Was Jesus Eternally Tormented?

[The Learner]

Only Witnesses are no part of the world and don't go to war.​

"Who are no part of the world and learn war no more? Again, the historical record of the 20th century testifies: only Jehovah's Witnesses." Watchtower 1992 Apr 1 p.12

Witnesses are not the only religion that can claim to be no part of the world nor the only one that does not participate in war. Groups similar to Jehovah's Witnesses that make this same claim include Exclusive Brethren, Mormons, The Church of God, Christadelphians and Anabaptist faiths like Mennonites, Amish, and Hutterites. Generally these refuse to serve in the world's armies, avoid political entanglements and have suffered persecution as a result. Groups most worthy of claiming to be no part of the world are those that live in isolated communes and are generally considered cults.

The Watchtower bases its claim on being no part of the world because of forbidding voting, going to war and restricting association with non-witnesses. However, the Watchtower Society is deeply embroiled in the world, using the school, hospital, commercial and legal systems to the full. As shown at Politics, the Watchtower is an NGO that regularly sends delegates to international political conferences. It has fought hundreds of battles through the world's legal system, often up to the Supreme Court.

In a similar vein, the Watchtower makes the claim that they uniquely are the closest copy of early Christianity.

"Jehovah’s Witnesses emulate the first Christians like no other religious people." Awake 2011 Jan p.8

Only Jehovah's Witnesses follow the Bible​

"In fact, those who truly make the Bible their guide are a minority—only about 0.1 percent of the earth’s population." Examining the Scriptures Daily 2012 foreword.

Only Jehovah's Witnesses preach​

"An important way in which we show love for our fellowmen is by witnessing to them about God's Kingdom. Only one group of people is doing this work that Jesus foretold. (Mark 13:10) These are Jehovah's Witnesses." Watchtower 1994 Jun 1 p.18

"Do you know of anyone else who preaches about God's Kingdom from house to house throughout the world?" Does God Care? (2001) p.30

This absurd concept fails at many levels, and few people should have difficulty identifying this as an incorrect generalisation. Not only are there groups such as Seventh Day Adventists that door knock and spread a very similar message, the reason that there are billions of Christians is that all religions preach in one form or other, out of necessity to grow. This is discussed in detail at Preach.

 

[The Learner]

This concept appears subtly as well, such as in an image appearing on jw.org, claiming to present "facts" about Cuba. It provides statistics for the Cuban population, congregations and ratio of Jehovah's Witnesses. However, rather than refer to the number of "Jehovah's Witnesses" it uses the term "Ministers who teach the Bible," egotistically indicating only Jehovah's Witnesses teach the Bible; that is, the Ministers of all other Christian religions do not.

Only Jehovah's Witnesses are moral​

"This greedy world, with its showy, materialistic, me-first life-style and degraded morals, is about to pass away. But he that does the will of God remains forever." Watchtower 1995 Dec 15 p.19

"Some even leave negotiations to worldly relatives, who then demand an exorbitant price. While this bargaining goes on, the situation could push the young people into fornication. This is what takes place among worldly people." Watchtower 1989 Jan 15 p.22

By their own definition of what constitutes moral behaviour, Jehovah's Witnesses are generally a moral group. This is enforced through disfellowshipping rule breakers, if discovered. Even so, there are a number of religions that enforce stricter standards that Jehovah's Witnesses and so can be considered more moral.

Others have no hope when a loved one dies​

The Watchtower states that they do not grieve as much as others due to having the only true hope.

"While all of Jehovah's witnesses desire to live and preach as long as Jehovah wills, they do not fear death. At the death of their loved ones Christians are not like others. They do not sorrow overmuch. While recognizing death as an enemy, they do not go beyond natural love and affection and permit sadness to affect their integrity-keeping course in Jehovah's service. Rather, they continue more firmly, knowing that faithful service will assure them of a place in the new world, so they will be able to see their loved ones again in the resurrection." Watchtower 1954 May 1 p.285

"While Christians certainly do grieve because of death, there is a difference. They have accurate knowledge about the condition of the dead and about the hope of the resurrection." Watchtower 1994 Oct 15 p.32

It is wrong to think Witnesses grieve less due to their "accurate" understanding of the resurrection. In fact quite the opposite may be true, as hope of an immediate heavenly resurrection is more comforting than one that describes a dead loved one as non-existent, just a corpse awaiting some unknown future resurrection. Most religious people have the far more comforting belief that on death their loved one enters heaven and guards over them.

