by Junction-Guy 8 Replies latest jw friends
Well my cousin graduated from high school yesterday and it was a very hard time for me as it just reminds me of all the opportunities I passed up, so please Jehovah's Witness children, go to college and get an education, dont waste your youth slaving away for the Watchtower Society. You can be anything you want to be and go anywhere you want, but a good education is needed. You dont have to suffer financially like I did for so many years.
Hats off to the Class of 2005
Dave
Junction Guy what kind of ideas were there in circulation against education in those days and were all JWs prevented from having a university education?
I guess with this anti university stand the WTS caused a great deal of financial harm and hardship to many of their followers who were capable of further education.
Well basically at the conventions every other talk was about someone giving up college to pioneer, and my Dad told me that he wouldnt help me in anyway if I chose college, plus the fact that they had everyone convinced that Armageddon was just around the corner, so you can see it was kinda hard to get into the mood for college when you were to be destroyed in a couple of years anyway. As far as i remember the WT Society never expressly forbid college but they made it very hard on the children, and besides why would the WT have to forbid college in their publications if all the JW simply chose not to send their kids to school, in other words they go the parents to do their dirty work for them without having to put their restrictions in print.
There were several articles over the years where they did not exactly forbid college but worded it in a way that the parents would not send their kids to school.
Dave
Here it is in a nutshell, greendawn, from 1975:
*** w75 9/1 p. 543 Questions from Readers ***
Today, there are many teen-age baptized servants of Jehovah. Their personal study, preparation for meetings and sharing in the Theocratic Ministry School have given them a basic knowledge of Bible truth for Christian preaching. They have also benefited by education in the public schools. But how far should they go with a secular education? It would hardly be consistent for such a youth, of his own choice, to pursue extensive secular studies beyond what is required by the law and by his parents. According to First Timothy 6:20 it would be unwise to fill one’s mind with philosophies of imperfect men: “O Timothy, guard what is laid up in trust with you, turning away from the empty speeches that violate what is holy and from the contradictions of the falsely called ‘knowledge.’” For this reason additional years of college education may present snares. One may become “brainwashed” by human philosophies so that faith in God and the Bible is destroyed. (Col. 2:8) Many college and university courses are based on false theories, such as evolution, that bolster the old system of things, which will soon pass away forever. (1 John 2:17) A goodly number of the professors have no faith in God or in the Bible and actively teach their godless beliefs. Moreover, there is the corrupting influence that the college atmosphere often has on morals, including the danger of drug addiction.
Im glad you finally did it Forscher.
The WT magazine is so slick with the way the word things that they dont have to expressly forbid things, just say it in a certain way and the parents will eat it up.
Dave
Thanks Dave.
One thing to keep in mind when one looks at what the WTBTS puts in print is that JW's are taught to read things differently than other people (the "pure language" teachings). That enables them to put things in print that seem reasonable to the average person yet say something entirely different to Jw's. If you were in the organization (I am not assuming that you were), you may remember that ANY negative hint about something (for instance saying that college could lead one to disbelief if one was not careful) was usually read by the elders and rank-and-file publishers as tantamount to a prohibition on seek a higher education.
When I entered college, I was put under pressure to drop it. That pressure didn't stop when the WTBTS appeared to soften its stance on the issue in the early 90s. However, I persisted and now have both an associate's and a bachelor's; and I am looking around for a way to get a graduate education (with a GPA of 3.45 I think it would be a waste not to.).
My son is now in college. And it tickles me to see how many Dub children are pursuing a post-secondary education now at the college he goes to. It kind of makes me feel that all the persistence, despite the crap I went through, has payed-off big time for others as well! :-)
Of the "please allow me my illusion" class.
Forscher
It's all smart manipulation they don't directly demand something but they get it indirectly the same with the JWs that drive to divorce their disass/disfell spouses, they create a very adverse climate for something. I also noticed how they totally ignore the benefits of further education.
Fortunately some parents ignored the cultish advice. It could also be that they don't want a lot of educated persons in the org because they can challenge their control over it.
The education thing is one of my biggest resentments, I became a f00king window cleaner (I later obtained straight A's at A level and a law degree in my late 20's), I worked for £1an hour (before National Minimum Wage came in) in a f00king fruit and veg shop, I did part time cleaning for my mums bible study.
What kills me the most is that my mum now gets mad at me and says I NEVER wanted you to quit school and become a window cleaner, I dont know why you didnt listen to me, it tore me apart to see you doing those worthless jobs blah blah blah. I said you didnt have much clout compared to a lifetime of brainwashing. (brainwashing that she reinforced by being a regular pioneer for years - leading by example)
I remember they used to say from the platform "when the big A comes and you have to stand before Jehovah and justify what you have done with your time, what will you say to him?" Well I coundnt argue with that, sure Id feel pretty bad stood there infront of the big guy, turning my feet in, squirming trying to justify why going to college was more important than warning thousands of people that their lives were in danger.
Greendawn (sorry to post again straight away, but I just remembered something)
It wasnt just a university education they discourged. When I left school in 1986 at schools in our area you were able to leave bang on your 16th birthday, if that came sooner than leavers day. Also you were given a month off before sitting your GCSEs (then O levels) as study leave. The number of witnoids I knew who left school as soon as they were able to and DIDNT EVEN sit their GCSE's, just to gain a couple of extra lousy months to poineer was worrying.
In retrospect it was people who werent too bright anyway, and probably would have dropped out without being dubs. This just gave them a god backed excuse for dropping out. It only hurt the bright ones, and as they were a minority, and were 'independent thinkers' anyway, what did it matter.
I went back to do A levels at college after I got married but was still a dub, cos I was struggling to find work, I really had to fight my corner against the thickos who must have thought I was learning class A witchery, instead of Mathematics.
