The ANTI-Witness Warfare Strategy
The text contained below was originally posted on www.profindsearch.com Forums, a small but growing Forum attached to the ProFind Search Engine... I highly recommend stopping by and joining the discussion, if you are so inclined... I think as you read through this writing of mine you'll begin to see some of my purpose for creating this blog...
Up until just a few months ago I had never heard the term, "Theocratic Warfare 'Strategy.'" Oh, during my time as a JW I had heard the terms "theocratic warfare" or "spiritual warfare" in various articles and in one of the songs, but I had never heard the actual term "Theocratic Warfare 'Strategy'" in any JW publication- at least that I had read... I didn't think that I had much reason to go back to an outdated publication from the late 50s to find any information that was particularly relevant at the time that hadn't been updated and or repackaged... Remember, most of what you learn as a JW is repetative- you learn it over and over and over and over and... ugh... well, the long and short is that its MOSTLY the same... There are small changes here, tweaks there, adjustments here, reforumuations there, but in general the JW message stayed pretty much the same in the 17-18 years I was involved... But back to "Theocratic Warfare 'Strategy.'"
When I first heard the term, SURPRISE, I didn't understand it at all...
After all, as a JW I was never exposed to some phantom "strategy" by which I was supposed to conduct "spiritual" or "theocratic" warfare with "'god's' enemies." I certainly don't remember ever hearing anyone tell me that I had to "lie in court" if I was asked some question about what JW's believe... And that's really what the whole thing is about isn't it- what JW's REALLY believe... I say it like that because that's the phrase as it was listed in a website I was browsing through today, but we'll get to that in a minute...
The first time I ever really delved into the Internet world of the anti-JW movement was after I read an article on www.cesnur.org concerning the "Christian" "Counter-Cult" on the Internet... It is truly a fantastic article which I suggest you all read:
http://www.cesnur.org/2001/london2001/cowan.htm
Their are a lot of conjecture and a whole host of different opinions floating through the Internet and through the real world regarding "What do Jehovah's Witnesses REALLY believe?"
Problem with this question: the answer changes depending on who you ask...
As a JW I always stuck to the idea that, "If I want to know what a Catholic believes, I should ask a Catholic!" Now we'll stick with the "Catholic" illustration here because it was a desire to know about Catholics specifically that triggered this personal experince... But other experiences I've had lead me to believe that you could remove the term "Catholic" from that statement at the begining of this paragraph and insert "Hindu," "Scientologist," "Actuary," "Canadian," or "Cleveland Browns fan," and the song would remain the same. NOTE: to any Hindus, Scientologists, Actuaries, Canadians or Cleveland Browns fans who may be reading I meant no insult to your particular religion, profession, nationality or choice in professional American Football teams- just adding a little humor to this boring rant... Now back to this boring rant...
This whole thing came about because at around the age of 15 I met someone who was "Catholic" and I wanted to know what they believed. I asked my parents, and they knew some things about what Catholics believed. I did a little reading in the JW literature about what Catholics believed, and I asked JWs I knew who used to be Catholics what they believed... And I learned a good bit of factual information about Catholic beliefs- I knew it was factual because friends from school and relatives who were Catholic confirmed the information. But something I didn't expect happened... I found out after talking to about 10 different Catholics that I had 10 different stories about what a "Catholic" believed because by and large they all interpruted the idea of what it means to be "Catholic" differently...
As I said earlier, experience has taught me that this same idea proves true regardless of the group in question- including Jehovah's Witnesses...
But according to the organized (and it is organized, though it berates WT for being "organized") anti-JW movement ALL JWs are nothing but "Borg" drones enslaved to the Governing Body of the WT (or is it to their local elder body- different "apostates" have different takes on that) who don't think for themselves and don't make decisions for themselves... Now obviously I wouldn't buy that for a penny, let alone a dollar... And I don't think most "reasonable" people would either...
But then, like with asking what someone believes ask 10 different people what it means to be "reasonable" and you'll probably get 10 different answers...
