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Embraces the Internet B J Kotwall (Investigator 54, 1997 May)
After
downplaying the
usefulness of computers
and condemning the Internet and electronic Bulletin Boards as a place
for
pornography, and a "moral minefield", the Watchtower Society (WTS) came
on the Internet this year with their own web site!
The following
from the
WTS's publications
indicates what they think of the Internet and Electronic Bulletin
Boards:
Modern
computers have
opened other avenues
to bad association. Some commercial firms enable subscribers using a
computer
and a telephone to send a message to electronic bulletin boards; a person
can thus post on the bulletin board a message that is open to all
subscribers.
This has led to so-called electronic debates on religious matters. A
Christian
might be drawn into such debates and may spend many hours with an apostate
thinker who may have been disfellowshipped from the congregation.
(The Watchtower 1993 August 1, p. 17) Maintaining a Balanced View of Computer Technology: Technology has been hailed as a great saver of time. For example, at the click of a computer button, a user can instantly access huge amounts of information. Computers can often do in seconds what would have taken hours or weeks to do by other means. When properly used they are a helpful tool. Will It Really
Save Time?:
On the other hand,
such technology does not come to the user without substantial costs –
both
in money and in time. Hours may be required to learn how to make the computer
do some tasks. Moreover, a person who becomes intrigued with the
technology
itself may consume time that could be better spent...
Other Serious
Pitfalls: As
outlined on page
17 of the August 1, 1993, issue of The Watchtower connecting a computer to an electronic bulletin board can open the way to serious spiritual dangers. Just as an unscrupulous individual can place on a bulletin board a virus – a program designed to corrupt and destroy computer files – apostates, clergymen, and persons seeking to corrupt others morally or otherwise can freely place their poisonous ideas on bulletin boards. Unless a bulletin board, even one labeled "JW Only," is properly supervised, with its use being limited to those who are mature, faithful servants of Jehovah, it could expose Christian users to "bad associations." (1 Cor. 15:33) The Society has
received
reports that such
so-called private networks have been used not only to speculate
regarding
spiritual matters but also to give bad advice, spread gossip and false
information, plant negative ideas, raise questions and doubts that
subvert
the faith of some, and disseminate private interpretations of
Scripture.
On the surface, some information may appear to be interesting and
informative,
and yet it may be laced with poisonous elements... Computer networks
extend
worldwide and can bring unlimited valuable information into the home or
workplace. They offer much- needed services to businesses and
organizations
as well as to individuals who need to keep pace with personal or
business
interests in the fast-moving society in which we live. At the same
time,
computer networks are plagued with problems such as pornography,
divisive
hate propaganda, and detailed information on how to perform vile and
wicked
deeds.
(Kingdom
Ministry 1995
September pp. 5-6)
As Australian schools connect up to the Internet global information network, they are also linking up to what amounts to a moral minefield. According to The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper, they can access "X-rated photos of nude children, orgies, video clips from on-line brothels, a 'bill of rights' for people wishing to have sex with animals and information on how to join a masturbation 'chat-line.'" The article adds: "Passwords or proof of age were not required – just an ordinary dial-up connection." (Awake! 1995 November 8 p. 29) The reason the WTS
has
decided to jump on the
Internet bandwagon is that there is tremendous activity on the Internet
by religious groups and the WTS realized they were being left out. Time
Magazine did a
cover story on
religion on the Internet last December in which it stated that:
The signs of
online
religious activity
are everywhere...everyone from Lutherans to Tibetan Buddhists now has a
home page... The Internet is exploding and the church has got to be
there...
It's a message other churches ignore at their peril. (pp. 74-75)
Obviously WTS saw "their peril" and embraced the Internet! The site of the WTS is presently somewhat plain and almost simplistic as compared to other religion sites that are "crammed with technological bells and whistles" as Time magazine puts it. No e-mail address has been provided by the WTS as they would invariably receive a barrage of criticisms. They have taken the coward's way out.
The web site of
the WTS
has its URL as: http://www.watchtower.org.
This site remained blank for quite some time. Recently the WTS placed
some
material on it. Following are some examples:
Falsification of WTS's History Awake! magazine of August 22, 1995 carried a cover page article titled The Holocaust Who Spoke Out?, which is now reproduced on the WTS's web site. After the
appearance of
the article in Awake!
Historian James Penton wrote an Open Letter to the president of WTS,
which
was reproduced on one of the sites on the Internet. The letter accused
WTS of a "cover up of the most dishonest sort" for claiming that WTS,
in
Germany, were not guilty of compromising with the Third Reich and
Nazism.
Prof. Penton provided proof of the compromise of the American leaders
of
the WTS, particularly their second president J F Rutherford, who were
directly
responsible of outright anti-Semitism and the WTS willingness to
compromise
their so-called "Christian neutrality", so that the WTS could continue
to operate in Germany. Written proof was provided by Prof. Penton by
sending
to the WTS a copy of the original Declaration in German written to the
Nazis by the WTS.
This Declaration
was
published by the WTS
in their Yearbook of 1934 in both English and German. Prof.
Penton
said in his Open Letter:
Despite this
expose of
falsification
of history the WTS has reproduced the dishonest Awake! article
on
their web site.
Blood Transfusions An article titled Medical Care and Blood is on the WTS site. The article is a re-hash of arguments about why Jehovah's Witnesses should refuse blood transfusions. The WTS's arguments are of the sort exposed in Investigator Nos. 8, 10, 12, and 22. The article on the site does not inform about the inconsistent stand by the WTS in allowing some components of blood and disallowing others. The WTS allows "a small amount of blood derivatives". (The Watchtower 1978 June 15 pp. 30-31; 1990 June 1 p. 30) They have also not told JWs what constitutes a small amount or component. Moreover, as shown in Investigator No. 22 the fraction size criteria has no meaning when enormous use of blood is required to keep, for example, a hemophiliac alive. Permitted blood products and procedures allowed by the WTS are: albumin, immunoglobulins, hemophiliac preparations, and the use of uninterrupted blood diversion and treatment of blood by dialysis machines. Those not permitted are: whole blood, white blood cells (leukocytes), red blood cells (erythrocytes), plasma, platelets (thrombocytes) and pre-storage of own blood for subsequent transfusion. In using blood derivatives JWs use a country's precious supply of blood but refuse to donate any. The WTS has
woven a
tangled web. Their stance
on blood is in shambles. But innocent lives continue to be lost.
WTS's Trinity Booklet The web site has the WTSs infamous booklet titled Should You Believe In The Trinity? This booklet has only 31 pages but perhaps contains more shoddy research per page then any other WTS publication! Authors and publications quoted in the booklet are misrepresented by partial quotes and misquotes. The complete source of their quotations i.e. page number, edition etc. is not provided so that readers find difficulty in verifying the quotations. Angel Arellano who has written a 300-page refutation of the WTS's booklet titled Exposing "Should You Believe In The Trinity?" has made a very pertinent statement. He asks "Why would an organization deliberately misrepresent information in order to disprove a teaching that they consider false?" It is amazing that the WTS states in the above extract from the Kingdom Ministry that private networks "speculate regarding spiritual matters", "give bad advice", "spread false information", "plant negative ideas", "raise questions and doubts that subvert the faith", "disseminate private interpretations of Scriptures" and use "divisive hate propaganda". The WTS itself
is guilty
of all of these
shameful acts!
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