Can a righteous God be one-sided?

by RULES & REGULATIONS 16 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  RULES & REGULATIONS

  A mother and her four young daughters — the oldest of whom was 6 — died in a residential fire Wednesday morning in Des Plaines, IL. officials said.

  Four young children and one adult were killed in a house fire in the 700 block of West Oakton Street in Des Plaines, Jan. 27, 2021.
  

  

  After 45 years as a Jehovah's Witness, this tragic story really has me really questioning if there really is a God? If there is, why didn't God help this family find a way to walk away from the burning house. The father was not home at the time of the fire to help his family walk out safely. He now faces the rest of his life without his wife and four small children.

  IN THE MEAN TIME IN WATCHTOWER LAND:

  Jehovah is credited with delivering the needed sand by the means of a typhoon that misses the island but with the high winds and the churning of the water, sand is deposited onto the local streets. The local village chiefs tell the Witness construction committee they can have all the sand if they clear all the sand off the streets. The project gets completed.
  

  
  

  ''Without Jehovah's hand in it....like we've seen before, we wouldn't accomplish what we've been able to accomplish.''

  ''How exciting for the brothers in Micronesia. Our contributions are important but only when coupled with Jehovah's blessing.''
  
  
  
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  PhilosophicalLogic

  So you're questioning the existence of God? Are you still a Jehovah's Witness, or are you a member of some other faith?
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  RULES & REGULATIONS

  So you're questioning the existence of God? Are you still a Jehovah's Witness, or are you a member of some other faith?

  I was a Jehovah's Witness for 45 years and left 9 years ago. I do not attend any other denomination, nor intend to study any other religion. After joining this site 16 years ago, I have read more threads about the Bible and discussed more issues than when I was a Jehovah's Witness.

  I read all the Noah, Cain and Abel, Samson, Jonah, Job, David and Goliath and the hundreds of Bible accounts and really believed they were all true when I was a Jehovah's Witness. After debating and reading all the different points of views on this site, I now believe all these accounts are man- made fabrications. After you dissect all these Bible accounts, you realize how silly they are.

  I do not believe in the big bang theory, that we came from apes or we came from nothing. I believe there was a designer. However, little by little every day I ask myself, '' Can a righteous God be one sided?
  

  This thread I started really punched me in the gut a couple of days ago. After being taught and believing how Jehovah blesses Witnesses in field service, protecting us from Satan and having the Governing Body direct us and guide us in all spiritual manners, how can God bless people in such a minor detail? If God sends angels to direct the preaching work, why didn't God direct the angels in helping this family escape this tragic fire? How is the husband going to live the rest of his life without his wife and four children? Is God partial or impartial?

  I don't knows the answer any more. I have become an agnostic!
  
  
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  truth_b_known

  Rules & Regulations:

  What you are struggling with this the cognitive dissonance created by Western culture (which is heavily influenced by Judeo-Christian belief systems) and reality. In Judeo-Christian teachings the god of the Bible is "good" and "love". The god of the bible only created things that are good. Anything not good is disobedient mankind's fault.

  As a rational human being it does not compute that a benevolent, all powerful, higher consciousness that is only capable of good would allow innocent people to be hurt or killed. The cognitive dissonance shown by mainstream Protestant sects of Christianity tries to explain all that is "bad" in the world and ends up as a pile of rubbish. There is a good reason for that - the answers don't lie in Judeo-Christian belief structures.

  That is not to say that it is all useless. I can't argue with ideas such as -

  • Feed the poor
  • Care for the sick
  • Love your enemies

  I was born and raised as one of Jehovah's Witnesses. I got out through a slow fade. Then I came to the realization it was all nonsense. I became a nihilistic anti-theist for years. That took a huge toll on me.

  I started studying Eastern religions and philosophies. The idea found in Hinduism, but especially Taoism and Buddhism struck a chord with me. Especially since they are rational structures that fit in with science.

  Is there a god? The only honest and accurate answer I can give is - I don't know. I am open to the idea. I don't need to know to be happy.

  I believe throughout mankind's history there are individuals who somehow gained some sort of enlightenment. They tried to share that enlightenment using the ideas that already existed in their culture. Then people took that knowledge and distorted it into rigid systems called "religion".
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  EverApostate

  A JW family of 5 I think, died in a plane crash near Buffalo -New York sometime in 2009. The plane stalled and fell from the sky spiraling down and critics said that was the most frightening death.

  How about the thousands of JWs that were systematically tortured and killed in Nazi camps.

  And there are incidents where JWs were mauled by dogs and died in road accidents, during field service

  And Jehovah watches these silently ?

  A rational thinking person would not accept it
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  Sea Breeze

  God did not create such a world where accidents are impossible to occur; just as he did not give us free-will and then make it impossible to choose unwisely or frivolously.
  
  He did however, create us in his image with an immortal soul so that continued existence with him would not be extinguished in cases of such unfortunate events.
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  Rocketman123

  The truthful and honest answer to this posed question is that there never was a god or gods as it were, humanity has had an inherent ignorance which created gods through are imagination, hoping and pleading for help to these supposed supernatural deities has carried on for millenniums.

  No supernatural deity has so far intervened to date.
  

  Terrible things happen to the best of us, as well the worst of us, this is the reality to which we must endure.

  It really is up to us to cope and endure what problems we face.

  It is are own responsibility for are continuing survival.
  
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  Sea Breeze

  Rocketman,
  
  With all due respect, that is not an answer, that is a pre-supposition. The OP already pre-supposes God.
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  EverApostate

  He did however, create us in his image

  If we were created in gods Image, shouldnt we all be invisible.

  Why do we feel hunger, thirst, get diseases, suffer and die if we were created in his image.

  Suffering and death due to Eve eating an apple, because a snake told to do so. Thats a silly fairy tale.

  Immortal soul - Just a wishful thinking of humans.
  
  
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  Rocketman123

  With all due respect, that is not an answer, that is a pre-supposition. The OP already pre-supposes God.

  Then the question should entail why has god let mankind suffer for over 2000 years when he sent his only begotten son to cure and rid humanity of its troubles and perils ?

  Could it possibly be that this son of god Jesus Christ was a man made fictionalized story albeit a heart felt appealing one ?

  Since Jesus himself said when speaking to his then followers that many of you will not experience death.

  So all these things were to occur at the time of him speaking.

  As far as we know none these things occured, all of his followers died.

  Is lying a righteous virtue ?