The Neophyte
Once you have agreed to participate in a free Bible study, you will be
involved in a process that is designed to encourage you to go to Witness
meetings and eventually get baptised. However, this long-range goal is not
yet mentioned. The emphasis is on learning "what the Bible says".
Indeed, if you ask your teacher about her motivation (we'll assume here
that your study conductor is female), she will say something like, "I'm
just here to help you understand the Bible". If you ask, "Are you trying
to get me to join your religion?" she will probably have a diplomatic
answer, such as, "That's your decision, not mine".
Incidentally, the free Bible study is the only place where a woman can
formally teach you about Witness doctrine. Witnesses do not permit women
to speak from the podium at their Kingdom Hall (meeting place), although
women are allowed to put on short plays to demonstrate some point of doctrine.
The study conductor will usually ask you to pre-read the material in the
study book for the next lesson. In such case, you will probably be asked
to underline the answers to the canned questions that appear at the bottom
of each page. She will explain that this is for quick reference during the
study, or in case a family member wants to know what you have learned.
This pre-reading and underlining is an effective study technique, but it
is also a subtle and powerful indoctrination method. This will be
discussed in more detail later, in the section "Repetition and Emphasis".
The New World Translation
Unless you specifically request otherwise, your teacher will use the New
World Translation of the Bible, which is the official version of the
scriptures used by the Witnesses. It is a reasonably accurate translation
of the Bible (as far as I am qualified to judge), but certain verses that
seem to contradict Witness doctrine have been translated with their
teachings in mind. If there are two possible translations, the New World
Translation will always choose the one closest to Witness doctrine, even
if the reasoning behind the rendering is somewhat shaky.
Your study conductor may explain that she likes to use the New World
Translation because it is written in plain English. This is a fair
statement; the NWT is quite readable. However, if you use the NWT as your
only reference, you will never know when an alternative translation is at
odds with what the Witnesses believe.
For an example of this problem, compare the wording of John 1:1 in the NWT
with the wording in almost any other Bible. The Witnesses are
non-trinitarian -- they do not believe that God is 'three in one'. Their
Bible has been produced with this in mind. There are arguments for and
against the NWT's rendering of John 1:1, but few translators agree with
the choice made by the Witnesses.
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