LET'S EXPLORE A LITTLE THOUGHT EXPERIMENT

by TerryWalstrom 13 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  Slidin Fast

  making the best guesses they can make as mere humans as to proper worship and Bible interpretation.

  The problem of this side of the experiment is that this description implies sincerity and a proper effort to understand, interpret and lead. Either side of your analysis implies that the people are worthy of our respect

  The reality is a mish-mash of intellectual and actual dishonesty, misrepresentation and harmful dogmatism. In an attempt to wrest respect where there should be none, they manipulate their followers emotions and reasoning ability to breaking point.
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  Vidiot

  If guys like Morris and Lett really are directed by God, humanity is pretty much f**ked.
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  Lieu

  They're wrong too much and then they constantly lie about it. Pretty much just a bunch of liars who do absolutely no charity and tell other people Jesus is not mediating for them, and the doors to heaven have been shut. They display that the least in God's Kingdom should be washing the feet of the greatest from kingdom halls to Bethel. Oh, and give us your ice cream money.

  That's not God's Spirit, the Spirit of Christ, nor the Holy Spirit.

  Satan.
• 

  TerryWalstrom

  I watched a video on YouTube in which a fellow goes before a judicial committee concerning Apostacy.

  In the course of the interrogation, a rather admirable elder who really seems to care about the fellow he's interrogating, speaks up and simplifies the entire discussion by saying this:

  "It really comes down to this. What other religion comes closer to the accurate teaching--even though they get some of it wrong? If it is some other group---go there! If not--stay here and wait on Jehovah to polish what we have into a spotless gleam of true light."

  At first blush, this argument is a clever false dichotomy or false dilemma. But, really--what's going on is something deeper, darker and more fundamentally skewed.

  The Watchtower religion has a thesis. They were selected by Jehovah for His own reasons, and whatever their faults, mistakes, or short-comings, they are ALL WE'VE GOT until the real thing comes along.

  Why isn't this a winning argument?

  1. The real choice isn't EITHER/ OR

  2. The "choice" contains a false premise which, if accepted without debate, allows the black and white context to proceed.

  3. Historical Christianity began as the Catholic Church down to the 16th century. The Protestant Reformation brought about a division in Christianity. That division didn't simply present the choice of: EITHER Protestant OR Catholic hierarchy. No, It was the fragmentation into denominations VS denominations VS Catholicism.

  4. One of the many choices was Sola Scriptura: you and your Bible alone assisted by the Holy Spirit.

  5. The 40,000 Christian denominations is the result of that principle! IN OTHER WORDS: their is no testable, provable unity possible relying on the Bible.

  The Elder making the offer of JW-dom or the highway had fallen into a trap himself. He bought the premise of Watchtower's thesis hook-line-and sinker.

  If Jehovah selected Bible Students under Rutherford for his own personal reasons--there is nothing we can do about that except cry out: WHAT ABOUT THE FALSE PROPHECIES??
  If Jehovah is willing to let that pass without comment--who are we to complain?