Jehovah’s Witness Funerals: Watchtower Infomercials
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.ย. 2024
- I went to a non-JW funeral today, and appreciated it so much more than any Jehovah’s Witness funeral i’ve ever attended. I wonder why?... Oh yeah, it’s probably because it wasn’t an orchestrated advertisement to join their church.
Here’s the link to the JW Funeral Discourse Outline:
faithleaks.org...
Pay attention to how much emphasis is put on becoming a Jehovah’s Witness to gain comfort, and how little attention is put on the deceased.
Fair Use Note: All statements made in this video are only my personal opinion as a former member of the Jehovah's Witness religion. The Watchtower document referenced in this video is being used legally for criticism, education, public awareness, transparency and commentary and is protected by the Fair Use Law Act: Section 107 of the USC: www.copyright....
Didn’t know this until my own mother’s funeral. I was horrified! The speaker didn’t even get her name right. Not once.
Cat Ballou ugh that’s terrible. Straight up disrespectful.
Thank you for that.
What bothers me still is that when my JW relatives pass on I won’t be able to tolerate going to their funerals so I don’t intend to go. Distorts the natural grieving process.
@@catballou5384 I'm so sorry you went through that. SO many others report the same. x
Cat Ballou
My dad, 101, with dementia is a jw but he wouldn’t remember that. He doesn’t remember me now either.
My ultra highly indoctrinated sister who no longer speaks to me will likely insist on a jw dub style disrespectful sales seminar puke fest. I will NOT attend it.
I may have a main stream Christian pastor say a prayer when I arrange for interment.
My mother passed away when I was 9 (I'm 32 now). The funeral service was held in the kingdom hall. The only thing I remember about it was that the elders made me an Usher for the funeral service. THEY GAVE ME, HER ONLY SON, A DAMN JOB AT HIS DEAD MOTHER'S FUNERAL AT 9 !!!!! UNFORGIVABLE !!!!!
💔💔
I gave 2 funeral talks when i was an elder. Man, they were hard. I tried my best to make them as comforting for the family as possible.
Dude!!! I didn't know they followed an outline but now that I think about it this is true! My mom's funeral followed the same format. Every funeral I went to at the hall followed the same format. This is a shame...smh
The elders book "Shepherd the flock of God" contains the funerals instructions
You hit the nail on the head, my brother. I always disliked the way funerals were conducted. It seem so unlovely and disrespectful. We were supposed to be there to pay our respects to our loved ones not listen to an hour long infomercial. You mean God would begrudge us saying a farewell and sharing some memories about the person we just lost? The person is DEAD and they're still worried about someone thinking too much of themselves....in death???? Can't even be dead and get personal recognition. Amazing. They give God a bad name.
My mom died in 2013. I’m an devout ex jw and it sickened me having to endure the outright sales pitch and complete disrespect for my mom. Uggh!
I like your perspective, I’ve subscribed.
Thank you for sharing your experience. I'm sorry you experienced that as well.
WT wants to invariably diminish the importance of any individual, to make sure there's no self esteem flourishing anywhere. Matt, your wheels are turning now, thinking for yourself is addictive and helps creativity. So good.
Marina Payton ✅
?
A couple years had past since my father passed away when my mother, my brother and I went to Puerto Rico and visited his gravesite. Once there, since we lived in the US, we took the opportunity to clean his plot and place some fresh flowers.
Upon our arrival back to the US and about a week later at the meeting, my mother is asked to meet in the back room with the elders. After about an hour or so she comes out of the meeting pretty upset.
Some time went by when I finally asked what happened and she tells me she was placed on private reproof because we visited my fathers grave and “made an offering to the dead” by placing flowers at his site. That really weighed heavy on her to the point that she stopped attending meetings and simply faded.
Although I stayed on for another 30years in the bOrg, that always bothered me and I credit that as being one of the several reasons I too eventually left.
WOW. That is really rude, and it was even wrong by Watchtower's own words!
According to the 9/15/1970 WT (Questions From Readers): "Generally, in the Western world, flowers are not given to placate the dead. Usually they are sent as a gesture of kindness to the family of the deceased. And flowers, created by Jehovah for man’s pleasure, do have a brightening effect...Hence, when one has the proper motive and understanding of what happens to the dead, what he does in connection with flowers is a matter of personal choice. But it can be seen that there are other things even more meaningful that can be done for the family of one who has died, and in regard to the use of flowers"
So your mother was WRONGFULLY reproved. But somehow i'm sure those elders would claim "Jehovah's Holy Spirit" was on that matter. What a joke.
I have always maintained that the JW's are by far their own worse enemies. They think apostate and worldly people are pulling them away. When the real fact is they push people out with abject insanity and hatred. With doctrines that are so bizarre that not even a crazy person could understand. i have watched them for 50 years and they just continuously shoot themselves in the foot day after day. What they put your mom through is revolting and unacceptable for any life form let alone humans. They can't even be human under the spell of that demonic cult of liars and pedophiles.
The Irregular Pioneer Channel it’s been all a long time now and it’s all the past. However, we all know Watchtower and the elder henchmen will be at the ready to break any rule when it’s convenient for them and serves their need for power.
That's a really all-around sad and somber story. I'm glad you and your mother had made it out though.
It bothers me that they walk around trying to have everyone believe that they are these kind, compassionate, understanding and loving of everyone kind of people (although yes some are) but they are so full of hate for everyone who is not a JW. They are incredibly cold. “We’re all about family ... blah blah” but they are willing to toss them to the curb when a family member simply decides the org is not for them anymore. One thing I couldn’t stand that made me cringe was how they would call everyone else “worldly people” and say it as though it almost sickened them to think about it. Their view on “worldly people” always made me think of people who are racist and would speak of someone else in disgust based on their race.
