Jehovah's Witnesses and the Media

by Spade 48 Replies latest watchtower scandals

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  Spade

  http://www.watchtower21.org/2011/01/jehovahs-witnesses-and-media.html

  At times, Jehovah's Witnesses are mentioned in the media in connection with a violent crime. People shouldn't always believe everything they read--especially, it seems, on the Internet. For one, there are more media outlets than ever online while the actual number of radio and TV stations has remained fairly consistent. The fact that a message can circulate from its point of origin or a circle of people to all corners of the worldwide network is the Net's greatest and most garish feature.
  
  An item of interest in some of these stories, is a person's religious affiliation in connection with a crime is only mentioned if they are or were one of Jehovah's Witnesses. If a Mormon, Scientologist or member of Christendom's churches for example commits a crime, their religion is not mentioned in the media with the exception of religious leaders of some importance. Jehovah's Organization forms a globally networked community of over 7 million members worldwide. That's the size of a large metropolitan area. The most recent crime statistics average 16,204 murders in the United States annually. That's 299 homicides per 7 million. NationMaster: Murders (most recent) by country United States: 16,204 Nation Master: Murders (per capita) statistics
  
  United States: 0.042802 per 1,000 people
  Using the media as means to collect data, this is far less than the number of Witnesses involved in violent crime annually. When it comes to stories that carry some truth about one of Jehovah's Witnesses, keep in mind that Kingdom Halls are public. While the vast majority of Jehovah's Witnesses are genuinely interested in advancing spiritually and living up to their name, some become members and bring problems into the congregation or later on develop problems. While there's nothing in Jehovah's Organization that incites violence, Jehovah's Witnesses have never stated the Christian congregation would be completely free from a potential criminal in their midst.
  
  g99 7/8 pp. 9-10 How to Maintain a Healthy Mental Outlook
  
  Nevertheless, TV programs that tout sexual themes are only part of the problem. Graphic depictions of violence are also common. Of particular concern are the damaging effects that violent TV programs and movies can have on young, impressionable minds. “When young children see somebody shot, stabbed, raped, brutalized, degraded, or murdered on TV,” says David Grossman, a retired army officer and expert on the psychology of killing, “to them it is as though it were actually happening.” Commenting on this same problem, The Journal of the American Medical Association said: “Up through ages 3 and 4 years, many children are unable to distinguish fact from fantasy in television programs and remain unable to do so despite adult coaching.” In other words, even though a parent may tell a child, ‘Those people didn’t really die; they were just pretending,’ a child’s mind still can’t tell the difference. To a young child, TV violence is very real.
  
  Summing up the impact of “media violence,” Time magazine said: “Few researchers bother any longer to dispute that bloodshed on TV and in the movies has an effect on the kids who witness it.” What kind of effect does it have? “Decades of violent entertainment have succeeded in altering the public’s perceptions and values,” says movie critic Michael Medved. He adds: “It is hardly a positive development for a society when it loses its ability to feel shock.” Little wonder that one writer said that taking a four-year-old to violent movies “is poison to [his] brain.”
  
  This, of course, does not mean that all television programs are bad. The same holds true for books, magazines, videos, computer games, and other forms of entertainment. Clearly, though, much that is called entertainment is inappropriate for those who desire to maintain a healthy mental outlook.
  Choose Entertainment Wisely
  
  Images transmitted to our mind through the eyes exert a powerful influence on our thoughts and actions. For example, if we were regularly to feed our mind on immoral entertainment, our resolve to obey the Bible’s command to “flee from fornication” could be weakened. (1 Corinthians 6:18) In like manner, if we enjoy entertainment that features “men who are practicing what is hurtful,” we could find it difficult to be “peaceable with all men.” (Psalm 141:4; Romans 12:18) To avoid this, we must avert our eyes from that which is “good-for-nothing.”—Psalm 101:3; Proverbs 4:25, 27.
  http://www.newsweek.com/2001/05/20/the-roots-of-evil.html
  
  In their search for the nature and roots of evil, scholars from fields as diverse as sociology, psychology, philosophy and theology have reached the conclusion that most people do have the capacity for horrific evil. They say: the traits of temperament and character from which evil springs are as common as flies on carrion. "The capacity for evil is a human universal," says psychiatrist Robert I. Simon, director of the program in Psychiatry and Law at Georgetown University School of Medicine. "There is a continuum of evil, of course, ranging from 'trivial evils' like cutting someone off in traffic, to greater evils like acts of prejudice, to massive evils like those perpetrated by serial sexual killers. But within us all are the roots of evil."
  
  Jehovah's Witnesses are not immune to this human universal. Murder has been touched on as obvious grounds for expulsion from the Christian congregation. King David, one of Jehovah's loyal servants had a man killed and later on repented. it-1 p. 590 David In desperation, David sent him back to the army with secret instructions to the commander Joab to have Uriah put in the front lines, where he would surely be killed. The scheme worked. Uriah died in battle, his widow observed the customary period of mourning, and then David married the widow before the townspeople were aware of her pregnancy.—2Sa 11:1-27. it-1 p. 788 Expelling
  
  Christian Congregation. Based on the principles of the Hebrew Scriptures, the Christian Greek Scriptures by command and precedent authorize expulsion, or disfellowshipping, from the Christian congregation. By exercising this God-given authority, the congregation keeps itself clean and in good standing before God. The apostle Paul, with the authority vested in him, ordered the expulsion of an incestuous fornicator who had taken his father’s wife. (1Co 5:5, 11, 13) He also exercised disfellowshipping authority against Hymenaeus and Alexander. (1Ti 1:19, 20) Diotrephes, however, was apparently trying to exercise disfellowshipping action wrongly.—3Jo 9, 10.
  
