Pompous elders

YellowLab

Ever have one in your congregation?

I was at my cousin's wedding this past weekend, and the PO from his Kingdom Hall was present. This guy is a real piece of work. Very arrogant and "puffed up" JW. Total and complete loyalty to the organization, wife and kids included. Family studies every week, never miss a meeting, full-time pioneering, Bethel kids, the whole nine yards. The elder you love to fear. From what I hear, living under his rule is like living in prison, with plenty of rules. I believe he used every guilt and shame tactic to coerce both his son and daughter to go to Bethel. There was no room for independent thinking in his household, I can assure you that.

While enjoying my worldly self at the reception later than evening with Southern Comfort in hand, the PO's wife sat down at a table near me and was talking with another sister. I couldn't help but eavesdrop on the conversation. All she talked about for a half hour was how Bethel was so wonderful, my son is going where the need is greater, my daughter is at Patterson, the district convention was so upbuilding, so-and-so got baptized, and on and on and on. It was clear to me just how wrapped around his fingers those kids are, including his wife. I was saddened by how much control the WT has on their lives, where it controls your every thought. They work very hard not to tarnish that absolutely PERFECT JW family image.

And don't even THINK about showing interest in his daughter unless you've got Bethel or Gilead on your mind!

Anyone else have similar experiences?

YellowLab

unique1

My mother is just like that, the wife that is, my mother isn't an elder. She goes on and on. She asked me what I thought of the assembly she BELIEVES I went to. I said it was allright. She said "ALLRIGHT?!!!! Wasn't it WONDERFUL?!!!" I said "yeah 8 hours in hard chairs is wonderful ma. It was alright." She thinks everything is Great and Wonderful and Upbuilding even though she has been let down by the brothers countless times. She is a true Parrot, says and feels exactly what she is told to.

run dont walk

Sorry to repeat myself but there are some people out there who have had no life, a crappy job, crappy pay, never a position in life, have never had anything worth while in life. Then they become an elder and are in charge !!!!!!!!!!!!! And feel so important and think they are the only reason the congregation stays together, and the only reason the sun rises everyday. And the more they do and keep their FAMILY in line, the higher they will go. (or so they think)

jws

Being a JW is a rough regimine to follow. All those meetings, all those hours of field service, circuit assemblies, district conventions, overseer visits, studying. And even more so for those with responsibilities like elders, pioneers, and ministerial servants.

These people don't have time for a lot of extra hobbies when they're in a social situation, the org is the one thing they do have in common. It's pretty boring stuff, but what else are they going to talk about?

I've seen those oh-so-righteous elders and families too. But I don't think I've ever seen one that hasn't fallen apart in some way. I remember one really strict, kept to themselves, family of pioneers. The daughter would have guys over all the time while her parents worked their cleaning jobs at night. And she was no virgin either from tales I've heard, but kept up the impression of the perfect pioneer at the hall. I remember another second generation elder. He had 3 wild daughters. One of which I heard slept with several guys. Another strict family, mother, father, daughter, I hear the father doesn't even attend anymore. I guess I didn't realize it at the time, because I was too scared of the elders, but I probably had more of a chance of scoring with an elder's daughter than any other baptised girl. With all that time devoted to the religion, it's hard to be there where your family needs you. I don't think God ever intended anybody with a family to work their asses off that much.

shamus

Strange....

I thought that all elders were like that! Seriously.

tinkerbell82

i always found the elders to be SO condescending and arrogant. i think it's a prerequitite of becoming an elder, in fact.

smurfette

I knew of a very similar family. Maybe they clone them. They had 7 faithful kids, pioneers and bethelites the lot of them. They had a gi-nourmous superiority complex and only one of the kids had somewhat of a free will. The rest were like automatons. I remember this elder making all the kids walk behind his van on the highway one day in a line for misbehaving on the way to an assembly. That was one of his milder disciplinary tactics. The saddest thing was the wife who had married mr. dictator when she was only 16. I remember a conversation I was sitting in on between her and my mother and some of their friends very well. They were talking about how old they were when they first knew "who they were as people and what they wanted to be". Sister dictator asked them what they were talking about and had no idea what they meant.

Austrian

Scince I have been in numerous JC's, I have seen alot of disgusting pompous piglike elders in action. The elders in my area that had the most power were always the ones who were well off money wise. They always would roll up to the hall in their brand new Lexus and look down on the R and F Jdub. They would always keep to their own clique. The best would be the new MS and or elder who would run around these jerks like little puppy dogs looking for a handout. I will always take great pride in all the lies I told the elders in my JC's. The excellent acting job I did so I could stay in the borg long enough to bang some of their daughters.

Pompous elders

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