Real vs. Imaginary Hatred

by Farkel 10 Replies latest jw friends

Farkel

These are some observations about genuine hatred and imaginary hatred as it exists in the ever-goofy mindset of the Watchtower Organization. Many thanks to JWD for getting me to think about this matter in yet another way.
Firstly, the evidence that JWs actually DO hate not only the deeds, but the people who commit deeds they deem wrong is abundant. There are many, many web pages dedicated to this subject, and dozens of WTS quotes to draw from. Furthermore, the conduct of JWs towards their "enemies" as well as their very own, show that they have been carefully taught to hate.
I'm using some of the thoughts and WTS quotes from the other thread on hate on this board, because they are are excellent and happen to help prove my argument:
*** w74 7/15 438 The Godly Qualities of Love and Hate ***
LOVE and hate. Can one possess these opposite qualities and still be pleasing to God? Yes, according to the Bible writer Amos.
He was inspired to command the ancient people of God, the nation of Israel: "Hate what is bad, and love what is good." (Amos 5:15)
No, according to the very Son of God: "You heard that it was said, 'you must love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' However, I say to you, Continue to love your enemies and to pray for those persecuting you, that you may prove yourselves sons of your Father who is in the heavens, since he makes the sun rise upon the wicked people and good and makes it rain upon righteous and unrighteous."
Furthermore, in Proverbs 25:21 it says, "if the one hating you is hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink. For coals are what you are raking together upon his head, and Jehovah himself will reward you."
Now, there are two important points here. Jesus was not quoting from a scripture that said to hate the deeds of an enemy, but a scripture that said to actually hate the enemy himself. To hate the PERSON as well as the deed. Nowhere in this 1974 article are scriptures offered that offset the society's claim about hating others and their deeds. Such offsetting scriptures are even found in the OT, as I've just shown from the one I cited in Proverbs. Secondly, if the words of Jesus directly contradict an ancient command found in the OT, which one should be binding upon Christians? Duh!
I also find it ironic that this article was written just ONE YEAR before the Good News dubs had been awaiting for about a hundred years was to come to pass. Instead of joy and relief though, the WTS is pushing HATE! Sigh.
This post would not be quite right until we quote You Know's favorite verse:
*** w74 7/15 442 The Godly Qualities of Love and Hate ***
THE GODLY QUALITY OF HATE
17 You have seen the benefit of godly love, but do you know how to hate? The Bible psalmist did, and said: "O you lovers of Jehovah, hate what is bad." Also, he said: "Do I not hate those who are intensely hating you, O Jehovah, and do I not feel a loathing for those revolting against you? With a complete hatred I do hate them. They have become to me real enemies." (Ps. 97:10; 139:21, 22) These very strong words are an expression of godly hate, and you too must have this quality to be pleasing to God.
There is a very revealing statement here. Did you catch it? To be pleasing to God you MUST have this HATE. Or by obviously implication, if you do NOT have this HATE you CANNOT be pleasing to God. (Where did Jesus say that, by the way?)
Secondly, this verse puts the nail in the WTS coffin with regards to requiring their members to hate people PERSONALLY, as opposed to merely hating their deeds.
*** w74 7/15 442 The Godly Qualities of Love and Hate ***
18 Hate causes a feeling of disgust to well up inside you. You loathe, abhor, despise the object of your hatred. The very thought of it makes you recoil.
Here it is not just good enough to HATE, but you must also get worked up over it, bursting a few veins in your neck and gritting your teeth a lot. Don't forget to DESPISE, too. This takes careful practice.
*** w74 7/15 442 The Godly Qualities of Love and Hate ***
19 Why not ask yourself how you personally feel about the things that are detestable to Jehovah? "There are six things that Jehovah does hate; yes, seven are things detestable to his soul: lofty eyes, a false tongue, and hands that are shedding innocent blood, a heart fabricating hurtful schemes, feet that are in a hurry to run to badness, a false witness that launches forth lies, and anyone sending forth contentions among brothers." (Prov. 6:16-19) Your reaction to these things is a measure of your godly hate.
Ok, fine. Let's take a look at what Jehovah hates, even though "Jehovah" was a bit confused about his hate list. ("Was it only six things that I hate, or was it seven?")
"lofty eyes" - Governing Body and WTS officials
"a false tongue" - Governing Body and WTS officials
"hands that are shedding innocent blood" - Governing body and blood, organ transplants and vaccination policies