Funny story for you. My mom is a Pentecostal local Missionary/ Preacher. Her brother died. His wife was a strong JW. My mom’s brother...not, but his wife funeralizjed him the JW way. Well, my mom was yelling “ Hallelujah!, and THANK YOU JESUS! all over the place. 😆 my Cousins got a kick out of this! You see, my Uncle was raised Pentecostal too. I could see him cracking up , In my mind. Thanks for sharing.
LOL! I Love it!
Robin D. Phillips your mom can’t be a preacher women can’t led or be a pastor. And second this JW false witnessing is demonic and deceived. Charles was lair false prophet. Come to the true savior and Jesus Christ not this false religious groups
The quality of your information is on point my brotha keep spreading that true knowledge . peace
I became a witness in 1982 and I am now on my way out. In all those years I never knew that there was such an outline. Silly me, I should have known. I am very happy that every day I get a bit more freedom of mind. Is not easy after all those years, but with the help of videos like your own it helps me to realize that I was on the wrong way. But it's never too late to make a new beginning.
Jesus said, "Follow Me."
Hope you are free by now!!!
@@henrim9348 oh yes, I am out since November 2019 with no regrets. I love my life now. I am feeling so much better. Thank you for asking my friend. All the best for you and good health.
@@mariafagbuyi5516 Fantastic!!! I was never in the cult, but I have so many family members who have spent 40+ years in it. The older they get, the deeper they sink in it. All the best.
The first time I went to JW funeral, I thought it was off they were trying to recruit. But I thought, hey, it’s their religion. Several weddings and funerals later, after being a JW for 17 years, I walked away from it all. They are too creepy. So robotic.
Love your videos. You’re so warm, I almost can hear your voice but see your voice in your face expressions. (I’m deaf).
Keep it up! And always have captions on your videos. 😀
One sentence on the loved one. The rest is basically a public talk. I was at one particular witness funeral a very well regarded loved elderly sister. As soon as the brother said we dont grieve like those without hope......her adult kids started wailing they let loose. Ive never heard wailing before i heard it that day. Her son tried to climb into the into casket.
That's brilliant!
Renee Honey oh God. 😨 Did he really say that? This organization is horrible.
So sad!
I just had a friend go to a witness funeral and she thought it was so weird how they didn't really talk about the person and was so robotic and how they tried to recruit
They are Evil scum , easy as that.
Yelp that's it
It's just a recruitment opportunity.
Worldly people look so confused at a JW funeral. It's like, what's going on? What are they taking about? The looks on their faces is priceless. You can tell just by looking at the people who are witnesses and who are not by the looks on their faces. The confused looking ones are not witnesses. The ones that have that blank stare, are the witnesses. I call it The Terminal Stare. They're the witnesses.
We are not Jehavah's witnessed but our mother was Christian. My mother suddenly passed from a massive brain stroke last thanksgiving but before she passed, she made it clear to my brother (who's a born seer) that she didn't want a typical funeral. My brother literally put that memorial and viewing together like no one had ever seen. He did get a Pastor to preside the memorial but he made sure that the pastor only talked about the notes he gave to the pastor about my mother and he even tied a little scripture in the program but he tide it back to my mother. Everyone was telling us how beautiful and awesome the memorial service was because it was ONLY ABOUT the life and legacy of my mother! My brother was not having none of that recruiting and robotic mess.
I have experienced this with visiting other churches recently for Easter and a dear non jw friend who passed away - her church service was superb and her family were just lovely who stood up and gave personal stories - no shunned relatives asked to stand at the back - it was so refreshing - I cried at missing my dear friend but cried at how awful our own experience was by comparison at funerals - I attended my dad’s jw funeral as an d/f witness and vowed I won’t attend a jw funeral ever again x
Irregular Pioneer lmaooo love that name. I never get tired of exJW videos keep it up bro!
I just subscribed to you yesterday. The only thing I aspire to do with my life is help people, in particular; those who are leaving or have already left the JW organization. Especially those who have also lived their entire lives believing in a god and then no longer believe. Both are very hard to go through. You're doing great work. Keep telling your stories. Keep sharing the information you learned. You are making a difference and if you keep at it you will only make a bigger difference. And to top it off, in case you didn't notice, you're black. And people of the black community especially; hearing someone be completely open, honest, and open-minded while having as much experience in the religion as you had will especially help. When hearing a 'worldly white apostate' might not reach people in the same way that you may have the ability to.
Regardless of if I'm right about the race thing or not, you're doing a great thing, and your youtube channel is an absolute NECESSITY for the public. I can see it in you... when you said in a past video that you wanted power so you could actually help people. You were being honest about that. You legitimately want to help people, it seems. So do I. If there is anything I can ever do to help you in giving resources for exjw's I won't hesitate to do it.
I'll be watching from now on, and I'll try to comment as much as possible. I'm proud of you for what you're doing. You should see me around in your comment section from now on. Please, keep up this fantastic work you're doing.
