They go to great lengths to prove them wrong. When most of what they write sounds childish to me. Why not dwelve deeply into the Catholic Church that has been around since the beginning of Christianity. Or the Babtist hell fire and brimstone teachings that are similar to the fear of the Islamic faith. It centers around the fear of death and eternal damnation. Better die killing someone or you will probably go to hell and suffer. To me those religions sound very scary.
Yet for some reason those don't seem to bother anyone.
But a religion that preaches peace and no war and a paradise earth where people can live without fear scares them to death.
Why is that?
2007-10-19 10:32:29 · 26 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
It's fascinating to meditate on the fact that few persons at the time knew the prophecies of the Hebrew Scriptures better than the Sadducees and Pharisees, especially related to the Messiah. Yet, they apparently were unable to help themselves from working to fulfill many of those prophecies and thus prove that Jesus was indeed the Christ, the Messiah.
Were Christ's enemies motivated by self-importance? Yes.
...(John 11:47-48) Consequently the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the Sanhedrin together and began to say: “What are we to do, because this man performs many signs? If we let him alone this way, they will all put faith in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.”
Were Christ's enemies motivated by some unseen force of evil? Yes.
...(John 8:42-44) Jesus said to them: “...Why is it you do not know what I am speaking? Because you cannot listen to my word. You are from your father the Devil, and you wish to do the desires of your father.
Yet, the bible makes it clear that at least some of those Jewish persecutors of Christ and Christianity actually had pure motives, misguided because they needed to learn the truth (see 1 Timothy 1:12-14). Jehovah's Witnesses hope that the enemies of God and Christ are merely misguided, and hope that these enemies recognize that true Christianity is about "good news" rather than arguments and attacks, or bitterness and venom.
It is true that Jehovah's Witnesses are not loved by everyone.
http://jw-media.org/newsroom/human_rights.htm
Some people hate Jehovah's Witnesses out of ignorance, or over some misunderstanding. A few may have had a bad personal experience with an individual who claimed to be a Jehovah's Witness, and prejudicially extended their animus to this entire Christian religion.
However, it seems that the majority of anti-Witness hatred is motivated by religious intolerance and bigotry. A few may even be motivated against their Christian worship by the unseen 'god of this system of things', Satan the Devil.
(2 Corinthians 4:4) the god of this system of things has blinded the minds of the unbelievers
Interestingly, such "hatred" should be expected by true Christians in this time of the end, and it actually helps identify Jehovah's Witnesses as Christ's true disciples:
(John 15:19) If you were part of the world, the world would be fond of what is its own. Now because you are no part of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, on this account the world hates you.
(Luke 6:22) Happy are you whenever men hate you, and whenever they exclude you and reproach you and cast out your name as wicked for the sake of the Son of man.
(1 Peter 4:4) Because you do not continue running with them in this course to the same low sink of debauchery, they are puzzled and go on speaking abusively of you.
(2 Timothy 4:3-5) For there will be a period of time when they will not put up with the healthful teaching, but, in accord with their own desires, they will accumulate teachers for themselves to have their ears tickled; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, whereas they will be turned aside to false stories. You, though, keep your senses in all things, suffer evil, do the work of an evangelizer, fully accomplish your ministry.
It seems signficant that the relatively small religion of Jehovah's Witnesses are the ones best known for their worldwide preaching work. Yet Jesus commanded that ALL who would call themselves "Christian" perform this public work:
(Matthew 28:19,20) Go therefore and make disciples of people of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy spirit, teaching them to observe all the things I have commanded you. And, look! I am with you all the days until the conclusion of the system of things.
Learn more:
http://watchtower.org/e/jt/index.htm
http://watchtower.org/e/20030301/article_01.htm
http://watchtower.org/e/20020401/article_01.htm
2007-10-19 16:33:38 · answer #1 · answered by achtung_heiss 7 · 4⤊ 4⤋
Because JWs predict many "profetic" eveniments, who all become false prophecies> 1874, 1878. 1881, 1910, 1914, 1918, 1925, 1940, 1975, XX century, 1914-last generation, abuzive medical interdiction, Jesus second secret comming in 1914, first resurrection in 1918, heawenly calling closed in 1935, second chance from ungodly people in millenium, etc.
Be careful!!!
1.The Holy Scripture, the Bible, is inspired by God and it is useful for our fulfillment: 2Timothy3:15-17; 1Corynthians 4:6. Any teaching, prophecy or conduct must be verified with the Bible, but, be careful, it can be misinterpreted: 2Peter 3:15.16; Apocalypse 22:18, 19.
