The further away I get from my Jehovah’s Witness upbringing the stranger their concepts of truth and morality get to me. Truth in the view of The Society is equivalent to whatever the Watchtower says. Lies are anything that contradicts what they say. Therefore they are by definition incapable of lying. By this definition of the word truth the word loses it’s meaning as “a statement of fact” and instead becomes “a statement made by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society”.
What is really interesting is how this idea of truth factors into the Witness conception of morality. I would define that word “acting ethically towards oneself, ones fellow beings, and towards ones environment guided by reason, compassion, love, and a desire for the greatest good”. That may not be a perfect definition but I doubt even a Witness could see themselves as being against it. After all, everything they do is supposedly motivated by love and a desire to see a paradisiacal future for mankind. Witnesses behave morally within the framework of what they believe but the painful things they do to current and former members, shunning, harassment, and demonization certainly appear immoral to me. How are such behaviors possible from a group that espouses love?
It boils down to their definition of truth again. Lying is generally considered to be an immoral thing to do, right? The Society regularly reminds it’s members that liars will not inherit God’s kingdom. Additionally, doing nothing about an immoral act that has come to ones attention could be considered negligent at best, immoral itself if the act could cause pain or suffering to others. Therefore, if a Witness becomes aware that another Witness holds a belief contrary to the Society or is unconvinced that the Society is correct that person is considered a liar even if they have not uttered a factually incorrect word. What’s more, in order for a Witness to avoid guilt themselves overh these supposed lies they feel as if they have to interfere in the life of the doubter by turning them in or cutting off their association. This is supposed to be loving and moral but is in reality cruel and paranoid.
The holding of a belief for which there is overwhelming evidence is not a lie even if the Watchtower holds an alternate belief. Treating others as if you alone possess the ultimate truth of the universe and shunning them for holding an alternate opinion is not kind. The belief in the rightness of their own beliefs then inevitably leads Witnesses to behaviors that are neither loving nor compassionate but rather hurtful and mean. I’ve been reminded of that this week and it still makes me sad. “To make a good person do bad things requires religion.”
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