Shane Dobson 👍👍👍
No beard,they just disfellowshipped Russell,Jesus and the whole Isrealite nation!😂😂😂😂😂😂
LATONYA SMITH exactly 😂😂😂
@@opossumbottomdweller8875 When you study high control groups you find that there's a lot of unwritten,enforced rules! But I do remember having a congregation discussion about being presentable at the doors,and standing out as different! You are not allowed to have beards! Men have been turned down from giving talks if they have one! Plus it is one of the ways we usually tell if a person is" worldly" or not! It is also one of the things we don't tell studies until they're more deeply indoctrinated! A man will not climb the latter of position as an elder,ministerial servant,and certainly not a circuit overseer with a beard and you know it,you're being dishonest now! BEARDS ARE NOT ALLOWED in the organization! And that started with Rutherford!
@@opossumbottomdweller8875 😂😂😂😂-wrong,I left the cult a month ago! The comment I gave was to point out that this is where these people would stand if they were in the organization today,which lets you know the watchtower makes no since! And what do you mean by bill of rights?You're just on here clowning now!
@@latonyasmith683 your right. That's how I knew something was wrong with my brother he has a beard now
THANK YOU!!!👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
I appreciate everyone on TH-cam exposing this horrible organization
Let's keep it up until that demonic cults collapses from within.
Top Tier Teal Tipped Spears i appreciate everyone too! And everyone who watches helps!
amen to that.
Founded by 33° mason
Feel free to come to twitter and find XJWs hanging out there. Look for XJW in profiles.
My mother's funeral was horrible...more like a recruitment talk. And the brother who gave it knew my parents for about 40 years at the time, it was actually embarrassing for me to sit through with all of my non JW family and friends (standing room only) for an hour being "recruited." Smh...
They make me sick with that shit ..Listening to the GB ..When Jehovah didn't Say do that!!...JWs R Robotic Fools when the Bible's clearly states ..Do no trust a mere man or put Ur faith in him ....I told my mother Don't give me no JW Funeral ..it's sickening ...I'm no baptized but I have cancer ...No Witness Funeral m kids will make sure!....so pathetic!
Yes same here my mother gave non JW dad this funeral and iv never really grieved properly and it's been over 20 years .
🐾same here. I had a splitting headache afterwards because I could feel my blood boiling. I was so pissed!
I feel all of your comments. It's been eight years since my son died and fiasco of a funeral talk, my ex's arrangement and I am still mad about it.
I feel your pain man.....
You are 100% accurate. I did not notice JW funerals till I started waking up. Non JW funerals are exactly like you describe, honoring the person who is deceased. When my husband, never a JW, attended my aunt's funeral, he was horrified. He told me afterwards that it was nothing more than a recruiting session for the non JW's there. I was in the process of waking up and left the organization shortly after that.
I went to a funeral of a lady that was baptised but none of her family were JWs, so it was a strange mix. They brought in the coffin to the song 'I did it my way' and I thought it was hilarious and fitting as she was a feisty woman, but there was much tutting and disapproval among the borg, I had never seen another witness funeral that had anything other than kingdom melodies as the music. The best service I ever attended was humanist, they talked about the amazing gift of life and the chances of having it for however short a time. It was uplifting.
Jilly I was so glad when you mentioned that you found the whole thing hilarious as I was actually laughing out loud at your description of the lady's funeral, the song 'My Way' must have been a very clever input from her family. Priceless & so amusing!
Matt IS correct. As a non-born in JW I still maintained ties outside the Org with family and friends. I attended many non JW funerals and they were starkly different and not as "sterile" as JW funerals. I don't quite know how to put it but You left with a sense of "feeling" for the family and the deceased. And you are free to weep/mourn. "Christendom" funerals are more balanced in that they practise what the Bible says about the "day of one's death" by focusing on the life the individual lived which allows for them to be memorialised through a eulogy (i.e., not just stating how faithful a Christian they were but their connections to their family, church and the wider community), and ("shockingly"!) the hope of resurrection while taking the opportunity to remind the living audience that they too are prone to death but do have a hope of resurrection to everlasting life ("in heaven" mind you) if they commit themseves to doing the will of God by first accepting Jesus as their Lord and saviour. It's not like a RECRUITMENT session as JW funerals are skewed towards doing!!
wannabe freespirit when our father passed away, my brother said he wasn’t allowed to come into the church for the funeral because he was a JW. What kind of religion would forbid you from going into a church for your fathers funeral?
GOOD ONE! I CAN NOT DEAL WITH THE 5 MINUTES ABOUT MY FAMILY AND A HALF HOUR COMMERCIAL FOR THE KINGDOM HALL. I NEVER GO IN TO LISTEN TO THE FUNERAL TALKS. I JUST DO THE VIEWING THEN LEAVE.
5 minutes? i wouldve been happy if my grandmother even got that! she got less than a minute before the speaker tried to recruit
I only ever went to one and that was enough, there was no crying aside from about 5 of us. The man who passed was lovely and been an Elder for 30+ years. I have never in my life seen anything like it. Never set foot in that place since.
This is one thing I find so beautiful at funerals outside of the the organization. My dear grandmother’s funeral, as well as my late brother’s celebration of life, were focused on them and honoring their memory. At my brother’s celebration, I was able to share with others a poem I’d written for him. I also had the pleasure of hearing heartfelt stories of my brother from his friends. My son was able to honor his uncle as well with a tender memory. I couldn’t imagine doing it any other way. 🙏🏽
I have never been a JW but I weirdly obsessed with learning about this cult and hearing all of the coming out stories from ex JW. You can tell you were a public speaker because you have such a captivating way of getting your points across. New subscriber here 😁
No sisters allowed to stand up and give the funeral talk for her daddy.
When my JW parents die I doubt I will even bother going. I have had an ass full of JW memorials to the point I most likely would be a disruption by the next time I go.
