The Impact of Loaded Language

Jehovah’s Witnesses use loaded language to influence the behavior of the members. If you aren’t familiar with “loaded language”, here’s a brief definition:

"In rhetoric, loaded language (also known as loaded terms or emotive language) is wording that attempts to influence an audience by using appeal to emotion or stereotypes. Such wording is also known as high-inference language or language persuasive techniques. Loaded words and phrases have strong emotional implications and involve strongly positive or negative reactions beyond their literal meaning." (https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Loaded_language)

As I was watching the recent two-part series on Oxygen (https://www.oxygen.com/the-witnesses/the-witnesses-investigative-documentary-jehovahs-witnesses-oxygen), I heard phrases and words that evoked strong emotional responses within me. Some terms that I hadn’t thought about in years still carried the full weight of manipulation. I reacted viscerally to things that I don’t believe in anymore because this “loaded language” was embedded in me early in life.

Sometimes, we underestimate how powerful these phrases are. They can dredge up the FOG (Fear, Obligation, Guilt) that kept us submissive to the organization. Just think about the messages buried in these examples:

1. “Leave the matter in Jehovah’s hands” - This is a phrase commonly used on victims of injustice within the organization. The outward intent of this phrase is to reassure the victim that they will receive justice from God someday. The hidden message is that the victim needs to remain quiet and not seek justice on their own. They are made to feel that nothing they do will ever give them the satisfaction of seeing the scales of justice balanced by God Himself. So, they are strongly encouraged to keep quiet and wait for an unspecified amount of time for a Divine answer to their problem. It is a quieting technique that has squelched the voices of an untold number of victims of child sexual abuse, domestic violence, emotional abuse, and many other crimes. This loaded language has been responsible for keeping the organization out of the media glare for decades.

2. “Conduct yourself as a lesser one” - The organization puts a lot of emphasis on being humble, modest, and submissive to authority. To achieve this, members are told they should never seek credit for themselves or act as if anything they do can be credited to their own talents. Everything comes from God, through his organization. Therefore, no one can ever fully express their talent in a way that would bring attention to themselves. The result has been that many of us are unable to believe in ourselves and we definitely do not know how to take a compliment. Instead of acknowledging that we are unique, special, and talented, we brush off any words that make us feel like we can do something no one else can. This phrase, and others like it, crush our personality and robs us of the confidence to be ourselves.

When I started to examine my psychological state, I realized that there was a trail of loaded language stopping me from growing beyond who I was in the organization. The terminology I grew up with was designed to limit, subjugate, and press us into service to the organization. Even simple phrases like “the truth” silently communicate that we are only valid humans if we stick with the organization.

I watch for those old terms now. I look for the times when they pop up in my mind. Sure enough, many of my negative emotional states are due to these old messages echoing within me. It’s time to shed all of the loaded language that has shaped me to this point. It’s not an easy task but being aware of this manipulation is the bulk of the battle.

Watch for those old phrases in your mind. Think of the negative message buried within and find the alternative, true statement that matches your reality.