The Friends? (page 2)

LittleToe

It tends to be "the brothers" here.
"The friends" started dying out about 20 years ago, though a rare few retain it.

garybuss

It irritated me when they called me "brother". Where's your necktie,,,,,,,,BROTHER? The machine is out of order,,,,,,,BROTHER!

Gag!

onacruse

So what's wrong with calling people of a common faith, or with a common purpose, friends?

Don't we, by default, often (at least initially) welcome anyone who is an exJW as a friend?

Perhaps the dividing line is that, as JWs, we were expected (even commanded) to be friends with anyone else who was a JW, simply because they were a JW, even if we didn't know their first name, or couldn't speak their language.

However, we all know plenty of JWs who scotched that whole idea, and engage in "private marking," even though the WTS says that it's wrong.

As exJWs, we have the freedom to say: "Hey, I thought you were (or would be) a friend, but I've subsequently learned otherwise, so just go stuff it."

Kenneson

Must be one of those "pre-historic" terms of endearment left over from the Russellite days. I did a search in Zion's Watch Tower from 1879 until 1916 and "the friends" appears in 250 documents.

Joyzabel

I liked it best in the movie "Life of Bryan" where someone refers to everyone as siblings.

Nosferatu

So what's wrong with calling people of a common faith, or with a common purpose, friends?

It's one of those phrases that becomes annoying, like calling the JW religion "The Truth"

StinkyPantz

..in addition to what Nos said, I think for most people, it takes more substance, more personal contact to call someone a friend. I would never present the term "friend" to someone just because we had a common faith/purpose.. at least not anymore. I was guilty of using the JW cult term a time or two.

Mysterious

They use "brothers" or "in the truth" here. Never heard friends used that way except at a district assembly now that I think of it.

My mother used to point out how wonderful it was that we would say people were in the truth and how worldly people didnt say that, that they said just that so and so was a JW or something. Gag.

onacruse

Nos:

It's one of those phrases that becomes annoying, like calling the JW religion "The Truth"

It may be annoying to us now, but was it annoying when we were still "in"? If it's annoying now, then why?

And which is more evidential of psychological bonding: Calling someone a friend, or calling them a brother or sister?

Why we do, and say, what we do.

dh

i see it referenced a lot on this board, but i never remember hearing it as a jw, ever.

The Friends?

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