@@BrentRF I'm sorry to hear that. But I totally understand.
I totally agree! Before I was disfellowshiped my first husband and I was one of Jehovah's witnesses in 2006 and they did not reflect on him at all!!!! Then I went to my cousin funeral last year and it was totally opposite from what we were taught as Jehovah's witnesses at a funeral! We left there uplifted and not in tears but at my husband funeral I left there with an even more emptier feeling than I did before the funeral and all my mom said to me was, "remember how he was, who and what he stood for and if you continue to do right, you will see him again in the resurrection"! I was so angry at her and everyone that I shut myself up in my room for weeks and went into a deep depression! So now 17 years later I had to piece my crushed world back together on my own bc what we were taught as witnesses is a bunch of hog wash!! Thank you for bringing this to the light!
Yup! WT continues to exploit their members even after they are dead!! Your funeral will be used, not to honor your memory as if you were anyone special but as an opportunity to recruit others into the cult. The last 2 funeral I attended about 3mnths ago..one being my grandmother who was not a Jw and the other being of a sister who only had one other relative in the org, I sat there and felt so uncomfortable and sometimes even embarrassed, I could not believe that they were using such an occasion as an indoctrination service..at the sisters funeral I looked over at the relatives because I thought that at any moment someone would protest what was going on. WT truly is of the devil,,only satan would seek to exploit people while they are at their weakest and most vulnerable point..
Exactly, of the Devil not god.
Literally been watching you ALL DAY. When I say I took a sigh of releif!!!!🎯
First time viewer here....thanks for so clearly articulating what I've been talking to my therapist about. Out for decades but am still shedding the lies and emotional numbing that growing up JW imprinted on my psyche. Am still angry that as the society clamped down on family shunning, I wasn't allowed a final visit with my mom and longtime elder dad four yrs before they actually passed. It had been 12 yrs since I'd last seen them, ironically at a *family* celebration of their 40 yrs of marriage--the second for both. None of my 11 sibs stayed in but only my sis, one brother and I were df'd. WT stole my family from me and shredded it to bits.
My favorite non JW funerals have been CELEBRATIONS of the deceased's life! Stories, feasting, music, dancing, crying, laughing, and big bonfires! All emotions are allowed and thus the first cleansing of the first wave of grief--a NORMAL human emotion that fairy tales of our loved ones returning as themselves can not comfort or allow.
I have personal comfort knowing that despite the brazen WT pleas to will your life's material world to them, my folks didn't leave them a red cent. Perhaps they had some level of awareness of the life of cognitive dissonce they'd traded for complete seperation from so many of their children.
It's always about their agenda. They do not know love, compassion or empathy. It's always conditional. Always a catch.
Right!
That's how I remember JW funerals
This video was instrumental to my awaking! Thank you so much!
My mother inlaw (non jw) died a few weeks ago and I noticed that at her funeral as well that they talked about HER. The family was heartbroken but within 15 minutes they were wiping away tears of laughter. She was a very funny lady and everyone had stories about her that I didn't know about and my husband had forgotten.
This makes sense to me now. my dad, step mom and her children are JW. my stepsisters , 2 of them, both had a son die. I, who was baptized as a Southern Baptist, wasn't allowed to go. hurts still.
That's terrible. I'm really sorry for your loss and that you do not have that last memory to hold onto. My heart aches for you. Praying for you sir.
I remember as a child ... attending the funeral of the unbelieving husband of a very dear sister.
There in his casket had been the Awake! Magazine propped up on his chest and his reading glasses perched on his nose ...positioned as if he expected to do some reading.
Tucked into one of his hands was a rolled up Watchtower.
Omg awful
Are you serious?
@@Linda-ux8un you couldn't make that up ..that's for sure
WOW thats wild
They were helping him give his last witness using the magazines even though he was dead. One of the brothers probably filled out a time card and turned it in on his behalf. I'm surprised this wasn't mentioned in one of the publications. Only in Jw Land
So glad I’m on my way out of the .Org currently Pimo and you are 100 percent correct these people pray on others vulnerable moments in life .. the broken hearted ..battered etc ..I was contacted as a teen now mid twenties finally waking up
Thia im glad your eyes are opened. Keep on making your way out, its great on the other side!
CONGRATULATIONS
My uncle past after I watch this video, and I attended the funeral on Zoom.
There was a brief focus (maybe 20 seconds) on him and it involved how he first decided to be "apart of the truth" They didn't bring up this man again for the rest of the service.
I felt so bad for him, because his death was used to recruit people that knew him who weren't a JW.
This video was %100 on point. And I could help to think about this video throughout the service.
My grandmother passed yesterday, thank you so much for the insight of this video. It’s a shame but to prepare my family is key. Really appreciate all your comments.
The last JW funeral i attended was in 2016. A pioneer had died and one of her.disfellowed children was there and no witness was speaking to him. He was crying and i went to him and hugged him. Afterwards a few other JW hugged him too. I was glad to see that. But the worst part was the talk given by an eldee i had t
respected. There were her relatives and old acquaintances. In attendance at the Hall, showing their respect. I waa ashamed of this brothers berating of them. He told them the sister was going to be resurrected after Armageddon and she wasnt going to heaven. He said he knows this lie was told to them by their prea hers but they were lying to them. Then he proceeded to read from the Bible to back up whar he was preaching. Then offered Bible studies to anyone interested. The non JWs were not pleased. Manyy were horrified and angry. I spoke to other JWs about how rude and insensitive his talk was and the JWs defended him. They said it was a good talk because he didn't bite his tongue and gave those worldly people a good witness. Something they probably missed when they didn't open their doors when we go out in field service. I was surprised by the elder and these pioneer sisters and her"friends" lack of love and callousness.
