Comments You Will Not Hear at the 12-04-2011 WT Study (OCTOBER 15, 2011, pages 8-12)(RECREATION)
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IS YOUR RECREATION BENEFICIAL?
“Keep on making sure of what is acceptable to the Lord.”—EPH. 5:10.
OPENING COMMENTS
Recreation : Think about what you already know and have experienced in the WT organization.
First, you know there are written rules and unwritten rules (depending on your congregation, current CO, and what the elders and MS do behind their public lives).
Second, the rules are always changing.
Recreation seems to fall into 2 categories: sports and what you do with your time that is not spent going to meetings, “preaching,” educating your family, employment, chores at home, etc.
I can’t imagine after all that, that many people at the KH have time to re-create. I had a non-jw father that we used as an excuse for spending too much time outside WT required activities.
I always wondered why sports, pep rallies, and cheerleading were forbidden in school for jw children but jw elders, MS, etc., had season tickets to football, basketball, etc. Or had special rooms decorated in the colors and so on of their favorite team and never missed a show on tv, even having parties, like the Super Bowl. I remember one year the CO’s visit fell on big sports weekend…lot of missing brothers. I remember 2 elders pulling in the parking lot with their little team flags hanging out the window………the CO was not amused.
Of course, the same thing happened when the CO’s schedule fell on the same week as deer hunting season where all the elders, MS, and male friends went to a cabin and hunted all week. They prevailed and the CO switched the week with an urban congregation with fewer hunting elders.
Listen! "it is expected" that you will have no extra-curricular activities outside of the Watchtower. Such activity is a "danger" and "worldly". Organized to Accomplish Our Ministry 1983, p. 133.
To play sports with children that are not Jehovah's Witnesses is definitely "unwholesome"! School and Jehovah's Witnesses, 1983, p.23.
You are reminded that involvement in after-school sports tie you down, requiring you to spend evenings and weekends playing on a school team. You are expected to be at the lectures at the Kingdom Hall. "Any recreation you take outside of school should not be with worldly youths." Watchtower, 9/1/64, p.535.
Hobby clubs lead to immoral character and might keep you away from the Kingdom Hall. School and Jehovah's Witnesses, 1983, pp.24.25.
They become "worldly alliances". The Watchtower asks you, is it "wise to enjoy hobbies with worldly people?" And "would it be proper to share hobbies with worldlings?" Watchtower, 9/1/64, p.536.
Zoos are cruel punishment and a prison to animate. You would not want to go gawk at the animals. Watchtower, 11/15/49, p.349; Awake, 5/8/73, p. 18.
Can jw families build snowmen? Would non-jws think they are celebrating Christmas?
*** g90 4/22 p.23***
My daughter, Bethel, was a gift from God rather late in life. We had a kind of storybook relationship. From the time Bethel was an infant, we did everything together. We crouched in fields to study Jehovah God’s artistic flair as we looked at the wildflowers. We made snowmen. —Charles Leibensperger
START OF ARTICLE
1, 2. (a) How does God’s Word indicate that Jehovah
wants us to enjoy life? (b) Viewing recreation as
a “gift of God” will move us to do what?
THROUGHOUT the Bible, we find statements
indicating that Jehovah wants us
not only to live but also to enjoy life. For instance,
Psalm 104:14, 15 states that Jehovah
is causing “food to go forth from the earth,
and wine that makes the heart of mortal man
rejoice, to make the face shine with oil, and
bread that sustains the very heart of mortal
man.” Indeed, Jehovah makes crops grow to
yield grain, oil, and wine for our sustenance.
But wine also ‘makes the heart rejoice.’ It
goes beyond what is strictly necessary to
maintain life and adds to our joy. (Eccl. 9:7;
10:19) Yes, Jehovah wants us to be joyful, our
hearts filled with “good cheer.”—Acts 14:
16, 17.
COMMENTS
Yes, God says jws can drink wine, eat well. But is the WTS saying that God makes the crops grow in Africa, does he provide for the many starving people in Africa? Are they enjoying life?