 

[The Learner]

The Clergy are Bad​

"In crisp contrast with the clergy of Christendom, however, Jehovahs witnesses have consistently put their trust, not in evolution, but in the Bible." Awake 1973 Oct 22 p.28

"However, Christendom's prophets and priests have refused to take heed. They do not like to have their flocks disturbed. So they give them false assurances that belie God's prophecies." Watchtower 1979 Aug 1 p.10

"Their rejection of God's Messianic kingdom in the hands of his Son is also a matter of record. Like the Pharisees, Christendom's clergy have put their trust in the governments of men." Watchtower 1974 Jan 15 p.52

"Religious history proves that the clergy neglected Scriptural warnings and became victims of the love of money" Watchtower 1987 Sep 15 p. 27

No doubt, there are some clergy that act inappropriately. It is an unfair generalisation to apply this across the board.

Misuse of Statistics​

Statistics are easily misunderstood or misused to prove a point. Several areas in which this happens are presented.

Observational selection​

"Counting the hits and forgetting the misses."

The Watchtower presents publisher growth rates as positive evidence of Jehovah's blessing. Delving into Watchtower statistics show a dramatic decline in growth over the last 20 years. By 2003, growth had fallen to 2.2% (little more than population growth rates), and 1 in every 3 people baptized stopped publishing. See Watchtower Statistics The Watchtower diverts attention from declining growth by counting the hits and neglecting the misses.

"As the chart on pages 34-41 shows, the ingathering of sheeplike ones continues to progress. While the growth in some lands was less than in former years, in other places there were outstanding increases. Rwanda reported 61 percent; Albania, 52 percent. Bosnia and Herzegovina, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, and Russia showed increases of more than 20 percent." Yearbook 1997 p.4

"Isaiah aptly prophesied about the increase in true worship at this time. Through the prophet God foretold: "I myself, Jehovah, shall speed it up in its own time." (Isa. 60:22) Certainly, the last decade has proved to be Jehovah's time for increase in Eastern Europe." Kingdom Ministry 2003 May p.6

If Jehovah is speeding it up in this time period, what is indicated regarding Jehovah's blessing in countries where numbers are falling.

Alternatively, statements are commonly made with no statistical backing at all.

""Happy is the people whose God is Jehovah!" (Ps. 144:15) Those words describe Jehovah's Witnesses as the happiest people on earth." Kingdom Ministry 2002 p.1

"Jehovahs witnesses, despite their conviction of the worlds end soon, have more zeal for Christian activity than the clergy and their religious flocks have. They are the biggest optimists on earth today." Watchtower 1951 Sep 15 p.548

What is the evidence that supports such a claim; Watchtower publications never provide information to support such claims.

 

[The Learner]

Statistics of small numbers​

"They say 1 out of every 5 people is Chinese. How is this possible? I know hundreds of people, and none of them is Chinese."

Statistics of small numbers are common in general conversation, and occurs when a person feels their personal observations are statistically relevant. Common comments that result are;

• "Worldly people think drugs are acceptable, everyone in my workplace does them"
• "No one in my congregation has ever been divorced, so witnesses have a lower divorce rate than worldly people"

Misunderstanding of the nature of statistics​

"President Dwight Eisenhower expressing astonishment and alarm on discovering that fully half of all Americans have below average intelligence."

An example of misused statistics is an Awake! article that claims only 4.9% of Witnesses are divorced, compared with 50% of worldly people divorcing.

"In some countries one marriage out of every two or three ends in divorce. But the above-mentioned survey indicated that presently only 4.9 percent of the Witnesses are divorced or separated from their mates." Awake! 1997 Sep 8 p.11

As explained at divorce, this article is grossly deceptive by making comparison of unrelated statistics. The divorce rate amongst Jehovah's Witnesses coincides with that of the general population, as only about 5% of the population are divorced.

Claiming that there has been a significant increase in earthquakes since 1914 is one of the areas that span several methods of rhetorical fallacy. To support this statement, statistics are sometimes presented in a misleading manner, at other times the figures are nothing short of lies.

Confusion of correlation and causation​

"A survey shows that more college graduates are homosexual than those with lesser education; therefore education makes people gay."

When attempting to prevent Jehovah's Witness children from attending university, Watchtower uses this same line of confused reasoning.

