Did this ever happen in anyone else's congo?
What silly rules did your congregation make up?
by weinermcgee 97 Replies latest jw friends
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Rubyvixen
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atypical
I got removed from handling the microphones for not having 10 hours or more each month. The elder who decided this made the MS in charge of sound tell me. I asked him where that was in writing. He looked confused and said that he thought that was how all congregations did it. I told him that there was no rule, and he went back to the elder (the MS was a nice, normal guy, just quick to believe anything he was told). It was pretty funny, because when he questioned the elder, the elder had to change the reason to keep from looking stupid. So the MS came back to me and said that it wasn't about how many hours I got, it was just that they didn't see me at enough service meetings. So I said, what if I went out for a 10 hour day once a month? He hung his head a little and went back to the elder. This went back and forth several times. Interestingly, the elder never did talk to me about it. The funny thing is, at the time I was regular at meetings and in field service. Now that I am there maybe once a month with no jacket and zero hours in service, they keep putting me on the list to handle microphones.
It is also a rule in my hall that you have to be an MS to read the Watchtower or be an attendant. Interestingly, anyone is allowed to clean the bathrooms, sweep the parking lot, or donate money. I personally do none of the above.
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GMahler
I wouldn't say that my entire congregation felt this way, but there was a pioneer couple who had this weird thing about who got to sit in the front seat while out it field service. Those with the most senior positions got to sit in the front seat and all others had to sit in the back. So CO's had seniority over elders, elders over ministerial servants, and brothers over sisters. I remember one time I was in the car with the wife of this couple and we had just dropped off the elder that occupied the front seat. My mother always taught me that if anyone had rights to the front seat, it was because they were older. Besides, I thought out of politeness I would offer her the front seat. She whispered to me that it would not be appropriate for her to take the front seat. I thought that it was odd, but I obliged. Even when her husband was driving I sat in the front seat. I don't know if this is something that is common in other congregations, and I wonder if it was common practice at the congregation that she and her husband came from.
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JV
I like going to the Ministry School when there's a part on local needs, cause we all know that's where most of the bullshit petty rules are dispensed to the congo. The other tuesday we had more light from above. Apparently brothers shouldn't dye their hair more than one colour or frost their tips, cause......... get this......... gay people do it wtf? Apparently this whole "fad" of frosting your tips started in the gay community and we wouldn't want to get caught up in such worldly things. What a joke, gay people drink water, i guess i should stop drinking water too, shit, gay people read magazine, guess i should stop that too, starting with the Botchtower.
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gaiagirl
Regarding the cars we drove, there was a wide variation in overall condition. Some in the congregation drove decrepit "beaters", others had new Porsches. Those whose cars didn't look good enough were compelled to ride alone, or even asked to not park their car in the territory so as not to "bring reproach". There was one old pioneer brother who had been around since the '30s or '40s, who drove an old Ford which was falling apart. He was allowed to because otherwise he was otherwise so "exemplary". Also, brothers were not allowed to have "priveleges" if they didn't meet a 10 hour/month quota for field service. One brother was approached DURING A BREAK AT WORK, and informed that he had been deleted as a Ministerial Servant, because with less than 10 hours, he was no longer "exemplary". Regarding dress and grooming, in my congregation, brothers could wear coats which didn't match slacks, and ties with unusual patterns were not unknown. One brother had little dinosaurs on his tie, another had an M.C. Escher pattern on one tie. Sisters (including myself) were often counseled about dressing "too sexy", however I reasoned that there wasn't any privelege which could be taken away, so I wore what I liked most of the time.
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Lilycurly
The Lion King?! Really??! It was encouraged to watch it over here because of the similarities with Satan, God and Jesus...and good taking over bad...and all that stuff. I remember people making big about how great it was for JW kids to watch.
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Cygnus
It is also a rule in my hall that you have to be an MS to read the Watchtower or be an attendant.
Never heard of that one before. As soon as I was baptized I got to read the WT for the congo, and be an attendant. I was assitant to the Secretary, ran mikes, occasionally did the sound, sat in the back a lot on "guard duty" (we had a problem with theft and unknown people driving into our parking lot so we'd keep an eye on it, that was fun, if someone drove into the lot we went out to check it out, lots of stories there, not enough space to tell them), and did lots of other stuff. My reported service time was usually 3-5 hours a month but nobody ever gave me a problem with it. I told the brothers I reported my time honestly: if I sat in the car or McDonald's for 45 minutes that time didnt get reported. A pioneer sister once told me, "You'll never get pioneer hours doing that." Pioneers would spend maybe 20 minutes actually witnessing and the rest of the morning goofing around and they'd report 4 hours.
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mouthy
Shouldnt eat Dairy Queen as it had blood in it ???? HONESTLY!!!
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daystar
Shouldnt eat Dairy Queen as it had blood in it ???? HONESTLY!!!
Really? I never heard that one. I heard that same rumor, though, about Kentucky Fried Chicken. The reasoning given was that they slaughtered the chickens by electrocution rather than draining the blood.
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mouthy
I later found out an elder had a plump daughter so he told her that to stop her eating them... She told all of the other kids so there fore as obedient "followers" we didnt eat Dairy Queens---I have made up for it since .yes I heard that about the chickens also. We also could only eat wax boloney!!!! LOL I ate every bit of boloney the Watchtower dished up Stupid Brod......