Congregation Book Study:
Chapter 3, par. 11-18
Question: Why would they stop one paragraph short of a main point. Paragraph 11 is the last paragraph under the heading “Holiness belongs to Jehovah”. It seems strange to not finish the thought of the heading, yet here we have our first paragraph of this week starting is the final thought of last week’s topic. One sentence from the paragraph intrigues me: “The content of their songs suggests that these mighty spirit creatures play an important role in making Jehovah’s holiness known throughout the universe.” Since our official belief is that it is unlikely that there is any other intelligent life in the physical universe, this seems like an odd statement to make.
Paragraph 13 say: “We long for the sanctification of his name and the vindication of his sovereignty, and we delight to play any part in the grand purpose.” Since we carry his name publicly, it is doubly tragic that our record on handling cases of child abuse is so poor, as this brings reproach on the name is a highly esteem. Our misuse and abuse of the disfellowshipping process is yet another example of where we have frequently brought shame to God’s name.
Theocratic Ministry School
Bible Reading: Genesis 32-35
This week our Bible reading covers the affair of Dinah. She is raped and the two sons of Jacob take it upon themselves to retaliate against Hamor the Hivite and all his people by tricking them into a vulnerable state and then coming in and slaughtering all the males, and taking all the females and children for themselves. This is, of course, an indefensible act of brutality. However, it will only shock us if we think that these individuals are the chosen ones of God. In fact, Jacob was chosen by God. After him, Joseph was chosen by God. As for the other sons, well, they did serve as reproductive stock to get the race going.
If they come back in the resurrection, and we have no reason to think otherwise, this outrageous sin will be known the world over. They will be living it down for a very long time. It would be a very interesting meeting to witness when Simeon and Levi meet up with Hamor and his people.
This week we have the Theocratic Ministry School Review.
Question 10 asks “What is one way to avoid consequences like those that be told Dinah?” The references to w01 8/1 pp. 20-21 which reads:
In contrast, Dinah fared poorly because of a bad habit. She “used to go out to see the daughters of the land,” who were not worshipers of Jehovah. (Genesis 34:1) This seemingly innocent habit led to disaster. First, she was violated by Shechem, a young man considered “the most honorable of the whole house of his father.” Then, the vengeful reaction of two of her brothers led them to slaughter all the males in an entire city. What a terrible outcome!
Are we really blaming the woman for being raped? Is the message we are trying to teach our young daughters, ‘Don’t develop bad habits dear. For all you know you could get raped and then your brother’s will have to slaughter all the men in that family and steal their women folk and children. And it will all be your fault.’
There is nothing wrong with teaching our young ones to avoid bad habits. But doing it this way is sending the wrong message. It also makes us appear parochial and misogynistic. Since this week’s Bible study makes the claim that we delight in playing our part in the sanctification of Jehovah’s name, perhaps we should avoid teaching our kids that it’s the woman’s fault if she gets raped.
