Jehovah's Witnesses

[nottodaysatanlucifer]

Interested to see what others have done in these situations or if they've even been in these situations.

6 months ago I had JW knock on my door. I answered not knowing who it was as I'm in an upstairs flat. Can't see who's at my door. I was polite, let them read their passages. Told them I was agnostic and have no faith that I believe in. I don't believe in God. They continue to return the next few weeks. Stupidly answer the door cos again, don't know who it is.

Started a job that meant I was out more. Came home to a note through the door with their number on to contact them. I ignored it.

Fast forward to two weeks ago. At home for an important gas inspection. Doorbell is broken so left a note addressed to the gas engineer with my contact number to let me know when he's downstairs. (Arranged through my estate agents so I had no contact details for him). Appointment was between 8 and 12. I'm not gonna stare about my window until he arrives.

He does the appointment, I rush off to the doctors appointment I had straight after. Then I get a phone call.

A woman answers asking if it's me. "Is this X? I see you have a gas appointment."

"Sorry who is this? I've had that appointment"

"Is this X? Your note says you're having a gas inspection. I'm one of the witnesses."

So I'm like fuck, witness to what? To a crime? Start freaking out (there was an incident that happened to me last year that involved police so I panicked that maybe someone had come forward to something).

"Yes this is X, witness to what?"

"I'm the JW"

At this point I was in a panic 😂 but annoyed she had looked at a note not addressed to her and taken my number. I make my excuses as I'm at the doctors and end the call.

Then she texts me. Asking to let her know when she can come back. Or she will come by when she's near. I ignore it.

Fast forward to today. Doorbell still broken. Someone's banging on the door downstairs loud enough for me to hear upstairs. I look out the window (while on the phone to someone) and can't see anything. Look again a few minutes later and there she is. Staring up at me shouting at the window.

"ARE YOU ON THE PHONE?"

"Yes... waves phone"

She walks off. She will be back. I know it.

WHY

I know I look like a might need saving from Hell but I made it clear what my views were.

I'm not good with confrontation. I'm always overly polite to people and kick myself for it after.

Why do they do this? I don't want to be a JW. I don't want a religion. She even brings a really old lady with her and it makes me feel terrible to want to say something to this poor old lady. I can't be rude to an old lady 😂

I'm not fixing my door bell ever. I'm annoyed she took my telephone number. (Not sure if IABU for that) and I'm annoyed that she bangs on the door downstairs. There are 3 flats here, not just me. Why disturb everyone else?

HAAAALP

My experience certainly wasn’t that they were in anyway unkind. I’m still in touch with them now (professionally) and have in no way burnt my bridges.

They believe 144,000 people will go to heaven, the rest will live forever on a perfect earth.
Ok, so what's the point of heaven then if the earth will be perfect?
JW was a very small religion in the beginning. 144,000 seemed like plenty of space. Then it got popular and they went oh shit, heaven is filling up and we can’t recruit if we have no spots in paradise left to offer. So they made up the crap about a perfect earth.

Preying on the vulnerable is pretty shit behaviour and not kind.

OP is pregnant and some random who knocked on her door has taken the liberty to take her number from a note not intended for a random and called her ...

Kind behaviour? Nah, I think not.

We have a patient who drops in a few copies of Watchtower or whatever it is for our waiting room. We thank her politely and as she's walking down the path we are dropping them in the bin.

Tell them you’ve been disfellowshipped, ie you’re an ex JW who was kicked out. They’re not allowed to talk to you. Or tell them you’re a staunch Catholic, they usually give up trying to convert you.

I'd really genuinely be interested if someone who is currently/was previously JW did an AMA on here. I've loads of questions I'd love to ask. I know of one JW in real life and to be honest except the Xmas/bday stuff you would be hard pushed to figure it out.

Honestly, either just tell then you have a belief they'll find horrible, or to bugger off. (YMMV with language, but I've found 'I have no interest in what you have to say and don't wish to see you at my door again' works pretty well).

Yeah, gonna have to put my big girl pants and tell them to stop.

My dp had this problem a few years back . He stupidly and absentmindedly mentioned that he is an ex Mormon and so they took up the personal task of trying to 'save him' 😂🤦‍♀️
The persistent visits got to much and in the end he had to write a strongly worded letter to the JW hq threatening legal action if they didn't go away.... they went away.

oh I can assure you my story happened

Oh it wasn’t yours I was doubting OP!

