Went to the assembly..some.personal thoughts on it.

by integ 22 Replies latest jw friends

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  DesirousOfChange

  It's easy to pop in like this to an assembly..and pop right out. The hard part is fending off elders who think I might be coming back full time.

  We did that for a couple years before we no longer cared if they realized we didn't attend. But we would arrive 15 minutes before the noon break and leave when the music started for the next section. That way we could be seen there, but more importantly, we could mingle with old friends, and particularly with the older friends who were now sitting in the reserved sections after giving their lives to this Cult. It gave us some joy that we were no longer doing the same.
  
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  steve2

  Even tedious and/or painful events in our past can still retain a weird kind of comfortingly nostalgic hold over us from time to time... before reality sets in. Like a dream whose content has become dulled over the years but its intensity remains.

  I recall how "beaten up" I would personally feel back in the day when, brother after brother and brother sounded grim warnings from convention podiums about "the false churches of Christendom" and "worldly people".

  The wickedness of the world was always contrasted sharply with "Jehovah's happy people".

  Saddest part for me still is, that even in my youth, the hypocrisy and smugness stung. Although surrounded by so many people, I was so god awful lonely in that organization - and it was not through lack of trying to connect.
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  BluesBrother

  "have to say there IS something to the mind numbing quiet of sitting for a few hours and zoning out at the assembly. Seeing alot of old friends even if I didn't talk to them was nice. "

  I know what you mean.. I do it whenever Sis Blues wants to attend. Chill out, think your own thoughts , reminisce .....it can be o k.
  
  
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  Pete Zahut

  "I remember the being pent up and controlled at the meetings would make the going out in the world that much more fun and exciting. Couldn't wait to get out and do fun stuff. I think those brought up witnesses almost have a better appreciation of things in the "world" due to being so restricted from it."

  For me it wasn't about getting out and going wild....it was about getting out from under the guilt, unrealistic expectations of life and the unnecessary emotional burdens JW's place on people who just want to have a relationship with god.
  
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  OnTheWayOut

  In all honesty "the world" may not be as great as a repressed witness on the way out may think it is. There's a ton of bad...and negativity. Financial problems...people problems...crime etc etc etc. a heck of a lot of despair. THAT is all true.

  The world, including Jehovah's Witnesses, does have plenty of bad and problems. But it's not Spiritual Paradise vs. Satan's evil world. If people jump all over you for defending, it may have to do with just laying such statements out there. While your statement about "the world" is generally true, I will take a fighting chance in the world over just letting 8 to 12 men in New York dictate everything while they steal members' money and ignore the plight of children victims of pedophiles in an effort to hide the evils within.

  I get what you said- it's nice to get away from "worldly" stresses and just vegetate. Could you do that on a weekend getaway, though? Why feed poison into your mind, or attempt to block it out? Just avoid it.
  And if I went to see a lot of "old friends," they would just whisper about me afterward- "He stopped all spiritual activity." "He's let pride ruin his morality."

  I am going to the beaches of Hawaii this April. Just me, a good book, a chair, a few hours of snorkeling each day, nice cold drinks and healthy snacks until it's time to head back to the hotel every day. I would rather fill my mind with that, so that I can have great nostalgic memories of that when I get old.
  
  
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  neverendingjourney

  The "world" is what you make of it.

  One of the best things about not being a JW anymore is that I have the luxury of surrounding myself with people who I enjoy being around and who are positive influences in my life. I didn't have that choice when I was a Witnesses and it was a huge drag.

  If you leave the JWs and surround yourself with lowlifes, you'll end up being just like one of the cautionary tales in the magazines. But that's on you. You can choose to make a better life for yourself if that's what you want.
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  dothemath

  Liked your comments Integ, thought you gave a balanced view on everything.

  I also ended up at an assembly recently, and also found it somewhat nostalgic.

  One brother likened this "old world" to .......gasp! - "a sinking ship"! He even mentioned this illustration had been used before, but now we can readily see the "atmosphere is different, can't you just feel the closeness of the end".

  It was hard not to laugh, and at least wasn't totally bored.
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  Londo111

  I miss people as well. But most of that "loving brotherhood" was as real as monopoly money. The currency reveals its worth when you walk away from the game.
  

  Any dualism of the JW organization vs the World is an illusion. The organization is as part of the world as anyone else...it participates in it and could not exist without it.

  Being in the JW organization does not shield a person or provide relief from any problems in "the world". It just adds a special set of problems and pressures on top of it.

  When looked at in the long view, while having severe problems, the world has never been better in human history and continues the upward slope of improvement.
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  RubaDub

  integ ...

  At least you seem happified by the experience.

  Rub a Dub
  
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  LongHairGal

  INTEG:

  I understand you have to attend for family reasons. While you are able to tune things out and relax, maybe others who know TTATT cannot. I know it made me sad and a little sick to sit there after I knew The Truth about The Truth.

  Oh, and they Will gossip about you after you leave.

  It is true that an escape from the "truth" is not an escape to Disneyland. Part of the reason for this is because Witnesses are ill equipped to deal with the world. Their wonderful religion discourages college and careers. Is it any wonder that many leaving the religion are like a fish out of water?

  I came into the JWs as a young working woman. I knew about the evils of the world already but I had the advantage of education and skills. But, more importantly, I was able to function and make my way through the world.

  While it might be true that generally speaking you might be "safe" around Witnesses, it is an artificial and sterile environment. Witnesses like to pretend they are like a little village in ancient Israel, but the reality is they have to go out into the "world" to earn their living. And I don't need to mention them looking for governor handouts. So, it's a stupid charade and a dangerous trick to play on your mind, in my opinion.

  The Witnesses could NOT function without the world - no matter how much they criticize it.

  I agree with OTWO and would rather be in an actual vacation setting (or even home) to relax.