Ok, I have talked to many people on this forum and have decided that I do want to formally dissasociate myself from this org. I don't want my name to be associated with an org. like this and inactive is just not good enough for me. I do have family inside, but I have talked to the ones that count to me (my mom and sisters) and they fell I need to do what I need to do. The rest of my family were never really close to me anyway and treated me like a black sheep, so i could give a rats ass if they chose to shun me. Anyway, I've never written or seen a disasociation letter before and have no idea what it is supposed to say. But, I have made a guess and have produced a first draft. I'm posting it and would appreciate any help to be offered. thank you
Jehovah’s Witnesses teach as a matter of truth, many things and have many rules channel of communication with mankind today and that they are the only acceptable religion and that if a person does not belong to their organization they have no means of salvation. I no longer believe that and have taken objection to many of their teachings, rules, attitudes and behaviors. My objections are presented here in this document. I will state now that my problem is not with the Bible and the information contained therein, it is with the teachings of the Watchtower Society.
First of all, I would like to tell a little bit about myself. I was raised around the organization from birth. I was baptized at the age of 16. I became inactive at the age of 17 and have been so ever since. I am now 22. The teachings of the Watchtower Society have been very deeply instilled in me from as far back as I can remember and I have never really questioned them till now. But now that I have, I am realizing just how wrong a lot of their teachings are. And I am by no means saying that I don’t believe everything that they teach. I do recognize them for teaching some things and upholding some standards that other religions don’t. But the inconsistencies that I have found are disturbing enough for me to no longer wish to be associated with this group.
My first issue is with the idea that the WTS has the power to run almost every aspect of its member’s lives. Dress, speech, thinking, beliefs, attitudes and other aspects of the individual’s lives are all dictated by the WTS. They say that this is based on scriptures like Ephesians 4:4-6 which states, “One body there is, and one spirit, even as you were called in the one hope to which you were called; one God and Father of all persons, who is over all and through all and in all.” Now the WTS takes the saying “one faith” to mean that everyone must believe the same thing with regards to every little detail about one’s thoughts, actions, speech, dress, beliefs and other aspects of members lives. While in reality, this scripture is referring to our faith in Jesus Christ as our savior, not in following a set of rules from an organization. The WTS does not take into account the fact that we are given a mind and a conscience with which we are supposed to use to make the decisions that the WTS makes for us.
The WTS also uses the scripture at 1 Corinthians 1:10, but in reality, that scripture is referring to the sects and divisions that were occurring in the early Christian congregation. They also use scriptures like 2 Corinthians 13:11, Philippians 2:2, Romans 16:17, Ephesians 4:3 and Romans 15:5. Now, there are only a few things that we need to be in agreement with, and that is in the acceptance of Jesus Christ as our savior. It does not mean that we have to be clones of one another. Jesus condemned the scribes and Pharisees of his day for making their way of worship more about their rules and regulations than about the people they were supposed to be helping. That is what the WTS has become to me. While trying to make everyone the same, they have created many laws out of things that are supposed to be left up to the individual to decide. They have taken away our freedom of choice and our right to decide over matters that are left up to interpretation. Serving God and following Jesus’ example does not mean handing over your freedom of choice to a group of self appointed mediators.
My second issue with the WTS is with the idea that they are the only acceptable religion, and that all others are false. They say that since other religions do not have the whole truth, only partial truth, they are unacceptable. They exclude themselves from the same standard of judgment, though. That is just too hypocritical to me and totally unacceptable. They claim that Jehovah sends them new light with regards to their teachings. They have also said that new light will never contradict old light; that it will only add to it. But, their light not only continually contradicts itself; it just plain blinks off at times. And then they have the nerve to say that they are spirit directed prophets (and yet when asked, they also say that they are not inspired, that only the Bible is inspired of God). With regards to being a prophet, the Bible says that a true prophet can be identified by whether or not its predictions come true. The WTS’ evidence undeniably shows that none of their predictions have come true (for instance, 1914, 1925, and 1975, to name a few). This makes them a false prophet. And the fact that none of their predictions have come true shows that they are not spirit directed. And then, once they make these false predictions that get their members’ hopes up, they say that the members read too much into the printed material when the hope was not realized, instead of taking the blame for making these false predictions.
My next issue is with the current baptismal questions. Below I have what the question used to be along with what they are now.
Aug. 1, 1966 Watchtower (p. 465)
(1) Have you recognized yourself before Jehovah God as a sinner who needs salvation, and have you acknowledged to him that this salvation precedes from him, the Father, through his Son Jesus Christ?
