I'm so sorry to hear about this - condolences, CHG. It's terrible that you even have to consider how you will be treated when you get there. That's quite clearly the last thing you need right now.
PP
Paulapollos
JoinedPosts by Paulapollos
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49
Anyone wanna place a bet on what will happen to me when I have to go to the Kingdom Hall this Saturday??
by Coffee House Girl inwell since there is no "betting" (as it reeks of gambling) in jdub land, lets place a friendly wager on what will happen to me when i go to my father's "memorial" service at the kingdome hall this saturday..... to give you newbies background info: i am neither df'd or da'd- i left 2 years ago with no explanation.
i have been hounded by elders in my cong because they have suspicions that i am living with a man, but they have no proof (well, no proof in jdub land- you know...two witness rule).
after many attempts to get me to meet with them- i finally sent the elders a "cease & desist" letter after one of them spied in my miniblinds to see me eating breakfast with someone (they couldn't identify who).
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Honest questions for believers.....
by Paulapollos in[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>normal</w:view> <w:zoom>0</w:zoom> <w:trackmoves /> <w:trackformatting /> <w:punctuationkerning /> <w:validateagainstschemas /> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:saveifxmlinvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:ignoremixedcontent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext> <w:donotpromoteqf /> <w:lidthemeother>en-gb</w:lidthemeother> <w:lidthemeasian>x-none</w:lidthemeasian> <w:lidthemecomplexscript>x-none</w:lidthemecomplexscript> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables /> <w:snaptogridincell /> <w:wraptextwithpunct /> <w:useasianbreakrules /> <w:dontgrowautofit /> <w:splitpgbreakandparamark /> <w:dontvertaligncellwithsp /> <w:dontbreakconstrainedforcedtables /> <w:dontvertalignintxbx /> <w:word11kerningpairs /> <w:cachedcolbalance /> </w:compatibility> <w:browserlevel>microsoftinternetexplorer4</w:browserlevel> <m:mathpr> <m:mathfont m:val="cambria math" /> <m:brkbin m:val="before" /> <m:brkbinsub m:val=" " /> <m:smallfrac m:val="off" /> <m:dispdef /> <m:lmargin m:val="0" /> <m:rmargin m:val="0" /> <m:defjc m:val="centergroup" /> <m:wrapindent m:val="1440" /> <m:intlim m:val="subsup" /> <m:narylim m:val="undovr" /> </m:mathpr></w:worddocument> </xml><!
[endif][if gte mso 10]> <style> /* style definitions */ table.msonormaltable {mso-style-name:"table normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"times new roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif].
over the last couple of years, i have done a lot of reading, and rather than answering my questions, it has made me think even more - particularly about god and the bible.. when i was kicked out of the wtbts, it was because of my personal belief in jesus.
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Paulapollos
Mouthy,
I don’t think you’re nuts. I’ve had the pleasure of reading some of your posts, and I happen to think you are a very sweet lady, with a lot of good to share. If you believe God is looking after you, then good for you. I, for one, certainly hope He is. :-)
Snowbird,
Yes, you are making sense actually. I think I get where you are coming from – in essence, you seem to be saying that you believe that God has done whatever he had to do in the past, even though that sometimes may seem terrible to us. Your faith in God’s goodness means you trust him, trust him to do the right thing. Rather than concern yourself too much with the rightness of his actions from our perspective, you are focused on his rightness as a person. At least, that’s what I think you mean.
Tenyearsafter,
I don’t think your view is simplistic at all. You are right – there is a degree of a leap of faith required even in some aspects of science. And you are right, in the end, we will always find some annoying person who tells us that our views are wrong, and proceeds to argue with us! :-)
PSacr,
Thanks for your responses, I’m really enjoying talking to you. I see what you mean about the Bible not being a science book, since 2Tim 3:16 makes reference to it being inspired and beneficial for teaching, but I do think it is a stretch to imagine that the writers of it, and orthodox believers down the centuries since, have ever considered it anything other than God’s Inspired Word (TM). That seems a view taken in the face of ever-increasing doubt about the Bible’s reliability.
