by jabberwock 13 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
It seems to me that that if a belief in resurrection/afterlife enables one to overcome the tragic and life trivializing aspects of death (isn't that part of the reason why they formulated such beliefs) then those ancient beliefs are worth examining and therefore relevant imo. But if they lead to neglecting life and living as JWs seem to, then I agree that belief in resurrection does trivialise death.
But on the other hand would non belief trivialise life?
Hi jabberwock,
How do you understand some of the accounts that I mentioned in my original post?
OK, here goes!
The bible says "believe and be baptised". What do we need to believe and do?
9 That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. 11 As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame."
So what about infants, babies, the unborn, mentally retarded etc? Can they even think or say that?
Of course not, however there is some evidence that the infants of believers will be saved.
Look at David's illegitimate son for example.
22 He answered, "While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thought, 'Who knows? The LORD may be gracious to me and let the child live.' 23 But now that he is dead, why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me."
Where would you say David is now? With God right? Verse 23 probably indicates that the child went to be with God also, ahead of David.
This verse is often quoted when dealing with the subject too.
39 And the little ones that you said would be taken captive, your children who do not yet know good from bad—they will enter the land. I will give it to them and they will take possession of it.
What is the principle here? That the children who do not know good from bad will enter the promised land.
So what about those of unbelievers? We cannot be sure, only God has all the answers. However, I believe He is a just, merciful, loving and compassionate Father, not a tyrannous in-compassionate dictator. His heart is for mercy, not sacrifice, salvation, not damnation, justification not condemnation etc.
I leave it to God's judgement-He is more than capably and doesn't need my help!
All the best,
Stephen
What I don't see is just how wicked were the people in Sodom in the first place. They were homosexuals, true--but did that make them wicked? Were they trying to spread the practice to the whole world or forcing people that did not want to do it into it anyway? Were they instigating wars because other people did not believe in the same God? Did they attempt to control the world and hamper progress like the Catholic church did?
Most of the other death penalty offenses in the Bible were stupid. Why kill 70,000 because of a stupid census? Why move Cain to murder Abel, just because Abel offered up a "better" sacrifice when neither owed God anything? And I do not remember living in a country that is not ruled by that Almighty Lowlife Scumbag and minding your own business as being wicked enough to deserve to die for. Nor was picking up gold pieces from people that have been killed instead of destroying them.
And that is not bad enough. The resurrection "hope" causes the witlesses to be reckless. They neglect their health, often to pio-sneer and often because the Filthful and Disgraceful Slavebugger tells them that it is wrong to accept a certain treatment only to change their minds later, after people die. They die in accidents and from persecution and health issues while in field circus, often because of the field circus (I remember one person dying while getting ready for field circus--a waste of life).
Additionally, they live stagnant and miserable lives now because they think it will get them a better one later. How many have chosen to grow old and die celibate or without children because they chose to serve in Beth Hell? Or, they have chosen to forgo college and wash windows, only to get sidelined when people let their windows get dirtier before washing them in this economy? Too many waste their whole lives in the deadest of dead works, because they think it is the ticket to a better life. Plus, they impose that everyone waste their one and only life doing this deadest work.
Perhaps if people realized that this is the only life you get (even people that believe in God can realize that He could be so cruel that He dangles heaven or an earthly resurrection as a scam intended to waste their one and only life serving Him), they would not take those chances. Rather than p***ing away this life on the deadest of works, they would seek to enjoy it to the full and/or create fulfillment for society. This field circus is the greatest waste of life, all in the name of seeking a resurrection or a place in the New Dark Ages.
:Belief in the resurrection trivializes death
No one was worse at this than Fred Franz himself. Ray Franz related the first words Freddie uttered at a funeral for a brother who had just died. He hops up to the stage and in a loud, joyful voice he said:
"Isn't is great to be ALIVE?!!"
What an out-of-touch, arrogant and insensitive jerk he was. Imagine how the grieving loved ones felt about that.
Add to that the numerous reported examples where spouses of unbelieving mates would actually pray for that mate to die before Armageddon to make "sure" that mate received a resurrection.
Great topic for a thread, by the way.
Farkel
