Does being a JW make you narcissistic

by wyorobert 27 Replies latest jw friends

  • wyorobert
    wyorobert

    I am one of the few people on earth who never had a Jehovah's Witness knock on my door. My wife was the first witness I ever met. I did notice certain personality traits after being around some of the people who left the religion. I noticed that they tended to be very honest in a direct way that I wasn't used to. For instance, if I bought a gift my wife didn't like, she would tell me she didn't like it. It threw me at first, but I learned to like the directness after awhile. I noticed the same thing with others.

    I also noticed in a number of people a sense that they were a bit better than others and had a complete lack of empathy or concern for others. I just want to know if I met the wrong people or if anyone else has had the same thought. Many of my wife's family are still JW's and of course shunning us. They are taught to see themselves as superior to me because they have the truth and I'm a non-believer. Does that do some long term psychological damage for the JW? Does it create narcissism?

  • Was New Boy
    Was New Boy

    narcissism?....not in their minds....after all they are doing everything they can to try to "save" people who know nothing about them. People like yourself who have rejected them they have no empathy for...which is what they really are!

    People with no real empathy!

  • Mr. Falcon
    Mr. Falcon

    short answer..... yes.

    long answer..... yes.

    They are taught from the get-go that they are God's chosen people and the entire world is ignorant and evil.

  • unshackled
    unshackled

    I'd say yes. Wonder about myself sometimes...if I'm still carrying around that elitist chip on my shoulder with a negative world view.

  • miseryloveselders
    miseryloveselders

    short answer..... yes.

    long answer..... yes.

    They are taught from the get-go that they are God's chosen people and the entire world is ignorant and evil.

    This is along the lines of what I was thinking. Check this out, this is from the 1/15/2011 Watchtower Study Edition, the very last page, 32 which is the back cover. The first paragraph.

    "Today God's servants are accomplishing the greatest Christian works ever. Over seven million individuals look forward to surviving the great tribulation. Imagine, never before have so many faithful servants of Jehovah been active in so many lands throughout the earth!"

    Statements such as that demonstate the lack of heartfelt love JWs have towards nonJWs. Its an us vs. them mentality thats reinforced everytime they read WT literature, attend meetings, assemblies, conventions, even when they have gatherings where so called mature Christians are present to chaperone. The only Christians on this earth, and only people who stand any chance of surviving the Great Tribulation are JWs. Everyone else, no matter what good they do, or how golden their heart may be, is still chopped liver. The only thing that seperates JWs from hate groups such as neo-nazis, is that they're not committing violence against nonJWs. However, the dehumanization of nonJWs is all too prevalent. You know, I'm yet to hear anyone in my congregation express sympathy towards nonJW Japanese. As far as they're concerned, only a few JWs were hurt, and only a few Kingdom Halls were damaged. Everyone else was pretty much collateral damage.

    Even when you consider trolls such as DJEggNogg, you can see the contempt that even misfit JWs who are misfits by even WT/JW standards, have against nonJWs or those who've left. I wish I could find Eggnogg's post, but at one point he taunted another poster regarding how one day that poster was going to be destroyed. At that point I questioned whether or not Eggnogg was ever or is a JW. However threads like this comfirm for me that he is associated with JWs in one way or another. I've heard stories of brothers telling householders that one day they'll plant a tree over them. The WT has condemned that kind of language, but they still endorse the kinds of thoughts that enter the figurative heart which eventually gives birth to that language. They do it with articles containing quotes such as what I typed above from the 1/15/11 Study Edition WT. Granted I don't want to generalize, because there's plenty of JWs who don't have that swarmy, pretentious attitude, but there are enough that do where its not entirely off base to brush that stereotype off.

  • OUTLAW
    OUTLAW

    When your better than everyone else,does that make you Narcissistic?

    Hey Misery..

    Eggnogg is no JW..He`s definitely had some association with them..

    Too much Jesus and not enough Jehovah,for him to be a JW..

    ........................... ...OUTLAW

  • d
    d

    Yes it does.Many think they are holier then everybody else.

  • dontplaceliterature
    dontplaceliterature

    MLE is dead-on. I'm not a Jehovah's-Witness-Basher by any stretch of the imagination, but he's absolutely right. Jehovah's Witnesses will not hesitate to directly insult someone else's beliefs to their face, or in front of a large audience. They are taught to feel exceptional. This has been a major beef of mine since I first starting doubting a few years ago.

    I don't think it is directly any individual Witnesse's fault that they feel this way, but it's still pretty awful. They are indoctrinated to feel 'special', and their mutual struggle in The Ministry only amplifies that sense.

  • DanaBug
    DanaBug
    They are taught to see themselves as superior to me because they have the truth and I'm a non-believer. Does that do some long term psychological damage for the JW? Does it create narcissism?

    Yes. How else would you act if you believed you were in the one religion that had everything right, the only one that pleases Jehovah, the only one that he directs, and the only group that will be saved? Have you ever heard a JW admit to being wrong about something they believe? I haven't. Even if it's something that's changed, they use a euphemism-- "new light". It's never a mistake or untrue or wrong, it's a new understanding. I find it absurd to believe that out of the thousands of religions and millions of people in those religions, I happened to be born into the only true one.

  • maninthemiddle
    maninthemiddle

    I think it does, now, how much they act on the view depends on the person. Many I have known are very nice and I don't belive they would have treated you that way. However I also know plenty that would have. since I have never had the "outside" view I can't speak from experince.

    My own family will treat "worldly" family members graciously, then afterwards lament how they will "never make it", and it "is too bad'.

    Ignoring the good that they do. most of them are christian and wonderful people, just not part of the "correct" group.

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