Being in a cult - what good did it do?

by Garrett 45 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  Bonsai

  Village Idiot,

  Thanks for the reply. I agree for the most part.

  You could have acquired those skills and contacts without the negative effect of the Witnesses. I will admit, though, that the Ministry School does hone your public speaking skills and draws some introverts out.

  True, there are many roads to learning, but as i was a born-in and indoctrinated from birth, I didn't have a choice. I simply used the avenue I had to gain those skills and am thankful to have gotten them.

  Just trying to be positive.

  .
  
• 

  James Mixon

  Speaking for my kids, especially my sons, living in a community saturated

  with gangs (bloods, crips) activities it helped in keeping them out of those gangs.

  Once the gang member realized they were JW's they left them alone. I guess they(gangs)

  figured if you are raised a JW your life is worst then ours, you are really screwed.LOL
• 

  Hold Me-Thrill Me

  What good did it do to be a JW?

  I learned not to follow men. The best lesson one can get!
  
• 

  FayeDunaway

  Jw's teach you not to follow men because you must follow THEIR men.
• 

  Ucantnome

  I met a really nice girl once in it and as I was in it it done me good
• 

  Ignoranceisbliss

  Really interesting discussion and something that I think about often.

  As a still in Dub with a great life, wonderful (fully indoctrinated) wife, and two beautiful kids, I wonder what I would have had if I wasn't born into this cult.

  My mom is a super hero type. I give her the majority of the credit for raising three fairly well balanced children. In the end I think that she was able to do this in spite of this cult. Not as a result of it.

  I feel that those that thrive in DubLand probably would of done even better without it. Would those that had a horrible existence in this cult have done better without it? I am not so sure.
• 

  millie210

  Bonsai.
  I like the positivity of the O.P. because it is not a weakness but a strength to be able to take something good from the bad, or build something from that which is broken.Thanks for that Garrett

  I agree with you Bonsai and with the OP Garrett. I am looking for ways to make this transition from being a lifetime JW meaningful and integrate it as I go forward.

  I think the most positive thing I learned is to be strong. Not saluting the flag while other kids stare at you, learning to articulate your beliefs in a persuasive way, expressing gratitude to something higher, are all things I am glad I dld.

  Ironically, it was my Witness training to be strong and stand for what is right that has made me able to leave them. They dont stand for what is right and I am strong enough to leave them because of that fact..
• 

  James Mixon

  Ignoranceisbliss" "I feel that those that thrive in Dubland probably would of done

  even better without it" I have thought about that, what if. I became a JW as an adult

  so my kids were born in. Even as a JW we made sure our kids got into the best schools,

  as a family we did things as a family. I came from a very close knitted family, great parents.

  Like most of the folks that came in around the 60's and 70's we wanted the best for

  our kids. If I had never had kids I never would have become a JW, if that make sense.
• 

  LisaRose

  There were some positive aspects to being a Jehovah's Witness, as there would be with just about any belief system. I learned to make hard decisions, to do things that were not easy and that mental toughness and discipline has served me well. It's too bad that along with that was a heaping helping of guilt and negativity. Overall, any good things were far outweighed by the bad.
• 

  Bungi Bill

  I have yet to find any possible benefit that I may have gained from the JW religion - and it is now 21 years since I gave that lot away. Furthermore, after all this time, I don't expect to ever find one, either!

  Bill.