The other day I posted about talking to an elder. The link is here.
I decided to make a draft of what I would send to the elder. I don't think I will send it but I figured I'd post it here. It is a rather long read but I thought if my letter might be of help to some other person, than it was worth posting:
Dear Brother XXXXXX,
I appreciate your talking to me and trying to get me to come to the conclusion that you feel is correct. I understand how you feel and the import that you put on the message you are trying to push across. I know how your beliefs shape your life as well as your family and I can certainly appreciate it for that. Despite the years I spent as a Jehovah's Witness there was just too much that I noticed that would not allow me to continue giving discourses and preaching in good conscience. You said that there was nothing that could make you believe that it wasn't the Truth, and I have no intention to try to dissuade anybody from doing what they felt was right. All I'm trying to do is help you to understand why I've made the choices I have. They weren't made with any motive but to try to live according to what I felt was right. I don't claim to have all of the answers, but after carefully considering what the Watchtower offered I didn't see the Watchtower as being where I should go to find those answers.
When you, Brother XXXXXX, and I sat down in the library and had that discussion, you said to me that if you take one brick out of a house, the house will still stand. This was in reference to my issues with the dates that the Watchtower has derived from their use of the scriptures. While that is true, if you take enough bricks out of the house it begins to falter. I've noticed many bricks that have been removed from the foundation of the Watchtower that made me feel like it wasn't a sturdy foundation to find shelter in. Believe me, I looked within the Watchtower to try to find the answers for my issues but all of the answers seemed to be the Watchtower talking out of both sides of its mouth.
There is a Watchtower article from 1989 that says: “Only Jehovah's Witnesses, those of the anointed remnant and the 'great crowd', as a united organization under the protection of the Supreme Organizer, have any Scriptural hope of surviving the impending end of this doomed system dominated by Satan the Devil.” Another article from 2006 says: “Just as Noah and his God-fearing family were preserved in the ark, survival of individuals today depends on their faith and their loyal association with the earthly part of Jehovah's universal organization.” Lastly, an article from 1993 says “There are billions of people who do not know Jehovah. Many of them in ignorance practice things that God's Word shows to be wicked. If they persist in this course, they will be among those who perish during the great tribulation.”
I know many Jehovah's Witnesses, when questioned, would say that they don't believe that only Jehovah's Witnesses are going to survive Armageddon. However, the Watchtower contradicts that sentiment. You said it isn't our place as humans to judge anybody because only God can read hearts. It seems to me that the Watchtower has already done the judging by saying that if you aren't a Jehovah's Witness, you have no hope of surviving Armageddon. I cannot side with the viewpoint that someone is going to be judged based on not accepting a magazine or a book some person they had never seen before on some random Saturday morning was trying to give them.
To me it is an absurd notion to think that someone is going to be killed off for all eternity because their breakfast got interrupted and they didn't take your magazine. Not to mention all the people in the world who have no knowledge of Jehovah's Witnesses. Could you reasonably expect someone to give up their long-held beliefs because someone knocked on their door? Remember, many other Christian people feel the same way about their religion that you do about yours. That it is the Truth. Nothing will convince them otherwise. What about all of those Muslims or Hindu people that feel the same way about their god(s) that you do about yours? Yet, the Watchtower teaches that these ones will be destroyed. To me this does not seem fair and I can not agree with it.
You said to me that worldly people seem to be unloving. “The love of the greater number has cooled off,” is what you said. I don't think that's entirely true. As a Jehovah's Witness we are told to be wary of anybody deemed “worldly”. I think this gives us a skewed view of people. Instead of looking for the good, we are always on the lookout for the bad. What I've noticed among worldly people is that most are generally warmhearted and aren't anything to be afraid of. They aren't trying to stumble me. They are actually trying to build me up. Sure, there are bad people out there, but I have met mostly people who are good-natured.
In line with that thought, I don't think the world is as bad as the Watchtower makes it out to be. Because of the view that Jehovah's Witnesses are supposed to have about this period of time it again leads to a skewed view of things. You can look at bad things that are happening and assume that it must be the end. When you compare today with even 150 years ago. The American Civil War killed 600,000 people in this country. Things looked pretty bad. People probably wondered how much longer these terrible things would happen. When you look at the Black Death and the Crusades people then probably wondered the same thing. When you come right down to it things don't look so bleak now. Sure there have been bad things that have happened. We have the two World Wars. The fact is we have always had war. The situation in the Middle East currently? It is nothing new. It has been happening for thousands of years. Only the weapons have changed. With all that is supposedly bad, life expectancy is a lot longer. Technology is getting better and better. There have been amazing advancements in medicine. Even in this country, crime rates continue to go down.
When you look at today compared to hundreds of years ago, I don't think we are all that bad off. You can argue on the level of scale but when there are this many people and news can be transferred across the world instantly, it makes a difference in the way that bad news is presented. People don't want to hear good news. It's the bad news that sells. If I asked you if you would rather be alive with the conditions the way they are today or with the conditions the way they were a thousand years ago, I doubt you'd say you rather be living in the conditions of a thousand years ago.
