I can't read Hebrew or Greek and can't speak with authority about what chronology says
about 1914. Nevertheless, to me, it isn't necessary to have much of any knowledge to prove
that the Watchtower doesn't have the 'truth'. Why? Because of all the 'white crows' I've
encountered.
Suppose every expert in the world says that all crows are black. If I find one white crow
in existence, none of their authority means anything. All their PH.D's, all their money,
all their training, are overcome by one 'white crow' that overthrows their rule.
As a faithful Witness of many years, I tried desperately to eliminate every 'white crow'
I found. I firmly believed that men should run things - and that women were not equipped
for management. This all fell apart when I had to work with 'Peg' in accounting.
She ran her department better than most men I knew, wasn't 'bitchy' about it, and produced
solid results resulting in her just promotion. In my Watchtower designed understanding,
she stood out as a 'white crow' I couldn't argue about. Actually, the Bible isn't consistent
about these female abilities, anyway. The Watchtower never wants to admit that Deborah
was a judge, even if the Bible says so ( Judges 4:4)
And then we come to gays! I never knew anyone on a personal level who was gay,
probably because they were all in the closet during most of my working career. Then,
I found out that James ( who I had to work with sometimes) was gay.
What to do? Weren't homosexuals slavering sex addicts who suffered from alcoholism
and depression while spreading disease to young boys? Well, apparently not.
Actually, James was more punctual and reliable than the rest of his (straight) department.
He was slightly overweight, had no 'cute' mustache, paid a mortgage like the rest of us,
and was boringly ordinary. Over time, I simply gave up trying to rationalize why God would
even care enough to send fire and sulphur over his neighborhood. ( especially because they
seemed to have improved the property values!)
If a Witness can impress a 'worldly person' that he "has the Truth", why can't the principle
work in reverse? Why should the logic only work in one direction? Why can't a woman
impress me to think that women can manage or that gays can be ordinary?
For many decades, I couldn't fathom why many "serious" sins are always wrong.
Why does God care about blood, I asked. Because it's sacred , I was told.
Well, that's not an answer - because you still haven't explained why he thinks it
"sacred", in the first place.
And as to sex, I can see that strict standards were needed thruout human history
to protect vunerable women, but does that apply today? Is 'fornication' wrong
because it spreads disease and pregnancy? Would using a condom make it right, then?
Are some women better off as single moms? Do we need to worry about families
making more babies if we already have too many? Why is it wrong, in all cases and places?
I was given an image , from my Watchtower training, that sexually promiscuous people
were unhappy, deranged, twisted people who were among the dregs of society.
Were they really? I ran across a number of interviews with 'adult' film stars that seemed
to project something different - rational business women who happened to also like sex.
Some had very high IQs ( Asia Carerra) and could easily 'hold their own' in any intellectual
debate ( Nina Hartley - I had to remind myself what 'raison d'etre' means). More than
that - in unstaged outtakes, many of them seemed very happy(and undepressed!) with their
'jobs'!
Stereotypes come and go, negative and positive. I don't mean to gloss over obvious strains
within ever-adapting human culture. Yet, I've encountered too many 'white crows' over my
lifetime to permit me to think that the Watchtower's simple Model of Humanity is valid.
They're all chasing a model of "perfection" that has little to do with real life and the ability
of people to adapt and get along peacefully.
metatron