Jehovah's Witnesses will often pride themselves believing they stand out from all other religions in the world today. They alone have and teach the truth. Let's examine such claims.
Teaching/Beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses parallel Christadelphians in many areas. This is inclusive of but not limited to:
-State that their beliefs are based wholly on the Bible.
-They believe that God is the creator of all things and the father of true believers, that he is a separate being from his son, Jesus Christ.
-Jesus is the promised Messiah, in whom the prophecies and promises of the Old Testament find their fulfillment.
-After death, believers are in a state of non-existence, knowing nothing until the Resurrection.
-Reject a number of doctrines held by many other Christians, notably the immortality of the soul, trinitarianism, the baptism of infants, and the personhood of the Holy Spirit.
-Hell is understood to refer to death and the grave, rather than being a place of eternal torment.
-Organized into local congregations.
-Women are typically not eligible to teach.
-Refuse to participate in any military because they are conscientious objectors.
-A strong emphasis on personal Bible reading and study.
Those are just some of the similarities. Any credit for the above given to Jehovah's Witnesses can equally be given to Christadelphians.
Teaching/Beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses parallel House of Yahweh as well:
-Membership of all races from nations all over the globe welcoming all "who will repent of sin and follow Yahweh's Law."
-Claims to be associated with no other faith and indeed asserts that other faiths, especially Christianity, are corrupt and false.
-Believes it is the one true faith, as revealed by the Creator from the beginning, and reestablished again in what they believe are the prophesied end times.
-Christmas, Easter, and birthdays are not celebrated.
-Once a year on the evening before Passover, members hold a solemn observance Memorial, referring to the Last Supper of Jesus Christ.
-Yahweh is the only one who deserves worship or adoration, and is the sovereign and only creator and ruler of the universe.
-Yahshua Messiah gave all glory, honor and obedience to Yahweh who is not a trinity, but one individual being with no equal or partners.
-They publish an edition of the Bible, which removes any and all words or concepts which are thought to be pagan corruptions.
Again, these are just some of the similarities. Any credit for the above given to Jehovah's Witnesses can equally be given to House of Yahweh. Further, arguably 'Yahweh' is closer to the pronunciation of the Father's name than 'Jehovah'.
The reality is there are hundreds of areas to measure upon, and two extremes for each area. The Jehovah's Witnesses have been taught to take preaching to one extreme (imagining it is the most important of God's commandments), but then love (which actually is the most important) they can take to the opposite extreme (Love is disposable). For example, see where the love goes once an individual disassociates themselves from the organization or is disfellowshipped, despite the reason(s).
Since the individuals running the Watchtower Society are imperfect, their teachings are imperfect; they are therefore really no different from anyone else's imperfect teachings. Would God smite one religion because they only got it 85% "correct", and another got it 87% "correct"? Does the religion which has 75% of the teachings "right" have God's favor over the one with only 50% "right"? No God would be so shallow or stupid.
Truth is Jehovah's Witnesses are deep into Restorationism similar to their Seventh-day Adventists roots. Restorationism applies to the Restoration Movement and numerous other movements that originated in the United States and grew in the early and mid 19th century. It refers to the belief held by various religious movements that pristine or original Christianity should be restored, while usually claiming to be the source of that restoration. This is also seen in the religions mentioned earlier as well as Latter Day Saints (Mormons).
Jehovah's Witnesses are also into Millenarianism; which is the belief by a religious, social, or political group or movement in a coming major transformation of society, after which all things will be changed in a positive direction. While it is true there are groups involved in Millenarianism since centuries ago, dozens of books promoting Millenarianism were published in the first three decades of the 19th century, and many new Millenarian societies were formed since then. A short list of millenarian groups besides Jehovah’s Witnesses includes:
-Aum Supreme Truth
-Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University
-Branch Davidians
-Dulcinianism
-Heaven's Gate
-Hinduism
-Hojjatieh
-Joachimites
-Judaism
-Plymouth Brethren
-Rastafari Movement
-Shakers
-Taiping Rebellion
-The Living Church of God
-The Lord's Resistance Army
-Yellow Turbans
Jehovah's Witnesses are not unique with their teachings and beliefs. There are hundreds of thousands of faiths and beliefs in the world. Jehovah's Witnesses are just another one of them with a proven history of inaccurate teachings, flip-flopping of doctrine, and false prophesy. How can they be the 'true religion' or sole communication of truth God is using today?
