Vidqun, thanks for your response, but I don't see Jesus' words at Mt. !8 to his disciples as something they would forget after his death, when the Mosaic Law was fulfilled. The Apostles and older men met over the issue of Circumcision from the old Law and decided it was not a requirement for the Gentiles ( male or female, I assume ), but they did keep some of the restrictions...and they continued to be guided by prophetic words from of old.
Acts 18:28 "for the holy spirit and we ourselves have favored adding no further burden to you, except these necessary things..." which brings us to another main point of contention, 'Blood'. Again, I am NOT saying that the policy of JW's about Blood Transfusions is correct, but it is not an UNreasonable conclusion from the verses that emphasize the importance of respecting Blood. Whether this gets you a ticket into Paradise or not, I couldn't say..mostly because I think that paradise is a state of mind, one that leads you to a better place, or at least helps you to understand that Paradise is what we can make of a bad situation, and is often times standing right in front of you.
As for why other churches do not use the 'two witness' rule..I assume they do. It is certainly a standard recognized by many courts. It avoids the he said/she said stalemate where some other sort of evidence must be found to corroborate any single statement. It is not a foolproof method though....The Lord himself was the victim of false witnesses - two, or more, if memory serves me well ;-)
But the main issues for pedophilia among critics of Religions is the covering up of wrongdoing, not warning others and not trusting in the police to investigate the allegations instead of some overworked/inexperienced/hapless/janitor, otherwise known as, elders ( I would not have added that last noun except I read it on a website condemning the Witness policies and one of my all time favorite elders had been a 'janitor')...All reasonable complaints !! Except, when those same critics assume the Police will somehow be completely different from the efforts of other well meaning, but...'inadequate' individuals. The Police will not bring bias or personal agendas to the investigation. They will follow the letter of the Law and thru tireless/diligent efforts and gathering of all relevant information arrive at the "TRUTH". They are the professionals and Experts! I mean, after all, isn't that what the tv shows and movies show us time and again? and Yes, I am being a little too sarcastic, but here's why...I lived thru the 90's in the State of Washington and there was quite a bit of this going around, as well as elsewhere, but a tiny little town in the middle of the state, Wenatchee, went NUTS ! ! ! ! ! over this issue. Time will fail me trying to retell the sordid details, but a simple trip to Google or the Library will fill in enough of the blanks to help you understand that this issue is ripe for misunderstanding. I am not exaggerating when I say it was a modern day Witch Hunt !
In large part pursued by a local police officer whose family fostered one of the girls who had supposedly been abused , "she was removed and then placed as a foster child in the home of
Lieutenant Robert Perez, who had been newly appointed as Wenatchee's
sole sex crimes officer. Perez had no specialized training in this
field; the departmental position was held on a routine rotational basis." It is not fair for me to suggest that every Police person will go crazy over this like Perez did, but i feel compelled to offer it as a lesson in 'unintended consequences'.
Egan, Timothy (December 12, 1995). "Pastor and Wife Are Acquitted on All Charges in Sex-Abuse Case.". New York Times. Retrieved 2007-10-31. A
Spokane County jury yesterday found the city of Wenatchee and Douglas
County negligent in the now-discredited 1994-1995 Wenatchee child sex
ring investigations, awarding $3 million to a couple who had been
wrongly accused in the inquiry
