Red,
While individuals within any organized religion may, indeed, be part of this covenant with God, I honestly don't believe that any particular creed can lay claim to the honor of being "God's people".
I couldn't agree more.
Posts by AhHah
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28God's People
by Frenchy ingods people.
this is in response to a question asked by martini on the thread reflections, page 4. for those who have not read it, the question is: is it true that the israelites were historically jehovah's chosen people...the israelites make the wts with all it's "warts" look like saints... or are we to deduce from this that jehovah is the kind of god that could accept and work with such wayward people today as he did in the past?
my response was, in a nutshell: yes, the israelites were gods chosen people.
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AhHah
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God's People
by Frenchy ingods people.
this is in response to a question asked by martini on the thread reflections, page 4. for those who have not read it, the question is: is it true that the israelites were historically jehovah's chosen people...the israelites make the wts with all it's "warts" look like saints... or are we to deduce from this that jehovah is the kind of god that could accept and work with such wayward people today as he did in the past?
my response was, in a nutshell: yes, the israelites were gods chosen people.
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AhHah
Amen!
Path,
I have been wondering exactly the same thing for some time now. Of course, this position casts doubt upon the degree to which all of the books that are included in the Bible must be understood to reveal the mind and will of God, versus the mind of God-fearing men who were subject to their Jewish (and Pharaisaical) influences.
I find it significant that the Gospel accounts themselves cannot be reasonably used to defend the authority of religious organizations. Christ intended to free his followers from those influences, not enslave them to yet another variation of them.
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AhHah
Simon,
Have you considered a banner for MYSIMON.COM?!
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28
God's People
by Frenchy ingods people.
this is in response to a question asked by martini on the thread reflections, page 4. for those who have not read it, the question is: is it true that the israelites were historically jehovah's chosen people...the israelites make the wts with all it's "warts" look like saints... or are we to deduce from this that jehovah is the kind of god that could accept and work with such wayward people today as he did in the past?
my response was, in a nutshell: yes, the israelites were gods chosen people.
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AhHah
Amen!
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28
God's People
by Frenchy ingods people.
this is in response to a question asked by martini on the thread reflections, page 4. for those who have not read it, the question is: is it true that the israelites were historically jehovah's chosen people...the israelites make the wts with all it's "warts" look like saints... or are we to deduce from this that jehovah is the kind of god that could accept and work with such wayward people today as he did in the past?
my response was, in a nutshell: yes, the israelites were gods chosen people.
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AhHah
Martini,
I believe that Frenchy and Path gave you some excellent points to think about in answer to your question.
Frenchy also raised a related question that I am sure that all of us have considered at one time or another:
Jesus’ words at his evening meal:This cup means the new covenant by virtue of my blood, which is to be poured out in YOUR behalf.” Was this covenant going to be with a nation of people again? Was this going to be with a particular nationality or cultural group? Was it going to be with a religious organization?
In spite of our JW indoctrination to believe that Christ taught that he would vest an earthly organization with authority over individual Christians, there is a lack of Scriptural basis for it. The entire emphasis of the Christian arrangement (as contrasted with the Law covenant arrangement with the Israelites as a nation) was on the individual Christian's covenant relationship.
The fact that Christians formed congregations for spiritual brotherhood is not an endorsement of any power in an organization. Even those whose spiritual maturity allowed them to be properly looked to for shepherding as elders were to be servants as opposed to rulers -- there is only one leader in the Christian arrangement, and that is Christ himself.
If you would like to read an exhaustive discussion on this subject I recommend the book "In Search of Christian Freedom" by Raymond Franz. The first five chapters and many following chapters deal with the question of a Christian organization with an authority structure, as contrasted with a brotherhood.
Edited by - AhHAh on 16 November 2000 13:17:22
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Seven ?
by Simon inhas anyone heard from seven?.
i've noticed she hasn't posted for a while.. let us know you're ok !
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AhHah
Seven,
Sorry to hear of your loss. Don't stay away too long! I have lost friends and family members to death, and I would guess that most who post here have also (based on age). My heart goes out to you.
When I come face to face with the death of someone close, it seems to "turn up the volume" inside of me about many of the threads that we have recently discussed on this forum. I realize more than ever that I cannot ignore vital questions about our nature and our existence.
