2nd Correspondence I wrote the next letter simply to point out the basic biological errors contained in a number of their full-colour illustrations of Paradise, and how such errors made it difficult for me to preach to my scientific colleagues. My letter appears below, followed by their replies (for some strange reason they replied to my letter twice), both times including the same reference. |
PO Box 4085
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| The Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses Watch Tower Society Wallkill New York 12589 United States of America Dear Brothers INACCURACIES IN SOCIETY ILLUSTRATIONS OF NATURE My name is Mario Di Maggio and have the privilege of serving as an elder in the Durban Central Congregation, South Africa. I think it is very sad that the high standards of research and impeccable accuracy that the Watchtower Society is well known for are not always reflected in your illustrations of the natural world. A case in point is the drawing of Adam and Eve on page 16 of the March 15, 1994 Watchtower magazine. Eve is depicted holding a koala bear and the koala bear seems to be eating from the creeper on the left of the picture. Simple research in almost any natural history textbook will reveal that the koala bear is only found and has only ever been found in Australia. It is very unlikely that Adam and Eve had ever heard of a koala bear let alone seen one! Also, it is common knowledge that koala bears eat almost exclusively eucalyptus tree leaves. It is most improbable that a koala bear would eat a plant as the one depicted, which is clearly of the Convolvulaceae family and not indigenous to Australia. Admittedly, most people do not know about such details and hence it can be argued that it does not really matter what animals or plants are depicted in our illustrations. Yet world-wide there are people who are aware of such facts - for example the people I work with at the Durban Natural History Museum. It is very difficult to witness to them if they see blatant errors regarding Nature in our literature. It is difficult for them to take seriously books such as our Creation book (which we claim has been very well researched), when they see that we are really quite ignorant about the natural world and make (what to them) are the most basic of blunders. I hope this letter is informative and of use to you. Christian love MARIO DI MAGGIO |
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(see above for same enclosure)