did anyone resist getting baptized?
starting at the age of 12 my parents were pressuring me to get dunked, it started when i came home from school one day and there was a young dub waiting to study with me, he tried for a few months till it became obvious he was more interested in my sister than getting me in that pool.
another attempt was made when i was in the 8th grade, i was walking home from school and a pick up truck pulled over right in front of me and there was another young jehovie, he told me to get in the car, i told him no, and he said that if i didnt get in i would be in big trouble with my parents, reluctantly i got in, he proceeded to take me around town to a few of my friends(worldly) homes and started telling me that these people were all going to die, and that if i wanted to die with them.
Did anyone resist getting baptized?
Nope, just wish I had. I allowed my father to pressure me into getting baptized when I was 14, nearly 15. That began a cycle of years of doing things, I realized later, to please my parents, including serving as a pioneer directly out of high school.
i'm a former jw or joho as one of my sister's schoolmates used to call us.
(reminds me of the hojos we used to stay at for assemblies :d) i was raised as a witness, baptized at the age of 14 due to my father's constant pressuring.
i'm in my mid-30s now and i stopped attending meetings three years ago.
Looks like you're an independent thinker.
Yeah, that always seemed to get me into trouble. What's this?? A single sister who can...*dramatic gasp* think for herself??? We can't allow that!
I'm on relatively good terms with my parents. I do still love them and I don't fault them for the way they raised us. They did what they believed was right. However, it annoys me slightly that every time I talk to my mother, she ALWAYS has a new tidbit for me. "this year's memorial is...(insert date" "our circuit assembly is...(insert date)" "we have our convention in (insert city) on (insert date)." you get the idea, but I'm so close to saying "it's been three years mom. I'm not coming back so I don't care when the upcoming events are." But I respectfully refrain.
As far as where I live, I've only been in South Carolina for two years. The first year was spent on the coast and the most recent year is a couple of hours inland. I'll make it to the foothills one day.
i'm a former jw or joho as one of my sister's schoolmates used to call us.
(reminds me of the hojos we used to stay at for assemblies :d) i was raised as a witness, baptized at the age of 14 due to my father's constant pressuring.
i'm in my mid-30s now and i stopped attending meetings three years ago.
Thanks so much to everyone who's given me support in this thread. You have no idea how much I appreciate it.
ok everyone, who has to go to the memorial tonight?
check in here, state the reason you have to go, and when you get back, let us know how it went and your impressions.
for me, i have to go for my family--since i'm doing the fade i figure it won't kill me to go.
Who's going? Um..not me. . When I was a regular, I disliked the hypocrisy of people who ONLY showed up to the memorial. If you're going to quit going, go for the whole enchilada. So I don't attend knowing full well that I have no intention of going back.
Not judging anyone who is going. I'm merely stating my reason for not going.
i'm a former jw or joho as one of my sister's schoolmates used to call us.
(reminds me of the hojos we used to stay at for assemblies :d) i was raised as a witness, baptized at the age of 14 due to my father's constant pressuring.
i'm in my mid-30s now and i stopped attending meetings three years ago.
Among JWs, you're pressured to believe it's the Truth. Are you really given an alternative? What would happen if you didn't choose to believe this? The ramifications are strong enough to keep you "believing.
That's one thing that drove me nuts. No, we don't believe in hellfire, but if you don't do as you're told, you'll be destroyed at Armageddon. Come ON what is the difference? If this is the scare tactic you're using, shouldn't I have a wafer on my tongue every week??
Cognac, every Friday night, my dad would say "we're going in service tomorrow so you need to go to bed early." And what was I doing come Saturday morning? Eating cereal and watching cartoons. Thanks dad! I wouldn't want to miss Bugs Bunny! It was really funny when my dad "pioneered" for a whole service year. I think I saw him go out in service a total of 3 times. That means only one thing: attempting to witness to people at work whether they wanted to hear it or not.
Gopher, I have not read Raymond Franz' book. I knew it existed but I've only recently seen the online summary of the book. I'll get around to it eventually, but I'm in the middle of three different books right now in between work.
MissingLink, my dad always said that once his children left "the truth" he would have no need to speak to them. So I knew the score. Amazingly enough, he has not shunned me. I guess since I was the last of his four children to leave the congregation, he got the idea that the problem wasn't with one or two of us. In fact, maybe the problem wasn't WITH us.
Quandry, I think one of the things that kept me IN college was watching my parents nearing retirement age and not being able to retire. I don't want that to be me. They're in their mid-60s and they're both still working full-time. I'd like other options.
No Twitch, you may not leave until I dismiss you. LOL
Whoever asked this earlier, yes, I am a Spanish teacher. I'd address you personally, but I can't be bothered to go back through all the posts.
i'm a former jw or joho as one of my sister's schoolmates used to call us.