It makes me rethink my priorities, and reflect on the blessing of each precious day of life, and how I choose to use it.
I also think about what is truly valuable in life and that we all have only a limited amount of time to devote to those things. Isn't it true that what we usually value the most are those things which we cannot buy? We value what we often do not seem to find time for in our busy lives. We all long for that which is meaningful, and yet we seem to have difficulty making those things a priority.
Somehow, we always think that we will have time later to show others how much we care about them and share our heart with them -- tell them all those things that we are feeling. When they are gone, we wonder why we waited. We wonder if they really knew how much we cared and why we valued them so much.
My father died unexpectedly at a young age. He had previously told my Mom that he didn't think that he was very well liked by most. At his JW memorial service, over 300 attended. Many drove in from other cities where we had lived. There was not enough seats, so they stood respectfully all around the KH during the service. Many later offered comments about how he helped them through difficult times in their life. How they felt that he had become a father to them. How much that they appreciated that he always let them know that he cared and that he proved it by being there for them. He was much more loved and respected than he ever knew. He was and is missed more than he could ever have imagined. I wish that he had known how much others cared, while he was alive.
Seven, please share your thoughts with us when you are ready. You are missed.
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Starting a band
by TR ini've been toying with the thought of starting a band.
so far it's a one-man band, for i know few in the music world where i live.
what i want to do is purchase a mixer so i can edit my own bass, drum and guitar tracts.
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AhHah
Tom,
What artists are most similar to the music you play? Do you write music/songs? Cool name. -- and would you spell it "Apostasy" or "Apostacy" -- any intended difference?
I fool around with the guitar -- I am not any good, but it amuses me sometimes. I have a Taylor acoustic 810 dreadnought (spruce and Brazilian rosewood) -- it plays very loud and clear, very bright and sweet sounding. I wish that I had more musical talent. When I have tried to put together some chord progressions to come up with a song, my mind remembers ten other songs with the same progressions and I can't get past them mentally. Does that make any sense to you?
How about you, Frenchy? Have you written many songs for guitar?
Any other musicians out there? What instruments do you play? Do you write songs?
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Seven ?
by Simon inhas anyone heard from seven?.
i've noticed she hasn't posted for a while.. let us know you're ok !
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AhHah
And RCat, too. Where y'at, Rcat? ... with Seven?
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Few deep thoughts or feelings
by TR init seems that most on this forum are deep thinkers.
there is much agonizing over the experiences each one has had.
there was trauma, crisis' of conscience, terrible things seen and done.
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AhHah
Carmel,
Very astute observations.
Why do you think that ex-JW's tend to stay stuck in a self-centered development mode? Is it mainly the residual fear that comes from attempting to break free from a cult that had "all the answers" and which even promised that faithful members would not even die?
What is the key understanding(s) that will allow ex-JW's to once again embrace life and love, to become self-actualizing?
I haven't read any Maslow, but it sounds interesting. For insights on this thread, which of his books would you recommend? "Toward a Psychology of Being"? "Religions, Values, and Peak Experiences"?
My interest was piqued by the following review:
Abraham Maslow doesn't pretend to have easy answers, absolutes, or solutions that bring the relief of finality—but he does have a deep belief in people. In this Third Edition of Toward a Psychology of Being (the original edition sold well over 100,000 copies), there is a constant optimistic thrust toward a future based on the intrinsic values of humanity. Professor Maslow states that, "This inner nature, as much as we know of it so far, seems not to be intrinsically evil, but rather either neutral or positively 'good.' What we call evil behavior appears most often to be a secondary reaction to frustration of this intrinsic nature." He demonstrates that human beings can be loving, noble, and creative, and are capable of pursuing the highest values and aspirations.
Edited by - AhHAh on 15 November 2000 1:14:51
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Witnet Admin Resigns
by Pathofthorns inmy hats off to the witnet administration team.
it is very sad to see them go, as the last few months have been quite interesting.
of course, those who follow the board know that in recent weeks there have been quite a few problems surfacing.. its obvious many of these individuals had concerns much like we have here.
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AhHah
Rebel without applause -- I think I saw that movie.