About Janko Expertise I am a qualified minister of Jehovah`s Witnesses and fully capable of answering any or all questions on our faith as well as others too, and the correct understanding of the Bible,which is God`s Word.
Experience My experience with our faith is quite substantial and was introduced to it in the 1960's as a child.
Question Hi I was raised in the truth along with my other 2 siblings. My mother was a JW my father was not. None of us children are active in the truth and choose not to practice any faith. I personally feel that religion was shoved down my throat and something to be feared. I literally had nightmares about Armageddon as a small child. I have never told my mom this she wouldn't understand it.
I am writing this so maybe you can help me understand why my wedding was held outdoors at a friends home so my mom would attend it. Even then my father made her go to it. She told me she hoped I got pregnant and would never have anything to do with my child. This hurt me deeply and I never had children and my husband divorced me. (yes I do lay blame on my mother for this psychological b.s.)
My sister got married in Las Vegas because my mom wouldn't attend the wedding in her fiance's Catholic church.
Now my brother is getting married in his fiance's Baptist church and my mom says she will not attend.
My brother is getting married in this church because they have very little money and it is free and where the girl attended as a child.
Mom said she would go to the reception and my brother told her if she would not attend the wedding he didn't want her to be at the reception. She said that was fine.
If I am not mistaken years ago she was the matron of honer at her sister's wedding in a Catholic church. I do not understand how she shuns her children for the sake of her religion.
My sister and I changed our wedding day plans just so she would be there on an important day to us. Yet she will not budge on this for my brother.
It is not persecution or asking her to give up her faith.
Believe me no one who might see her entering this church for a wedding would be confused on her stance for Jehovah. She is now remarried to a witness (who is nuts by the way)and a full time pioneer.
I think it is selfish not to attend. Everyone is going to ask why she is not there. It will divide the family even further than it already is. It is already causing conflicts. We are supposed to get together next weekend for a housewarming and if she attends it will be extremely tense unless she changes her mind.
How can JW'S condone this? We are her children and for years went to the meetings and as we got older made our own choices.
My brother is devastated by this and I know he means it if he says he will not speak to her again.
We are good people we are not dopeheads or child molesters or murderers.
We love our mother dearly but she is purposely shunning us.It doesn't seem to bother her. She doesn't understand that it hurts us, hurts our feelings. I cannot believe this is what Jehovah would want. We are always reaching out to her to do things with us. Yet most of the time she won't.
How can she not want to associate with us just because we are not baptized Jehovah's Witnesses?
The really strange thing about all this is that I had always believed in my heart this is the truth Until recently as I see my mother become more fanatical every day. It scares me she is not the same person anymore. It is all about Jehovah nothing else matters not even her children's happiness.
Answer Hello Nat,
Thank you for your question(s)and I hope to shed some light on them for you.First of all is your mother a dedicated baptized servant of Jehovah,and is she living a Christian life based on God's Word?If she is to both of these questions then she has a Scriptual ground for her actions.
Being a Christian Witness of Jehovah is living your life by Jehovah's high standards with no exceptions that may hinder ones faith or cause one to stumble.We look at it as Jehovah God looks at it and as Jesus Christ put it when he said that you are either for or against,no in between sitting on the fence when it comes to our faith.Jesus also said that our enemies would come from within the family so what you are experiencing was to be expected.Secondly if your mother is a dedicated baptized Christian witness and not living by God's Word,then she is a hyprocrite.Jehovh made it perfectly
clear when He said to not become unevenly yoked with unbelievers.Evidently being raised in the truth had no sincere effect on you and never got into your heart,the seed was planted but never grew.Because of your stand on things,could cause your mother to stumble.Bad association spoils good habits,and the fact that you are not a worshipper of Jehovah God puts you against Him and us as a whole.A little bit of common sense and logic can go a long way on matters such as these so take that into consideration
when dealing with it.Thank you,Janko
