by The Rebel 26 Replies latest jw friends
How many so called facts have changed through out history? How many things are presented as facts on this forum that are still not 100% certain nor been observed?
Is it a fact that the sky is blue and the sun is yellow? Actually no the sky isn't blue and the sun is not yellow.
Here's what I think. Belief is an involuntary faculty. You can't force yourself to believe or unbelieve something. Our belief is dictated to us against our will, by compelling facts and evidence. If you see clear facts or evidence pointing to a particular conclusion, you can't help but believe the conclusion is true.
What a person can do - and what I believe JWs do - is enter into a state of denial and suppress the inconvenient beliefs that the facts suggest. So its not that they don't believe - it's that they're suppressing the belief. A person can pretend to them self that their suppressed belief is not true and pretend to believe the contrary. But deep down, they actually believe what the facts suggest. They're just not prepared to accept and embrace the suppressed belief because the implications of doing so are painful in some way.
For example, fear of missing out on paradise or being destroyed at Armageddon for disloyalty to Jehovah's organization; or maybe the pride that has built up from the egotistical notion of belonging to the only true religion, may motivate JWs to suppress their belief that their organization is wrong, when confronted with compelling facts and evidence.
This is why they experience cognitive dissonance and is the reason why the organization coaches JWs to practice self-censorship and avoid apostate sites and information critical of the organization. Because right up to the top level of the organization - especially at the top level of the organization - they already believe deep down, that many of their teachings are false and that Jesus didn't really choose the GB in 1919.
They already believe this but they are suppressing that inconvenient belief because of the unpleasant implications of accepting it. And it is precisely because they already believe it and are suppressing it, that they project their own efforts to suppress the belief unto the rank and file publishers by telling them not to visit apostate sites and not to think independently. They are projecting their own battle with cognitive dissonance unto the rank and file. They know there is compelling, irrefutable evidence on apostate sites that disprove the organization.
One of the more insightful articles on the subject:
Thanks TD, I like particularly the last paragraph of the Article :
" Skeptics must remember to always keep their eye on the goal. They must see the long view. They must attempt to win the war for rational beliefs, not to engage in a fight to the death over any one particular battle with any one particular individual or any one particular belief. Not only must skeptics’ methods and data be clean, direct, and unbiased, their demeanor and behavior must be as well."
Interesting 2nd post DJS.
But rather than go back to the first 85,000 years of human existence,I would like to answer why I believe the modern day witness does not accept facts.
My answer is that the modern day witness believes facts come from people who are very good at making speeches, and always wear a tie. Of course the presented " facts" have to then come from Watchtower publications or the Kingdom Hall, and further more the people that proclaim these "facts" need to speak nicely to us, and skake our hands whilst we lick there boots or should I say backside,ect,ect....
Anyway I have learnt we do not need to be exstemly intelligent to understand a fact. In fact on this broad in my opinion facts are usually presented by posters in one sentence rather than many long sentences that confuse, and are often as gibberish as listening to a Gibbon.
The Rebel.
p.s. Thanks for all the replys which I enjoyed reading.
Non-jws always lie.
ex-jws always lie.
jws always tell the truth.
Those facts are what jws live by.
I remember a brother who was burned in his car. Fortunately he did not die. He was in the car by himself. The fire marshal found that he had a lit cigarette in his mouth as he was putting gas into his car's tank....flame followed fumes up to his face.
The fire marshal came to me (I worked in that area of investigation) and asked why none of the brother's family or friends would accept their findings and that the car owner denied that he was smoking and that someone had flipped a lit cigarette at him...which was not supported by the scientific evidence...the only cigarette present has his saliva on it. The insurance company was going with the fire marshal's report and was not going to pay as the owner thought they should......................
Let me add, yes even jws lie when they say something bad about the elders or the GB. Right!
