Where sincerity, mercy, love predominated the witnesses at one time? Or Has it always been like it is today, corrupt, hypocritical, abuse of power, unloving? Just curious if it started out with good intentions and then like anything else as time goes on and it becomes too big for unqualified people to handle it, it all goes bad.
Was this ever a good religion to be in?
by whatistruth 27 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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brotherdan
Well in some ways it is a protection. They do teach good morals and values, and emphasize a good family life. Unfortunately the screw it all up with their policies. But I don't think that JWs were ALL bad.
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darth frosty
I say no due to the fact its built on twisted logic and protocals. It seems at the start to be a good thing. Like BD said they have good morals and values and emphasize family life...But they do this in a twisted and perverted way.
Yes they encourage good morals and values but its the reason and addendums that bog it down. You have to have morals because of a deathly fear they instill in you of dis-pleasing 'god' IMO this perverts genuine goodness for a show pony of self-righteousness. As far as family values go DF'ing dis-proves that.
All of their good ultimately is torn down and cast assunder due to the fact it is all linked to being plugged into the BORGanization. If you unplug you become a lonely 'hugh' with a sad choice in front of you: give up your freedom for a downgraded sense of self or have your freedom and lose all who are plugged in and conditioned by the BORG.
Of course there is also the fact of the very promises and beliefs they lure you in with (Christ already ruling, paradise coming, all of the wicked to be destroyed) are all LIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
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OnTheWayOut
They do teach good morals and values, and emphasize a good family life.
From the beginning, the International Bible Students/Jehovah's Witnesses were about Doomsday coming with a vengeance. They are still about that. So they implant fear in the members- fear that harms them. Way back in the day, their rules might have been less invasive on their private lives but they still had that fear implanted.
The actual good morals and values and good family life stuff that they preach could be acquired from virtually any religion and from many other sources like the Boy Scouts or The Lion's Club for that matter.
JW's are harmed to believe that good morals must include avoiding anything Watchtower says is wrong. Religion does that to a high degree with masturbation and premarital sex, but Watchtower does it to a ridiculously high degree with smoking tobacco and being entertained by violent sports (they deciding what 'violent' means) and a whole list of things like saying a toast and clinking glasses to pleasing your marital spouse certain ways.
I find no values in pressuring kids to feel the urge to flee from cupcakes brought to school on someone's birthday, thinking the person might be destroyed by Jehovah if they even licked the frosting. I find no value in looking down upon homosexuals because Paul was a homophobe, but for Watchtower to go beyond typical religion and tell people to shun them, that's no value at all.I severely disagree with Brother Dan that they emphasize a good family life. Oh, they emphasize their idea of one. But is avoiding all non-JW family on holidays and barely talking to them the rest of your time really good? Is skipping picnics and weddings in the family good? I don't even need to get to their treatment of DF'ed family to make my point, and if I did, I probably would go on and on about how that is destructive family values.
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leavingwt
Please read Jim Penton's book, Apocalpse Delayed.
IMHO, you can throw a dart at a list of religions and pick a superior one, 99 out of 100 throws.
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flipper
No. It's always been corrupt from the top down- just that now it's being revealed more
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Hadit
No. I too believe they have always been corrupt. An elite boys club of misogynistic men who pretend to be Gods.
I do not believe they promote family. They promote a 'Stepford Wives' type family. Men who reign, women who must service them while they have to shut up, and children who are required to be beaten and instilled with fear so that obey a man-made mind control cult.
Morals? What they call morals I call judgmental and hateful. There is not one ounce of love stemming from them. Not one.
Hadit
Added: This of course does not negate the fact that there are truly loving people within the congregations. I hope that they all wake up.
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GrandmaJones
Whether there was some good in it, it was crazy from the beginning. But at least at first, however crazy it was, you weren't disfellowshipped for not believing it all. That changed.
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Lady Lee
hmmm Nope Russell liked the young women but not his wife and Rutherford was a drunken slimeball. And it was all downhill from there
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shamus100
Jobie Nitwits are a great protection if you're requiring a god to tell you not to go out and murder, rape, or be a whore drug-addict loser.
Then, yes, I'll agree it is a great protection from, um, what am I saying? Get the hint? ** takes a shot of heroin, stabs the neighbour ** ;D