pant suits. Skirts only, and only skirts that were knee length or longer.
  • Questioning any decision made by an elder (even if it made absolutely no sense because some of them were window washers and janitors for professional careers) was strictly prohibited.

  Gotta love the Dubs eh?
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  minimus

  no hair coloring for men, no wild looking ties, disfellowshipped people shouldn't sit together, elders meetings could be longer than 3 hours on a regular basis, children would have to be taken to an area where disciplined could be heard by others (that showed the elders they were trying to discipline their kids), df'd ones couldn't get reinstated for at least 1 year.
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  unique1

  Single people of the opposite sex could not sit next to each other without a chair in between them unless they were engaged or there were NO other seats. Like I was going to give somebody a hand job during the meeting or something. WHATEVER!!
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  Swan

  Gifts of homemade preserves must be delivered to the recipient out in the dark parking lot after the meeting.

  Children are not alowed to sit on the steps of the stage for a quiet place to read the literature.

  All time slips must be folded in half so that the writing is hidden before putting them into the slot.

  All contributions must be made within the first 20 minutes after the meeting ends.

  Young people must not sit together. I remember 4 visiting young people came into the hall one Sunday and sat together. The PO interrupted his talk and had them rearrange their seating.

  Tammy
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  shamus

  Tammy,

  that is hilarious, the kids having to re-arrange their seating!

  We had lots but I never listened to them. I was a rebel.