Being Mislead and Deceived

by individuals wife 7 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  individuals wife

  I think these quotes give a good insight into the minds of the Societys publication writers - they are misleading people and are so deceitful AND THEY KNOW IT. Its no wonder the Org. do not want you to read anything except for Society books, if the JWs did then they would be caught out...

  Taken from the book 'The Jehovahs Witnesses' by Doug Harris - if you read this Doug - brilliant book! Really enjoying it!

  The WBTS wants us to believe that scholars approve and support its translation of the Bible. In a letter from the Society (London, 26 Sept. 1985) it gives a number of quotes to prove this. We list them below. The parts the Society left out are supplied in bold letters. The quotes are introduced in the letter as follows:

  'Finally, we felt it might be of some assistance to list a few comments by various scholars concerning the New World Translation particularly highlighting the competence of its translators:

  The translation has been endorsed by no less an authority than C H Dodd... Referring to 'the Word was a God' he states: 'If translation were a matter of substituting words, a possible translation of (John 1:1) would be, "The Word was a god". As a word-for-word translation it cannot be faulted...The reason why it is unacceptable is that it runs counter to the current of Johanine thought, and indeed of Christian thought as a whole.'
  (The Bible Translator, Jan 1997, Vol. 28)

  Samuel Haas said of the New World Translation, 'While this work indicates a great deal of effort and thought as well as considerable scholarship, it is to be regretted that religious bias was allowed to colour many passages.'
  (Journal of Biblical Literature, Dec 1955)

  Robert M McCoy said: 'In not a few instances the New World Translation contains passages which must be considered as "theological translations" ... John 8:58... On grammatical grounds alone... cannot be justified. It cannot be called a historical present, since the words are not narrative... The translation of the New Testament is evidence of the presence in the movement of scholars qualified to deal intelligently with the many problems of Biblical translation.'
  (Andover Newton Quarterly, 3,1963)

  Professor Bruce M Metzger:' On the whole one gains a tolerably good impression of the scholarly equipment of the translators (their names are not divulged)... Some of the translations which are simply indefensible... The introduction of the word "Jehovah" into the New Testament ... John 1:1... is not justified despite a lengthy note... the translators have not hesitated to insert four times the word "other" (totally without warrant from the Greek)... in Colossians 1:16.
  (The Bible Translator, Vol.15)

  Doesn't it make you angry when you realise how they have twisted other peoples words to make them sound as though they are saying something completely different. Surely this should be illegal?? It's certainly unethical.
• 

  waiting

  Howdy In Wife,

  Who is Doug Harris? I'm not familiar with this book - but it looks interesting.

  It's been brought out that the "..." tool of the WTBTS is brilliant in deceiving people.

  Like I could edit the above sentence to say: "...WTBTS is brilliant....." - and if I didn't state where I got the information (which is now the way the WTBTS does in Watchtower & Awake, there's little chance of being caught.

  Seems most of the time, the WTBTS says things like "Some scholar some where said that we're brilliant." And then they humbly lower their eyes.

  Thanks for the information. Where can the book be purchased?

  waiting
• 

  Thirdson

  I am sure it is unethical but the WTS has a different view of ethics when it comes to theocratic warefare. Reading WTS published quotes praising their translation is very similar to reading the distributor's advertisements for films. I don't think, "highly entertaining -- Chicago Tribune" means that the whole review by the Tribune critic actually recommends the movie. However, the film industry has got away with this for years but it took Sony to get in trouble recently by making up their own favorable review.

  The Watchtower writers are no better and in the area of religion and scholarly works you'd think they'd be more ethical. Unfortunately, the WTS has actually, on occasion, taken to quoting themselves for endorsement. How low is that?

  Thirdson

  'To avoid criticism, say nothing, do nothing, be nothing'
• 

  alliwannadoislive

  hi iw - thanks for this info - still writing my da letter and it all helps keep my fire going

  waiting - try this link to see the brit amazon page http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1899746137/qid=1006092026/sr=1-1/ref=sr_sp_re/202-4475263-6253419
• 

  ChimpGirl

  More evidence that it's a deeply apostate cult! The Borg do everything in their power to de-deify Jesus and minimise the power of his message - a one-to-one relationship with God.

  This dual morality of theirs really struck me as a Jdub kid. Whilst you wouldn't dream of deceiving or taking advantage of a fellow Jdub, all the rules were suspended when it came to dealing with worldly people. My father, an elder, would appropriate reams of paper etc from work as though it didn't count as stealing, but remained scrupulously honest in his dealings with other dubs. 'Christian' behaviour stopped at the door of the KH and didn't extend to the wider community. It's like they feel entitled to do what they want to screw whatever they want out of the 'evil old system', even if it involves clearly unChristian behaviour.

  I can't begin to imagine the arrogance it takes to deliberately mess with the message of the Bible by adding words and taking liberties with punctuation.
• 

  individuals wife

  Hi Waiting!

  Just a bit more information for you - the author Doug Harris is responsible for the Reachout Trust, a group which you will find out more about on http://www.reachouttrust.org/

  The book I am reading is called The Jehovahs Witnesses, Their Beliefs and Practices, by as I said, Doug Harris, and it is published by Gazelle Books, co-published with The Reachout Trust, ISBN no. 1899746137.

  Well worth reading!
• 

  Missie Eff

  Translation of the scriptures is something that I've always had a problem with. The WT say that Jehovah himself oversaw the translation of the scriptures through the ages (especially the New World), which is probably the biggest and most amoral self-endorsement the WT could have ever given to their translation!

  Digging out the "truth" behind a text would be difficult enough if we could read it in it's original form but trusting an interpretation of an interpretation of an interpretation (etc.) of a text, word for word (as is often done) is lunicy.

  Yep, just another means of control used by the Society: "do what we say 'cause it's written here in God's word (well actually we wrote it but we're not going to tell you that).
• 

  Celtic

  Why were a lot of their Bibles black, why did the 'standard' black Bible, (not the deluxe edition with gold gilted pages), have from cover to cover 1,666 pages? Coincidence? Who really is in charge of this organisation that refuses to allow you to have a relationship with the Lord Himself Jesus Christ? Why do all their publications, especially the Watchtower magazine use double speak, yes on the surface it seems to say the truth but its writings are a perverted twisting of the truth? Who really inspire's their teachings, can it be said that the organisation can handle real Truth when presented to them or do they disguise false prophecy in lies for money, power and corruption masked so well within the system of world affairs that not many know about their real agenda? Ever talked to a witness about real love and seen how unstuck they get on the subject?

  peace

  celtic