by freedom96 13 Replies latest jw friends
What a cool thread!
I distinctly recall gossip in my old Hall about Bethelites (we had several Bethelite couples at my Hall, as it's close to the Krugersdorp Bethel), and apparently you got lots of dirty looks at the breakfast table if you were too loud the night before, LMAO!
Imagine that! A husband and a wife sleeping on different beds! How much more pretentious do you get?
DocBob, that was 1970. Turned out that those 2 Gileadites (it was 2 as I recall, at least 1) would invite new boys to their room for some "welcome to Bethel" drinks, and after getting the boys sufficiently "relaxed" would sexually exploit them. The perps even "shamed" some of the newbies into recruiting others to join in the "festivities."
Farkel: Well, what can I say? Knorr gave so much wonderful counsel, I simply can't remember ALL of it! LOL
Needless to say, I came back from Bethel a total basket case. Left after 1 1/4 years, well before my 4 were up. Prohibited by WTS from pioneering for at least 6 months (for breaking my vow) and ended up in front of the draft board (since my classification as a "minister" was now void).
One of the very few times I ever saw my dad get mad. After I was back, an old timer told my folks that he was not surprised that I came back trashed. After he told my folks a few things, my dad got all over him and said "Why the hell didn't you tell us these things BEFORE we sent our son back there?" Well, you know the answer..."It wouldn't have been the loyal thing to do."
Sheesh
Craig
I did time in Bethel from 2/74 for about 2 and a half years. I remember the "New Boy" talk, which was delivered by Knorr. I remember his welcoming comments about how this was our home. But not a few sentences later, he told us that we couldn't as much as hang a picture on a wall of our room without permission from the Home Overseer. I remember him emphasizing, not so much that we maintain our promise to serve for 4 years, but that he wished that we make Bethel our life time goal. He pointed out as examples several brothers that had done that, among them, his right-hand boy, Fred Franz. It didn't take me long to realize that a lot of the ways things were done at Bethel were directly influenced by him. For example, it's my impression that Knorr had a vision of what a Bethelite's appearance should be. I was "strongly encouraged" to shave my mustache off, even though it was basically left up to one as a matter of conscience. I really don't know what the reason was. I just know that if you didn't, you were then branded a B.A. and were not given "priviledges". That view might have been associated with the "clean image" that Knorr had in mind or perhaps with the fact that he felt that others in the "world" looked like that (had mustaches), especially in Brooklyn Heights.
I stayed there long enough to witness the repeal of the "four-year sentence" and was able to leave after 2 and a-half years without reproach. But not before I had the "education" of a lifetime. I was rather sheltered and naive and because of my time at Bethel, I had a very fast and hard awakening. I knew at least 2 people that were dismissed due to the "homosexual" welcoming parties. These guys had arrived at Bethel in my "group"! I can imagine that there was also a serious "blood letting"; people spilling their guts about other people. I gathered it was like the McCarthy Era. The majority of time I spent at Bethel was so traumatic for me, it has taken me years just to be able to talk about it. "Talk" is probably not the right term since I have never talked to anyone about my stay there. I have recently written an account of my entire experiences as a JW and would like to include a paragraph that discusses some issues found in this thread. Sorry for being so verbose:
At Bethel, the "Brothers" were very conscious of our looks to the point that it was discouraged for us to wear blue jeans during our personal time on the street, mostly because the homosexuals in the area seemed to wear them too. On one occasion, I remember being in my room at the as yet not remodeled roach-infested Towers Hotel. There were no direct phones since the Watchtower Society had not yet purchased the hotel and was only renting several floors while the deal was being completed. There were, however, hall phones that connected to the main hotel switchboard. If I got a call from my family, at 124 Columbia Heights (there was no way to call the hotel directly for a connection to me), the switchboard at Bethel would call the Towers Hotels main switchboard. The hotel attendant in turn would ring the hall phone on my floor. Someone would pick it up and knock on my room door. I would go to the hall phone were I would be informed that I had a call at the front desk at 124 Columbia Heights. I then would have to get dressed and run a bit more than 2 long New York City blocks so that I could get my call. On one of those occasions, I happened to meet brother Knorr who was also headed for the front door to enter the main lobby. My clothes and hair were in disarray since I arrived running on that cool breezy morning, after being in bed, having finished the night shift at the factory. What impressed me was his look of disdain and disapproval. I think he almost said something to me. If he had, I would have fired right back. All I could think of was about the sacrifice I was making being there at Bethel, not for him, but for Jehovah, and the hard work and inconvenience I was going through, and the roaches and bed bugs I had to endure at the Towers Hotel. I think I would have definitely pointed that out to him as something that would out-weigh his reason for disapproval. By the time I got to the phone, whoever called had gotten tired of waiting and hung up.
Etude.
Etude
thanks for sharing that! Is there any way to get your full story. It sounds like Knorr was a complete anal-sphincter.
Pope
