When did Theology Last add something to Human Knowledge?

by cofty 92 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

  • adamah
    adamah

    LT said-

    Remember, Einstein said imagination is more important than knowledge.

    Yeah, that one was an eyebrow raiser, so I Googled it, and found this:

    http://quoteinvestigator.com/2013/09/18/intuitive-mind/#more-7248

    (And if you had bothered to read any biography of the life of Einstein, you'd know of his well-known disdain for theology and religion; Einstein didn't believe in a personal God, but more of the deistic impersonal uninvolved 'God'.)

    That's because he understood the true power of the human mind. He understood that we make it up as we go along.

    LT, we understand YOU like to 'make it up as you go along', including facts, attributions, scriptures, etc. Just don't expect the rest of us to wallow in that mud bath with you.

    Like I said, imagination and theology are inseparably linked.

    (LT says, completely unaware of the Freudian slip and the complete truthfuless of the only correct statement uttered so far.)

    Adam

  • MadGiant
    MadGiant

    God is Love 1 Samuel 15:3 Genesis 19:24-25 2 Kings 2:23-24 Deuteronomy 20:13-16 The human mind was designed with the ability to upgrade itself Care to elaborate, other that evolution I don't see who. Theology isn't Science Agree Spirituality is personal and difficult to express to others And that's the problem. Personal experiences can not be counted as proof. Religion is a human experiment and comes with pitfalls This is just your opinion. Humanity relies on God for strength No we don't. Existence is infinite Care to submit proof. Everything happens for a reason Care to summit proof. Not everyone agrees on theological results And that's the problem. Every believer have a different depiction of his/her deity. Take care, Ismael

  • Finkelstein
    Finkelstein

    " God is Love " I just threw up in my mouth a bit reading that.

    Someone needs to read the bible or the Koran or whatever.

  • adamah
    adamah

    Laika said-

    The belief that all humans have dignity because they are all loved by God is, I think, theology's greatest contribution to human society and remains so.

    Problem is, that's not a Biblical concept. I defy you to show me a scripture that says it, since trust me: it's a late interpretation to the NT. When Jesus said, "love your neighbor" he was referring to the neighbor land owners, not the slaves they owned. It's a late addition/interpretation, but that's not a contribution of the Bible: it's eisegesis, and if that's OK with you, then all bets are off on WHAT you can say the Bible says, and screw the original meaning. You might as well just start from scratch, if you're willing to cherry-pick and discard the rest.

    (And there's no need to start from scratch: mankind hasn't been fretting over what to do without Gods around for a few centuries now, moving forward with eg Universal Declaration of Human Rights.)

    But it's a shame that Christianity/Judaism didn't include the concept of animal rights, as the Hindus did 2,500 yr ago with the epic "Mahabarhata": there's a whole lot more dead animals as a result of the focus on animal sacrifice.

    However, the thing to keep in mind is that in the past, theology and government rule were intertwined, such that it's hard to tease out the religious elements. In other words, it's not like today, where someone has the benefit of choosing their religion/church to suit their personality: that's a relatively new phenomenon, since in the past you went with the Nationalistic deity of the state (or were killed for being an atheist; same goes for rooting for the other Nation's deity, being killed as a traitor).

    Adam

  • latinthunder
    latinthunder
    If you don't mind, I would like to when theology was greatest that knowledge in the following questions:

    MadGiant, I didn't say scripture > knowledge, I said theology > knowledge.

    Care to elaborate, other that evolution I don't see who.

    Evolution is not a mindless process.

    This is just your opinion.

    No, it's my theological conclusion.

    No we don't.

    The majority of humanity believes in a higher power. Yes we do.

    Care to submit proof.

    Care to summit proof.

    No need to because it's self evident.

    And that's the problem. Every believer have a different depiction of his/her deity.

    Diversity is required for evolution.

  • Laika
    Laika
    Problem is, that's not a Biblical concept.

    Why is that a problem Adamah? We're discussing theology, not biblicism.

  • slimboyfat
    slimboyfat
    The belief that all humans have dignity because they are all loved by God is, I think, theology's greatest contribution to human society and remains so.

    You make a good point, so much so it's almost worth pretending it's true to keep this legacy. But intellectual honesty prevents it. Man is still struggling to come to terms with the death of God. What should we try next? Will to power? It's not really been done, the Nazis perverted the idea.

    It's a nice idea but I don't believe in human nature. Man is like the shape of a figure drawn in the sand, now washed away by the tide, to borrow a famous metaphor for the end of man, the idea that he has a fixed nature that imbues him with dignity.

  • Hortensia
    Hortensia

    I can't think of anything new and useful coming out of religion.

  • adamah
    adamah

    Laika said-

    Why is that a problem Adamah? We're discussing theology, not biblicism.

    It's not a problem for anyone who wants to make stuff up as they go along (like LT). However, if some are willing to do all that, then why not do it without the additional unneeded baggage of worshiping God, or even claiming the Bible as the source and moral authority? It's a pyramid built on a shaky foundation of lies: it all rests on an "appeal to Divine authority".

    Adam

  • cofty
    cofty
    The belief that all humans have dignity because they are all loved by God is, I think, theology's greatest contribution to human society and remains so. - Laika

    But the love that theism offers is conditional. Taking christianity as an example, it's message begins by demeaning humans. Until somebody accepts that they are a miserable sinner there is nothing but judgement and condemnation.

    Laika - Your other point is that religion is useful. It brings comfort or provides a motivation for people to care for the poor.

    I know that these things are true but that isn't my question. There are lots of non-religious resons to do good things that don't make any superstitious assumptions.

    I appreciate the contributions so far but I think it's fair to say the question still stands. When did theology last say anything new, interesting or useful?

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