by Think About It 184 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
IMHO, there is no need to get hung up on the word, "cult".
You simply need to answer this question for yourself: Why would a group of people have Suicide Cards in their wallet?
Is it because they've examined all of the relevant information with a critical eye? Is it because they are intimately familiar with modern medicine? Is it because they don't fear the leadership of their organization? Is it because their God is compassionate and forgiving?
after the waco tragedy i realized jw are a cult
I don't brand JWs a cult. They're a fundamentalist conservative religion but to use the word cult, imo, is too dismissive and narrow. It's a neat way to box in 7 million people who are, in reality, not that different from many other groups who, believing strongly in their faith, expect their members to adhere to the rules and principles most knew and accepted at their baptism.
The military expects loyalty and obedience and if a soldier refuses to give what is expected he is punished. Boot Camp does a very good job at training the minds of young men and young women to conform and for some it is a type of brainwashing in that they must become the man or woman the military trains them to be and in a way leave behind the person they were before joining the military.
I see some jw cult like traits among fundy protestant christians, as well. That kind of befuddles me.
S
It was Steven Hassan's "Combatting Cult Mind Control" that did it for me.
It was Steven Hassan's "Combatting Cult Mind Control" that did it for me.
I don't brand JWs a cult. They're a fundamentalist conservative religion but to use the word cult, imo, is too dismissive and narrow. It's a neat way to box in 7 million people who are, in reality, not that different from many other groups who, believing strongly in their faith, expect their members to adhere to the rules and principles most knew and accepted at their baptism.
Not all cults are dangerous. Some are benign and pretty innocent compared to the dangerous, wacky cults. That's where the argument gets interesting when discussing JWs. Are they a 'dangerous' cult? Compared to the People's Temple and the Branch Davidians, no they're not. Compared with Mormons, both seem pretty benign. But then, LWT makes a good point about the "suicide card". Find yourself in a position of needing a blood transfusion and the JW cult becomes very dangerous. Find yourself in a country where you're required to purchase a political party card and it becomes very dangerous.
But the danger is just not physical. The damage that goes unnoticed and unchecked is the mental damage. Okay, so the vast majority of JWs won't face blood transfusions or Malawi party card issues. But the continual indoctrination and programming of the WT ideals and beliefs robs the individual JW of their ability to think and reason...to use their own conscience. The member becomes a controlled arm of the group, obeying and working at the behest of the leadership to keep the leadership in power...with nothing but empty promises in return.
The military expects loyalty and obedience and if a soldier refuses to give what is expected he is punished. Boot Camp does a very good job at training the minds of young men and young women to conform and for some it is a type of brainwashing in that they must become the man or woman the military trains them to be and in a way leave behind the person they were before joining the military.
The word cult doesn't have to represent just religious groups. It can be applied to any group that expects devotion and ritual and sacrifice of some kind. Branches of the military, MLMs, MC clubs. All these are groups that adhere to strict codes and expect sacrifice in order to put the group above the individual.
Would street gangs fall under the cult rubrique?
S
I had been out for a few years when I talked to my parents about 1975..They denied it ever happened..
That was like telling me my life had never happened..
My life as a JW Kid revolved around 1975..
Then I talked to other JW`s..They did`nt remember it either..
Every JW I knew,did`nt know what they preached for over a decade..
It was F*cking Bizzare!!..LOL!!..
I knew then the,WBT$ was a Cult..
A Cult that could wipe out any memory it wanted,from any of it`s members..
..................... 
...OUTLAW
I was in the midst of thinking about my exit when it happened - but what made me firmly and definately realize that I was in a religious cult was the Jim Jones Massacre in Guyana - and comparing that to the typical JW willing to kill themselves or their kids over blood transfusions.
