Comments You Will Not Hear at the 6-22-03 WT Study

by blondie 23 Replies latest watchtower bible

blondie

COMMENTS YOU WILL NOT HEAR AT THE 6-22-03 WT STUDY
May 1, 2003 WT page 19
WT quotes are in red (or quotes)
Review comments in black (or parentheses)
Very few scriptures are quoted, mostly snippets and citations.

GIVE COMFORT TO THOSE WHO GRIEVE
"Jehovah has anointed me…to comfort all the mourning ones."—Isaiah 61:1,2
Isaiah 61 (NIV)

The Year of the LORD 's Favor
1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
2
to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor
and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
From this NWT snippet/NIV quote you might recognize that this scripture is a prophecy about the Messiah and was read by Jesus when he visited the synagogue in Nazareth and publicly applied it to himself.
The WTS/FDS considers itself the channel/conduit to Christ, Christ’s true brothers and the conduit of comfort from Christ and God. But what comfort does the WTS show is more important? Do they focus more on the proclaiming and preaching thinking that is the comfort? What comfort did the WTS show to those in 9-11? A few Bible verses as James warned about?
James 2 (MSG)

15 For instance, you come upon an old friend dressed in rags and half-starved 16 and say, "Good morning, friend! Be clothed in Christ! Be filled with the Holy Spirit!" and walk off without providing so much as a coat or a cup of soup--where does that get you?
Jehovah, the God of all real comfort, teaches us to be concerned when others (JWs) experience calamity.
1/15/87 WT p 4

The humanitarian work of Albert Schweitzer and "Mother" Teresa, for example, are well known internationally and both of them have won the Nobel peace prize.
On the other hand, one must ask: Has the social gospel really achieved its aim? Has it made real Christians of those who have benefited from the charitable works? Has it given the people true faith and hope? Even more importantly, we must ask: Is this what Jesus had in mind when he commissioned his followers to ‘preach the gospel in all the world’?—Matthew 24:14, King James Version
.
1/15/87 p 8
That sets the priority for modern-day disciples of Jesus Christ. They, too, must put preaching the Kingdom good news as their primary objective, over and above performing humanitarian works. That is what missionaries of Jehovah’s Witnesses endeavor to do.
When such help is needed, we provide it for fellow worshipers (at a price, a recent poster on JWD mentioned that those who had homes rebuilt were presented with a cost sheet and ‘encouraged’ to make an appropriate donation to the WTS).
And the quote at the end of last week’s review:

We also show love to those outside the congregation, even to those who may not have given evidence of any love for us in the past.
Try and think, what does the WTS mean by showing love to those outside? Isn’t it by preaching the good news. The same ones that are demonized as being bad association and to be avoided? The same ones that have referred to at the circuit assembly as "corpses." Think of how JW family and other JWs have "shown love" to you as someone "outside the congregation."
And now the WTS applies Isaiah 61:1,2 above to themselves.

Modern-day anointed Christians have long recognized that this commission also applies to them (primarily) and the "other sheep" (secondarily).
Recognized only by themselves, self-appointed. For the first 50 years of their existence (1879-1929), the Bible Students were only concerned with finding the "remaining ones" of the anointed ones on earth. It was only in the 1930’s culminating with talk in 1935 that Rutherford revealed the "new light" that the growing numbers of JWs (new name in 1931) were not all anointed. The over 50,000 partaking then would fast overtake the 144,000 limit unless something was done to close the doors. So a secondary class was created, "the other sheep," second in importance, rank and reward.
Then the WTS addresses disasters.

Why does God permit calamities? The Bible clearly answers that question. However, it may take time for someone who has not been a student of the Bible to appreciate the answer fully. Help is provided in the (not the Bible but) publications of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
There it is in black and white. All your questions about God are answered in the WTS publications not the Bible. Yes, and notice how they condescend to the non-JW reader by saying it is "clear" except to Bible illiterates.
Further down an experience is given and the sister says to the distraught women:

He loves them….and will soon bring about major changes on the earth…and obedient people will live forever—right here on this planet.
Yes, the carrot of everlasting life on earth makes it first appearance.
WITH THE COMFORT GOD GIVES