Service Meeting
5 min: Start a Bible study on the First Saturday
15 min: The Importance of Persistence
10 min: “Memorial Invitational Campaign Starts March 22”
Just in regard to the raping of dinah and her bad associates . Of course the implication is that anyone who is not a jw is not to be trusted this contributes to fear of people on the outside of the religion and in a lot of cases is unjustified . Experience and our bible reading should be enough to make good decisions hebrews 5 v 14. This is all part of the game plan which makes ot psycologically difficult to leave the religion. Kev
Amen to that Kev. It’s the stuff of ages, this ‘us and them’ mentality. Using fear as a control mechanism spans the religious, political and cultural world. In the same way many Russians used to wonder if their leaders assertions about the West were true, many JW are waking up to the freedom of being able to treat our fellow man according to Christian principles not the dictates of a high counsel of men. For my part, much of the depression I was quietly afflicted by for years has gone because the WTS has no hold on me anymore. I… Read more »
Strangely enough chris when the bible warns of association its usually in regard toward those inside the congregation 1 corinthians 5 v10 and 11 .2 thess 3 v6 as these have much more influence over our lives and the ones whom we generally trust .this can very easily lead to our being exploited and being fooled to believe false teachings .sounds familiar doesnt it . Kev
Was Dinah raped? A Questions From Readers article (w85 6/15 p. 31) deals with this question and asserts the affirmative (blaming Dinah for the whole affair, by the way, including the subsequent massacre), but it seems to me that it’s not that clear. First, the word rendered “violated” in the NWT doesn’t necessarily refer to rape. To put things into perspective, here are two other scriptures that use the same word (the English translation marked by *): (Deuteronomy 21:14) 14 And it must occur that if you have found no delight in her, you must then send her away, agreeably to… Read more »
I should add, as a counterpoint to my own argument, that the vast majority of translations do convey the idea of rape at Genesis 34.2. And while the definition of the various forms of the Hebrew word in question doesn’t necessarily refer to rape, the exact variation found at Gen 34.2 is found in only one other place: in the account at 2 Sam 13 where Amnon rapes Tamar. This doesn’t necessarily preclude the possibility that Dinah was merely seduced, but the weight of expert opinion definitely leans toward her having been raped.
As regards the comment about dinah and teaching the youngsters about the importance of association . The problem is that The implication is that only jws can be trusted everyone else cannot . This contributes to fear of anyone on the outside of the religion and can be damaging . Kev
I agree Kev
I agree with you Meleti that it is about time Jehovah’s Witness parents teach that it is not the woman’s fault when she is raped. I also agree that the Watchtower’s record on covering up child abuse is abysmal. Perhaps JW’s should read up on the Candace Conti case. It makes very interesting reading. In this day and age rape and child abuse are considered crimes and come under the law as such. We are not talking about moral wrong doings such as fornication and adultery. Rape and child abuse are criminal acts whether the people involved know each other… Read more »
EJ,
Just so you know, I didn’t see your comment until I posted mine (below), so don’t take it as a refutation. Whether Dinah was raped or merely seduced, I think we can agree that the following statement unfairly makes her the villain of the account:
“What a horrendous chain of events, and all because Dinah failed to guard her associations.” (w85 6/15 p. 31.)
Dear emilyjeff, In no way am I ignorant of the vulnerabilities of women and I am very well aware of what happens in Muslim countries when a woman is raped, just as I am the so-called honour killings that take place when a woman seeks release from an abusive system or arrangement. Dinah was in fact specifically identified at birth for one reason. She was to became the focal point of this Bible drama. Whatever customs, culture and way of thinking we choose in our own social group, we are not as innocent as we might presume in the broader… Read more »
I am surprised at Jacob’s reaction. While his sons may have over reacted and sinned , Jacob’s under reaction angered his sons. Maybe it was because she was the “daughter of Leah” ( Gen 34:1). At Genesis 34:1-5 he does nothing. He sits and waits for his sons to return from tending the sheep. His immediate reaction is based on a fear of retaliation by the nations (34:30) I am not sure what Jacob really expected his sons to do . Maybe Jacob was fine with the idea of Dinah being married off after the rape. I defintely agree with… Read more »
On the other hand, if it wasn’t really a rape, that might explain Jacob’s subdued reaction and his failure to foresee his sons’ reaction. There is, of course, a lot left unsaid, and I want to stress again that I’m not dogmatically arguing against it having been rape.