It seems to me that the central doctrine of what I am dubbing the "Anti-Witness Warfare Strategy" is the belief that JWs as individuals are nothing but mindless drones who do nothing but what they're commanded to do by Brooklyn and/or their local body of elders... Some people of the anti-witness persuasion- in my opinion mostly those who have gone from the JW faith to another strain of Xianity ("born again" Xianity, perhaps?) are the ones who most strongly argue that this is the case... Now I believe everyone is entitled to their opinion. My personal viewpoint of the WT organization and the JW religion is not a very positive one... My personal experiences during my time as a JW were a mixed bag- with bad experienecs with elders and no desire to subject myself to WT's bible interprutation and the principles derived their from being the primary reason that I left... But even though my personal view of WT isn't entirely positive, I find hypocrisy in all it's forms to be even more negative, no matter where that hypocrisy originates; be it Brooklyn, Mecca, Jerusalem, Calvert City, Kentucky or Bangor, Maine, I have a problem with hypocrisy and hypocrites... And I have the most problem with people who slam other people and religions for hypocrisy while themselves engaging in such hypocrisy...
I've stated it in other threads: as much as I have a problem with the WT and it's ways I have a bigger problem with people who would look down on WT and the individual JWs who are a part of it while at the same time misrepresenting information and using unverifiable stories as evidence and rumors as facts... And the Cesnur article (for those who haven't read it) puts into words perfectly what I consider to be a true WT-like "Strategy" of opposition:
It seems to me that various people of the anti-JW persuasion claim to be interested in presenting "the truth" about the JW religion, when in fact they want to do little more than present their own viewpoints and opinions as COLD HARD FACTS....
I said it before and I'll say it again... I have many negative views on the WT... I have many negative opinions of the WT... I EXPRESS many of my negative opinions about the WT (oh, you don't think I do? Well ok, here are a few: I think the "Elder" arrangement is a joke, I think that the way they handle "judicial" matters could be vastly improved, I think their views and interprutations of the bible are in quite a number of cases incorrect and outdated, but none of that has to do with "hypocrisy" as I'm discussing it in light of the claim of a "Theocratic Warfare 'Strategy'" as opposed to my newly dubbed "Anti-Witness Warfare Strategy"), but I frame all of my views an opinions CORRECTLY as nothing more than my own opinions... I do not claim that what I think or believe is fact... I do not express myself as though what I believe is fact... I don't condemn anyone for disagreeing with me... WT may engage in these practices, I admit... But the anti-JW movement would have you believe they DON'T engage in these practices- AND THEY DO! And they do it while claiming to have "free" minds. My personal opinion is that anti-JWs, especially those who were formerly JWs and who became members of some other strain of the Xian cult are among the most closed minded people... But that's just an opinion...
It makes me think back to my JW days... What were some of the things we always heard as JWs when we went doorknocking? The thing I always remember hearing about is when I spoke to people from other Xian religions was that they, for the most part, always held that although they didn't agree with JW interprutations, they acknowledged that JWs and everyone else had the right to those interprutations... They would always say things along the lines of "well, you look at the bible one way, I look at it another way, but the thing is that we're both looking at it!" Sometimes they would follow with the old "all roads lead to the same place line," but the point is that they did very little condemning and a lot of looking for common ground. In fact I remember other "Xians" being among the easiest people to talk to in the "witness" work because they already had a basic knowledge of the bible and they were willing to talk about it! Very rarely do I remember being condemned for having a viewpoint on the bible that differed from that of other Xians...
But what a difference between the way Xians act towards JWs and the way exJWs act when they "become" "Xians!" Funny how they claim to now be "free in 'christ'" but that they would condemn their former brothers so greatly! And that at the same time as they hypocritically go on about how their "former brothers" shun them!
At this point, if I haven't bored you to death you may be wondering what the point of all this is...
Well, today I was browsing through the member list of the forum looking for websites of the various users in a quest to find some personal experiences... I like to compare the experiences of other exJWs with my own... A lot of exJW experiences I've seen, especially the ones where a JW becomes an "Xian" seem to be carbon copies of each other... But what I found today was nothing resembling an "experience" website...
