Love the don't use a gun for self defence by Gary Bro (page 3)

IWant2Leave

I think W.T. has hired armed security at night. I was told this by a Bethelite years ago. The ones in the grey suits are Bethelites during the day. Can anyone confirm one way or the other?

Even when I was in and a fairly prominent Elder, a Colt 1911 laid on the bed side table and a 12 Gauge pump lived by the door. The no guns for self defense thing has always been monumentally ignorant virtue signaling by the Organization

TD

What is the JW explanation of Luke 22:36 these days?

They always loved to selectively quote Jesus on this issue but never had a plausible explanation for that verse

TD

The book, Judging Jehovah's Witnesses: Religious Persecution and the Dawn of the Rights Revolution sheds a little light on how the current anti-gun stance was born.

Up until the time of mob violence against Jehovah's Witnesses (1939 - 1945) self defense had been perfectly acceptable and this was explicitly stated in Rutherford's 1937 book Enemies.

When mobs appeared, Jehovah's Witnesses took to the roofs of Kingdom Halls with hunting rifles. Sometimes small town police were part and parcel of this violence.

In the long run, this did the organization more harm than good. Martyrs (i.e. People who are beaten senseless, forced to drink castor oil, tarred and feathered, castrated, etc.) arouse sympathy for a religious cause. People who shoot at police do not.

So the current anti-gun stance is entirely about the welfare of the organization. You as an individual don't even enter into the equation.

FedUpJW

". . . a Colt 1911 laid on the bed side table. . ."

That has been my "tool" of choice for several decades. Hollow-point PDA in the magazine, one round in the pipe, and with only a flip of the thumb the safety is off and "nails" are ready to be driven into "lumber", just in case a "barn raising" breaks out.

truth_b_known

They always loved to selectively quote Jesus on this issue but never had a plausible explanation for that verse

This is true for so many teachings the Watchtower espouses.

"Bodily training is beneficial for little...' some how is twisted into "Don't work out."

"Bad association spoils useful habits" some how is morphed into "Don't spend time with people who are not Witnesses."

pistolpete

Bodily training is beneficial for little...' some how is twisted into "Don't work out."

What a lot of jw men look like.

WokenfromJWcult

In 1961 Fidel Castro took all the citizens guns . It hasn’t worked out well for Cubans.

Lightgrowsbrighter

JW’s repeatedly make ‘black and white’ issues that are scripturally personal decisions. The right to defend oneself is a basic human right. I just visited my 70 something hard core elder/JW father and this subject came up. I asked him what he would do if his neighbor or he and my mother were attacked. Meekly stand there and beg for mercy from a violent evil animalistic human? Or perhaps defend himself with only his aged hands? Why hands but no gun?? 65 years a JW and he had no answer.

JW’s often refer to the Old Testament (Heb. Scriptures) to support their dogmatic rules. Well, the nation of Israel- with Jehovah’s help- not only defended themselves, but also initially offensively used weaponry to take the Promised Land. Later, Jesus did command Peter to return his sword to his place (live by the sword, die by the sword, Matt. 26:52), but this was a specific contextual situation. One is not ‘living by the sword’ simply by preparing to defend oneself or loved ones. Early on, Jesus sent the disciples out without money, food, or even a change of clothes, just a ‘staff’, emphasizing trust in the Holy Spirit (Mark 6:7-13). But the initial preaching was a short term message publicizing Jesus as the living prophesied Messiah. Was he also encouraging his disciples to not store food, save money, or even have more than one garment? Obviously not. Later (Luke 22:36) he acknowledged long term preparation was a must as after his death the preaching work focused on the good news of salvation through Jesus death in whatever the hereafter is.

In Romans 12:18, Paul said ‘If it is possible, be peaceable with all men.’ He tacitly acknowledged here that there would be times where it may not be possible to have peace.

Regardless, self-defense is a PERSONAL CHOICE. Those who attempt to make religious laws of matters that are personal Christian decisions are themselves wolves in the Christian congregation (Acts 20:29,30)

hybridous

If it's wrong to USE a gun in self-defense, it's wrong to CALL Law Enforcement for protection, also...because they carry guns.

If it's wrong to do a thing, it would also be wrong to call someone else into a situation whereby they might be compelled to to that SAME WRONG THING!

A given situation either legitimately warrants defensive force, or it does not. The individuals involved do not particularly matter. There is no morality in refraining from an action just to let someone else do the same thing. God's 'righteous' laws don't waffle between individuals, do they?

Just more idiocy; more senseless puke from the Tower. All this IN-valuable Bible-education that renders adherents to be morally-questioning simple self-defense - the same stupidity that tolerates PEDOs in their midst...

Such valuable Bible-education. Yeah, miss me with that...

Love the don't use a gun for self defence by Gary Bro