Atheist Blogger Visits Kingdom Hall (page 2)

Tiktaalik

From the blog: " I took a seat in the very front row. I was the only one in the front row."

Must be universal. No one sits in the front row. Ever.

Now, I have to admit something here: If I believed in God, and if I attended a church, this is how I’d like it go. No golden treasures on display, and no loud rock & roll, no chanting in any language foreign or domestic, and no sitting on the floor on pillows getting muscle cramps in my calves.

You know if the WTBTS got a hold of this, they would proudly quote it in a Watchtower or Awake.

dazed but not confused

Great blog by the way.

markwalt

Hi guys,

Thanks for posting a link to my blog!

Justitia Themis

Ah Ballard. ...extra-stiff drinks served in the local restaurants, and a great Farmer's Market.

And the whole Mars Hill thing that he mentions is really, really disturbing. The 'elders' there actually told my daughter's friend, who was an accountant, that she needed to quit her job and stay home (as a wife should per the Bible) because her making more money than her husband was leading him to feel less-than, thereby causing his pot usage.

Yep, it was her fault he was a pot smoker.

GLTirebiter

At first I felt like a customer in a swanky store, being cared for. But after a while it felt like I had a dozen needy girlfriends, all trying to get my attention. I know they were just being nice, but it creeped me out a little.

Don’t take offense, Witnesses. It’s not you. It’s me.

Mark, you did get one thing wrong!

mariu

Nice blog, Mark.

When I first came to visit a Kingdom Hall, my perceptions were quite similar. A single visit usually isn't enough to really get everything that goes on, but the Witness-style love bombing of newcomers and the unspeakably dull and repetitive bible-dissection talks also struck me at first. Of course, they always boil down to "obey us", it's just that the language is veiled so that outsiders don't get it so quickly.

The thing that really got me thinking was when I understood that everything is centrally controlled there. Now, in pretty much all other churches the local congregation and/or priest has some degree of freedom to decide how to run the services, what to talk about in sermons, how long, if they run childrens' groups, etc.

In the Witnesses, no such thing. The leaders tell everyone in the world exactly what to read when, how many minutes for this and that part of the meetings, the topics and structure of talks, even the questions and answers for these so-called "study" parts are already prepared. Individuality is only allowed in trace amounts. Do it differently and you get in trouble. Show the weakest signs of dissent, and you'll be invited into the back room for a little friendly shepherding.

Once you realise this, the whole thing gets really creepy.

(Frankly, as an atheist myself who once went through a similar phase of looking at all kinds of religions, I would probably go to the Catholics or an Orthodox Church if I was forced to choose a religion. I like all the fancy rituals, the singing, the impressive architecture of old churches, the mysticism. It's fantasy, but at least visually and mentally appealing fantasy. Going to a JW meeting OTOH is like going to office work. In a particularly dull job with zero creativity and a boss that's constantly watching you. Who would want that?)

Atheist Blogger Visits Kingdom Hall

Tiktaalik

dazed but not confused

dazed but not confused

markwalt

Justitia Themis

GLTirebiter

mariu

Bangalore

T D Joseph

Nosferatu

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