It is here that the real conundrum comes. I appreciate your position, but it does seem , to me at least, to be slightly lacking (please don’t take that as an insult, it isn’t meant that way). Take this point – “I do indeed view it to be a book that was written by inspired men and edited and compliated by other Men, some inspired and some simply doing their jobs.”
Some of these inspired writers have made demonstrable mistakes. In some, it is a simple question of lack of understanding of population growth, in others, such as Joshua's destruction of the city of Ai, it is historical mistakes. In some, there are prophecies which have not been fulfilled, in others it is prophecies that are clearly taken out of context. How does a believer like yourself account for the mistakes that these inspired men have made? Does God make these kind of errors?
Accepting that it is inspired, that means that the accounts of God’s behaviour are correct. So how does a follower of Jesus like yourself come to terms with fact that YHWH says:
Those who leave my religion should be killed
Those who commit X/Y/Z should be burned/stoned/cut off
Entire cities should be razed, all the inhabitants slaughtered
Cities far away should have all the men killed, and you may take the women for your wives if you wish
Caananites may be taken for “forced labour”, even though Israel complained about being “forced labourers” in Egypt
And so on, and so forth. When you look at the person you follow, the kind Jesus, how do you maintain your faith in God, who ordered atrocities, who seems to act like Big Brother in 1984, who gives no real free will, and has committed vile episodes of abhorrent violence? If a man committed these acts today, even in war, we would call him a war criminal. Why is it ok for God to get away with it? Isn’t God even more morally accountable?
Which of course, leads me to this point – if, as some believers say, God didn’t command these activities – how do you know that?
You are right of course, each person ends up interpreting the Bible to suit himself. But that doesn’t mean it is right, or healthy, surely? If the Bible claims it is all inspired, I can’t see what possible justification the Bible gives for believers to pick and choose which bits they like? They have to take it at face value, and weigh up it’s claims against the evidence of Biblical scholars and archaeology, surely?
I would love to believe that God has granted unconditional love. But it seems to me he hasn’t. As far as I know, his forgiveness and love extends only to those who “repent” and “exercise faith”. In other words, it is conditional. It is similar to the “free will” God gave to Adam in the garden – “you have free will, in that you can choose to obey every order I give, and live; or you can choose to say, ‘no, I would like to do my own thing’, and then you will die.” Is that really free will?
I’d just like to echo what Wobble, LeavingWT, and Clarity said. It’s great that we can have these kinds of discussions, that we can debate and question, in an open, friendly atmosphere. It’s fantastic to experience. I know JWN sometimes gets a bad rap, in the sense that sometimes people feel the atmosphere gets sniping etc. And I can understand why it gets that way, because strong opinions are involved – and I actually think it is important that people sometimes express their frustrations with each other. But I’m glad that we can debate, and disagree, without having to necessarily scream at one another. So, I take this opportunity to pay tribute to all of you posters on this thread, for reasoned, honest, thought provoking discussion. Viva JWN!
PP
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Honest questions for believers.....
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over the last couple of years, i have done a lot of reading, and rather than answering my questions, it has made me think even more - particularly about god and the bible.. when i was kicked out of the wtbts, it was because of my personal belief in jesus.
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Paulapollos
Snowbird,
thanks for that. At least you are upfront about your views. But it seems (I could be wrong) you are saying you have no problem with God killing people who disagree with him, or choose not to obey him. I can't understand that - your posts on this forum are generally very loving, very kind, very thoughtful. Yet you admire God for killing people, for exercising their free will?!!!
PP
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Honest questions for believers.....
