Rapunzel

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Posts by Rapunzel

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  10

  Memorial Billboard!

  by Robert7 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  this kind-of goes with the thread "why not use mass-media".

  i got this email forwarded to me by a relative.

  i guess it could have been photoshopped.... wow, someone actually advertised the memorial on a billboard.

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  Rapunzel

  The language on the billboard is Portuguese. The phone number does not appear to be a number in the United States, so perhaps it is a billboard in Portugal or Brazil. It's ironic because underneath the billboard, on the right, is the phone number of an "iglesia catolica, " a Catholic church.
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  42

  Evidence of Jesus Outside the New Testament (long article)

  by lovelylil in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  .condemned him to be crucified, those who had .

  finally, the claim that on the third day jesus appeared to his disciples restored to life, inasmuch as it affirms jesus' resurrection, is quite unlikely to come from a non-christian!.

  we read that he was a wise man who performed surprising feats.

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  Rapunzel

  The Qur'an is also "historically accurate," as historically accurate as the Bible - even more so. According to the Qur'an, there have been 124,000 prophets throughout human history. Of these 124,000, there are 28 major prophets, among whom are included Noah, Moses, David, Solomon, and Jesus. According to the Qur'an,Jesus is simply one prophet in a long list of prophets.
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  31

  Stop buying things made in China

  by joelbear69 in

  1. social
  2. entertainment

  reasons.. 1. china has a horrible human rights record.. 2. they are evaporating the us economy.. stop buying.

  tell your store manager you won't buy their products..

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  Rapunzel

  As a sixteen-year resident of Taiwan, I am well aware of the brutal and barbarous tactics emloyed by the Chinese Communist Party. They are currently threatening Taiwan by aiming more than one thousand missiles at the island. The Taiwan Strait is most definitely one of the world's "hot" zones; it's a powderkeg just waiting to explode. Most people don't fully realize just how important a shipping lane the Strait of Taiwan is, but it is crucially important - as important as Hormuz in the Persian Gulf. The Strait of Taiwan is not only a vital lifeline for American shipping interests, it is also vital for Japan. If there is war between China and Taiwan, both the United States and Japan will have to get involved. Historically, the U.S. has always used military force to protect its shipping lanes. In truth, the U.S. probably does not give a fig about Taiwan in itself, but God help anyone who tries to impede shipping in the Taiwan Strait.

  In terms of aggression toward Taiwan, the Chinese have three choices - 1.) missile attack, 2.) invasion, 3.) blockade

  Option number one would cause havoc and chaos throughout the world, but it would not gain China one inch of Taiwanese territory.

  Option number two is not presently feasible because the Chinese lack the hardware and the tactical skills to mount an amphibious invasion. Military amphibious operations are extremely complex and difficult to execute successfully. The only country with such skills is the U.S.

  This leaves option number three - a naval blockade, possibly combined with air force protection.

  However, should China mount a blockade, there will be war.
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  4

  What To Think About John Cages' Opus 4'33"?

  by Rapunzel in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  john cage composed 4'33" [four minutes, thirty three seconds] in 1952. for cage, 4'33" represented the epitome of aleatoric - that is to say random or chance - music; it was the epitome of his notion that any sound constituted, or could possibly constitute, music.

  4'33" was composed for any instrument, or any combination of instruments; and the score specifically instructs the musician(s) not to play their instrument for the entire four-minute-thirty-three-seconds duration of the piece.

  they do not play so much as one single note.

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  Rapunzel

  John Cage composed 4'33" [four minutes, thirty three seconds] in 1952. For Cage, 4'33" represented the epitome of aleatoric - that is to say random or chance - music; it was the epitome of his notion that any sound constituted, or could possibly constitute, music. 4'33" was composed for any instrument, or any combination of instruments; and the score specifically instructs the musician(s) NOT to play their instrument for the entire four-minute-thirty-three-seconds duration of the piece. They do not play so much as one single note. This piece is sometimes called "four minutes and thirty-three seconds of silence", but according to Cage, this is missing the point. For Cage, this piece consists of the ambient sounds in the listeners' environment. For Cage, it was not a question of silence at all, because the random sounds in the environment constituted a sort of music that was as valid as any other kind music. To state it simply, Cage equated any sound or noise whatsoever - no matter how random - with music.

  Although I cannot cite a specific example at present, I have heard the Dadaists performed similar musical pieces at the beginning of the twentieth century. For example, a pianist would approach a piano and sit down. He would put his hands on the keyboard and then do nothing but sit there. Such displays were often not well received by the public, and sometimes riots would erupt.

  Has anybody ever heard John Cage perform? Have you ever heard 4'33" performed? Would you be angry or upset if you paid money to hear a musical performance, only to listen to people breathe, chatter, cough etc. for four minutes and thirty three seconds? Opinions on Cage run the whole spectrum between genius and fraud. What's your opinion of him and what he does?
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  14

  Is Paul constantly disagreeing with Christ?

  by yknot in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  okay i am re reading without wt blinders...... i was noticing that paul appears to contradict christ on several occasions.

  now that i recognize that i am still bible ignorant outside of jw understanding i was hoping some of our more knowledgeable posters would address this issue for us bible babies.. thank you.

  yknot .

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  Rapunzel

  J. Malik: If you get the chance, you might consider reading 1 Corinthians 14: 26-40. While doing so, you should "bracket" verses 34 and 35 because they obviously do not belong there. Narratively speaking, these two verses are anomalous and intrusive; they do not fit at all into the surrounding context. Verses 34 and 35 read: "...let the women keep silent. For it is not permitted for them to speak, but to be in subjection, just as the law says." You should consider the theme of verses 26-33, and the theme of verses 36-40. If you do so, you will see that Paul is dealing with the issue of prophecy in the Church. He is giving instructions to Christian prophets concerning their behavior during Christian services of worship.