2.The salvation from sin and death is achieved through grace, through faith: Ephesians 2:8, 9; Tit 3:5, in Christ‘s sacrifice: Romans 3:21-36; Lucas 221:41-44. Not by deeds, because then we would annul both Christ’s sacrifice and God’s grace, which is given on the grounds of the belief in this sacrifice and thus the reason of our salvation would not be the belief in Christ’s sacrifice: Galatians 5:4-6; Galatians 2:21 and also the grace would no longer be grace Romans 10:6. However, the good deeds that God has prepared for us to do, are indispensable because faith without deeds is void, dead; that is why we must show our faith through good deeds: Jacob 2:14-20. God’s Word teaches us that the payment for sin is death and not the sinner’s eternal torment: Romans 6:23. “The lake of fire” is a warning signal (and not a literal aspect) of the eternal punishment that awaits the lost ones: Apocalypse 20:14. This punishment is the eternal death, the eternal extinction, as it is so clearly shown: “The lake of fire is the second death.”
3.God loves every person and He commands all the people everywhere to repent: Acts of the Apostles 17:30; Romans 2:1-16. There is no possibility of salvation once a man dies unrepentant, that is why, out of true love for our neighbours, we must do our best to evangelize those who are lost: Matthew 24:14; Apocalypse 20:11-15. What would you say about a father who, before any of his children are even born, decides that he will kill the second and the third one, no matter what they could be, good or evil? There are a lot of Christians (Augustinians and Calvinists) who think that God has decided, in this way, the faith of billions of people. Does God wish the fall or the salvation of His children? The next verse shouldn’t be indifferent neither to an Augustinian, not to a Calvinist: “God, our Saviour, who wishes all the people to be saved and to see the truth: “1Timothy 2:3, 4. As we see, God wishes the salvation of all the people, but those who through their bad deeds reject this free grace, fall from grace and cannot be saved. That is why , when the Apostle Paul writes about our predestination we must bear in mind God’s wish shown to all people and by what and how we can enter in this predestination of salvation, which is a predestination as a group of believers and not of individuals: Romans 9:30-33. God didn’t create a man more sinful than another. He hasn’t arbitrarily decided one’s destiny, neither one’s fall, nor salvation, and this even before the individual’s birth: through repentance everybody can receive the grace! : Lucas 13:1-5.
John Takacs: 0748637001
2007-10-20 00:17:05 · answer #2 · answered by takacs i 1 · 1⤊ 5⤋
because no other religion separates families as effectively as the Jehovah's Witnesses.
I believe in my heart it's important for anyone considering becoming a Jehovah's "Witness to know from the outset there is a chance they may be separated from their children, grandchildren, siblings, mother or father, extended family, etc because of the practice of shunning of baptized members who choose to leave the faith.
That information isn't given as a disclaimer in the beginning of the studies, and I think if it were, very few people would choose that life.
JehovahB doesn't tell the whole truth. what a surprise. Let me make it clear for him if he's not aware of the rules of his own religion: If a baptized family member decides being a Witness is not for them and joins a church of "Christendom" such as.. anything else (Baptist, Catholic, Hindu, etc) they will be disfellowshipped and their family is instructed to not associate with them if they're old enough to live on their own.
People will say anything to defend the indefensible. How disgusting.
Since you asked.
2007-10-22 03:04:01 · answer #3 · answered by PediC 5 · 2⤊ 3⤋
Just remember, your belief in God is NOT a team sport. It's a one on one experience. We shouldn't worry about what someone else believes. Everything you do or say is between you and God - it always has been and always will be that way.
Most organized religions make little or no sense once you start studying them. They have flaws in their logic and contradict themselves (i.e., "Thou shalt not kill" , but "let's kill the enemy"). Nothing wrong with being Catholic or Jehovah's Witness or Muslim or Baptist or anything else just don't try to force everyone else into your belief system.
2007-10-19 10:55:09 · answer #4 · answered by mollyflan 6 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Many of the people that show the errant heresies of JWs also know and post about the idolatry of the church of Rome.
The either/or - paradise or second death is a mind control technique used by cults. This is do it our way or die!!
THIS is "fear" not just for self but every loved one of a JWs family. "Now if I just work hard enough." is the next line in thought?
Think about it!