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/a-grotesque-symbol-of-starving-africa-2314969.html
2 There is, therefore, no reason to feel
guilty when we once in a while schedule
some time to “observe intently the birds of
heaven” and “the lilies of the field” or to enjoy
some other activities that refresh us and
enrich our life. (Matt. 6:26, 28; Ps. 8:3, 4) A
wholesome life is a “gift of God.” (Eccl. 3:12,
13) Viewing leisure time as part of that gift
will move us to use it in away that will bring
pleasure to the Giver.*
*In this article, the terms “recreation” and “entertainment”
are used interchangeably to refer to the time
we set aside for leisure activities that bring us pleasure.
COMMENTS
So the WTS has given permission to be a birder, but what if you could pioneer and not watch birds?
How much time is allowed by the WTS for recreation?
Diversity and Limitations
3. Why is it reasonable to allow for diversity in recreation?
3 Those who have a balanced view of recreation
allow for diversity yet also recognize
the need for limitations. Why so? To answer,
let us compare entertainment with food.
Popular dishes differ from one part of the
world to another. In fact, what people in one
area relish may be unappetizing to people
elsewhere. In a similar manner, what Christians
in one part of the world view as pleasant
recreation may not be appealing to
Christians elsewhere. Even among Christians
living in the same area, what one may
view as relaxing (perhaps curling up with a
good book), another may view as boring;
what one may view as refreshing (perhaps
sightseeing on a bicycle), another may view
as exhausting. Still, we accept that in such
matters as food and recreation, there is room
for diversity and personal preference.—Rom.
14:2-4.
COMMENTS
“Balanced” = not too much time per the WTS, how much?
Christians = only jws, the rest are false Christians or professed Christians
Why would a jw find reading a good book boring, do they mean the Bible and WTS publications?
Diversity and personal preference = or only as directed by the WTS? What about “stumbling” people by reading non-jw books, or stumbling any jw with narrow views?
4. Why do we need to set limits on the kind of recreation
we choose? Illustrate.
4 However, we also realize that allowing
for diversity in recreation is not a license to
indulge oneself. To illustrate, consider again
the example of food. Though we may be
willing to eat a variety of foods, we would
not deliberately consume food that is rotten.
Eating such food would go against common
sense and could endanger our health. Similarly,
though we may be open to a variety
of forms of wholesome entertainment, we
would not pursue leisure activities that are
life-threatening, violent, or morally rotten.
Engaging in such activities would go against
Bible principles and would endanger our
physical or spiritual health. To make sure
that we stay within reasonable limits, we do
well to determine in advance whether some
recreation that appeals to us is beneficial or
not. (Eph. 5:10) How can we do so?
COMMENTS
Who decides what is “indulging”?
Rotten food = rotten raspberries, DO compared this to jw children who went to Guns and Roses with their parents’ permission during the convention
Life-threatening = parachuting, hang-gliding, racing, paint ball, football, etc.
Wouldn’t driving a car endanger our physical health; shouldn’t jws then walk in service and to the meetings?
Reasonable limits = by whose judgment?
5. How can we determine whether our recreation
meets God’s standards?
5 For recreation to benefit us and be pleasing
in Jehovah’s eyes, it needs to meet specific
standards set out in God’s Word. (Ps. 86:
11) To determine whether that is the case
regarding a type of recreation you may like,
you might consult a simple checklist. The
list is made up of three questions that can be
summed up in the words what, when, and
who. Let us consider them one at a time.
COMMENTS
Pleasing in God’s eyes or WTS (FDS/GB) eyes or does God = GB?
SIMPLE checklist = who will be checking it twice finding out whose naughty or nice?
What Does It Include?
6. What entertainment do we need to reject, and
why?
6 Before engaging in a form of entertainment,
the first question to ask yourself is,
What?—that is, ‘What is the nature of the leisure
activity to which I feel attracted?’ As you seek the
answer, it is useful to keep in mind that there are basically
two categories of entertainment. To the first, we say no;
to the second, maybe. What is the first? In this wicked
world, much entertainment is characterized
by activities that flagrantly violate Bible principles
or break God’s laws. (1 John 5:19) True
Christians say a resolute no to all such entertainment.