I only attended one jw funeral where they actually spent time talking about the person. It was so uplifting. He did all the things you said they shouldn't do. When I told my dad that was the best funeral talk I'd heard he was so offended because he's given plenty of funeral talks. But you are so right, jw funerals are just infomercials for Watchtower.
Sorry for your loss, Matt. My mom died a little over a month ago. At her memorial talk, the brother read her obituary (which I wrote) and used it as the framework for the sales pitch for becoming a JW. And as if that wasn't bad enough, he also gently chastised my father (who has been studying for years) for not being baptized yet. I was mortified. But a friend who came to the memorial talk to support me summed it up: "You know how you can get a free trip to someplace cool if you sit through a two-hour sales pitch? In this case, it was only 30 minutes and you get free food." Kinda had to laugh at that. But overall, the day left a bad taste in my mouth (aside from the fact that my mom had died, obviously).
Wow my brother you're spot on once again.I was always feeling so uncomfortable attending JW funerals infact I felt like they bury human like they bury a dog.I remember when my younger brother passed away I told my mother if it happens that i die first they should just cremate me without a JW discourse instead they must invite people who really know me to talk about me and my accomplishments you know.
By the way I just decided to fade 2 months ago,I didn't see the need to give the so called elders what they want I.e power.
Thanks so much for your videos,ex jw from Johannesburg South Africa.
Xola Matanzima thats great to hear! I hope your fade goes nice and easy!
Wow! How are conditions there in South Africa really. The Org here constantly harps on the GROWTH in Africa. Should be great to get firsthand knowledge of things in SA especially
That's an interesting question indeed,look the truth is,the growth that we're observing is mostly coming from the marginalized people due to socioeconomic conditions.I mean if you go to the former white congregations you'll notice that most bible studies and congregants are from the neighbouring countries like Zimbabwe,Malawi,DRC etc.These are the people who're hungry for the so called truth,they want to see change in their living conditions so the gospel preached by jw seems to bring hope in their lives plus they get to be employed by these white folks in the congregation.
But I must say that there's no difference at all from your experiences and ours,remember the jworg is using the same modus operandi throughout the world.
Xola, r they building a lot of Kingdom halls over there like they're telling us they are?
You really just killed me with this! You never lied! I just lived this with my own mother. I have to stop and come back. I'm pissed again!
I had left the organization over a decade before my19 year old son passed. Even though my whole family was there I didn’t allow them to have a witness funeral as I was paying for it. My ex-mother-in-law jumped up when we allowed people to come up and say a few words, and she did the JW funeral service for them. She went on and on and yelled, I know I’m going to see my grandson in the new system! I was beyond embarrassed. Not what I wanted for my son. He never was a witness.
My God is so much shame from the watchtower. This organization have so much to learn to share with so much with people of different cultures. Thank you for this information.
I’d never thought about this subject but you are so right - thanks for making me think 💗
I went to my aunt's JW funeral at age 16& the non JW's were offended because no JW's cried or showed any sadness.That always stuck with me because as JW's we have the resurrection hope that's taught by the Org.So that's what makes us superior plane and simple B.S.
They dont cry when a loved obe is disfellowshipped either. Or divorced etc. It seems you are blamed. Oh you died its some failu g on your part. The weight is crushing because you must carry all your own weight. I was cold hearted and prided myself on not getting hurt like ither people do because theyre weak. No i turned to stone.
@@reneehoney7355 the org.wants you to pretend to be perfect as if you're not human.The Org. breeds heartless& cruel people.I was warned to watchful& critical of worldly people some of the JW's are worse than worldly people no love,no natural affection,to people on the outside it's looks like they are nice people and harmless they are not.
Good video!
Even when you're dead and gone, the j-dub thought police are on the job! :/
It reminds me of Orwell's book 1984 and Big Brother. I could only read that book once, because it is so depressing. The JW organization gives me the same vibes. What a soul-crushing group!
@@peggystoutemorin4529 I totally agree. It's a soul-crushing group. I'll keep my soul and may it always be healthy.💗
Hi ex-jehovah withess here this reminded me of a elderly sister who passed away at my mom's attending Kingdom Hall. Her family were not witnesses so they had a "theocractic service at a funeral home to respect her wishes. On one side of the funeral home was all Jehovah's Witnesses and the other side was the
family, friends, etc. The brothers gave their sermon just like the one you just described. Then the family got up to give her an honorary service. All the Jehovah Witness and the brother that gave the talk walked out. It was probably 50 to 60 people. My mother kept nudging me to get up and walk out. I just couldn't do it. I felt that was so disrespectful the family. I was so embarrassed by this lack of respect on the part of the Jehovah's Witnesses. Later my 16 year old son was killed and they gave him a "theocractic" service, despite I was inactive. However, no one from the hall ever checked on me after the service.
It has been over20 years now and not one elder from the hall has visited me.
I faded years ago. When my father died, a coworker I had recently become friends with was kind enough to come to the funeral with her husband. I was mortified when one of the brothers approached them after the service and aggressively preached to them and tried to pressure them into inviting him to their home to continue the discussion.
The watchtower organization has convinced by disabled and unhealthy father to give up on this life and look forward to “paradise.” You better believe that I will say my peace out loud at his funeral in regards to this.