“University and college campuses are notorious for bad behavior—drug and alcohol abuse, immorality, cheating, hazing, and the list goes on.” Watchtower 2005 Oct 1 p.28

Whilst such behaviour may occur, youth is the cause, not university.

The Watchtower contains a similar confusion of causation when claiming masturbation frequently leads to homosexuality.

"... at least ninety-five per cent of boys and young men between thirteen and twenty-five years of age pass through periods of habitual masturbation of varying lengths. ... it can, and frequently does, lead into homosexuality, in which the person, not satisfied with his lonely sexual activity, seeks a partner for mutual sex play." Watchtower 1973 Sep 15 pp.564-566

"Helpful in this regard, then, is appreciating the fact that autoeroticism or masturbation is no mere innocent pastime but rather a practice that can lead to homosexual acts. How so? In that self-induced masturbation may make it easier and more tempting for one to engage in mutual masturbation, which is a form of homosexuality. Sincerely striving against this practice will go far to protect a youth." Watchtower 1970 May 15 pp.315-316

This reasoning is obviously flawed since 95% of males masturbate, yet only 10% are said to be gay.

 

[The Learner]

Non sequitur
Latin for "It doesn't follow" e.g., Our nation will prevail because God is great. But nearly every nation pretends this to be true; the German formulation was "Gott mit uns".

Watchtower Growth indicates Jehovah's blessing
"[Jehovah] is dealing with people as a group in an organizational way ... The growth of the organization and its spiritual prosperity today is visible proof of the truthfulness of this. Watchtower 1964 May 1 p.285
"The growth of our printing facilities since 1920 is another indication of Jehovah's blessing on his organization." Watchtower 1964 Jul 15 p.447
"While Satan's organization crumbles, the organization of Jehovah prospers marvelously under his protection and guidance. Those who symbolize their dedication to Jehovah by water baptism are increasing rapidly year by year" Watchtower 1971 Sep 15 p.562
It does not follow that growth indicates God's blessing. There are literally millions of growing corporations that have nothing to do with God. There are also thousands of religious groups that are increasing in numbers. If growth indicates blessing, then what does the greater growth rate of Pentecostals over the last 100 years indicate? What is indicated by the declining number of Witness baptisms over the last decade?

"Holy spirit empowers us to declare the good news. What else could explain how the good news has been preached earth wide?" Examining the Scriptures Daily 2012 May 6
The preaching certainly is not earth wide, as billions have never seen Jehovah's Witnesses, and if it can only be explained by holy spirit, what accounts for other religions with even more impressive growth, such as Catholics.

Pagan Practices
The Watchtower dismisses numerous Christian teachings as being of pagan influence.

"Thus the willingness to compromise that allowed the entry of pagan doctrines also allowed unchristian immorality, cruelty, oppression, and so forth. ... They also avoid the syncretism that occurred hundreds of years ago, which brought hellfire, the immortal soul, the Trinity, images, the cross and other pagan beliefs into Christendoms system of worship." Awake 1983 Aug 22 p.19
Regarding doctrine, the Watchtower invokes the argument of paganism when discussing Hellfire, the Soul, Trinity and Cross. Though pagan similarities may be found, it does not follow that these teachings were adopted in order to emulate the pagans. In fact, all of these doctrines find support in the Bible and the Scriptures are the ongoing basis of these doctrine, not any ancient pagan links.

From the 1920's, Rutherford (and then Knorr) started to forbid Witnesses from engaging in many common practices and holidays on the basis of pagan origins. This included flag salutes, use of the cross, birthdays, Christmas, Easter, throwing confetti and clinking glasses.

