What sports are considered violent and forbidden by Jehovah?

by jwbloodline 67 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  BroBennett

  Playing a sport by hitting someone might be frowned upon by our creator. So it looks like someone totally disagrees with my wisdom from the Bible here.

  Some of us live in tough neighborhoods and deal with dangerous situations...

  That is where you depend on your taxes, which all God fearing people pay. Call 911 ever?

  ...not us...crime has gone DOWN for the past decade...

  But what about the some of us idea... what happened to your tough neighborhoods? Did everyone decide on going to the shooting range Sunday mornings instead of worship? Since that might be a friendly sport as well according to some people.

  ...so just give up any hope of defending yourself?

  No. That is not exactly what I am saying. But at least try to avoid the killing zones. Defence is a natural reaction for most men.

  ...Ever think it might not just be for a violent end? that it may be a way of keeping in shape?

  That is what the YMCA is for. Self defence classes are way more expensive and would hardly ever be used in safer countries, plus it is not even the best way to defend, only the last way.

  If you love it, it is...Some people have hobbies and interests as a way of testing and improving ourselves.

  Yes I agree with that. I never said it was not a bad way to test your skills, but most gamers know that there will always be someone better than you.

  Balance...the old fall back of the hard-liner...

  What? You never saw the Karate Kid? Haha.

  There are no hard liners if it is someones choice to hit things with deadly force then more power to them. But you should decide on what's best to please your creator, since God does not care about badness. If you want to be a friend of God then stay away from all badness. This would involve hitting and kicking people to stay in shape right? Sure we want exercise, but this form of sport started from people who needed to defend themselves from certain death. And most people are more modernized and depend on more advanced forms of protection.
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  Satanus

  Jehovah hasn't given his view on jujitsu. He has been exceptionally silent during the last 2000 yrs. Apparently the ot jews had something like dice that they cast to get yes or no answers from jehovah. It seems he does not even respond through those anymore. What do do? Many here have tried and tried to get a response, any responce from jehovah, and nothing. Why is he so silent? Is he sleeping? Is he tired and fed up w humanity? Is he taking a dump? What? In the mean time, why not just wing it?

  S
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  Badger

  But what about the some of us idea... what happened to your tough neighborhoods? Did everyone decide on going to the shooting range Sunday mornings instead of worship? Since that might be a friendly sport as well according to some people.

  As a gun owner, yes it is...as for the crime figures, they have gone down...as for the neighborhood, I just teach in a tough one.

  That is what the YMCA is for.

  Whoa! whoa! I though that got you dissassociated!

  Self defence classes are way more expensive and would hardly ever be used in safer countries, plus it is not even the best way to defend, only the last way.

  Self defense classes aren't just for fighting. They're a way to teach pysical self discipline and can instill confidence, if you are so inclined. And, yeah, I'd like to have as many ways to protect myself as possible.

  I never said it was not a bad way to test your skills, but most gamers know that there will always be someone better than you.

  But you questioned the time you put into it, as if learning a new skill or perfecting your art at something (be it chess, football, debating or wrestling) was a waste of time. People take pride in the skills they've mastered, and justly so...they put a lot of effort and time into it. I don't win everytime I play CounterStrike, but it's a blast to play, win or lose.

  My point is: sports and action and board games may seem like a waste of time, and they well may be, but the enjoyment you get out of them, if it tickles your fancy, is well worth it. Competition is probably the healthiest and most human activity we can engage in.
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  under74

  BroBennett-"Correlations can give a person an idea of what kind of sport is right to play and progress at." No. Let me explain--a correlation is not proof. Example: The murder rate rises in the summer months. The sale of ice cream also rises in the same exact months. So there is a correlation between murder and ice cream. Does this mean ice cream causes people to kill? Probably not. It freaking ridiculous to say that sports stars who have committed crime have done it becuase they play sports....but then again...how about this for a correlation?--there have been many cases of child molestation amongst Jehovah's Witnesses recently. From this I can correlate that all Jehovah's Witnesses are pedophiles and that the religion causes pedophilia. But is it true?
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  BroBennett

  Well being that it is more of a sport than a tool for self defence I will try to show you all what the Bible really wants us to all know and really consider before playing or even spectating.

  A recent exhibit in the Colosseum in Rome, Italy, suggested modern parallels by including video clips of bullfighting, professional boxing, auto and motorcycle races, and spectator fights at other modern sports events. Early Christians took to heart that Jehovah does not love violence or violent ones, and neither should Christians today. (Psalm 11:5)

  
  

  Having to put someone into submission might be considered a violent action, but the other aspects of the sport might just be as bad, or could be over time. Other things to consider are:
  

  Sometimes the most violent are the fans.

