CAN'T FAIL !!!! QUOTE FROM THE ARTICLE
?In the last year or so, the Watchtower Society has encountered additional threats, and it has tried some new responses, most of them feckless?.
Can 'the truth' survive the Internet?
by Noumenon 41 Replies latest jw friends
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seven006
dostprefer,
Is there a new watchtower publication on how to show your ignorance on the Internet or are you just another brain dead JW with a computer shooting for legendary status?
No response will show it's either one or the other.
Dave
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Siddhashunyata
HERE'S THE REST OF MY INTENDED POST: QUOTE
"Meanwhile, the Society's foes continued building their own institutions. H2O remains, and it has been joined by other well-mounted message boards, such as the Jehovah's Witnesses Discussion Forum (jehovahs-witness.com). The conflict between the Internet and the Society is decidedly unequal. The Society's task is, first, to convince people that it has a comprehensive and fully consistent explanation of reality; then, to organize these people into a force that can support a vast profusion of things: printing plants, assembly halls, local churches, mortgages, investments, legal offices. The task of the Internet dissidents is simply to show that the Society's ideas aren't true, and to organize such inexpensive virtual institutions as may be useful in spreading that message. The dissidents have a considerable economic advantage".
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Robert K Stock
dostprefer:
The reason the Watchtower will not survive the internet is because the Watchtower crumbles in the light of freedom of expression. The internet gives individual Witnesses the means to check out what the Watchtower says and prove for themselves that the Watchtower lies, misleads and manipulates.
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stillajwexelder
I agree with Alan F - The WTBTS will not survive the internet - IN ITS CURRENT FORM -much like the Roman Catholic Church did not survive in its then form after the invention of the printing press
Lies never survive the free-flow of information
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Robert K Stock
Taylor S:
I am an honest person and value greatly the founding ideas of America. Republican democracy, freedom of expression and laissez-faire capitalism are great blessings to mankind from the American Revolution and the philosophy of the Enlightenment.
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stevenyc
Take a look at the list below. One in red is a possible reform, the yellow highlight is a current understanding of FDS doctrine. So would the FDS organism and its body survive the information age?
My thoughts are below the list.
Justification by faith -- Christ's sacrifice atones for all sins, and it is only necessary to believe in it to be saved. There is nothing humans can do by their own efforts to add or detract from it.
Both faith and good works (acts of devotion, charity, the sacraments, etc.) are necessary for salvation.
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The priesthood of all believers -- all believers have equal access to God and no other earthly intermediaries are needed. This does not mean that the flock does not need teachers, but there are no special sacramental functions belonging to any particular class.
The FDS is necessary as only the FDS can perform the sacraments necessary for spirtual health and correctly interpret the meaning of scripture
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The scriptures as the only source of true doctrine -- studying and understanding the scriptures is therefore important to all believers. Translating the Bible into the vernacular tongues and making it available to all is essential.
Scripture is only one way in which doctrine is revealed; the decisions of FDS councilsand letters to the BoE from the FDS are all part of it. Only the FDS can correctly interpret the meaning of scripture -- do not try this at home.
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Christ's sacrifice happend only once, and no repeat of that sacrifice is necessary. Although Calvinists and Lutherans believe God is present at the sacrament and it nourishes the faithful spiritually, the bread and wine are not literally the body and blood of Christ. The sacrament is only symbolic. Everyone takes both bread and wine.
The Eucharist is a mystery in which the sacrifice of Christ is reenacted; the bread and wine become spiritually transformed into the true body and blood of the Lord. Only FDS partake of the wine and bread
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God's foreknowledge and ominipotence mean that everyone is predestined to their fate: either to be or not to be one of the elect. Human action avails nothing.
God's omnipotence does not restrict human will, and each individual is still responsible for earning their own salvation.
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The Bible only documents two sacraments: baptism and the Lord's Supper. No FDS status is required to perform them, although ministers are necessary and useful to directing and guiding it.
There are seven sacraments: baptism, the memorial, confession, confirmation, marriage, proper food at the proper time, extreme unction . Of these, baptism can be performed by anyone in an emergency, and marriage is technically bestowed by the two partners on one another -- all the rest can only be performed by an elder.
I got the list for here;http://www.lepg.org/religion.htm; its regarding the reformation of the church. Yes, I did allow myself a little poetic license in the list changing some titles, but, its pretty close. The church survived the reformation. Before the reformation and the printing age no had access to the bible in an understandable language. It was a hidden secret of the church. I think (let me know if I'm wrong here) that against this was an act of herasy.
I'm not holding the WTBTS up to be as strong and as influential as the church 500 years ago, but I am saying that to an awful lot of people on a human level the hold is as strong. My thinking is that the FDS and the Corperations it bestows it earthly presence too will survive the information age, but not in its current form. It will have to change, and subtly, as mentioned in the article. In fact its already changing. It has been here before. Making the information available is only one link, all beit and important link, in the chain to pull it down. (reminds my on a watchtower picture of the mill stone).
- on a side thought, I found it quite amusing that the FDS's organization is closer the the catholic church of 1500 than the reformists.
steve.
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jeanniebeanz
Can it survive the automobile, tea bags, plastic bags, supermarkets, cell-phones is there anything else you would like to add to the list?
Dost, you use way too many false analogies. What was the point you were trying to make? Can you re-phrase your question so that it makes sense please?
Jeannie
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itsallgoodnow
I guess idiots like dostprefer prove there will be a few poor bastards still loyal long after everyone else has defected, these of course will eventually die off.
I was very impressed with the article you linked Noumenon. A nice outline of Watchtower history and why its leaders still have their heads stuck in their asses. Thanks for posting it.
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Whiskeyjack
I think the org. is doomed in the longer term but not because of the internet. All major "christian" religions are struggling to update their doctrine in order to keep up with the evolution of western society. As the west has become more civilised (individual rights versus the community at large) the old style philosophies or values that we inherited from our medieval ancestors appeals less and less in the face of reality (post war Europe for example).
As our sccieties continue this on this arc (if we don't kill ourselves off first) philosophical frameworks will evolve as well (United church for example) andgive rise to a more humanist/Buhdist style religion. I believe this is one of the reasons for so much interest in the Pope's health as conservatives fear a liberal faction gaining control of the papacy.
The internet is just another step in this logical progression.