Customs - "Interestingly, most of the popular customs that have survived till today are of a religious nature. Since we have already seen that worldly religion has turned aside from the Bibles standard of pure worship, it should not surprise us to find that many of their customs are based on pagan religious practices." The Truth that Leads to Eternal Life tr p.140
Church Garb and teachings - "In spite of this clear admonition, apostate Christians of the second century took on the trappings of the pagan Roman religion. They moved away from their pure Biblical origins and instead clothed themselves with pagan Roman garb and titles and became imbued with Greek philosophy. Mankind's Search for God p.263
Birthdays - "However, there is no indication in the Scriptures that faithful worshipers of Jehovah ever indulged in the pagan practice of annually celebrating birthdays." it-1 p.319
Birthday Cake - "What about the birthday cake? It appears to be related to the Greek goddess Artemis, whose birthday was celebrated with moon-shaped honey cakes topped with candles." sh p.70
Toasting - "But is that all there is to toasting? Why do the toasters raise their glasses, or lift their mugs and clink them together? Is it in imitation of some custom? ... If a Christian is going to make a request for divine blessing on another, then an appropriate way to do that is through heartfelt prayer to God, not by following traditions based on pagan worship that Jehovah abhors." Watchtower 1968 Jan 1 p.31
Wedding Practices - "Since there are so many traditional practices, should a Christian try to avoid all the wedding customs of his area? Not necessarily. ... In many lands it is common to throw rice at the bride and groom. What is the point of the custom? Some peoples believe the rice is food to keep evil influences away from the bride and groom. Some say it assures the couple fertility." Watchtower 1969 Jan 15 p.58
This is an illogical argument because almost every object, practice and philosophy can be traced back to pagan origins or usage. Even the Watchtower logo links back to Pagan origins. Hence, the Watchtower has no choice but to be inconsistent in choosing when to forbid a practice on grounds of paganism. For instance, the pagan practice of wearing a wedding ring is allowed.

"Christians do not attach any symbolic meaning to a wedding ring ..." Watchtower 1969 Jan 15 p.59
The Watchtower has given the following wise but contradictory advice when allowing the pagan pinata.

"When considering whether to include a piñata at a social gathering, Christians should be sensitive to the consciences of others. (1 Corinthians 10:31-33) 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." Awake! 2003 Sep 22 pp.23-24

 

[The Learner]

Words from the Apostle Paul indentyfies that the Watchtower condemnation of festivals and observances is an unnecessary form of judgementalism.

Colossians 2:16-17 "Therefore let no man judge YOU in eating and drinking or in respect of a festival or of an observance of the new moon or of a sabbath; for those things are a shadow of the things to come, but the reality belongs to the Christ."
Post hoc, ergo propter hoc
"Latin for "It happened after, so it was caused by" Before women got the vote, there were no nuclear weapons."

"Working under angelic direction, we have found many who are hungering and thirsting for the truth. (Rev. 14:6) Householders have said that they had been praying for help when a Witness came to their door." Kingdom Ministry Nov 2001 p.8
"Alone and destitute, he considered suicide. Daniel prayed to God: “If you really exist, please help me!” The very next day, Jehovah’s Witnesses called on him and were able to answer many of his questions." Watchtower 2001 Jan 1 p.6
To meet a Witness after prayer is not proof of God's blessing for two key reasons.

Witnesses engage in one billion hours of preaching each year, so statistical probability dictates some householders will be met within a short time of praying for help - or as commonly stated by sales teams, "it is a numbers game".
It is common amongst other religious groups to present experiences of people praying shortly before conversion as indications of divine providence.

 

[The Learner]

Appeal to ignorance​

"Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence." For instance, Betrand Russell's famous teapot; just because we can not prove there is not a teapot orbiting the earth does not prove there is one.

Many doubting Witnesses continue going to meetings for fear that Armageddon may be true, needing proof that it will not come. The onus of proof needs to be that it will come, not the other way around.

Slippery slope​

A slippery slope argument takes to the extreme the concept that one course of action will result in a worse course of action. For example, "If we legalise abortion, next we will have to legalise killing infants."

The Watchtower 1983 April 15 p.28 presents a similar argument about abortion.

"Because, the doctor explained, "a generation which has readily accepted the idea of abortion as an efficient and morally neutral mechanism . . . will readily embrace . . . 'therapeutic' euthanasia as a mechanism for disposing of a surplus population at the death end." How ironic it would be if those now advocating the killing of the unborn by abortion would themselves be the ones killed by "'therapeutic' euthanasia," should such a measure be adopted in the future!"

The hysteria surrounding disfellowshipping is another case in point.

"And we all know from our experience over the years that a simple "Hello" to someone can be the first step that develops into a conversation and maybe even a friendship. Would we want to take that first step with a disfellowshiped person?" Watchtower 1981 Sep 15 p.25

A courteous salutation should not be prevented on the basis of the slippery slope argument that a friendship may develop.

Straw Man​

A straw man argument occurs when another's position is misrepresented for the purpose of more easily attacking it. After knocking down the misrepresented position it is concluded that the original position has been demolished, even though the actual argument is not dealt with.