  Some of the offenses that could merit disfellowshipping from the Christian congregation are fornication, adultery, homosexuality, greed, extortion, thievery, lying, drunkenness, reviling, spiritism, murder, idolatry, apostasy, and the causing of divisions in the congregation. (1Co 5:9-13; 6:9, 10; Tit 3:10, 11; Re 21:8) Mercifully, one promoting a sect is warned a first and a second time before such disfellowshipping action is taken against him. In the Christian congregation, the principle enunciated in the Law applies, namely, that two or three witnesses must establish evidence against the accused one. (1Ti 5:19) Those who have been convicted of a practice of sin are reproved Scripturally before the “onlookers,” for example, those who testified concerning the sinful conduct, so that they too may all have a healthy fear of such sin.—1Ti 5:20
  
  Those who have been expelled may be received back into the congregation if they manifest sincere repentance. (2Co 2:5-8) This also is a protection to the congregation, preventing it from being overreached by Satan in swinging from condoning wron gdoing to the other extreme, becoming harsh and unforgiving.—2Co 2:10, 11.
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  FadingAway

  " An item of interest in some of these stories, is a person's religious affiliation in connection with a crime is only mentioned if they are or were one of Jehovah's Witnesses. If a Mormon, Scientologist or member of Christendom's churches for example commits a crime, their religion is not mentioned in the media with the exception of religious leaders of some importance that commit illegal crimes."

  Whatever....last year a 21 year old woman in my wife's congregation was found dead inside her home. The next week her cousin was charged with rape and murder. The following week, the woman's mother, who was active in the congregation, was charged as an accessory and also with incest as it was alleged she was having relations with her nephew. Stories I read about this made no mention of their affliation with Jehovah's Witnesses.
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  Soldier77

  After scanning through a bunch of blogs on this guy's site, I wanted to reach through the computer screen and strangle the $#!t out of this idiot. Then I calmed down and realized that this poor fool is just another lemming being mind-controlled by the WTS cult.

  R.I.P. lemming.
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  OUTLAW

  Spade/AliceInGlueLand..

  The WBT$/JW`s put the Spotlight on themselves at every opportunity.. Because.. They Think and Advertise.. They are so much Better than Everyone else.. When it`s pointed out they are not..The WBT$/JW`s get upset.. And.. Wonder why everyone is is looking at the Advertised Mess they Created.. If the WBT$ and JW`s would simply,"Shut-the-F*ck-Up".. No one would know they were there.. ........................ ...OUTLAW
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  Spade

  " The WBT$/JW`s put the Spotlight on themselves at every opportunity..

  Because.. They Think and Advertise.. They are so much Better than Everyone else.. When it`s pointed out they are not..The WBT$/JW`s get upset.. And.. Wonder why everyone is is looking at the Advertised Mess they Created..

  If the WBT$ and JW`s would simply,"Shut-the-F*ck-Up".. No one would know they were there.." ------------------------- Good grief man, you weren't born into a flemin pit of scum and forgotten by God. You'll need some credibility if you are to refute JWs. Do you have another account that doesn't specialize in ad-hominem attacks? Use that one and provide a logical, intelligent response. No one likes listening to a drunk when they're sober.
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  james_woods

  I think I am going to go have a quick little look at Spade's post history -
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  OUTLAW

  Spade/AliceInGlueLand.

  .

  Good grief man, you weren't born into a flemin pit of scum and forgotten by God.

  You'll need some credibility if you are to refute JWs. Do you have another account that doesn't specialize in ad-hominem attacks?

  Use that one and provide a logical, intelligent response. No one likes listening to a drunk when they're sober.....Spade/AliceInGlueLand

  So..

  You accuse me of Ad-Hominem Attacks..Using an Ad-Hominem Attack..

  ?..

  No one will Mistake you for Being Intelligent..

  

  ...................... ...OUTLAW
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  thetrueone

  They particularly didn't like the media attention of the pedophile law suits in the States !

  Its true the WTS has strongly protected the organization's public outward image, similar to other religious cults.

  Does anyone remember the lambasting they handed out when the media released information about the Catholic pedophile problem.

  The reason being that it spoils their self marketing agenda.

  Revealing the fact that they have similar problems just like the rest of Christendom tarnishes that

  forwarding image.
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  james_woods

  I think I am going to go have a quick little look at Spade's post history -

  OK, I did. It seems that Spade is a rather odd duck - he is a JW apologist who claims to not be a JW. Please see the other thread I put back to the top -
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  Spade

  "After scanning through a bunch of blogs on this guy's site, I wanted to reach through the computer screen and strangle the $#!t out of this idiot. Then I calmed down and realized that this poor fool is just another lemming being mind-controlled by the WTS cult.

  R.I.P. lemming."

  That weight you felt was the burden of proof. Do you have any?