Some of my major concerns about the Watchtower
(Note: This page originally was on the main page of this website. It is pretty much at it appeared when this site when up in December of 1995)
Revisionist History - In several cases, the history of the organization as presented in the Watchtower publications including the Watchtower and Awake! magazines has been revised to show the Watchtower Society in the best possible light. This is often accomplished by presenting only part of the truth. I found this particularly true when the WT discusses it's conduct with regard to pre-WWII Germany. Check out the Declaration of Facts from the 1934 Yearbook as well as the letter to Adolf Hitler from the Watchtower Society for details. The Society has referred many times to the concordat that was concluded between the Vatican and the German government in 1933. The concordat is often cited as an example of how the Catholic church committed "spiritual fornication" by its support of the Nazis. Have you ever seen the WT quote from or even paraphrase any of the provisions of this concordat to back up their accusations? Read The National Concordat. Compare it with the text of the Declaration of Facts and the letter to Adolf Hitler from the WT Society and decide for yourself if the WT Society is in any position to make these accusations.
The inability or unwillingness of the governing body of Jehovah's Witnesses to admit that they were wrong regarding much of the chronology that was taught as doctrine in the past. Usually when a change in chronology is presented, the rank and file is portrayed as being over-zealous in their expectations rather than the governing body admitting that they were wrong and that it was they who raised those expectations. It seems that the candor of the Bible writers exhibited when it came to their imperfections is somewhat lacking here. Consider the example of Peter. He did not shift the blame after denying Jesus three times, he offered no excuses when Paul strongly condemned him for withdrawing from the Gentile Christians when the Jewish Christians showed up. It seems that organizational concerns prevent them from just 'fessin up and admitting they were just plain wrong.
See the article Apologies and Excuses for more on this subject.
The increasing emphasis on the organization along with the linking of loyalty to the organization with loyalty to Jehovah himself. The organization is a means to an end, not an end in itself. Unfortunately, it seems that for some, organizational concerns have become more important than real spiritual concerns. It seems to me that upholding the organization has become more important to many Jehovah's Witnesses than looking after Christ's sheep. W. P. Brown, a member of the English Parlament wrote an article entitled "Imprisoned Ideas" that explains some of the problems that are inherent to any organization. While it is nice to think that the WT Society would be immune to such problems, the reality is that it is an organization of imperfect humans and is therefore prone to the same problems that any other organization is. The best we can hope for at this point is that they would be somewhat less prevalent in the WT Society than in the world in general.
See the article Loyalty and the Watchtower
This leads me to constant statements from the WT Society to the effect of how much more honest and moral Jehovah's Witnesses are than the members of "Christendom." The WT Society never publishes figures on how many witnesses are engaged sexual immorality, crime, alcohol or drug abuse, child molestation or divorce. If there is emperical data that backs up those claims, it should be published. If the data is not there, the claims should not be made. To make these statements without any data to back them up is potentially misleading.
In a talk early in 1995, a circuit overseer said in a talk that 1.5% of witnesses are disfellowshipped every year. In my experience as an elder, I would estimate that for every judicial committee meeting that resulted in a disfellowshipping, there were 6 more that resulted in judicial reproof. If my experience is any indication of what exists throughout the organization, that means that about 10% of Jehovah's Witnesses engage in conduct for which they could be disfellowshipped. I don't know what the situation is within "Christendom," but 10% each year is not too good. If anyone has any more accurate figures, I would really appreciate seeing them.
In the "United In Worship of the Only True God" book, on page 53 when discussing the subject of lying, the following question is posed : "If we say things to give a better-than-factual impression of ourselves, is that wrong if it does not hurt anyone else? (Ps. 119:163; compare Acts 5:1-11)" Psalm 119:163 says: "Falsehood I have hated, and I do keep detesting it. Your law I have loved." Then, of course Acts 5 relates the story of Ananias and Sapphira. A couple of verses that jump out from that account are:
Verse 3: "But Peter: 'Ananias, why has Satan emboldened you to play false to the holy spirit and hold back secretly some of the price of the field.'"
Verse 4: "... You have played false, not to men, but to God."
So, obviously giving a better-than-factual impression of yourself is a serious matter, even if it does not hurt anyone else. In the case of the WT Society, however, their making themselves look better is done by making others look worse. This particularly concerns me.
The large amount of teaching devoted to conduct and actions rather than the feelings and qualities that should motivate one to Christian conduct and actions. It seems like outward appearance is more important than reality. As long as we look and act correctly, that is about all that matters. Many times we have been taught to "cultivate the fruits of the spirit." That fruitage is a result of the holy spirit acting on the individual, not a result of the individual trying to force the growth of the fruitage in hopes of receiving the spirit. Rather than working from the outside in, we should be working from the inside-out.
Last but not least …
The thing that concerns me the most about all of this is that voicing these concerns leaves one open to charges of being negative or, worse yet, apostate. Rather than addressing these concerns, the solution that the Watchtower Society seems to favor is to ignore them, suppress them, rationalize them away or declare them unimportant or invalid. Those with doubts are often told to engage in more study, field service and meeting attendance. More time at meetings and in service does not change the facts - only your perception of them. Putting additional time and effort in meetings and service can divert your attention away from bothersome facts, but is that really what we should do?
Obviously there are some that fit the stereotype of the embittered, negative, faultfinding apostate. But there are also many more who have serious, heartfelt, valid concerns about what they see happening among Jehovah's Witnesses. I think it is unfortunate that the actions of the few are used as an excuse to ignore the concerns of the many.
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