"a heart fabricating hurtful schemes" - How about an article teaching people how to hate?
"feet that are in a hurry to run to badness" - replacing one false prophecy with another false prophecy
"a false witness that launches forth lies" - Any typical Watchtower publication fits perfectly here. The "Creation" book and "Divine Purpose" books are spectacular examples, though.
"anyone sending forth contentions among brothers" -how about teaching parents, spouses, children and friends to rat on those who have doubts and serious questions about their religion and religious leaders? How about enforcing shunning and HATE for members from their own brothers and close family members when they don't toe the Watchtower current party-line?
*** w74 7/15 442 The Godly Qualities of Love and Hate ***
20 Godly hatred never has as its object our Christian brothers, no matter how imperfect.
Lie. Ask Ray Franz and hundreds of thousands of others. The expression "no matter how imperfect" proves it to be a lie, because it implies "no-matter-what." Yet it takes just the smallest expression of doubt in the WTS to cause six million people to turn on that HATE and DESPING and all its evil consequences.
*** w74 7/15 443 The Godly Qualities of Love and Hate ***
21 Godly hatred is intolerant of what is evil. This does not mean that Christians use physical force to strike out against false religion or corrupt governments, for they realize that this is something God has reserved for himself.
Pity that. Only God gets to have all the fun.
*** w74 7/15 443
22...The godly quality of hate is a protection against wrongdoing and it helps us to continue walking in Jehovah's way. How genuine is our love and our hate? The value and worth of our whole life can be measured by our answer.
Hate is good! But make sure it is GENUINE, though!
Ok, we've covered how dubs are taught to hate. It is real and it is against PERSONS.
I have to reemphasize this: dub hate is GENUINE hate towards GENUINE people.
Now, we all know that WTS literature is full of statements that the entire world, all the governments, all the religions and all of the people personally HATE Jehovah's Witnesses. If they don't love God in the Watchtower way, they MUST hate God, and if they hate God, they MUST hate his people. Their religious leaders feel so strongly about this that they have bluntly stated that the entire world of non-dubs or six billion people are ALL going to turn on dubs because they HATE them.
So here's a little challenge to see if this extraordinary claim is true: ask the next ten people you meet if they personally hate Jehovah's Witnesses, not what they believe, but Jehovah's Witnesses as people. I've conducted my own formal little surveys, and about the worst thing I've heard people say is that dubs are arrogant, stubborn idiots. Even so, those people don't hate them. They feel sorry for them and think they are just lost souls.
I would be shocked, and I mean absolutely SHOCKED if you could even find 5 out of a hundred people who said they actually HATED all Jehovah's Witnesses. And even if that were true, it's still only 5 percent with 95 percent (sadly for them and their fantasies) left UN-hated!
Well, a dub would say, "it ain't over 'til its over. They COULD still turn on us?" To this I answer, "but WHY?" You guys aren't nearly the obnoxious muckrakers you were fifty years ago. All of the issues that caused you all the bad publicity aren't even issues anymore: you won your highly emotional battles or flag-saluting. You no longer forbid vaccinations, and you mostly permit blood transfusions. You don't run around any more with sound-cars blaring your hatred for Catholics and other mainstream religions. You don't picket Churches with your own brand of hate. You no longer scream all over your magazines what a snare and a racket religion is. You now even call yourself a religion. About the only thing you do that riles people is banging on their doors when they don't want to be bothered, and you don't even do that much of that anymore. In other words, you've become accepted as a small, slightly annoying little religion with goofy ideas. That's hardly enough to stir up a conspiracy of unanimous worldwide hatred against you.
In short, you MADE IT UP that the entire world "hates" you. It's all imaginary! It's all in your heads, and it AIN'T EVEN REAL!
Not only do you have imaginary hatred against you from other real humans, you have imaginary hatred supposedly coming from imaginary creatures! Yes! You do! Really! You call them "demons!" HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Imaginary hatred from real people and when that doesn't work, you've got imaginary hatred from imaginary creatures, who are all going to be killed by YOUR imaginary friend! This is a RIOT!
But back to reality: your hatred for all others and even for many of your own is REAL and you are forced to make it real or God will mess you up. That is scary.
Farkel
Francois

