P.S. I was embarrassed to write this in my post but since this is anonymous, I will say I never learned how to be comfortable making friends. When you're raised in a cult your friends are chosen for you. Anyway, when I was young I thought I would be killed for not believing but I felt I would rather be killed that be in this false utopia. The meetings and what they preach used to be so extraordinarily offensive to me.
myusername
JoinedPosts by myusername
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6
Can't believe people who were JWs with me as children are still in the religon.
by myusername inso through the internet it's possible to see what people are doing from childhood without actually interacting.
i really imagined the majority people i knew who were born into the religon about the same time i was would have left when they matured and hopefully developed some logic???.
so do they really believe everything they were taught as children or are they just stuck and don't know how to leave?
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Can't believe people who were JWs with me as children are still in the religon.
by myusername inso through the internet it's possible to see what people are doing from childhood without actually interacting.
i really imagined the majority people i knew who were born into the religon about the same time i was would have left when they matured and hopefully developed some logic???.
so do they really believe everything they were taught as children or are they just stuck and don't know how to leave?
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myusername
WTWizard-yes the late meetings were difficult. My parents used to stay an hour after chatting with just a couple of people. I wouldn't even get up for school the next day. I used to think I was very dumb because I went to a special JW school for high school, which grants diplomas but isn't "real." You just show up a few hours a month. When I started city college I ended up getting high grades and transferred to state and ended up with high grades there too. All the while missing a high school education. (Don't think I have a career though. If you aren't allowed to find out what you like as a youth, I feel it's very difficult to find yourself later.) In a way, children raised as JWs will always have special 'handicaps' in the larger world, but sometimes the things you think will be stunted are not. (btw-I was in the JW world from birth.)
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Can't believe people who were JWs with me as children are still in the religon.
by myusername inso through the internet it's possible to see what people are doing from childhood without actually interacting.
i really imagined the majority people i knew who were born into the religon about the same time i was would have left when they matured and hopefully developed some logic???.
so do they really believe everything they were taught as children or are they just stuck and don't know how to leave?
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myusername
So through the internet it's possible to see what people are doing from childhood without actually interacting. I really imagined the majority people I knew who were born into the religon about the same time I was would have left when they matured and hopefully developed some logic???. So do they really believe everything they were taught as children or are they just stuck and don't know how to leave? There is one difference that I was physically abused all in the name of "Jehovah" and my most of my "friends" weren't hit. maybe that helped brain wash them since they may have felt more kindness from their families - even though being raised like that is not kind in any way.
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Did your parents make you tell people (at xmas time) that you got gifts throughout the year
by myusername ini see people saying this online.
my parents made us tell people tha we got gifts throughout the year and that we probably got more presents than kids get on birthdays and christmas.
however, it was a complete lie.
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myusername
Outlaw-you have no idea the stupid things I told my parents when I was 4-5 before I learned. One big thing is I told them I wouldn't be a JW when I was an adult. So they taught us to be dishonest, right?
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Did your parents make you tell people (at xmas time) that you got gifts throughout the year
by myusername ini see people saying this online.
my parents made us tell people tha we got gifts throughout the year and that we probably got more presents than kids get on birthdays and christmas.
however, it was a complete lie.
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myusername
nelly136- I grew up in the 80s and physcially punishing children was encouraged in our congregation. Yes compensation makes more sense. I called it bribery because these particular children (I was a child at the time too) were kind of the crazy kids and they seemed to enjoy it so much. lol It's compensation though.
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Did your parents make you tell people (at xmas time) that you got gifts throughout the year
by myusername ini see people saying this online.
my parents made us tell people tha we got gifts throughout the year and that we probably got more presents than kids get on birthdays and christmas.
however, it was a complete lie.
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myusername
Mickey Mouse-I didn't know anyone who got assembly presents but maybe they did. My parents actually made me watch the contribution boxes with one of them on all the breaks of one assembly when I was 8. So I had no opportunity to move each assembly day other than walking from my chair to the box. I had tears running down my face every day sitting at the box. People at the assembly mainly gave me mean looks like I was misbehaving for crying. I did know one family who bribed their kids to behave with gifts.
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Did your parents make you tell people (at xmas time) that you got gifts throughout the year
by myusername ini see people saying this online.
my parents made us tell people tha we got gifts throughout the year and that we probably got more presents than kids get on birthdays and christmas.
however, it was a complete lie.
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myusername
Elgiard-your post made me think of something. I think some people are attracted to this religon because it's a great way to hide neglect and abuse. They have all these ready made excuses for isolating their family and other behaviors. The types that are attracted to this religon for that reason are narcissists. It's not surprising when these kinds of parents leave the religon when they're children are grown. The religon doesn't serve as many purposes for them anymore. Although, some will stay indefinitely because perhaps just the idea of being special enough to survive Armageddon will make a narcissist happy or other reasons they may stay.
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Your favorite meeting ever.
by 2tone inid like everyone to share there most memorable meeting attendance they had.
for whatever reason.
id like to thank everyone for there comments who read my introduction post.
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myusername
My most memorable meeting was the one that caused me to faint from the heat. There was no air conditioning and half way through the prayer I dropped in the front row. Supposedly I made a loud noise. I was unconscious and sweating profusely. The funny thing is they continued with the prayer and it was a long prayer. My parents said nobody came to our aid but my mom fanned me and helped me regain consciousness. I was 8 years old. I find this an outrageously strange scenario.
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42
Did your parents make you tell people (at xmas time) that you got gifts throughout the year
by myusername ini see people saying this online.
my parents made us tell people tha we got gifts throughout the year and that we probably got more presents than kids get on birthdays and christmas.
however, it was a complete lie.
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myusername
xjw666- my parents gave contributions to the kingdom hall and bought all the literature too. They also gave gifts to other people in the congregation. So now I think I won't believe it when I hear JWs say that. Although there are exceptions of course.
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42
Did your parents make you tell people (at xmas time) that you got gifts throughout the year
by myusername ini see people saying this online.
my parents made us tell people tha we got gifts throughout the year and that we probably got more presents than kids get on birthdays and christmas.
however, it was a complete lie.
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myusername
I see people saying this online. My parents made us tell people tha we got gifts throughout the year and that we probably got more presents than kids get on birthdays and christmas. However, it was a complete lie. We were physically neglected. We never got presents and didn't even get our basic physical needs met. So I'm wondering if others actually did get presents throughout the year from their Jehovah's Witness parents or if JW parents typically make children say this even though it's not true?