We love your passion, Seeker4. We're here to help in any way possible, although maybe we're a little slow. It's Sunday, you know!
I posted the following on the newspaper's website:
Jehovah's Witnesses hope they will attract members by building an attractive "church" or Kingdom Hall on a major thoroughfare because they sure can't attract people in any other way. Perhaps they think a spacious new building will make it appear that their religion is popular and successful and new members will come despite international negative press reports concerning their religion. How about their hypocritical stance regarding the United Nations, which they loudly condemn? For ten years they were accredited as an "associated NGO" with the UN's Dept. of Public Information (DPI) until 2001 when they were caught and quickly requested to be removed. Hence, the UN "disassociated" them from the DPI. This is a religion that is hemorrhaging members for other reasons as well. Their policies protect pedophiles. They refuse to change the requirement that all accusations of child abuse are to be brought to their Elders instead of directly to the authorities. It is their practice for elders to act as judges to determine guilt or innocence on the basis of victims providing two witnesses to the act of sexual child abuse. To top it all, JWs are proud that they have won 37 of their 46 U.S. Supreme Court cases, assuring all Americans freedom of speech and assembly. Yet, they deny former members their right of freedom of worship by refusing to allow them to leave the religion with dignity, should they come to disagree with the religion's practices or doctrines. JWs disfellowship and demand that dissent be punished by extreme shunning even by close family members. This religion is a dangerous cult that controls every aspect of its members' lives. A beautiful meeting hall doesn't necessarily reflect that the people meeting there have "beautiful" spiritual values based on love.
Barbara
