A JWs thought on volunteering

kls

I was reading our local paper and there was a article that a Hospice has opened in our area and volunteers are needed to help take care of those who's time is very short. I thought about it ,if i could handle seeing these people die in-front of me and seeing the sorrow on their loved one's face's , so i mentioned my thought's to my JW husband how i would like to volunteer at the Hospice and help them with the caring they need before they die. Who did i think i was telling this to, his answer to me was ,,,,What ? do this for nothing , no money? I said yes that is what volunteering is to help others with out cost,he shook his head and continued to read his newspaper

You would think that the jw thinking wouldn't shock me any more but it did and it actually made me sick inside.

logansrun

Most JWs view volunteering as a waste of time. Why not just use that time for the ministry? In the JW mileau that reasoning makes logical sense; outside of it it's the height of folly.

B.

franklin J

Logansrun is "on the button" with this one, Bradley I agree.

Volunteering outside of pioneering or the ministry work was thought of as a waste of time and money. Boy, oh boy, how we were fooled.....

KLS, you are a kind soul, I think wanting to volunteer you time at a hospice is a wonderful thing....

Frank

kls

Logan after that remark about the money i do really know how selfish JWS are

Franklin , thank-you for the compliment but if i am going to do this i need moral support some where for myself after seeing the pain and suffering each day and as it turn's out it won't be from home.

Netty

Also, they believe they should not waste their time because nothing will change the bad things in this "old world", like sickness etc. Only Jehovahs new system can bring about that change, so why bother.

FairMind

Hey! I am a JW and I occasionally do volunteer work, so it is unfair to lump all JWs together as to attitude. Admittedly, most JWs don't do community service type of volunteer work but some do. Those of us that do volunteer work generally don't talk about it so as to not cause controversy in the congregation.

FairMind

Dawn

I agree with FairMinded. Not ALL JW's feel that way. But the majority do see it as a waste of time.

Additionally - it's not just the majority of JW's that feel that way. I have friends and family that feel the same way and have never been JW's. So you get that attitude in all grops of life.

You might want to pull out the bible and show your husband again, the story of the good samaritan in Luke. It's interesting to note - if read closely - that the one who would gain eternal life is the one who showed MERCY to someone that was not in his "group" - even someone that was generally felt as "less than worthy" by the "group".

willyloman

but if i am going to do this i need moral support some where for myself after seeing the pain and suffering each day...

kls: If we learned nothing else in our years as dubs, remember this: "There is more happiness in giving than in receiving." You will reap unforeseen blessings if you follow your instincts on this.

blondie

My experience is that nonJWs aren't necessarily as eager to volunteer. I have been quickly snapped up by several groups saying that there aren't the volunteers in numbers there used to be. Many boomers have families and parents to care for. My MIL was saying the other day how hard it was to get people to run for office in their small town and to get replacements on the volunteer fire department and EMS unit.

It's tough all around. I find the JWs that volunteer for things at the KH many times are involved with helping others outside the congregation. The people who sit back and wait for others to do it, can be found in and outside the JW congregation.

If you aren't volunteering and wonder what you can do, United Way usually has a list of things that take little time and money but help a great deal.

Blondie

kls

Fairminded, you say you do volunteer work but do not speak of it because of controversy.

A JWs thought on volunteering

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