The Silliness of "Neutrality' and "Pagan Customs"

by metatron 9 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  metatron

  The Watchtower engages in commerce, sells stock thru brokerages, trains or retains lawyers, uses 'blame the victim'

  tactics in court, protests to various governments, seeks tax exemptions, holds millions of dollars in banks and

  constantly fends off lawsuits in legal actions.

  Yet, somehow they are "no part of the world" ??????

  Doesn't simple logic ever scream out to them "You most certainly ARE part of the world!"

  Nevertheless, most Witnesses don't vote or engage themselves in the political process.

  BUT tens of millions in the US - in some cases, THE MAJORITY of eligible voters DON'T vote.

  Additionally, most Americans have little interest in the political process - and declining interest

  in current events. Also, strikes and the fervor for unions have declined.

  So, are most people - hundreds of millions - actually "no part of the world" by reason of lack of interest

  in 'worldly' politics? Is most of the world around you 'no part of the world'?

  Given this silliness, is it any wonder that the organization will hunt down Witnesses who vote (and disfellowship them)

  yet, cover up elders involved in concealing child molestation?

  And regarding pagan customs - that the Bible condemns

  Does logic ever inform Witnesses that any pagan customs the Bible condemns were components

  of active, existing religions that competed with Judaism or Christianity? That such rival religions no longer exist?

  How many Druids or Baal worshipers are there in your neighborhood, anyway?

  The names of the days of the week ( Mo-onday, SUN-day) and months ( August-us, ) honor pagan deities.

  Wanna abandon the calendar? Early (idiotic) Watchtower loyalists wanted to do so!

  Is a day honoring your Father or Mother inherently wrong or inherently pagan? Are such things even religious?

  Is using Trigonometry ( derived from pagan Greek philosophy- Pythagoras) or algebra ( from Islam)

  any more pagan than honoring someone else with a gift on a particular day?

  These things are why Jesus condemned the hypocrites of his day for 'straining out the gnat while swallowing camels'.

  Such things are an effective DISTRACTION. They enable Witnesses to look at themselves as righteous - while "they

  consider[ed] the rest as nothing" - doomed to Armageddon. They encourage the pitiful attitude of most JW's in ignoring

  charity and simple brotherhood - while imagining themselves as the Favored of God - in-between swallowing

  their Paxil and Prozac prescriptions and wondering why little Johnny doesn't want to go to meetings anymore.

  metatron
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  Spudinator

  Excellent observations, Metatron. Because the organization has a bad case of "pay no attention to the man behind the curtain," it continues to hide its true nature to the friends. Fortunately, sites like this one are helping those of us that are starting to wake up. Thanks to all for your efforts in this direction.
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  l3gi0n

  Amen
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  IslandWoman

  Metatron,

  These things are why Jesus condemned the hypocrites of his day for 'straining out the gnat while swallowing camels'.

  Such things are an effective DISTRACTION. They enable Witnesses to look at themselves as righteous - while "they

  consider[ed] the rest as nothing" - doomed to Armageddon. They encourage the pitiful attitude of most JW's in ignoring

  charity and simple brotherhood - while imagining themselves as the Favored of God - in-between swallowing

  their Paxil and Prozac prescriptions and wondering why little Johnny doesn't want to go to meetings anymore.

  I whole heartedly agree! It is amazing isn't it, how the Watchtower has become the very thing it claims to hate? It is the modern day hypocritical pharisee, doing just as you said, "straining out the gnat while swallowing the camel."

  Thank you,

  IW
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  RandomTask

  The Greatest man book actually helped me to see who the organization was really like.

  Hint, it wasn't Jesus.
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  Francois

  Well said. However we all know that logic does not and never has informed any of the JWs thinking.

  It would be very interesting to know how many people remain in the Borg just because they want to avoid the consequences of DFing. I'd be willing to bet there are as many who stay for that purpose as who stay for any other purpose. Obviously this includes some elders, COs, DOs & so on up the line.

  I hope I live long enough to witness the end of the witnesses.
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  Myxomatosis
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  Myxomatosis

  Metatron,
  
  Ahem.
  
  I TOTALLY agree!
  
  It's so funny to see them call the celebration of Christmas the sun worship of the Roman Saturnalia, or whatever. Which is ACTUALLY, just as putting the pillars from the holiest pagan temple in the first Christian Church of Rome as a symbol of the DEFEAT of paganism by Christianity, so is the celebration of the SON, as opposed to the SUN purposely placed in reminder of the DEFEAT over pagan customs on the Winter solstice. This is so absurd to be laughable, and using Jeremiah wotever that talks about people who use trees to make IDOLS they then WORSHIP, and then saying that God HATES CHRISTMAS TREES???? LOLOLOLOL!! Actually, if they weren't so poor with their research, they'd know it was MARTIN LUTHER who started the tradition of Christmas trees, after he saw it sparkling with the winter snow outside, and thought it would be a lovely addition to the celebration. Actually, the FDS probably does know that, just doesn't fly with their propoganda. *sigh*
  
  I was thinking today also as I drove by this Church today with a big 'ole Cross standing prominently in the front lawn, how probably to Jehovah's Witness, that is just like having the Wings of Ra outside or something. It's definitley for a reason they (the GB, FDS) do those things, really a matter of psychology.
  