This includes entertainment that
features sadism, demonism, homosexuality,
pornography, or violence or that glorifies
other vile, immoral practices. (1 Cor. 6:9, 10;
read Revelation 21:8.) No matter where we
may be, we prove to Jehovah that we “abhor
what is wicked” by refusing to get close to
such entertainment.—Rom. 12:9; 1 John 1:
5, 6.
COMMENTS
WHAT is the nature---who decides?
No
Maybe
Not yes though
Flagrantly violate Bible principles (WTS rules) = have you met jws that feel football, chess, paintball are definite NOs and others do not?
What about the fact that David’s choices lead to the deaths and torture of others—should we read that?
7, 8. How can we evaluate the quality of a certain
form of entertainment? Illustrate.
7 The second category of leisure activity
consists of forms of entertainment that do
not center on practices that are expressly
condemned in God’s Word. In such cases,
before choosing the entertainment, we
should carefully compare the activity with
Jehovah’s view of what is wholesome, as expressed
in Bible principles. (Prov. 4:10, 11)
Then we need to make a personal decision
that leaves us with a good conscience. (Gal.
6:5; 1 Tim. 1:19) How can we do so? Think of
this: Before eating a new dish, we would first
want to find out what its main ingredients
are. Similarly, before engaging in a form of
recreation, we need to investigate what its
main features are.—Eph. 5:17.
COMMENTS
Okay, it is not mentioned in the Bible. David though must have known that adultery and murder were seriously wrong, and that God did not want a census taken (even if David didn’t understand why not). But David did not pay personally, instead Uriah died, David and Bathsheba’s illegitimate son died, David’s older sons died, David’s wives were raped, and 70,000 innocent people died (by David’s choice) when David took the census. But David kept living to an old age.
Is it our conscience that really matters? Or is it the conscience of the pickiest jw in the circuit, or the conscience of every non-jw?
*** w09 8/15 p.20 par.9***
We need to listen to our Bible-trained conscience instead of letting our selfish inclinations overwhelm it. At the same time, we should endeavor to respect the consciences of our beloved spiritual brothers and sisters. We make every effort to avoid stumbling them, keeping in mind that our brother’s conscience may be more sensitive or restrictive than our own.—1 Cor. 8:12; 2 Cor. 4:2; 1 Pet. 3:16.
The only time you should be concerned what the ingredients of a new dish is if you are allergic to something such as shellfish, or other food allergy. Otherwise when you go to someone’s house for dinner and they serve something new, do you require a list of ingredients from them? (you’d be a fun dinner guest)
8 For instance, you may like sports, and
that attraction is easily understood. Sports
can be fun and exciting. What, though, if
you are attracted to certain sports because of
their aggressive competitiveness, excessive
risk taking, high rates of injury, riotous
celebrations, nationalistic fervor, or similar
“ingredients”? After examining what is involved,
you would likely decide that it would
be hard to harmonize your thinking with Jehovah’s
way of thinking and with the message
of peace and love that we preach to others.
(Isa. 61:1; Gal. 5:19-21) On the other
hand, if a certain leisure activity is made up
of “ingredients” that are wholesome in Jehovah’s
eyes, then such recreation may well
be beneficial and refreshing to you.—Gal. 5:
22, 23; read Philippians 4:8.
COMMENTS
What game or sports does not have an aspect of competitiveness even if you are only try to better your last best score?
Did you know that sports such as football or soccer were compared to gladiator games in the WT publications? Have you heard that from the congregation platform, circuit overseer, or district convention?
*** w04 5/1 p.31
The religious nature of the games was one reason for first-century Christians to shun them, for “what agreement does God’s temple have with idols?” (2 Corinthians 6:14, 16) What of sports today?
Obviously, modern sports do not honor pagan gods. Yet, is it not true that some sports are surrounded by a near-religious fervor, comparable to that which existed among the ancients? Moreover, as reports over the last few years have shown, in order to win, some athletes have been willing to take performance-enhancing drugs that endanger their health and even their lives.
