A Theatrical Spectacle

Leprechaun

I remember studying a Watchtower article years ago about being a “A Theatrical Spectacle” to the world, I thought to myself this is so high minded and weird. Really, as though everyone is looking at Jehovah’s Witnesses and how they conduct themselves, give me a break; most people are just trying to survive from day to day.

nancy drew

Only in their dreams.

sir82

Yep, millions of JWs spending billions of hours preaching, and easily 99% of the world's population don't know anything about JWs more than "oh aren't those the guys who don't celebrate Christmas, don't take blood transfusions, and sell magazines from door to door?"

The "worldwide preaching work" is one of the most wasteful colossal failures in the history of civilization. Billions of dollars spent, billions of hours spent, forest-fulls of trees destroyed for paper, and for what? A few million new recruits, 80+ % of them children of already-believing parents.

Balsam

Funny now, looking back imagining we were part of a theatrical interest to anyone in the world. JW's are meaningless bunch except to other JW's. The reason the JW leadership even said that was to make us feel important as through all events in the world centered around us which is pure bull. It's funny I was talking to my 22 year old son the other day and mentioned that comment from back in the 1970's and he laughed at utterly stupid it was to think about.

WTWizard

A theatrical spectacle, my axx. It does nothing to improve the reputation of the religion that the witlesses are out and about knocking on people's doors on Christmas Day. It does nothing that they absolutely do not believe in charity--anyone that chooses to donate to the Red Cross or the Salvation Army and is caught is in for a trip to the back room. They do not participate in after school activities. They are more likely to be on welfare so they can pio-sneer. They do not do anything worthwhile--there are only so many windows to wash, and they cannot expand into the lucrative Christmas decoration installing business during the slow season. Yet, they do not get educations.

Never mind the pedophiles. Never mind the news reports of witlesses kidnapping, or eating, babies. You have a religion that encourages its adherents to live mediocre lives, and the public is going to see that. Repression is more like what the public is going to see among the witlesses. Very few are famous in the world, and the ones that are are the ones that were born in (the Jacksons) or recruited after they were famous (George Benson, Prince). Even the leaders are not famous in the world--I challenge anyone to find anything in the tabloids about Ted Jaracz, Gerrit Losch, or Albert Schroeder (or Fred Franz, for that matter). You are not going to find it.

Successful in their ministry? Hardly. If the world does notice the witlesses, it is going in endless circles. And this fruitless waste of time is what turns off so many--would you join something that demands an endless waste of your time, mediocrity, and stagnation? I don't think so.

WingCommander

Truly, they are legends in the own MINDS.

Bangalore

*** w74 4/1 pp. 214-220 Persecuted Christians-"A Theatrical Spectacle to the World" ***

Persecuted Christians-"A Theatrical Spectacle to the World"

"It seems to me that God has put us the apostles last on exhibition as men appointed to death, because we have become a theatrical spectacle to the world, and to angels, and to men."-1 Cor. 4:9.

THE thought of suffering as did Jesus and the apostles frightens many persons. True, they know that many marvelous benefits accrue to those who have a spiritual, exalted outlook on life. But they do not believe that they personally will be able to withstand the strong assaults that they visualize as someday taking place against their faith.

2 Is that your fear? If so, consider: Was it not comforting to learn in the last article that you can be a spiritual person? Yes, an ‘ordinary person' like yourself-a salesman, a lumberjack or a housewife-can actually have "the mind of Christ." You will find it just as encouraging to learn that you can also successfully bear up under any trial that might come against you from any quarter of this fleshly world.

3 A Christian should expect to be disliked by the world. Jesus explained: "Truly I say to you men, No one has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for my sake and for the sake of the good news who will not get a hundredfold now in this period of time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and fields, with persecutions, and in the coming system of things everlasting life." (Mark 10:29, 30) What he said proved true in the case of the apostles. And it will prove equally true of genuine Christians, real spiritual men, today. But why, it might be asked, would the apostles, spiritual men, suffer "persecutions"?

4 In prayer to Jehovah, his Father, Jesus answers: "The world has hated them [footstep followers of his], because they are no part of the world, . . . Sanctify them by means of the truth; your word is truth. Just as you sent me forth into the world, I also sent them forth into the world. . . . the world has, indeed, not come to know you; . . . these have come to know that you sent me forth."-John 17:14, 17, 18, 25.