A straw man argument may be used intentionally as a debating tactic, or may result because the presenter does not properly understand another persons point of view.

The Watchtower presents the following description of heaven in order to discredit living forever in heaven, though nowhere in the Bible is heavenly life described as such.

"It is the life for man that Jehovah God originally purposed. And what is that? Bliss in heaven sprawled out on a billowy cloud, twanging a harp as you float along in space and eternity? No! It is not that vain and useless existence that idle dreamers have conjured up as heavenly life." Watchtower 1981 Jun 1 p.6

Likewise when discussing the Trinity, the Watchtower at times presents it as being "three gods in one".

"Their worship is not distributed to three gods in one, the so-called godhead of some mysterious Trinity, but they are united as the one people who worship the one God, Jehovah." Watchtower 1984 Mar 1 p.23

This is not the Trinity, which states there are three persons, but only one God. It is important to recognise this strawman description, as it invalidates the Watchtower argument against the Trinity from Deuteronomy 6:4 that "Jehovah our God is One Jehovah", since that is what Trinitarians teach.

Another straw man argument regarding the Trinity is from Let God Be True, p.102, which claims 1 John 5:7 is one of "the main scriptures used to support the Trinity doctrine." It then proceeds to attack this strawman by proving this Scripture is falsely translated in some Bibles. However, no serious scholar uses the false rendering of 1 John 5:7 as support for the Trinity and it is presented correctly in modern translations.

 

[The Learner]

Red Herring​

A red herring is the introduction of irrelevant material into a discussion to divert attention away from the points being made.

A common Witness retort to a difficult question is "Where else would we go?" This is a red herring as it diverts attention from answering the issue at hand.

Likewise to say "The Watchtower does not present false information, the magazines are filled with valuable and informative articles" is a red herring, as the issue is not that there is much that is correct, but that there is key information that is wrong.

When discussing why Witnesses do not have blood transfusions, the blood brochure makes the comment;

"Up to this point we have established that the Bible requires the following: A human is not to sustain his life with the blood of another creature." Jehovah's Witnesses and the Question of Blood p.17

Aside from the dubious quality of the points made, this is a red herring because that is not the point established. The point established was that blood was not to be eaten, not that it could not sustain life. In fact, blood sustains life when meat is eaten. The subtle introduction of the red herring phrase "not to sustain his life with the blood" is then the basis for introducing the concept that the Bible forbids blood transfusions. As shown at Blood, this is dangerous and incorrect misapplication of Scripture.

 

[The Learner]

Suppressed Evidence​

Suppressed evidence is manifest when relevant evidence is hidden and ignored.

The Watchtower argument for Jesus death on a stake instead of a cross is a prime example as it places emphasis on a small number of sources (such as inaccurate information from Vines Dictionary), ignoring the large weight of evidence that a cross was the foremost form of impalement in Jesus day and the method of his death. In the linked article, it can also be seen that information is suppressed when the Watchtower partially quotes sources, hiding the true meaning of the source.

Discussions of its history in Watchtower publications is another area of suppressed information. This includes statements that they accurately foretold the events of 1914 and that they only correctly came to understand the "superior authorities" in 1962.

It is expected that debaters and lawyers will suppress evidence so as not to undermine their own position, but a religion claiming to be the only purveyors of truth should not require the suppression of evidence.

Lies​

A lie is the most obvious form of rhetorical fallacy.

An example is when the Watchtower claims not to have ever changed its doctrine back to a previous viewpoint - a flip flop.

"At times explanations given by Jehovahs visible organization have shown adjustments, seemingly to previous points of view. But this has not actually been the case." Watchtower 1981 Dec 1 p.27

This is untrue, as there have been such doctrines regressing back to previous viewpoints, often many times. For instance, some of these regressions are discussed in the following articles:

• Superior Authorities
• Oral Sex
• Revelation interpretation

Knight Jump Exegesis​

To arrive at October 1914 as the date for the start of Jesus invisible heavenly reign, the Watchtower cross references passages from Daniel, Ezekiel, Luke and Revelation. It does similarly for explaining other prophecy from Daniel and Revelation. This method of interpretation allows Scriptural parallels to be found to support any doctrine the imagination can derive. As shown at Watchtower Prophecy, the result has been ever changing interpretations of these prophetic books that vary unrecognisably depending on the decade of release.

