I believe it was Jim Penton who mentioned that even the more knowledgeable dubbies only know about 25 or so Bible verses well enough to cite Book, Chapter, Verse and can cite those verses verbatim. Some years ago, I started a thread on that very subject and only came up with about 25 verses I myself remembered when I was a dubbie. I was considered quite the Bible "scholar" back in the day, too! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Rather than digging out that thread and wasting the time it takes (5 minutes or so) to re-create those verses, I decided to offer you guys and gals a new challenge. The purpose of this challenge is to show just how shallow or specious Jehovah's Witnesses are in their actual knowledge of the scriptures. Think about it. After 25 years, a dub has only memorized 25 verses. Only one little verse per YEAR! This is not yer average dub. Nay, nay, nay. This is your "spiritually strong" dub. This after tens of thousands of hours of "Bible" indoctrination and study!
I'm asking you to come up with the stock-in-trade scriptures incessantly used by dubbies and their religious masters.
I'm sure you will come up with these stock-in-trade scriptures in no time. Especially those of you who are recently out of the cult. You've had those verses hammered into your brains so many times, it's hard to forget them. It takes years of WORK to forget them.
But I'm going to add a new twist. First, I ask that you cite the book, chapter and verse of the scripture, as well as the scripture itself. But then, I'm asking you to put that citation into one of the following categories:
1) BOOK BUYING & SELLING - Scriptures that are used to justify buying and selling Watchtower books. Also, since book buying & selling is the main purpose for the existence of the WT Corporation, any scriptures the Corporation uses to glorify itself or justify itself could be put in this category, too.
2) TERRORIST GOD - Scriptures used to justify God terrorizing you with fear and threat of punishment
3) CHARACTER - Scriptures for self-betterment as a human. Includes character development, parenting, etc.
4) YOUR HAPPINESS - Scriptures on attaining joy, happiness, peace and full self-expression in life
5) CHARITY FOR OTHERS - Scriptures which emphasize love, compassion and forgiveness of ourselves and others
6) SILLY DOCTRINE - Watchtower doctrine, which isn't important to the human condition and everyday living, such as trnity scriptures, soul-sleep scriptures, invisible fullfillments and bullshit like that.
Please try to come up with the most-frequently used verses before you cite any others dubbies use.
If you think a commonly used dub scripture doesn't fit in any of these categories, then create a new one, but don't over do it. Try to keep it simple.
If you think a scripture could fit into more than one category, then put it in the category where the Watchtower Printing Corporation most frequently uses as justification for it.
I'll start with four scriptures that even the most braindead of dubs have heard at least 100,000 times by the time they are ready for baptism.
These 4 verses all fit in the category BOOK BUYING & SELLING:
*** Rbi8 Matthew 24:14 ***
14 And this good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations; and then the end will come.
*** Rbi8 John 17:2-3 ***
3 This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and of the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ.
*** Rbi8 Revelation 21:3-4 ***
4 And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.” - (You don't get there without doing a LOT of book buying and selling.)
*** Rbi8 Acts 5:42 ***
42 And every day in the temple and from house to house they continued without letup teaching and declaring the good news about the Christ, Jesus.
Ok. It's your turn. Take the dubbie Bible Knowledge challenge! It will be an interesting experiment to see which categories the WT Printing Corporation considers most important for their little worker bees.
Farkel