by nicolaou 49 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Another generation of children being fed the same lie we, our parents and grandparents were told. This is the link, it's image number 8. https://www.jw.org/en/news/jw/region/united-states/2019-Love-Never-Fails-International-Convention-Series-Overview/
"Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it"
A long curved corner!
G.
Well 1 John 2:18 said it was the “last hour”, so it didn’t start with JWs. It probably won’t end with them either.
If they could combine their belief in the end time with a more reasonable approach to equipping their children for life in this system in the meantime, it wouldn’t be so bad. There’s no reason why they can’t retain belief in the end with living a fulfilling life now. So I don’t think it’s the belief in the end in itself that’s the problem. (After all, who can disprove that God will intervene in human history at some point?) It’s the encouragement to give up education, careers, families and good life here and now that is the problem.
The encouragement (coercion) to give up on life now only happens because of the fantasy of a future paradise. I'd say it's impossible to hold to an 'end times' belief system without it negatively impacting on normal life and relationships in the present.
At that age, children are happy to do what their parents want them to do. The real question will be how many of those kids will remain JWs, or leave it altogether when they get older.
The WTS has been a corrupt fear mongering apocalyptic religious publishing house for over 100 years, therefore exploiting and mentally manipulating children is not overly surprising.
There’s no doubt that many unhelpful JW practices arise from their belief in the end times. But does it need to be that way? That’s the question.
Seventh-day Adventists believe in the end times just as much as JWs, as far as I can make out. Yet they encourage members to study and become doctors and nurses and engineers - lots of different professions. They run schools and hospitals and encourage a healthy diet and lifestyle that make SDAs famous for their longevity.
So it is possible to believe in the end times and channel beliefs in a good direction rather than a destructive one.
Just turn JW end time responses on their head. Instead of devaluing education, family, career, and so on because the end is near, it’s possible to promote the opposite: focus on making the best of education, family, personal development, health and so on because the end is near.
It would take imagination and leadership to pull it off. But in the midst of Watchtower upheaval resulting from multiple organisational crises, it’s just about possible that a fundamental rethink and reorientation could happen.
All apocalyptic religions (including SDA and mainstream evangelicals) are poison.
Apart from causing young people to put their lives on hold it teaches them that millions of non-favoured humans will be obliterated by their god any moment.
That is the most damaging aspect of religion and raising children in those groups is mental abuse.
I can understand why the proposition “all apocalyptic religions cause people to put their lives on hold” makes intuitive sense. Of course it does. What I am saying is that the facts suggest otherwise. Not all endtime religions need to curtail life opportunities. The SDAs are a case in point. I speak from personal observation of SDAs in addition to reading about them. Where are you getting your information?