This all goes back to the organization. The organization claims that God is using it today in the same way God used the Bible writers thousands of years ago to dispense God's thoughts. The Watchtower would want us to look at it in the same light as the Bible, that it is food from God. After all, they are both supposedly directed by God's spirit. Both the Bible and the Watchtower are written by imperfect men, but that's where the similarities end. The Bible is supposed to be a perfect book written by imperfect people. The Watchtower publications are imperfect and written by imperfect people. Why then, is it such a bad thing to be wary or skeptical of what we read in the Watchtower publications? Isn't a thorough examination of what we are being taught in order? After all, doesn't the Bible tell us to test it, to make sure it is accurate?
Of course, any mistake that the Watchtower writers make is brushed aside with the claim that they received “New Light”. I wonder how this is the case when the Watchtower publications flip-flops on certain doctrinal issues. Many instances of doctrinal flip-flops, while they may seem minor to you, set a precedent for the Watchtower. A few that come to mind are the Watchtower's views on if the people of Sodom and Gomorrah will be resurrected. There were many instances where the stance changed back and forth. They even changed their view twice within the same year! Then you have the “Higher Powers” from Romans 13. First they were the governments, then they were Jehovah and Jesus, then they were back to the governments again. First the separating of the sheep and goats takes place after the tribulation, then before it, then after it again. This does not fit the description of progressive light shining on Bible truths. Last of all, which is one of the worst, is the way the Society flip-flopped on which blood treatments were acceptable.
Many Jehovah's Witnesses suffered and died due to incorrect Watchtower views regarding medical treatment. Back during the beginning of the 20 th century, the Watchtower denounced vaccinations, saying they were unhealthy and even demonic. They even went as far as to say germs did not cause disease. Does that sound like something that God would direct the Watchtower to say? If God was really directing the organization, then why was he directing it to mislead the followers into thinking vaccinations were bad? What purpose would that serve?
When you look at blood transfusions and what is allowed/isn't allowed it doesn't seem to make any sense. Blood fractions are allowed whole, plasma, white/red blood cells, and platelets are not allowed but everything that makes up those parts of blood are allowed. To me that's like being told you aren't allowed to eat cake because you are diabetic but eating all the ingredients separately is okay. This is another instance where the Watchtower flip-flopped on. First it was allowed, then it wasn't, then it was again, then it wasn't.
When you really break it down, the reasoning seems quite flawed. For instance, looking at what makes up plasma it is 92% water, with the remaining 8% made up from Albumin, Immunoglobulins, fibrinogen and coagulation factors. So everything that is contained within the plasma is allowed, except plasma on its own.
Then there is the ban on white blood cells (also called Leukocytes). Only 3% of a bodies Leukocytes are contained in the blood system, with the other 97% being distributed throughout the body tissue. Organ transplants are allowed now, so a patient receiving one is actually receiving more leukocytes than with a blood transfusion. Not only that but a mother's breast milk contains as much as 12 times more leukocytes than found in a similar quantity of blood.
One of the reasons the Watchtower justifies their stance on blood is the benefits from abstaining from it. For instance, helping keep you safe from HIV. The only problem with that is that hemophilia preparation was the major cause of transfusion acquired AIDS. Yet, despite this, hemophilia preparation is on the Watchtower's acceptable list. I just can't see how you can justify that God is directing the organization and they are not able to see this. When you think of all the people that have suffered and died needlessly due to this, it is completely unacceptable.
The Watchtower would like to hold itself to a higher standard than institutions like the Roman Catholic Church. When they make changes they use it as an example as to why they are a false religion. Whenever the Watchtower does it though, they claim it is just because imperfect men are in charge. You don't have to look very far to find the hypocrisy. In June 1991, the Watchtower denounced the Catholic Church for having 24 organizations represented at the United Nations. This was true. The Catholic Church had 24 NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) maintained by the Catholic Church for the UN. However, at the same time as this article was being released, the Watchtower was applying to be an NGO with the UN in 1991. They were granted association in 1992. They didn't remove themselves as an NGO until 2001! How can you not see the blatant hypocrisy here? They denounce the RCC and then immediately apply for the same status with the UN. The Watchtower has been so keen on denouncing any sort of association with the UN, especially in the Revelation Grand Climax book, and then they go and put themselves right in with the UN. After all one of the criteria to gain NGO status is “that the NGO share the principles of the UN Charter”. To me, there is no excuse for this.
I'm sure you remember the situation in Malawi decades ago. Jehovah's Witnesses were not permitted to purchase an inexpensive political card due to their neutral stance. Nothing can justify the action the people took against the Witnesses. Many brothers and sisters were tortured and killed. They suffered greatly. The question we need to ask is, did they suffer needlessly?