Common Fallacious Concepts​

Watchtower doctrine contains numerous erroneous concepts that are supported by logical fallacies. In addition to the preceeding quotes, false beliefs discussed in detail throughout this site include:

• True Christians must use the word Jehovah
• Belonging to an earthly organization is a requirement of salvation
• Jerusalem fell in 607

 

[The Learner]

Conclusion​

The Awake! 1990 May 22 p.12 article "Five Common Fallacies - Don't Be Fooled by Them!" identified:

1. Attacking the Person
2. Appealing to Authority
3. Join the Crowd
4. Either/Or Reasoning
5. Oversimplification

The Awake! 2000 June 22 p.4 article "The Manipulation of Information" carried a similar message, with a slightly adjusted list:

1. Lies
2. Generalizations
3. Name calling
4. Playing on emotions
5. Slogans and symbols

These articles show Watchtower is aware fallacious forms of reasoning are effective in manipulating people. When Watchtower articles employ these same techniques, it shows their intent to deceive.

See Also​

​

Lies in the Watchtower​

Misquoting Sources​

JW.org FAQ Misdirection​

Footnotes​

1 The quotes that appear in the shaded boxes are taken from The Demon Haunted World: Science as a candle in the dark by Carl Sagan, which contains a detailed discussion of rhetorical fallacy.

Links​

There are numerous types of logical fallacies, with the following being some of the most common ones.

1. Ad hominem
2. Ad ignorantiam - appeal to ignorance
3. Ad misericordiam - appeal to pity
4. Ad populum - appeal to popularity
5. Confirmation bias
6. Affirming the consequent
7. Argument from authority – Because I said so!
8. Argument from final Consequences and/or Denying the antecedent
9. Argument from Personal Incredulity
10. Begging the Question – Circular reasoning
11. Confusing association with causation - correlation does not imply causation
12. Confusing currently unexplained with unexplainable
13. Equivocation - conflation
14. False Analogy
15. False Continuum
16. False Dichotomy or False Dilemma – Black and White thinking
17. Gambler's fallacy
18. Genetic Fallacy
19. Inconsistency
20. Loaded question
21. No True Scotsman
22. Non-Sequitur
23. Post-hoc ergo propter hoc
24. Red herring
25. Reductio ad absurdum
26. Slippery Slope
27. Special pleading, or ad-hoc reasoning
28. Straw Man
29. Suppressed evidence
30. Tautology
31. The Fallacy Fallacy
32. The Moving Goalpost
33. Tu quoque

For further information about logical fallacies see List of Fallacies.

yourlogicalfallacyis.com has great posters on fallacies and biases. (as of 20 Sep 2021)

 

[The Learner]

The goood article is from Examples of rhetorical fallacy within the Watchtower

 

[The Learner]

no sound

 

[The Learner]

Favourite Watchtower Quotes
Watchtower has made an incredible range of audacious statements over the years. For instance, over half a century ago it assured;

“If you are a young person, you also need to face the fact that you will never grow old in this present system of things.” Awake! 1969 May 22 p.15
Or compare the difference when referring to people who want to join Jehovah's Witnesses, with those that leave:

“No one should be forced to worship in a way that he finds unacceptable or be made to choose between his beliefs and his family.” Awake! 2009 Jul p.29
“Do not look for excuses to associate with a disfellowshipped family member, for example, through e-mail.” Watchtower Study Edition 2013 Jan 15 p.16

 

[The Learner]

Ironic Quote about Coercion​

Referring to people leaving their religion to join Jehovah's Witnesses:

"No one should be forced to worship in a way that he finds unacceptable or be made to choose between his beliefs and his family." Awake! 2009 Jul p.29 (p.28)

Regarding those disfellowshipped from Jehovah's Witnesses:

"Really, what your beloved family member needs to see is your resolute stance to put Jehovah above everything else - including the family bond. … Do not look for excuses to associate with a disfellowshipped family member, for example, through e-mail." Watchtower Study Ed 2013 Jan 15 p.16

Despite forcing family to shun relatives that do not agree with their beliefs, Watchtower plays victim, bemoaning that people do the same to them.

"But the greatest threat to our peace may come from unbelieving relatives. Some might ridicule our beliefs, accuse us of dividing the family, or threaten to disown us unless we give up our faith." w17.10 12" Examining the Scriptures Daily 2019 May 16

Guess What Year?​

Guess what year Watchtower wrote that within 26 years all governments would be overthrown by Jesus?

