Real Life Fundie Encountersâ„¢ Part 2

[FoxyMoxie]

Yes, Muslim modesty is more about keeping your body for yourself and not having it sexualised by others. All the Muslim women I've known (grew up in an area with a lot of Muslims) are very glam.

[FatalStarshine]

I have so many stories but since I'm strapped on time I'll post my most recent dramatic encounter.

Our city has a downtown festival every year that has gotten pretty large. Local bands playing country music, maybe one or two 'famous' once for the area playing. Home made goods, food and drinks galore. Our city is growing, but it is almost like a highschool reunion for most of us. We have an amish family there every year but they have been very quiet and sweet while selling their products.

This past year there was an addition to our festival, some group who was out there telling us all how we were sure to burn in hell if we didn't change our ways. It wasn't the signs, hollering, or the clothes that grabbed my attention. It was the wife and her seven children who were sitting in chairs out in the beating sun without moving. They were a bit off to the side from the main man who was yelling, and the mom and the four girls were in jean ankle skirts, tennis shoes, and elbow length plain shirts. The boys were all in jean pants, cowboy boots and button down tops. All of them were drenched in sweat. It had to of been in the 90s, and living in the south with our humidity 90 feels well into the 100s.

He kept 'introducing' the growing crowd to his family, the woman and kids, and how if we repent we could find the joy and love we never knew about. Well there was no joy on that mother's face or her kids. They all looked miserable, and the poor kids I could tell wanted to get up and run around, most likely explore what all was going on.

Some point I left to go explore a few stalls and about an hour later I come back to see them pretty much in the same position but at least they were under a tent now. At some point another woman had made her way over to give the mother and kids some cups full of iced water. Big mistake x|..

She got over to the mother, and she was happily taking the water and thanking her for it and it was appreciated. The father then noticed what was going on and stormed over to them and jerked one of the bottles from her hand that she had been giving to one of the younger kids and shook it in front of the other woman's face telling her the only gifts his wife and kids need are the gifts that the lord offers them, that people shouldn't be trying to replace God by bestowing gifts that were unwanted. No idea, he was ranting pretty hard. His wife looked upset and at some point the cops came over which seemed to get him to quiet down. I think within the next hour he had packed all of them up and left.

I felt awful that he had his family out in that heat, it was obvious how miserable they all were and the mom almost looked like she was on the verge of crying when her husband yelled. The wife looked pretty young maybe mid or late twenties? There were two sets of twins, and the age range looked to be about 18 months to 8 years old.

[The Duggar's Mohel]

I've never had a fundie encounter, I've just seen them on TV.

I'm sure there are fundies about in Canada, but I live right in downtown Toronto, have never seen any fundie families around here.

[Mary C Doates]

Not a recent sighting, but a memorable one.

A couple of years ago, I was seriously in and in the hospital. I was pretty freaked out.

The rebbe from one of the local ultra-Orthodox yeshivas was a patient in the room across from mine. He had a couple of members of his congregation with him around the clock. On Shabbos, they even had someone deliver food to them since no-one from the congregation could travel to do it themselves. When Shabbos was over, his wife visited, and, at one point, was in the hallway while he was being examined. I guess she realized that I was pretty depressed, so she came to the doorway and asked if I would like her to say tehillim for me (note: I'm as atheist as you can get). I said sure. It was a completely unexpected, and oddly comforting, interaction.

[mtnmod]

I have so many stories but since I'm strapped on time I'll post my most recent dramatic encounter.

Our city has a downtown festival every year that has gotten pretty large. Local bands playing country music, maybe one or two 'famous' once for the area playing. Home made goods, food and drinks galore. Our city is growing, but it is almost like a highschool reunion for most of us. We have an amish family there every year but they have been very quiet and sweet while selling their products.

This past year there was an addition to our festival, some group who was out there telling us all how we were sure to burn in hell if we didn't change our ways. It wasn't the signs, hollering, or the clothes that grabbed my attention. It was the wife and her seven children who were sitting in chairs out in the beating sun without moving. They were a bit off to the side from the main man who was yelling, and the mom and the four girls were in jean ankle skirts, tennis shoes, and elbow length plain shirts. The boys were all in jean pants, cowboy boots and button down tops. All of them were drenched in sweat. It had to of been in the 90s, and living in the south with our humidity 90 feels well into the 100s.

He kept 'introducing' the growing crowd to his family, the woman and kids, and how if we repent we could find the joy and love we never knew about. Well there was no joy on that mother's face or her kids. They all looked miserable, and the poor kids I could tell wanted to get up and run around, most likely explore what all was going on.

Some point I left to go explore a few stalls and about an hour later I come back to see them pretty much in the same position but at least they were under a tent now. At some point another woman had made her way over to give the mother and kids some cups full of iced water. Big mistake x|..

She got over to the mother, and she was happily taking the water and thanking her for it and it was appreciated. The father then noticed what was going on and stormed over to them and jerked one of the bottles from her hand that she had been giving to one of the younger kids and shook it in front of the other woman's face telling her the only gifts his wife and kids need are the gifts that the lord offers them, that people shouldn't be trying to replace God by bestowing gifts that were unwanted. No idea, he was ranting pretty hard. His wife looked upset and at some point the cops came over which seemed to get him to quiet down. I think within the next hour he had packed all of them up and left.