I've read a lot of the material on "free"minds.org... Some of it is factual... A lot of it is full of spun truths and opinions masqarading as facts, but even "free"minds.org doesn't reach the level of hypocrisy as I was exposed to today...
In my personal opinion, the website: http://www.jwinfo.50megs.com could be called the quintessential "Anti-Witness Warfare Strategy" example...
Before continuing, I would suggest the reader briefly browse through that site...
The first thing I saw when I reached the site was this:
Ok, great ideas... Promote freedom of thought and speech, promote informed choice, provide FACTs about JWs from "verifiable" sources... Great ideas...
Unfortunately I found very little information in this site that I could call "verifiable." Yes, there are quotes to a lot of WT literature, but unfortunately all this information is based around the original false premiss that I brought up earlier- JWs are NOT drones! They are not, the Borg! They are as diverse and as inquisitive and knowledge hungry as any other group of people...
But beyond that false premiss is the outright hypocrisy of what I'll next illustrate...
Read this statement from the "Information about JWs" page:
As I see it, the information presented and more importantly THE WAY it is presented is placed there more to promote the owner of the site's personal ideas and those of the larger anti-JW movement, not a neutral expression of the site owners "ideas" or "opinions." Quickly reading through the site a person will realize that the information presented therin is not presented as an idea or an opinion, but as a FACT that the site's owner believes and WANTS THOSE WHO VIEW THE SITE to believe... But even more hypocritical is that the owner of the site speaks of people being able to make an informed decision and on how many "high control groups" pressure people not to listen to those who oppose the group... Yet the site's owner places information like this under the link "How to Avoid JWs:"
"free" minds?
Up until just a few months ago I had never heard the term, "Theocratic Warfare 'Strategy.'" Oh, during my time as a JW I had heard the terms "theocratic warfare" or "spiritual warfare" in various articles and in one of the songs, but I had never heard the actual term "Theocratic Warfare 'Strategy'" in any JW publication- at least that I had read... I didn't think that I had much reason to go back to an outdated publication from the late 50s to find any information that was particularly relevant at the time that hadn't been updated and or repackaged... Remember, most of what you learn as a JW is repetative- you learn it over and over and over and over and... ugh... well, the long and short is that its MOSTLY the same... There are small changes here, tweaks there, adjustments here, reforumuations there, but in general the JW message stayed pretty much the same in the 17-18 years I was involved... But back to "Theocratic Warfare 'Strategy.'"
When I first heard the term, SURPRISE, I didn't understand it at all...
After all, as a JW I was never exposed to some phantom "strategy" by which I was supposed to conduct "spiritual" or "theocratic" warfare with "'god's' enemies." I certainly don't remember ever hearing anyone tell me that I had to "lie in court" if I was asked some question about what JW's believe... And that's really what the whole thing is about isn't it- what JW's REALLY believe... I say it like that because that's the phrase as it was listed in a website I was browsing through today, but we'll get to that in a minute...
The first time I ever really delved into the Internet world of the anti-JW movement was after I read an article on www.cesnur.org concerning the "Christian" "Counter-Cult" on the Internet... It is truly a fantastic article which I suggest you all read:
http://www.cesnur.org/2001/london2001/cowan.htm
Their are a lot of conjecture and a whole host of different opinions floating through the Internet and through the real world regarding "What do Jehovah's Witnesses REALLY believe?"
Problem with this question: the answer changes depending on who you ask...
As a JW I always stuck to the idea that, "If I want to know what a Catholic believes, I should ask a Catholic!" Now we'll stick with the "Catholic" illustration here because it was a desire to know about Catholics specifically that triggered this personal experince... But other experiences I've had lead me to believe that you could remove the term "Catholic" from that statement at the begining of this paragraph and insert "Hindu," "Scientologist," "Actuary," "Canadian," or "Cleveland Browns fan," and the song would remain the same. NOTE: to any Hindus, Scientologists, Actuaries, Canadians or Cleveland Browns fans who may be reading I meant no insult to your particular religion, profession, nationality or choice in professional American Football teams- just adding a little humor to this boring rant... Now back to this boring rant...