by Paulapollos in[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>normal</w:view> <w:zoom>0</w:zoom> <w:trackmoves /> <w:trackformatting /> <w:punctuationkerning /> <w:validateagainstschemas /> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:saveifxmlinvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:ignoremixedcontent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext> <w:donotpromoteqf /> <w:lidthemeother>en-gb</w:lidthemeother> <w:lidthemeasian>x-none</w:lidthemeasian> <w:lidthemecomplexscript>x-none</w:lidthemecomplexscript> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables /> <w:snaptogridincell /> <w:wraptextwithpunct /> <w:useasianbreakrules /> <w:dontgrowautofit /> <w:splitpgbreakandparamark /> <w:dontvertaligncellwithsp /> <w:dontbreakconstrainedforcedtables /> <w:dontvertalignintxbx /> <w:word11kerningpairs /> <w:cachedcolbalance /> </w:compatibility> <w:browserlevel>microsoftinternetexplorer4</w:browserlevel> <m:mathpr> <m:mathfont m:val="cambria math" /> <m:brkbin m:val="before" /> <m:brkbinsub m:val=" " /> <m:smallfrac m:val="off" /> <m:dispdef /> <m:lmargin m:val="0" /> <m:rmargin m:val="0" /> <m:defjc m:val="centergroup" /> <m:wrapindent m:val="1440" /> <m:intlim m:val="subsup" /> <m:narylim m:val="undovr" /> </m:mathpr></w:worddocument> </xml><!
[endif][if gte mso 10]> <style> /* style definitions */ table.msonormaltable {mso-style-name:"table normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"times new roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif].
over the last couple of years, i have done a lot of reading, and rather than answering my questions, it has made me think even more - particularly about god and the bible.. when i was kicked out of the wtbts, it was because of my personal belief in jesus.
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Paulapollos
LeavingWT,
that is a fantastic quote. thank you
PP
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Does anyone have these books in pdf?
by average joe ini was looking at wikipedia and saw they had these books and since they are private,secret etc i got to get my hands on them.
i also just want to learn about all the behind the scenes stuff so if you have any of these or can provide links to read them thats really cool :).
missionary counsel booklet (1985), for missionaries.
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Paulapollos
Atlantis,
I wonder if I could trouble you to pm me also, with the above....
PP
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Honest questions for believers.....
by Paulapollos in[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>normal</w:view> <w:zoom>0</w:zoom> <w:trackmoves /> <w:trackformatting /> <w:punctuationkerning /> <w:validateagainstschemas /> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:saveifxmlinvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:ignoremixedcontent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext> <w:donotpromoteqf /> <w:lidthemeother>en-gb</w:lidthemeother> <w:lidthemeasian>x-none</w:lidthemeasian> <w:lidthemecomplexscript>x-none</w:lidthemecomplexscript> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables /> <w:snaptogridincell /> <w:wraptextwithpunct /> <w:useasianbreakrules /> <w:dontgrowautofit /> <w:splitpgbreakandparamark /> <w:dontvertaligncellwithsp /> <w:dontbreakconstrainedforcedtables /> <w:dontvertalignintxbx /> <w:word11kerningpairs /> <w:cachedcolbalance /> </w:compatibility> <w:browserlevel>microsoftinternetexplorer4</w:browserlevel> <m:mathpr> <m:mathfont m:val="cambria math" /> <m:brkbin m:val="before" /> <m:brkbinsub m:val=" " /> <m:smallfrac m:val="off" /> <m:dispdef /> <m:lmargin m:val="0" /> <m:rmargin m:val="0" /> <m:defjc m:val="centergroup" /> <m:wrapindent m:val="1440" /> <m:intlim m:val="subsup" /> <m:narylim m:val="undovr" /> </m:mathpr></w:worddocument> </xml><!
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over the last couple of years, i have done a lot of reading, and rather than answering my questions, it has made me think even more - particularly about god and the bible.. when i was kicked out of the wtbts, it was because of my personal belief in jesus.
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Paulapollos
Hi Psac,
Thanks for your post. It’s interesting when you say that the Bible is a progressive revelation of God. So does that mean that you accept there are errors in it? How does that play into your view of whether it is inspired? Do you believe the Bible to be free from error? If not, how do you determine what is right and wrong in the Bible? Personal preference?
When you say, “take the Bible for what it is and what it is NOT”, what exactly do you mean? By saying that, surely you are saying that the Bible is “something” and “is not something else” – so I cannot just choose what that is, according to my personal preference! Surely, the Bible is “something”, independent of what I might choose it to mean? Otherwise what value does the Bible actually have?
I do understand your analogy of a finger, but I need to ask you this – how can you view it as a finger pointing to God, if you accept it might be a human book, full of revision, redaction and compilation? I presume that you don’t view it as that – so how do you account for the views of scholars who have studied the history of the Bible?