(reminds me of the hojos we used to stay at for assemblies :d) i was raised as a witness, baptized at the age of 14 due to my father's constant pressuring.
i'm in my mid-30s now and i stopped attending meetings three years ago.
I have so much to say in response to all the posts since my absence. But first I need a nap LOL. I'll be back later!
i'm a former jw or joho as one of my sister's schoolmates used to call us.
(reminds me of the hojos we used to stay at for assemblies :d) i was raised as a witness, baptized at the age of 14 due to my father's constant pressuring.
i'm in my mid-30s now and i stopped attending meetings three years ago.
when I finally told her, though, she didn't defend them. She just said "I'm sorry." Thank you mommy. Yes that's right, I'm in my mid-30s, but when my mother has done something nice, I call her "mommy" like I'm five years old. LOL.
My dad (former elder of 20 years) was the one I didn't want to deal with. He's the type of person that it doesn't matter how you feel, going to meetings and going in service (which he never did) is something you MUST do, end of discussion.
i'm a former jw or joho as one of my sister's schoolmates used to call us.
(reminds me of the hojos we used to stay at for assemblies :d) i was raised as a witness, baptized at the age of 14 due to my father's constant pressuring.
i'm in my mid-30s now and i stopped attending meetings three years ago.
The thing is, I had stopped attending meetings in my mid-20s, but I knew I'd go back. I knew what would happen if I stayed away. I'd have to give up all the friendships I'd had since childhood. I wasn't ready for it. But after the last congregation I was in, I'd had enough. It was a small congregation with A LOT of pioneers who were constantly trying to pressure me to become a clone pioneer like them.
Then people would look at me like I'd grown another head when I said I had no interest in getting married. What I didn't tell them is that I didn't feel like becoming the little wifey who keeps her mouth shut and follows and/or supports whatever her husband says no matter how foolish it might be. Those who were okay with me staying single looked at me like I just said "there is no God" when I said I had no interest in becoming a pioneer again. You can't win and I was tired of trying to.
I didn't talk about my feelings to ANYONE the first year. I just disappeared. Then finally my mom and I had a heart-to-heart about what had been going on. She was just like "why didn't you tell me?" I felt like she would have defended them and I didn't want to hear it.
Sorry I keep posting so much, but this is very therapeutic for me.
i'm a former jw or joho as one of my sister's schoolmates used to call us.
(reminds me of the hojos we used to stay at for assemblies :d) i was raised as a witness, baptized at the age of 14 due to my father's constant pressuring.
i'm in my mid-30s now and i stopped attending meetings three years ago.
I'm a former JW or JoHo as one of my sister's schoolmates used to call us. (Reminds me of the HoJos we used to stay at for assemblies :D) I was raised as a Witness, baptized at the age of 14 due to my father's constant pressuring. I'm in my mid-30s now and I stopped attending meetings three years ago. Oh AND I have a college education and was a foreign exchange student which I was obtaining while going to meetings. I'm sure you can imagine the joy of a lot of the elders that a single sister was going to college instead of pioneering. Well, sorry, I frankly don't want to clean houses for $10 an hour for the rest of my life just to make YOU happy. I lurked for about a day or two on this board just to see what the general atmosphere was. Let me just say that for me personally I don't have any problem with any of the things we were taught in the congregation and I still believe in Jehovah and his guidance. There are still some things that I miss about it, like volunteering at assemblies and getting to know people from other congregations. I'm just not going to be told what to do by a bunch of self-righteous hypocrites who are in the forefront of the congregation and who decide for themselves that because I'm not breaking my neck to get in 70 hours a month AND support myself financially I'll be destroyed at Armageddon. Whew, okay, that's all. Any questions, class? LOL
it must be memorial season!!.
2 car groups in 3 days have stopped by...... funny thing is..... i havent seen anyone aside from brief and hurried " hey, mate" in the various grocery stores, or typical places to run into folk you know for months, and more likely years....... so yesterday, they brought me the latest "insider" wts and after about 10 min of pleasant meaningless banter, finally got to the point....." it would be nice to see you at the hall".
my response: i have to tell you straight out, that we are all much happier and doing better without marinating in a doomsday atmosphere... we have to look at life in a way where we find different reasons to hope...... talk about a conversation stopper.... i am guessing this is where is starts to show up on the radar...... they were sisters of the fleshly type to one of the elders.
"i have to tell you straight out, that we are all much happier and doing better without marinating in a doomsday atmosphere." (I have no idea how to quote people, so this is the best I can do) Hello, this is my first post. I have not been to a meeting in almost 3 years and I have to say, chickpea, that I feel EXACTLY the same way. It's a relief not to be judged because I'm single and not a pioneer or constantly made to feel that my best is NEVER enough. Woo sweet freedom!!!!
