As a JW I always believed that dinosaurs at one point existed. My whole family did, almost all the JWs I knew did. One time I was out for dinner, and one of the people with us was convinced that they never existed. What did you guys believe? Is there anything the WTS puplished on the topic? I don't recall the WTS ever stating they existed, or stating that they didn't. Now that I look back on it, it's a bit strange. What are you thoughts?
Dinosaurs.
by bobert 19 Replies latest jw friends
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fastJehu
*** w94 11/1 p. 31 How to Organize a Theocratic Library ***
“Jairo, who is seven years old, came home from school the other day and asked me, ‘Daddy, what has the Society said about dinosaurs?’ We went straight to the Index and looked up the word ‘dinosaurs.’ Almost right away we found an Awake! cover series on the subject. [February 8, 1990] That same day, Jairo began to read it. He already knows that our theocratic library has useful information on practically every subject. Personally, I’m convinced that when our children learn to make good use of a theocratic library, it helps them grow spiritually. They learn to reason, and what’s more, they discover that personal study can be enjoyable.”*** g90 2/8 p. 11 What Happened to the Dinosaurs? ***
The Genesis Account and Dinosaurs
While the radioactive dating method is innovative, it is still based on speculation and assumption. In contrast, the Bible account in the first chapter of Genesis simply states the general order of creation. It allows for possibly thousands of millions of years for the formation of the earth and many millenniums in six creative eras, or “days,” to prepare the earth for human habitation.
Some dinosaurs (and pterosaurs) may indeed have been created in the fifth era listed in Genesis, when the Bible says that God made “flying creatures” and “great sea monsters.” Perhaps other types of dinosaurs were created in the sixth epoch. The vast array of dinosaurs with their huge appetites would have been appropriate considering the abundant vegetation that evidently existed in their time.—Genesis 1:20-24.
When the dinosaurs had fulfilled their purpose, God ended their life. But the Bible is silent on how he did that or when. We can be sure that dinosaurs were created by Jehovah for a purpose, even if we do not fully understand that purpose at this time. They were no mistake, no product of evolution. That they suddenly appear in the fossil record unconnected to any fossil ancestors, and also disappear without leaving connecting fossil links, is evidence against the view that such animals gradually evolved over millions of years of time. Thus, the fossil record does not support the evolution theory. Instead, it harmonizes with the Bible’s view of creative acts of God.*** w73 7/15 p. 447 Questions From Readers ***
Questions From Readers
● When did God create dinosaurs, and when did they become extinct?—U.S.A.
The Bible does not provide specific answers to this question. According to the Genesis account, animals were created during the fifth and sixth creative periods or ‘days.’ If the Hebrew expression translated “great sea monsters” [Hebrew, tan·ni·nim′] includes dinosaurs, which often inhabited swampy, watery areas, this would mean that dinosaurs were created on the fifth “day.” (Gen. 1:21) We do not know whether they continued to exist until man was created (toward the close of the sixth “day”). At the very latest it seems likely that they must have disappeared off the earth at the time of the flood of Noah’s day. Dinosaurs were reptiles, and some kinds of dinosaurs bear strong resemblance structurally and otherwise to lizards (sauros is, in fact, the Greek word for “lizard”; saura in Leviticus 11:29, LXX). Not all types of dinosaurs were of such gigantic size. Hence, even if they had survived till the Flood, this would not have required taking pairs of the mammoth varieties into the ark. Other smaller members of the particular family or “kind” to which these belonged would have sufficed to fulfill the divine command.—Gen. 6:19, 20; 7:14.
Some of the older translations of the Bible at times use the word “dragons” to translate the Hebrew tan·ni·nim′ (“sea monsters,” NW). (Ps. 74:13; 148:7; Isa. 27:1, Authorized Version) The term “dragon” (Greek, dra′kon) is found in the Christian Greek Scriptures. It has been suggested as possible that, rather than having a purely mythical source, this expression may originally have been applied to enormous creatures such as the dinosaurs, taking on mythical tones only after these mammoth creatures had long disappeared. Interestingly, many of the mythical depictions of the “dragon” strongly resemble certain types within the family of huge reptilian creatures that includes the dinosaur. -
designs
Remember the little dinos on the inside inside cover of the green NWT.
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snare&racket
They have never been able to explain this.....
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cofty
A new species has recently been discovered in Argentina...
It hasn't been named yet but it is the biggest dino discovered so far - 130 ft long, 65 ft tall and weighing 77 tons.
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cantleave
If you think that's big Cofty, you should see the size of the dog that chewed that bone.
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cofty
haha
"jesus christ Fenton!!!"
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Viviane
I just saw this dinosaur yesterday. They are still alive.
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wanderlust
How was it Viviane?! Was it good?
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Captain Obvious
As a JW there was no difficulty understanding that the earth was billions of years old, or that dinos ruled the earth one time. What did cause some difficulty was the obvious fact that there were carnivores and herbivores. As a 9 year old kid, like most boys that age, I was obsessed with dinosaurs. At that time I didn't know that bible loving crazies actually thought that before the flood no creature ate meat... Riiiiight....
I can't name a single current JW who doesn't believe that the earth is 4.65 billion yrs old or that the dinosaurs went extinct 65m years ago. It's unfortunate, though that the science that proves the human race evolved more than 6k years ago or that the flood never happened is just ignored by the average JW. If it disagrees with the GB's current opinion then it's automatically wrong.
So sad