We endeavor (who ever uses that word…what’s wrong with "try") to convey to the grieving person by word and tone of voice that we deeply care about his situation. This is not accomplished by the use of hollow platitudes.
Can JWs talking to a grieving person without using platitudes, such as, the new system will be here soon and you will see him in the resurrection. He/she won’t suffer any more and soon in the new system, illness will be done away with,
If a person feels his troubles are the result of bad things he has done, then we might tell him, without being judgmental.
JWs are taught to be judgmental determining if people at the doors are going to live or die based on how they respond to the Jaw’s attempt to preach the good news. Listen, you might live. Not listen, you will be bird food.
10/15/95 WT p.
26
Many people may not personally have attacked Christ’s representatives, but neither have they treated his people lovingly. Preferring the wicked world, goatlike ones reject the Kingdom message, whether hearing it directly or indirectly
5/1/89 WT 19
Thus, everlasting destruction is the destiny of stubborn, goatlike people who do not want to know about God’s purposes or who refuse to act when they have the opportunity (but don’t expect to get a personal witness).
12/1/58 p. 717
What made work harder at times (aside from some goatish people and the ones not interested) was interference by police and law officers.
1/1/51 p. 29
Scoffers, critics and indifferent ones are classed with those who violently persecute God’s witnesses. They are goatish and their end will be everlasting cutting off in second death
6/1/50 WT p. 176
While group witnessing in Pasadena, California, finding very little interest, I came to a house on the corner. A goatish woman at the door cared more for her religious fodder than for the bread of life.
WHEN LIFE IS MARRED BY VIOLENCE OR ECONOMIC HARDSHIP
True Christians take care that in neither word nor deed do they take sides with one faction or the other in conflicts.
Above is the first instruction on how to comfort people. Yes, do not "take sides."

But they appropriately use the Bible to show that present harsh conditions will not go on forever
.
What does the WTS give as a possible solution to escape violence and poverty?

If they could escape to another land…lost their lives in the attempt. Those who do get to another land often find that they have simply exchanged one set of problems for another.
What is the solution, read them 5 long sets of scripture (not quoted in the paragraph).

"Help them to see the bigger picture."
An experience is given of a woman who escapes to another land with her husband who sends her away, then pregnant with a 10-year-old son to become a priest. The solution, read 2 more scriptures and long with an article from the WT and Awake. I wondered if they xeroxed a copy for her and gave them to her to read at a later date like the elders do?

She at last found comfort and a purpose in life (yes a WT article does that for me too!)
Of course, she and her son were still probably living in poverty and hunger (James 2:15,16).
The WTS says people might not listen. Why?

When people have suffered for many years or have been disappointed by many hollow promises.
Sounds like what many JWs have suffered at the hands of the WTS with their promise of the end in 1914, 1925, 1975…soon, soon now, on the threshold, imminent.

God has provided help but many have not accepted it (hollow platitudes from the WTS?).
WHEN FACED WITH STORMS AND EARTHQUAKES
People need to know that someone cares.
Alluding to 9-11, the WTS says:

Jehovah’s Witnesses reached out to those in their communities
How?

Expressing sympathy for their great losses
And
Offering "words" of comfort from the Bible.
Words like James mentioned:
For instance, you come upon an old friend dressed in rags and half-starved and say, "Good morning, friend! Be clothed in Christ! Be filled with the Holy Spirit!" and walk off without providing so much as a coat or a cup of soup--where does that get you?
An experience is given of man who died and what did his mother and fiancée do?

The mother of the young man along with his fiancée promptly got busy in the field service….many Bible studies were started (how many became JWs I wonder).
Yes, that is what we need to be doing when we find people who have lost loved ones. Take them in field service with us.
But not to be petty, the WTS does say:

When disaster strikes, you many encounter someone who is need of immediate physical help. This may involved calling a doctor, helping a person get to a clinic (in my congregation no one would take an older sister to the clinic so good luck), or doing whatever is possible to provide food and shelter (but take care of any JWs first. I have a picture in my mind’s eye of a JW stepping over a bleeding child to help an elder with a scratch in his arm).

WHEN A FAMILY MEMBER HAS DIED

Is the person in emotional turmoil? Is the house filled with grieving relatives? There may be much that you would like to say, but discretion is important.
Yes, don’t bring out the brochures and start handing them out. Don’t start telling them that their loved one is not in heaven. But no, the WTS says:

Perhaps the fitting thing is to express sympathy, leave an appropriate Bible publication (a brochure, a magazine, or a tract), and then call after a few days.
Why not leave a sympathy card?! Some people even give money to help out with the funeral. Who wants someone’s religious promotional literature?
The WTS admits:

This may not be the time to try to refute wrong views.
Well, what do they think is in those brochures, magazines and tracts but WTS propaganda refuting their wrong views?
Note what the "When Someone We Love Dies" brochure says:
p.
27 A Sure Hope for the Dead
The Bible, however, holds out a much different hope. As we have previously noted, the Scriptures indicate that it is possible to be reunited with your dead loved one in the near future, not in an unknown heaven but right here on earth under peaceful, righteous conditions. And at that time humans will have the prospect of enjoying perfect health, and they will never have to die again.