5 The apostles, spiritual men trained by Jesus, were "no part of the world." That is why it hated them. The vivid contrast between those spiritual men and the fleshly world became evident to all creation. After Jesus left the earthly scene the apostles expended themselves tirelessly in carrying out their commission to preach and teach "to the most distant part of the earth." (Matt. 28:16-20; Acts 1:6-8) There was strong opposition to their work right from the start. The first resistance came from their own countrymen. (Acts 5:40; 12:1-5) As the work branched beyond Judea and Samaria, there were conflicts with adherents of Gentile deities who feared that their objects of devotion would be "brought down to nothing."-Acts 19:23-41; 14:1-7.

"A THEATRICAL SPECTACLE TO THE WORLD"-IN WHAT SENSE?

6 The apostle Paul, at 1 Corinthians 4:9, graphically portrays the suffering that Christians underwent.

"For it seems to me that God has put us the apostles last on exhibition as men appointed to death, because we have become a theatrical spectacle to the world, and to angels, and to men."

7 Here Paul was not talking about the apostles as being a spectacle in just the ordinary affairs of life and saying that as other people viewed the apostles leading honest, constructive lives, they became convinced of the rightness of the Christian way of life. No, he is discussing the suffering that the apostles experienced, as though reproachfully exposed in a theater before a universal audience. The "theatrical spectacle" that the apostles present in the Bible, says the Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, ‘is by human standards, not a proud one, but a sorry and contemptible one.'

8 The third-century translation of 1 Corinthians 4:9 by Tertullian helps us to get this vivid picture of the suffering Christians when it speaks of them as "men appointed to fight with wild beasts." (On Modesty, chapter xiv) They were, as it says in the rather freely rendered twentieth-century Bible by scholar James Moffatt, "like doomed gladiators in the arena!" One can therefore picture a triumphal procession of Roman times. At the rear comes the faithful band of apostles and other Christians being led like despised criminals to the arena where spectators will revel in their suffering and death.

9 Of course, it is possible, if not probable, that the apostle Paul, like other early Christians, actually faced wild beasts in an arena, judging by what he says at 1 Corinthians 15:32: "If, like men, I have fought with wild beasts at Ephesus . . . " It is true that Paul had faced "beastly" men in the figurative "theater" at Ephesus. (Acts 19:29-41) But notice that he refers, at 2 Corinthians 1:8-10, to the "tribulation that happened to us in the district of Asia [where Ephesus was located]" and where, continues Paul, "we felt within ourselves that we had received the sentence of death . . . [God] did rescue us." This seems to suggest that Paul at one time faced literal wild beasts in the Ephesian arena.

10 However, in 1 Corinthians 4:9 Paul is making an illustration. He is saying that ‘men and angels,' a universal audience, were spectators to the indignities, the opposition and persecution to which he and his companions were subjected as they carried out their ministry. He goes on to detail the suffering they underwent:

"We are fools on Christ's account. Ah, but in Christ you [certain ones at Corinth] are wise! We are the weak ones, you the strong! They honor you, while they sneer at us! Up to this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, poorly clad, roughly treated, wandering about homeless. We work hard at manual labor. When we are insulted we respond with a blessing. Persecution comes our way; we bear it patiently. We are slandered, and we try conciliation. We have become the world's refuse, the scum of all; that is the present state of affairs."-1 Cor. 4:10-13, The New American Bible. Compare Hebrews 10:32-34.

11 In spite of the suffering that the apostles bore, spiritually minded persons back there would have known that God backed the apostles. Their constructive labors proved that. Such persons would know, too, as Paul said, that "God has put us the apostles last on exhibition as men appointed to death." (1 Cor. 4:9) Yes, God allowed the apostles to appear as lowly by the world's standards.

12 Jehovah's witnesses today, as they carry out their worldwide ministry, suffer similarly. This does not mean that God has rejected them. In fact, in the foregoing article it was clearly shown that one needs the modern congregation of Jehovah's witnesses today in order to be a spiritual person. The truth is not to be found with those who are most popular with the world. The apostle Paul reminds us: "All those desiring to live with godly devotion in association with Christ Jesus will also be persecuted."-2 Tim. 3:12.

13 But a question comes up: Do not many persons that say they are "Christians" and that are not Jehovah's witnesses also suffer persecution today? True, many that claim to be "Christian" suffer today. Even pagans and atheists are persecuted. But why do they suffer? True spiritual men believe and stand for the very same things that Jesus and his apostles did, so they suffer opposition for the same reasons that these did.

IS CHRISTENDOM A MODERN "THEATRICAL SPECTACLE TO THE WORLD"?

