Do Jehovah's Witnesses Admit to Brainwashing Their Children?

by Mysterious 14 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  Mysterious

  
  I recall it was always a buzz word when I was in to "inculcate" your children (Deut 6:7) the belief system. I don't remember exactly what they taught inculcate to mean but I decided to look it up:

  in·cul·cate
  
  To impress (something) upon the mind of another by frequent instruction or repetition
  
  To teach (others) by frequent instruction or repetition; indoctrinate

  Then I saw something familiar:

  brain·wash·ing
  
  Intensive, forcible indoctrination, usually political or religious, aimed at destroying a person's basic convictions and attitudes and replacing them with an alternative set of fixed beliefs.
  
  The application of a concentrated means of persuasion, such as an advertising campaign or repeated suggestion, in order to develop a specific belief or motivation.

  Now when you are dealing with children and they are not given the CHOICE to learn or not learn what mommy says about the Watchtower would that not qualify as forcible? And it is certainly a concentrated means when they are telling you to constantly talk about Jehovah with them "when you sit in your house, when you walk on the road, when you lie down, and when you get up". And with all the meanings and personal study thrown in there I think anyone would be hard pressed to say they don't use frequent instruction and repetition to get what they want.

  The only thing separating their inculcating from brainwashing appears to be the clause that it is forcible, and again when you are dealing with children being taught by their parents and other adults they love and trust how can it be anything but?
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  Crumpet

  There is no difference in my mind either. The first time i heard the word brainwashing was when i was about 5 doing my presentation to a householder who was very kind and had a nice dog but said that i was brainwashed.Promptly my parents asked me if i went to the meetings to play with my friends because they made me or because i wanted to and if i came out on the service because i wanted to. I said I wanted to - thus showing perfectly that i was exercising freewill and that there was no brainwashing involved. I'm sure that satisfied that kind lady's concerns amply!
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  Mysterious

  I give up I keep getting an editing error:

  Main Entry:	inculcate
  Part of Speech:	verb
  Definition:	implant
  Synonyms:	brainwash, break down, communicate, drill, drum into, educate, hammer into, impart, impress, indoctrinate, inseminate, instill, instruct, plant, program, shape up, teach, work over
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  garybuss

  They call it mental regulating.
  
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  Tez

  Just want you to remember some of us were Jehovah's Witnesses and we brought our kids up the best way we knew how. We didn't view it as brain washing!! But there was a difference with some, I saw kids that were brain washed, I don't think I brain washed mine! maybe thats why 3 of them left!!! I always made sure mine knew that no matter what course in life they chose to take I would still love them, whereas many grow up thinking if they don't do what Mum and Dad are telling them they will be shunned and will lose their families and be all alone, like our friend Cordelia! who by the way is really struggling right now because of the brain washing! I cannot sanction the guilt trip JW's put on people and especially their children, which again is why I left! Thing is this world is such a miserable place with so much suffering can you blame people for wanting the best for their kids, even if they have been brain washed themselves. I think on this site there is a lot of bitching goes on about genuine people who have been fooled by the organisation in to thinking they are doing there very best for their families, and you can't deny that many who are still JW's are genuine, caring people who just want the best for everyone. It is sad that they cannot see where they have gone wrong, but instead of knocking them for what they have tried to do we should concentrate on the organisation that have convinced them! When this sort of thread comes on it seems that it is designed to have a go at people who are only wanting the best for their families. I got involved because I wanted to bring my children up in the best possible way, with the best possible morals, the best hope for the future. Ok me and many others were so wrong!! but can you blame us when you look at the state the world is in?
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  stopthepain

  Tez--What state is the world in?Is it any different than it ever was.Crime,sadness,selfishness are everywhere,but so is charity, care,and love.It all depends on what your outlook is.Bottom line is ,JW parents do brainwash there children through guilt and fear,good intentions or not.I mean no dis respect.
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  Lady Lee

  I read the title of the thread and thought "inculcate" immediately. But you I've never looked at the definition before. Wow

  They do it alright.
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  greendawn

  They don't realise how much they have been brainwashed themselves, so they don't understand the methods of this cult and how they are used to brainwsah their children.
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  AuldSoul

  The most dangerous thing is the public is not fully aware of the extent to which this "inculcation" controls the congregants. That is why they trap more every year.

  AuldSoul
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  Dune

  I was at the meeting yesterday setting up the sound system and stage. And this unbaptized publisher brought her grandson to the meeting (he's like 3). This pioneer was talking to her about child rearing.

  Anyway, i was doing my thing, but listening to their conversation. The pioneer was telling the publisher that children are a gift from god, and that children are very impressionable, she went onto tell her how some children can even speak 3 or 4 languages. If you havent figured it out, it was from a watchtower article from a couple of years ago.

  Then the pioneer, sat the child on her lap and asked him if he could read the yearly text on the front of the hall. She kept repeating "Jehovah is my help" several times before the child repeated after her.

  I dont know, but its always annoyed me when people indoctrinate their children. I mean, i've seen 7 and 8 year olds get baptized (hell, i was baptized when i was 11) you cant choose these kinds of things when you are young.