I just wanted to say again, what a great first post this was. Really nice thinking and so true.
Memorial Attendance: The Single Most Impactful TTATT "Witness" to Family and Friends
by AMNESIANO 31 Replies latest jw friends
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wallsofjericho
ironically, as "observers" there is zero necessity for "us" to be there anyway. But the R&F would never really be able to fathom that
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smiddy
That was a great OP and follow up . I loved the" statement" made by wearing pant suits .
smiddy
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krejames
Amnesiano
Couldnt agree with you more. That's why i didn't attend this year and incidentally why i also won't be going to the district (international) convention this year. Both firsts for me. Thanks for your post.
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moreconfusedthanever
With this year's memorial coming up in a couple of weeks, I have been wrestling with the question of going or not.
Having found this thread I am now more determined not to go. Thanks!
I have family that will go just to make the parents happy and to keep the peace. Keeping the peace would be my only reason to attend.
Admittedly when"weak" ones would attend while I still believed, I took it as a sign that they still believed and attended the memorial as a sign of respect for Jesus and Jehovah.
Others would get cross at the appearance of what they called "woodworkers". Coming out of the wood work once a year only. Such a loving bunch of people.
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DesirousOfChange
Nothing blasts a louder, clearer, and more deliberate message to the JWs who personally knew you and those familiar with your JW bona fides that you are not merely "not making the meetings" or "spiritually-weak" but that there is a conscientious reason you have rejected the entire Watchtower Society life than choosing to forego what they know you know to be their one-and-only holy and sacred event of the year, the Lord's Evening Meal. ~ AMNESIAN
That is sooo true! To NOT go to the Memorial is a definite statement of your feelings about/against the Organization. However, your JW friends/family will see it as a definite statement against God/Christ. (They have trouble separating the two -- the Borg and God/Christ. (Or is that three?)
I have PIMO friends who have encouraged us just to "fake it" -- attend meetings, maybe even report some token/fake Field Circus (no doubt at Starbucks), to maintain the network of JW friends. (Most JWs are genuine, good people, IMO, and we have no animosity towards them.) But while we decided that we just could not sit for hours being bored to tears week after week, we also felt that we did not our presence to perhaps be construed as any kind of support of WT dogma by any who may be suppressing doubts.
Still, we have determined that for us (YMMV), a "fade" is the better choice over taking any stronger position, as we wish to maintain civil contact with our PIMI JW family and friends (although the "friends" are pretty much non-existent now.). I think they can "excuse" the fact that we are inactive by thinking we are "spiritually weak" or have been "stumbled" (and there are some issues to support that). Thus, they do not shun us or avoid us. We are welcome at social events and they freely associate with us.
However, if we flat out stated we were not attending the Memorial, or even if it was discovered without us saying a word that we purposely failed to attend, they would see that as a statement that we have no respect or perhaps even no belief in "Jesus and his sacrifice for our sins" -- yes, they would see it as outright rejection of the JW Holy Trinity -- Christ, God, and the Borg.
Even before awakening, as an active JW I thought it ridiculous that a JW who was threatened with death for refusal to sign a statement denouncing their faith/religion would choose death. ME? I'd sign in a flash! Once having doubts about the JW blood doctrine, I decided if I or a loved one required a transfusion to survive, I'd sign for it in a flash! No reason to die for some confusing, fluid/changing doctrine. So, yes....I would "puss out" to save my life of the life of my child/loved one.
Likewise, I have no problem with choosing to attend their 30/45-minute Memorial event for the sake of maintaining "peace" with JW family. If our goal was to make a "statement" to them concerning TTATT, we could have done that on numerous occasions (actually probably only once), but we don't do that as it is our desire to not have them shun us or fear us as a spiritual detriment to them. Having them believe that we are only "inactive" or "stumbled" vs. "mentally diseased apostates" is our goal. If "pussing out" on making some bold statement by our defiant absence accomplishes that goal, IMO it is a fair compromise.
Ask the many who complain on this site about their complete loss of association with family and friends if they would change that situation if possible, by simply "signing" onto that 30-minute inconvenience, once per year.
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Steel
The so called memorial makes my skin crawl. It's literally a satanic cermony about pledging your allegiance the governing body.
Yuck
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Dagney
I received my FIRST memorial invitation left at my door in the 13 years I have lived there!
It seems hilarious now in retrospect, the "excitement" over this special campaign in making sure EVERYBODY is invited to this irrelevant occasion. Wouldn't want anyone to miss out on it!
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Della Street
That's exactly why I do attend. I am fourth generation born-in. My mom is a regular pioneer True Believer. In order to keep my relationship with my family and for them to deem me "safe", I sacrifice this one hour a year and attend the Memorial.
- Some people need religion and it is not my place to interfere with their faith.
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Dagney
Della - when my mom was alive I went, and the rest of the non-JW family went to the memorial. She wouldn't understand the reasoning why it doesn't matter and it made her soooo happy she could get us all there. She would be so crushed and imagine all sorts of awful things. She was already so worried about our destruction...for that I hate the WT. Needless worry and fear they instill in people.