What is it with JW's and the Cross?

by FloridaPerry 33 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

  • Ding
    Ding

    It's a control issue, something the WTS uses to make JWs different than everyone else.

    It gives them the illusion that they have some sort of secret knowledge that the rest of the world lacks.

  • Open mind
    Open mind

    JWs: "The cross is a pagan, phallic symbol."

    Great. Wasn't Jesus' death supposed to be uber-humiliating and the ultimate sacrifice? Nothing quite as humiliating as being nailed to a Roman phallus. So what?

    om

  • Listener
    Listener

    The stake represents their burden that they must carry. To be able to defend this and some other beliefs makes them feel like a martyr.

  • Caminante
    Caminante

    JunkYardDog: the only placeswhere Let God Be True says that Jesus died on a cross are quotations from the Scripture, that are taken out from the American Standard Version (in the 1946 edition). On pages 42 and 43, in paragraph 13 it says about the "Jewish rabbis, priests and sectarian leaders" to have stirred up "the misguided Jewish people to cry for Jesus to be impaled on a tree." So before they released the New World Translation they used "tree" instead of "torture stake." The 1952 edition quotes the Emphatic Diaglott when citing Philippians 2:8 in one place, but in the body text it consistently uses the word "stake" or "torture stake" when referring to the instrument of Jesus' execution.

    As far as I know the cross has been replaced with the crux simplex to substantiate the fact that the cross, as a religious symbol, is of a pagan origin. Since most of the people believe that the cross as the symbol of Christendom was first chosen because of the fact that Jesus died on a cross, this was a pretty easy strategy to have a backing to their statement that Christendom is an apostate form of religion and to enforce future ex-Catholics to give up praying in front of a crucifix.

    So, as it is the case with many of the changes, this too was made to help gather converts to the organization and to reach growing numbers more efficiently.

  • OUTLAW
    OUTLAW

    JWs: "The cross is a pagan, phallic symbol.".....OM

    And..

    The WBT$ GB are a bunch of Dicks,Jehovah`s Witness`s follow with out Question..

    Thats "Real Phallic Worship"..

    ................... ...OUTLAW

  • Satanus
    Satanus

    The wt corp has made a religion out of straining out gnats and gulping down camels.

    S

  • Caminante
    Caminante

    Personally, the realization of the very belief of Jehovah's Witnesses that Jesus died on a tortuke stake, rather than on a cross, (in February 1, 1991, issue of the Watchtower magazine, the article "Agony on the Stake", part of the Greatest Man book) rang the bell that there might be something strange with the Witnesses. I was around 11 years old back then and it was, as far as I remember, my second personal encounter with a Witness publisher.

  • Farkel
    Farkel

    :What is it with JW's and the Cross?

    Our very own resident researcher emeritus Leolaia, wrote a scholarly piece on this very issue. I suggest you look her up in the Members section on this site and find that thread. No reason to discuss it further here. You'll find everything you need to know in that thread.

    The cross/stake issue is just another fantasy created by Rutherford to make his little pet Cult look "different" and therefore "right" from real scholars and Christians who at least got their facts on crucifixion instruments right. Rutherford knew that his worker bees were not capable of genuine research and would believe any line of bullshit he tossed at them in his rags and idiotic books.

    I would give you a list of all of his bullshit, but just don't have enough years of life left to discuss even half of it. I've written perhaps 500 articles on Rutherford's bullshit, and as far as I can guess, I'm only 3% done with that project.

    Farkel

  • OUTLAW
    OUTLAW
    I've written perhaps 500 articles on Rutherford's bullshit, and as far as I can guess,
    I'm only 3% done with that project.....Farkel

    ................. ...OUTLAW

  • JunkYardDog
    JunkYardDog

    Caminante; I'm looking over the 1946 edition of "let god be true " as I type and you are correct about pg 42 43 about jesus being hung on a tree. I'm also 100% sure this book also says that jesus died/ hung on a CROSS using the word Cross. I'm not sure which page. But I went over the 1946 and 52 book in detail with another x jw about 10 years ago. And it stuck in both of are minds about the reference to the cross . if I can sit through scaning this book again I'm 100% positive it said jesus died on a Cross. most liked at the end of the book. I could not forget something like the Cross reference and I'm sure I reread it a number if times to check the content.

Share this

Google+
Pinterest
Reddit