Ah!  New Light!  What dub worth his salt doesn't eagerly anticipate each District Assembly or Watchtower magazine to "glean" any "New Light" that might be presented?  Dubs live for change in their doctrines.  It is a big thing that keeps them going.

But what exactly, IS "New Light?"  Well, as I said some years ago in my Dub Glossary, "New Light" is defined thusly:  An old mistake has just been replaced by a newer mistake.

And that about sums it up.  While dubs do not want to face the obvious double-think when it comes to the concept of New Light, New Light(tm) is not about finally coming to an understanding of a Bible verse that was not hitherto understood at all.  It is about a CHANGE in doctrine.  In otherwords, it is a tacit admission that a former (and often harmful) doctrine was flat-out WRONG.

Each time New Light(tm) arrives from the mighty printing presses in Brooklyn and elsewhere, the Watchtower Society is admitting they were wrong on a previous viewpoint/doctrine.  Yet, they tout this as a BLESSING from Jehovah, who parsimoniously seems to hold back what he really wants to be believed from his Faithful and Discreet Slave CLASS until they are somehow "ready" to know this or that.

So then, New Light really means this:  "We lied.  But now we know the truth at last.  TRUST US."

Progressive doctrine is one of the few things that keeps dubs droning on and on.  They know what they believe is bullshit, and they live in hope that newer bullshit will change all the misery that is caused by the current bullshit.  They don't want to face the fact that it is ALL bullshit, and that their leaders are totally clueless and making-it-up-as-they-go.

That is a tragedy.  All the books produced this year and so eagerly anticipated by dubs at each District Assembly will end up as dust heaps in only a few years, and will even be regarded as "apostate" in the decades to come.  Yet the Watchtower presses will keep grinding out new books for eager dubs who hope that some day, just SOME DAY they won't be forced to believe bullshit anymore.

They will die disappointed.

Farkel

 

 

I get it! This means that Jehovah can't decide what to tell his name people, and even he keeps changing his mind (despite the Scripture that says Jehovah is the same yesterday, today and forever). Or that Jehovah refuses to tell his people the truth from the start. (You have fooled me Jehovah, so that I was fooled!)

Or it means Jehovah really has NOTHING to do with anything with this Watchtower publishing corporation or JW's as a whole.

Farkel-

Excellent rationale presented in a simple manner so that even Dubs can understand the hypocrisy and folly of their course of action.

Undoubtedly posts like these prove helpful to current Jehovah's Witnesses who are questioning the validity of their belief system, and also for ex-JW's who are seeking positive reinforcement that they made the right choice in leaving the religion cult.

Simply put, New Light 100% contradicts Old Light, so either the "Faithful & Discreet Slave" misinterpreted the message from God to be required to change it, or God changed his mind.

Which is it? When you present information like this in a very simple manner for many Dubs and they have no logical way to refute such absolute proof, they go into shutdown mode where they cover their ears and mumble "apostate" under their breath to convince themselves that their illusion reality is still the only correct one. 

Farkel,

The WTS has a dynamic duo of dogma.  Along with the concept of 'New Light', they have that delightful standard of not 'running ahead of Jehovah'. 

The 'New Light' is how they say, "We don't believe that anymore".  The 'running ahead of Jehovah' is how they say, "We don't believe that yet".  Or, with a bit more 'tude, "You might be right, but that isn't what we teach today, so shut the eff up and get back in line."

Those two concepts are how they convince the great unwashed crowd that they must accept what they teach now - not what they taught yesterday, not what they'll teach tomorrow.

I still can't believe I ever tolerated that crap.

So they're "tacking"? I thought they were just being tossed about by every wind of doctrine.

And the subtle point about this :

Is that most that accept that fail to recognize where the "some" got the information/proof that allowed them to "wrongly interpet".

Last I checked, the Time/NewsWeek/WashingtonPost// CNN news... (etc) never published predictions of armageddon, resurection of the prophets, or forcasted christ's presence... let alone required everyone to believe them, upon pain of disfellowshipping, shunning, everlasting purgatory... wait, the Witnesses don't believe in hell, so, again, what was the punishment for not believing? Sleep? Quiet, undisturbed sleep?

... i done forgot why i was ever worried about following this cult.... 

QUOTE:......Each time New Light(tm) arrives ..... the Watchtower Society is admitting they were wrong on a previous viewpoint/doctrine.  Yet, they tout this as a BLESSING from Jehovah, who parsimoniously seems to hold back what he really wants to be believed from his Faithful and Discreet Slave CLASS until they are somehow "ready" to know this or that.....

Well I guess thgats why its called NEW light...rather than MODIFIED light , INCREASED light or light focused into ABSOLUTE CLARITY. But we must all remember, we are all being sifted as wheat looking whether there are any fair weather Chriustians in there who will abandon the Lord when their personal expectations are disappointed, or their personal interpretations and understandings are demonstrtated in conflict with what the Lord says. (currently). The Lord wants absolutely obedient ones who love Him unconditionally like a loyal dog who adores a master who constantly kicks it.

On the subject of light and vision....Russells,  THE TIME IS AT HAND.... page 15:

QUOTE:.....We find that the end of the Gospel age, like the end of the Jewish age, is called a harvest ... that like that also, it is a period of forty years; and that upon the harvests of the ages the rays of prophetic testimony are specially concentrated, particularly upon the harvest of this age, where even all the light of the Jewish age--because of its typical character--converges in a glorious focus. In this light we may now distinctly see the stately steppings of our God, not only in the long vista of the ages past, but also in the present outworkings of his plan. And not only so, but according to his promise to show us things to come .... we see, with wonderful distinctness of vision, his wise policy for the blessing of all in the incoming Millennial age--even down to its glorious consummation .....

Meister. What kind of light and clarity is there BEYOND "gloriously focused" and "specially concentrated" light??

hmmmmm. . .Farkel,  do you suppose. . .?

The Holy Spirit(TM) coulda slipped up . . . again?

Just wunderin' . . .

ESTEE

Part of the thrill of "new light" is the demand placed upon JWs to unequivocally accept it, on pain of "death." For example, what was said in 1925 about the new "understanding" of Revelation 12. In the article "Birth of a Nation" the WTS said (bold added):

Looks so conciliatory, eh? So humble, so open-minded, so brotherly. But what happened? Some of the R&F took this advice and had their reservations. So Ruthlessford follows up a few months later (bold added):

Some things never change.

Craig

Edited by - onacruse on 25 January 2003 23:26:27