StephaneLaliberte

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Posts by StephaneLaliberte

• 
  68

  Unwritten, congregational 'rules'

  by Thetruthhurts in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  what were some of yours?

  the big one in our hall was no frontal hugs!

  these were generally thought of as inappropriate, only side hugs should be given between sisters and brothers.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  StephaneLaliberte

  Fadeaway1962: Bridge Over Troubled Water sang by Elvis (written by Simon and Garfunkel) is one of my favorite songs of all time. I dare them!!!
• 
  68

  Unwritten, congregational 'rules'

  by Thetruthhurts in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  what were some of yours?

  the big one in our hall was no frontal hugs!

  these were generally thought of as inappropriate, only side hugs should be given between sisters and brothers.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  StephaneLaliberte

  Doctor Who: She was also publicly reproved 2 weeks later.

  I hope the Circuit Overseer heard about this and was more balanced. Even by JWs standards, this is crazy.
• 
  68

  Unwritten, congregational 'rules'

  by Thetruthhurts in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  what were some of yours?

  the big one in our hall was no frontal hugs!

  these were generally thought of as inappropriate, only side hugs should be given between sisters and brothers.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  StephaneLaliberte

  • Your watchtower magazine needed to be underlined. If you were really spiritual, personal notes in the margins were to be visible.
  • It was considered spiritual to talk about the daily text with others. If you did not know what the daily text was, you were likely weak spiritually.
  • You should buy a new dress/suit for the memorial.
  • Who ever left the hall last was the most spiritual
  • The Saturday service arrangement for the Circuit overseer was mendatory.
  • Spiritual brothers had a big square briefcase containing a lot of literature.
  • Sisters could not have bracelets around the ankle
  • Any body piercing other than one hole in each ear for women was considered blasphemous
  • Not allowed to have a shirt that named a company or sport team on construction sites
  • You were expected to follow in the bible during talks. I would often get side track reading the context of the verses referred to and was counselled because of it.
  • Only elders and people identified to have severe back pain were allowed to stand at the back of the hall during a meeting.
  • Talking about any old teachings (20+ years ago) was considered border line apostasy.
  • If you organized a party, it was a good practice to invite elders to supervise the event
    
• 
  68

  Unwritten, congregational 'rules'

  by Thetruthhurts in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  what were some of yours?

  the big one in our hall was no frontal hugs!

  these were generally thought of as inappropriate, only side hugs should be given between sisters and brothers.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  StephaneLaliberte

  I have to say tnat most ( not all) of these would be news to me.... Are you sure we were in the same religion ?

  For me, its the oposite. I've observed most of the things reported here! There were soo many unwritten rules!!
  
  
• 
  68

  Unwritten, congregational 'rules'

  by Thetruthhurts in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  what were some of yours?

  the big one in our hall was no frontal hugs!

  these were generally thought of as inappropriate, only side hugs should be given between sisters and brothers.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  StephaneLaliberte

  you'd be expected to go to the meetings even while you're on holiday (vacation) and "bring back the love of that congregation".

  Ahhh that one! Yeah, I brought back the love of a few congregation I never attended!
  
  
• 
  68

  Unwritten, congregational 'rules'

  by Thetruthhurts in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  what were some of yours?

  the big one in our hall was no frontal hugs!

  these were generally thought of as inappropriate, only side hugs should be given between sisters and brothers.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  StephaneLaliberte

  never once saw anybody vote against a resolution.

  I did. Twice. Then about 20 people or so were disfellowshipped for apostacy.
• 
  68

  Unwritten, congregational 'rules'

  by Thetruthhurts in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  what were some of yours?

  the big one in our hall was no frontal hugs!

  these were generally thought of as inappropriate, only side hugs should be given between sisters and brothers.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  StephaneLaliberte

  JWs didn't open cards in front of others

  I can understand that. We'd open gifts (baby, wedding showers) without saying the name of who gave what. Even today, in my family, we'd do the same thing. Otherwise, it becomes some kind of competition of who gave the most or the best gift.
• 
  15

  Can't deny my JW's past

  by StephaneLaliberte in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  today was a beautiful day and so, decided to drive by my old town with my wife.

  at some point, she asked me to stop talking about jws to which i said: i'm talking about were i lived, what i did and who i knew.

  its just that all of it was jws!

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  StephaneLaliberte

  Jofi_Wofo: You're right, there are some positive things about growing up a JW:

  1. Public speaking
  2. Public reading
  3. Reading alot
  4. Sales (aka: Preaching)

  Than, there are other things I have gained by leaving the JWs.

  1. See through manipulative organizations and self deception (religions, employers, etc)
  2. See through doublespeachs
  3. Stand up for my personal beliefs
  4. See through fake friends
  5. Understand the true value of family

  While I certainly appreciate the value of these assets, I still regret the "how" I got there. Like the expression: You don't need to put your hand on the stove to know that it hurts if you do.
• 
  15

  Can't deny my JW's past

  by StephaneLaliberte in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  today was a beautiful day and so, decided to drive by my old town with my wife.

  at some point, she asked me to stop talking about jws to which i said: i'm talking about were i lived, what i did and who i knew.

  its just that all of it was jws!

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  StephaneLaliberte

  Thanks laverite, you totally get me!
• 
  15

  Can't deny my JW's past

  by StephaneLaliberte in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  today was a beautiful day and so, decided to drive by my old town with my wife.

  at some point, she asked me to stop talking about jws to which i said: i'm talking about were i lived, what i did and who i knew.

  its just that all of it was jws!

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  StephaneLaliberte

  Magnum: My wife is POMO, like me. We left together 5 years ago.

  Simon: You’re correct that things become a bit more vague. For instance, I passed by a community center where I know I was there but can't remember what it was for. There is one difference however with a work place and when you grew up a JW: There are portions of your life that are not at that work place. You don't grow up immediately into a workplace, and the longest I've held a job so far is 6 years. I was born a JW. the first 35 years of my life was entirely IN the JWs. My friends, family, my jobs working for other JWs, field service, construction work, all those evenings, mornings, afternoon at the hall. How I was persecuted in school for my beliefs, etc. I passed by the house of a girl I turned down because I was a JW. EVERYTHING was connected to my JW beliefs. Heck, even the small waterfall is where I dedicated my life to God in prayer at 12! I'd fall asleep listening to biblical drama and would read the daily text in the morning. I'd be the one preaching at 6 am in the business district. That aint a simple job, that was my everyday life from when I was born to finally calling it quit at 35.

  My point is that trying to forget my JW experience would result in forgetting my own existence.