Essentially, in their worship of hatred and their recommendation of it, the WTB&TS obliges its followers to return to the Mosaic Law, ignoring Pauls letter to the Galatians. Which among other things states, "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified." "No flesh" seems very unambiguous to me.
Now also the Borg ignores even the clear message in Galatians that if you're going to practice EVEN ONE of the laws of Moses, you must obey them ALL or they avail you nothing...and cost you everything, to wit:
"For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them."
Thus like the false shepherd it is, the WTB&TS continues to load up the burdens on the backs of its people which they are unwilling even to budge with the tips of their fingers. Now it wants all JWs to learn to HATE. It's just unbelieveable! Utterly unbelieveable.
And here is what I always thought about that: Jesus said that his followers were to "become perfect as your father in heaven is perfect." That is, we were to become creature perfect, as He is deity perfect.
Well, in what way is that perfection to be understood? In my opinion, through this simple statement:
"God is Love."
In order for us to become creature perfect, to become like God in that manner, we would strive to become closer and closer to a perfect creature reflection of him, and he is best described as "LOVE."
I used to think the WTB&TS was just ignorant. Now I think they are evil, sinful, and iniquitous. On purpose.
Francoise
Jang

What you say is so true Farks ..... As cult members we were taught to hate those outside our group ..... it is interesting what Hoffer says in his book The True Believer abou how this works within this mindset.....
Note that he says that this mindset eventually become like the very image it focuses on - the recipient of the hatred
From THE TRUE BELIEVER by Hoffer
68
We do not usually look for allies when we love. Indeed, we often look on those who love with us as rivals and trespassers. But we always look for allies when we hate. It is understandable that we should look for others to side with us when we have a just grievance and crave to retaliate against those who wronged us. The puzzling thing is that when our hatred does not spring from a visible grievance and do not seem justified, the desire for allies becomes more pressing.
It is chiefly the unreasonable hatreds that drive us to merge with those who hate as we do, and it is this kind of hatred that serves as one of the most effective cementing agents. Whence come these unreasonable hatreds, and why their unifying effect? They are an expression of a desperate effort to suppress an awareness of our inadequacy, worthlessness, guilt and other shortcomings of the self. Self-contempt is here transmuted into hatred of others -- and there is a most determined and persistent effort to mask this switch. Obviously, the most effective way of doing this is to find others, as many as possible, who hate as we do. Here more than anywhere else we
need general consent, and much of our proselytizing consists perhaps in infecting others not with our brand of faith but with our particular brand of unreasonable hatred. Even in the case of a just grievance, our hatred comes less from a wrong done to us than from the consciousness of our helplessness, inadequacy and cowardice -- in other words from self-contempt. When we feel superior to our tormentors, we are likely to despise them, even pity them, but not hate them." That the relation between grievance and hatred is not simple and direct is also seen from the fact that the released hatred
is not always directed against those who wronged us. Often, when we are wronged by one person, we turn our hatred on a wholly unrelated person or group. Russians, bullied by Stalin's secret police, are easily inflamed against "capitalist warmongers"; Germans, aggrieved by the Versailles treaty, avenged themselves by exterminating Jews; Zulus, oppressed by Boers, butcher Hindus; white trash, exploited by Dixiecrats, lynch Negroes. Self-contempt produces in man "the most unjust and criminal passions imaginable, for he conceives a mortal hatred against that truth which blames him and convinces him of his faults.""
69
That hatred springs more from self-contempt than from a legitimate grievance is seen in the intimate connection between hatred and a guilty conscience. There is perhaps no surer way of infecting ourselves with virulent hatred toward a person than by doing him a grave injustice. That others have a just grievance against us is a more potent reason for hating them than that we have a just griev-
ance against them. We do not make people humble and meek when we show them their guilt and cause them to be ashamed of themselves. We are more likely to stir their arrogance and rouse in them a reckless aggressiveness. Self-righteousness is a loud din raised to drown the voice of guilt within us. There is a guilty conscience behind every brazen word and act and behind every manifestation of self-righteousness.
70
To wrong those we hate is to add fuel to our hatred. Conversely, to treat_an enemy with magnanimity is to blunt our hatred for him.
71
The most effective way to silence our guilty conscience is to convince ourselves and others that those we have sinned against are indeed depraved creatures, deserving every punishment, even extermination. We cannot pity those we have wronged, nor can we be indifferent toward them. We must hate and persecute them or else leave the door open to selfcontempt.