This whole thing came about because at around the age of 15 I met someone who was "Catholic" and I wanted to know what they believed. I asked my parents, and they knew some things about what Catholics believed. I did a little reading in the JW literature about what Catholics believed, and I asked JWs I knew who used to be Catholics what they believed... And I learned a good bit of factual information about Catholic beliefs- I knew it was factual because friends from school and relatives who were Catholic confirmed the information. But something I didn't expect happened... I found out after talking to about 10 different Catholics that I had 10 different stories about what a "Catholic" believed because by and large they all interpruted the idea of what it means to be "Catholic" differently...
As I said earlier, experience has taught me that this same idea proves true regardless of the group in question- including Jehovah's Witnesses...
But according to the organized (and it is organized, though it berates WT for being "organized") anti-JW movement ALL JWs are nothing but "Borg" drones enslaved to the Governing Body of the WT (or is it to their local elder body- different "apostates" have different takes on that) who don't think for themselves and don't make decisions for themselves... Now obviously I wouldn't buy that for a penny, let alone a dollar... And I don't think most "reasonable" people would either...
But then, like with asking what someone believes ask 10 different people what it means to be "reasonable" and you'll probably get 10 different answers...
It seems to me that the central doctrine of what I am dubbing the "Anti-Witness Warfare Strategy" is the belief that JWs as individuals are nothing but mindless drones who do nothing but what they're commanded to do by Brooklyn and/or their local body of elders... Some people of the anti-witness persuasion- in my opinion mostly those who have gone from the JW faith to another strain of Xianity ("born again" Xianity, perhaps?) are the ones who most strongly argue that this is the case... Now I believe everyone is entitled to their opinion. My personal viewpoint of the WT organization and the JW religion is not a very positive one... My personal experiences during my time as a JW were a mixed bag- with bad experienecs with elders and no desire to subject myself to WT's bible interprutation and the principles derived their from being the primary reason that I left... But even though my personal view of WT isn't entirely positive, I find hypocrisy in all it's forms to be even more negative, no matter where that hypocrisy originates; be it Brooklyn, Mecca, Jerusalem, Calvert City, Kentucky or Bangor, Maine, I have a problem with hypocrisy and hypocrites... And I have the most problem with people who slam other people and religions for hypocrisy while themselves engaging in such hypocrisy...
I've stated it in other threads: as much as I have a problem with the WT and it's ways I have a bigger problem with people who would look down on WT and the individual JWs who are a part of it while at the same time misrepresenting information and using unverifiable stories as evidence and rumors as facts... And the Cesnur article (for those who haven't read it) puts into words perfectly what I consider to be a true WT-like "Strategy" of opposition:
Like the Countercult in print, the Countercult on the Net is a carefully managed presentation of selected truths, half-truths, spun truths, and untruths. Its library is designed not to inform the visitor about the group in question, but to confirm for the visitor why that group is heterodox, why it should be avoided, and why conservative Christianity is the only viable option in place of it. As well, again like the Countercult in print, the Countercult on the Net is intended as an "equipping force" to supply Christians with apologetic resources for their own encounters with NRM members. Rather than a public library, it is rather like those few shelves of a conservative seminary library that are devoted to "Cults and Other World Religions." The difference, of course, is that this library is open to the public.
It seems to me that various people of the anti-JW persuasion claim to be interested in presenting "the truth" about the JW religion, when in fact they want to do little more than present their own viewpoints and opinions as COLD HARD FACTS....
