Mephis

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Posts by Mephis

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  30

  Original Sin / Salvation without a literal Adam and Eve?

  by Coded Logic in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  something i've never understood is if adam and eve are just metaphorical where did "original sin" come from.

  and, if there was no original sin, what is the value of jesus sacrifice?.

  i know a lot of christians believe in evolution but i've never understood how such a belief is structured.

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  Mephis

  Interesting idea. I've a lot of time for theories of things being handed down which may have a truth (of some sort) contained in them. Problem with that idea is that there's evidence of ritual (and worship?) in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A remains which have been found, which takes you to around 8000 BC and places us in Palestine as well as Mesopotamia and parts inbetween too. One of the main sites for them was the biblical Jericho, which was a town of a few thousand people even back then. If Gobekli Tepe is a religious site, and is also related to this culture/set of closely related cultures, then you could push that further back again by 1000 years or so. It's hard to reconcile the biblical narrative with that. Perhaps there was a theme being picked up on with roots in history and pre-history, but Genesis was likely written as far away in time from the start of recorded history as we currently are from when Genesis was written. (ie c.2600 years), so figuring it out from the bible is likely going to be very difficult. Possibly easier to start from the archaeology and work from that?

  (Paper on ritual within Pre-Pottery Neolithic written by one of the world's experts on the subject: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Adrian_Goring-Morris/publication/227138426_Foraging_Farming_and_Social_Complexity_in_the_Pre-Pottery_Neolithic_of_the_Southern_Levant_A_Review_and_Synthesis/links/53d888e40cf2631430c32337.pdf )
  
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  Article: USA TODAY - Doomsday Clock: 'Three minutes' left until the apocalypse

  by AndersonsInfo in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2016/01/26/doomsday-clock-countdown-humanitys-end-moves-today/79347584/.

  doomsday clock: 'three minutes' left until the apocalypse .

  the doomsday clock, a symbolic countdown to the world’s end, stands still at three minutes until midnight, scientists announced tuesday.. it remains at the position it moved to one year ago.. that the clock moves no closer to midnight, the indicated end of humanity, remains "grave" news, its makers stressed.. "unless we change the way we think, humanity remains in serious danger," said lawrence krauss of the bulletin of the atomic scientists, the nonprofit that sets the clock.

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  Mephis

  I remember very well the early 80s cold war paranoia, especially with the Reagan ramp-up. Agree with you Zappa-esque, they loved that clock. Was quite the thing generally though - you see it in things like The Watchmen which also tap into that 99 Luftballoons angst. Wouldn't surprise me whatsoever if the WBTS starts ramping up environmental concerns as their new 'things can't go on much longer' idea.

  The clock moved forward by 2 minutes to 11:53 after 9/11. But not solely because of 9/11. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/1844935.stm
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  14

  Book Review: The Watchtower Society, Organizational Misbehavior

  by johnny depp in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  this is the way crisis of conscience should have been written.

  finally, a book written on the watchtower society by someone who actually knows how to write!

  after reading the subheading, “the psychology of jehovah’s witnesses,” (pages 160–182), i have abandoned the belief that we have an “unconscious,” and will never again consult any psychologist, psychiatrist, or counselor.

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  Mephis

  Hawking those books again? Quick question for you Johnny - any idea what happened to Ibarra's first book (which was on Lulu but no more) called Hystory of the Gregorian Calendar? Was that any good?
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  30

  Original Sin / Salvation without a literal Adam and Eve?

  by Coded Logic in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  something i've never understood is if adam and eve are just metaphorical where did "original sin" come from.

  and, if there was no original sin, what is the value of jesus sacrifice?.

  i know a lot of christians believe in evolution but i've never understood how such a belief is structured.

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  Mephis

  Origen's views seem to place him as seeing Adam as being both historical fact (eg in the preface of De Principiis Adam is listed alongside Moses and Abraham etc as a historical figure) as well as something of an allegory. Origen also pushes something which seems close to the idea of inherited sin requiring a ransom sacrifice, but it's not the whole Adventist interpretation Russell was plugged into. (Commentary on Romans is where Origen ends up trying to square circles of Pauline doctrine on sin.)
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  35

  Evolution is a Fact #11 - Tiktaalik

  by cofty in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  one of the biggest gulfs that life has had to cross was the transition from sea to dry land.. fish have conical shaped heads, reptiles have flat heads.

  fish have no necks; their heads are attached to their shoulders by a series of bony plates.

  land-dwelling animals all have necks; their heads can move independently of their shoulders.

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  Mephis

  "There's no transitional fossils"

  "We found some!"

  "Those don't count because you were looking for them and predicted beforehand where they'd be found."

  "We're off to play chess with pigeons"
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  133

  What are the biggest holes in evolution?

  by shadow in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  how honest are the proponents of evolution?

  idk but curious to see what type of response there is on a topic like this or does their study only seek to confirm their preconceptions and ignore uncomfortable facts?

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  Mephis

  It's curious reading that Cold Steel. For me, that uncertainty, that possibility to improve knowledge is a positive thing. So things changing, based on evidence, isn't so much 'egg on its face' but the willingness to perform evaluation and take the world as it is. A new fact can shift the foundations of a discipline. That's exciting, not a sign of failure. Science is evidence driven, as are humanities where evidence plays a role. Knowledge builds upon knowledge. There's rarely anything which doesn't require work done by others to provoke, inspire or create the foundations.

  But, saying that, there's frequently fundamentals which will never be totally shifted because they have been proven to be accurate descriptions of how things are. Evolution for biology is as gravity to astronomy. It works, and it's moved into being applied science now. We are creating medicines using our knowledge of evolution. Took 250 years and another genius to figure out the 'why' of gravity. It didn't invalidate Newton's original conclusion or stop his calculations working in the meantime. Quite like how Newton summed it up. "It is enough that gravity does really exist and acts according to the laws I have explained, and that it abundantly serves to account for all the motions of celestial bodies" - Newton.
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  133

  What are the biggest holes in evolution?

  by shadow in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  how honest are the proponents of evolution?

  idk but curious to see what type of response there is on a topic like this or does their study only seek to confirm their preconceptions and ignore uncomfortable facts?

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  Mephis

  Well, Your Honor, we have plenty of hearsay and conjecture. Those are kinds of evidence.

  
  

  
  
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  66

  New Light: Clap when it is given a Reinstatement ad

  by TheTruthBR in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  a new letter was posted in jw.org to the elders who are under the brazilian branch:.

  january 25, 2016to all bodies of eldersref .

  : clap when given a readmission addear brothers:we would like to inform you about a recent adjustment.

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  Mephis

  That's even creepier :D Maybe have the reinstated person's songbook sing about how happy it is to be back at meetings? ;)
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  66

  New Light: Clap when it is given a Reinstatement ad

  by TheTruthBR in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  a new letter was posted in jw.org to the elders who are under the brazilian branch:.

  january 25, 2016to all bodies of eldersref .

  : clap when given a readmission addear brothers:we would like to inform you about a recent adjustment.

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  Mephis

  "There are scriptual reasons..."

  For 15 years there weren't. And then there were, again. Farce of a cult. Lovebombing reinstatement video out soon then?
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  38

  2016-1-25-BOE on Applause or Clapping!

  by Atlantis in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  just in case someone wanted this letter for their records.

  .. http://postimg.org/image/dn44a9m9h/.

  .. petra!.

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  Mephis

  Looks like worldwide 'new light (looks a bit like the old light)' then. Thanks Atlantis. Wonder whether it's all linked with the whole farce they're doing with those who've faded currently. Elders will make sure every fader gets a brochure etc etc.