Watchtower's New DVD - An Inferior Product?

by metatron 17 Replies latest jw friends

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  metatron

  The Watchtower Society has released a new 32 minute long DVD called "The Wonders of Creation Reveal God's Glory". It has excellent CG graphics, high quality photography, competent editing and a pleasing appearance.......

  and, to me, it is a breathtakingly inferior product. How so?

  What is this DVD supposed to accomplish? It certainly would not impress any thinking atheist I know. In presenting a fantasy-driven view of nature, it fails to even acknowledge arguments against a kind and loving Creator that appeared over a hundred years ago. Does the 'stinger' of a mosquito manifest the Glorious Design of Our Loving God .... by sucking blood? Isn't it wonderful that different creations can cooperate together to spread malaria! How about the Amazing Guinea Worm? What a marvelous provision from Jehovah in that the perfect, balanced nutrition needed by a cat is the body of the mouse that it kills? Anybody remember Darwin and the Ichneumon wasp that he found repulsive?

  And if you have any doubt about what the Godly Design of claws and sharp teeth are, just examine any alligator. OK, now take that head full of sharp teeth and the reptilian claws and stick them on a powerful 25 foot tall body that can run across dusty plains. Guess what? You just created a meat eating dinosaur! If any scientist created such a creature , a la Jurassic Park, would you describe him as crazy - or a monster himself? And Jehovah? Who Created the Original Version?

  I am forced to conclude that this DVD is 'preaching to the converted' as a superficial, grade school level 'gee whiz, ain't it marvelous' effort to maintain a dumbed down cult. Since the DVD program is introduced and concluded by Theodore Jaracz, I also conclude that it represents the sort of brain drained but 'loyal' organization that he is determined to build.

  If you are a Lurker or Watchtower Apologist reading this, you may think I'm being unreasonable in describing this DVD as "inferior". If so, I challenge you to get a copy of "The Case for a Creator" by Lee Strobel.

  While you may have your own objections to Intelligent Design ( as I do, as above), "The Case For a Creator" is an excellent product in the field of Christian Apologetics. It encourages thinking and reasoning about Evolution and although you may fault that thinking, it still attempts to confront contrary assertions about Creation (as opposed to the above).

  It is a sharp contrast with the Society's cult-maintenance product and should serve as an example of what the Watchtower COULD be doing.

  metatron
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  darkl1ght3r

  Excellent rant!!! Bravo!!!

  I'm actually hoping my family will send me a copy of that DVD (they know I accept evolution) because I'm curious to see just how bad it is.

  I also like your points about the animals. I would add that sanke fangs and the system they utilize to inject venom appears to be ingenious design! Oh... wait, except that's an exceptionally brutal method of killing. And then theres the Asian Giant Hornet, whos venom contains flesh eating compounds and lethal neurotoxins, oh, and odors so that when one stings prey it can call the whole hive over to swarm on the victim. Thus ensues an agonizing and reletively slow death. What wonderful works from a loving creator! Does not creation give honor to the glory of God?!?! Certainly such brutal "designs" would reflect negatively on their designer.

  In the 10 minute snippet I saw of that video they aaaaaagain use the line, "Certainly our bodies are clearly made to enjoy life." NO. No, no, no... Certainly our bodies are "made" to incline us towards things that are essential to the survival of our species. They do so by giving us PLEASURE when we aquire those things. For example, we eat because we need to. We love foods that are super high in fat and carbohydrates because that is HIGH ENERGY food, such things were harder to come by in our ancestral environment, so our brains eventually adapted to seek those foods out for the energy they give us in return. There's nothing inherently "sweet" about sugar, and nothing inherently "tasty" about fat. It's ONLY the way our brains preceive those molecules. We see in color not because it is "pleasureable", but because there is a distinct advantage to seeing in color as opposed to black and white, and natural selection would "select" for that adnvantage. We enjoy having sex becasue if we didn't... well duh.

  Ask the starving mother and her disease riddled child in a third-world-country if SHE feels her body was made to "enjoy" life. The idiots who made that video are able to "enjoy" their lives to the extent they do becasue they live in a wealthy country, and through the efforts of science and INDIVIDUALS who sought to better the lives of their fellow humans. WE HAVE MADE LIFE SO ENJOYABLE. Not God.

  Any way... good rant. :)
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  greenhornet

  JW propaganda. I don't see the point of this movie. Last time I seen that mans face It was at a convention in England. He just finneshed his talk on the stage and the media confronted him and asked him some ligamentquestions about the pedifle problems. He was so nasty to them and his face had lot of hate.
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  WingCommander

  Why is it so hard to believe in a God that actually used evolution to his own advantage? I mean, I find it hard to believe that all of the breeds of say, brids - warblers for instance, were all created in the Garden of Eden. I mean, couldn't God have created a few with the intention that they would evolve and mutate into their current breeds?? I don't think that is so hard to believe...outside the realm of His design.

