Big Bang or Big Bust?

by redvip2000 11 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  redvip2000

  I noticed on the October issue of the Awake magazine a much softer stance on the Big Bang theory. Now, i'm not sure if officially the Org was ever against this theory ( I did not find much on this), but i do recall on a congregation level, there was constant mockery from JWs about the idea that universe was the result of a big initial explosion.

  We now see a softer position on this. As the Org now explains:

  "The Bible simply says: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1) It does not comment on exactly how God created everything. So even if a cosmic explosion produced our universe, that would not contradict what is stated in the Bible."

  Interestingly enough, the title of the article is about evolution, although they lead with a piece about the big bang. It is still mostly negative about the concept of organisms evolving, but if you can get past the numerous scientific inaccuracies you can detect a softer stance in expressions like saying that the bible accounts for organisms changing over time.

  Yes, they still deny macro evolution and instead refer to the changes as "adaptations".

  It's really a desperate attempt at conciliating proven science with their dogma, and I think it's detrimental to the JW community because it murks the waters by creating a half truth that in many JWs minds could erroneously satisfy the questions and doubts many JWs might have on the subject.
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  redvip2000

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  Saintbertholdt

  Hi redvip2000,

  The Watchtower organization has never been against the theory of the Big Bang. They don't deny that the universe is billions of years old but then have a huge disconnect when it comes to biological evolution. For some reason the universe can take billions of years to arrive at its current state, but life can only take thousands of years. I always thought that was weird that creation days had to be thousands of years but could not be millions of years.

  From the 15 October 1950 Watchtower, Physical Heavens Declare God’s Glory

  "This means that these stars are so far away that the light that left them 1,100,000,000 years ago is just now reaching our globe. So in view of such astronomical facts, such distances, how much greater than time and space and all that fill them must Jehovah God be! What powers of communication he must possess! For moment by moment he knows what is going on in the most distant corner of infinity."

  
  
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  Vidiot

  I've watched The Big Bang Theory.

  Kaley Cuoco is very pretty, but she doesn't have a big bust.
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  DesirousOfChange

  As they moderate so as to not look totally ridiculous, they will claim that this is what they always taught.

  Doc
  
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  LostGeneration

  I don't think anyone is steering the ship as to WTF they actually believe about anything that has to do with science. Not so surprising when you consider the educational level of the average WT writer.

  They are getting their asses handed to them on the subject, as kids grow up and leave the b0rg based on scientific evidence. I'm sure its getting back to them at HQ that people learn about evolution, the big bang, all the rest and thus leave Jehobo. So they throw stuff out via the Awake and hope it sticks to the wall. Of course most of it is made up as they go along, like the recent stuff about "not being creationists". OK, whatever.
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  Heaven

  So even if a cosmic explosion produced our universe, that would not contradict what is stated in the Bible."

  While this statement is true, The Big Bang Theory does not include an explosion. This is a common misconception of the theory. So Botchtower did not bother to actually read a Science paper or article on what it really is.
  

  The Big Bang Theory speaks of an initial point of singularity followed by a sudden burst of inflation or expansion. The expansion is still occurring today. While it is the most popular theory of the origin of the universe, it is not the only one.
  

  I recently read this interesting article on the Theory: Big Bang Deflated?
  
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  OnTheWayOut

  Watchtower's biggest enemy is the Bible. Their chronology was invented when virtually all Christians took the Genesis/Exodus account quite literally. So if they can find an out that makes them more in line with widely accepted science, they take it. All they need is "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." No time frame, no details.

  After that, it all has to follow the Bible. They did their best to make it sound decent and normal, but they just cannot get past the writings that say that animals were made separately and according to their kinds and that humans were the offspring of Adam and Eve, who were totally created separately from all other creation.

  Because they use "original sin" as a reason to need Jesus and a time chart that depends on Adam being 6000 years old in 1975, they cannot simply drop it.
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  redvip2000

  @Saintbertholdt

  I'm not sure if they were ever officially against it, although to be fair your Watchtower quote has nothing to do with the big bang theory.

  
  

  I do know that on an individual level, most JWs are against the idea of a big bang being the origin of the universe.
  
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  redvip2000

  Kaley Cuoco is very pretty, but she doesn't have a big bust.

  
  Yeah, not a fan of the short hair she has now either.