p.
30 A Sure Hope for the Dead
Jehovah God, who started mankind off in a lovely garden, has promised to restore Paradise on this earth under the rule of His heavenly Kingdom in the hands of the now glorified Jesus Christ. (Genesis 2:7-9; Matthew 6:10; Luke 23:42, 43) In that restored Paradise, the human family will have the prospect of enjoying life without end, free from all sickness and disease. (Revelation 21:1-4; compare Job 33:25; Isaiah 35:5-7.) Gone, too, will be all hatred, racial prejudice, ethnic violence, and economic oppression. It will be into such a cleansed earth that Jehovah God through Jesus Christ will resurrect the dead.
Then to top this off the WTS suggests:

An invitation to the Kingdom Hall may help the grieving one to get to know people who truly love their neighbors and who know how to building one another up.
Pardon while I vomit. Wait till they are baptized and no one can count time talking to them any more and they are off to the next new one or spending their time on people with prestige and power at the KH.
Yes, the WTS counsels:

Being a true comforter implies making yourself available to those who are grieving.
My experience with this having had 3 members of our family die (not deserving JWs though) was that no one came to the visitation. My non-JW in-laws were astonished at the first, angry by the second, and steaming by the third. How could I tell them that because the deceased was not a JW it did not count? No announcements at the KH as with other JWs when losing family members. We received 3 cards total from JWs for all 3 funerals. No phone calls just a convenient "sorry to hear" from a few people at the hall. No one had any time to comfort us. One sister said, "Well, after all, we have the comfort of the resurrection. What else do we need?"
I’m sure everyone who reads this has an story to tell of how they did not receive the comfort they expected from their fellow "true" Christians. Hopefully, while JWs we were not the ones with hollow platitudes. I have made it my aim to send cards and give help to all who lose loved ones. No brochures left on the table from me.
Blondie
blondie

Does anyone have any personal experiences of not receiving comfort at a crucial time? If you said something, what was the explanation?
Inquiring minds want to know.
Blondie
rocketman

My experience with this having had 3 members of our family die (not deserving JWs though) was that no one came to the visitation. My non-JW in-laws were astonished at the first, angry by the second, and steaming by the third. How could I tell them that because the deceased was not a JW it did not count? No announcements at the KH as with other JWs when losing family members. We received 3 cards total from JWs for all 3 funerals. No phone calls just a convenient "sorry to hear" from a few people at the hall. No one had any time to comfort us. One sister said, "Well, after all, we have the comfort of the resurrection. What else do we need?"
Your experience is just one of many examples of what really takes place with regard to jws and grieving people; how they really feel about others who grieve who are non-jws or whose deceased loved one was not a jw. I often heard this question asked by jws upon heaing of a death: "was he/she one of Jehovah's Witnesses?" almost as if somehow, if the answer was no, that person's life was not of as much value.
Also, I've heard comments like (in the case of a deceased non-jw): "well, now he/she stands a better chance of being in the New World" (since their death before Armageddon now saves them from being destroyed during it).
I get the feeling that one reason this article was written was that many jws have botched attempts to provide "comfort' and in fact have done the opposite by their comments and attempts to do nothing more than place literature (and they probably count the time).
There have been local examples that's I've heard from relative in regard to the behoavior of jws who made a scene at funerals. When a priest came in to give a talk, some got up and left, making a public spectacle. On another occasion, some jws stood outside a church and did not go inside for the service - their standing was evdently intended to show their oppostion to the church. This actions created much ill-will from non-jws, who were perplexed as to why the jws simply did not show up, or at least act more discreetly, rather than make a public scene at a most sensitive time.
worldlygirl

My grandmother passed away this week - her funeral was yesterday. My "loving" JW in-laws have not even bothered to call.
jgnat

When my honey's first (JW) marriage failed, not one of the "brothers" offered comfort, guidance, or support. My honey became an immediate leper with the congregation. No one showed up from the KH until ten years later, when my honey ordered a book out of the back of one of their magazines. A bible study was the positive result.
acsot

Yes, that is what we need to be doing when we find people who have lost loved ones. Take them in field service with us.
Blondie: I imagine these poor ones buried themselves in field service because no one bothered to give them any real comfort or lend them a shoulder to cry on, so they had to cope with their grief by themselves, and keeping busy was better than facing the emptiness.