  Yeah, I can only image how dumbed down this video is. I can just see JW parents forcing their kids to take this DVD into their high school science teachers room and presenting it to them. Talk about embarrasing!!! But, all the parents would be thinking about is how good that placement will look on the time slip, not how utterly stupid their kids will look while presenting it.

  - Wing Commander
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  bohm

  I saw the video. Actually i was surpriced about how WELL it was done. The production was quite nice, and the scientific material it actually presented was done really well and it was clear it was well researched. The problem, ofcourse, was that it didnt mention evolution and the only explanation it considered to the various topics was that God created it, and thus everything in the world become a proof. "Look, a cute bunnyrabbit! Therefore God exist".

  It seems to me that during the recent decades the WTS has desided that every discussion on science is allready lost, and therefore they pretend science does not really exist, and every attempt to weight evidence over oppinion brand one as someone who "are not ready for the Truth" and generally use unfair tricks. I think thats even WORSE than the good-old days of quoting scientists out of context and elevating pseudo science done by pseudo-scientists on the backside of a beercoaster to absolute scientific truth.
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  WTWizard

  No matter how good the graphics and editing are, if the message is built on specious logic or sloppy arguments, you are going to end up with a p*** poor product. And, people are supposed to believe that a loving God would produce all these things?

  I suppose whoever did this video knows about the guinea worm--they even had an Asleep! article about guinea worms, and yet they claim they are part of Jehovah's loving purpose for us? What are guinea worms going to do in the New Dark Ages, Gerrit Losch? And, what about botflies--don't those witlesses know anything about the way botflies infest people? I don't think I would want one--I have seen a TV documentary about someone who was willing to endure bullet ant stings and stings from those super-giant hornets in Japan, but was not willing to endure botflies. A loving God? What are botflies going to do in the New Dark Ages, Gerrit Losch?

  Additionally, there are grotesque ways the process goes wrong. The Filthful and Disgraceful Slavebugger rants about how wonderfully made we are--as proof that He loves us. Now, what happens when a frog baby is born (and usually dies the same day)? Is that part of God's loving plan? And, what about all the babies that are born dead or severely deformed because of other problems? Are they part of God's loving plan? Some of those defects are just plain gross to look at even pictures of them, let alone having a baby with one of these problems. What is to become of those babies in the New Dark Ages, Gerrit Losch?

  I don't think they know what they are doing. Just try showing this video to anyone who has ever had a frog baby, someone that has treated one, or someone that is an expert on guinea worms and botflies. You are not going to get anywhere in telling those people that everything God does is in our best interests--He could have not created animals whose only purpose is to riddle other animals with pain and suffering, or allowed defects that are going to be grotesque to victims and survivors.
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  straightshooter

  Metatron you were great in telling it as it is.

  The video is a just as you described. No wonder the WTS never distributes their videos to the public.
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  thequestion

  Evolution - "I don't think that is so hard to believe...outside the realm of His design." Could. I'm not totally dismissing the fact that God used this to bring these things into creation however humans descending from it I reject. But since this is talking about the DVD, here are my thoughts:

  Argumentively the DVD was WEAK. There are a lot better ways in my opinion to prove creation then how they did it. I even said that and my mother was all angry (well...disappointed I should say). Of course its audience was for the majority non-deep-thinkers. Shallow thinkers = shallow argument (like MTV and VH1!!)

  Acting - HORRIBLE. That kid is the worst child actor I have ever seen. He doesn't even act like a child.

  They did well in the Scriptural part. (I've seen creationist videos where there are NO scriptural basis and even worse arguments. You think this is bad, try watching those D= )

  Music was inspiring. (I'm a big orchestral fan)

  Thank you NASA for those photographs.

  "I can just see JW parents forcing their kids to take this DVD into their high school science teachers room and presenting it to them. Talk about embarrasing!!! But, all the parents would be thinking about is how good that placement will look on the time slip, not how utterly stupid their kids will look while presenting it. " - LMAO So true...so true. I hope that never happens. What happens if it is a hardcore evolutionist as a teacher. He would rip it in shreds (THE SPAGHETTI MONSTER!!)
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  VM44

  The video may be obtained here:

  http://www.sendspace.com/file/9hjb85
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  TheOldHippie

  "We see in color not because it is "pleasureable", but because there is a distinct advantage to seeing in color as opposed to black and white, and natural selection would "select" for that adnvantage."

  Yeah, sure ..........