Why do JWs insist on getting people to agree with them that Jesus died on a torture stake instead of crucifixion on a cross.. Why do JWs shun family and friends who desire to seek Jesus ? Why are JWs forbidden to participate in sports but can watch ? How many times has JW authority prophesied the End time with dates and missed ? Michael the Arch Angel is not Jesus ,he was in the heavenly host that appeared to the shepherds, he is subject to Jesus and serves him to this day while Jesus sits at the right hand of God , Lord over all, right ? .. Why are JWs so religious and dull ? What if JWs are wrong about eternal damnation when ignorance is no excuse ?
4x4, that's a bunch of questions, so i might encourage you to make a new thread if you'd like to talk back and forth so this thread doesn't go off on too many tangents at once... but I'll try to cover all of them. If I skip over something, let me know.
1- stake vs. Cross... because the word used in the bible means "tree" or "pale." There is no mention of a "cross" in the original language, and the cross commonly used in mainstream christianity has been used in other pagan religions for a long time, so we don't feel comfortable adopting it as a religious symbol ourselves (although, it took us a while to figure that out. very early JW literature did feature a cross). It's entirely POSSIBLE that his stake could have been cross shaped... perhaps with a crossbar at the very top, or down a bit as is popular in mainstream christianity... it may not have had one at all, or it could have looked more like a Y... people have tortured eachother on many shapes. The primary point a JW would make is the torture instrument isn't special at all. Jesus' life is what made his sacrifice worth something. What they killed him with is completely irrelevant.
2- shunning- because individuals in any group are capable of being jerks. When a person is disfellowshipped, they are not called on to contribute to meetings, and are asked not to go out in the ministry representing the congregation as a minister. That's it. Disfellowshipped people are still welcome to come to meetings, talk before and after, all that. Now there ARE people disfellowshipped for doing some quite bad things, perhaps illegal things. If a person does something that makes them dangerous to others, it's common sense not to hang around that person. Not our place to judge or condemn them... that's up to God. But if they're trying to sell kids drugs or something, then not associating with them would be smart. Not all disfellowshipped people are in that boat.
3- I've been a door knocker for a few decades and never heard anyone suggest we're prohibited from sports... i play sports pretty regularly. I know a lot of kids aren't encouraged to join school sports TEAMS because practices and games are typically done on the weekend and are seen as less valuable than the ministry... but if you can do both, go for it. I guess another potential draw back to joining a sports team is the competitive spirit involved... a lot of people split their loyalty and view "enemy teams" in a rather negative light, and JWs are encouraged to treat EVERYONE as potential brothers and sisters. (Which is why JWs don't join any military. And we know no matter who's at war with who, JWs in that country won't join their militarys either).
4- bit of a loaded question. JWs made a very arrogant claim to interpret a scriptural prophecy that seems to point to 1914 as the beginning of armageddon. They didn't make the prophecy, they were overconfident in a possible meaning and were wrong. They also got overly excited in the 1960s or 1970s because mathmatically it was a significant anniversary (from what I recall exactly 6,000 years since adam and eve were created, therefore if "a (creative) day is 1,000 years" it would mark the beginning of the last day in a "creative week" and seemed a likely candidate for something big to happen. They were a bit more careful and never "prophesied" anything about it... just pointed out that the bible says armageddon could come as a theif in the night and we should remain prepared at any time... and that that was a very significant possibility for something to happen, so better to be prepared. Still living like God may judge us tomorrow isn't a bad idea. I agree, their arrogance caused people to stumble those times.
5- Isn't really a question.. but I agree, that's a possibility. There are a number of overlaps between Jesus and Michael (Jesus is described to be like God, Michael's name means "who is like God." The title of "archangel" means "cheif messenger" which could also apply to Jesus... who would be more of a messenger?, there's also an overlap in the bible about whether it's Jesus or Michael who is supposed to kill Satan in the final battle, etc. So, there's reason behind the possibility both names could refer to the same being... but I agree with you that this is all circumstantial... and rather reminiscent of the reasoning people use to equate Jesus with his Father. So I'm careful to note that it's a POSSIBILITY, but I'm not attached to the idea.
6- because it's a religion, and we're huge nerds.
7- that's the big question... what if anyone is wrong? We can only go with what makes the most sense after prayerful consideration. That's exactly what started the JWs... the original "Bible students" group just realized there were some suspicious doctrines that didn't seem to match scripture... so our goal is to get as close to scripture as we can. As we see it, it's God's "undeserved kindness" (aka "grace") that is our salvation in the end. Jesus paid the price, so salvation isn't really a variable... why not learn as we can and serve as best as we can while we wait? Not to get cooler stuff, but just to do the right thing.
Checkmate !!!
