Wht i've noticed a lot from my congro is that many of the youths leave for a while....and then return later on stating that the "world had nothing to offer". When things like that are said, it's pretty clear that they left to enjoy a certain lifestyle, not because they don't believe the crapola anymore. It's quite sad...
Are the Witnesses Really Losing Their Young People?
by What Now? 63 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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TMS
Between by wife and I we have 7 brothers and sisters who are active JWs. Collectively, they have 17 children ranging in age from 25 to 52, all raised as JWs. Of the 17, only 2 are still witness.
tms
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l p
Yeah when i was in about over 10 years we had a very large social circle - jwfacts was part of it....
since that time --> none of us spoke about our doubts with each other or planned our exit...but the majority of the young people have left.
14/21 left the borg...and this was slowly over a period of 7 years....a number of them were MS, some even serving in foreign lands...
whats great now is...we have all come together and have shared our journey...its great to be able to speak openly with friends about why and why not and not be judged...
if the borg was more tolerant perhaps they wouldnt have the troubles they do today...
lp
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Finkelstein
People young and old are leaving the BORG because they are starting realize that the WTS. has been bullshitting and exploiting people
to proliferate and distribute its published works.
Certainly the exposing information on the inter-net is helping this along.
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blondie
Young jws........in one family out of 4 only 1 remains at the KH; another father is elder, none any longer out of 4 kids, mother told me youngest son is now gone. My contemporaries, about 40% persist in adulthood and 20% don't do much but attend a few meetings. I can take 10 eldlers and find 40 children now 18 and older who no longer attend, some never baptized, others are inactive or hide their possible df'ing actions.
Factors--financial dependence on parents or other adult jws
No friends outside the WTS - emotional dependence
Too young to have experienced the unloving behaviors, no insight to the inner workings yet as MS or elder, many have never read the bible completely through, just a verse out of context here and there. My reading the bible opened my eyes to things such as how women were treated.
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nowwhat?
i have never heard of a young person leaving because they wanted to pursue a career. it was because of sex and pot. as far as zealous youths go, the boys follow the girls if the girls are out in field service that's where the boys are.
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mrsjones5
Pot? Really? I must be strange cuz I bever appealed to me. But the sex did.
In my family I have three siblings. All of us were born-ins to parents who for the mistpart were spiritually weak. They didn't force us to get baptized. My mother said she thought we would naturally do it as we got older. Glad to say it never happened. None of us are drug fiends, sexually loose (well at least not now - I for one did sow my wild oats) or otherwise depraved.
Mother isn't happy that her children are not jws and have no plans to be.
oh and I forgot to add we all have or had pretty successful careers (had for me, I'm a stay at home mom and care provider for my disabled hubby after a career of being a pattern-maker/grader, my sister is an senior account executive for a luxury shoe and handbag line, my brother is a self employed web developer with clients of the like of Stanford).
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Emery
Between the states of North and South Carolina there have been close to 16 young people disfellowshipped in the past year. All of them were for either having sex or smoking. I know about 4-5 others who completely stopped going because of TTATT. So roughly 20 young people are gone from my circuit alone, all between the ages of 18-24. Of the 16 that were Df'd I see 2 coming back.
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Finkelstein
I have never heard of a young person leaving because they wanted to pursue a career. it was because of sex and pot. as far as zealous youths go, the boys follow the girls if the girls are out in field service that's where the boys are.
Some young people actually have a built in intellectual presence that contravenes religious theology such as what whats practiced at the KHs.
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DesirousOfChange
That article about Jehovah's Witnesses having the lowest retention rate for born ins keeps popping up every now again
When it is said that they are losing their "young people", I don't think that necessarily means the kids are leaving as teens or early 20-somethings.
At that age, young people are still very dependent upon their parents. But once they leave the nest, I think many go "inactive" as mom & dad are not there prodding them to go to meetings and go in service.
Many of those kids who are "IN" are just playing along. They are drinking, experimenting with sex (some getting caught), etc. Kids will be kids.
Looking around at all the born-ins of my generation -- at least 2/3 are "out".
Doc