by Giordano 18 Replies latest watchtower child-abuse
Is religious indoctrination an assault on children, an assault on their capacity for individuation, curiosity, self-validation, and critical thinking skills?
Can a child with no religious training and traditions and no religious rules grow up to be an ethical person?
To your first question, all religions are not equal. Some are destructive/abusive, others are harmless.
To you second question, we have many examples of fine human beings raised without religion.
Yes and yes.
Perhaps, and yes.
However, exposing a child to faith in a creator (especially one of love) is not a form of child abuse.
Tammy
"Indoctrination" is the key word here. It implies a sort of slow brainwashing and forced adherence. In that case, I would say, if not outright abusive, it can be destructive. It's up to parents that desire to instill a sense of connection to the Divine to gently guide and teach, rather than cram something down their child's throat doctrinally.
"Yes" to your second question. "Ethics" is not a religious thing.
Is religious indoctrination an assault on children, an assault on their capacity for individuation, curiosity, self-validation, and critical thinking skills?
To your first question, all religions are not equal. Some are destructive/abusive, others are harmless
The point here is not if the religion is destructive or harmless. The point is indoctrination of a child who will believe EVERYTHING you tell teach them as truth. I think that indoctrination of a religion on a child is abuse regardless of the religion.
Religion is something that only adults should choose after careful examination of their doctrines. who decides if a religion is harmless or destructive? Can you let the indoctrinator decide that? Most certainly the indoctrinator wont think his religion is harmful. So it will be biased from the start.
Can a child with no religious training and traditions and no religious rules grow up to be an ethical person
Why do we start with the premise that religious is the basis of ethics? Why not start that human beings care for other human beings and that religion only capitalizes on the need to be good with our fellow human beings? I think the religous moral code is more unethical than ethical. So I would ask can a child with religous trainning and traditions with religuous rule grow up to be an ethical person? And look at the religious traditions of the world, how about treating woman as second class? how bout physical abuse on kids for the sake of discipline? how bout all the biblical morals that teach rape, violence, incest and other stuff for the sake of God?
Exposing a chld to religious thought or philosophy, as something some people believe, and that they can choose to form beliefs, is fine.
Ethics != Religion. Spurious connection.
I would take it out of the charged religious context and simply ask is exposing children to any belief system a form of abuse? If it's static then yes, it is ultimately abuse in that it ultimately limits their development, although if that's as far as the parental figure has gone they would not know there's anything beyond it. One can of course also believe in secular matters in a religious way, but the same kind of mechanics may be involved.
Christopher Hitchens has a chapter on this subject, and its heluva chapter. I wish I had the book on me now to quote the points, but my mouth was wide open and I dang near injured my neck from nodding in agreement as I read the chapter.
The one point he made I remember though, where he asked what would be the result if religion was prohibited from being introduced to children until they became thinking adults capable of reason? If that was the case I don't think it would be a good thing for organized religion. Many a person on this message board would attest that had they not been born into this religion, and a couple JWs approached them, they would research and come to the conclusion that the WT is not for them.
Think about the mental anguish that youth who grow up in fundementalist religions experience. The WT likes to paint itself as better than that. They go, "Jehovah would never think of burning people for eternity!" Maybe He won't, but he'll open the earth up and swallow you whole along with your unbelieving parent and schoolmates. Or maybe He'll go for the fire from the sky technique figuring as humans we're already used to that sort of thing considering scud missles, and "shock and awe." At least he won't drown us all again, just maybe send a couple she-bears to chase us into the water and wait for us to drown. Or come back to shore and let the bears rip us apart like the young guy and his GF on the Discovery Channel. Seriously though, those kinds of thoughts are hell on the young impressionable mind. Its no wonder most of the people on this board experience depression, or a significant portion of the religious populution in this country in general.
Then there's the physical abuse. I've been meaning to research circumcision in depth lately, but haven't found the time, but some of the surface arguments from scientists lead me to wonder if ancient religions just had a weird hangup on sex organs and blood sacrifices. That hasn't changed after all these years considering religion's meddling in people's bedrooms and the WT's meddling in people's medical decisions. The WT even encourages breaking privacy laws regarding healthcare to supposedly keep the congregation clean and to spiritually assist the offender who got a blood transfusion. It's sick behavior, and this is what children are having forced upon them. It's sick!!!
During the Crusades and other religious themed atrocities, children and parents were encouraged to turn in their family for heresy, with the risk of torture and brutal death hanging over their heads. In 2010, JWs are encouraged to report to the elders any heresy now labeled apostacy, with the risk of disfellowshipping and losing one's family hanging over their heads. Its sick, there's no way to justify it. It's sick behavior. Its totalitarianism almost at its worst. Again, this is what children have to experience. I like another point Hitchens mentioned, where he said that a Despot may request your support, and thats one thing. However, its an entirely different monster when the Despot requests not just your support, but your mind, your body, your family, your life. Thats the WT is demanding of children born to JW parents. I've said it before, and I stand by it, that JWs having children today are guilty to a degree of child abuse by raising children in this cancer of a religion. Granted not all parents are so brainwashed or off balanced that a JW can't have a happy upbringing, but there are enough people in this world in general who shouldn't be allowed to breed, and there's enough JWs I've had the displeasure of knowing that should have never reared children.
Edit post: How could I mention physical abuse, and neglect to mention, the sexual abuse at the hands of fundementalist despots such as the Catholic Church, the LDS, and the WT? Can't believe I forgot. You can compare these religious organizations to organized crime because they aided and abetted the sexual abuse of children. They moved priests from one church to another, paid off this family to keep their mouths shut or at least end the media's coverage of the story prematurely. The WT had no intentions of changing their policy until the media put some heat on them. Otherwise you'd still have a bunch of pedophiles getting reappointed for positions of oversight. Wait a minute, what am I saying, its still happening!!! They're getting better though! Wait on Jehovah!!
I don't want Big Brother government telling us what we can and can't tell our children about God.
First Amendment anyone?