2007-10-21 11:24:18 · answer #5 · answered by troll to troll 7 · 4⤊ 2⤋
That is only one of the religions that people try to prove wrong! Some people like to challenge all religions!
2007-10-19 10:37:54 · answer #6 · answered by Gerry 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
For the same reasons that Paul publicly stood up against the Judaizers of his day - they were even in the congregation trying to get converts circumcised and so obliged to keep the Mosaic Law. He wrote denunciations of them, saying they were perverting the gospel of Christ, leading people into bondage, and that they should be eternally condemned (Gal. 1) He even said he wished they'd go the whole way and emasculate themselves!
Why was Paul so vehement in his expose of such ones? Because they were wolves in sheep's clothing. They were a huge impediment to the spread of the gospel. They had their own take on the gospel, adding to it and thus nullifying it. The Watchtower Society (NOT the individual JWs who only believe what they are told by their leaders) adds to the gospel of salvation by listing extra requirements for salvation. To listen to the Wt.Soc is equivalent to listening to the Judaizers of the 1st century.
A false hope is no hope at all. Preaching peace, no war and a paradise earth is charming and one day God may bring that to pass, but THAT is NOT the gospel that will save us! Until JWs put all their faith in what Jesus did at Calvary to wash their sins away, they preach in vain. All their work is useless until they give Jesus the honor he is due, and that means bending their knees at HIS name, and no other's! We urge JWs to stop listening to men and to hear Jesus' command to come to HIM to have life. And it's only once people get roped in to the JWs that they begin to see the not-so-peaceful side of them - the great lengths the Wt.Soc goes to in denouncing all religions other than their own - the fear of not surviving Armageddon if you don't do what you're told and obey the leaders. That bothers me because it misrepresents my lovely Savior. That's why I write to point such things out, as well as with other supposedly Christian denominations.
2007-10-22 01:55:27 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 3⤋
If Nina and Unsilenced Lamb are so right in what they say then why do they desire to spread deceit and propaganda which are not true or twisted to suit themselves.
You can claim to be anything you like behind the secrecy of a keyboard. Those two are people with real serious vendettas rather than "Christian concern". They delight in trouble.
I view them as apostates rather than misled people.
In response to Pedi C's answer. The Jehovah's Witnesses do not shun their family who are not interested in the truth often the family hold away from the member who has become a Jehovah's Witness. My own mother said that to me when I became involved with Jehovah's Witnesses and I still enjoy and I am encouraged to visit my family. I try and set a good example to them and help them with any needs.
Since being with Witnesses I have drawn closer to my family even though my dad is no respecter as he has his own beliefs even if they are not entirely biblical but he is glad that I am living a good life and taking good care of myself.
My older brother and myself are the only witnesses and even though at first they were against us having home Bible studies we have since become closer to them and they have begun to respect our conduct and reasonings and why believe and practice certain things.
They respect more now than they did at the beginning that we have the right to not observe and celebrate certain events like Christmas and why we may not come to visit them especially during Christmas day. They know it is not them we are shunning but we are keeping our principles intact without the appearance of weakening. But we do see them many other times and we allow them the right to choose what they wish to do also. Most of the barriers originally were broken by our sowing the seeds of truth of our worship to Jehovah when the opportunity fitted. Solid scriptural reasonings made them see that we have good reasons to do what we do and even though they have never taken yet the steps themselves we have a good family bond.
We both observe the commandment in Acts 5:29
"We must obey God as ruler rather than men."
2007-10-22 01:33:10 · answer #8 · answered by jehovahboffin 1 · 2⤊ 3⤋
Actually I don't worry at all about what the Jehovah's Witnesses believe. In fact I only start to be concerned about what anyone believes when their beliefs have some sort of impact on my life.
2007-10-19 10:39:03 · answer #9 · answered by Maid Angela 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Why are Jehovah’s Witnesses persecuted and spoken against?
Jesus said: “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were part of the world, the world would be fond of what is its own. Now because you are no part of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, on this account the world hates you.” (John 15:18, 19; see also 1 Peter 4:3, 4.) The Bible shows that the whole world lies under Satan’s control; he is the principal instigator of the persecution.—1 John 5:19; Rev. 12:17.
Jesus also told his disciples: “You will be objects of hatred by all people on account of my name.” (Mark 13:13) The word “name” here means what Jesus officially is, the Messianic King. Persecution comes because Jehovah’s Witnesses put his commands ahead of those of any earthly ruler.
2007-10-19 10:39:51 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 12⤊ 2⤋