(2) On the basis of this faith in God and in his provision for salvation, have you dedicated yourself unreservedly to God to do his will henceforth as he reveals it to you through Jesus Christ and through the Bible under the enlightening power of the holy spirit?
The May 15, 1970 (p. 309) and May 1, 1973 (p. 280) issues printed slightly revised vows. The newest baptismal questions were set forth in the June 1, 1985 (p. 30) Watchtower:
(1) On the basis of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, have you repented of your sins and dedicated yourself to Jehovah to do his will?
(2) Do you understand that your dedication and baptism identify you as one of Jehovah's Witnesses in association with God's spirit-directed organization?
Now, I don’t have a problem with the first question so much as with the second question. The WTS has completely taken the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit out of the baptism. They have, in fact, put themselves in that place and put themselves on the same level as those three. They have taken Jesus out of the picture and replaced him with themselves as our savior and mediator. Now this just does not settle well with me and I am ashamed that I was baptized under such questions. It makes me feel like I was baptized to an organization instead of to God.
My next problem has to do with how people within the organization are “taught” not to read or research any books or publications having to do with the Bible that the WTS did not write. The WTS tells members that they have already done the research so we don’t need to. They tell us that they are apostate works and that we would be considered as an apostate if we read them. They tell us that we shouldn’t even study the Bible by itself (or without one of their publications). And they say that this is all for our own good, that the “truth” that we had learned would be corrupted and we would fall into darkness. A logical mind might say that if the WTS really teaches the truth, then it wouldn’t mater what a person read, the truth would still be able to stand, especially when just reading the Bible. But such is not the case with the WTS. They don’t like to be questioned, even though the Bible says we should question everything. The WTS knows that if their “truth” is held up against the light, it will be seen for what it really is; a bunch of lies and twisted scriptures.
At this time I would like to add just how glad I am that the Internet is making information about the WTS available to all who want to know the real truth about this organization. It allows individuals the opportunity to find out things away from the prying eyes of the Society. I plan on encouraging everyone I come across to go and do their own research about what is contained in the Bible and about the WTS. And that they should also come to their own conclusions about Jehovah and Jesus and what is expected of us, instead of blindly following a group of imperfect, uninspired men who care more about their power and pride than the people that God has entrusted them to lead. They have become like the scribes and the Pharisees Jesus condemned because of how they ran the religion and treated the people. Likewise, the WTS has lost the true meaning of being a Christian.
Now this brings me to my next point, and that is on my belief that an organized religion is essential towards salvation. I do not believe that it is, and in fact do believe it is one of the main tools that Satan uses to trap people and to keep them in the dark with regards the real truth that leads to salvation. The WTS is like that, in the since that they have taken Jesus, our true means of salvation, out of the picture for millions of its followers and put themselves in the position. They say that they are our mediator and that we only receive benefits of the covenant with Jesus through them and that with out them there is no means of salvation. They teach a new gospel, one not taught in the Bible, and if one follows them they could very well find themselves unacceptable in the Day of Judgment.
Religion binds people to a set of laws, rules, and regulations. It may very well be that the founders of a religion may have had some good intentions, but almost inevitably, over time, the rules take over and the people don’t matter anymore. Jesus removed the curse of having a law from us. He taught that he was the fulfillment of the law and that the whole law could be summed up with two things: to love Jehovah with your whole heart, mind and soul, and to love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus taught that his yoke was kindly and that his load was light. He did not want his followers to be trapped in the same predicament as the Jews of his day. And as far as meeting together with our brothers and sisters, the Bible says that wherever two or three gather, there is where the Holy Spirit will be. Getting together with fellow Christians to praise, worship and study the Bible is all that is really required of us. So hence forth, I consider myself to be a nondenominational Christian. I no longer consider myself to be a part of anyone’s sect.
With regards to the rest of the items that I have taken issue with, I will go into them briefly. I believe that the WTS ban on blood transfusions is totally unscriptural. I disagree with how they handle cases of child abuse that come up within the congregation. I find it appalling that they charge the brothers in the local congregations interest on money loaned to them for kingdom halls. I think there is a lack of true love within the congregations from most of the members. I think the fact that they continue to teach certain doctrine in spite of new evidence to show that it is wrong is unconscionable (mainly with regards to the whole 607BCE thing and the year 1914 as being the year Christ was enthroned to name a few).
There are other problems that I have but I believe this letter presents enough of them to show why I feel that the WTS is a fraud and is by no means the one true religion. Even though I am aware that the WTS has its own definition for an apostate, I do not believe that I am one and will take it as slander if I am called one by the WTS or any of its members and I will threaten legal action right now if that occurs. Thank you for your time and I hope that some of this sheds a little light onto why I now feel the way that I do.
