I've had the misfortune of ending up in apartments near major JW hangouts in the NYC-metro area. Yet, I find myself actually feeling sorry for the old people who I see sitting on random chairs outside of laundromats and propping themselves up on streetcorners. They tend to cluster in groups of 4-5 on corners in the morning just staring off into space or, on a good day, chatting with each other. They look tired, shabby, and bored. I have yet to see any English-speaking JW in my neighborhood (my apt. is 1 1/2 blocks from a multilingual KH in Jersey City) ever approach a passerby. Occasionally, a Spanish-speaking JW will call out to me "Joven...." in a demanding and authoritative voice, but that's it. I know that we were required to be much more proactive and engaging in our preaching back in the 1980s and 1990s. More importantly, though, everyone I see looks like a senior citizen. Chances are, they are estranged from their children who left the organization and they have diverted so much time from their professional lives that they'll have few resources to live out what should be their golden years. What a depressing lot to choose!
bj_rio
JoinedPosts by bj_rio
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August KM provides solid evidence of declining JW morale
by sir82 inas you may or may not recall, the february '07 km (for the us) had a huge article, taking up the full 4 page insert, on the "blessings" of auxiliary pioneering.
the part covering that insert took up the entire service meeting (aside form the announcements).
the "encouragement" was that the us branch had set a goal of 160,000 auxiliary pioneers for the month of april ("if only one of every 6 publishers signs up, we can make it!")..
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January 15 WT : Beware of Apostasy
by truthseeker inhi all, this post comes from the e-watchman site, when i get the mags, i will post further.. http://e-jehovahs-witnesses.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=433.
the following is taken from the watchtower of january 15, 2006, page 23 under the heading 'resist the foremost apostate': .
'because of listening to the devil and not rejecting his lies, the first human pair apostatized.
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bj_rio
No, the organization is not going to disappear, but nor will it expand meaningfully. This is consistent with the overall increase in bull-headed religiosity in the U.S. Aside from the kids of JWs who find it impossible to leave, the only growth seems to come from poor/uneducated immigrants and similarly situated persons who live at or below poverty, especially from women in minority groups (in the U.S. and Western Europe). Given the changes in the congregation population, the tactics will become increasingly oppressive and authoritarian. I grew up in two such congregations, and the possibilities of ascending within the JW hierarchy are, to an extent, more enticing than an uncertain *freedom* in a world in which persons lack the financial and educational resources to really compete.
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My story
by ValiantBoy inthis will be quite lengthy.
as it turns out, another member on here and i know each other and had some association a few years back when we were both active witnesses.
he says i should post my story.
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bj_rio
Thanks for writing. I can really related to your experiences. I guess that a lot of us can, unfortunately. Take care of yourself and know that we're looking forward to the next installment.