for Christians: Should I picket the Memorial?
The following is a dialogue with three persons on this subject, that expresses my feelings in the matter.
Hi Randy.
Hope things are going well for your ministry. I want your opinion on something, if you would. I have put much consideration into the idea of doing a picket type situation up here in Vancouver. The target and time would be wherever the largest "Memorial" will be held on April 16th. Please let me outline my reasons:
(1) The Memorial last year was attended by more than 15 million people "...most of whom were not Jehovah's Witnesses" (April 1 Watchtower, back cover). There will be access to more people at ONE PLACE who are NOT yet brainwashed than at ANY possible place or situation, including regional conferences.
(2) Since you know as well as I that "an ounce of preventions is worth a pound of cure" regarding cult involvement, to plant a strong seed at this crucial time will get people to NEVER consider the merits (brain washing) of the Watchtower. You know that the depth of brainwashing is directly proportionate to the amount of time being indoctrinated.
(3) The issue will be SINGULAR. It will involve the various ways the Watchtower has systematically deprived their people from even entertaining the idea of being "Born Again", "Anointed sons of God" who have Jesus as their Mediator in the New Covenant. It will also involve the various Biblical texts which DO make such offers to "whosoever." The stark difference will be immediately recognizable.
(4) It will capitalize on the emotional reality that a non-J.W. MUST go through when he/she attends this huge function only to realize that he/she didn't even "Do this in memory of me", but only sat there. The brainwashing will only settle in when such bits of idiocy are considered "Biblical." This will cut em' off at the pass, as Roy Rogers (Gene Autry?) Would say.
Randy, I want your input please. I know that it is difficult venturing into such things and is not to be undertaken without divine approval and guidance. My hope is that your input will be delivered in that vein.
Thanks so much, and God bless!
NAME WITHHELD
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The following is a response from a friend who sometimes answers my mail for me:
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Dear friend,
Randy Watters forwarded your email to me for answering. I have volunteered to help him answer some of his email when he is very busy. I am also an Ex JW and have been out of the WT for 23 years.
You asked about "picketing" opportunities: My personal feelings on this is that it is usually not too effective. The reason being is that JWs are taught that they need to totally ignore people who picket, as they are "apostates." In WT theology, the JWs are taught that "apostates" are pretty much akin to "Satan" and are usually very afraid. They will even walk by a picketer and shield their eyes so that they don't see the sign or the person holding the sign. I would venture to say that most JWs who see picketers if they don't feel frightened of them, actually do feel angry. Even if a non JW who is studying to be a JW is with the JW, the JW will instruct the person to shield their eyes as well. (http://www.freeminds.org/psych/phobias.htm) I also believe that if someone who is not a baptized JW attends the "Memorial", they, by this time, have pretty much made up their minds that this is the "truth."
I do have one friend who attends my support group who does do some picketing at the various circuit and district conventions. The only reason I think that this friend might be somewhat more effective is because he know how to professionally make signs and lettering. His signs are replicas of Watchtower Covers with a question underneath that says, "What Happened to the Generation of 1914?" Underneath that he lists the phone number of a local ministry to JWs and the Free Minds Website. He doesn't walk around with the sign, but rather stands it up next to him. He dresses in a suit and tie so he doesn't stand out from the rest of the JWs attending. It's all done in a very non-intimidating way. If anyone were to do any picketing, I would recommend this way. However, I can't say that I do endorse picketing.
My feeling is that if you picket something as important as they consider the "Memorial", you would get nothing but resentment from them and it would only lead them to believe that they really are the true religion since you are there to "persecute" them. (http://www.freeminds.org/psych/come_out.htm)
Have you read a book by Wilbur Lingle called, Approaching Jehovah's Witnesses in Love? This is an excellent book for those who have never been JWs to read and understand how they can approach JWs in love. You can order it from Free Minds as well. (http://www.freeminds.org/sales/books.htm#Lingle)
Thank you for writing and let me know if any of this information has helped you.
NAME WITHHELD
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Original writer responds:
RE: Second opinion, please
Thanks for your input ____. Since the difference between the number of baptised J.W.s and the people attending the Memorial is so great, it seems to me to be obvious that many who attend are NOT YET BRAINWASHED. These would be the target audience. Did you not look at the reasoning I used in my e-mail? While I respect your opinion on this issue, it looks like what you actually did was look SINGULARLY at the issue of "picketing" and offered an opinion against it (even though you support your friend's use of the same tactics). If that is your opinion, that is fine, but maybe you should look at the specifics of the reasoning points which I listed. That is what I expected from Randy.
In any event, may God continue to bless both you and Randy.
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Randy responds:
_____ asked me to comment on your idea of picketing the Memorial. I share her views with an exception. In any crowd of people like this there will always be one or two that the Lord has prepared their hearts to come out of the Witnesses, and if done right, without an attitude or preachiness, it can definitely reach those sort of persons. Two examples:
#1 example: After I left Bethel I was re-appointed as an elder in the local El Segundo congregation. I already knew that the Witnesses were not God's organization, but had not fully realized that they did not have Christ, without something to contrast it with. Having been brought up as a Baptist, I was sensitive to Christians and respected their views, especially after reading Romans and Galatians at Bethel and understanding salvation by grace. I was in an intermediate stage. One night, while setting up for the Tuesday night book study that I conducted at the Hall, two Christians had their car break down in our parking lot. One of them talked to me a little about the Lord. I was really touched by the Holy Spirit, not because of what he said, but I felt the presence of the Lord.
I am very glad that Christian was there! He helped me inch a little closer to my letter of resignation: http://www.freeminds.org/history/gbletter.htm
Not long thereafter I attended a church on the sly, and within weeks I turned in the letter and never went back.
#2 example: Circa 1983 at Dodger Stadium I decided to advertise what message I had printed at the time: http://www.freeminds.org/history/whathapp.htm. I hired a small plane to circle Dodger Stadium once for 10 minutes, with the message "1980 Bethel shakeup", or something like that on a large banner. The JWs were so pissed they succeeded in banning such fly-overs in the future at Dodger, but I got results. The first results I found out about 2-3 years later, when a family head called me and said they had wrote down the phone number of the recorded message in the bathrooms for fear others would see them do it. They called, and it was one step in their exit as a family! Another family called about 6 years after, and very similar results! It took me that long to see if ANYONE had been affected, and the Lord had done his work. Sow and don't look back. So my moral of the story is, be sensitive to the Holy Spirit, take a back seat, and enjoy the ride. Do what YOU FEEL is right according to the Spirit, and leave the rest to him! :-))
thanks and God bless,
Randy Watters