Do JW's Put More Faith in the Watchtower or in the Bible?

by Sour Grapes 25 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  Sour Grapes

  It just drives me crazy when the brothers giving the public

  talk on Sunday morning will say "the June 1, 1984 Watchtower

  on page 10 paragraph 6 says........" The Witnesses, in my

  estimation put more faith in the Watchtower than in God's

  Word. I have heard various ones talking about a subject when

  a question comes up. What I hear is "well what does the

  Watchtower say?" I don't hear "well what does the Bible say?"

  The Watchtower has ruined my sex life. The Bible says nothing

  forbidding oral sex, but the Watchtower does. My wife will quote

  the Watchtower articles to me how wrong it is. The Bible says

  nothing about blood transfusions, but the Watchtower does,

  with the results of thousands of Witnesses dieing needlessly.

  All of this just makes my brain bleed.

  Sour Grapes
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  megaflower

  They put more stock in the WT and other publications they print. The various tracts, booklets, and books. The bible comes in, hmm lets see---------- way down the list. In fact, I can recall many times when preparations where being made for field service the CO would tell the publishers to read a scripture from the bible, and to also tie it in with the latest magazines being offered. The magazines came first.
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  cantleave

  In elders meetings the bible is rarely used and then usually only as a theme scripture. ALL decisions are derived from the "Policy Files". Yiou could argue the letters in the policy files will have scriptural references but they are not the Bible. If you make a statement from the platform that is challenged by an elder he will ask - where did you get that information from? You will be expected to quote a reference from a piece of society literature. If you make a statement from a cutting edge, peer reviewed, scientific paper, but the watchtower does say it, you can't use it.

  The Watchtower is most definitely more important than the bible and trumps any other document or research paper.
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  OUTLAW

  When has a Jehovah`s Witness ever had a Bible Study?..

  Ever??..

  Jehovah`s Witness`s study WBT$ Literature,about the Bible..

  In Watchtower World..

  The Bible will always be 2nd,to WBT$ Literature..

  ..................... ...OUTLAW
• 

  LostGeneration

  It really is frustrating isn't it?

  Nothing about holidays...all banned

  Nothing about sex stuff...restrictions galore

  Nothing about education....strongly discouraged

  You already covered blood

  Where does the bible talk about hugging your spouse during the prayer.....WE SAY NO!
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  nugget

  JWs study the Watchtower it is the be all and end all. We are told to read and meditate on the Bible but not in isolation and not just any Bible. The Bible reading talk used to include application of the scripture. Now it is just a reading with no explanation. The Bible is only explained through the watchtower. Independent thought is forbidden. Research in secular sources is discouraged.

  So many Catholics, Jews, Muslims and protestants study at university without loosing faith according to JWs these religons are deeply flawed. Yet despite all of this millions study and don't come out the other side hopeless heathens. What are JWs afraid of?
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  GromitSK

  I am not sure I agree with the above comments. From my own experience I would say that JWs do put their faith in their version of the Bible but they put their faith in the interpretation of it in the WTS. The issue of Blood is a good example: of course the Bible doesn't mention blood transfusions explicitly as there weren't any when it was written so instead of forming their own view on what the Bible teaches (which would be bad enough), they let the WTS decide for them.
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  dgp

  If the Bible were more important than the magazines, then the WTBTS would have no trouble giving the magazines up. Can anyone imagine such a thing?

  If the Bible "can only be understood" with the magazine, then it's the magazine that counts, not the other way around.

  GromitSK, I have my own view about blood transfusions, which is not based on the Bible, and I don't think it's bad. Sorry if I address you personally. You said

  instead of forming their own view on what the Bible teaches (which would be bad enough), they let the WTS decide for them

  What is wrong with doing one's own thinking? And, I think that letting a group of old men who you haven't even met decide about whether your little child will receive a transfusion is about the worst of it all. Life is good. Death is not.
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  wobble

  The JW's, all of them ,from the top down. do not believe the Bible is the inerrant word of God.

  They believe that god speaks to the FDS ,really the G.B, and the Bible only says what the GB says that it says. Witness the fact that they have put the name "Jehovah" in the N.T hundreds of times, when not one of the oldest manuscripts contains it, OK I know of their spurious argument for doing this, but even that argument does not remotely work for inserting the name in Revelation.

  So, the GB writes the Bible, they must be a bigger authority than the Bible.

  It is always "What does the Society say...." never "What does the Bible say" with Dubs.

  Pathetic.

  love

  Wobble
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  boyzone

  If the Bible "can only be understood" with the magazine, then it's the magazine that counts, not the other way around.

  Thats very true. The Society have made it clear that they don't want JW's studying the bible without the "aid" of Watchtower literature. Those that do will likely revert back to the teachings of Christendom.