JW's are so fond of quoting the scripture about treating a sinner "just as a man of the nations and as a tax collector". Since this was clearly an unloving Jewish practice, why does the Society feel obliged to use this Jewish practice in disfellowshipping???
Why Do Jehovah's Witnesses View Disfellowshipping The Same As The Jews?
by minimus 10 Replies latest jw friends
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cornish
The very sort the pharisees criticized Jesus for hanging out with.
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Satanus
Because wt control freaks rejected the open house system that jesus introduced in the nt. Control freaks prefer the controling jewish methods of the ot. The wt isn't really christian.
SS
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minimus
I still never could understand why the Society would jump on this bandwagon. Since Christ didn't treat Gentiles and tax collectore as unworthy, how can the Society claim to act like Jesus and look at a live person as being "dead"? Why take this Jewish practice and have so-called Christians practice bigotry and lack of love and empathy? Jesus went out of his way to deal with sinners. The Watchtower Society goes out of their way to shun......It just makes no Christian, scriptural sense.
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anti-absolutism
I was df'd for having sex with my wife of 10 years. I was going to leave my comment like that, (with the misplaced modifier), and I thought it would be funny to have people wonder why THAT would get me df'd. Then I remembered about the stories in Crisis of Conscience about people ACTUALLY being df'd for that, (having certain sex with their spouse, only to have the WTBTS change their opinion a few years later, never having re-instated anybody they had wronged...GRRRRRR!!!) so I decided to leave that comment in for that reason, instead.
Truth is that it was sex before we were married.... OH!!!! for shame!!!!!! But the feeling of guilt for MY SIN did lead me into a marriage that was Hell for both of us. We are now happily getting divorced 10 years later... (please don't cry.... lol )
But, in regards to your comments, I have been reminded of that Gord-damn scripture relating to how ex-JW's are to be treated like tax collectors and it has frustrated me plenty!!!
Other than that one scripture,(which I couldn't even find), about how to apparently treat df'd or other ex-JW's , every other NWT indexed scripture for "tax collector" sheds them as being in a VERY positive light. Read some of those scriptures: Mt 11:19, 21:32; Mark 2:15; Luke 3:12; 15:1; 18:11; 19:2, and you will see how, completely contrary to how I and MANY others were treated, the SUPPOSED BAD-ASS tax collectors seemed to actually be treated like gods compared to the arrogant Pharisees.
Something to think about for sure.
On another topic, do you think the Jews were actually the chosen people...... absolutely no offense to the Jews of the world, but it seems like the Jews' god in the Old testament was a mean mother ....
Is it possible that they kicked the 'life' out of people, literally, only because they had the conviction that they were from the big guy? Their perception of superiority was possibly the over-riding factor.
Brad
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ozziepost
Why do they view it the same as the Jews?
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ozziepost
(Sorry about the stuttering. I'm getting annoyed with this posting facility tonite!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
Anyway, as I was trying to point out when my keyboard/screen decided to have a life of their own, why wouldn't the Dubs view DF the same as the Jews? Like the Jews, they haven't appreciated fully what the teachings of Jesus are. The reality is that the teachings of the WTS have far more to do with the OT than the NT.
See how often the publications refer to the "principles" of the Mosaic Law etc and then proceed to "lay down the law" for the R&F based on those supposed principles.
Mrs Ozzie and I forsook the WTS because we realised Jesus had only a minor role to play in Dub teachings, yet we claimed to be Christian.
Thank God we can now say we are Christian!
Cheers, Ozzie
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minimus
Regarding the principles of the Mosaic Law, since Christians are no longer under the Law, and since the Pharisees erroneously misapplied the SPIRIT of the Law, why the GB decided to make this treatment of human beings as being Christian, is beyond me. Would Jesus have snubbed people as if they didn't exist? He spoke to everyone, even those that hated him........Maybe, NEW LITE will shine onto the GB and they will say that this type of behavior is unchristian after all! You never know with these guys. Then, articles could come out saying how certain overzealous ones read too much into things and thankfully, the Governing Body readjusted our thinking.
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wannaexit
minimus,
This a very interesting question. The more I think about it the more I realize that it's not only their view of disfellowshipping that is the same as the Jews, but their whole structure is based on old Jewish ways. For example the Jews had the scripture but also their man-made oral laws. JW's profess to have the Scriptures, but they also have loads of organizational rule and regulations.
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rocketman
Good question minimus, and good comment wannaexit. I've felt for a long time that their actual teachings are based more on the Law Of Moses than on the Law of the Christ, even though they, of course, would deny that.
I also feel that Jesus showed us, by active demonstration, how the "man of the nations" and "tax collectors" really should have been treated.