by Open mind 16 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
If your posterior has spent at least a year in a Kingdom Hall you've probably heard the tired old justifying and watering down of the term "Fear of Jehovah".
'It's not a morbid dread of God. It's like the wholesome respect we have for the power of the ocean. '
Remember that one?
I spotted a flaw in this analogy just now.
The ocean is impersonal and isn't consciously CHOOSING to kill you. Duh!
It nauseates me to think of how many times I repeated this kind of tripe.
om
It was flaws like these that made me do this ... ... a lot. I'm gonna be this little old lady with one eyebrow too high on my forehead and one in a V or checkmark shape!
I spotted a flaw in this analogy just now.
The ocean is impersonal and isn't consciously CHOOSING to kill you
True but nothing could perfectly fit or compare to God (in the Christan view of God) ..whether they be living or inanimate
The choosing in this case is done by you , a living intelligent being !
Most analogies are flawed. They only are good for speeches or a narrow point.
The general ones are okay- Sharp like a needle, sly like a fox. They are only using one aspect of the thing compared.
But to say fear of Jehovah is like fear of the ocean and it's awesome power- well you pointed out the flaw.
The universe is like a precision clock and the clock had a maker. WRONG. The universe is nothing like a precision clock except that time can be measured by certain aspects of the universe. Otherwise, there ain't nothing like billions of galaxies in a clock. There are no black holes or dark matter in the clock. There isn't anyone to wind up the universe every week or replace the battery every year.
Now if you wanted to say that fear of Jehovah is like fear of the Flying Spaghetti Monster or like the fear of a genocidal dictator, you are only making one point- nonexistence or death-dealing tyrant. That works.
Fear of jehovah is like fear of adolf hitler. Does that work? If the train ran late, the ss shot the driver. It guaranteed that they ran on time. If the jw stops going door to door preaching, jehovah will kill him. It guarantees that jws keep going door to door.
S
You can paint things black or you can paint things white.. again your intent & desire does the choosing
I wonder who the wise person was that decide to invent the color gray ?
Here is a nice black(gray maybe) and white world for us all to enjoy ...
caliber, did you know that the human eye can distinguish about 500 shades of gray?
The ocean can and does kill, but it does not intelligently single one person out. It is possible to survive--most people that venture on the ocean do survive to tell their stories. Why? Most reasonable people that venture on the ocean want their boats to be well built, so they can take the stresses. And they are not stupid enough to go into storms (and they are prepared to deal with the storm they blunder into).
Jehovah, on the other hand, capriciously sets His rules to trip up people. Sometimes, He will try people beyond what they are designed to bear--and expects them to be like Job. That sets the bar high enough so almost no one is allowed into anything good. And Jehovah does single out people to frustrate them from attaining what they need for personal happiness and then has the nerve to blame them for Him sabotaging their efforts. The oceans do not do that.
Here's an analogy that both the WT and the Bible use for God.
God = a loving Father
OK, I'm a "loving" father and my young son is sleeping peacefully in my arms and starts to awaken. Would it be a loving thing for me to inform him that if he makes one false move I can snap his neck in a heartbeat?
Uh, no. That is sick and horrific and to even type such a thing would make most sane people think about calling Child Protective Services on me.
(I'm fine folks. It's JUST an analogy. I've never had homicidal thoughts towards anyone.)
But, our loving heavenly father can snap our necks at any time. So make sure you have a "healthy" reverential "fear" of him.
om
