Where Does It Say JWs Can't Read Pubs By Other Churches? (page 2)

Steel

Am I the only one who is getting mad reading that rubbish

OUTLAW

I thought it was another Unwritten Rule..

Cold Steel

When I was a JW, Mormons came to my door. After a brief exchange, I offered them one of the tracts. ... Some time later when I was pruning the bushes along the path leading out of my property I came across a scrunched up copy of the tract, now exposed after the bush was pruned back. I will credit the Mormon with having the social nicety of taking the tract but give him a "Social Fail" for not even waiting until he was outside my property before disposing of it.

As a Mormon, myself, I have been offered literature by others in exchange for that which I left them. But in every case I have read their pamphlets cover to cover at least once. If someone going to take the time and expense to write their views and their arguments, the least I can do is read it. The only time I was completely unable to do it is when some guy at an airport in robes handed me a Hari Krishna book for a "donation." All I had on me was three bucks, so after some persistence, I took the book, handed him the money and went to catch my flight.

He wasn't happy, as the book clearly was intended to bring in at least a $20 clip. It was bound, in color, people with many arms and purple skin. It was like the red book on Revelation the WTB&TS but on better paper and not so large.

On the last leg of my flight I tried to get into it, but that was impossible. I could understand each word individually, but together I had no idea. Still, being in publishing myself, I couldn't bring myself to toss it. I tried to read it as mythology, but even that didn't work.

Speaking of the red book, I love the pictures. I noticed that all the angels have wings, there are no females and they all look alike. Not one black angel in the bunch!

I even watch flat earth videos on YouTube, not that I give them any credence, but they fascinate me.

But what fascinates me about the Jehovah's Witnesses is that their faith is so great and their evidence is so sparse. The two great questions I ask is, if Jesus appeared invisibly to the earth in 1914, how would anyone know? And if God came in 1918-9 to investigate the world's religions, how would anyone know unless God put out a press release?

Yet JWs constantly attack members of other religions of "Christendom" as being "manmade." And that alone intrigues me. To me the fallacy is so self evident, but the entire organization glosses over these questions as though they were non-existent. Having been so wrong on dates in the past, to base your entire legitimacy on them is madness.

blondie

Cold Steel, I'm surprised they see him with their eyes of faith as they see the signs unfold at the appointed time. (just explaining WTS view)

Sorry

Yup. Thanks Blondie. I knew it was in print. And even if it wasn't, they still make it clear reading other religions' magazines is a no-no. When my father and I first started field service, a MS was mad at my father for exchanging literature with a householder. He told us not to read it as "it's designed to put doubt in your mind." I thought "couldn't the householder say the same thing about us?"

Cold Steel

I could understand it if someone in the leadership had said he was inspired or that he'd had a dream or a vision -- something -- but the WTBTS has all of the hallmarks of being a manmade organization all the time it's billing itself as a divinely chosen and established institution. Further, it sees itself as being the Kingdom of God as foretold in Daniel 2. But that kingdom was said to roll forth “without hands” and would “not be left to other men.” Yet everything about the JWs points to being just the opposite.

The general membership calls it “the truth” and though others say they're “arrogant,” it's a bit more than that. It's more “smug.” They see themselves as having the inside track and they're told not to waste their time on on those who aren't interested in conversion. In fact, if you show resistance, they be downright disagreeable. Many of the Witnesses I've met are nice enough, but the more zealous ones are those that tend to be difficult. And those, I suppose, also are deemed the most righteous. And because they assume they're going to fare better in the afterlife, they also believe they know things not known by members of other faiths. And it's this, I think, that makes them smug. 😏

scratchme1010

Is there a general rule or does each KH make it's own policy?

I'd say that "policy" is not the best word to use to characterize what the JWs do with people. Please understand that the WT is a high demand, controlling group, and as such, in many things they don't have written policies, nor do they say anything specific. As is, they change many things that they say and people still continue believing in their nonsense.

They use a lot of rumor and hearsay. They don't take a specific stance on certain things, but they do appeal to hinder people's own instincts and discretion. They instill fear in anything that doesn't come from them as a way to control anything that can influence their loyalty to them. Hence, you may hear different things from different people, although all those things converge in one common feeling, which is fear of anything outside that organization.

steve2

The wording in the 1984 article warning about the dangers of reading other religious publications, if taken too seriously, would lead everyone to doubt their ability to read something and not be deceived by it, especially when Satan's influence is thrown in. I remember struggling with this "mentality" when I was in the organization. It elevates the so-called "truth" to the level of something that we had best accept because if we read beyond it, we are at risk of becoming deceived.

Looking back I see this superstitious claptrap for what it is: Instilling fear into the rank and file so that any normal need they might usually have to check things out for themselves and consider other points of view are squashed. This is an organization that simply cannot afford to encourage its members to use their brain.

neverendingjourney

But what fascinates me about the Jehovah's Witnesses is that their faith is so great and their evidence is so sparse.

I used to think the exact same thing about Mormons: gold tablets, convenient visions about polygamy, Jesus preaching to Indians. How can those people believe such nonsense?

The hardest truths to see are often those that are right in front of our noses. How many wives fail to see their husband's infidelity that is obvious to the outside world? How many parents fail to admit that their son who has done multiple stints in prison is a lost cause and a bad person?

I'm nominally an atheist now (the existence or nonexistence of god is no longer a primary concern of mine) and all religions seem absurd to me, albeit some are far stranger than others.

Londo111

It's called Information Control.

Where Does It Say JWs Can't Read Pubs By Other Churches?

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