Is pedophilia an unforgivable sin?

cnn77

In my opinion it should be and a pedophile should never be allowed back into the organization.

The children they abuse suffer for the rest of their lives so why should a pedophile have forgiveness and be reinstated?

Hi Cnn77: I understand your concerns and views. I have lived with this issue all my life from the time when I caught my dad raping my sister ... I was 5 years old at the time. A religious man also molested my wife, when she was very young. As a JW I have seen much of this before, during, and after the time I served as an Elder. Even now there is a family member who is facing trail for molestation.

Soooo ... what about forgiveness? If we place pedophiles in the unholy position of not being able to live anywhere, have any social contact, and no employment ... we may as well execute them.

I believe that pedophiles have a serious mental illness. I can't say for sure if it is strictly some emotional problem or a brain chemistry or biological problem. Medical science needs to study this and find a treatment that will help these people control themselves or cure them.

It is a tough issue. Pedophiles are often victims when they were young, and because of this crime against them, they become like the persons who injured them. This "pattern" making is true in other social ills, be it gangland, drug abusers, thieves and robbers, and murderers. Ending the cycle of abuse is a serious social challenge.

I don't have the answers. As a society, we need to address this issue and cannot allow children to be subjected to the risk, but then do we just throw away the abusers with no hope whatsoever?

In God's eyes, I believe that a molester can be forgiven, and in fact I do not believe that we can commit any unforgivable sin. The issue of forgiveness has two important features: 1. The victim needs to come to terms with the act, and eventually 'let it go' - and such 'letting go' is the root meaning of forgiveness. This is first and foremost for their own mental and emotional health - to stop being a victim. 2. The pedophile needs to get help, seek forgiveness and make it a lifetime commitment to never cause such pain again.

As a society we need to be rational, calm, and seek balance. The danger of vigilante justice, witch-hunt, and the risks of overreacting can cause more harm and achieve little good in return.

Yes, get the bad guys. But, in the process, let's not become guilty of being bad in other ways - but rather rise above it and find a way to deal with this in the most humane and beneficial way for all, especially the victims.

Right now, the real problem is removing the roadblocks to getting the crime reported and dealt with. Groups like the Watch Tower religion are among those that have greatly inhibited this process. So this is where we as a responsible society need to start - get the issue out in the open, keep it in the open, and make sure that safeguards are put into place to protect children as pedophiles are weeded out into the open. Then, maybe we can have a parallel approach of healing for the victim and those related to them to move forward, and find treatment so that pedophiles can not only be helped, but maybe find ways to prevent new young men from becoming pedophiles, and instead live a good and productive life.

These are lofty goals, but I have confidence in the human race and in our free society that we have the goodwill, common sense, maturity, and foresight to tackle this serious issue and make reasonable progress. Let's hope for that, and work toward it. - Amazing

philo

Which is worse, an instance of murder or an instance of pedophilia?

philo

cnn77

Amazing,

I do not have it in me to be as compassionate as you appear to be.

Amazing - you appear to be "amazing". Is it possible to ever find a way of speaking to you by phone? my email address is [email protected]

Thanks

blondie

Well, Manasseh murdered his own children, but sincerely repented, made amends, and was forgiven by Jehovah.

Even if a pedophile is sincerely repentant, makes amends, and is forgiven by Jehovah, he (and a few women) will never be able to control his urges no matter how sincere. The highest rate of recidivism is among pedophiles. Many murderers murder only once, only a few are serial murderers. Even those who are not JWs are finding it hard to answer the question, should pedophiles ever be released back into society? If so, how will the government protect society from their behavior? Name names publicly? Some are doing that. Make pedophiles stay away from places where children are. That's been done but is hard to enforce. Can even disfellowshipped pedophiles be kept out of the KH and assemblies? There is no guarantee. I have been down this road many times in my employment in the court system, as advocates for others, and from my own personal experience as a victim. It is easier to protect children from pedophiles outside their family, because loving parents will educate themselves and their children. The real problem is where the perpetrator is in the family circle. I wish I had the answer; the thing is to be pro-active, be alert to situations, don't sit back and let Jehovah handle it...he may be trying to handle it through YOU.

philo

Whether someone is likely to reoffend is a seperate issue. I think such things should be put before the courts as with other crimes. If pedophiles tend to reoffend, this does not mean all will, or should be tarred with the same brush.

Additionally, it seems to be counter-christian to say that individuals from any group cannot repent and transform themselves. I am open to counter-christian ideas, of course, but for the WTBTS to adopt them seems mistaken.

philo

HoChiMin

Hi cnn77;

I understand your concerns however one would need to give credence to the WT as a legitimate authority in order to consider reinstatement. The question I ask is reinstatement to what? They have no authority in any country in the civilized world. Only what blind followers and power hungry leaders who belong to their organization will allow or dish out. When an instance of molestation is reported to elders in a congregation many or most kept it quiet for fear of "reproach on Jehovah's organization" because of WT persuasion.

As far as pedophiles go, they should all be dealt with as severe a penalty as the law allows. In some areas even death is a sentence one can receive. As far as rehabilitation of a sex offender such as a pedophile, from what I've read, it's nearly impossible. The WT will make grandiose claims it can transform people, or the bible can transform over a sinner into a righteous person. All with no formal education or training in any known sanctioned course to do so. The WT is a pitiful organization, in my opinion, it accomplishes little good when compared to the number of Witnesses with the rest of the world population.

HCM

Rex B13

How do you justify that statement in light of subjective morality that is promoted in modern society?

Now, if your question is in reference to Biblical law, a sin is a sin is a sin, there is actually no sin worse than any other. We are forgiven of sin when we accept the sacrifice of God's son as a propitiation for our sins. We ARE NOT given a 'free ride' regarding the cost of that sin, the punishment meted out by society or by the particular church.
Man is not good and would not even do good without having a God-given conscience or without being called by God.

According to literal scripture, the "sin against the Holy Spirit" is the only unforgivable sin. This is when you are so hardened against God, even knowing that He is truly the authority, that you refuse and even promote the sin of yourself and others. See Romans 1-4 for further clarification.
Rex

bigboi

RexB13:

Now, if your question is in reference to Biblical law, a sin is a sin is a sin, there is actually no sin worse than any other.

I don't think that statement is a correct one. If it is then why were different punishments perscribed for different sins. For instance if a man committed fornication with a virgin he had to marry her for life and pay her father a fine. However, if a man committed adultery with a married woman they both were to be put to death. these are not the only examples either of a percieved difference in the gravity of one sin over another.

For instance, intentional murder was distinguished from manslaughter in the Bible. The whole city of refuge arranagement was set up because of this difference. So it would seem that biblically speaking a sin isn't a sin is a sin...... Or something like that

teejay

cnn,

At least two questions come to mind and there'd probably be more if I gave it more time:

Is it possible for a pedophile to repent?

How could they put right the wrong? In my view, justice requires that one replace what was lost, to undo the damage that was done. If a cow was stolen, just replace it with another one. But if a child's innocence was abused and psyche irreparably damaged, how do you make it right?

Allowed back into the congregation? Maybe. Before it's even considered, they should be undergoing long-term counseling (not necessarily effective for pedos). If they are allowed to reinter, they should carry a red mark known to all, especially parents of minor children. And they should never be allowed to hold a position of responsibility.

Is pedophilia an unforgivable sin?

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