A Family Decision

Fundamental to the spiritual health of any immigrant family is deciding which language the family will use to be "taught by Jehovah." (Isaiah 54:13) If a congregation that speaks the family's mother tongue is close by, the family may choose to support this congregation. On the other hand, they may choose to attend a congregation that speaks the dominant language of the country to which they have migrated. What factors will influence this decision?

Demetrios and Patroulla, who emigrated from Cyprus to England and raised five children there, explain what effected their decision:  "Initially, our family  attended the Greek-speaking congregation.  While this greatly assisted us parents, it proved to be a hindrance to the spiritual development of our children.  Although they had a basic understanding of the Greek language, they had difficulty with the finer points.  This became evident in their rather slow spiritual  development. As a family, we transferred to an English-speaking congregation, and the good results for our children were almost immediate.  they have been strengthened spiritually.  The decision to move was not an easy one, but in our case, it proved to be a wise one." 

The family  maintained a grasp of the parent's mother tongue and reaped rich rewards.  Their children comment:  "Having a knowledge of more than one language is an asset. Although English is our first language, we have found that our knowledge of Greek has made possible strong and close family relationships, especially  with our grandparents. It has also made us more sympathetic toward immigrants, and it gave us the confidence that we could learn another language.  So, when we grew older, our family moved to assist an Albanian-speaking congregation."

Christopher and Margarita also moved from Cyprus to England, and they raised  three children there.  They chose to support the Greek-speaking congregation. Their son, Nikos, who now serves as an elder in a Greek-speaking congregation recalls:  "We were encouraged to join  the newly formed Greek-speaking congregation. Our family viewed it as a theocratic
assignment."

Next time: Conclusion of: A Family Decision

From the Watchtower magazine, 2002