GOSSIP In the Kingdom Hall (page 2)

Elsewhere

I remember when a rumor was started about me...

I asked the person that relayed it to me where he heard it, he response was a change in his face to one of absolute FEAR. He was terrified! He immediately ratted out his source.

Went to his source and had the same experience. He was terrified and ratted out his source too!

This went on until I found the originating source - who was immediately gossiped about for spreading gossip. [8>]

JWs know that they are not supposed to spread gossip, and when confronted, they RUN and HIDE!

"As every one knows, there are mistakes in the Bible" - The Watchtower, April 15, 1928, p. 126
Believe in yourself, not mythology.
<x ><

I recall a situation from years ago when I was a pioneer. My congregation shared the Kingdom Hall with another congregation, and I learned that a boy in the other congregation, Johnny S., was spreading baseless gossip that another boy in the congregation, David H., was using drugs. When I heard the rumor I decided that Johnny S. needed to be confronted, needed to admit that what he did was wrong, and needed to apologize to David H. for the harm he had done to his reputation. I first called Johnny S. and talked to him about the rumor and asked him if it was true he started it. Although he could have hung up on me at any time, he admitted that he had started the rumor, but he wasn't interested in making things right. So I went to the Congregation Overseer and told him about the problem. Did I mention that Johnny S. was the son of an elder and David H. was spirituallly "fatherless"? The CO advised me to drop the issue.

...and another crack formed in the wall...

NameWithheld

Oh yes, JWs are the most critical, gossipy bunch of old hags I've ever known. And that's the men . The women are just as bad!

The rumor mill never stopped.

LB

Come on now, we all enjoyed the gossip. We weren't allowed to watch R rated movies. Where else would we be entertained.

My wife claims she left because of the gossip about me. It took her a year after I stopped attending for her to come to her senses. The spiritual pioneer sisters went into overdrive gabbing about me. She only could take so much.

Never Squat With Yer Spurs On

spender

they told us at an assembly that watching pg13 movies was not a conscience matter...they said that several times actually. They said we were not to watch shows like cosby or home improvement where the father figure acts silly. We were given specific names of songs we weren't to listen to. They even said there was classical (instrumental) songs we weren't allowed to listen to!!

TweetieBird

I think elders are the worst, especially when it comes to divulging details of judicial committee meetings and other private stuff. I know first-hand. They feel that it's okay to tell another elder, whether it's in the same congregation or not, why someone was reproved or disfellowshipped. It's happened many, many times in my area.

I always thought it was a joke when they would give talks about elders keeping what is said within the 4 walls of the back room. HA! It was always amazing how everyone knew exactly why someone had been disfellowshipped. I can't remember one time hearing about someone getting df'd and not being told the reason. Pretty much the same held true for those that were reproved, but don't even get me started on that one. They give a "local needs" part at the service meeting about the offense. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out who (or is it whom) the talk is about. I would much rather be disfellowshipped than reproved.

RedhorseWoman

Gossip was the mainstay of JW life. In fact, it was something that I just took for granted for a very long time, even when the gossip was about me.

After I had been inactive for some time, I remember going to visit my JW mom who immediately began inundating me with all the latest gossip. I had to ask her to please stop. It seemed like such a ridiculous waste of time....but, then again, JWs aren't allowed to talk about anything else that might be of interest. Politics are forbidden, most interesting subjects are forbidden unless you are quoting something from the literature....what else is there to discuss that hasn't been discussed ad nauseum in forty-three study publications?

mustang

De-defintely. After I was long gone (10 years or so) I woke up to
the fact that my father was running down some poor soul that I HAD NEVER MET!!! (I only half listened an by this time a rather different crowd had wandered into the area.) Drone on, drone, drone on. I got a lecture to beat Hell when I told him this was unscriptural and unpleasant.

Mustang

TexSham

I think you appropriately sum up the political atmosphere in hard-line congregations.

Remember, you're way in this life is through the Hardline. KTCK 1310.

DIM

ugh, HATBORO, Pennsylvania is probably the worst gossip hall in that area......Willow Grove, PA and Oreland, PA are right behind.....

GOSSIP In the Kingdom Hall