  Moreover, as an experiment, try reading starting at verse 26 and read up to verse 33. Then skip over verses 34 and 35, and go directly to verse 36-40. You will see how the passage reads seamlessly if verses 34 and 35 are removed. The narrative is much smoother and more coherent. The discussion of women in verses 34 and35 appears intrusive and awkward. Some scholars believe that verses 34 and 35 are extraneous; they were added as a kind of marginal note by a scribe, possibly under the influence of 1 Timothy 2. In addition to the narrative evidence that I have already mentioned, there is also manuscript evidence supporting this idea. In three Greek manuscripts and in a couple of Latin manuscripts, verses 34 and 35 do not appear after verse 33; they appear after verse 40.

  Finally, Paul's admonishment to women to keep silent contradicts what he says in 1 Corinthians 11:2-16 where Paul gives instructions to women speaking in the church. It is impossible to reconcile 1 Corinthians 11: 2-16, where Paul allows women to speak with veiled heads, and 1 Cor. 14: 34-35, where he tells women to keep silent. Verses 34 and 35 are a scribal alteration. As I mentioned in my previous post, there were many disputes and arguments in the second-century church. It was at this time that ideological and creedal orthodoxy began to be imposed. One of the most contentious of the raging debates was precisely the role of women in the Church. The scribes who were recording the scriptures could not help but get immersed in these debates and polemics.
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  4

  "The Psychic Mafia" available as FREE pdf file.

  by Nathan Natas in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the excellent book "the psychic mafia" has long been out of print but is now available as a free adobe acrobat pdf file.

  this book may be of interest to any rationalist or persons working against cult mentality.

  highly reccomended.. who was m. lamar keene?.

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  Rapunzel

  Eric Hoffer first published The True Believer: Thoughts On Mass Movements in 1951. Hoffer was a social psychologist. His book concerned mainly political movements, but some of his theoroies could also be applied to the realm of religion.
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  16

  armaggedon

  by vat152 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i'm sure that the topic of armageddon has risen it's ugly head before but can anyone out there tell me when the armaggedon will happen (try to be precise please otherwise to me as a non-believer it will look like you're guessing) and has anyone got any concrete evidence of why and how it will happen?

  oh and can you give evidence about when it will happen?

  thank you.. go on convince me!!

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  Rapunzel

  I agree with gaiagirl. Whoever wrote the apocalyptic book of Revelation - whose author is commonly referred to as "John" - was most definitely writing in response to the events and expectations of his first-century era. It's ludicrously infantile to apply these "prophecies" to our twenty-first century. After all, these prophecies failed in the first century A.D. There's absolutely no reason at all to believe that they will be valid for our era.
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  14

  Is Paul constantly disagreeing with Christ?

  by yknot in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  okay i am re reading without wt blinders...... i was noticing that paul appears to contradict christ on several occasions.

  now that i recognize that i am still bible ignorant outside of jw understanding i was hoping some of our more knowledgeable posters would address this issue for us bible babies.. thank you.

  yknot .

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  Rapunzel

  In Galatians 3:27-28, Paul writes: "For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free; there is not male and female; for all of ou are one in Jesus Christ." In his teachings, Jesus proclaims the equality between men and women that will accompany the imminent establishment of the Kingdom. In Galatians, Paul seems to be in agreement with Jesus in the matter.

  But compare Galatians with the infamous passage in 1Timothy 2:11-15 where "Paul" insists that "a woman learn in silence with full submission." In fact, Paul does not even permit a woman to speak.

  How to reconcile these two passages? The simple answer is- "It can't be done." However, it should be noted that most scholars think that 1Timothy was not written by Paul; rather, it was written by his second-generation followers. These later followers were involved in an often-bitter polemic concerning the role of women in the Church. In fact, there were many raging debates on many issues in the second-century church. These debates involved, among other things, the proper and suitable relationship of the new Christian church toward Jews and pagans, and the role of women in the congregations. The second century saw the beginning of the age of polemics among church leaders. There were many competing groups with divergent ideologies.
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  14

  Is Paul constantly disagreeing with Christ?

  by yknot in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  okay i am re reading without wt blinders...... i was noticing that paul appears to contradict christ on several occasions.

  now that i recognize that i am still bible ignorant outside of jw understanding i was hoping some of our more knowledgeable posters would address this issue for us bible babies.. thank you.

  yknot .

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  Rapunzel

  I have to agree with the idea that Sir82 mentions, namely that Paul's letters to to the various congregations are the earliest "books" of the New Testament. For example, Paul's first letter to the Thessalonians is commonly dated to the year 49, about twenty years prior to the earliest gospel which is the gospel of Mark. Most biblical scholars believe that the second letter of Peter to be the last New Testament book written; in regard to actual author of 2 Peter, most scholars think that it was written pseudonymously - not by Peter. Most of the New Testament consists of letters; there are twenty one accepted as canonical. Thirteen are written by Paul or in Paul's name. Without a doubt, many of these letters were written before any of the gospels and that the gospels are in some respects a response to the letters.
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  55

  Who is your favorite Artist?

  by coffee_black in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  there are many artists whose work i love, but i think my all time favorite is sargent... my second home, growing up, was the museum of fine arts in boston, and additionally, the gardner museum close by... both have important sargents... the way he painted light was liquid and sensual... a master at making the complex look effortless....he had it all.... http://jssgallery.org/major_paintings/major.htm.

  so whose art do you love?.

  coffee .

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  Rapunzel

  I see Ninja likes Escher. I like him too. And I like Magritte too.