I said it before and I'll say it again... I have many negative views on the WT... I have many negative opinions of the WT... I EXPRESS many of my negative opinions about the WT (oh, you don't think I do? Well ok, here are a few: I think the "Elder" arrangement is a joke, I think that the way they handle "judicial" matters could be vastly improved, I think their views and interprutations of the bible are in quite a number of cases incorrect and outdated, but none of that has to do with "hypocrisy" as I'm discussing it in light of the claim of a "Theocratic Warfare 'Strategy'" as opposed to my newly dubbed "Anti-Witness Warfare Strategy"), but I frame all of my views an opinions CORRECTLY as nothing more than my own opinions... I do not claim that what I think or believe is fact... I do not express myself as though what I believe is fact... I don't condemn anyone for disagreeing with me... WT may engage in these practices, I admit... But the anti-JW movement would have you believe they DON'T engage in these practices- AND THEY DO! And they do it while claiming to have "free" minds. My personal opinion is that anti-JWs, especially those who were formerly JWs and who became members of some other strain of the Xian cult are among the most closed minded people... But that's just an opinion...
It makes me think back to my JW days... What were some of the things we always heard as JWs when we went doorknocking? The thing I always remember hearing about is when I spoke to people from other Xian religions was that they, for the most part, always held that although they didn't agree with JW interprutations, they acknowledged that JWs and everyone else had the right to those interprutations... They would always say things along the lines of "well, you look at the bible one way, I look at it another way, but the thing is that we're both looking at it!" Sometimes they would follow with the old "all roads lead to the same place line," but the point is that they did very little condemning and a lot of looking for common ground. In fact I remember other "Xians" being among the easiest people to talk to in the "witness" work because they already had a basic knowledge of the bible and they were willing to talk about it! Very rarely do I remember being condemned for having a viewpoint on the bible that differed from that of other Xians...
But what a difference between the way Xians act towards JWs and the way exJWs act when they "become" "Xians!" Funny how they claim to now be "free in 'christ'" but that they would condemn their former brothers so greatly! And that at the same time as they hypocritically go on about how their "former brothers" shun them!
At this point, if I haven't bored you to death you may be wondering what the point of all this is...
Well, today I was browsing through the member list of the forum looking for websites of the various users in a quest to find some personal experiences... I like to compare the experiences of other exJWs with my own... A lot of exJW experiences I've seen, especially the ones where a JW becomes an "Xian" seem to be carbon copies of each other... But what I found today was nothing resembling an "experience" website...
I've read a lot of the material on "free"minds.org... Some of it is factual... A lot of it is full of spun truths and opinions masqarading as facts, but even "free"minds.org doesn't reach the level of hypocrisy as I was exposed to today...
In my personal opinion, the website: http://www.jwinfo.50megs.com could be called the quintessential "Anti-Witness Warfare Strategy" example...
Before continuing, I would suggest the reader briefly browse through that site...
The first thing I saw when I reached the site was this:
The Purposes of this Web Site:
1.To promote informed choice, freedom of thought, and freedom of speech.
2.To provide facts about Jehovah's Witnesses and the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society which are verifiable from listed sources.
3.To provide resources for ex-Jehovah's Witnesses for support and information.
4.To provide links to books and other publications about Jehovah's Witnesses and the Watchtower Society.
Ok, great ideas... Promote freedom of thought and speech, promote informed choice, provide FACTs about JWs from "verifiable" sources... Great ideas...
Unfortunately I found very little information in this site that I could call "verifiable." Yes, there are quotes to a lot of WT literature, but unfortunately all this information is based around the original false premiss that I brought up earlier- JWs are NOT drones! They are not, the Borg! They are as diverse and as inquisitive and knowledge hungry as any other group of people...
But beyond that false premiss is the outright hypocrisy of what I'll next illustrate...
Read this statement from the "Information about JWs" page:
Jehovah’s Witnesses today are often spoken against. Although most religions have their share of detractors, surely, when a large number of people speak against a group so strongly, it makes sense to investigate before becoming involved. A common tactic of high control groups is to pressure members and would-be members not to listen to those who oppose the group.
Many high control groups do not share full information with non-members. Those interested in becoming Jehovah's Witnesses are often not aware of the implications of membership until after they join. The purpose of this site is to promote education to enable you to make a free and informed decision.
