JW's are like hockey fans.
The paint their faces in JW colors and assume the identity of GROUP.
but aren't all insular, extremist religious groups like this?
Obviously as people affected by the WTS we scrutinize their tactics, yet the more I read and the more I experience the more I realize that JW's are like so many other extreme conservative religious groups when it comes to conformity of behaviour and their techniques of accomplishing this.
The WTS is just another group in the pile.
It's funny, to me anyway, how the large size of WTS and their blood teachings make them dangerous and extreme, yet when you compare the "Flander-ness" (yes, Flanders the uber-Christian from the Simpsons) of JW's to other extreme religious groups (ERG) the JW's seem to be so much more "normal" than their ERG peers.
I have mennonite friends that will not tolerate even one curse word within their speech, that would never even think of wearing a provocative outfit, listen only to christian radio stations, never watch movies with violence or immorality. Yet all of these are quite commonplace among many JW's.
So why the difference??
The only thing i can get from my experience is that these other christian ERG's are actually taught to LOVE JESUS. They are actually shown the life of Jesus from the bible and their focus is on Jesus and the bible and growing a relationship with Jesus.
JW's, in my experience, don't have this relationship with Jesus. They view Jesus as Jehovah's son, and then develop a relationship, a closeness to Jehovah.
- As a JW we are taught repeatedly that all Jehovah demands of us is exclusive devotion to the WTS.
- We know when we've displeased Jehovah becuase we get reproved or DF'd by the WTS
- We therefore avoid things that will get us reproved or DF'd by the WTS
The JW behaviour is molded by the threat of DF'ing, and if you don't get DF'd for listeing to unchristian music, or dressing provacatively, or for watching violent and immoral movies, then I can get away with this!!! Awesome!
Oh sure the WTYS warns us about it, but that's just a recomendation since we can't get DF'd for it. As long as I can't get DF'd then I am good with Jehovah. And if an elder in your hall watches "bad" movies then for sure its okay!
- Smoke a cigarette = DF'd
- talk to a former JW = DF'd
Speak with racial slurs, watch violent immoral movies, listen to rebellious music and consume copious amounts of acohol all on a regular basis.... while at the same time putting 10 hrs/month peddling WT magazines = MS / Elder / privileges in the KH
So my conclusion of the matter is this.... Extreme christian groups want to be extremely christian. JW's don't want to get DF'd.