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Piñatas – Harmless Fun!
Here's an interesting article printed by the Watchtower Society receiving of course its approval from the faithful and discreet slave class of Jehovah's Witnesses not too long ago. From the September 22, 2003, Awake!, page 24, 'The Piñata - An Ancient Tradition':
"We found that for many people in Mexico, the piñata has lost its religious significance and is considered by most to be just harmless fun...A main concern is, not what the practice meant hundreds of years ago, but how it is viewed today in your area. Understandably, opinions may vary from one place to another. Hence, it is wise to avoid turning such matters into big issues."
The Watchtower Society picks and chooses what lost its "religious significance" and is harmless as opposed to other things which may have less than favorable origins which are off limits for Jehovah's Witnesses.
Keeping in mind the Piñata reasoning above, notice how a contradicting viewpoint is stated here in the publication known to Jehovah's Witnesses as the Bible Teach book, in chapter 16, 'Take Your Stand For True Worship', paragraph 12 on page 159:
"Some agree that such holidays as Christmas have pagan origins but still feel that it is not wrong to celebrate them. After all, most people are not thinking about false worship when they observe holidays. These occasions also give families opportunities to draw close together...Maybe you feel that the origins of holidays have little to do with how they are celebrated today. Do origins really matter? Yes! To illustrate: Suppose you saw a piece of candy lying in the gutter. Would you pick up that candy and eat it? Of course not! That candy is unclean. Like that candy, holidays may seem sweet, but they have been picked up from unclean places. To take a stand for true worship, we need to have a viewpoint like that of the prophet Isaiah, who told true worshipers: “Touch nothing unclean.” —Isaiah 52:11."
The Governing Body spreads their hypocritical and contradictory stances through the various pages of Watchtower Society publications. Unfortunately, many Jehovah's Witnesses don't see it. However, let's make it crystal clear with a little research on Piñatas:
History of Piñatas...The origin of the Piñata is Chinese not Hispanic. It was used to celebrate the coming of spring. As a result of Marco Polo's adventures into China, he introduced this Chinese custom which was adopted by the Spanish as well as by the French and Italians. The Spanish brought this custom to the new world when they conquered Mexico. The Piñata became part of the Posada in the Catholic culture.
Symbols...The original & traditional Piñata has seven points symbolizing the seven deadly sins: envy, sloth, gluttony, greed, lust, anger/wrath, and pride. The ten pointed Piñata symbolizes the sins that come from breaking the Ten Commandments. The stick which is used to break the Piñata represents and symbolizes love. It is suppose to destroy the sins by hitting and breaking the Piñata into pieces. The candies and treats that come pouring out from the broken Piñata symbolize the forgiveness of sins and a new beginning. In the Mexican Catholic celebration of Christmas, the Piñata is traditionally shaped like a seven-pointed star which represents the devil and the seven deadly sins, while the contents are the goods or blessings he is withholding. Striking the devil with faith, symbolized by being blindfolded, releases the blessings.
Do your own research on Piñatas and find the above to be true.
How does the Watchtower Society justify their view towards Piñatas using such statements as...
"...considered by most to be just harmless fun."
"A main concern is, not what the practice meant hundreds of years ago, but how it is viewed today in your area."
"...it is wise to avoid turning such matters into big issues."
...while taking such a hard-line stand against holidays, birthdays, flags, and other things and celebrations which are not viewed the same way they were years ago and is just harmless fun?