Having experienced pedophilia rampant in my own family, I’m not inclined to confine my opinion to rape to a singular definition. For example, when David had Bathsheba brought up to engage her in adultery, was she really to blame? After all, he was the king. Did she really have a choice? There are innumerable examples of abusive power that makes the word rape appear consensual or that there are degrees by which those who participate are limited in their choices. And I’ve been fooled by many. Happily, I no longer sit in judgment.
sw
Maybe Jacob wasn’t confrontational. Jacob seems so concerned about being attacked after her rape.He was also deathly afraid that Esau was going to attack him(Genesis 32:11) He let Laban cheat him and lie to him over and over again for over 14 years. I’m not sure why in the world he kept believing Laban. Jacob tried to leave Laban towards the end and for some reason stayed and worked for Laban…again and got cheated again. He only left because Jehovah told him too. And when he did he left in the middle of the night to avoid confrontation. Hamor spoke… Read more »
Agreed SW1. Your mentioning of pedophilia brings up another question: How old was Dinah? She may well have been what we consider ‘a minor’, and so it may have been more an issue of psychological domination than physical overpowering. In that case we’re back to rape, whether she screamed and kicked or not. So much we don’t know.
I really hate myself for seeming to support WT teaching on this point, but there is often a clear correlation between how women dress and behave, and how they are viewed and treated by males – and this often to their detriment – which is not wanting to diminish the absolute responsibility men have to take for their actions, but that the same also applies to women and their presentation and demeanor, even if just as a matter of common sense, which seems to have been all but bred out of mankind by now. Lest anyone think that this is… Read more »
If another letter is read from the branch, notice how it concludes. Does it imitate the apostle Paul and other first century writers? Paul and the other apostles concluded nearly every one of their letters by wishing that the brothers receive the undeserved kindness or grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. When was the last time the governing body wished the undeserved kindness of The Lord Jesus Christ be with us? It’s good to take a look at how 80 percent of the epistles conclude. Then compare them to letters we receive.
Romans 14:1 is cited in paragraph 12 it reads “Welcome the man having weaknesses in his faith,+ but do not pass judgment on differing opinions.*” The footnote reads “Or possibly, “inward questionings.”( The RNWT reads differently from the Reference Bible) . We(JW’s) pass judgement on on those with differing opinions and disfellowship them. “From time to time, there have arisen from among the ranks of Jehovah’s people those, who, like the original Satan, have adopted an independent, faultfinding attitude…They say that it is sufficient to read the Bible exclusively, either alone or in small groups at home. But, strangely, through such… Read more »
But, strangely, through such ‘Bible reading,’ they have reverted right back to the apostate doctrines that commentaries by Christendom’s clergy were teaching 100 years ago…” As funny as it may sound, I can see how this is a sound warning. Today, everyone thinks they are a scholar of the bible and sometimes don’t see the bigger picture. With time I am understanding more and more where the churches of christianity come from, and what happened with them. The problem is that Satan really did work in a BIG WAY to hide the truth from us. Looking at history, churches have… Read more »
I see where you are coming from In Need of Grace and I agree in part. You do not have to be a bible scholar to read the bible. The men who wrote the Bible were unlettered and ordinary yet penned the words with the stroke of Holy spirit. We have the ability to ask our Father for that same powerful force to understand it.He gives it freely . The Bible contains basic and simple concepts. I believe doctrines of men and religion has complicated it’s message. As for this Watchtower I didn’t read a warning at all. It was… Read more »
Predestination and foreordination should not be confused with free will. Our Father, knowing the outcome of all things from the start, knew Adam would sin against divine command, long before the foundation of heaven and earth. From the beginning I foretell the outcome, And from long ago the things that have not yet been done. I say, ‘My decision will stand, And I will do whatever I please’(Isaiah 46: 10) That which Jehovah purposes or foreordains, will always be carried out: I am calling a bird of prey from the sunrise,From a distant land the man the carry out my… Read more »
One needs only read Joshua 24:32 where it says, “And Joseph’s bones, which the sons of Israel had brought up out of Egypt, they buried in Shechem in the tract of the field that Jacob had acquired from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred pieces of money; and it came to belong to the sons of Joseph as an inheritance.” This of course comes from Genesis 33:18, 19 where it says “In time Jacob came safe and sound to the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, while he was coming from Paddanaram; and… Read more »