Chile and the flag: It's true!! Undeniable evidence!!

by ILoveTTATT 96 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  BluesBrother

  I have to disagree with this statement by Apogophos

  The JWs in Chile are choosing to respect the govermental laws, which after all is a command in the New Testament. They are not saluting the flag or making a pledge of allegiance, simply displaying it

  By specifically purchasing and erecting the flag on their building they are showing their allegance to the national government. How would the U S A Witnesses react if one of their number took to wearing a lapel pin of the national flag? It is seen as an act of patriotism , support for the nation. This is the Chilean National Day in celebration of the nation

  In Witness terms, these congregations have "the mark of the beast" . I would gueass that many of the cong. are unhappy with it. .

  (Edit : this assumes that things really are as they seem to be, I would like some verification - ideally )
• 

  Splash

  National flags are consistently referred to as idols in WT literature. Putting a flag in a KHall is akin to putting a statue of Buddha in there. They are both viewed as religious icons.

  "Flee from idolatry" and "Guard yourselves from idols" are the usual quoted verses.

  The WT praise early Christians for not sprinkling incense on an altar for Caesar, but would install the Roman colours in the temple.

  Splash
• 

  poopsiecakes

  Marking this topic and omg what a bunch of hypocrites they are. Let's review: it's a cult.
• 

  Simon

  Before Irlam congregation had it's own hall they rented (I think an old-folks hall).

  At Christmas time it was decorated and had a huge Xmas tree on stage. Visiting speakers always looked quite puzzled.

  Everyone was disappointed when it was taken down in Jan because it then looked so bare - you heard audible "awe" groans as people walked in.

  To chose to put a flag in a KH that the congregation owns simply to avoid handing over a few dollars goes against all their teachings - they would disfellowship individual members for doing this !
• 

  sir82

  It is remarked on this thread that each congregation's BOE makes the determination about whether to display the flag or not.

  Does this mean that COs and/or the branch have not provided any guidance at all on what to do? Maybe their guidance is "do what you want"? Or maybe their guidance is "don't display it" and the elders at these KHs, if found out, would face big problems?

  The only fact I can determine is that there are flags on display at 2 Kingdom Halls. But I can't tell if it is due to "rebellious" elders, or directions from the branch, or indifference from the branch, or what. And of cousrse I have no idea if the branch has coomunicated with the US HQ about the issue.
• 

  joe134cd

  I say bullocks about there is a difference between saluting the flag and displaying it. Taking that reasoning then it would be perfectly ok to display a flag out side my house just as long as I didn't Salut it. If I gave that as a reason at a JC they would DF me in a second. I have no doubt about it. If those photos are legitimate I sort of wonder if Brooklyn know about what's going on down south.
• 

  apostate tizzy

  Yeah Simon I remember that Xmas tree in ten corner of the stage in the community centre, they had service meeting on a Friday night aswell if I remember.

  didnt they use one of those folding screens doctors have for you getting changed behind, and place it around the tree one year at the meeting? To keep it kinda hidden, although you could still see the angel on the tree top above the screen.
• 

  joe134cd

  Dose anyone know the telephone number of the Chilean bethel. I want to hear it from the horses mouth.
• 

  Apognophos

  Taking that reasoning then it would be perfectly ok to display a flag out side my house just as long as I didn't Salut it. If I gave that as a reason at a JC they would DF me in a second. I have no doubt about it.

  Obviously that's different. This is a law that Chileans are expected to follow. Breaking this federal law results in a fine. So it's compliance with "Caesar" to display the flag. You are making an additional, spurious connection between compliance and patriotism when nobody in Chile would see it that way.
• 

  Balaamsass2

  I wonder how this JW would feel if she saw this post before she died?

  She stood her ground: A child’s conscience made America a better place

  September 13, 2014 12:00 AM

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  By the Editorial Board

  In 1935 when Lillian Gobitas Klose was in seventh grade in Minersville, Pa., she refused to recite the Pledge of Allegiance because she felt to do so would be a violation of her religious faith as a Jehovah’s Witness. Her brother also refused to recite the pledge, leading to the siblings’ expulsion from school and a legal battle that went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, twice.

  Ms. Klose died Aug. 22 at 90, but the impact of her courageous fight to uphold every American’s right not to be coerced into speech one doesn’t believe in is still with us. Because of a brave 12-year-old’s willingness to be ostracized and bullied for her beliefs, adherence to the First Amendment wins the day even during times when patriotism is at its most opportunistic.

  Though the Supreme Court initially ruled 8-1 in 1940 that compelling students to recite the pledge was not a violation of their free speech or religious freedom, the high court reversed itself with a 6-3 vote in 1943.

  Writing for the majority, Justice Robert H. Jackson summed up the controversy brilliantly: “If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion or other matters of opinion, or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein.”

  Ms. Klose was a smart, ordinary American who refused to accept second-class citizenship. Like Rosa Parks, the African-American seamstress who refused to give her seat on a segregated bus to a white man, Ms. Klose stood her ground in an earlier decade.

  Though she was not as famous as Rosa Parks, Ms. Klose proved by her act of conscience that the true American is usually the one who has the guts to insist on being treated the way the U.S. Constitution insists every citizen be treated