Why is the Watchtower Society so cruel to teens? (page 5)

Anitar

Why are they so cruel to teens? Because with all the pedofiles in the watchtower, they hate it when the children grow up and rat on them.

In more ways than one, the watchtwer likes them young.

lonecat

Hello all,

After lurking here for several months, this was the thread that made me decide to register and make my first post. Forgive me for being long winded....

Having been raised a JW from the age of 5 I think I can honestly say the cruelty factor of that "religion" is probably the single biggest factor in defining my life. My childhood memories are dark and incredibly depressing...my mother was always unstable (she's recently been diagnosed paranoid scizophrenic) and would fly off the handle for no apparent reason, and as a JW kid of course EVERYTHING is a sin so there were plenty of reasons for her to take her temper out on me. And of course she would be commended for her actions by the elders etc. for not sparing the rod.

I spent my WHOLE 13th year punished for lying about a grade on a report card. My punishment? I had to go to my room immediately after school every day, and in summers spend the entire day there except to attend meetings and preach. I was not allowed to interact with my family at all. I was allowed only WTS publications to read. I was completely isolated like that for an entire year, only allowed to see my family to get a beating for some arbitrary infraction or other. During this time elders, people from the congregation etc. would be invited over and of course would inquire as to my whereabouts. And without shame, as if it were perfectly normal my parents would tell them exactly where I was and why. Not ONE of these supposedly "loving" elders or "brothers" ever said a word about this obvious abuse. It was fine with them, so of course this reinforced my parent's ideas about discipline. What kind of place would condone treating a 13 year old kid like that?

And that is just ONE YEAR out of my life, a childhood marked by getting whipped with fists, wooden spoons and belts, getting thrown down stairs, being grounded for months and even years at a time...and nobody from the KH ever tried to help or interfere on any level. In fact, I was considered a bad seed and not allowed to associate with any of the other JW kids at the hall after my father realized he no longer believed in the WTS' bullsh*t and stepped down from his post as an MS. The beatings of course continued, but when deliverd by my dad they just weren't in the name of Jehovah anymore. And whenever an elder would pull me aside to ask about the bruises on my arrms or back of my neck it was never to ask or intervene about abuse inflicted by my mother and father, it was to inquire what I'd done wrong to deserve the beating. It was, of course, always my fault.

I guess my point is, it was obvious to the elders etc. what was going on with me as a kid but nobody did anything about it, in fact it was actively encouraged so as to make me a better little servant of God.

For acceptance and because it was expected of me, I was baptised at the age of 17. I drifted away at the age of 19 and became the person I was always raised to truly be-an enraged alcoholic with absolutely no social skills, life skills or friends to speak of. Why was everyone so surprised at the way I and others raised like me grew up to have so many problems? Mine is not an isolated story-You would think that a group of men that were supposed to be the earthly mouthpiece of GOD himself could figure out that the system of abuse, cover ups and general stunting of the childhood/youth experience they continue to foster DOES NOT WORK and in fact drives the young away from this so called "religion" in droves. My brother in law is an elder, and when he tried to save me one last time about 6 years ago, responded to my tales of abuse by saying that my sister told him I was an extremely bad kid growing up...in other words, I had an elder standing in my driveway-a grown man with 2 kids of his own and a postion of power in the congrgation-telling me it was my fault .I feel sorry for my nephews.

After a lot of work on myself,11 years of sobriety and learning to trust people I have made true friends, have a successful career as an illustrator,artist ,and musician and can look back on the whole thing with some detachment.

The WTS is indeed cruel to children and I want absolutely no part of it.

Sorry for the long post but this is a topic that I cannot keep quiet about. This board has helped me a lot lately in realizing there are many others with the same experiences. I feel like one of the lucky ones to have gotten out when I did.

stillAwitness

I remember being tattled on because I was seen walking into the library. That jerk elder would say, "What need is there to go to the library, when we have Jehovah's provisions to read?"

Same here! I was an avid bookworm growing up (something most parents would kill for) Well not mine! My parents hated to see me read. My dad would take me to the library every saturday (just to shut me up) and I would practically get misty-eyed just being in there. It was my sanctuary. (Oh, and he'd be outside preparing his WT of course)

I'd come out with at least 10 books at a time and finish them in 2 days. My mother would yell so mcuh: "Why are you reading those worldy books! Jah provides so much spiritual food to keep us busy (and this is addressed to a 12 year old)

It would get so bad at times that I would read under my sheets at night with a flashlight on cause if my mom knew my light was still on she would GASP! know i was reading. da da duuuuuummmm

stillAwitness

Thank you for posting lonecast and welcome aboard. Your story is very touching but I am glad you are no longer a lurker and I hope you feel better sharing your story.

AudeSapere

Hi Lonecat -

That's a horrible story. I'm so sorry you had to endure all that abuse.

Welcome to JWD. You will find it even more powerful when you contribute. Share more when you are ready. You know that you will find understanding friends here.

-Aude Sapere (meaning: Dare to Know; Dare to Have Wisdom/Understanding)

SirNose586

I agree with many of the thoughts posted above. I can attest to the fact that the WT and the Elders don't care about kids. In my old congregation, the BOE (led by my dad) made it a "Marking" offense to attend any of the high school sports events. Yes, to attend them! Did the BOE offer anything as a subsitutute in a town where there was literally nothing else to do? No. There was only two movie theaters, and when both of them were playing an R-rated movie, well then there was nothing else to do but become more isolated and introverted from society.
Anything that we, teens did, we had to do under a cover of false pretenses. We couldn't go to the park, and play basketball. I couldn't just ride my bike during the summer, because some stupid J-Dub would call my mom and tattle on me. After all, what business does an Elder's son have riding his bike, and enjoying life, when he should be knocking on people's doors.
I remember being tattled on because I was seen walking into the library. That jerk elder would say, "What need is there to go to the library, when we have Jehovah's provisions to read?"

Wooooow. What a miserable existence that used to be for you! Especially after considering the jerk elder's comment...man. No wonder you had to get out. Comparatively, I guess I should be thankful it's more liberal 'round my neck of the woods...

BTW what part of California was this? Central California?

Edit: Just read lonecat's story. What awful treatment....!!

Well, I'm glad to see you moving past that elder-sanctioned abuse and into a good person. Please stick around and soak up the encouragement and conversations.

bernadette

Lonecat my heart goes out to. I applaud you for your courage and resilience.

I wish that there was some way that the wts could be sued for the cruelty both mental and physical it heaps on children in the org. In the way that silentlambs are doing for those who've been sexually abused. May be its something we need to get together on. I would support such a thing.

zagor

According to WTBS own interpretation Jesus was baptized when he was 30 even though being a perfect man. How long does then an imperfect man have to wait to make the same kind of lifelong commitment??
But living through it I can see why the age of 30 is considered as turning point, before that there still lot of immaturity to be able to deal with hardcore stuff. I mean there is a lot of intelligence with younger ones, don't get me wrong, but that intelligence hasn't been tested enough through life to make any such lifelong commitments. Not that I believe any more what bible teaches anyway but I find it interesting that the first Christians didn’t baptized children or young adults but even if they did these were rather exceptional circumstances than the rule of the day hence we don’t find about these in the bible.

Why does WTBS doesn't recognize that?? Because they see people as numbers on their chart and not as human beings.

nelly136

nice to meet you lonecat, sounds like you've had a long journey.

garybuss

Yeah, when you're raised by a crazy person, crazy is normal and sane is crazy. I relate to that. Welcome Lonecat.

Why is the Watchtower Society so cruel to teens?

Share this