by LovingLifeNow 38 Replies latest jw friends
2+2=5 12 hours ago
If your dad doesn't have a beard, you've got two mums.
Maybe so but then again, you haven't met my Mum. (If she'd shave once in awhile, stop wearing those awful black dresses and quit smoking those cheap cigars, she'd be a nice lookin' woman.)
Could you really imagine that any of those famous Israelites could comprehend that the god of Abraham would condemn facial hair. American corporate image has precedence over natural facial features.
A few weeks ago my JW father-in-law-took me by my beard and said loud "What is this?".
Despite I have a beard for 3 years, there was some frustration, I think. It had to be told.
I answered his question with "It's a beard".
G.
That's the basic example of the fallacy of moving the goalposts.
JW: not-p because x.
non-JW: not-x; therefore, p.
JW: not-p because y.
non-JW: not-y; therefore, p.
JW: not-p because z.
non-JW: not-z; therefore, p.
No matter what you say, your opponent will think of another (unreasonable) objection. Eventually, it will end with this argument:
JW: not-p because Governing Body said so in one of the publications.
On the other hand, here is what I can say, and this is a syllogism which by definition necessarily leads to the true conclusion:
1) Beards are appropriate for Jehovah's Witnesses in countries where they are accepted by the general population.
2) Beards are accepted in both the USA and Canada by the general population of those countries.
3) Beards are appropriate for Jehovah's Witnesses in both the USA and Canada.
The above is an example of deductive reasoning. You cannot deny the conclusion unless you can challenge one of the premises. Jehovah's Witnesses have to accept both premises (premise #1 is even printed in their magazines) because they are true, but they still refuse to acknowledge that the conclusion is true. This is wrong, irrational and illogical.
So... how do you debate someone who doesn't want to obey the rules of logic? You don't. You let them win and think they're smarter. Having that said, I myself will have to work on listening to my own advice...
Suppose it really depends if it's sported by a woman....
The only way this will become a non-issue is if one of the governing body members started wearing a beard. It can happen. Anything is possible at this point.
It's interesting how often the 'beard thing' comes up on exJW boards. With all the other scandals, erroneous doctrines, and other non-scriptural traditions, the beard subject draws more ire than any other two subjects together.
And the reason is: the 'beard rule' is a microcosm of the WTS/JWs. We've latched on to this seemingly innocent thing because it demonstrates the authoritarian rule of the WTS over it's members. One cannot dictate to oneself this simple grooming choice. It has to be made for you. The same for your entertainment choices. Your celebrations. Even your level of education.
When you're inside the religion, and allowing them to control your thinking and actions, you don't think about it. But as soon as you exert your freedom, this one minor thing sticks out as a huge signal that something is wrong with the ruling body of this group.
StuckInARut2 » Great video. I've watched the video twice and wondered, if people shaved to keep even one person from stumbling, what if telling people to shave causes people to stumble?
Also, in the August 15 Watchtower 1954, where Jesus is clean shaven on the torture stake, behold, not only was Jesus clean shaven, check out the other guys. The one destined for Paradise, pictured on Jesus' right, also was beardless while the other criminal, the one who mocked, wore a beard.
The evil criminal also had body hair, and Jesus shaved under his arms.
It makes me wonder what would happen if people just began ignoring the policy (maybe after watching this video). What would they do? What could they do? Revoke privileges?
Imagine a policy based on one organizational leader trying to discredit his predecessor. It's almost Marxist in its simplicity! Was it accompanied by banning Russell's writings? Why not just eliminate people with beards?
