Hate Your Enemies!!

by JWD 14 Replies latest jw friends

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  Amazing

  This point was one of several milestones that led to my leaving the Watch Tower religion. The Society in the Watchtower magazine had published its rules to 'hate' apostates the same way as King David 'hated' the enemies of Jehovah.

  However, Jesus Christ overturned this provision and gave a new commandment at Matt 5:43-46, "You have heard that it was said, 'You shalL love your neighbor, and hate your enemy:' but I say unto you, love your enemies, and pray for them that persecute you; that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven: for he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust. For if you love them that love you, what reward have you? do not even the publicans do the same?"

  In Israel, when a Rabbi (which Jesus was called) says, "but I say to you" the Rabbi is essentially overturning a previous rule or teaching. So, the WTS is completely wrong, and they demonstrate their selfish approach to Scripture for the benefit of organizational policy over and above concern for truth and people. - Amazing
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  sf

  Hello there,

  I saved this thread; one of many that Norm has posted: >

  http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/forum/thread.asp?id=5038&site=3

  There is some real good "stuff" here, take a look.

  sKally
• 

  XJWBill

  When talking with Raymond Franz on the phone one time,he
  mentioned that he often felt the WT acted as if the NT had never been
  written. So much of their teaching was a step `back` to the OT era.

  Precisely! Once again, Ray hits the nail squarely on the head. Russell and Rutherford were both OT junkies--look back at Rutherford's writings. Just on and on and on about all these obscure OT types and antitypes, the Jonadabs, Aminadabs, the Shulammite Maiden, whoever THAT was. ("Dear Shulammite Maiden/So lovely and fair/Your spiritual virtues/Are many and rare"--used to be one of my favorite KH songs, but I'm not sure I ever had a clue who we were singing about!) Hell, Rutherford was so enamored of the OT mindset, he even named us Jehovah's Witnesses--as if Jesus was just not in the picture!

  It's not that the OT lacks value--but Christ came to raise men's thoughts to a more sublime level, as the quote from the Sermon on the Mount makes clear: love your enemies, do good to them who hurt you.

  Problem is, as Francois so well expresses it, JW's, Christians, other religionists, ALL of us are very prone to the universal human trait of wanting to boost our fragile egos by feeling superior to someone else, even without a good reason--and hate is such a delicious emotion!

  As a gay man, I've been on the receiving end of that phenomenon--very ugly.

  Godly hate? Well, as the song from "South Pacific" goes, "You've got to be carefully taught . . . ." But the teachers will have a LOT to answer for. Too bad the GB never gets to the end of the book and reads where "God is Love."

  Considering how ugly the whole human race is at one time or another, individually and collectively, I do wonder sometimes why God loves us at all. He must be Love incarnate--anybody else would have creamed us all by now!

  Bill

  "If we all loved one another as much as we say we love God, I reckon there wouldn't be as much meanness in the world as there is."--from the movie Resurrection (1979)
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  JWD

  The first step in dulling people`s consciences with regards to in-
  human attitudes is to demonize the object of the hatred.Thus the WT
  is constantly declaring how evil people are who leave the org.There
  can`t be a single good person who once was a JW and now rejects the
  teaching of the org. So, what happens to the psyche when they meet
  someone and find out they are really a decent person, but later on
  discover that they are a former Jehovah`s Witness. To find out the
  answer to that I tried to see what kind of a response I would get.
  After talking to a young bro. in his 20s for several days about
  the Bible and religion,I just mentioned in passing, `What would you
  think if I told you I was once a JW?`.We had developed very good
  repore up until then.He seemed relaxed and at the time I made the
  statement we were having a cup of coffee together. Well,that changed
  real fast! Suddenly he got this terrified look on his face,stood up
  pointed his finger at me and said,`Are you an apostate? Tell me right
  now, or I`m walking out of here!`. I asked him what difference it
  would make. Hadn`t we been having meaningful discussions? Hadn`t he
  even said that I was a decent person who seemed to know a lot about
  the Bible? So,why the change all of a sudden? He did stick around
  and eventually left the org.,but I`ll never forget his reaction.He
  had a major panic attack when the word `Apostate` crossed his mind
  and was ready to throw our relationship out the window. JWD
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  d0rkyd00d

  All I can say, is PRECISELY.

  "No cool quote yet. But i'll think of one soon."