The logic and reasoning the Watchtower Society uses makes no sense whatsoever. If you are not taking a stand against Piñatas, why take a hard-line stance against other things with religious and pagan origins? Piñatas are steeped with both pagan and religious ties. Why and how is Piñatas harmless fun but things such as Easter Eggs, Christmas Trees and New Year's celebrations are unacceptable for Jehovah's Witnesses?
Investigate, question, and think of the contradictions and hypocrisy taught to and by Jehovah's Witnesses.
"We found that for many people in Mexico, the piñata has lost its religious significance and is considered by most to be just harmless fun...A main concern is, not what the practice meant hundreds of years ago, but how it is viewed today in your area. Understandably, opinions may vary from one place to another. Hence, it is wise to avoid turning such matters into big issues."
The Watchtower Society picks and chooses what lost its "religious significance" and is harmless as opposed to other things which may have less than favorable origins which are off limits for Jehovah's Witnesses.
Keeping in mind the Piñata reasoning above, notice how a contradicting viewpoint is stated here in the publication known to Jehovah's Witnesses as the Bible Teach book, in chapter 16, 'Take Your Stand For True Worship', paragraph 12 on page 159:
"Some agree that such holidays as Christmas have pagan origins but still feel that it is not wrong to celebrate them. After all, most people are not thinking about false worship when they observe holidays. These occasions also give families opportunities to draw close together...Maybe you feel that the origins of holidays have little to do with how they are celebrated today. Do origins really matter? Yes! To illustrate: Suppose you saw a piece of candy lying in the gutter. Would you pick up that candy and eat it? Of course not! That candy is unclean. Like that candy, holidays may seem sweet, but they have been picked up from unclean places. To take a stand for true worship, we need to have a viewpoint like that of the prophet Isaiah, who told true worshipers: “Touch nothing unclean.” —Isaiah 52:11."
The Governing Body spreads their hypocritical and contradictory stances through the various pages of Watchtower Society publications. Unfortunately, many Jehovah's Witnesses don't see it. However, let's make it crystal clear with a little research on Piñatas:
History of Piñatas...The origin of the Piñata is Chinese not Hispanic. It was used to celebrate the coming of spring. As a result of Marco Polo's adventures into China, he introduced this Chinese custom which was adopted by the Spanish as well as by the French and Italians. The Spanish brought this custom to the new world when they conquered Mexico. The Piñata became part of the Posada in the Catholic culture.
Symbols...The original & traditional Piñata has seven points symbolizing the seven deadly sins: envy, sloth, gluttony, greed, lust, anger/wrath, and pride. The ten pointed Piñata symbolizes the sins that come from breaking the Ten Commandments. The stick which is used to break the Piñata represents and symbolizes love. It is suppose to destroy the sins by hitting and breaking the Piñata into pieces. The candies and treats that come pouring out from the broken Piñata symbolize the forgiveness of sins and a new beginning. In the Mexican Catholic celebration of Christmas, the Piñata is traditionally shaped like a seven-pointed star which represents the devil and the seven deadly sins, while the contents are the goods or blessings he is withholding. Striking the devil with faith, symbolized by being blindfolded, releases the blessings.
Do your own research on Piñatas and find the above to be true.
How does the Watchtower Society justify their view towards Piñatas using such statements as...
"...considered by most to be just harmless fun."
"A main concern is, not what the practice meant hundreds of years ago, but how it is viewed today in your area."
"...it is wise to avoid turning such matters into big issues."
...while taking such a hard-line stand against holidays, birthdays, flags, and other things and celebrations which are not viewed the same way they were years ago and is just harmless fun?
The logic and reasoning the Watchtower Society uses makes no sense whatsoever. If you are not taking a stand against Piñatas, why take a hard-line stance against other things with religious and pagan origins? Piñatas are steeped with both pagan and religious ties. Why and how is Piñatas harmless fun but things such as Easter Eggs, Christmas Trees and New Year's celebrations are unacceptable for Jehovah's Witnesses?
Investigate, question, and think of the contradictions and hypocrisy taught to and by Jehovah's Witnesses.
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