For Christians, physical achievement is of very limited worth. Spiritual qualities of “the secret person of the heart” are what make us beautiful in God’s eyes. (1 Peter 3:3, 4) We recognize that not all who take part in sports today have a fierce competitive spirit, but many do. Will association with them help us to follow the Scriptural exhortation to ‘do nothing out of contentiousness, or out of egotism, but to have lowliness of mind?’ Or will such association not result in “enmities, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, contentions, divisions”?—Philippians 2:3; Galatians 5:19-21.
Many modern contact sports have a potential for violence. Anyone attracted to such sports does well to remember the words of Psalm 11:5: “Jehovah himself examines the righteous one as well as the wicked one, and anyone loving violence His soul certainly hates.”
Why is it that in this area jws (especially elders) have Super Bowl parties (American football), with food, alcoholic drink, big tvs, and “riotous celebrating,” and “team” fervor (no international fervor for soccer though it’s growing). I know elders who have season tickets and “make friends” with their unrighteous riches and it does not involve God of Jesus.
When Do I Pursue It?
9. What is revealed by our answer to the question,
‘When will I engage in recreation?’
The second question to ask yourself is,
When?—that is, ‘When will I engage in recreation?
How much time will I spend on it?’ Our answer to the question
what? reveals much about our inclinations
—what we find acceptable and what we find unacceptable.
However, the answer to the question when? reflects
our priorities—what we find important and what we find unimportant.
How, then, can we determine whether the level of importance
that we attach to our entertainment is proper?
COMMENTS
When will I engage….obviously not during the meetings, except for the brothers who refuse to record and watch it later. Not during Saturday field service, unless a big game starts early for showing on tv (no recording see above). Remember the elders that balked at having the CO visit the same week as deer hunting (1 week only, once a year)? I knew brothers that rented time at an ice rink and played hockey at midnight on Fridays or Saturdays, rarely showed up for Saturday field service or Sunday morning meetings…and they were elders.
Don’t worry, someone in the congregation will HELP you set your priorities if you guess wrong.
10, 11. How do Jesus’ words recorded at Matthew
6:33 help us in deciding how much time to spend
on recreation?
10 Jesus Christ told his followers: “You
must love Jehovah your God with your
whole heart and with your whole soul and
with your whole mind and with your whole
strength.” (Mark 12:30) Therefore, our love
for Jehovah comes first in our life. We demonstrate
that this is the case by following Jesus’
admonition: “Keep on, then, seeking
first the kingdom and his righteousness, and
all these other things will be added to you.”
(Matt. 6:33) How can that statement help us
in determining how much time and importance
to assign to recreation?
COMMENTS
So wouldn’t it be wasting time to have friends over for dinner, wasting monetary resources that you could give to the WTS. What is the kingdom per the WTS?
*** w10 9/15 p.23 par.8***
In this time of the end, Christ has committed “all his belongings”—all the earthly interests of the Kingdom—to his “faithful and discreet slave” and its representative Governing Body, a group of anointed Christian men. (Matt. 24:45-47)
How can we follow Jesus’ example in choosing our friends and our leisure activities?
11 Note this detail: Jesus admonished us to
‘keep on seeking first the kingdom.’ He did
not tell us to ‘keep on seeking only the kingdom.’
Obviously, Jesus knew that we would
need to seek many things in life in addition
to the Kingdom. We need housing, food,
clothing, a basic education, employment,
recreation, and the list goes on. However,
among all the things that we are seeking,
only one pursuit comes first—Kingdom
interests. (1 Cor. 7:29-31) That fundamental
truth should move us to pursue our secondary
activities, including recreation, in such a
way that they enable us to carry out our primary
activity—caring for Kingdom interests.
If we do that, limited recreation can be beneficial.
COMMENTS
Basic education = not a college/university education, but what is basic, what earns enough money to pay your bills or support a family? How good is the advice of people who have their bills paid by the WTS at Bethel?
Kingdom interests = only WTS interests
Should a family starve so they have the money to donate to the WTS?
