There is a wide agreement now between major critical scholars that the Exodus & Conquest story is but one of the many elements of the Israelite historical reconstruction, in which the so-called "Foreign-Israel-vs-Native-Canaan" scheme is nothing but a fiction tending to back up the claims of the "Judeans / Jews", i.e. the returnees from Babylon gathered around Jerusalem, against the "people of the land", i.e. Israelites who never went into captivity, gathered around the Persian administrative capital in Samaria. In fact, the only history behind the Biblical text is the Palestinian history from 6th century BC onwards. Pharaoh Merneptah's stela, in the 14th century BC, mentions "Israel" amongst defeated peoples in Canaan: were the Exodus & Conquest story historical that would not be possible.
Narkissos
JoinedPosts by Narkissos
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The Israelites never escaped captivity.
by Makaveli ina major event accepted by christians, jews and muslims around the world is that moses led an exodus from the clutches of pharoah and egypt into the promised land.
many doubters of this story conclude that this was merely a peasants revolt, not one led by some kind of god.
fortunately, we have new evidence that suggests otherwise.
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Reading the Bible as Literature? A more modern approach
by frankiespeakin inreading the bible as literature, is something that scholars have been doing for quite some time.
below is a link, to 13 introductory pages, to the book " how to read the bible as literature".
the 13 introductory pages, make some valid points.
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Narkissos
I'm really enthusiastic about the idea (in fact it is my only possible connection with the Bible right now), but this definition of "literature" looks a bit narrow to me ...
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What a difference a word makes!
by ozziepost init's just a little word, nothing special, we use it every day, but how it can change people's thinking!
and how it can be used to "support" a teaching!
what's the word?
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Narkissos
Well, I don't know whether "through" and "in" makes such a big difference. What I do remember is that my first and last Judicial Committee hearing (strange word isn't it? It seems to me the appointed "elders" did everything but hearing), in 1986, began with the words, "Well, we called you because we think you are talking too much about Jesus," and ended with disfellowshipment on the grounds of 2Jn 9-11... It really made me laugh however sad I was. When you are used to read an organization's doctrine into a text, what the text plainly states doesn't matter anymore...
Speaking of word changes, I was definitely shocked when "God's Spirit" was replaced with "Organization" in the questions for baptism, in the early 80's. That was a meaningful change for sure...
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Was Satan Cast Out of Heaven in 1914?
by Kenneson inaccording to jws christ established his kingdom in the heavens in 1914 and subsequently cast satan out of heaven then.
and they point to rev.
12:7-9 for "proof.
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Narkissos
Perhaps the poor guy forgot to pay the rent (to the heavenlord)...
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The world is bad the end is nigh - or is it?
by anglise inbrilliant site showing the history of the apocalypse.
http://www.abhota.info/end1.htm
according to isaac asimov's book of facts (1979), an assyrian clay tablet dating to approximately 2800 bc was unearthed bearing the words "our earth is degenerate in these latter days.
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Narkissos
"Do not say, 'Why were the former days better than these? For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.'" (Ecc 7:10).
Well, there can be something smart in the Bible too!
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Reading Apostate Literature.
by Blueblades in.
the wt.society forbids the reading of apostate literature.. they claim that all religions have apostatized.. they claim that the catholic church is an apostate religion.. yet they use the bible that they ( the church ) canonized during the face off of which books should be canonized and which ones should not.. simply put, how does the wt.society know which books are inspired and which ones are not?.
blueblades
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Narkissos
That's a good question, not only for JWs, but for all Protestants as well. Luther's motto "sola scriptura", calling upon "Scripture" against "Tradition" when "Scripture" is only known as such through Tradition, has rightly been called the Achilles' heel of Protestantism.
The 16th Century Reformers were Humanists first: they would never have condemned reading and knowledge. Unfortunately, a few generations later, their "Scripture" doctrine only led to ignorance of everything but the "Bible canon", with the side effect that what is called "the Bible" appears as a monolith fallen from nowhere (I mean heaven, of course!). I remember one Evangelical student in theology tearing away the deuterocanonical books from his Jerusalem Bible (he used that one because he liked the format). Silly, isn't it?
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Calling God By His Name?
by shamus inwhy do jehovahs witnesses insist on calling god jehovah?
would you call your father, dad, or whatever by his first name?.
if we were created by god and he is indeed our "heavenly father", then would it not be blasphemous to call him by his first name?.
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Narkissos
Historically IMHO the question is not really whether God may be called Yhwh (whatever the vowels) but how the old god Yhwh ever came to be "God".
Just to recall Friedrich Nietzche's saying (unauthorized translation): "The gods are dead: they died laughing when they heard one of them proclaiming he was the only one."
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Narkissos
Well, I could think of a hundred reasons (doctrinal ones, for instance) but the real motivation behind them was love. Love (of any kind) can change your way of seeing things (including the Bible).
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The Case For God
by Farkel ina caterpillar.
although there are many more examples in nature for wonderment, the caterpillar is spectacularly unique.
imagine one animal changing into an entirely different species in just a few months;from a multi-legged ugly grub into a stunningly beautiful winged insect.
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Narkissos
Well, folks, don't forget that the idea of "God" emerged in the 6th Century BC. Caterpillars apparently managed without it before...
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The Case For God
by Farkel ina caterpillar.
although there are many more examples in nature for wonderment, the caterpillar is spectacularly unique.
imagine one animal changing into an entirely different species in just a few months;from a multi-legged ugly grub into a stunningly beautiful winged insect.
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Narkissos
Well, folks, don't forget that the idea of "God" emerged in the 6th Century BC. Caterpillars apparently managed without it before...