Just found out that the tenants in one of our properties are JWs. They are super nice, lovely family and have always been a pleasure to deal with. We have met some two sets of friends of theirs too, in passing, who also seemed really lovely too. All JW too it turns out, active members going to meetings serveral times a week etc. All run cleaning or window cleaning businesses which I was intrigued to find out is very common for JW.
A girl at school was also JW, she was really funny, cool, nice, bright, but somewhat removed from everyone else - ie didn’t socialize with us outside of school, was a bit of a floater with friend groups, didn’t join in with the usual Christmas and birthday stuff. I recall various brief teenage style basic conversations about it and we all just kind of shrugged and accepted it... Then I had read up on JW as an adult ago so looking back it all made sense.
This new info of our tenants being JW has made me curious again about it.
Now, overall I take the approach of live and let live. I have zero religion in my life but have often thought the community side of it must be great and that in times of need I can see any religion could offer comfort.
That being said, from what I’ve read about JW, it feels to be more of a sect or cult, with pretty strong rules and beliefs, with the potential for significant emotional and psychological repercussions. It just seems so severe and I’m struggling with reconciling these lovely people with such an extreme organization.
Clearly it’s not mutually exclusive to be a nice person and a JW. That is not my point. But I can’t get my head around these people believing in Armageddon and The Truth and “shunning bad associations” etc etc. They seem so normal yet I can only assume they are totally indoctrinated given they are still clearly active JWs.
I know that in most day to day interactions people don’t preach their beliefs, it just doesn’t come up in conversation.. but with something like JW that is seemingly quite strict, I am fascinated to think that these people who are really cool/normal/nice have this massive thing going on in their life and probably hold quite strong views which Judy colour the way they look at the world.
I found the past AMA in here and other articles on JW so interesting, and distressing in places (lack of blood transfusions, child abuse, domestic violence) though obviously horrid stuff can take place anywhere religion or not.
So I don’t know why I’m posting really. I guess I’m totally intrigued by this way of life and trying to understand how it fits in with or views the rest of society? Do they think I’m awful because I don’t live in The Truth? Are there different shades of joe much you can join in or follow as a JW? Or is it all or nothing? Do these people I know want to convert me? Do they talk about Armageddon with their kids like it’s a normal piece of life? So fascinating......