Asked to do a short video. No, not porn this time.

by kwintestal 2 Replies latest jw experiences

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  kwintestal

  Heart2Heart and I have been attending a local church, since just before X-mas. It's a great place, and we really have a good time going. The church has been doing this program called "40 days of Purpose" reading Rick Warren's book (of the same title). The first 7 chapters were very tough to swallow and get through, but I found most chapters after that very good.

  Part of this program is once a week getting together with 8-10 people in a small group and discuss the book, an open discussion. So the last couple weeks I started mentioning some of the BS that went on with the JW's, and how it's effected my beliefs of religion and how it's like we're starting from scratch.

  So, I got a call this afternoon, the pastor of the church wants to do a video, asking me and H2H a few questions about where we are in live and our thoughts on the book. So, I think this is a great chance to really give a good witness about the "witnesses". There will be over 1,000 people who see this video. Any ideas of where to start or something to work in? I'm definately going to discuss shunning and being concidered a dog returning to its vomit, but what else should I mention?

  Kwin
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  bebu

  The psychology of JWs and JWs who have been cut off are what the churches need to understand. Especially, I think that the closed-system life of the JW is something we need to understand more about. That is, it is commonly assumed that JWs live similarly to "worldly" people who attend church, that JWs integrate other people into your lives whether or not they are members of your church. I know this intersects well with shunning, but the depth of separation (emotionally) from others is still not understood by many. And this is one aspect that gives shunning its power.

  You might also want to explain how you viewed people, what your self-talk was (how you would prevent yourself from attaching to others, thinking of others as worldly/goats/going to die in Armageddon), how you didn't join in clubs, activities, YMCA, whatever; what kinds of social pressures or tactics were used to influence you. How guilty you felt for even questioning... all this stuff which is meant to isolate you. And which creates a very unusual person which has trouble fitting in or being understood by society once there is a decision to leave. That it is like having a family die, but you are the only one to know about it, and have no one else to share your grief.

  Christians may not be able to change the WTS or the shunning doctrine or bring families back together, but we can be taught to be aware of the hidden pain of people who might be our co-workers or neighbors--and reach out to them with a special listening, patience, and friendship. We can maybe give some emotional relief and strength, if only we knew!!

  I would ignore the scandals for the most part. You could save those for another talk.

  bebu

  PS: I suggest you be honest about your opinions of the book, good and bad. People really do appreciate honesty, not yes-men.
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  kwintestal

  Thank you Bebu for the pointers! I think you hit the nail right on the head. It was very much what I was thinking myself. I think that to get into the doctrinal problems/scandals with the JW's would take too much time because you'd have to explain the beliefs around these situations, and there's way too many of them. Past ways of thinking is a great thing to bring up too.

  Kwin