I felt awful that he had his family out in that heat, it was obvious how miserable they all were and the mom almost looked like she was on the verge of crying when her husband yelled. The wife looked pretty young maybe mid or late twenties? There were two sets of twins, and the age range looked to be about 18 months to 8 years old.

That's awful! :o

[umsami]

I once had a group of students who covered everything except their eyes, and two of them worse glasses, so I was in the habit of recognizing them from eyes only, gait, height, and voice more than anything. We had an all-ladies party and I failed to recognize the same women (who turned out to be much younger than I'd assumed) because they were wearing heels, high fashion and contacts. One in particular was a stunner with waist-length curly hair - gorgeous! Her niqabs were always dark blue and a little worn, so imagine my surprise to see her wearing turquoise Jimmy Choo pumps and a small fortune in gold jewelry. Incidentally, this group loved the effect they made when they showed off their clothes and hair.

Yup, as a Muslim you'd be surprised at how label conscious and fabulously dressed some Saudi/Gulf women are under their abayas. Other Muslim Moms I know are basically in yoga pants or shorts underneath.

Want to know one of the secrets to determine just how funny a Muslim woman is? Check the eyebrows. The super fundies will have unibrows/unkept brows....and may/may not have other facial hair because waxing, threading, etc. is viewed as "haram" (forbidden). Though as many Muslim women have lots of facial hair, only the very super religious usually follow this. :)

[Geechee Girl]

Were I to follow the Muslim modesty standard, I'd want to wear fashions like these:

dianpelangi.com/look-book/

youtube.com/watch?v=tQQoe_LQxUQ

[ILoveJellybeans]

That's awful! :o

What a horrible, asshole of a man.

[paganhomeschooler]

Hmm. This week I saw a young women going into the library wearing a pale blue print dress that looked home made and covered her neck to wrists, to ankles. She also wore a stiff little bun cover (like a six-ounce portion cup), heavy black tights, and short black winter boots, all on an unseasonably warm day. We do have a number of Mennonite churches around, but I have no idea if she belongs to this group or if they have a particular dress code.

Sounds Mennonite-ish to me. They usually wear the bun covers, where Amish usually wear the full bonnets.

[Lisa]

Want to know one of the secrets to determine just how funny a Muslim woman is? Check the eyebrows. The super fundies will have unibrows/unkept brows....and may/may not have other facial hair because waxing, threading, etc. is viewed as "haram" (forbidden). Though as many Muslim women have lots of facial hair, only the very super religious usually follow this. :)

Oh, I always checked the eyebrows and makeup. Some of the women bleached and penciled, which made the brows shiny gold in certain light, but most of the women had flawless plucked or threaded brows and extremely careful eyeliner. Keep in mind these were women who chose to study abroad (in the U.S.) so probably not too fundy. The only student who left her (fairly thin) brows totally natural also wore the same tattered sneakers every day and sometimes pajamas under her hijab, which was hilarious to me and incomprehensible to the more fashionable ladies. She also grew up on a farm and would talk about all the hard work her mother did; this hard work was supervising servants, but hey.

I don't work at that school any more, but it was a really fun job and quite the eye-opener, especially when the assigned topic was male-female relations. I once had a class of grown-ass adults (25-30 years old) giggling, punching each other, and whining because I asked them to do a short journal on how their live would have been different if they'd been born another sex. The answers were... not thoughtful.

[December]

Sorry if this is the wrong place to ask (feel free to delete if it's too off-topic). I've got kind of a random question and didn't know where else to post it.

I recently moved from the East Coast to the Pacific Northwest. I'm familiar with seeing Amish people. Are there any similar religious groups in this region of the country? Are there perhaps other small religious groups that are parallel in their cultural separation from the mainstream population?

[church_of_dog]

Sorry if this is the wrong place to ask (feel free to delete if it's too off-topic). I've got kind of a random question and didn't know where else to post it.

I recently moved from the East Coast to the Pacific Northwest. I'm familiar with seeing Amish people. Are there any similar religious groups in this region of the country? Are there perhaps other small religious groups that are parallel in their cultural separation from the mainstream population?

I live in the rural transition zone between the PNW and regular ol' California-west. We have Mennonite families in the area. As far as I know there is no particular region where the Mennonites live or don't live, I think they're spread all over like most other groups are.

The ones that I know don't seem quite so separate as the stereotypical Amish -- I work in a library and I see them there often. I remember one family who used the inter-library loan system to request lots of old-fashioned children's books -- many from the 40s and 50s. I don't know if they also checked out current children's books or not (I only worked doing inter-library loans, not at the circulation desk).

They drive, so they don't stand out in that way. And in my area one of the biggest produce stands is, I believe, run by a Mennonite family. Of course the Amish also make/grow things to sell and interact in their community that way, so I guess that's not a difference.

Anyway, this is obviously not a complete answer and I hope others from the PNW will chime in. Just wanted to give you one perspective.

