Expert: Gordon Cook - 8/1/2010

Question
I thought I might have a better chance getting this published here on critics rather than the other section. A JW friend brought me a recent Awake Magazine to read. I am Jewish and he did so because the article was about a Jewish Lawyer who "exam"ined the beliefs of the JW's and, as you already suspected, converted.

I honored my friend by accepted the material and took it home to read it. The only thing the Lawyer examined in the article was Daniel and how since Jesus was baptized at 29 and Daniel said that the messiah would come in 29 (sic), he was obviously he. Now what exactly in that made him a JW I can't fathom. But I digress.

One statement FLOORED me! It said that a Rabbi had told the Jew that if his wife (at that time some type of Christian- not a JW though) converted to Judaism, their (8 year old?) child would automatically become a Jew. Sorry, but what a crock! There is NO recognized Jewish entity that would make such a claim. A mother must be Jewish at the BIRTH of the child for the child to be Jewish! And even in the groups that allow patralineal descent, the child must be raised Jewish (which apparently this child was not). Besides, the mother's Jewishness or lack thereof would have no bearing.

When blatantly false statements are made in a national publication (btw, there is no place to write to ask for correction!), it calls the entire faith system into question. Sure, Jews are a prized trophy in all of Christendom, but they usually come from non-observant homes and people who really have no education in their own faith. In fact, conversion to Judaism from Christianity is much more common than the other way round. I am a perfect example.

I hope that in the future, these people will stick with the facts rather than trying to convert by any means, lying included, possible.

Thanks for your time!

Answer
This is an example how the Watchtower will twist things, to suit their own ends.
Facts have never bothered the Watchtower.
They will very often make statements without any basis.
Or will says things like "Experts say" or  "well known scholars say"  without giving any reference to who these "experts" or "scholars" are.
Also when quoting from other sources you will find either it not a full quote, just the bit that supports their view or they will not state where the reference is from.