4tounces that is so depressing. Its really sad how the watchtower has convinced people to view their lives as practically nothing now, to wait for a paradise that they can’t prove to be true.
i went to a funeral for my uncle last year and it was sooo weird… all they did was talk about what a great jw he was and my uncle did so much in his life outside of that …everybody was talking about how beautiful and inspirational the service was and i felt like i was in the twilight zone 🤦🏽♀️
👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾So very well said!!! You hit all the points! My mom has so much sadness in her heart. Because of the way Jw funerals were conducted for her Mother and sister. I’m going to share this video with her.Thank you so much for sharing.
My first daughters fathers family is jw & I’ve always had a cult felling revolving around the organization but I didn’t want to judge but ur videos have confirmed what Ive always felt.. and hearing that prayer is optional to open with at a funeral is highly unusual 💜
Jw funerals are a nightmare!The lies they tell at those funerals.My sister in law was hit by a car and at the funeral the brother eluded to the fact that she had not been coming to the meeting and the people in attending should look at what happened to her and learn more about God and have a study with witnesses. I was appalled.
Yikes, that's horrible.
ARE YOU SERIOUS?!? That is utterly disgusting. And these elders think they have the right to say things like this. My blood is boiling just thinking about that.
That's disgusting!!!! They were basically bad mouthing her. Jeeeezzz do they have an off button at all?? I guess the God they believe in is one of vengeance and constant punishment. He surely is not a God of mercy and grace.
I'm very laid back and I would say most of us ex JW's arent about making a scene. But I'm not sure I wouldn't have tried to physically fight that brother. Some of the most appalling and shocking things people can say have rolled off the lips of many a jehovahs witnesses in front of my face.
i dont believe what you said because inactive people funerals arent even allowed in the kingdom hall. you are lying on that one.
It's true man, half of my family are not JW's and their funeral/memorial services always focus more on the person and the impact they had on their family & friends lives. I've never, EVER, been to a JW funeral like that...even had one family member say that it "wasn't too late" for those of us (i.e. me) who had lost our way to come back to the organization. Kinda crazy that after all this time I never even really reflected on it because I've been to so many JW funerals over the years it just felt normal.
This video really sums up the jw funeral arrangement. I am no longer a jw. I attended a dear sisters funeral who was in for 65 years. The elder spent 4 minutes speaking about her life. The rest indoctrination. The Brother even spelled it out on how to GAIN Gods approval. This absolute nonsense! Great video. Glad you got free!
Thank you so much Matt, this was a very well interpreted video. I never knew this about JW funerals,and I'm all the more wiser because of you. The mini eulogy that you gave for your mother was quite beautiful and I can clearly see why you chose her as a mother ..and in your poise I know that she's grateful that you are her son. 📿🙏🏽
Ya they did my brothers funeral yesterday. It was a 40 minute commercial. I was a commonly used template where there actually only talked about my brother for 3 minutes. They literally said we don't have time to talk about him. The church exiled my brother for his issues then ignored his life at his own funeral. I will be spending the rest of my life letting witnesses know what they did to my brother and his family
Hey Mat, I am an ex JW from long ago. I wish I could hug you! I left the ORG when I discovered there was more to the Universe than what we were taught. To this day my own children Shun me. I am 55 now. It's been a long time. What also struck me then was why the scripture about "this generation will not pass" never made sense. Through the years I've been checking the back of the front page of The Watchtower mag. They've obviously changed it. The wording about the generation. It never happened. Back in my day it was supposed to be 1975. LOL!! Keep on doing what you're doing my Friend. Jack C
Even when the orgination told all the members to write letters to the Soviet union to protest the ban who paid all the millions for those letters yes the members did cost them a dime when it comes to money they know how to get every drop
My condolences on the loss of your mom
What never made sense to me was this. If the new paradise is just around the corner, then why do JW widows and widowers remarry? Most of these JWs are elders. The same men who go on stage and say, "Dear brothers, the end is very near." It would be more logical if they just stayed unmarried until Jehovah brings back their dearly departed.
I too have wondered about multiple scriptural marriages of widows/widowers. Are there gonna be plural marriages in paradise? Two husbands or two wives?
Sir. You be having the TIME 🙃🙃
Ma'am. I did my house work, I promise! LOL
@@theirregularpioneerchannel1804 Great Info...Great Truth...I've never understood the Jehovah's Witness CURRICULUM..🤔
I left the organization at age 18, in 1992 and attended college. Fast forward to 2015, I lost my father. My family was informed the night before my father's funeral (he was a baptised witness for over 30 years) that "there will be no remarks from family members allowed", mind you, nobody at the Kingdom Hall paid for any of the funeral service, flowers, use of the funeral home sanctuary, casket, or any expenses related to my father's final wishes. However, they had the nerve to call me the night before he was laid to rest to advise me as to what we were and we're not allowed to do at my father's funeral. We then had to sit through 20 minutes of this boring Elder stand before family and friends and speak very little of my father, who he was, the life he lived, his interests nor any mention of his family. Yet proceeded to attempt to convert those in attendance. THEN, immediately after the funeral ended, I was approached by a sister who literally stood in my face and told me that if I wanted to see my deceased parents again, (my mother passed away in 1999) that I needed to "come back." I was pissed off that she chose to address that with me literally within a few moments after the conclusion of my father's funeral service. It seemed as though they swooped in and took over everything in accordance with their rules and regulations and excluded the family from any say in the matter. I'll never deal with those people again.
I have the honors of attending a funeral, my father’s sister my aunt is a witness and I thought it was the most cold funeral I ever been too.. I even told my aunt this is weird no flowers nobody talking about this woman at all.crazy crazy.. yes they do that they love to tell people you will never see your family if you are not a Witness... thank you for opening up this...