72
A sublime religion inevitably generates a strong feeling of guilt. There is an unavoidable contrast between loftiness of profession and imperfection of practice. And, as one would expect, the feeling of guilt promotes hate and brazenness. Thus it seems that the more sublime the faith the more virulent the hatred it breeds.
73
It is easier to hate an enemy with much good in him than one who is all bad. We cannot hate those we despise. The Japanese had an advantage over us in that they admired us more than we admired them. They could hate us more fervently than we could hate them. The Americans are poor haters in international affairs because of their innate feeling of superiority over all foreigners. An American's hatred for a fellow American (for Hoover or Roosevelt) is far more virulent than any antipathy he can work up against foreigners. It
is of interest that the backward South shows more xenophobia than the rest of the country. Should Americans begin to hate foreigners who wholeheartedly it will be an indication that they have lost confidence in their own way of life.
The undercurrent of admiration in hatred manifests itself in the inclination to imitate those we hate. Thus every mass movement shapes itself after its specific devil. Christianity at its height realized the image of the antichrist. The Jacobins practiced all the evils of the tyranny they had risen against. Soviet Russia is realizing the purest and most colossal example Of monopolistic capitalism. Hitler took the Protocols of the Wise Men of Zion for his guide and textbook: he followed them "down to the veriest detail."13
74
It seems that when we are oppressed by the knowledge of our worthlessness we do not see ourselves as lower than some and higher than others, but as lower than the lowest of mankind. We hate then the whole world, and we would pour our wrath upon the whole of creation. There is a deep reassurance for the frustrated in witnessing
the downfall of the fortunate and the disgrace of the righteous.
They see in a general downfall an approach to the brotherhood
of all. Chaos, like the grave, is a haven of equality. Their burning conviction that there must be a new life and a new order is fueled by the realization that the old will have to be razed to the ground before the new can be built. Their clamor for a millennium is shot through with a hatred for all that exists, and a craving for the end of the world.
75
Passionate hatred can give meaning and purpose to an empty life. Thus people haunted by the purposelessness of their lives try to find a new content not only by dedicating themselves to a holy cause but also by nursing a fanatical grievance. A mass movement offers them unlimited opportunities for both.
76
Whether it is true or not as Pascal says that "all men by nature hate each other," and that love and charity are only "a feint and a false image, for at bottom they are but hate,"" one cannot escape the impression that hatred is an all-pervading ingredient in the compounds and combinations of our inner life. All our enthusiasms, devotions, passions and hopes, when they decompose, release hatred. On the other hand it is possible to synthesize an enthusiasm, a devotion and a hope by activating hatred. Said Martin Luther: "When my heart is cold and I cannot pray as I should I scourge myself with the thought of the impiety and ingratitude of my enemies, the Pope and his accomplices and vermin, and Zwingli, so that my heart swells
with righteous indignation and hatred and I can say with warmth and vehemence: 'Holy be Thy Name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done!' And the hotter I grow the more ardent do my prayers become.""
77
Unity and self-sacrifice, of themselves, even when fostered by the most noble means, produce a facility for hating. Even when me league themselves mightily together to promote tolerance and peace on earth, they are likely to be violently intolerant toward those not of a like mind. The estrangement from the self, without which there can be neither selflessness nor a full assimilation of the individual into a compact whole, produces, as already mentioned," a proclivity for passionate attitudes, including passionate hatred. There are also other factors which favor the growth of hatred in an atmosphere of unity and selflessness. The act of selfdenial seems to co f n us the right to be harsh and merciless toward others. The impression somehow prevails that the true believer, particularly the religious individual, is a humble person. The truth is that the surrendering and humbling of the self breed pride and arrogance. The true believer is apt to see himself of the chosen, the salt of the earth the light of the world a prince disguised in meekness, who is destined to
inherit this earth and the kingdom of heaven, too 18. He who is not of his faith is evil; he who will not listen shall perish. There is also this: when we renounce the self and become part of a compact whole, we not only renounce personal advantage but are also rid of personal responsibility. There is no telling to what extremes of cruelty and ruthlessness a man will go when he is freed from the fears, hesitations, doubts and the vague stirrings of decency that go with individual judgment. When we lose our individual independence in the corporateness of a mass movement, we find a new freedom -- freedom to hate, bully, lie, torture, murder and betray without shame and remorse.
JanG
Flip

