Did I Have a Choice to Become a Jehovah Witness?
“Choose for yourselves today whom you will serve...But as for me and my household, we shall serve Jehovah.”
– Joshua 24:15, The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures
A family of pioneers in my congregation had a rustic wooden plank with the above verse carved into it. They nailed above the doorway to their kitchen. When I asked about it, they told me that an elderly brother from their previous congregation in Maine handcarved it for them. It didn’t look like anything more than a thrift shop find, but I could tell it was special to them. Every time they moved to serve as “need greaters,” they made sure to hang it near the kitchen, where it could be read every day.
Given how dedicated this family, and most Witnesses are, it’s surprising that we needed daily reminders that we chose to serve Jehovah. What got me about this verse, is how tightly coupled Joshua’s choice was with his family’s, they were practically one in the same. Which gives this verse a ring of irony.
Now, I see it as a verse that elegantly describes the monopoly family leaders, mainly parents, have on their children’s religious choices, an accurate summary of the “choice” children who grow up in a high-control religion. Leading to the “choice” that those who are on the other side of disfellowshipping have in shunning their family or friends. This strategy of forcing all parties to go down a path that eventually leads to fork in their relationships is plainly directed in the Watchtower.
In the article Let Nothing Distance You From Jehovah, parents who have children that leave the organization, or are expelled for “bad” conduct, are told how to manage their feelings on how to feel and suffering the pain that comes from shunning their child.
Really, what your beloved family member needs to see is your resolute stance to put Jehovah above everything else—including the family bond. So to cope with the situation, be sure to maintain your own spirituality . . . Do not look for excuses to associate with a disfellowshipped family member
– The Watchtower, January 15, 2013
At a Circuit Assembly I attended many years ago, an elder gave a powerful talk directed to parents that were not being forceful enough to get their children dedicated and baptized. He illustrated living in this world as being lost at sea, parents and children desperately treading water to stay alive. Then a lifeboat miraculously appears. I remember he asked the parents something like this:
Are you going to hesitate to get your children in the lifeboat? Are you going to say "I don’t want to be too pushy" or "I’m afraid that I’ll push too hard and they’ll fall out?" No! You are going to do whatever it takes to get your children in there, pushing them in with all your might, even if they get some bumps and scratches on they way in.
Throughout my months-long ordeal of waking up to lies about the religion and carefully planning my exit, I believed that it had always been my choice to get baptized. I would know I was forced, wouldn’t I? I thought that since there wasn’t any physical or violent force, like a gun to my head, I could have chosen not to get baptized. But it wasn’t until I started to deeply reflect on the circumstances of my baptism that I started to wonder if I could’ve chosen an alternate path.
Comments
Post a Comment