"within the coming twenty-six years all present governments will be overthrown and dissolved ... "

The 1889 edition of Studies In the Scriptures - The Time Is At Hand pp.98-99.

Favourite Quote about Growing up​

"If you are a young person, you also need to face the fact that you will never grow old in this present system of things. Why not? Because all the evidence in fulfillment of Bible prophecy indicates that this corrupt system is due to end in a few years. ... Therefore, as a young person, you will never fulfill any career that this system offers. If you are in highschool and thinking about a college education, it means at least four, perhaps even six or eight more years to graduate into a specialized career. But where will this system of things be by that time? It will be well on the way toward its finish, if not actually gone!" Awake! 1969 May 22 p.15 Click here for scan

43 years later, as the class of '69 consider retirement, the Watchtower continues to proclaim the short-sightedness of higher education and a career.

"No doubt, school counselors sincerely believe that it is in your best interests to pursue higher education and to plan for a secular career. Yet, their confidence lies in a social and financial system that has no lasting future." Watchtower 2012 Jun 15 p.23

Obedience​

It is disconcerting to read the demands of the Governing Body for unquestioning obedience.

"All of us must be ready to obey any instructions we may receive, whether these appear sound from a strategic or human standpoint or not." Watchtower 2013 Nov 15 p.20

The ongoing errors and false predictions made by the Governing Body prove they are not guided by a direct link to God. For followers to be expected to follow all instructions, even when they appear unsound, is dangerous, and they type of comments made by the leaders of death cults, such as Jim Jones in Jonestown. Would you drink Kool-aid if instructed to? It may sound unlikely, but none of the 913 that died in Jonestown joined with such an expectation.

Doomsday Quotes​

There have been no end of false predictions of the world's end for over a century.

"But bear in mind that the end of 1914 is not the date for the beginning, but for the end of the time of trouble." Zion's Watch Tower 1894 Jul 15 p.226

"Our thought is, that 1925 is definitely settled by the Scriptures. As to Noah, the Christian now has much more upon which to base his faith then Noah had upon which to base his faith in a coming deluge." Watch Tower 1923 Apr 1 p.106

"... the remaining months before Armageddon." Watchtower 1941 Sep 15 p.288

"Shortly, within our twentieth century, the "battle in the day of Jehovah" will begin against the modern antitype of Jerusalem, Christendom." The Nations Shall Know That I Am Jehovah p.216

Homosexuality Quotes​

Watchtower advice on masturbation and homosexuality is damaging, illogical and unproven.

"In fact, masturbation can lead into homosexuality. In such instances the person, not satisfied with his lonely sexual activity, seeks a partner for mutual sex play. This happens much more frequently than you may realize. Contrary to what many persons think, homosexuals are not born that way, but their homosexual behavior is learned. And often a person gets started when very young by playing with another's sexual parts , and then engaging in homosexual acts." Your Youth (1976) p.39

"Helpful in this regard, then, is appreciating the fact that autoeroticism or masturbation is no mere innocent pastime but rather a practice that can lead to homosexual acts." Watchtower May 15 1970, p.315

Quotes regarding Women​

Watchtower is a patriarchal society that believes women are lesser than men. Women cannot be teachers in the congregation and must consider spiritual brothers and their husbands to be their heads. Most damaging are quotes regarding how women may have deserved being beaten or raped, and even that being raped could be considered as having committed the sin of fornication.

"Thus if a Christian woman does not cry out and does not put forth every effort to flee, she would be viewed as consenting to the violation." Watchtower 1964 Jan 15 p.63

"So by no means would it be proper quietly to submit to rape, as that would be consenting to fornication." Watchtower 1968 Jun 1 pp.345-50

““On one particular day,” says Selma, “I didn’t want to have a Bible study. The night before, Steve had hit me as I had tried to prove a point, and I was feeling sad and sorry for myself. After I told the sister what had happened and how I felt, she asked me to read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7. As I did, I began to reason, ‘Steve never does any of these loving things for me.’ But the sister made me think differently by asking, ‘How many of those acts of love do you show toward your husband?’ My answer was, ‘None, for he is so difficult to live with.’ The sister softly said, ‘Selma, who is trying to be a Christian here? You or Steve?’ Realizing that I needed to adjust my thinking, I prayed to Jehovah to help me be more loving toward Steve. Slowly, things started to change.” After 17 years, Steve accepted the truth.” Watchtower 2012 Apr 1 p.29

 

[The Learner]

 

[The Learner]

Strange Advice
The Watchtower and Awake! (previously called Golden Age and then Consolation) have contained a lot of incorrect and naive medical advice.

