Watchtower fined in Belgium (page 4)

joe134cd

Despite my joy at hearing this, I can’t see this standing on appeal. It would bankrupt wt if it did.

Paddy

Did you know that the Bible foretells that a prophet will be sent to God's people and he will do away with the unbiblical, unchristian, and cruel man-made doctrine of shunning?

“Look! I am sending to you E·liʹjah the prophet before the coming of the great and awe-inspiring day of Jehovah. And he will turn the hearts of fathers back toward sons, and the hearts of sons back toward fathers, so that I may not come and strike the earth, devoting it to destruction.” (Mal. 4:5,6).

Other versions put it this way:

Contemporary English Version
"He will lead children and parents to love each other more.."

Good News Translation
"He will bring fathers and children together again.."

The very last sentence tells us how strongly God feels about this false doctrine.

What's more, that prophet will also "restore all things" (true Christianity and other important Bible truths) (Matt. 17:11). I know who he is. Would you like to see some of his restoration message? (Mal. 3:1).

vienne

Yet another article on the situation in Belgium https://bitterwinter.org/the-ghent-jehovahs-witnesses-decision-big-brother-is-watching-you/

Rivergang

Big Brother is watching you if you are a JW!

vienne

While it is not a popular opinion here, becoming a JW is a voluntary association. The government in power where we live is not a voluntary association. "Big Brother" is a reference to governmental power derived from the novel 1984. It doesn't fit Jehovah's Witnesses.

Probably a more accurate description of Witness practice is that it is intrusive and high control.

You didn't need me to be pedantic, did you? But I couldn't resist.

Diogenesister

would not like my choice of associates to be regulated by law. Is disfellowshipping painful? I see that it is. Do I want to be forced to speak to a disfellowshiped pedophile because a judge says I must? No. Not now. Not ever. One's choice of associates, no matter what drives it, should be beyond a judge's purview.

VIENNE Firstly, they have not been prosecuted shunning specifically, but rather for hate speech and discrimination. The result of which is egregious in the extreme and does indeed involve shunning. The Ghent public prosecutor’s office summoned the Jehovah’s Witnesses for four charges: incitement to discrimination on the basis of religious belief against a person, and against a group, as well as incitement to hatred or violence against a person, and against a group.

If you have ever read the sort of rhetoric watchtower uses when describing apostates, you will absolutely understand why.

It is absolutely not about being made to associate with someone, but rather about an organisation forcing its members NOT to associate with loved ones who have changed their beliefs.

Diogenesister

https://bitterwinter.org/editorial-board/ have a look at their editorial board folks!

VIENNE Without even looking I knew exactly who was behind that link you posted. Massimo Introveign is a well known cult apologist (whom watchtower recently dropped when they discovered his association with satanism 🤪)I suggest you put his name into the JWdotnet search engine and see what comes up.

It was He and Another crony who supported watchtower in this, Prof. Folkes, a women who had the audacity to defend watchtowers right to keep their peadophile database private.

Diogenesister

I believe that an appeal will overturn the current verdict on the basis of freedom of association rights.

VANDER the case centres on hate speech. Shunning comes into play because they used examples of it to prove that watchtowers hate speech toward those of others faiths or beliefs has damaging, even violent, results, namely cruelty and shunning. It’s not not shunning they are legislating against. Not freedom of association.

To respond to your statement they may play it smart and not appeal. As others have said if it goes all the way to Strasbourg and the ECHR, the rest of the world will sit up and take notice and any ruling would be seen as persuasive or strong precedent in other States.

I would have thought you of all people would see that prejudice against a person because of their faith/beliefs/lack thereof, is wrong.

Diogenesister

VIENNE

While it is not a popular opinion here, becoming a JW is a voluntary association.

The point was made in court that a large number of Jehovah’s witnesses are baptised while still minors. They are pressurising kids of 7 and 8 to do so currently. So no, it is not voluntary in many, if not most, cases.

Joe134CD it will bankrupt watchtower

Joe just out of interest, the EXJWs involved in this just requested one dollar compensation. They didn’t want watchtower to claim they did this for the money. Very sensible.

Rivergang

becoming a JW is a voluntary association.

How can that possibly apply to those born into the religion?

Watchtower fined in Belgium

Share this