Higher Education June 15th Watchtower 2011

by jwfacts 89 Replies latest watchtower bible

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  jwfacts

  Great comments everyone.

  There is no logic to the argument the Watchtower uses to support the policy against education. You can complete many bachelor degrees by 21, and then be in a better position to "serve Jehovah" and pioneer, as you will be able to work less hours for more money. Further, after marriage it will be more likely for an educated family to be able to survive off one income and have the partner pioneer.

  Watchtower, state it as it is - a person with an education is less likely to remain a Witness, as the development of critcal thinking skills leads people to see through shallow Watchtower reasoning, teachings, and black and white statements.
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  The Oracle

  Is this religion still alive?

  I thought it would have disentegrated by now.

  Evidently they still have some supporters.

  I couldn't resist checking in on this site to see if there was anything interesting posted.

  Thanks for the posts JWFacts.

  Not that I needed any confirmation that leaving this group a few years ago was the best decision of my life, but wow... are they ever INSANE!

  The Oracle
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  compound complex

  I've been in touch with high school friends and Googled others with whom I had otherwise lost contact. Among them are a physicist, a botanist, a teacher now retired from a prestigious school back East [USA], and two nationally- and internationally-known entertainers.

  I got to tell a Bethel audience 42 years ago how I left college to serve Jehovah and preach the Good News before the end.

  Google me and find poetry ...

  So much for self esteem and financial security....

  CC
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  Lunatic Faith

  Watchtower, state it as it is - a person with an education is less likely to remain a Witness, as the development of critcal thinking skills leads people to see through shallow Watchtower

  reasoning, teachings, and black and white statements.

  You have just hit the proverbial nail on the head! That is exactly why, and once you realize that it becomes so much more apparent what a cult they really are.
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  Spade

  In spite of the Watchtower Society's admonition to put spiritual goals ahead of material ones, the vast majority of publishers in my congregation make good money and some are wealthy. I do live in the River Oaks/ Rice University area but all of the congregations I've been associated with were financially solvent. They didn't get that way because the baptized publishers were undereducated. The rumor that Jehovah's Witnesses don't pursue higher education is a myth.
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  DanaBug

  The rumor that Jehovah's Witnesses don't pursue higher education is a myth.

  No one said JWs don't pursue higher education. They are discouraged from doing so, so most of them don't some do. I just did a quick comparison on the ARDA website between JWs, UUs, Catholics, and American Baptists. JWs rank the lowest in 4 year college degrees of all the denominations they have data for. Don't believe me? Check it yourself. Source

  Demographics	American Baptist Churches in the USA	Catholic	Jehovah’s Witness	Unitarian (Universalist)
  Percent female	58.3%	54.2%	60.5%	58.5%
  Percent that are currently married	49.4%	57.3%	52.7%	52.1%
  Percent that have a B.A., B.S. or other 4-year college degree	13.4%	25.9%	7.9%	70.5%
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  sabastious

  The rumor that Jehovah's Witnesses don't pursue higher education is a myth.

  If it is then the Watchtower has a bunch of rebels on their hands.

  -Sab
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  WontLeave

  While I'd never seen any statistics, it didn't take me long to notice that everybody around me at the KH was an ignoramus, an idiot, and/or a broke-ass loser - with exception of a precious few who had achieved some kind of life before their indoctrination. You can bet someone raised a JW is a complete waste of oxygen.

  From what I've seen, there are just not many thinking, religious people among JWs. One of the many things college presses a student to do is think; not just blindly obey. They're taught how to research, how to (and not to - e.g. logical fallacies) argue for and against a subject, to think outside the confines of and expand on previous information, and to question and require proof before adopting a position. For a centralized, power-hungry cult, this is a path that can only lead away.

  Their education bashing is actually an intelligent move. While, granted, the congregations may be filled with mouth-breathing dropouts, at least there are butts in the seats. While their scant wallets may only donate a pittance, it's better than getting nothing from those who leave because their brains function properly. They're also "useful idiots" in increasing the membership.

  Born-in JWs are forbidden to think or read anything the WBTS didn't print, from infancy. Converts are generally idiots from similarly-stupid religions (evangelical "God hates fags" types), other apathetic born-ins (Catholics or geographical default religions), or those who had never given religion a second thought.

  This last group may have been put off by the pageantry of Catholicism, the hocus-pocus of the holy-roller tongue-speaking snake-handling "charismatic" religions, the mystical beliefs of immortal soul, trinity, transubstantiation, Hellfire, etc. The JWs present these folks with a pretty straight-forward religion by people in business attire rather than brocade robes and enormous hats.

  While this last group may be thinkers, they're rarely religious or spiritual. They really don't doubt what they're being told because they don't much care and never did. They're not Bereans and they don't fact-check what they're being told. They never knew some of what churches taught wasn't in the Bible until JWs came and showed them. Likewise, they'll never know some things JWs teach isn't in the Bible until someone shows them. But who's going to? One of their "friends" in the JWs? Hell no. Some other religious knock on the door?

  These are the ones the Bible parlor tricks JWs like to pull at the door work on:

  Q: Do you know God's name?

  A: No, I never thought about it.

  Q: Do you know what the "kingdom" we pray for is?

  A: No, I never thought about it.

  Q: Do you know what people in Heaven will do?

  A: No, I never thought about it.

  etc, ad nauseam...
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  Bungi Bill

  While in no way trying to deny that there was such a thing as "higher education" in the First Century A.D., a point needs clarifying about the use of the Greek language by early Christians.

  The New Testament was written in Common Greek (also known as"Koine" Greek) - NOT Classical Greek:

  - Classical Greek was the language of higher learning, with a structure specifically designed to develop the mind of its users (Imagine if the GB had been around in those times, they would have been terrified of the use of Classical Greek - can't having people's minds being expanded!)

  - Common Greek was the language used by the soldiers of Alexander the Great. Following the conquests of his armies in the Fourth Century BC, Common Greek became the International Language of the countries around the Eastern Mediterranean. Its use was retained for centuries afterwards: Firstly, long after the death of Alexander the Great, the entire Middle East west of the Euphrates River remained under the control of Greek-speaking rulers. Then later, when the Roman Empire was divided into its eastern and western parts, Greek was the language of the Eastern (or Byzantine) Empire.

  That is why the New Testament was written in Common Greek - and why earlier, the Old Testament had been translated into Common Greek (the "Septuagint" version of the scriptures).

  Bill.
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  St George of England

  DanaBug

  An interesting statistic on the link is 'Percent satisfied with personal life'.

  JW's 83%, the lowest. So much for JW's being happy and content while the rest of the world is in turmoil not knowing where to turn!

  George