14 Do any of the churches of Christendom represent true Christianity? Well, are they made up of spiritual men and do they therefore suffer hatred and persecution for the same reason as first-century Christians? Many churches of Christendom today are hurting. They are losing members and money. Their influence is waning. But it is not because they are suffering for righteousness' sake as did the apostles. (Compare 1 Peter 2:19-21.) How do we know? Consider this:

15 The apostles believed that it is wrong to murder, even to hate. (1 John 4:20, 21; Rev. 21:8) Have not Christendom's churches winked at, even supported and encouraged the world's wholesale murder on the battlefield? The book Black Jack Pershing by Richard O'Connor helps to answer this question. It reports concerning America's entry into World War I:

"None were more urgent in demanding that America go to war than the ministers of God. The New York Federation of Churches proclaimed March 11 ‘War Sunday.' From coast to coast, militant preachers denied that Christ was a pacifist, that war was evil, that killing Germans was any violation of the Commandments. The evangelist Billy Sunday, addressing a throng in Times Square, was only phrasing their thoughts more vividly when he shouted, ‘If hell could be turned upside down, you would find stamped on its bottom, "Made in Germany"!'"

In lands where Christendom's churches or leaders are restricted, it is usually because of their record of meddling in politics. Thus we read in the New York Times of October 21, 1973: "The Chilean military authorities today ordered the expulsion of three foreign priests. The priests-two Spaniards and a Frenchman-had been engaged in ‘extremist activities,' according to official sources."-Page 9.

16 The apostles abhorred adultery, fornication and homosexuality and they put away from their presence those who carried on such practices. Paul said plainly: "Remove the wicked man from among yourselves." (1 Cor. 5:11-13; 6:9-11) But when was the last time you heard of someone being expelled from your church-or any church of Christendom-for such practices?

17 Liars were not permitted in the early apostolic congregation. (Acts 5:1-11) But how many political leaders and businessmen do you trust never to lie? Yet, are they not, for the most part, members of a church-perhaps your own?

18 The answers to these questions are obvious. The many organizations that tolerate such practices, regardless of their outward professions to be "Christian," are no "theatrical spectacle to the world." Rather, they blend in with the world. Christendom has shown itself to be a "friend of the world," and so also an "enemy of God." God calls such ones "adulteresses."-Jas. 4:4.

19 Thus, the pains that Christendom's churches are currently undergoing are not for following in the footsteps of Jesus and the apostles. They are reaping what they have sown; it is deserved. Their current suffering is but a foretaste of what is due to come upon the whole world empire of false religion, described in the book of Revelation as a richly adorned prostitute atop a beast. False religion, like that harlot, tries to control the beastly nations. But the "beast" referred to there in Revelation turns on her and destroys her. The time for the end of all false religion is imminent. Those who are a part of her now are not spiritual men suffering for righteousness' sake. They have legitimate reason to be concerned, even fearful.-Rev. 16:12-21; 17:15-18; chap. 18; compare Ezekiel chapter 24; Matthew 13:42.

JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES-A MODERN "THEATRICAL SPECTACLE TO THE WORLD" IN PERSECUTION

20 On the other hand, Jehovah's witnesses have suffered a great deal in modern times. They were violently hated in Nazi Germany. A newsletter published for the Commission for Ecumenical Affairs of the Archdiocese of Hartford, Connecticut, recognizes this fact, saying: "The German Jews . . . were not the only victims in Hitler's concentration camps. All known [Jehovah's] witnesses in the fatherland were also imprisoned. They were then offered freedom if only they would bow down and recant. . . . Not hangings, not shootings, not cruel bodily or mental torture would sway them. The anger of their SS captors was diabolical because the witnesses would not stifle themselves."

21 More currently, under governments today, how are the Witnesses treated? We read in the book Aspects of Religion in the Soviet Union 1917-1967: "Jehovah's witnesses are universally prohibited." In other nations, also, the Witnesses have become a spectacle for special attention. Did you know, for instance, that in Turkey it is a "crime" for Jehovah's witnesses to worship God? Completely false charges are leveled against them. Individual Witnesses in Turkey face heavy fines that amount to a major portion of a person's income for a year.

22 In Malawi, on the African continent, Jehovah's witnesses have been the focal point of intense hatred for several years. Men have been beaten, yes, some have been murdered. They have lost jobs and seen their women raped. Like cattle, thousands have been driven not only from their homes, but actually out of the country.