Blondie: with my mother sick these past few months (a stroke then a heart attack) one of the elder’s wives told me to make sure I kept up my spirituality (how? oh yeah right, by going to those ridiculous meetings!), so I told her that if others would volunteer to help out then I would have the time to go. She sputtered about having the ones from our previous hall help out, since they know my mum better. Yeah, all those “brothers and sisters and mothers and fathers” Jesus talked about gaining sure are apparent in the Kingdom Halls !
Thanks for the review on what I won't be missing this Sunday.
Wolfgirl

When my best friend died (I was 12) of leukemia, I was devastated. I cried so much I made myself sick. I vaguely remember being told something about my grief being inappropriate because it wasn't like I was his family, and that I missed as much school as his brother did. I can't remember all the details, but that was the gist of it.
No one comforted me when my marriage broke down, because I was the one who got the divorce. Why? Coz my husband was abusive. Any comfort from my "friends?" Nope.
None of the elders comforted me when my father admitted to sexually abusing me. Instead, they told him he could remain an elder coz it was so long ago. Who cares if he lied about it for over 25 years? They said not one word to me after his admission. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. Nil.
So much for comfort.
proandcon

In 1997, a book study was held in my home. I conducted. About 18 people were assigned including an assistant conductor, an elder. My wife's sister (a non JW) was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. Being that she lived in a very rural area in NY and had limited funds and no health care insurance, we had her move in with us so we could care for her and take her to see oncologists hospitals (Mass General) in the city (Boston). She was in and out of the hospital undergoing chemo and radiation treatment for several months. When not in the hospital, she lived with us. being somewhat immobile, we got a hospital bed and set it up in my den on the first floor. A visiting nurse would come to the home several days to assist my wife and I in her care.
Any help from the FRIENDS....nada..nothing...no !!!
Oh, but we did get one thing...the other elder in the book study approached me once after a meeting and said that " some of the friends were uncomfortable at going to a book study in my home with this sick person there...(sick person...how about terminally ill; visited now by hospice).
The "sick person" was in another room and in no way any bother to any of the friends...as she was on morphine and mostly asleep.
So, I decided to get the other elders and immediately told them to stop the buok study at my home and move it to some other location...asap...I suggested the other elders house (he was Pissed off) as he made the suggestion!!!
What a loving, caring group !!!! Jesus said you would know his disciples by the love they showed...
In my experience, like with all people, there are some relly loving and caring ones and most of the rest will never have a clue...Love...if it's not self serving or convenient is a commodity largely lacking in the JW congreagtion.
I faded...
Maverick

Thank you Blondie. What a sham! They talk a good game, but that's all it is...TALK! Talk is cheep and so are the J-dud masters, and in turn the RF! Oportunistic, emotionally void, parasites! and I can relate to all the other post here too! Been there and experienced that! How God dishonoring! Maverick
blondie

I get the feeling that one reason this article was written was that many jws have botched attempts to provide "comfort' and in fact have done the opposite by their comments and attempts to do nothing more than place literature (and they probably count the time).

Unfortunately, for the WT, their efforts in this article will only make it worse, Rocketman.
Worldlygirl,
My grandmother passed away this week - her funeral was yesterday. My "loving" JW in-laws have not even bothered to call.
I’m so sad to hear that. What does your husband think?
So sad, jgnat
No one showed up from the KH until ten years later, when my honey ordered a book out of the back of one of their magazines.
I always liked to point out to the elders that the shepherd went looking for the lost sheep not the other way around.
Acsot,
with my mother sick these past few months (a stroke then a heart attack) one of the elder’s wives told me to make sure I kept up my spirituality (how? oh yeah right, by going to those ridiculous meetings!), so I told her that if others would volunteer to help out then I would have the time to go. She sputtered about having the ones from our previous hall help out, since they know my mum better.
Good respose, acsot. At least you know the level of her Christianity. She sounds like the priest and Levite who walked past the Good Samaritan without helping.
Wolfgirl,
I vaguely remember being told something about my grief being inappropriate because it wasn't like I was his family,
Then why did Jesus cry when Lazarus died. They weren’t related.
Who cares if he lied about it for over 25 years?
My father is still a baptized JW and he has lied about abusing his 5 children. I understand.
It’s so good to able to recognize the abuse now and who our real comforters are.
Proandcon,
Yours has to be the most unbelievable (but I believe) situation. I had to share it with my husband, Irreverent, (an ex-elder) and he said you handled it well by calling their bluff and switching it out of your home. He was sure that they were expecting you to move your sister-in-law somewhere else.
Maverick,
They talk a good game, but that's all it is...TALK! Talk is cheep and so are the J-dud masters, and in turn the RF!
I agree that it is all talk. That is why I decided to fade like proandcon. As far as I am concerned, it is not the UN fiasco, the flip-flop doctrines, and anything else, but the lack of love that proves the WTS is not guided by the Bible.
Blondie

Comments You Will Not Hear at the 6-22-03 WT Study

Share this