What does it mean in practical terms to " love your neighbor"?

by The Berean 16 Replies latest jw friends

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  mouthy

  isaacaustin

  I agree.My daughter that is free from the WT( I haveone still in unfortunatly)belongs to a Prespertyrian(sp?) church.is so busy helping others.
  taking oldsters shopping,Dr appoints; putting roofs on single parents houses,
  ( yes the women help also)she works so hard, I kidded her & said she should
  send her hours in to Brooklyn.she replied " No need Mother ,my boss told me it is
  my duty"Who she considered her boss? >>>>JESUS CHRIST...
  But is she happy doing it..SHE LOVES IT!!!Has forgiven me for bringing her up JW
  Thank goodness.....
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  isaacaustin

  Yeah, we do not hand in time slips for our works at my church either LOL
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  Quirky1

  I tried to love my neighbor but I got caught...
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  androb31

  That's one thing that helped me make my exit from the WT. I got to thinking, what if I came across someone homeless, hungry and in the pits of despair with no one to love them and the only thing I was willing to do is give them a washtowel and make them feel like more of a failure. Instead I could feed them, clothe them and let them know that someone cares and doesn't see them as a throw away. Something that small could change a persons life. I feel like to love your neighbor is to do for them what others are unwilling to do.
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  isaacaustin

  exactly anbrob...Like James said- to wish someone well who is in need does nothing...it is doing the filling that immediate need. The JWs say they are doing the greatest possilble work, they are not going out to fill those needs, they are instead giving another message ( a false one at that).
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  shopaholic

  Sometimes a smile and friendly hello or a sincere compliment will do. Other times its chopping vegetables for the stew being prepared for the homeless, giving a neighbor that doesn't have time to run to the store eggs to prepare breakfast or running a 5k to raise money for a cause. Its any act of sincere kindness.

  I was often counseled on my involvement with charity and community work. In addition to pioneering, and I was not a phantom pioneer, I would volunteer at various organizations. I was told, several times, that the time should be devoted to more hours in the ministry or helping those in the congregation and that the greatest community work was the preaching work. Ha...this one young boy whose school required mandatory community service tried to use the ministry to complete his assignment. He presented a letters form the elders and everything, the school did not except it.
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  iknowall558

  Helping others doesn't come with a schedule. I agree with all of the above. I used to say loudly, when I got the chance, that being a pioneer or elder or anything else with a title for that matter didn't make you more spiritual or stronger in the congregation or make you a Christian, or a better Christian than anyone else. The thing that really mattered was how you treated people. This was the loudest thing Jesus said and he amplified it by his actions. He helped everyone, no matter who they were, when he saw a need for it. What is the point of doing 100hrs every month, or doing a public talk every week of the year if you weren't treating your brother properly. I knew of people in my hall who were abruptly rejected by elders and pioneers when they needed some practical help. They were asked "Is there not someone else you can ask, someone who stays nearer you?" To me it was a complete waste of time what they were doing in the cong. Wouldn't it make your 'service' to God invalid. Wouldn't it cancel it out if someone needed some help and you were too busy pioneering or doing cong. duties to step in and offer the help. This was well before I left, but I didn't mind telling my fellow bros. and sis. my thoughts on this.

  These kindnesses and good works are done on a regular basis in the 'evil' churches of Babylon the Great. I was so impressed that what was being done and who was being helped in the community, was actually mentioned during the services in one of the churches I attended. The JWs have never done that. At the most you will get a summary in the mags. of the scripture that says.................."to do good ..(then they insert the dots to emphasise the END of the scripture.)............."especially to those in the faith". They will then go on to proudly relate how bros. and sis. have helped OTHER JWS in times of troubles, like floods, earthquakes etc, or how money has been donated for KINGDOM HALL funds. Everything is related to JWs and their particular projects.

  Do they actually help out secular groups ? Is anything printed in mags about this? Or is it another case of they do everything right and apply the example of Jesus but only within their own house?