@Alpacamabags a PP on this thread has started one since.

I am an ex Jehovah's witness. AMA www.mumsnet.com/Talk/AMA/3715225-i-am-an-ex-jehovah-s-witness-ama

Ooo black pudding sandwiches when answering the door are the way forward OP! Can't remember if they are allowed when pregnant, good source of iron though!

Thanks OP for linking my thread. I had no idea how to do It!
Black pudding sandwiches that's hilarious. And wear your I love satan t-shirt. That will definitely put them off

gem

I was approached on my street by a lovely elderly male JW the other week. He offered me his card, I smiled and politely told him I'm Jewish (the Star of David necklace I was wearing might've been a giveaway!), and he replied "Not to worry my dear, I'm just letting you know there are other paths you could follow. Have a look at our website, there are some lovely things for children to look at and do on there, and you have a super day now!"

He was very sweet. I don't mind JWs like him at all - always refreshing when a polite 'thanks but no thanks' works!

It is not ‘confrontation’ to not indulge any spammers, you’re not fighting them, they (any cold callers) are unwanted, uninvited people with vile beliefs who choose to be obligated to act like they want to convert people to share their shitty views. Tell them blandly and repeatedly to ‘get off my property.’ No need for any smiling, or saying ‘sorry, but—-‘, or thinking up hilarious excuses, you are in your own home, you do not need to excuse yourself. ‘No. Go away. Now.’

So, the 144000 thing is to do with a passage in revelation. JWs believe that 14400 "anointed" ones will go to heaven and then rule as cordless with Jesus for His millennial rule. This is the 1000 years after Armageddon when everyone who has survived or who has been resurrected at the last trumpet will be taught the ways of Jehovah. They will then have a choice of whether to obey and live forever in a paradise earth or to not obey and be obliterated.

All the "normal" witnesses who aren't Spirit anointed and who remain faithful till the End, will survive armageddon and spend the 1000 years helping to teach everyone who has been resurrected and basically living an idyllic life as described in the prophets and revelation. There will be no death, no pain, no illness etc. Everyone will have everything they need and it will all be lovely.

They sincerely believe that they are helping people by trying to convert them. But they also believe that if they don't try hard enough on the work then they will be held blood-guilty for the people they didn't save.

The thing about the chaperone is absolute true. Education beyond compulsory schooling was always discouraged as well. It distracted people from the preaching ministry. Women and girls were second class citizens and you couldn't even leave your husband if he got drunk and kicked the living daylights out you every night. You just had to "wait on Jehovah".

There are so many stories that I could tell, but it is a cult pure and simple. Don't engage in any way. You are not on a list, OP, they call at every house. You have to ask to be put on the no call list, then they shouldn't come back.

Door knocking is banned in lots of countries like Russia and China and many Arab states... Along with all the other stuff that dictator states ban like free speech. It is amazing how much vitreole and prejudice surfaces on threads like these and how the irony is lost on so many. I suppose amazing is the wrong word, It's actually really sad.

When people knock on the doors of vulnerable people to get them to coin their cult, deny children life saving life saving blood transfusions and shun people for being gay or not being subservient to their husbands or being in contact with family who have theft the cult then yeah, it's going to attract 'vitreole'.

Honestly I ignored that last comment cos I thought it was bollocks 😂

Knock on my door once, fair enough. Don't harass me.

My local JW's haven't been round since the day a pair rounded my drive to find me standing with my little black bantam cockerel, who'd been trying to escape under the fence.

They said that they'd come to talk to me about God, and I - without really thinking how it came across - said 'I'll just have to go and deal with this first,' sort of waving the black cockerel.

By the time I'd got back from shoving him in the run with the hens, they'd gone. They never came back...

I had a visit from JW's t'other day. I rarely get people knocking on my door due to where its situated. I have to go down a flight of stairs to get to it.
I bombed down the stairs and opened the door, the first thing said to me was "don't look so shocked, dear" she then proceeded to show me a 'short' video on her phone that lasted 3 mins. I'm like, wow, you've joined the 21st century. She then said yes we even have a website and gave me a card.
Religion has always fascinated me, but not to the point where randoms get invited into my home.

@Gingaaarghpussy I couldn't believe it when they pulled out their phone and they had an actual app! She kept telling me to download it...