by dh 12 Replies latest jw friends
when you think of jw's, what do you think of them as being, are they a religion, a cult, a religious sect, or something else?
i don't exactly know what i think they are, they're a printing house which prints things based around their understanding of the bible & christianity, sort of making them a sect, but the things they do are both extreme and cult-like, so wondered... when you think of jw's, what do you think of them as being?
Cult.
This link provides a chart outlining the continuum of influence from education to propaganda to thought control:
http://www.workingpsychology.com/ethics2.html
I believe the methods of Jehovah's Witnesses hover on the border between indoctrination and thought control.
Except for those growing up as Jehovah's Witnesses, the relationship is consensual and contractual.
The WTBTS is very selective in what it chooses to print and sometimes deceptive.
Coercive compliance is condoned, and I would consider shunning unethical.
What is the organization's goals? A cohesive and effective group ("working together in unity") and possibly the perpetuation of the group for money and power.
Ginny
Cult
which prints things based around their understanding of the bible
thinking about it, it's probably not based around their understanding of the bible as i doubt the people in charge even believe the stuff they print, they just print it to try to back up their position.
Religion is about worship. Worship is from the heart. When the belief is no longer there, and you cannot worship from your heart within a certain religion, you should be free to leave. Jehovah's Witnesses are not free to leave. There are dire consequences for leaving Jehovah's Witnesses. Therefore, it is nothing but a cult.
Cult - and a very powerful one at that.
It's taken me seven L-O-N-G years to realize this, and I don't make this judgement lightly.
Individually, the cult members are by and large lovely people. However, the rottenness comes out by examining the indivuals as a group... for it is the group you asked about.
The power of groups comes from the alignment of purpose and ideals by it's members. Just look at Alcholics Anonymous. This is a very healthy group.
However in a cult (any cult), the members go beyond aligning their ideals, but also aligning their very way of thinking with each other. This is unhealthy and does not encourage members to actively question the authority or reasoning of the group. In fact, this one aspect alone causes so many other problems it's incredible.
Cults almost always have a "revealed truth" or central person or body that is worshipped. To question this truth is usually punished in some manner. The JW's use shunning... a very common and long practiced technique by many cults.
Cults almost always have a "Us vs. Them" mentality.
Example:
They are the enemy. Satan controls them.
We understand you, We will take care of you, We will protect you.
Cults almost always have "cult-speak"... and the JW's are very well practiced in this. They can instantly judge another member's sincerity to the group just by listening to the buzz-words that make up their "cult-speak".
Example:
"He's a worldly person."
"Christendom will come to an end"... and so forth.
Groups members can (and should) hold common ideals... even if they have different ideas. You may disagree with me, but that only means we share different ideas... not ideals!
high control group
