Apostates are always making up lies about the beliefs and practices of Jehovah's Witnesses, especially when it comes to the freedom we enjoy as Christians. Many claim that Jehovah's Witnesses are taught to shun "independent thinking" interpreting this as saying they cannot think for themselves while allowing the Governing Body to do all the thinking for them. It is true that Jehovah's Witnesses are encouraged to avoid independent thinking in their publications from time to time, however, are they encouraged to "not think for themselves"? What does "independent thinking" even mean and what do our publications share on the matter? What Our Publications Really Say This may come as a surprise to you, especially if you have fallen prey to the lies spread about us, but the term "independent thinking" has appeared only 34 times in our publications over the past 60 years. Not frequent at all for an organization that allegedly wants to...

Note: The following article is written in a rare second person delivery toward the reader. That is because I wish to directly address individuals from the religions of the world who specifically target Jehovah's Witnesses so that I may rouse their thinking abilities. Do you claim that Jehovah's Witnesses are not allowed to think? That we are instructed to think only thoughts approved by the Watchtower? That is what our detractors like to claim. But does that claim have merit? On what do you base such a claim? Jehovah's Witness Publications Support Free Thinking Consider the fourth study article in the September 2013 Watchtower. Its title is " Make Personal Decisions Wisely ". If someone has been taught by their pastor that we are only allowed to think Watchtower approved thoughts, they would think that an article with this title is telling us what to think. A question like the one in the third paragraph of the article would seem to support that view: ...