Not Their Fault?

by PSacramento 5 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  PSacramento

  A friend of mine say this, " If they had found the answers elsewhere, they wouldn't have turned to the JW's".

  I recall my Mother mentioning the samething to me when she became a JW, that they had the answers and that no one else did.

  Answers to questions that other religions just didn't have a "convincing" enought reply to.

  Of course I asked, "how do you know? have you asked and researched?"

  The answer typically comes back "well, er..yes..not really..or from what I was given by the WT..."

  I had very much of the same questions, perhaps more so, I just didn't take what the WT told me as "gospel" and researched it on my own, with the help of those more learned than I.

  I applied the same critical view to WT doctrine as the WT told me to apply to RCC or Protestantism or Buddhisim, etc and it the WT came up wanting.

  But, I REALLY had to search for it, really had to research it and I am NOT DONE YET !

  Is it the fault of the religions that people leave to join the WT and become JW's or does it fall on those leaving to truly find out what religion they are leaving and to what are they entering?

  I mean, we can't deny that fact that so many say that the WT has the answer to their questions when other religions don't, even if the answer is wrong.
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  JosephMalik

  Is it the fault of the religions that people leave to join the WT and become JW's or does it fall on those leaving to truly find out what religion they are leaving and to what are they entering?

  PSacramento,

  Both! This is a real problem with real consequences. Smarter is not always better. We can easily go from bad to worse. What should we do? Matt 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. 25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. 26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? 27 For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. We were not told to go after a religion by this man that we think we are serving. We were told to follow him. Are we doing that or are we depending on others or a religion full of assumptions and errors they are always correcting to tell us what to do and how?

  Joseph
  
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  Black Sheep

  The Watchtower is not the only cult that Christian ministers have to immunise their congregation against.

  In order to protect their congregation from all of the cults that may want to steal their members, they have to provide them with warning signs to look out for that could have their members asking awkward questions about their own teachings and activities.

  I am convinced that my family members that left Christian religions to become JWs did not understand the doctrine of the Trinity as taught by their churches. I think both they and their churches are at fault. Them for not clarifying things with their old ministers, and the churches/ministers for not teaching them enough about the Trinity for them not to be fooled by the faulty version that the WT pretends it can debunk.

  Cheers

  Chris
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  Narkissos

  Imo the basic problem is with the questions, not the answers.

  The WT rarely answers people's questions. People on their own do not ask so many questions actually, and hardly the kind of questions WT literature is full of. The WT suggests people questions which are designed to call for WT answers. And once you have accepted the WT question --made it yours as it were -- it is difficult to escape the WT answer. Many people can question an answer; fewer can question a question.

  It is basically the method of most catechisms, only used in a much more intensive and effective way.
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  thomas15

  I can say as a general rule of thumb, among Evangelical/Conservative/Fundamental groups, there is a feeling of frustration that there is a lack of knowledge and or interest in things such as theology, doctrine and basic Bible knowledge. It is mentioned that this lack of doctrine results in loosing members to cults. From my research on the matter, it seems that the popular attitude rests the blame of churches placing too much emphasis on "show" and not enough on teaching doctrine. Others says that todays Christians are lazy. Regardless of the reason, there is a real lack of sound Biblical teaching in even Bible churches today and this is why the JWs are able to maul "born agains" when they knock on their door.

  Personally, as an Evangelical I do not depend on my church to provide me with my religious education. This is my responsibility. It is nice to be associated with a church that places emphasis on doctrine and is a Bible based/Gospel preaching church but at the end of the day, only I will stand before God to make my accounting, not my church or pastor.

  One of many popular books out there that attempt to address this situation is by Chuck Colson The Faith: What Christians Believe, Why they Believe it, and why it matters. Good reading for those who are interested.
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  PSacramento

  Thanks for your views guys.

  An example that was used on my mother that she still brings up, the RCC use of Saints to Pary too and Parying to the Virgin Mary the "mother of God".

  None of that is biblical, the scriptures actually warn against it and the JW's showed my Mother how the RCC was the great "whore of Bablylon" because og how it perverts the teachings of God, they worship Idols ( the cross), they pray to others then God ( the saints and such), they keep Pagan holidays.

  All those things she addressed to the RCC local priest and he was unable to give a satisfactory answer, at least comapred to the JW's and their selected passages that showed that the RCC was in the wrong.

  In this case, I must say, the RCC failed my Mother and helped a cult take hold of her.