  With the cross I think, though, they were a little overzealous, in cleaning out all the 'paganism' from their holey society. It's sort of a giveaway that they're just trying to set themselves apart, whether what they do is historically correct or not. It's quite humorous that they translate it 'torture stake' and condemning the cross as a pagan symbol. There is NO question that it was (and prob. is) a pagan symbol....there is also NO question that it was a HISTORICAL Roman punishment of the day. It doesn't matter that the cross is a pagan symbol, that does not mean that Jesus did not die on it. I wonder what they have to say about Peter insisting that he be crucified upside down, why many Jewish ossuaries and tombs, which usually record the type of death, are engraved with crucifixes. Perhaps the word 'stauros' could be just a stake, but trying to card the Christians for holding reverence to simply a pagan symbol is not only ignorant, but insulting. It's just proof that they don't care whether it is incorrect, just as long as it suits their theology, and further pushes upon the R&F that they truly are the 'pure religion' and they've headed the cry to 'get out of Babylon' hmmm......
  
  
  <<<<<Such things are an effective DISTRACTION. They enable Witnesses to look at themselves as righteous - while "they
  
  consider[ed] the rest as nothing" - doomed to Armageddon. They encourage the pitiful attitude of most JW's in ignoring
  
  charity and simple brotherhood - while imagining themselves as the Favored of God - in-between swallowing>>>>>
  
  Very Well Put!
  
  It's like every little issue that can be addressed and wrote off as being 'pagan' has been imbedded in the conscience, so, it doesn't matter WHAT a Church with a cross, or a family who celebrates Christmas and Easter, or people that salute the flag, have to say, you can automatically mark them off as being 'part of the world' and 'spiritually blind'. It takes all thought and objectivity out of sorting things out for yourself. It's certainly like discrimination, you see a person with a tattoo or piercing,,, you automatically know they do drugs, that kind of thing. You label everything, put everything and in a box and form a cliche attitude, and you've effectively sorted everyone out into the 'clean' and 'dirty'. Then you ask the question, who that is clean would want to associate with the one that is dirty, or some such nonsense, and booyakasha, you've just effectively established in that person's mind that all those who don't have behaviors 'a, b, c' and who participate wrongly in 'd, e, f' are unfit company for the cleansed, spiritual brother, and also that they are part of a false religion, who don't REALLY follow the Scriptures, while they are the only ones TRULY doing everything Scripturally 'right' following all the 'instructions' to perfection. How many people do you know WORSHIP the flag, how many people do you know WORSHIP a person on their birthday? And why are they allowed wedding bands at their wedding, as this is a PAGAN symbol of devotion, used in PAGAN marriage ceremonies??????
  
  well, there's my too scents
  
  Not the best description, I know, it's kind of difficult for a non-psychologist to put into coherent terms...:)
  
  Myxomatosis
  
  *cigarettes and chocolate milk*
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  badolputtytat

  I Agree. The "no part of the world" bit, is an excuse. And like all their other excuses is always molded to fit their motives.

  It is all a part of the scare tactic. Keep their sons and daughters locked up away from anyone who can share a little TRUTH. I believe the origins of the "bread and wine" also has "pagan" origins ("pagan" being a very broad label). I think it represents two of the elemental "kingdoms" as followed by "pagan" belief. Bread representing EARTH, and wine representing WATER, (the other two elements are FIRE and AIR, and some structures follow a fifth element doctrine)

  I have often wondered why their RELIGOUS structure (despite this "no part" statement) is basically the same as any other religion. There is a "church", a minister or leader, and a congregation that meets basically on the same days, and nights as a baptist congregation. Of course the "collection" plate is replaced with an "at your convenience" box at the back of the hall, where you can be SEEN making your dutiful contribution.

  The art (as mentioned a million times) in their publications is almost exact re-productions of "worldly" publications.

  And of course their appearance.... I have also asked myself in my day of the dub, Why do "we" try so hard to look like everybody else? Three piece suit, hair cut right out GQ, beautiful Kingdom Halls (with the funny smell). I thought Jesus was against all of these things? When do we get to the part where we are NOT like the REST of the world?
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  Big Tex

  If the whole thing wasn't so sad, it would be funny.

  So many people's lives disrupted, changed or affected by this "busy work". It reminds me of that old shell game, wherein the dealer puts a pea in a shell and then moves then quickly about. Very often he will say something or do something to distract the player so he cannot find the pea. Except the pea in this case is people's mental and emotional well being, and in some cases their lives.

  How utterly sad.