Are mentally ill people possessed by demons? Watchtower view.

by ThomasCovenant 20 Replies latest watchtower medical

  • discoveringlife
    discoveringlife

    WTF!!!!???? That is exteremely offensive to read. My sister who is year older than I is mentally incapacitated since birth. She is not demon possesed. It makes me angry that it can even be suggested that she or persons like her might be. The watchtower has knowledge about NOTHING.

  • Nephilim
    Nephilim

    discoveringlife -

    They say 1 in 4 Americans has a dehibiliating disorder that will effect them GREATLY throughout their lives. 1 in 100 are skitzophrenic. 1 in 160 are autistic. Can you imagine how these people were treated in bible times?

    We think of depression and we have empathy for those who are afflicted yet one of the 7 deadly sins is "sloth"... Hmmmm..... I bet depression looks a lot like sloth.

    My point is the WBTS is just trying to be consistent with the bible which is completely outdated no matter how much they say it isn't.

    Having said that... they ARE bastards and you should do everything you can to bring the organization down! Rage against that machine!

  • Snoozy
    Snoozy

    I think they printed that info because in the 80's the demons were a big excuse for a lot of ills...

    We had kind of a demon frenzy for a while..the witnesses were even bringing it up in field service.

    I pulled this up to find a thread about demons as I just talked to my grown son and we were talking about dreams. He said he has demon dreams once in a while. I was shocked. I couldn't believe he still believed and feared them. I told him I was so sorry for allowing him to be taught those things. I myself refused to teach my kids about demons as I never could laccept their existence but apparently they heard it from other jw playmates and it stuck in their heads.

    Now how do I get it out of his head?

    We were laughing and joking about it but deep down inside I don't want him fearing things like that.

    What a nutty fruitcake religion. I can't believe I actually became one of them..

    My kids still talk about the Easter bunny my mom got them for Easter. Another witness had told them it was possed as it was a relic of pagan religion. They actually saw it late at night get down and hop around the room..then when I appeared it went back on it's little rocking chair..we had to get rid of it. They still swear that happened...

    Snoozy

  • pirata
    pirata

    The 53 quote is a bit old school with the 80s quotes tending to be more balanced.

    But if a JW had a mental illness in the 50s, not only would they have to contend with the illness themselves, they'd have the extra burden/fear of worrying that they were more likely to have demon problems. That can only further excaberate the mental illness.

  • GrandmaJones
    GrandmaJones

    This is another YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING kind of thread. Demons causing blindness and epilepsy? This is all anyone who is mentally ill needs.

    Let's question him/her to see if they are demonized!

    Wow. How can anyone believe this? Perhaps those who believe this kind of garbage should be carefully questioned. Perhaps they are demonized too.

    I have to say, I don't understand how the Watchtower can let this kind of thinking go on.

  • Violia
    Violia

    It is not just jws. Have you ever heard of deliverance ministeries? They do exorcisms. I saw one once. It was very frightening. They really believe in what they are doing.

    The last I recall about jws beliefs is they think it is easier for the demons to possess the mentally ill.

  • ProdigalSon
    ProdigalSon

    So what else is new, blaming EVERYTHING on demons? Does this mean I should call an exorcist for my friend with Down's Syndrome? Or my other friend with Asperger's?

    All this organization does is judge, judge, judge, but they don't know their asses from their elbows. If they were REALLY God's channel of communication, they would have nothing but love, empathy and compassion for EVERYONE, good, bad, sane or insane, homosexual or straight, even "apostate".

    Just as a side note, once again a lot of the blame falls squarely on the alleged "Word of God" that came out of the Roman Councils. That little story about Mary Magdalene having a Legion of demons....it also says she was a prostitute. Do you know of any guy, no matter how horny the dude might be, who's going to have sex with a prostitute while she's vomiting green bile, talking with several different deep raspy voices, and her head is spinning around like Linda Blair? I think I'll pass, thanks!

    The Gnostic Gospels say that "demons" are egos (same as Hindus, Buddhists, and others teach). Could that be why the Roman Church tried to destroy them all? Really, would "Satan" or demons even EXIST if there were no humans for them to manifest themselves through?

    I challenge any JW, or anyone else for that matter, to name one single incident (except for the allegory in the Bible) where Satan can be directly and unmistakably blamed for causing one ounce of suffering without a human being to do it through.

    ~PS

  • Terry
    Terry

    The actual "process" of possession by demons goes undefined--as it well should since nobody can explain what it consists of in actuality.

    The demon exists in some real way, it is supposed. Consequently, it must have dimension. (Height, width, depth, weight, etc.)

    Yet, the demon-possessed man in the NT had a Legion of such parasites "inside". How small were these evil spirits, anyway? Molecular?

    Apparently, the possessed person is like a Roach Motel: the demons check in but they can't check out! Jesus drove the spirits into pig and those spirits didn't just up and leave. They were driven to cause porkicide in drowing the pig for escape!!

    It is silly, of course, wrong-headed, superstitious and just plain weird that a Post-Enlightenment educated modern citizen of our planet can be persuaded to accept these notions and embrace them as feasible!

    But, they do!

    Why?

    There is a foundational acceptance of bible-based pronouncements as ABOVE skeptical analysis.

    In other words, there is no doorman at the entrance of a believer's brain demanding credentials, proof, verification and such.

    Anything purported to come from Scripture can board the airplane of a believer's consciousness and blow it up willy-nilly.

  • smiddy
    smiddy

    This subject fascinated me when I was in 20 odd yrs ago.When the watchtower publications were referring to places like africa or 3rd world countries ,then the emphasis was on demon possesion,with people who were experincing problems.however when people were experincing mental problems in 1st world(,such as the western world), countries they had mental disorders that could be attributed to physical problems.This is with the knowledge we have today,what medical knowledge did they have in the 1st century compared with todays knowledge of mental illness?So how could anyone say that a person was demon possesed,and not merely have a physical condition that may give that impression to impressionable minds.

    smiddy

  • VIII
    VIII

    Unbelieveable.

    The first WT quote Blondie put up is from 2003!!!

    How can someone read this and not burst into laughter during the Sunday meeting? (then get mad, especially if you or a family member are affected?)

    VIII going to put my Turkey in the oven hoping the demons get baked

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