As I see it, the information presented and more importantly THE WAY it is presented is placed there more to promote the owner of the site's personal ideas and those of the larger anti-JW movement, not a neutral expression of the site owners "ideas" or "opinions." Quickly reading through the site a person will realize that the information presented therin is not presented as an idea or an opinion, but as a FACT that the site's owner believes and WANTS THOSE WHO VIEW THE SITE to believe... But even more hypocritical is that the owner of the site speaks of people being able to make an informed decision and on how many "high control groups" pressure people not to listen to those who oppose the group... Yet the site's owner places information like this under the link "How to Avoid JWs:"
Unsolicited Telephone CallsSo, the owner of this site claims that they are interested in people being able to make informed choices without pressure from "high control groups," yet they present a kernel of truth surrounded by a thick layer of half truths and spun truths and tell people that they should do everything possible to avoid contact with JWs thereby hearing "the other side" of the story and gaining another perspective on the JW faith...
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Be aware that full time ministers may receive a small profit on the literature they sell. That being the case, they may be subject to the telemarketing laws. Enter your phone number on the National Do Not Call Registry. You can register online at www.donotcall.gov. You may also register by using the phone line you wish to list to call 1-888-382-1222: for TTY call 1-866-290-4236. You may file a complaint under certain circumstances if the caller violated the “do not call” regulations. Visit http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/donotcall/ for further information on how to file a complaint.
*
If you have Caller ID service, use it to identify any unwanted calls and do not answer them.
*
If you have the ability to block certain phone numbers, use it on any known JW numbers.
*
Ask them to cease calling you immediately and permanently. If they continue calling, file a complaint with your phone company’s complaint bureau.
Unwanted Items in your Mailbox
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If there is no postage on an item in or on your mailbox, it is a federal offense. File a complaint with the US Postmaster. http://pe.usps.gov/text/dmm/d041.htm#Rbi31049
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If there is postage on it, do not open it. Mark it “return to sender ”unwanted--refused”, cross out your address, circle the return address, and put it back in the mail.
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Write a letter to the congregation, by certified mail with return receipt, indicating no further mail should be sent.
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You can file a complaint with the US postal office regarding any unwanted mail, whether it has postage or not. Visit http://www.junkbusters.com/dmlaws.html for further information. Notice that the court has determined it is up to the individual to determine what is personally offensive. Therefore, religion-themed materials are not exempt from this complaint process. Download the complaint form here: http://www.usps.com/forms/_pdf/ps1500.pdf
Unwanted Emails
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Use your account’s blocking capabilities. If it does not have that capability, you can switch to one with blocking options free at www.hotmail.com and other sites.
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If your email account has the capability of sending an automated response to emails from certain individuals, program it to send a notice to the known JW addresses, stating you wish no further contact.
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Visit http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/online/inbox.htm for more details on how to eliminate unwanted emails.
Unwanted Visits and Face to Face Contacts
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Post a “No Trespassing” sign on your front door. Keep on hand a copy of the letter from the Watchtower Society to the local congregations, instructing them not to visit homes with No Trespassing signs on them. Show it to JWs who enter your property despite the sign being posted, and follow it up with a written complaint to the congregation’s elders, referring to the letter. Be sure to send the letter by registered mail if you wish to have documentation of your correspondence. http://www.dannyhaszard.com/notrespassing.htm
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You may write a general letter to request no visits. To do so, find the local congregation’s address in your phone book. Send it to them and send a copy to the Watchtower headquarters, 25 Columbia Heights, Brooklyn, New York 11201-2483, or fax it to: (718) 560-5619.
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Do not accept literature. This will put you on their “return visit” list. Inviting them in and engaging them in conversation or debate will also put you on their “return visit” list.
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If you have social contact with a JW but wish to eliminate religious discussion, clearly state so. Allowing continued discussion of religious topics will likely be interpreted as interest and will fuel further discussion.
"free" minds?
posted by Firehawk at 5:00 PM
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