Getting my feet wet

by Soledad 24 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  dmouse

  Welcome to the board Soledad.

  I can relate, my dad was never a believer either. I remember for years my mum used to drag us five kids to the meetings. We used to have to catch a bus. It was hell waiting at the bus stop on freezing winter nights! Now we are all out of the religion, guess when Armageddon comes all that effort will not count eh?

  Funny thing is, thinking about it, you would expect mums with non-believing mates would get more help from the congregation wouldn't you? Well, it seems that such mums are considered lower class Christians, never to be invited into the upper cliques. I wonder why? Perhaps they were frightened we might ask for a lift to the meetings, Heaven forbid! - lower class spiritual scum like us in Mr Elder's new car! No way, let 'em catch the bus.
• 

  Reborn2002

  Bienvenidos Soledad!

  The difference is.. you are NOT alone here.

  Over time you will find that many people on this website have experiences very similar to yours.

  Reading your story you and I have striking similarities.

  To make a long story short, my father was converted to the JW a few months before he and my mother (born into the Witnesses) got married.
  I am the 3rd child, by the time I was born my father was already on his way out. At age 6, he had already DA himself. So I grew up in a mixed home of one believer and one non-believer.

  I was born into the religion, a 3rd generation JW. I was baptized in 1992 at age 12, became very zealous, even to the point of continuous auxiliary pioneering, reading at book study, carrying the microphones, etc... then I began my gradual fade in about 1998/1999 culminating with my DA myself in 2001 at age 21.

  I am also of Hispanic descent, as my mother is Puertorican.

  As you can see, we have a lot in common.

  I look forward to conversing with you via the board on various subjects.

  It is not religious persecution for an informed person to expose publicly a certain religion as being false, thus allowing persons to see the difference between false religion and true religion.
  WT 11/15/1963 page 688 paragraph 3
• 

  MoeJoJoJo

  Hey Soledad!
  Welcome. Glad you're here!

  I grew up in a 'divided household' also, until I was 12, it was then my father became a JW. My mother was baptized shortly after I was born though. My mom let me miss some meetings but when my father came into the 'troof' it was off to Every meeting for all of us.
• 

  LizardSnot

  Welcome!

  Lizard
• 

  Soledad

  Well, it seems that such mums are considered lower class Christians, never to be invited into the upper cliques.

  You said it! Hit the nail on the head! That's exactly what it's like growing up in a so-called divided household. I found that generally there were two ways I could be viewed: either my mother, brother and I were "spiritually weak," or pity was bestowed upon us, as we were the "spiritual orphans and widow", and any of the witnesses who wanted to earn brownie points (and I dont mean the sweet edible kind) with the elders would go out of their way to treat us "extra special." [8>]
  I remember one in particular who would buy me gifts, drop me off and pick me up at school (he had kids of his own to take care of, I always wondered why he was so nice? Then it all made sense after he was named elder just 2 years after his baptism ) I had always felt that I was never truly loved and cared for in the Org; it was all phony, fake, with a hidden agenda for the person involved, like I mentioned before.
  Reborn you are right we do share similar backgrounds and I guess you can say I'm an adopted Puertorican/Newyorican

  What the head makes cloudy the heart makes very clear.