At the same time that Witnesses were forbidden to hold a political card in Malawi, a comparable situation arose in Mexico. The Governing Body ruled in the complete opposite direction. In Mexico, military service was a requirement for young men. When they would complete their obligation they would receive a card, which was similar to the card in Malawi. The brothers who didn't go in for military service were persecuted and imprisoned. However, in complete contradiction of their position in Malawi, the Watchtower gave the Mexican brothers the option to bribe officials to obtain the card and thus be exempted from military service.
So the brothers in Mexico were permitted to illegally obtain a card to avoid persecution and continue in theocratic work while the brothers and sisters in Malawi were not permitted to legally obtain a card to avoid persecution and continue in theocratic work.
Another point that is unacceptable is the Watchtower's stance on helping to protect pedophiles. In most instances in cases of pedophilia, there will not be more than one witness to the event. Yet the Watchtower still requires at least two witnesses to take action. Otherwise, the elders are told to leave the matter in Jehovah's hands. Nowhere are they advised to contact the authorities instead of trying to settle the matter internally. This should be a matter for the law to come into play. As soon as accusations are made, the proper authorities who know how to handle these matters to deal with. Another despicable thing about it is the way the Watchtower attacks the Catholic Church for their sex abuse issues when the same thing is happening at the Kingdom Hall.
I don't know if you've heard of this but recently the Watchtower lost a lawsuit brought on by a woman named Candace Conti who was abused as a child. She originally did not ask for much money. She only wanted to make people aware of the current abuse issues within the Jehovah's Witness organization and to hope they would reform their policies. However, the jurors found the Watchtower unacceptably negligent in the matter and awarded her $28,000,000.
There are an abundance of abuse stories that have surfaced where quite a few took it to the elders and were told there was not enough evidence to do anything. When the abused would say they would go to the authorities about it, the elders threatened disfellowshipping. They feared it would bring reproach upon Jehovah's name to have these accounts out in the open. All the while these pedophiles are free to serve in positions of responsibility and trust with easy access to children. Wouldn't you say that makes the Kingdom Hall a predator paradise instead of a spiritual paradise?
All of these factors have caused me to rethink my views of the Watchtower and the organization. All of this in addition to the issue of dates and failed prophecies have caused me to not put my trust in this man-made organization. Not to mention all of the doctrines that I feel are not correct. Those are all side points when you realize that the Watchtower cannot be trusted. It has become apparent to me that the organization God would be using today would be a bringer of truth. The only things I've seen them bring is lies, deceit, and hypocrisy. I find it interesting to note that the baptismal questions for Jehovah's Witnesses make you pledge yourself to the organization at the same time you are pledging yourself to Jehovah, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. As if they were on the same level, when clearly I found out it isn't on the same level at all.
It has occurred to me that the organization that claims to have the Truth was not even dispensing truth. The truth is the truth, nothing can change that. If it isn't true, it isn't true. Half-truths don't count as truth. I've come across way too many half-truths in this organization to pledge myself to it. The Watchtower claims it is the truth, but when you go to investigate and get an outside opinion, they tell you not to, because it is dangerous. The truth will always shine through in the end. The truth should have nothing to fear. The truth stands up to scrutiny. It's apparent to me that the Watchtower could not pass this test of truth. What I've found has led me to believe that this is not God's organization.
Some Witnesses have said to me “Where else can you go to?” This question is just dodging the actual question: “Does the Watchtower provide truth?” That scripture where the apostles said “whom shall we go away to” was not in reference to an organization, but to Jesus. Jesus and the Watchtower are not the same. They do not meet the same requirements as laid out in the Bible.
In the end, I had to re-evaluate everything I've believed so far in my life. After all, if the Watchtower wasn't right, how do I know I wasn't wrong about everything else regarding the Bible and God? I've taken a hard look at the Bible without the rose-colored glasses of religious dogma and realized that it itself is not the infallible word of God, but the words of man. Through extensive study I've found things about the Bible that cause me to believe it is nothing more than an ordinary book. I believe those thoughts are a subject for another discussion entirely so I'll leave you with that.
Maybe you think I've been misled. You can think this all you want, but I've laid it out plainly for you. You can muster up excuses for everything I've listed and I've heard them all before. You said to me, “Mark my words, there will come a time...” I don't see that as anything but empty threats. You said I was burying my head in the sand. On the contrary, I feel I've dug my head out of the sand and without the mental shackles of the Watchtower I can see clearer than ever before. I'm sure you think without the hope that the Watchtower claims to provides that I can not have a fulfilling life. I think the opposite. Being free, I can enjoy life for what it is. After all, all of those brothers and sisters were promised they would never grow old in this system of things, and here we are decades later and nothing has changed. Slaving away for a salvation that has not come.
So, I'd like to reiterate that I appreciate your thoughts and concern about me. I understand where you are coming from and what you think this all means for me. I wish nothing but the best for you and your family as you continue to worship God in the way that you see fit. Thank you for your attention and for indulging my side of the story. I hope you have a great day!