Posts by Inquisitor

23

Trinity discussion - link me up please

by Inquisitor in

i remember once reading someone's post where he/she used an excellent scripture that strongly suggests that jesus is god.

i think the point was that jesus was going to raise "the temple" which is his body, i.e.

jesus will resurrect himself.

Inquisitor

Wow, it was pure accident that i stumbled back here! I'd thought that everyone's given up on this thread.

Thank you so much cabasilas!!

I've yet to read what's on the website you directed me to, but it looks promising.

INQ

23

Jehovah's Witnesses are not Fundamentalists

by JeffT in

http://www.deceptioninthechurch.com/5doctrines.html.

the five basic doctrines.

1. the trinity: god is one "what" and three "whos" with each "who" possessing all the attributes of deity and personality.

Inquisitor

My point in bringing this up is that people who call themselves "Fundamentalists" in a Christian text, have a specific idea of what they mean by that statement, that I believe is frequently misused by some people.

A fundamentalist is one who tells others that he/she knows the "true" meaning of the scriptures (back to the fundamentals) and knows the one true path to salvation. In the fundamentalist's mind, everyone else has deviated from the divine word and is condemned by their deviant practices and heretical beliefs.

Now by that modern definition, JWs ARE fundamentalists.

It no longer matters what the fundamental beliefs are. That is no longer a requirement to be a fundamentalist. That may have been the historical definition of a fundamentalist, but it is no longer the one that comes to mind when someone is labelled such. Our society has changed the meaning of that word to capture the essence of what is a fundamentalist.

It works the same way with the word "gay". If you declared that you're feeling gay today, people are less likely to think that you're feeling an emotional high. That is not a "frequent misuse" of the meaning of the word. Sure, you can preach till you're smurf blue, that the historical meaning of "gay" is such and such. But your defnition cannot change the etymological evolution of these words.

To think you can is to think like a fundamentalist, where you must be right because the world is wrong.

INQ

23

Can the JWs really be called Christians?

by greendawn in

given the jehovah centred approach of the jws and the marginalisation of christ at least as compared to mainstream christian religions, the extreme reliance on the old testament and particularly the refusal of nearly all jws to participate in the new covenent, should they be thought of as christians at all?

even though they like to call themselves at times: christian (?!

) jehovah's witnesses.

Inquisitor

Is partaking of the eucharist really so crucial in determining one's Christian credentials?

Those who wish to expel the JWs from their definition of "Christian" have excelled in pointing out how aberrant are Dub beliefs, but have they factored in that JWs are modestly acquainted with the Bible? That JWs go from door to door in an attempt to carry out Jesus' commands? That more than most mainstream Christians, JWs have followed (too?) strictly Jesus' anti-materialistic way of life?

I'm not saying that these make them "good" or "true" Christians or whatever title you crown yourselves with, but I'm saying that these traits make it hard to see WHY they are NOT Christian.

Those who dismiss that JWs are Christian ought to remember that in the Gospels, the apostles who were jostling to be as close as possible to Jesus' seat of power in heaven were told off by their Lord.

INQ

32

Watchtower Evolution Fraud

by Amazing in

jw
friends

the watchtower society first published a book on evolution in the late 1960s or early 1970s, simply known as the evolution book.

it is a small hardbound book, the same in size at the old "truth" book.

other than reading it, i never really studied it.

Inquisitor

skeptic2

The Huxley quote reminded me of a JW acquaintance.

When it became the time to place the blue Evolution or Creation book, a bossy elder would often challenge householders with what he felt was a thought-provoking question:

"Do you think your ancestors were descended from monkeys?" <holds up page depicting apes/ neanderthals>

Imagine being yelled that question from beyond your front gate early Sunday morning.

What was worse was that he wold brag of the one or two instances where he got an inoffensive reply and then push for us to try this as a conversation-starter. It's just as well he didn't first meet his wife at a bar. He sucks at one-liners.

INQ

32

Watchtower Evolution Fraud

by Amazing in

jw
friends

the watchtower society first published a book on evolution in the late 1960s or early 1970s, simply known as the evolution book.

it is a small hardbound book, the same in size at the old "truth" book.

other than reading it, i never really studied it.

