They Call How I Was Raised: CULTIC

 

   WHEN I was a kid, going to Church meant nothing to me; we went to the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses.  We did not have 'Sunday School' classes or anything broken down into age groups, we all met in the Hall for the Watchtower Study together as a Congregation.  As old as kids could be trained to sit quietly beside the adults; we eagerly awaited our chance to answer questions.  Actually the answers were already provided in the prepared paragraphs that were read by a Brother from the platform behind the podium, (we didn't dare call them altars).  Attendants would pass microphones, with their cords wrapped about extended poles, for the raised hands to parrot back the answers.  Independent thought was not only strongly discouraged, it was viewed as being outside of God's will.  Critical thinking was worldly; Theocratic Thinking was to be in lock step with the religious teaching of the Governing Body.  The Truth was our term for it.  The Biblical scriptures that were sighted or quoted fro's doctrinal laced articles were there to back up the New Light and understanding we needed to be good servants to the Organization.  The Society was a term that strongly implied Jehovah himself.   After the Watchtower Study was a song and Theocratic prayer.  A Public Talk was given by an Elder, and it was never called a sermon; that was a term used by non-Witnesses who were worldly.  The "talks" were read word-for-word from scripted form.  If you have ever heard a Talk so did everyone else in the world on that same day.

   Tuesday night we would have the Congregation Book Study, (not a Bible study); either at the Hall or in an Elder's home.  We went to home studies.  Every Thursday night we attended the Theocratic Ministry Guide School at the Kingdom Hall.  I remember studding for my three minuets Bible verse readings.  After reading a few mandated verses and delivering a Theocratic message, the Elder would critique my presentational delivery afterwards.
 
   We attended "Assemblies", conventions of several congregations that came together for a weekend.  Four times a year, and only here is where newly interested persons were baptized.  In the name of Jehovah, his son and the spirit that rules the Organization."  My entire family had been baptized as Witnesses, and even after 13 years I was never one of them. Out of everyone in my family, to this day I still think I was probably the only one who earnestly and honestly believed "hook line and sinker" everything I was ever taught to believe.  When I began studding the 80 question for my turn to be baptized a lot of major transitions had occurred in our family.  By then I had more than 80 of my own question s about their distorted doctrinal teachings.  I was not allowed to be a baptismal candidate because I had "too many of my own independent thoughts".

  The only ""joy"" I ever felt as a Jehovah's Witness was when we got to go the Assemblies.   They had 'lip sink' Dramas.  Biblical plays to illustrate Theocratic New Light.  Assemblies was when New Publications were released, everyone was excited with the New Books filled with Theocratic teachings "in and out of season" Spiritual Food from the Organization's Governing Body was like hearing a word from Jehovah himself.
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