  In Britain there are plans to build or restructure sports facilities to equip them with closed-circuit television cameras for surveillance of the fans, to erect barriers to separate opposing supporters, and to eliminate any inflammable material whatsoever. Policemen have infiltrated gangs of hooligans, the most violent fans, in order to identify their ringleaders and arrest them. The Italian sports authorities, in collaboration with the Ministry of the Interior, have decided to use barbed wire in the stadiums as well as protective netting, helicopters, swarms of policemen, and closed-circuit television cameras.

  Then you have the costs:

  Then you have the hype and competitiveness:

  On a normal day on the British soccer calendar, about $700,000 is spent on just police protection. Often the TV camera lingers on violent play rather than on those episodes that are judged mild, repeating it again and again by means of instant replays. Thus TV may inadvertently magnify the effects of sports violence in the minds of future fans and players.

  Oftentimes a coach may tell a player where a persons weakness is so they get the other teams good players out of the game early. Most times teamates will embrace or congrat a team member for taking down the competition by way of violent acts. This could convey the attitude to young and old that it is ok to be violent just with a sport.

  I am not saying it would be wrong to have a safer form of sport with tap outs and padding. It would be wrong to have too much [competition] and to put so much [money] into some sports that show the need to win every time it is played. That is because of these three factors:

  Money, many people bet and invest with these games.

  Nationalism attaches an exaggerated sense of importance to victory. The fans ape them, going to excess in their show of loyalty to their team or their nation, stirring up raging battles before, during, and after the sporting event.

  Doping, or the use of illegal drugs that heighten the energy levels of athletes and allow them to reach performance superior to their normal physical abilities, does violence both to the sporting spirit and to the health of the athletes
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  City Fan

  Most, if not all, of the martial arts are inextricably linked to the three main East Asian religions, Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism.

  Sounds like a great reason to get involved in them.

  Btw, I think the real reason that 'old testament' Jehovah would not approve of martial arts is that they are NOT violent enough for him!

  CF.
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  glitter

  Early Christians took to heart that Jehovah does not love violence or violent ones, and neither should Christians today.
  
  ROTFLMFAO! God doesn't love violence?
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  BroBennett

  It is important to know that Jehovah's Witnesses know who the god of this world is.

  It is also funny to see people respond only to my reasoning since they should be trying to help the person who started this thred. I am the only one looking to the Bible for an answer as well so it seems. If this person is a Bible student then he should dive deeper into the letters of the Bible for an answer...

  Jesus Christ, the greatest man that ever lived, encouraged meekness by both precept and example. "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth," said he, and he urged others, "Learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart." Because of not understanding what it means to be meek, however, many have a distorted view of Jesus Christ. Thus in The Catholic Encyclopedia, , there appear twenty artists? conceptions of what Jesus looked like. Except for one or two, these portray him to be either feminine or ascetic.?Matt. 5:5; 11:29,
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  AK - Jeff

  It is also funny to see people respond only to my reasoning since they should be trying to help the person who started this thred.

  Bro,Bro, Bro... that is what we are trying to do - we are hoping that that person will allow balance and choice of things in life to be determined not by some set of legalistic dogma manufactured by a group of old men sitting in an ivory tower in Brooklyn. Rather that reason and personal choice might be allowed. None of the sports and settings that you attempt to forbid are mentioned in the Bible - even the NWT did not go that far!

  I have remained Christian post-watchtower. I do not think that Christians should engage in violence - but the examples you make by and large might just miss the point. You are just pointing to a WTS rulebook - trying to let someone's conscience be your guide. God gave me one and you - let's use that instead of WTS dogma. IMHO

  Jeff
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  BroBennett

  Hello Jeff, welcome to the discussion. It would be good to have your take on the subject first before you try and judge me for going to the Bible for an answer to this sports question. Would it be meek for a person to force someone into submission with a wrestling move or some sort of self defence sport event?

  How would you help this Bible based conscience kind of person with the question of what sports are considered violent and forbidden by Jehovah?, you don't seem real eager to help since no answer was given. But, Jeff... you are only interested in debating with me since I have all the answers but you choose to be in the dark still. I have been on this forum before so I am not fresh meat and will not be ashamed to prove what I know is right. There is a right way and a wrong way to do things just like there is a right way and a wrong way to play sports.

  My point is where is this help for the people who are lost? , since the forum should be called ExJW.com. The answer before was, "We don't know but we like to make fun of what we once thought was right." But that doesn't make it right to make fun of the people who stuck with it and remained strong in the truth.