Inquisitor

Yep, jaguarbass. I remember the adaptation idea too. There was a section on the moths that employed different colours and how one species survived in a season while the other died out.

I wonder if that phenomenon was genuinely used to support the notion of evolutionary change in animals. For if I'm not mistaken, the type of evolutionary process that the WTS was attempting to disprove is a process that spans out for several million years.Certainly longer than the change of solstice.

INQ

8

Anointed retain Heavenly Calling, even if DF'd

by Amazing in

jw
friends

can an anointed christian who is disfellowshiped later be reinstated and still have the heavenly hope?

he wrote to christians who had been anointed by holy spirit and given the hope of heavenly life.

10:26, 27) such unforgivable sin is evidently what john referred to as "sin that does incur death.

Inquisitor

Year, month, page, magazine details in the 4th sentence of the post you responded to, skyking.

INQ

13

The Face Of Jesus

by Geronimo in

jeus on a tortilla .

jesus in a plant pot.

jesus on a dirty old piece of linen.

Inquisitor

errr.. is blondie holding a grey mirror or the detached back of an intricately carved chair?

INQ

8

Another Case Of Different Rules For JWs In Different Countries????

by West70 in

does this newspaper article indicate that the watchtower society allows (or allowed) jws in india to stand for that country's national anthem????

half a century later, the supreme court made the same point about tolerance when giving a verdict on the refusal of two children belonging to the sect of the jehovah's witness, who refused to sing the national anthem, jana gana mana, in a kerala school because their religion did not permit saluting a national flag or to sing a national anthem as it did not believe in the nation state.

in its verdict, the court said that as long as the children stood respectfully when the anthem was being played, it was all right.

Inquisitor

I think a discerning JW would ask you if you could prove that the students were not sitting down prior to the anthem. If they were not seated, then all the Witness children had to do was remain standing. And that gesture is known to be sanctioned by the GB.
But you are right that in certain countries, the local Bethel gives "local instructions" to Witnesses, albeit through informal means.

For example, in Malaysia, JW kids generally pretend to sing the anthem, i.e. they would move their lips as if they were singing, to avoid trouble from the authorities. They also raise their hands for the oath-making ceremony; the Msian equivalent of placing your hands across your chest and over your heart. While you will never be able to prove that this instruction came from the Malaysian Bethel, this dubious tactic is generally shared among Witness families. I find it hard to believe that the elder families are oblivious to this practice or that the BOE's have never heard of this habit. I also find it hard to believe that their Bethel is unaware of such a practice. IMO, they are all happy to close an eye over this matter, giving their silent consent. Don't wanna anger the Muslim authorities, you see.

INQ

10

Censorship or counter-witness - which would you choose?

by Inquisitor in

if you were in some public area and you discovered jw publications, what would you do?

(1) would you snatch the publications away and bin them (censorship)?

(2) would you write the url for jwd and silentlambs in the publication (counter-witness)?

Inquisitor

Dear parakeet

Good point you've raised: a legal perspective of things. You said: "the magazines were put there by an individual without legal sanction, I think what happens to them after is not a matter of censorship."

Hmmm... what if the mags were placed there by a Witness who had obtained permission to do so? Would that be legal sanction? And if so, would it then be unethical to remove the publications?

INQ

10

Censorship or counter-witness - which would you choose?

by Inquisitor in

if you were in some public area and you discovered jw publications, what would you do?

(1) would you snatch the publications away and bin them (censorship)?

(2) would you write the url for jwd and silentlambs in the publication (counter-witness)?

Inquisitor

Hello fullofdoubt and BizzyBee,

Have either of you ever had any misgivings about dumping publications into the bin? I mean, if you think of it, one could draw a comparison between this action and the way the WTS restricts the R&F from reading certain material. I do not mean to judge. I too have dumped "literature" into the bin, but I have had moments of self-doubt. Have you?

Hi inbyathread

By writing something in the publications, the counter-message is less likely to slip out of the mag, IMHO anyway. Of course that is not the only way to counter-witness.

INQ