I do not think you would get a relevant answer. She may say she doesn't know but she does know God wants to be addressed by his name, the same as a person would not like to be addressed as boy or girl. Total circular logic.
Studying "What Does the Bible Really Teach?"
by homeschool 60 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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isaacaustin
I would then ask why jesus did not use it in the model prayer but said "Our Father..."
She will reply that we are told to "Hallow" the Father's name...how are we to "Hallow" or set aside as holy something we can not pronounce. You can then direct her tot he Insight book, vol 2 page 12 where it says:
Then, too, we must keep in mind that names then had real meaning and were not just "labels" to identify an individual as today. Moses knew that Abram’s name (meaning "Father Is High (Exalted)") was changed to Abraham (meaning "Father of a Crowd (Multitude)"), the change being made because of God’s purpose concerning Abraham. So, too, the name of Sarai was changed to Sarah and that of Jacob to Israel; in each case the change revealed something fundamental and prophetic about God’s purpose concerning them. Moses may well have wondered if Jehovah would now reveal himself under some new name to throw light on his purpose toward Israel. Moses’ going to the Israelites in the "name" of the One who sent him meant being the representative of that One, and the greatness of the authority with which Moses would speak would be determined by or be commensurate with that name and what it represented. (Compare Ex 23:20, 21; 1Sa 17:45.) So, Moses’ question was a meaningful one.
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PSacramento
I always understood Jesus teaching to use the term "Father" as a way to show the personal relationship we are to have with God.
I mean, anyone can call me Paul, that's my name, but only my children call me Father, though I prefer Daddy :).
It shows the true personal relationship we are to cultivate with God, Our Father.
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Quandry
hello homeschool. It is interesting that you are willing to study with your sister to try to get her to reason. If this is your aim, my suggestion is that you "pick your battles."
Many religions use the name Jehovah....there is a recent thread here addressing that. It is the one about the Indiana Jones movie.
Perhaps you could do research on this board into the history of Jehovah's Witnesses and some of their prior beliefs. There have been many through the years that have changed. She may not know about them, as her "research has been done for her" but you are free to do the investigating.
Did you know that at one time Witnesses were not allowed to be vaccinated? They were told that it was like "putting pus into your body."
At one time, organ transplants were forbidden as being cannibalistic, and a witness could be disfellowshipped if they had one.
The President of the WTBTS, Judge Rutherford, foretold that the "ancient worthies" would be resurrected in 1925, and built a mansion in San Diego so that they could live there. He even had two cadillac cars ready for them. He was so thoughtful, he drove the cars and stayed in the mansion just waiting patiently for them......
The original date of Jesus' return was 1874.
When you find some real gems, ask her about them. Don't make them a huge issue, but ask if she knew. Plant some seeds.....
You must be the one to diligently do your "homework." Eventually, she may be impressed with YOUR knowledge.
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homeschool
PSAC/ aka "Daddy" (lol) I couldn't agree more with your illustration. Makes perfect sense.
hello homeschool. It is interesting that you are willing to study with your sister to try to get her to reason. If this is your aim, my suggestion is that you "pick your battles."Quandry, I am willing to do whatever it takes.
Anymore advice is welcome. Thanks.
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besty
What Does The Bible Really Teach? on freeminds.org clickable link
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lurk3r
One question that might prick her mind.
If Jdubs are the ONLY ones that have the "truth", why does Satan pick on other people outside of JW's? If being part of another religion means your already "out" of Jehovahs one and only organization, why would he bother?
lurk3r
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homeschool
We were talking this morning about how distracted we get. I was mentioning how I was trying to do business paperwork yesterday, but every two minutes I kept getting distracted & doing stuff like the dishes, and then vacuming, and then making a to do list, and then taking the dogs out to pee. I finally had to sit my butt down and get it done! The only reason I think I kept getting distracted is because business paperwork bores me to tears! and I hate doing it!
And then she said "yeah, the same thing happens to me when I'm trying to study for the meetings!" I hadnt mentioned to her WHY I believe I get distracted, but couldn't help but think she gets distracted for the very same reason, even if its totally subconscious.
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PSacramento
I always suggest to people who wanna learn about God and Jesus to dedicate 30min to 1 hour out of their day to read the bible.
Just pick it up, start at Matthew and read, when you finish the NT, read it again.
I also advoate that they get a nice commentary book in the Bible so that they can get an idea of what others, more learned than Us, think about certain passages and that when questions arise that they research them, one at a time and to take their time and be critical and opne minded.
If they are religious I usually advice them to pray to God and jesus to sent the Holy Spirit to guide them to the truth and to put their Faith in God through Jesus Christ.
never hurts ;)
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homeschool
ooooooh boy...this is going to be harder than I thought. We haven't even gotten to chapter 2 yet...I really need to record it on my mp3 player. She's goooooood. And by goooooood, I mean- she knows how much I question everything. So when we/I finish reading the paragraph, she asks the question like "ok, according to the jw teaching." Or, "according to this book". Or, "if you were to imagine that God was real and his name is Jehovah, How would you answer this?" She said if I am not comfortable saying the name Jehovah, I am welcome to say YahWeh instead (i'm not going to because I feel like that would be kinda asking for an arguement and make her think I'm being rebellious). Paragraphs 20-24 were a bit tough because I had to state my views without sounding rebellious.
22 As you learn more from the Bible, you may find that some well-meaning people will urge you to stop such studies. They may worry that you will change your beliefs. But do not let anyone stop you from forming the best friendship you can ever have.
23 Of course, there will be things that you do not understand at first. It can be a little humbling to ask for help, but do not hold back because of embarrassment. Jesus said that it is good to be humble, like a little child. (Matthew 18:2-4) And children, as we know, ask a lot of questions. God wants you to find the answers. The Bible praises some who were eager to learn about God. They checked carefully in the Scriptures to make sure that what they were learning was the truth.—Acts 17:11.
24 The best way to learn about Jehovah is to examine the Bible. It is different from any other book. In what way? The next chapter will consider that subject.The question says something like "what will some well meaning people urge you to do, but what should you do?
I said "Well, I've heard a lot of people dont want their loved ones studying with Jehovah's Witnesses because they don't believe the jw's use proper use of bible scriptures" .
I'll fill you in later. I've seriously got to watch my body language. Psychology intrigues me....I realized almost 3/4ths through the study that I was doing almost everything that shows you're nervous or unsure/skeptical...bit my nails, twiddled with my hair, rubbed my neck, didn't make eye contact at all times.
Wish me luck on Monday's study!