Should they give out of their NEEDS like this widow did at Luke 21:4?
(Luke 21:4) . . .For all these dropped in gifts out of their surplus, but this [woman] out of her want dropped in all the means of living she had.”
Are food, clothing, housing secondary activities?
12. How can the principle found at Luke 14:28 be
applied to recreation?
12 So, then, when it comes to spending
time on recreation, we do well to count the
cost in advance. (Luke 14:28) We need to determine
how much of our time a certain leisure
activity will cost. Next, we must decide
how much of our time it is worth. If pursuing
a form of recreation will mean neglecting
such important activities as personal
Bible study, family worship, attending
Christian meetings, or sharing in Kingdom
preaching, it is not worth the price. (Mark 8:
36) But if an occasional leisure activity energizes
us to keep on pursuing Kingdom interests,
we may well decide that the time we
spend on that type of recreation is worthwhile.
COMMENTS
How much time is the unwritten rule per the WTS.
I guess Jesus should have skipped that wedding, after all he had only 3 ½ years to preach, assemble followers, etc. Also, who really looked after his mother Mary even before, made sure she had a home, food, clothing and was protected? Jesus was the oldest but wasn’t it his younger brothers that looked after her.
Jesus knew he had only 3 ½ years before he’d be back in heaven playing angel games with his brothers then angels. How much time do we have….for some jws it has stretched out 50, 60, 70, 80 years with no end in sight.
Who Are My Companions?
13. Why should we carefully consider with whom we share
in recreation?
13 The third question to ask yourself is,
Who?—that is, ‘Who are the ones I want
to share my leisure activities with?’ It is
important to consider this aspect of recreation.
Why? Because the quality of our
recreation is greatly influenced by the quality
of our companions. Just as eating a
meal is usually more pleasurable when you
do so in the company of good friends, engaging in
recreation is often more enjoyable when you do
so with good companions. Thus, it is understandable
that many among us, especially young ones, enjoy
recreation that is shared with others. However,
to make sure that an activity will be beneficial,
it is wise to determine in advance what sort of
individuals to choose as companions and what sort
to avoid.—2 Chron. 19:2; read Proverbs 13:20; Jas.
4:4.
COMMENTS
To play sports with children that are not Jehovah's Witnesses is definitely "unwholesome"! School and Jehovah's Witnesses, 1983, p.23.
You are reminded that involvement in after-school sports tie you down, requiring you to spend evenings and weekends playing on a school team. You are expected to be at the lectures at the Kingdom Hall. "Any recreation you take outside of school should not be with worldly youths." Watchtower, 9/1/64, p.535.
Friends = only jws and even some of them are bad association
All sporting events are made up of non-jws, except for a few like the Williams sisters who are questionable.
14, 15. (a) What example did Jesus set in choosing
the right companions? (b) What questions should
we ask ourselves regarding our companions?
14 Following Jesus’ example in choosing companions
will be very helpful. From creation onward, Jesus
had a love for humans. (Prov. 8:31) While on earth,
he showed loving consideration for all kinds of people.
(Matt. 15:29-37) However, Jesus drew a line
between being friendly and being a close
friend. While he was friendly toward people
in general, he was a close friend only to
those who met specific requirements. Speaking
to his 11 faithful apostles, Jesus stated:
“You are my friends if you do what I am
commanding you.” (John 15:14; see also
John 13:27, 30.) The only individuals whom
Jesus embraced as friends were those who
followed him and served Jehovah.
COMMENTS
Jesus chose only Jews…while he did talk to and help some non-Jews, he socialized only with Jews, but then that is what the Law required and Jesus had to fulfill the Law perfectly in order for this sacrifice to be accepted by God.
But then he chose Saul/Paul at a time he was not yet Jesus’ friend although he claimed to serve the Jewish God.
15 Hence, when you consider whether you
should choose a certain individual as a close
friend or not, it would be wise to keep Jesus’
statement in mind. Ask yourself such questions
as: ‘Does this individual demonstrate
in words and deeds that he is obeying the
commands of Jehovah and Jesus? Does he
have the same Bible-based values and morals
that I have? Will being in his company
encourage me to put the Kingdom first in
my life and to be a loyal servant of Jehovah?’
