by Nobleheart 8 Replies latest jw friends
I don't know if that's ever happened: A JW writing a thesis, an article or even a book supporting the theory of evolution.
I know many JW don't have the needed qualifications for the above, but let's assume someone actually did that. I know there are a few JW
who are professors, doctors, and so forth (although a minority).
Would that be considered automatic DA, or do the elders have to form a JC for this matter?
JWs do not have freedom of the press. Anything written that goes against WT theology would be considered "apostasy". So yeah, that person would be pulled into a JC. I don't even think they would be able to fight the df'ing if the book or paper was published. Maybe they could get out of it if they published a total and complete retraction of their initial information like they tried to force Michael Jackson to do with "Thriller".
Great question! I know of some who have done college papers on evolution. Those would never be seen in the general public though. My guess is that the investigation would run deep. Just writing a straightforward paper on evolution may not be grounds for a DF/DA. However, if the Bible or God were called in to question, that would be another story. The writer would be asked about how believing evolution fits with their JW beliefs. The questions would eventually lead to, "Don't you trust the Faithful and Discreet Slave to provide the proper information at the right time?" Tricky.
BrotherDan said "Anything written that goes against WT theology would be considered "apostasy"
I was told that believing in evolution is not a disfellowshipping offense. Read JWfacts story. (I do not have the time to find the story right now)
Interesting. But one can still subscribe to belief in God, as in Theistic evolution or evolutionary creation. Would that still lead to a JC, on the grounds of not being in accord with what the F&D slave are teaching?
According to wiki article on theistic evolution, there's a statistic there showing JW are the religion with the lowest % of people agreeing that evolution is an explanation for origin of life at 8% (even that's surprising imo). The total is 48% supporting it, Buddhists being #1 with 81%.
All he's got to do is say in the introduction that the reasoning and explanations are according to experts in their fields and are highly speculative theories. For good measures, he could throw in something about how "Intelligent Design" attempts to counter the cornucopia of evidence "for" evolution and could even further mention the WT's view of carbon-14 dating being off due to the water canopy and the flood.
That, or he could simply put this at the very end of the book: "....or Satan planted all this as 'false' evidence to fool us."
OH, and accepting any "evolution" is totally rejecting WT doctrine that says God created each animal according to it's kind. If you want to say that finch beaks "adapted" or beetles developed antlers, fine and good. But you don't remain a JW and say that any animals that cannot mate "came from" a common ancestor.
I was told that believing in evolution is not a disfellowshipping offense.
Believing it? I'm not sure, but I think they would find a way to get rid of you. But publishing it? You bet it is!
Given that it is written to be disseminated as "public information", it would probably be construed as "apostasy" and would result in a judicial committee. The "witnesses" would be whoever had read it - even the elders themselves.
I don't think it would be an automatic DA - they'd do a committee and DF unless the paper, article, whatever was retracted.
