The flood and wars in the scriptures - waste of lives?

by menrov 10 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  menrov

  I have been thinking and was eventually wondering about the following:

  Did the flood and all wars in the scriptures eventually bear the fruits that God hoped for? Is evil gone among humans? Do we all worship the same God in the same way? How many lives have been lost and how many people have suffered due to these acts of God? You would expect that the many efforts by God to protect his people and to spread the approved way of life would have resulted in a much better world.

  Would this in itself, these facts, not be enough proof that these events were not driven / organized by an almighty God?
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  phoenixrising

  Most main stream Christian religions are milk toast. They preach love, don't take your neighbors wife or cow ect. They skip the bat crap crazy BS that is most of the bible. Lot a few miles out of the city having to have sex with his daughters, Jephthah burning his daughter as a sacrifice for god helping him win a battle, god asking Abraham to sacrifice his son but not really. God killing a baby as punishment for King David killing a man and taking his wife. Its full of crazy ass nonsense.
  
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  eyeuse2badub

  The Noahain flood killing everything that breathed except for the thousands of animals (lol-lol) on the ark, 1 angel killing 185,000 soldiers in 1 night, drowning the Egyptian army at the Red Sea, killing 70,000 Israelites because David took a census-----all bullshit myths that prove that GOD IS LOVE!

  Not!

  just saying!
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  EverApostate

  Noahs Flood - Myth borrowed from more ancient myths

  Wars - Most, if not all of the wars and genocides in the Bible are baseless and does not carry any historical proof. Mainly written for religious propaganda.
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  Finkelstein

  Would this in itself, these facts, not be enough proof that these events were not driven / organized by an almighty God?

  Yes of course when one applies intellectual honesty with today's knowledge base of ancient civilizations.
  

  This is to be expected since these stories were mythological expressions by people who had no other avenue to explain what was happening on earth and toward themselves at that time, god(s) gave that necessary answer or explanation..

  Human ignorance is an indefensible fact.
  
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  truth_b_known

  The reality is, most of these events never took place, and those that did were not as a result of a god. Most of the Old Testament was created as a fictitious backstory to a nation that was created in captivity of the Persians.

  A Canaanite tribe did not want to lose it's cultural identity while in captivity of a foreign power. They made up this story that they were a special people belonging to what they dubbed as the only true god. Thus the gods of their forefathers were turned into the YHWY of the Bible.

  Is this evidence that no divine being exists. No. It just means that the Bible is a man made book. It contains persons and events that never happened. Thanks to Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation we have literally thousands of "Christian" denominations that all believe every word of the Bible is true. The Catholic Church does not teach this. The Catholic Church even openly accepts evolution and abiogenesis as the origin of man.

  The reality is, every "church" that is not part of the Catholic Church is a form of idolatry.
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  Finkelstein

  The bible eventually became an open book of self interpretation, that's why there are hundreds of Christian based sects in existence today.

  Self interpretation is how these sects came to be such as the JWS, this sect was built and expanded by literature proliferation, where the leaders self interpreted the bible for themselves, which happen to involve a publishing house they owned and operated.

  The model is such, create your own interpretation then coerce and lure in others to believe these unique interpretations, demean all other interpretations or doctrines and you have a structured organized religion ie, JWS
  
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  waton

  not in hThe reality is, every "church" that is not part of the Catholic Church is a form of idolatry.

  tbk: there is no more blatantly idolatrous outfit than the RC church, but so what?

  wars not in the bible waste of lives too, did not contribute to evolutionary selection.
  
  
  
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  Sea Breeze

  You would expect that the many efforts by God to protect his people and to spread the approved way of life would have resulted in a much better world.

  I don't think many bible-believers would agree with this. God has always stated that although man is capable of great good, he has a sin nature. Man sins because it is his nature to do so. God is not at all surprised.

  He could of course wipe out evil immediately and instantly have a "much better world". All he has to do is to forcibly take away our free will.

  Evil is a necessary consequence of total free will. The new testament offer is an invitation for individuals to willingly give up a small portion of their free will in exchange for immortality and great freedom to engage in all kinds of endeavors that are not against his limited expressed, or permissive will.
  
  When NT believers are eventually glorified in heaven, they will be clothed in immortality and it will be impossible for them to sin. But their free-will will be dramatically expanded to explore the endlessness of God's permissive will.
  
  Unfortunately the Watchtower indoctrinates their members that this isn't even an option.
  
  
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  the girl next door

  If God created us in his image, does he have a slightly sinful tendency or nature too? Why would he give us something he did not have?