How IGNORANT can you be and still be a Jehovah's Witness in GOOD standing?

by Terry 32 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  Pickler

  The more ignorant you are, the better a JW you are, the higher your standing in the congregation.

  I never bothered trying to understand the deeper things of the truth. I was known to be intelligent, so, people tried to interest me in it.

  But, it was just so boring, all of it. Even then, I knew, whats the point of studying something if you can't question it?

  What's the point of studying if you can only look at one source? This deep level of ignorance is why JW will never enter into a theological debate with anyone who actually knows anything about history/evolution.
• 

  Terry

  Randy Watters has helped me alot with my anger issues toward religion in general, toward "god" and especially my feelings for the Watchtower Society.

  For one thing, Randy helped me to see how INEFFECTIVE it is to knock the props out from under otherwise decent people who cherish values that they don't realize are warped or erroneous.

  You don't kick the crutches out from under a handicapped person and yell "Get up and walk for yourself!"

  When I call Jehovah's Witnesses IGNORANT I don't mean an ad hominem pejorative use of that word.

  I mean it quantitatively and qualitatively. They JUST DON'T KNOW!

  It may be hard to view people in the Kingdom Hall as kind, good-hearted people who don't know any better but should.

  Yet--if we can do for them what they cannot do toward us (love) then there is provisional bridge we both can cross toward better understanding.

  We know better.....at least now we do.

  Once we did not.

  The most important question I think we can ask is this:

  WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN SAID TO US that would have made a difference when we were so devout???

  It is really a fine question to contemplate, I think.
• 

  moshe

  JWs need a continous dose of public ridicule to snap them out of their stupor- most folks just say, "I'm not interested, which is no deterrant at all to JWs and their time consuming WT public sales religion model.
• 

  Terry

  JWs need a continous dose of public ridicule to snap them out of their stupor- most folks just say, "I'm not interested, which is no deterrant at all to JWs and their time consuming WT public sales religion model.

  Well, I've done my share!

  But, I've been sort of looking for a direction that makes me more effective.

  Words that work are better than words that trigger cognitive dissonace---I think.

  It is an enigma.

  What could have been said to me when I was devout? How could the presentation have been made? How would it sound?

  All of that depends on intellectual honesty: the willingness to be wrong if the evidence is overwhelming.

  I'm not sure when I was a "person of faith" I was intellectually honest to consider counter-evidence. And who was able to make such a presentation?

  A person of Hope can be optimistic and still see the possiblity that they are wrong.

  But, a person of Faith is stubbornly in denial. They will double-down intransigently.

  I may have been THAT guy!
• 

  ssn587

  it was my exprience that most dubs jut click off their intellectual side and just sponge up the bs the gb handout, then gets that sponge wrung out and they arent capable of even explaining what has been fed to them. deep down in their minds their subconscious must know its all bs so the sub mind doesnt let them recall it clearly as a means of self protection. just my 2 cents..
• 

  Crazyguy

  when a jw is told thier whole lives that this is the truth, the true religion of god and that all others are false and other do not use or even own bibles etc. pretty soon one believe all the crap and doesnt even bother to check and see. Its just old fashion brainwashing and i'm just my self seeing how the brainwashing really is. And when they do get a new drop of new light they, some just eat it up like its something so special, all the while not knowing a thing. Its really so sad, but on another note they may get through judgment do to ingnoreance but the leaders well thats a whole different situation. I don't want to be by any leader when Jesus is doing the judging.
• 

  zed is dead

  I never cease to be amazed at how ignorant they can be.

  zed
• 

  Vienna Angelika

  Very interesting topic. My grandma fits the description perfectly
• 

  sspo

  Many old timers are not ignorant...they know that after 140 years of changing doctrines that the religion is a joke but for many it's impossible to leave.

  The investment in the religion is just too much and the consequences of leaving would be too much to bear.

  Like millions of JW's they will die in the religion.
• 

  2+2=5

  How many JWs could use the bible to show how they arrive at 1914? One of the most important dates in all of history according to WT theology, yet I would guess that less than 10% of them could demonstrate the method for calculating it.

  When I still believed the troof but was doing my own research on 1914, I spoke to a few brothers ( at least 3 of them elders) about the WT 1914 chronology. Nobody had any grasp on the reasoning. Some would even say stuff like, "Jeremiahs 70 years has nothing to do with how we arrive at 1914".... they are clueless

  Once I saw how the WTS manipulates and idealizes its own history the flood gates opened.

  Now I know the 'mentally diseased' are more familiar with the WT teachings than most JWs.

  JWs are ignorant. Ignorant of their of own beliefs, ignorant of science. But they know its the truth.