Welcome to the left coast!

[rosaline]

In regards to the PNW question, there are some FLDS or FLDS-like settlements on the Idaho-British Columbia border. Look up Winston Blackmore to find out more. Someone (maybe National Geographic?) did a documentary on him, his 20-something wives, and his over 100 children.

[3DMommy]

Took the kids to story time at the library this morning, more JWs sitting outside with a large poster. I didn't get a chance to read it.

We have playgroup with the Mormons again tomorrow, but they are fairly normal and in the 6 months we have been going I have seen nothing outside of regular stay at home moms with large familles.

[anniebgood]

Took the kids to story time at the library this morning, more JWs sitting outside with a large poster. I didn't get a chance to read it.

We have playgroup with the Mormons again tomorrow, but they are fairly normal and in the 6 months we have been going I have seen nothing outside of regular stay at home moms with large familles.

Must have missed it but why are the JW's outside with a poster? Recruiting?

[PennySycamore]

Must have missed it but why are the JW's outside with a poster? Recruiting?

My daughter and I saw some JW women at a table outside the Collierville, Tennessee Walmart recently. Maybe these women didn't want to bother a pregnant woman with a toddler, but we were't bothered at all.

[halcionne]

My daughter and I saw some JW women at a table outside the Collierville, Tennessee Walmart recently. Maybe these women didn't want to bother a pregnant woman with a toddler, but we were't bothered at all.

I saw a JW table set up outside a Walmart in Rohnert Park, California a week or so ago. My shopping pal didn't recognize their materials--they had Watchtowers laid out--and said she had seen them on her recent trip to Australia too. I don't remember for sure, but I want to say she said they used the same posterboard displays. What's with the new tactics, JWs? :think:

[Fascinated]

I saw a JW table set up outside a Walmart in Rohnert Park, California a week or so ago. My shopping pal didn't recognize their materials--they had Watchtowers laid out--and said she had seen them on her recent trip to Australia too. I don't remember for sure, but I want to say she said they used the same posterboard displays. What's with the new tactics, JWs? :think:

Saw the same setup in Toronto a couple of weeks ago.

[SoSoNosy]

My daughter and I saw some JW women at a table outside the Collierville, Tennessee Walmart recently. Maybe these women didn't want to bother a pregnant woman with a toddler, but we were't bothered at all.

Penny Sycamore, I live close to Collierville, in DeSoto County.

I live such a sheltered life, I guess. I am on a family girls' getaway trip in Nashville right now; we were in a country all-you-can-eat buffet place in Jackson yesterday, and a huge fundie family came in, the first I had encountered in years.

[FoxyMoxie]

JWs are now using posterboard/displays as their main evangelism method rather than actively hassling people. In London you'll often see them holding out Watchtowers silently.

[Vivi_music]

It was free museum day last week in my city, and I'm pretty sure I saw a fundie women visiting our museum. She didn't have tons of children, in fact, only two girls, but all of them were wearing long prairie dresses with aprons even! And head coverings. So I'm pretty certain they were fundies. I was surprised they were visiting without a male headship though.

The funny thing is, I have to wear an historical costume at work. It's a 18th century New France costume. Some visitors came to me and made some jokes like ''Well, THEY could work here'' or ''They fit in with the place''. Oh well... I smiled and didn't say anything but I thought it was pretty hilarious that casual visitors where snarking on the fundies.

[December]

JWs are now using posterboard/displays as their main evangelism method rather than actively hassling people. In London you'll often see them holding out Watchtowers silently.

JW's exploded my family member's doorbell a few years ago. They saw them inside, not answering, and just kept ringing for like 20+ mins. By the time they gave up, the doorbell was sparking and they had to replace it, because fire hazards. :angry-banghead:

[morri]

i was in S outh Africa for holiday recently. The whites in SA especially the afrikaans speakers are calvinistic or dutch reformed which near fundie lite in respevts of protestantism. ( tend to be quite entitled too) Anyway so I met a lot of happy clappish people. One stood oyt who was an interesting talking partner at first byt it turned out he (a software engineer not pastor) used every instance for proseltysing. not in the fire and brimstone kind but the wonders direction. i was talking about linguistics with him and he mentioned that recently he only read about church history and it slowly drifted in that direction telling about some religious person that was influenced by Martin Luther. Thats were he started with some story about a person who hadnt found god and was sailing through heavy seas and he found god and he got where he wanted to be through the grace of god. he had some other stories of people in life threatening situations that were saved by finding god apparently. The other people also picked up on this too. In the end it was annoying to speak to him because he always ended up bringing in some salcation story ...

[hotsoftlight]

JWs are now using posterboard/displays as their main evangelism method rather than actively hassling people. In London you'll often see them holding out Watchtowers silently.

I see this all the time in/around Philly train stations. I wasn't sure if it was a local thing or new JW policy.

(Also! First post! Long time lurker, brand new poster. Hi everyone!)

[SnazzyNazzy]

Our fundie (lites?) that lived down the street..moved. I will miss watching them walk their dog, wearing umpteen layers of clothes. I will NOT miss their dog, peeing all over my shrubs at the end of my driveway.