23 But why have they suffered like this? Is it because they have tried to run the political affairs of the various nations in which they reside? No! Have they abandoned the high principles for which Jesus and his apostles stood? Consider what an outsider, an unbiased observer, has to say as to the Witnesses' conduct. Bryan Wilson of Oxford University notes regarding their suffering in Africa:

"The banning . . . may cost more than it looks, however. Witnesses . . . have been uniquely successful in getting their following to keep high standards of moral rigour and self-discipline. They instill the values of hard work, punctuality, sobriety and self-respect. Their members reach a quality of family relationships that is highly exceptional in East Africa. Their techniques of instruction and indoctrination are extremely effective in moral as well as in doctrinal matters . . . The stock rhetoric of African politicians is the condemnation of tribalism. Paradoxically, the Witnesses are perhaps more successful than any other group in the speed with which they eliminate tribal discrimination among their own recruits."-New Society, July 12, 1973, page 75.

Obviously, Jehovah's witnesses are not a threat to law and order. They are real Christians. They attain the conditions of life that any enlightened nation wants among its citizens.

24 Jehovah's witnesses do indeed represent the genuine Christian congregation. This is proved by how they scrupulously try to apply the Scriptures in their own lives. Their modern congregation is the same in structure as that overseen by the apostles and prophets in the first century. (Eph. 2:20-22) Its people teach the same truths. Jehovah's witnesses are a modern "theatrical spectacle to the world" in suffering for the same things as did Jesus and his apostles. And as an organization, they know that they will continue to face tribulation right through the end of this wicked system of things.-2 Thess. 1:6-10.

WILL YOU STEP INTO THE MODERN ARENA?

25 But there is a question for each individual: "Am I personally willing to accept the same opposition and be part of the modern ‘theatrical spectacle to the world' presented by modern spiritual men?" You can, if you wish, take to heart the advice that Paul gave Timothy: "Do not become ashamed of the witness about our Lord, neither of me a prisoner for his sake, but take your part in suffering evil for the good news according to the power of God."-2 Tim. 1:8.

26 But how, you might ask, can any person endure such adversity? There is only one way an individual can remain firm as a Christian while "suffering evil": He must be a spiritual person, see things from God's standpoint. Such a one will know that he is suffering for the sake of the truth. (Matt. 5:11) But if fleshly thinking is affecting his life and he has a worldly viewpoint, even he who claims to know the way of the truth may under pressure rationalize and compromise. This could lead to his eternal undoing. Therefore, now, while there is relative calm in most of the world, is the time to work hard at developing "the mind of Christ" and to let it control in every aspect of one's life. Work at making yourself the kind of person that God would approve at any time.

27 It is not wise to develop and dwell on dark, morbid fears regarding future trials. Nor is it sensible to skewer oneself with thoughts about what perverse things the enemy might someday do to God's people. Rather, a Christian will prove his loyalty to God day by day. The opposition that the apostles endured was not just outright persecution of a violent nature. Remember, Paul said at 1 Corinthians 4:10-13 (according to The New American Bible): "We are the weak ones . . . they sneer at us . . . we go hungry and thirsty, poorly clad, roughly treated . . . homeless . . . we are insulted . . . we are slandered."

28 True Christians today must endure similar treatment. It does not always come from "enemies," but may be from those we love, members of our own household (1 Pet. 2:18-3:6), or from persons with whom we have grown up. A Christian may on occasion be discriminated against on his job because of his high principles. Or he may feel urged to give up a high-paying prominent position because it is not compatible with his Scripturally trained conscience; for this he may be subjected to intense pressures and jeering treatment. Or there may be ridicule of a youthful Christian by his classmates because he stands up like a Christian man for what he knows is right. If Christians are able to face all such treatment today-and they do it every day-why be overly fearful about the future? A spiritual person knows that he can take whatever God allows, just as the apostles did. Like the apostles and Jesus himself, the spiritual person therefore makes it his aim to be of good courage and joyful.-John 16:33; Rom. 12:12; Col. 1:24; 1 Pet. 1:6, 7; 3:14; 4:12-16.

29 Obviously, being a spiritual person is not just a veneer that one glues to the surface. It must be reflected in everything that one does. Continue to deepen your devotion to Jehovah. If you do you will be able to face whatever problems and persecutions are ahead. By enduring under persecution you will remain part of the "theatrical spectacle to the world" right through the end of this entire system of things. Yes, you will as a spiritual person survive Gog's concentrated attack on those "dwelling in the center of the earth," and live into a marvelous new system of things.-1 Cor. 4:9; Ezek. 38:12; Rev. 21:1-4.

Bangalore

carla

How weird, on one hand they breed and teach complete egotism for the group but beat them down for any individual accomplishments.

"rhetoric of African politicians is the condemnation of tribalism. Paradoxically, the Witnesses are perhaps more successful than any other group in the speed with which they eliminate tribal discrimination among their own recruits."--- more likely they eliminate any individual personality and culture

A Theatrical Spectacle

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