My dad was a Jehovah witness. I went to his funeral at the kingdom hall. They knew nothing about him. All they knew was he went from door to door. That was it. He attended this congregation for fifty years and they knew nothing about him. All they talked about was him knocking on doors and Bible studies. I was so embarrassed by it all. There were worldly people there! After it was all over, I apologized to every worldly person that came. They are just a plug to get new members. An infomercial. The only thing is, the witnesses are too stupid to realize that they are just pushing people away from the cult. People on the outside of the organization think that they are a bunch of kooks. Cult members. So in that way the Jehovah witness funerals are a good thing. It helps people to see how much of a cult that they are. You should have seen the looks on the faces of the non Jehovah witnessess. Priceless.
I remember when my mother passed it was like going to a meeting. For my father the brother was a better speaker and mentioned my father through his talk.
Great video my brother. Jesus had a beard.
Keeping beards is a LAW from God in Lev 19:27.
By the way... Lev 19:26 is the BLOOD LAW.
Notice the organization chooses to follow the one and not the other.
Arrell Ehn exactly
tell it like it is
Very true!!
This is the SAME way I felt when my grandma died. All they could talk about was her being a “dedicated sister of Jehovah’s organization for over 50 years.” NOTHING about how funny she was or how her sweet potato pies made you wanna slap ya mama. Not one personal thing about her other than JW bull.
And what REALLY pissed me off is that I was the only one who said “He didn’t even TALK about grandma!” I already knew not to say that to my elder dad, but my cousin who is disassociated said “Well, maybe that’s how she would’ve wanted it. You never know.” No one even got it, so THANK you for saying out loud what I have been saying for a while now. Every time I heard “Didn’t that brother give a good talk?”, I was thinking to myself “Ok, you just admitted that what he gave was a “talk” and not an actual funeral service.”
My dad no longer speaks to me (same ole JW bullshit) and it’s stuff like that that makes me question if it’s worth it to even go to his funeral when they won’t even talk about him at all.
I was a disfellowshiped teen when my grandmother passed away and I had to sit in the back away from my family because I was disfellowshiped. It was horrific experience as a teen
oh my god. these people are truly heartless.
Thank you. You are informative and helpful to watch because you escaped with a sound mind.
My mother passed away 2 weeks ago. We had a wonderful celebration of her life. She was an amazing women. An authentic Christian who geniunely loved people (no agenda).
My dad is a JW (for more than 50 years). I was shocked when he said he would watch on Zoom.
I have observed that JWs do not really know what real unconditional love is. If you conform, you are excepted, if not you are rejected.
I believe it is the love of God that causes us too deeply value and appreciate people. Why not celebrate birthdays. It is not worshipping a person, but it is celebrating our love and respect for them as valuable and precious.
No wonder Jesus got so upset with dead religion.
So much respect and love for you bro. It isn't nice what we go through. Thanks for this video.
Facts
We (the not witness part of the family) insisted on giving a eulogy at my Nan’s funeral. The elder did not even step aside for me to use the lecturn and mic. Then the talk went on about how she became a Jehovah’s Witness and how she was expecting a bodily resurrection . All I could think was that she never expected to die at all- she was promised she would not grow old and die.
You’re absolutely right. Well done!
Wow!! So TRUE!!! My Grandmother passed today. I know like the rest of my family who has passed it will be the same outline. Smh I’m sick of it!
E's Truth EG im so sorry to hear that. I truly hope you can find some peace. I know it wont be today or very soon, and i know the JW babble wont help, but i really hope the best for your grieving process.
Great video!!!
Very insightful video. Thanks for sharing.
I enjoyed your vlog it was really informative. I have some Witness family members. I'm Pentecost. Thanks for sharing
Thank you for the information.
I'm glad that I researched JW memorials because my aunt died. I honored her before death and honored her on social media expressing to people, who she was as a woman and how she impacted our lives. I won't be attending her memorial.
I, hadn't even thought about this, till you just broke it down. That's exactly how THEY, handled my mom's funeral, at the so-called kingdom hall. Very impersonal and very quick; in and out, like it meant nothing. I, realize why that was now. But also, None of us (except my mom) were witnesses any longer, for over 20 plus years. Great videos, Family. ✊🏿💪🏿
So true indeed. Excellent point
JT
It crazy when you see this organization from being out everything is crazy. You ask yourself I’m smart but I didn’t see this behavior. Honoring your love one when they die should be done if you want. Listen to the talks they speak as though we were small kids slow and all dragged out. Consistently referring to the organization , WT where was
The Bible in all this.
👏👏👏👏👏
Bernice Johnson.....couldn't say it better. I consider myself fairly reasonable. Smart. But now that I'm out...I think of all the things I went along with.....without so much of a question or second thought it blows my mind that I was that caught up into a cult.
Interesting to me that one of the reasons JWs give for not celebrating bdays is they quote from the Bible that the day of one’s death is greater than they day of one’s birth. Now you live your life till the end and the one that has passed away is not even honored at their own funeral.? What a shame!
Thanks for shining a light on this shameful cynicism, perhaps the worst example of this is when the spouse of a deceased ‘unbelieving’ partner chooses to give them a JW funeral. The unbelieving family members are left feeling excluded and confused, I remember as a witness feeling embarrassed at these occasions
Well articulated! It is shocking that the funeral is not about the person. I have lost both my mother and step mother in the last couple of months and it's the talking about their life and my Christian belief in seeing them again that is helping me to live without them.
