I've seen several posts relating to the mood among longtime JWs here recently. I thought I would add to that collection and recount a discussion I recently had with my Dad and a small group of folks about his age. Quick background on the group:
My Dad - Been an elder around 20 years or so, a JW around 40 years. Was recently removed for some BS reasons surrounding family. I don't want to put much detail since I want to make sure there is plausible deniability but I will say that he followed the Borg's rule as they were written and got whacked anyway.
Person #2 - long time pioneer and a person I would describe as a fanatical JW. Hard core, judgemental and will defend the WTS at all costs (or so I thought).
Person #3 - was an elder, stepped down for several years and now a MS. Nice guy.
My mom and several others were involved in the conversation but didn't do much talking. We'd all had a couple of drinks and somehow, I managed to stay pretty quite which I'm releaved about since they know I have apostate leanings and I know that person #2 would likely turn me in if I said too much.
The discussion revolved around 3 main topics:
1 - Treatment of disfellowshipped people, faders and non-JWs in general - One of my siblings is a "believing fader". He/She can't live the JW life but generally believes and has a bit of guilt over it. I've not had any real anti-JW discussions with this sibling because JW stuff just doesn't come up in our discussions. This sibling is married to a non-JW. Person #2 has a df'ed son who will never come back. My Dad proceeds to go OFF on how the WTS acts like the Pharisees in Jesus day treating people who don't believe the same why they do like dirt. He defends the df'ing policy to a degree but says that Paul didn't mean to totally shun people but to rather not exchange spiritual ideas with them! I was stunned. He is especially sensitive to the instructions to shun your family if not living in your house. My Dad, like all of us, has his faults but he is loyal to his family. I know that he would not engage in shunning any of his kids if they were df'ed. He has a relationship with my faded sibling and spouse and has no intention of giving that up. But, he's very upset that the counsel he's received is to limit his association with this sibling. He thinks the folks in Bethel making the rules have no idea what it's like to live in the real world and no idea what a family is! They sit up there, make their rules while the folks in the local congregations have to pick up the pieces of a broken family. Person #2 & #3 start to disagree a little (reflex defense of the WTS) but quickly joined forces. I also carefully agreed but let them do most of the talking. The best line from him - "We go knocking on total strangers doors speading a message that is supposed to highlight love and then have to treat the ones we should love the most like they don't exist. How is that love?" He also realizes that you can't force an adult to follow a religion if they don't want to. "Didn't Jehovah give us free will?" he asked.
2- How elders/ms are scrutinized - He was also very upset at the way many COs treat the servant body. He used the analogy of how chickens are. If you've ever kept chickens, you know that if one hen gets a cut or something, the entire flock will continue picking at the wound and make it worse. You have to cover the wound or even keep the injured chicken separate until it heals or the flock will continue going after the injured chicken and can kill it. He said that's how the WTS is sometimes!! COs routinely blast the elder body over the stupidest things. I think anyone who has been an elder could agree with that. In his case, he felt that the other elders went after his perceived deficiency and other members of the local congregation did so as well. Nothing is ever good enough for them, he said. At this point, I interjected into the discussion and told him I felt the exact same way. I said that the COs expect perfection yet don't hold themselves to the same standard. He also said that the rest of the congregation expects the elders to be perfect and when they're not, quickly picks on the imperfection. Again, I agreed and said that's a reason why I would NEVER serve again. Just not worth it. Person #3 also agreed and said he was happy being just a MS and wouldn't want the stress that comes with being an elder.
3 - Discouragement about not making converts - Person #2 started talking about how after 30+ years of pioneering, she was ready to hang it up! She said she drives around all day knocking on doors and no one responses. She said how she used to make converts but even those were mostly crazy (true - they were all crazy in the clinical sense). Now, even the crazy ones don't respond. She laments at the things she's missed, she wants to travel, to do things with her remaining time on earth. I've described her as a fanatical JW and I almost hit the floor when she was saying this. Everyone in the group agreed that for the most part, the door to door work was a complete waste of time!!!
So, if this group is indicative of the mood among the ones in their 60s-70s out in JW land, the GB should be very concerned about the loss of control. Of course, this group also said several times that they "would never leave Jehovah or his organization" and that "Jehovah works with what he has" and other various statements of loyalty to the WTS. I recognized that they felt they had to say that to avoid the perception they are becoming apostate. However, my Dad also said that just because he thinks Jehovah is using the organization doesn't mean he agrees with everything they do or say.
The WTS has lost my generation. Those that didn't leave are fairly apathic. Very few men in their 30s-40s wish to be elders and do as little as possible. The younger generation kids - 20s don't hold pioneering, Bethel or being a MS as a goal and live double lives. But, it really does seem as if they are now losing my parents generation. Remember, these are people that went through 1975 and stayed. They gave up careers, saving for retirement, dreams because Armageddon was "right around the corner". Now, they're coming face to face with the reality that isn't not coming, they are going to die in "this system" and the WTS doesn't value anything they've done in the past. I feel sad for them, I really do. But, at least I'm seeing that they realize something is seriously wrong. They actually talk of reform!! And, at least this group, decided that if they have to choose between family and the congregation, family will win. And to me, that's a huge victory.