Both political and religious true believers often distinguish themselves by their limitless arrogance towards people who dare hold different opinions from them.
Every thing has to be done on their terms; people who think differently can’t expect to have the same rights as those who consider themselves true believers. In this way a elite is created a kind of “spiritual” master race. In Political systems like North Korea and the former Albania such political systems have been and can be observed. In a religious setting the true believers become an elite because only they have the right kind of faith on earth. Of course having the right kind of a faith means they are the only people of earth that have the “approval” of God, and most important of all, they will enjoy the protection of God when he kill all those who didn’t join their elite.
In political or religious states like China and Iran, their ideologies have caused them to execute people with different views, not because they necessarily have committed any crime but merely disagreeing publicly with the elite. The Watchtower Society acknowledge wistfully that the hopeless human societies in most countries doesn’t allow them to kill dissenters like they did in the good old days, when the “creators principles” was in place. Like all true believers they long back to those glorious days:
*w52 11/15 703 - **We are not living today among theocratic nations where such members of our fleshly family relationship could be exterminated for apostasy from God and his theocratic organization, as was possible and was ordered in the nation of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai and in the land of Palestine. "Thou shalt surely kill him; thy hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people. And thou shalt stone him to death with stones, because he hath sought to draw thee away from Jehovah thy God, . . . And all Israel shall hear, and fear, and shall do no more any such wickedness as this is in the midst of thee."-Deut. 13:6-11, As being limited by the laws of the worldly nation in which we live and also by the laws of God through Jesus Christ, we can take action against apostates only to a certain extent, that is, consistent with both sets of laws. The law of the land and God's law through Christ forbid us to kill apostates, even though they be members of our own flesh-and-blood family relationship.
*w60 2/1 80 - 17 There may be rare instances where a child is so hardened in its stubbornness that even the rod of correction cannot drive it out. In the days of Israel parents were instructed by Jehovah to take such a rebel to the city fathers and they, in turn, took the incorrigible one out and stoned him to death. There were no juvenile delinquents under such a system. (Deut. 21:18-21) So also today, the New World society of Jehovah's witnesses can not and will not tolerate juvenile delinquency to exist in its midst. So, to avoid a possible death-dealing blow by being disfellowshiped from the congregation,*w61 10/1 597 - **In ancient theocratic Israel such false prophets were to be tried before witnesses, exposed and stoned to death. (Deut. 13:1-11) Today the true Christian congregation may not enforce such a death penalty for prophets of deception who try to induce disloyalty to God and his kingdom. But the congregation can give them a spiritual smiting or striking with the truth of God's Word, even wounding them sorely at heart and in spirit.
Jehovah's Witnesses is therefore a striking example of the “true believer” extreme elitist thinking. Not surprisingly therefore they love to dwell upon in gory details of what will happen to those who didn’t accept “Jehovah’s theocratic Organization”:
***w61 12/1 726 ***58 Never before in all human history will so many human creatures have been slaughtered. Blood, as representing human lives poured out, will run deep and over a vast distance. Revelation 14:20 paints the appalling picture, saying: “And the wine press was trodden outside the city [God’s organization], and blood came out of the wine press as high up as the bridles of the horses, for a distance of a thousand six hundred furlongs [or, 200 miles].”
59 To a completion Jehovah’s judicial decision will be executed. The nations and their grapes of wickedness will be trampled out of existence, to leave the earth a cleansed place for the righteous to occupy and enjoy. Not all flesh will be in that symbolic wine press. Not all flesh will have its lifeblood trampled out of it. There are those who make Jehovah their refuge and their fortress. These will be kept safe and be preserved, while Jehovah by his King Jesus Christ crushes their enemies and His enemies in the wine press or “low plain of the decision.” These preserved ones are the remnant of spiritual Israelites and the “great crowd” of their dedicated companions who unite with them in calling upon the name of Jehovah for salvation. (Joel 2:32) They are the ones to whom he has prophetically said: “And you people will have to know that I am Jehovah your God, residing in Zion my holy mountain.” With breathless awe they will have looked down from their safe heights into the valley of decision and witnessed how Jehovah gains his magnificent victory by Christ over all the combined nations of Satan’s visible organization.
60 At His victory in vindication of his universal sovereignty we witnesses will sing his praises exultantly and will acknowledge him as our God for all time and eternity. We are near the time of his battle and transcendent victory. Till that time his orders for us are to continue united in our service of him. This we will do while we declare his day of vengeance and while we preach and teach the good news of everlasting salvation by his kingdom of his Christ.
The exclusivity and elitist attitude is cultivated to it’s purest form among Jehovah's Witnesses, as everybody who do not belong to their organization will have lost the right to live:
*w89 9/1 19 - 7 Only Jehovah's Witnesses,those of the anointed remnant and the "great crowd," as a united organization under the protection of the Supreme Organizer, have any Scriptural hope of surviving the impending end of this doomed system dominated by Satan the Devil. (Revelation 7:9-17; 2 Corinthians 4:4)
Respect
Another effect of the incredible arrogance of the true believer can be observed in the Watchtower Societies extremely weird and bizarre idea about the concept of respect. Let us take a look at one of the more grotesque examples:
*** w91 4/15 24 Imitate God's Mercy Today ***
18 We ought to be especially supportive of the family members who are faithful Christians. They may already face pain and obstacles because of living at home with an expelled person who may actually discourage their spiritual pursuits. He may prefer not to have Christians visit the home; or if they do come to see the loyal family members, he may not have the courtesy to keep away from the visitors.He may also impede the family's efforts to go to all Christian meetings and assemblies. (Compare Matthew 23:13.) Christians thus disadvantaged truly deserve our mercy.-2 Corinthians 1:3, 4.
One can clearly see the irritation of the Watchtower writer here. How dare these people who first of all have the audacity to disagree with Brooklyn, and consequently should be shunned, have the nerve to display such a lack of “courtesy” that they don’t make themselves scarce and disappear out of sight when the “faithful” honour their house with their presence! Why don’t they go hide in some closet, cellar, attic, etc, when the “holy ones” enter their abode? Why don’t these horrible apostates understand that the “holy ones” should be spared the nauseating sight of such human trash, while they eat the food and drink the apostate has paid for in his own house? Why can’t these pesky apostates understand that the holy ones has the right to come and go in his house as they please without running the risk of bumping into this “unclean” person? Why can’t these apostates learn to show some “respect”?
Incredible isn’t it? Have you ever seen a better definition of what the Watchtower really mean by the word “respect”? Read the whole article that the above quote is from and see if you can find one single piece of advice about respecting the person who disagrees with the Watchtower! You won’t find one single hint about “common courtesy” for those who in their incredible arrogance trample into other peoples homes and in their totally one-eyed stupidity expect this person to “have the courtesy to keep away from the visitors” in his own home!
This is an excellent example of how Brooklyn define “respect” and as we can see they demonstrate a complete lack of even being close to understanding what the word means. They don’t know anything about “courtesy” either!
When the Watchtower and Jehovah's Witnesses talk about respect it always a complete one-way street. It is always and exclusively the respect they want for themselves. It is NEVER about them showing any respect whatsoever for other people, they simply have no idea what that is.
Norm.