When my JW neighbor died last March. I posted a picture of her and her husband on a school community page on Fb. As a historian, I honored and informed people that a person in our community has died. Seconds later, 2 of her grandchildren saw the post and ordered me to take it down NOW! So I took it down. They screenshot it just to start some ish on me. 5 minutes later, my mom called me and told me that one of my neighbor's daughters came to her house and told her to tell me to take it down. The daughter stated that the woman was her mother not mines. I was ordered to stay in my lane! I was shocked as hell! Because I had good intentions. But they did not see it that way. I cried. The next day, another daughter of my neighbor tried to reach me on Fb messenger 3 times. So she left messages. She told me how rude and disrespectful my post was. I wondered why they were so angry? So, I thought that it must be their JW beliefs that make them have this strange reaction. I learned that no one was to write anything about a deceased JW if they are outsiders. The family members are indoctrinated with JW beliefs even when they are no longer active members. They have to understand that the "worldly people" have a different culture. What is strange to me may not be strange to others. I made a Fb public apology. The conflict simmered down. When I go to my mom's house, I barely speak to them and quickly move on. Because that made me angry and some of the things that I have experienced from them in the past. In the aftermath, when I researched the JW beliefs to help me to understand them more, I was shocked of how secretly disgusting their belief systems were.
I once went to a JW funeral and it was like none other I'd ever attended, and believe me, I've been to a lot of funerals. Over half of the attendees were not JW so it was a sermon about how everyone should convert to JW with very little about the deceased
Having had many friends and family members pass away during my lifetime, I've been able to experience just about every possible type of memorial. The best that I experienced was held for my childhood friend who eventually married my ex-wife. It was a Catholic funeral. I also went to both my ex-father and former mother-in-law's funerals that were Catholic. In every case, family and friends were called upon to participate after the "religious" part was done. The shared experiences told funny and sad stories and cried their eyes out while telling their experiences. I always came away feeling the moment and experiencing many reactions both warm and deep. But every Jehovah's Witness funeral that I've gone to has made me angry. You never really get to know the person who passed or share any part of their lives. Wives, children, and friends are not allowed to participate and share their memories and experiences with the deceased. As ex-JWs my brother and I were not allowed to sit with our JW family during the funerals for our own mother and father. We sat in the back of the room. There was nothing really mentioned about either of them (two separate funerals). The names of their kids were never mentioned, where they had lived, or what they had achieved. Nothing was said about their personalities, likes and dislikes, what they did for a living. My father was a World War 2 veteran - never mentioned. My mother lived an extremely interesting life - nothing was shared. An obit that I wrote and specifically asked to have read at my father's funeral was never mentioned or acknowledged - and I was the eldest son. An obituary that I wrote for my father was recalled by one of the elders at the Kingdom Hall, so no obituary was published at the time of the funeral. Eventually, one was written, but that was a very generic one written by another family member or one of the elders. While I have many complaints about the Watchtower and Jehovah's Witnesses, their management of child abuse cases, their breaking up of families and the use of shunning, and other damaging teachings - are all very frustrating. But I think the total mismanagement of funerals - using them to proselyte and advertise their religion instead of honoring those who have passed - is an abomination and is shameful. There is nothing positive that I can say about the Watchtower organization.
I went to a Catholic funeral once and all I heard was Hail Mary full of grace the Lord is with me. And we know the rest. They said it 100 times. It felt like I was sitting there for hours . I never heard anything about the deceased and never heard anything about anything else. Except Hail Mary. There are other weirdo funerals besides Jehovah's Witnesses
My father had his funeral at the kingdom hall. I wasn't allowed to say anything about his life. The witnesses knew almost nothing about him. What they did say was that he was a great publisher. That he went from door to door. That he "placed a lot of magazines". About his life, nothing. No one even asked me about his life. They didn't know where he went to school. They didn't know he was a cross country runner. How he met his wife. How many children he had. They didn't know anything except that he went from door to door. I should be thankful for what they did do I guess. But it felt like what they would say when they were talking to people while they were in field service. As you say, an infomercial. That is the best description. I just kept thinking, it's better than nothing. It's better than nothing. All of the worldly people that were there, I apologised to before we left the kingdom hall. I got, don't worry Jim, we know. It was embarrassing. I never apologized to people at a funeral before. I guess there is a first time for everything.
WOW I had no idea that they followed an outline 😱 thank you for sharing!!!
It's all about control! Nothing more!
Sorry about your loss!💔
Welcome to freedom! ❤️
Me and my wife were DFd when her gramps passed, we had front row seats at the kingdom hall.
The speaker (an old brother I'd done my baptism questions) used every opportunity to look down at us over his half-moon glasses from the podium. We couldn't even be offended it was so pathetic, I definitely smirked and rolled my eyes a few times. At the end I shook his hand on the way out and said "fantastic talk, literally, pure fantasy." It was a surreal time really, a few people had obviously been given special dispensation to speak to us and chew the fat as we waited to go into the crematorium, and we were polite.
Afterwards my wife, who had been raised a JW (I was a convert) was more offended than me at the talk for precisely the same reason as you raise here. She'd never noticed before but now, from the outside, she was outraged at the lack of respect for the deceased that they used his funeral as a chance to score points against us. She was right, of course.
I never had the experience of going to a JW funeral as we left before that happenned. I always wondered.Thank you. Any funerals I have been to do have some humor involved
Do be careful when posting JW material to fall within "fair use"; they're getting sue-happy.
bg6b7bft good reminder, thanks!