If you are sure that the answers to those
questions are yes, you have found a good
companion with whom to enjoy your leisure
activities.—Read Psalm 119:63; 2 Cor. 6:14;
2 Tim. 2:22.
COMMENTS
Even if you judge them to be obeying God and Jesus, will others share your opinion? Will they have made a personal judgment and impose it on you? Personally marking them and telling others to do the same or they will be marked? I remember the speaker who said that non-jws were corpses and people married to them were kissing corpses. I wonder then how jw wives were to threat their non-jw husbands, men they had married before these women became jws? What about those whose children were grown before these women were baptized as jws? Should they shun them and their children?
Our Recreation—Does It Pass the Test?
16. What do we need to determine regarding our
entertainment?
16 We briefly considered three aspects of
entertainment—quality, quantity, and company.
To be beneficial, our entertainment
needs to match closely the Bible-based standard
for each of these aspects. Hence, before
engaging in a form of recreation, we need to
put it to the test. When it comes to quality,
we want to know: ‘What does it include? Is it
wholesome or debased?’ (Prov. 4:20-27) Regarding
quantity, we want to find out: ‘How
much time would I spend on it? Is the
amount appropriate or not?’ (1 Tim. 4:8)
And concerning company, we need to determine:
‘With whom will I share in entertainment?
Are such companions good or bad?’
—Eccl. 9:18; 1 Cor. 15:33.
COMMENTS
Quality = are bible games the only safe choice?
Quantity = an open time frame, how much personal study, how much family study, how much field service, should you go to 10 meetings a week (attend another congregation as well as your own as one brother did so he had almost no time to even take a shower).
Company = only jws and even some of those are suspect
*** w806/15p.19par.13Harvesting***
Even in the Christian congregation there may be an environment or association that is spiritually not most helpful.
17, 18. (a) How can we test ourselves to see whether
our entertainment meets the Bible’s standards?
(b)What are you personally determined to do w hen
it comes to your choice of entertainment?
17 If a form of entertainment fails to meet
the Bible-based standards in any one of
these three aspects, it does not pass the test.
On the other hand, if we make sure that our
leisure activities meet the Bible-based standards
in all three aspects, our recreation will
bring honor to Jehovah and benefits to us.
—Ps. 119:33-35.
COMMENTS
Pass whose test, God’s or the WTS test thus – God = WTS
Bring honor to Jesus? That’s right, the members of the WTS consider them first and foremost, Jehovah’s witnesses, not Jesus’ witnesses (not even Christians) Acts 1:8.
18 So, then, when it comes to recreation,
let us strive to do the right thing at the right
time and with the right people. Yes, may it
be the heartfelt desire of each one of us to
follow the Bible’s advice: “Whether you are
eating or drinking or doing anything else, do
all things for God’s glory.”—1 Cor. 10:31.
COMMENTS
Right thing = what the WTS says is right
Right time = give all your time to the WTS like the widow gave everything at Luke 21:4
Right people = only jws, and even some of them are suspect.
Who Can You Explain?
Regarding recreation, how can you
apply the principles found at . . .
? Philippians 4:8?
? Matthew 6:33?
? Proverbs 13:20?
CONCLUDING COMMENTS
Did you know that “nike” is the Greek word for victory, or that Nike, was the winged Greek goddess of victory; time to get rid of anything with the swoosh, the nike symbol, eh?
Things are hot and heavy in the US as College football nears the bowl games at the end of this month, the Super Bowl (beginning of February), the strike is over and national basketball will be starting soon, but the World Series (baseball) is over. It keeps the brothers busy in the local congregations. It’s amazing how they know the names of the coaches, the teams, the players, their status in the league, etc, but can’t remember how old their children are, when their wedding anniversary is, not even the names of the 12 apostles.
I’d be interested in any “counsel” you received from the elders, any elders who were avid fans in secret and hypocrites in public. I know several that have card parties at their homes….Super Bowl parties, etc.
Love, Blondie