the new testament talks consistently of a heavenly hope, not an earthly one and the idea that humans are to live forever on earth is not supported scripturally at all.. however, what would have happened if adam and eve had not sinned.
the watchtower likes to make the point that it is only sin that caused adam and eve to die.
romans 5:12 that is why, just as through one man sin entered into the world and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men because they had all sinned.. what do christians believe regarding this scripture?
Interesting question JWfacts
If Adam did not sin, would humans have lived forever on earth?
Within the context of the story if Adam hadn't sinned and died, imo, the desire to be with God (or be united more fully with God) would always have tantalised him and I feel certain that sooner or later he would have concluded that such a purpose was the goal to work towards. The story does seem to have been set up for such an outcome and not for living forever on earth.
there is almost a whisper somewhere on the net that the reason ancient patriach's like noah, enoch, methuselah lived so long is because of a gross miscalculation.
their ages were based upon a calendar that was a lot shorter than ours, hence their years could be twice as long.
i've been looking up for reading material but could only come up with flared-nostril apologetics; fundies insisting on the literalism of the scriptures.. this reasoning about an alternate calendar is conceivably the work of christians who read the bible metaphorically/symbolically, not goat-sacrificing atheists.
Leo
Even the meaning of theopneustos is open to interpretation, as it could range between "God-enlivened" to "God-dictated". Inspiration is not the same thing as inerrancy or infallibility (i.e. the assumption that if God breathed it, it must be perfect) as you probably know from the OT; God also breathes into man the breath of life (Genesis 2:7, Job 33:4), but that doesn't make man inerrant or perfect.
fantastic reasoning
i have received the most beautiful cards & pictures, poems, tea,ornaments & such lovely compliments from each & every one of you.. i was going to write those i didnt send cards to ...but there was so many ,i really couldnt.
my heart was filled as i read each & every one of them.
as you all know i lost my hubby,& 3 kids in death, one daughter to the wt & grand-children.. as i read all of them i couldnt help thinking of job---he lost lots -but regained more.
Mouthy
Last year I sent loads of cards but this year I haven't sent a single one and I think I've missed the boat. I'm hopelessly disorganised but my thoughts are with you and everyone here at JWD.
Merry Christmas
) take them to your church and encourage them to learn about other faiths too..
) don't teach them anything about religion..
) encourage atheism..
I think I'd see the article/study as perhaps highlighting the benefits of family discussion of general philosophical questions. I thought the following point was very interesting
It’s also possible that the correlation between religion and child development is the other way around, he said. In other words, instead of religion having a positive effect on youth, maybe the parents of only the best behaved children feel comfortable in a religious congregation.
“There are certain expectations about children’s behavior within a religious context, particularly within religious worship services,” he said. These expectations might frustrate parents, he said, and make congregational worship “a less viable option if they feel their kids are really poorly behaved.”
Interesting article Renee but it raises a lot of questions too.
the last few months have been very difficult for us.. my husband has been experiencing bullying by his boss at work and his management team.
there is no reason for the bullying....it is just happening.
he is repeatedly being asked into investigations and disciplinary meetings for issues so small that his trade union representatives are at their wits end and have finally decided to call in the head of their trade union and a lawyer to begin going down the road of constructive dismissal.
what a nightmare situation. I really feel for you and your husband.
ok, so i haven't been posting a lot lately.
been doing alot of thinking, soul searching, etc.
also been busy with work, making money, hanging with my new girlfriend, and just enjoying my first christmas season.. .
I really like your thoughtful post, bluesbreaker. Especially this part
I personally believe you should try to be the best person you can be each and everyday of your life on this planet. Help out your fellow man when you can, and love those special to you unconditionally. Why do you need to go to a church to have someone tell you about "prayer requests", "church announcements", certain "ministries", "singing songs"??? Can't you just follow the Bible, if you want??? I don't feel that I'm any closer or further from God, Jesus, or whatever when I'm at home, church, work, kingdumb hall, etc. I always feel the same distance.
Because of a post I made yesterday I've been thinking a bit about my own spirituality and wondering if I have any. Your description above is more or less what I believe, and I'm concluding that is what being spiritual is.
I think its really good that in our day we can openly say how we feel about God and Jesus and keep on challenging religious ideas and myths and not feel that we are somehow going to be damned out of existance.
i am very curious, since i am myself trying to figure out where to turn to, if anywhwere.
(i am still debating if i am truly an atheist at heart and religion in general turns me off at least as of now) where have you turned to since you left the wt?
i would imagine that many people who became witnesses had spiritual needs (which is ironic why i am feeling atheist, lol) but have you gone to other churches, stopped going to church, become atheist, etc?
I'm catching up with education.
When I first left I had lots of spiritual intentions but found that they were causing me to stagnate and I eventaully found them very unfulfilling. right now I'm enjoying learning.
best wishes on whatever you choose.
please read.
it mentions the watchtower and has some interesting things to say about it.. thoughts in captivity.
faith versus reason in religion.
excellent find nvr
the story of judas iscariot in the gospels provides the reader with a fascinating picture of how the plot and details of the narratives were gleaned from the ot and embellished in different ways.
the evangelists and the tradents that preceded them looked to the ot (and other affiliated literature) for information on what happened to jesus, employing a haggadaic method of biblical interpretation similar to how rabbis and authors of pseudepigraphs in the second temple era expanded the brief stories of the patriarchs in genesis with reams of new detail and legendary episodes -- through the means of exegesis aimed to penetrate beyond a plain reading of the text to "fill in the blanks" of what must have happened.
the authors of the gospels also scoured through the ot to discover what was supposed to happen to jesus and wrote their stories accordingly.
wow amazing detective work Leo - really enjoyed your research, thanks
just curious.
.
open mind.
Yes
