"When Was the Bible Written?" June 1, 2011 Public Edition--Oh, Wow!

by Cadellin 20 Replies latest watchtower bible

  • Cadellin
    Cadellin

    I say, "Oh, Wow!" because this article is a showcase for all of the ways that the Writing Dept. has lost any shred of authoritative ethos or credibility. I won't go into all the ways in this post, but want to share one gem in particular.

    "Criticism of the Bible has taken many forms since then [referring to previous para]. For example, a recently published dictionary of the Old Testament contained detailed articles on form criticism, historical criticism, literary/narrative criticism, history of Pentateuchal criticism, source criticism, and tradio-historical criticism."

    This is under the subheading "What the Critics Say." Now, it's clear that the writer has no clue what "criticism" means in the scholarly sense. He's trading on the popular/common definition of criticism as "faultfinding; censuring; disapproval," the intent being to show the great extent to which secular sources will go to discredit the Bible. (This is more of the WT's strategy to control information by trying to discredit anything written by secular outsiders.) But "criticism" as it's used in the context of a reference work, particularly when coupled with a modifier like "historical" or "source" means something quite different: investigation and analysis. While there may an evaluative or judgmental aspect to scholarly criticism, the point is not mere faultfinding or disapproval, as the WT's use implies.

    There's a parallel in the distinction between the common useage of the word "theory" and the scientific use. "Theory" in common parlance usually means a best guess, while "theory" used in a scientific context means a systematic statement of principles of observed phenomena, which has been verified to a high enough degree to make it stronger than a mere hypothesis. In some cases, such as Einstein's Theory of Relativity, it's all but proven (though nothing is technically proven in science). Same with the theory of evolution. But many WT speakers (and maybe this has happened in the publications, too, though I can't put my hand on a source) use the two terms interchangeably. I've heard speakers from the platform say about evolution that "it's just a theory but they teach it like a fact." Of course, it's "just a theory." It's also a fact.

    But I'm not trying to talk about evolution here, rather a similar rhetorical move located in the June 1 WT. There are two possibilities, both of which are disturbing. Either the writer honestly didn't know the difference between the two definitions of "criticism," or he knew and deliberately chose to manipulate his use of the word. In the first case, if a writer has such a limited knowledge, he shouldn't be writing about this subject in the first place. (Duh!) In the second case--well, it's just plain deceptive. Neither possibility enhances the WT's already shoddy reputation when it comes to intellectual honesty or credibility.

  • yourmomma
    yourmomma

    i am blown away, wow. i dont know why but my gut makes me think he was just ignorant. i mean the "bible gods word or mans" book describes higher critism and lower critism. but of course that book was written years ago, and given the more cultic grip tightning by the watchtower, and the dumbing down of publications to levels that i didnt think were possible, and maybe it is the demonizing to anything outside watchtower publications. one of the reasons i cant stop coming here is watching what the watchtower does next, they are moving rapidly, to what i dont know. i wonder what their end game is.

  • jean-luc picard
    jean-luc picard

    Good analysis Cadellin.

    In the first case, if a writer has such a limited knowledge, he shouldn't be writing about this subject in the first place.

    I would say it is the first case and that the writer wouldn't even try to look deeper into the meaning of such criticism. If he did, he might just be convinced that the critic is right

  • cantleave
    cantleave

    It follows the WTS philosophy that nothing to do with them of their version of the bible should be examined, questioned or challenged.

    They do not understand the concept of academic criticism because none of them possess a decent education.

  • TD
    TD
    Now, it's clear that the writer has no clue what "criticism" means in the scholarly sense.

    Funny stuff Cadellin.

    Without source criticism there would be no master texts, no critical apparatus and hence, no Bible today.

  • PSacramento
    PSacramento

    Not to mention that Fred Franz and the "translation commitee" used "source and textual criticism" to re-write the authorized bible that the JW's used into the NWT.

    I guess itw as ok for THEM, just not for QUALIFIED people to do it.

  • Red Piller
    Red Piller

    Great commentary, Cadellin.

  • Mad Sweeney
    Mad Sweeney

    I'm on a computer without the WTLib CDRom right now but I would be interested in a search of some phrases from the paragraphs in question. Often, articles are simply a rehashing of previous articles from a decade or more before with some tweaks and maybe an updated yet unnamed source quote from outside the Borg. It could very well be that the current "writer" (could that term be used more loosely?) pulled most of that stuff from an earlier Watchtower or Awake!.

  • Retrovirus
    Retrovirus

    It's my understanding that "critics" is a Watchtower buzzword, like "opposers". As soon as my jw friends hear or read it, the shutters go up, as if a storm were coming.

    That's why my guess would be that the misuse of "criticism" is probably deliberate.

  • jwfacts
    jwfacts

    It is a shame that the word criticism holds such a negative connotation, when in the terms mentioned the connotation should be considered positive.

    For example, critical thinking is actually a comendable way of looking at things, as is "evaluative" think, not negative thinking.

    Likewise, Higher Criticism is " a branch of literary analysis that investigates the origins of a text." However, as a JW I was led to believe it was bad due to the word criticism.

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