Here are some comments from the Watchtower Society regarding non-jw friends or associates. No matter how you look at what they write, officially Jehovah's witnesses are "encourage" to stop and avoid all but the minimum contact with non-jws. Perhaps after he gets through the "holy" period and realizes after his baptism that no one in the congregation is interested in him any more, he may start calling again.
*** w05 2/1 p. 17 par. 14 Pursuing the "Pearl of High Value" Today ***Millions of others around the world have responded to the Kingdom good news in a similar way. They have come out of the wicked world, put off their old personality, left their former associates, and given up their worldly pursuits. (John 15:19; Ephesians 4:22-24; James 4:4; 1 John 2:15-17) Why do they do all of this? Because they esteem the blessings of God’s Kingdom over and above anything that the present system of things can offer. Do you feel the same way about the Kingdom good news? Are you motivated by it to make the necessary changes to bring your life-style, values, and goals into harmony with what Jehovah requires? Doing so will result in rich blessings for you, now and in the future.
*** w97 3/15 p. 26 Should Your Child Go to a Boarding School? ***This moral and spiritual decline is global, presenting a challenge to Jehovah’s Witnesses in living by Bible principles. Students who come home every day find that even their limited association with worldly schoolmates can exert a powerful negative influence on their spirituality
*** w97 8/1 p. 11 pars. 9-10 Serving Loyally With Jehovah’s Organization ***In response to articles on this subject in the "Young People Ask . . ." series in Awake! magazine, one young woman wrote: "The articles were my life story." In secret, she had cultivated friendships with youths who had no love of Jehovah. The result? She writes: "My life went down to the bottom, and I got involved with immorality and had to be reproved. My relationship with Jehovah was damaged, and the trust from my parents and the elders was gone."
This young woman got help from the elders and returned to loyal service to Jehovah. Tragically, though, many suffer worse consequences, and some never do return to the fold. How much better to be loyal and resist temptation in this wicked world! Heed the warnings from the
Watchtower and
Awake! magazines on such matters as worldly association and debasing entertainment
*** w94 2/15 p. 23 Keep Your Distance When Danger Threatens ***Some Christians have gone astray by getting too involved in business activities, by cultivating close friendships with worldly associates, or by becoming emotionally attached to someone of the opposite sex when they are not free to marry.
We must also be on guard against extended association with worldly people. Perhaps it is a neighbor, a school friend, a workmate, or a business associate. We may reason, ‘He respects the Witnesses, he leads a clean life, and we do talk about the truth occasionally.’ Yet, the experience of others proves that in time we may even find ourselves preferring such worldly company to that of a spiritual brother or sister. What are some of the dangers of such a friendship?
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