by ivy 41 Replies latest jw friends
My wife says I'm not allowed to shave off my beard. So that counts me out right there.
I say the same thing to my hubbie, professor.
Danny, good point about microphone handling being the sign of a good spiritual husband in the Borg. If a brother didn't qualify for that he was nothing. Of course, they would let those brothers read at the book study rather than the most spiritual sister.
Blondie
This was not the last straw but I remember taking a management course where it was explained that just because someone asks you to do something for them does not mean you have to do it. I had always been a good little JW and took whatever crap assignment the Elders dumped on me. As a family man, business owner, and the Account Servant I felt I had hit the limit of what should be asked of me, so when this one Elder came up to me and told me he needed me to do this extra work I told him I would take a pass. He was stunned! He walked away all pissy. I felt great for not letting him bully me into doing something I did not want to do. It was very empowering. From then on I never did anything I did not wish to do. I felt no guilt, I was doing more than most of the brothers were and told the Elders so when they would try to talk to me about having a willing spirit. I put my family ahead of the WTS and this is a very bad thing with them!
Maverick,
That was extremely funny! Your style of writing is highly entertaining!!!! I told him I would take a pass. HA He walked away all pissy!!!
Double Ha- I guess that would be Ha Ha
It started for me when I started growing hair on my face and couldn't understand why it was nesicary to shave. I always questioned authority and disliked following rules when the rules seemed to have no purpose or logical reason to follow them. In time I realised it wasn't so much that God required me to shave, but the cong. required me to, to show my humility to God's *gack* instruction *gack*.
Kwin
blondie that is so right (and so wrong if you get my drift)...in my ex-group is a bro who is not allowed to do mikes but reads at group..i didnt get to read at the group and i was pioneering and doing mikes (and im a great reader)
candid and squinks...im sorry that happened to you and i know what you mean cause thanks to me that happened to my wife too....i was the adulterer but the elders were only interested in running around accommadating the 'innocent' victim and her loud mouth mother...i remember when i was being denied reinstatement for the umpteenth time i said to the commitee if they could see their way to giving my wife as the real innocent victim here some support since they were limiting my ability to do so even though i was prepared to...so did they?? did they f***?? bastards...only ever called her to find out if there was any dirt they could get on me to extend my df
squinks...we didnt get to poland either...only those in good standing could...and we weren't for an entirely different reason even though we were both regular pioneers and i was appointed elder within the year
tijkmo of the cant make this stuff up no-one would believe you class
in my ex-group is a bro who is not allowed to do mikes but reads at group..i didnt get to read at the group and i was pioneering and doing mikes (and im a great reader)
That is because that was probably the only "privilege" that poor guy was allowed to do. Mikes was a better assignment. Of course, there is an exception to everything; congregation BOEs are allowed great latitude within their own congregations. I knew a WT conductor that hand-picked his mike handlers. They had to be quick, not clumsy, and dressed impeccably. I saw him once unassign a brother and have an elder do it because the mike handler's shoes were too casual (brown leather).
tjikimo, maybe they were trying to tell you something; that you were better suited to assignments that required no speaking.
Love Blondie
The blood issue was it for me. Although there were many other things, I started really thinking about their obsession with not taking blood. I mean it was an obsession...what about the Gospel?
Tijkmo,
You were looking to go on the Poland trip too? It was so long ago, I can't remember what it was all about. If regular pioneers couldn't go who could? Why?
I could deal with most things, just accepting them for what they were and realizing that nobody is perfect. It did bother me that women were not allowed so many things (like reading or conducting a book study or a public talk or praying out loud before or after the meetings). Women seem to be considered rather dumb creatures. The 'helper' of the man? Hahahaha.
What really got me was "this generation". Too much "new light" is shining on that one.
While not "the last straw" for me, one that definitely made me chuckle (and encouraged my reluctancy to consider a JW "mate") was the food stand at the summer conventions. This was still when there was food and it was handled by the "ticket arrangement." My mom always signed us up to do the concessions, and I would usually be at the counter. However, while I was in high school, I got taken of the counter and relegated to "gopher." The reason? I could do the sums of the tickets faster than anyone else, particularly the elders and ministerial servants that flanked me. I could also do their totals while doing the totals for the people in my line. Instead of making good use of this skill, they got bent. (OK, this is bad, but i still consider myself "better" than those crackers.)
The effect on me was the realization (and generalization) that JW men were actually inferior to women, despite the public image of superiority. I left "bemused" by the shortsightedness of the JW philosophy of women in their organization. Their cult would probably be quadruple its size if it were an egalitarian organization.
Whatever, it's not my bag anymore.
Shoshana