I used to think the WTB&TS was just ignorant. Now I think they are evil, sinful, and iniquitous. On purpose.

Francoise, maybe so, however in the real world, most would refer to the methods of WTBTS simply as corporate marketing. The likes of which are commonly found in virtually any political, commercial or religious enterprise.
No evidence of cosmic significance surrounding the WTBTS at all other than its own vitriolic foam. But the one undisputed fact is; the corporation has significant accumulated assets to protect and a possible cause for any iniquitousness.
Not that that’s a bad thing, hopefully the WTBTS will spend more time tending to their current financial accomplishments and feel less of a need to subject my siblings, who remain Jehovah’s Witness to misinformation for the WTBTS corporations financial sake.

Flip
esther

Francoise, you say "I used to think the WTB&TS was just ignorant. Now I think they are evil, sinful, and iniquitous. On purpose." While I tend to agree with you, it is possible that one reason for inculcating hatred for 'outsiders' is the basic desire to keep the JWs united. If they are not united, the control of the Watchtower Society might be weakened, and that would never do. Of course, this goal is also, IMHO, extremely evil, but since the average JW has been taught to believe that unity is of primary importance, they probably do not see it in that light.
Farkel, one proven way of uniting people is by supplying a mutual enemy. Let's face it, during a war, people who are bitter enemies normally will suddenly become allies and pull together when facing a common foe. So stirring up hatred against non-witnesses is a logical step for the WTBTS.
esther
Tina

Thanx Fark,another great read,hugs,Tina
Carl Sagan on balancing openness to new ideas with skeptical scrutiny...."if you are open to the point of gullibility and have not an ounce of skeptical sense,you cannot distinguish useful ideas from worthless ones."
ozziepost

G'day Esther,
one proven way of uniting people is by supplying a mutual enemy. Let's face it, during a war, people who are bitter enemies normally will suddenly become allies and pull together when facing a common foe. So stirring up hatred against non-witnesses is a logical step for the WTBTS.
This is absolutely true. The Witnesses, in claiming to be Christian, (or, rather "true Christians") have failed to take on board Jesus' words "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free"
Cheers,
Ozzie
Freedom is not having to wear a tie.
MacHislopp

Hello Farkel,
thanks for the post! Great I do agree with
your line of reasoning on this specific subjetct.
I'll keep it in the file for further reference.
Agape, J.C. MacHislopp
Farkel

bump
ziddina

Wheeee!
This looks like an interesting thread.
Another successful 'thread resurrection'....
Thanks, Farkel!

Real vs. Imaginary Hatred

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