I was indoctrinated from birth to believe in the JW religion and its associated lifestyle. My parents thought they were doing the right thing by their children ... as most JW parents are indoctrinated to believe of course. Religion is a vicious circle really ... which is why Gav and I don't want our boys exposed to any type of religion until or if they are old enough to ask questions themselves.

Today when looking after a small group of girls who were not doing the class swimming lessons (we sat at a table overlooking the pool) ... one of them asked if I believed in heaven and hell. I said that I didn't ... and that I didn't believe in God, Jesus or the bible either. All four girls were surprised ... which surprised me more as all of them are in the 7 to 8 age group! The school is a state school ... so religion is not taught there ... but it proved to me that a lot of people DO indoctrinate their kids with religion and they are so trusting of their parents, their priests, elders or whatever. It's why we can't blame ourselves for lost time or for being involved in a religion. If you've grown up with it like I have ... like many others in here have and like the girls sitting with me this morning obviously have (none of them are JW's) ... you can see how easy it is to get kids sucked in!

For adults going into the religion and those who then escape from it ... there are various reasons for becoming involved. It could be that they're going through some type of personal crisis and the smiling JW's knock at the door at the right (or wrong) time ... or that they like the idea of eternal life and being able to see loved ones who have already passed on. There are myriads of reasons why people turn to religion ... but none of us should feel bad for following a lifestyle that was perhaps right for that moment in our lives. We live and learn