Narkissos

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Posts by Narkissos

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  37

  Losing the Truth in Bible Translations?

  by ApagaLaLuz in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  here's something i wanted to throw out for debate.

  there is a line in a smashing pumpkins song that says "something always gets lost in the translation.

  " how true of a translation of the bible do you think you can find?

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  Narkissos

  Chevysntats: If this was really your point your introduction to the thread was somewhat misleading IMO.

  If the question is: "What really happened from the (supposed) beginning of the world down to, say, the 2nd century CE?", clearly the answer won't be found in the texts gathered in what we call the Bible, even if you can read them in their original languages and need no translation at all. At most you could find some clues which would have to be confronted to external data. Whatever the case translation is hardly at stake.

  If the question is: "Are the final texts, as were accepted on one side by early Rabbinical judaism and on the other side by the early Catholic Church during the 2nd century CE, accurately translated into modern languages", it is an altogether different question which calls for more nuanced answers.

  One important factor in the discussion is that many Biblical texts just don't MEAN to be historical.
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  7

  The Secret

  by TuningFork in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  we have entered "new energy", so to speak - a paradigm shift.

  shall we continue to "search" for the ever-eluding transcendent state of being (beyond mind) or become "still" (beyond transcendence)?

  taittiriya upanishad.

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  Narkissos

  Enjoyed this thread.

  "Life is like water. If you soften the hollow of your hand, you keep it; if you clasp your fist, you lose it." (French writer Jean Giono, recording a saying from traditional water diviners in the southeast of France.)
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  16

  Birthday lament

  by mike047 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  first, let me say; i am not looking for congrat's, hugs, empathy or sympathy.

  this just my thoughts on my life.

  today, i am 55 years old.

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  Narkissos

  Mike,

  Greetings from another spot in Nowhere Land.

  There is more to life than what we can see of it from an individual and present perspective (and I don't mean any religious hereafter). We are continuing the history of so many people we met and still carry within ourselves. And our life goes on in so many others to whom we have given something of ourselves.

  I'm not religious anymore, but I still treasure the following sentence from Paul: "Nobody lives just for himself, nobody dies just for himself." (Romans 14:7).

  Take care,

  Narkissos
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  18

  The Sin of Sodom & Gomorrah in the Bible and Jewish Tradition

  by Leolaia in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  i'm starting this thread to post some of my articles that originally appeared on a jokes thread which should probably better appear in the "bible research & study articles" folder.

  so here goes...... what was the sin, or sin(s) that sodom & gormorrah was judged for?

  the original account in genesis actually does not say.

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  Narkissos

  Thanks for your reply Leolaia. One thing I never thought of is the role of the (Deuteronomistic and later) megahistory in the very formation of the narrative doublets from earlier (oral or written) material. Sounds very promising.
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  19

  Star of Bethlehem

  by undercover in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the bible, only in matthew(i think) speaks of the star that the astrologers followed to find the baby jesus.

  the wts has claimed that this star obviously was a product of satan, since the astrolgers first wound up in jersusalem, met herod, who conspired with them to locate the baby.

  after that, the astrologers continued on to bethlehem.. a couple of questions:.

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  Narkissos

  http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/6/62912/1.ashx
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  12

  How do jws explain what happened 2 the Noah flood waters?

  by badboy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  where did all that water go that supposedly covered the earth?

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  Narkissos

  The Global Flush was the Great Plumber's biggest achievement ever.
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  37

  Losing the Truth in Bible Translations?

  by ApagaLaLuz in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  here's something i wanted to throw out for debate.

  there is a line in a smashing pumpkins song that says "something always gets lost in the translation.

  " how true of a translation of the bible do you think you can find?

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  Narkissos

  Translation is a part of Scripture. In the Jewish Bible at least two languages are involved (Hebrew and Aramaic). The writers of the New Testament only knew the former texts by means of a Greek translation (the Septuagint). What they quote as "Scripture" is often very different from any possible "original meaning".

  When I was in Bethel I had the opportunity to work with the "brother" who translated the NWT into French. Unlike what happened in other languages, he was conscientious enough to learn Hebrew and Greek for his task. That's the reason why the French NWT only was published in 1974. He was a very honest translator, but he knew he was compelled in many by the options of the English NWT.

  Later I came to work in a Protestant Bible translation team. There were scholars (and clergy) from different denominations, with very antagonistic approaches to the Bible. But usually it was not very difficult to agree on a translation issue, provided other possibilities were given in the footnotes.

  I just recall the Pentecostal pastor working in the team saying two different things about translation. According to him, to translate the Bible one had to be a "born-again Christian" (to understand it "from the inside", on his view) AND an "atheist" (for the sake of honesty). I liked this idea very much...
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  93

  Thinking of becoming a JW - Need urgent honest advice!!!

  by natalienu in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have met a wonderful man but unfortunately he is a jw.

  i have never been interested or really ever been around any religion in my life so all of this right now is very fascinating to me.

  i have been thinking of studying to become one but am also having a hard time finding anything on the net that is positive about it.

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  Narkissos

  Welcome Nat!

  Honestly: don't.

  You will learn a lot here about what JWs really are. But you also need to work on formulating your own view of life and trust it. It is of more value to you than any supposed religious "truth". If your JW loves you he will love it.

  Take care,

  Narkissos
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  63

  A New View of the Trinity

  by Eugene Shubert in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  for everyone's convenience, i've summarized my synthesis into a short number of postulates.

  please tell me which of my propositions are provably false and therefore biblically inadmissible.. the godhead is a heavenly trio of three living persons: the father, the son, and the holy spirit (matthew 28:19, 3:13-17, 2 corinthians 13:14, ephesians 4:4-6, 1 peter 1:2 and revelation 1:4,5).the father is all the fullness of the godhead bodily, and is invisible to mortal sight.the son is all the fullness of the godhead manifested (colossians 2:9 cf.

  john 1:1).

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  Narkissos

  Leolaia: Great!

  Two brief remarks:

  1. The Johannine Community must be used as a very wide-embracing concept in order to include Revelation AND the Gospel (which are ideologically very different). However, even if they have to be described as sort of "cousins", what you say about the history of traditions and sources still stands (and agrees perfectly with what I have found on James).

  2. On the "divinity of Christ", I agree that the Johannine view was certainly in tune with the religious feeling of a number of Hellenistic believers, as reflected in the liturgical hymns. It is obvious ideed in Colossians, the atmosphere of which is pretty akin to mystery cults on one side and Gnosticism on the other side...

  - And a practical question: Do you know of useful on-line sites for research in Patrology, History of Interpretation and related matters? I'm rather new on the Internet and my personal library is very limited.

  Thank you again,

  Narkissos
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  21

  Caption Competition!!!!!

  by Gadget in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i noticed this christian shop when i was up at my aunts in scotland a few weeks ago, what do you think?

  any good captions for it?

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  Narkissos

  The Lord is coming?