"Vaccination never prevented anything and never will, and is the most barbarous practice... We are in the last days; and the devil is slowly losing his hold, making a strenuous effort meanwhile to do all the damage he can, and to his credit can such evils be placed... Use your rights as American citizens to forever abolish the devilish practice of vaccinations." Golden Age 1921 Oct 12 p.17
"A peculiar factor sometimes noted is a so-called 'personality transplant.' That is, the recipient in some cases has seemed to adopt certain personality factors of the person from whom the organ came." Watchtower 1975 Sep 1 p.519
"Sustaining one's life by means of the body or part of the body of another human...would be cannibalism, a practice abhorrent to all civilized people." Watchtower 1967 Nov 15 pp.702-704
"The bobbed hair craze is sure to lead to baldness, sooner or later. The reason for this is that human hair is like a tube sealed at the free end. When the hair is cut, the oils which are the life of the hair become dissipated. The reason why men grow bald so quickly is that they have their hair cut so frequently and, in addition, wear tightly fitting hats, which cut off the circulation of the scalp." Golden Age 1924 Nov 19 p.100
"There is no food that is right food for the morning meal. At breakfast is no time to break a fast. Keep up the daily fast until the noon hour." Golden Age 1925 Sep 9 pp.784
"If any overzealous doctor condemns your tonsils go and commit suicide with a case-knife. It's cheaper and less painful." Golden Age 1926 Apr 7 p.438
"Sleep on the right side or flat on your back, with the head toward the north so as to get benefit of the earth's magnetic currents. Avoid serum inoculations as they pollute the blood stream with their filthy pus.... Stop chewing gum, as you need the saliva for your food." Golden Age 1929 Nov 12 p.107
"Medicine originated in demonology and spent its time until the last century and a half trying to exorcise demons. During the past half century it has tried to exorcise germs." Golden Age 1931 Aug 5 p.728


Written Aug 2010, latest update Jan 2019.

creative commons copyright Paul Grundy 2005 - 2022

Favourite strange Watchtower quotes

Unusual quotes from Jehovah's Witness Watchtower publications

www.jwfacts.com

 

[The Learner]

Examples of misquotes, lies and deception in Watchtower publications

Examples of various techniques to mislead, such as misquotes, lies and deception in Watchtower publications

www.jwfacts.com

Examples of misquotes, lies and deception in Watchtower publications

Examples of various techniques to mislead, such as misquotes, lies and deception in Watchtower publications

www.jwfacts.com

Examples of misquotes, lies and deception in Watchtower publications

Examples of various techniques to mislead, such as misquotes, lies and deception in Watchtower publications

jwfacts.com

Weasel words in Watchtower Publications

Weasel words appearing in Watchtower Publications, such as clearly, used to influence the reader

www.jwfacts.com

1914 - Failed Watchtower prophecy - Falsified History

How the Watchower's predictions regarding 1914 failed and it now falsifies its history

www.jwfacts.com

 

[The Learner]

Etymological Fallacy

In modern linguistics, etymology is the study of the history of the word with an emphasis on its origin. This study of a word's history often looks back through multiple languages. This is contrasted with the "meaning(s)" of a word, which is based on current usage. The etymological fallacy is to assume that the origin of a word is its true meaning. No, the true meaning of a word is its current usage. (The etymological fallacy is sometimes called the "root fallacy," which says that the root [origin] of a word is its true meaning.)

 

[The Learner]

Reverse Etymological Fallacy

The reverse etymological fallacy occurs when the later historical usage of a word is considered primary for determining the earlier meaning of that word. Of course, this does not make sense logically, but sometimes the manner in which a pastor explains a Greek word may encourage some in the congregation to fall into this trap.

 

[The Learner]

Occasional Usefulness of Etymologies

Etymologies are occasionally helpful. Sometimes the combination of two Greek words does directly relate to the current meaning. The Greek word ekballō, which is often translated as "to cast out" (for example, Matt. 9:33), is a combination of to throw and out.