Help me understand

by irondork 2 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  irondork

  Recently, Baltar447 posted a copy of this AWAKE article: g9110/8pp.4-6TheSecretWoundsofChildAbuse in this thread:

  http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/child-abuse/228286/1/Help-Needed-to-Locate-Two-Old-Awake-Articles

  Third subheading down it says:

  WhytheWoundsPersist

  Proverbs 22:6 says: “Train up a boy according to the way for him; even when he grows old he will not turn aside from it.” Clearly, parental influence can last a lifetime. What, though, if a child is trained to believe that she is powerless to prevent sexual intrusion? Trained to perform perversions in exchange for “love”? Trained to view herself as worthless and dirty? Could not that lead to a lifetime of destructive behavior? Not that childhood abuse excuses later inappropriate adult conduct, but it can helpexplain why abuse victims may tend to act or feel a certain way.

  They use Proverbs 22:6 to drive home the point that as a person grows old, he/she will not turn away from the way he was trained as a child.

  They ask, "What if a child is trained to believe he/she is powerless to prevent sexual intrusion, perform sexual perversions, view herself as worthless?"

  Then they state that this childhood training is no excuse for turning out the way they turn out.

  Huh?
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  OldGenerationDude

  The text of Proverbs 22:6, as rendered in English by Jewish scholars:

  Train a child according to his way; even when he grows old, he will not turn away from it.

  Now the text does not say that whatever a child learns will keep them from turning aside from their training as an adult. We might get that from this verse if we don’t understand Hebrew idiom.

  The text says that a child should be ‘trained…according to his way.’ In Hebrew the text reads more like: ‘Initiate a consecration program for a child with regard to the child’s disposition. When the child becomes an adult, things will be second nature for him.’

  Hebrew is extremely terse, and word-for-word translations like the one above or the NWT don’t capture terse Hebrew expression well. Word-for-word is a bad rendition practice at times because one word in Hebrew is usually compacted with meaning.

  The text is also to be read in the context of the rest of the book of Proverbs, and therefore raising a child in the “fear of G_d” or according to a consecrated life dedicated to HaShem is what is meant. If a parent does this training “according to his [meaning the child’s] way,” it will be second nature to the adult on how to handle matters in the fear of HaShem.

  This is not an axiom, however. The text is not saying it is impossible for the child to fail or fall away as an adult. The text is a warning that not all ways of education will ensure a child’s success as an adult. The text is about being sure to train “according to [the child’s] way,” with consideration for their unique disposition. If one fails to take this into consideration, it will be difficult for the child to stay faithful as an adult when trail befalls them.
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  irondork

  Now THAT is an explanation.

  Thank you, OGD.