Read on Twitter
Downsides? I’ll list a few:
- You are not allowed to take blood transfusion.
- Can’t marry, date or be close associates with non-JWs.
- Discourages higher education.
- If a fellow JW rapes you, you’ll be advised to “let the elders handle it.”
- If you leave, you will be shunned. https://twitter.com/ulxma/status/1291806015441309696
- You are not allowed to take blood transfusion.
- Can’t marry, date or be close associates with non-JWs.
- Discourages higher education.
- If a fellow JW rapes you, you’ll be advised to “let the elders handle it.”
- If you leave, you will be shunned. https://twitter.com/ulxma/status/1291806015441309696
- JWs are politically neutral, which means that they don’t vote, can’t be voted for, can’t talk about politics, etc.
- In addition to discouraging higher education, JWs discourage high ambition. They advise you to seek spiritual goals instead because the world is ending.
- In addition to discouraging higher education, JWs discourage high ambition. They advise you to seek spiritual goals instead because the world is ending.
- They are groomed to shy away from pursuing wealth and high secular dreams which means you are discouraged from pursuing a career in music, sports, acting, politics, etc. (They don’t mind watching or consuming them tho).
- No birthdays, Christmas, Easter or New Years celebrations. They don’t celebrate public holidays or sing the national anthem. These were never really a problem for me because I didn’t see them as much of a big deal + national anthems are performative bullshit.
- The only ground for divorce is adultery which is subject to mutual agreement. They frown on it so much that if you dare break the rule, you will be disfellowshiped. This has led to many couples faking or even committing adultery just to find a way out.
- Let me make this clear: physical, emotional or psychological abuse/torture is not a valid ground for divorce if your partner didn’t cheat/sleep with someone else. If you divorce, you will be shunned. If you marry an unapproved divorced person, you will be shunned too.
- I personally know two sisters who left their abusive marriages (separation) about 10 years ago but can’t remarry or divorce because it is a gross sin. They can’t divorce their husbands because they have no proof of adultery; the problem was mostly physical and emotional abuse.
- JWs have a two-witness rule which means that if you are raped, you have to provide two witnesses to your rape or you just won’t be taken seriously. It is an (in)direct way of obstructing justice and they have many pending lawsuits in many countries for covering up sexual abuse.
- You are mandated to preach o. Whether you like it or not, you have to report a certain minimum of hours every month. They usually track their members so if you don’t meet up with the monthly requirement, you might be deemed “inactive” or questioned.
- If you fornicate, you have to ‘confess’ to the elders. This is very important because even if you pray to God and you think he’s forgiven you, you aren’t totally clean until you confess after which you might be reproved or disfellowshipped if found unrepentant.
- You can’t directly associate with any other faith/religion outside of JW. YOU WILL BE SHUNNED. Better yet, you might be reproved. You can’t go to a(nother) church, mosque, temple, shrine, etc, can’t watch them on tv/read their publications, bcs they will contaminate your faith.
- You will spend your whole life as a JW othering unbelievers because JWs believe that they are the only ones qualified to enter God’s kingdom. There are just about 8 million JWs in the world but they believe that the rest of the 7+ billion people are not qualified.
- Again, if you leave, you will be shunned/disassociated. You will be treated as an outcast and your family will likely disown you in addition to that. Many ex-JWs had/have to go through this. You will watch your childhood friends/family treat you like a disease and you will cry.
- Oops. I forgot to mention how homophobic and anti-feminism/gender equality they are but this is peculiar to most religions.
- Also, if you communicate with a shunned person, even if that person is a family member, you might just be shunned too.
- Also, if you communicate with a shunned person, even if that person is a family member, you might just be shunned too.
- Ex-JWs can add theirs. I’m tired already.