Psac, like I said, I was very much a believer in Christ. I know the “answer” to “why I believe that suffering is wrong, and where I base that from.” The problem is, that very moral sense is outraged by the activities of God! So if it is from God, how is it that God is not acting according to the very moral sense that he designed? How do you account for that?
I really do appreciate you discussing this with me Psac.
PP
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Honest questions for believers.....
by Paulapollos in[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>normal</w:view> <w:zoom>0</w:zoom> <w:trackmoves /> <w:trackformatting /> <w:punctuationkerning /> <w:validateagainstschemas /> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:saveifxmlinvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:ignoremixedcontent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext> <w:donotpromoteqf /> <w:lidthemeother>en-gb</w:lidthemeother> <w:lidthemeasian>x-none</w:lidthemeasian> <w:lidthemecomplexscript>x-none</w:lidthemecomplexscript> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables /> <w:snaptogridincell /> <w:wraptextwithpunct /> <w:useasianbreakrules /> <w:dontgrowautofit /> <w:splitpgbreakandparamark /> <w:dontvertaligncellwithsp /> <w:dontbreakconstrainedforcedtables /> <w:dontvertalignintxbx /> <w:word11kerningpairs /> <w:cachedcolbalance /> </w:compatibility> <w:browserlevel>microsoftinternetexplorer4</w:browserlevel> <m:mathpr> <m:mathfont m:val="cambria math" /> <m:brkbin m:val="before" /> <m:brkbinsub m:val=" " /> <m:smallfrac m:val="off" /> <m:dispdef /> <m:lmargin m:val="0" /> <m:rmargin m:val="0" /> <m:defjc m:val="centergroup" /> <m:wrapindent m:val="1440" /> <m:intlim m:val="subsup" /> <m:narylim m:val="undovr" /> </m:mathpr></w:worddocument> </xml><!
[endif][if gte mso 10]> <style> /* style definitions */ table.msonormaltable {mso-style-name:"table normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"times new roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif].
over the last couple of years, i have done a lot of reading, and rather than answering my questions, it has made me think even more - particularly about god and the bible.. when i was kicked out of the wtbts, it was because of my personal belief in jesus.
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Paulapollos
RockyGirl,
Your answers are really quite thought-provoking. I could be wrong here, and so feel free to tell me to shut my trap, but it seems to me that in actual fact, you believe in belief in God, rather than believe in a personal, transcendental God, who has a purpose and is intervening in history.
I totally understand about the need to “believe in something bigger than myself.” I suppose as Daniel Dennet says, there are numerous hypothesis as to why humans may feel the need to “believe”. But I was a little confused about your comment as to “there is not absolute, provable truth.” I think that what you are probably referring to is relativism in morals, values, ethics and philosophy. In that sense, I would probably agree.
But perhaps what is driving my questions to you is this – are there not absolute truths? For instance, are you saying that it cannot be “proved” that humans evolved, or that the origin of life is naturalistic? Are you saying that it cannot be “proved” that the desire to “believe” and seek “supernatural” explanations are biologically rooted? Take for instance the desire to believe in something bigger than ourselves, a supernatural force. Is it “immaterial” whether that force exists or not – in other words, is all that matters our desire to believe in it? Surely, truth is very important – surely, it does actually matter whether our measurable beliefs are true, because beliefs impact the way we treat others, and determine the quality of our lives? Again, RockyGirl, thanks for discussing this with me.
PP
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Honest questions for believers.....
by Paulapollos in[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>normal</w:view> <w:zoom>0</w:zoom> <w:trackmoves /> <w:trackformatting /> <w:punctuationkerning /> <w:validateagainstschemas /> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:saveifxmlinvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:ignoremixedcontent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext> <w:donotpromoteqf /> <w:lidthemeother>en-gb</w:lidthemeother> <w:lidthemeasian>x-none</w:lidthemeasian> <w:lidthemecomplexscript>x-none</w:lidthemecomplexscript> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables /> <w:snaptogridincell /> <w:wraptextwithpunct /> <w:useasianbreakrules /> <w:dontgrowautofit /> <w:splitpgbreakandparamark /> <w:dontvertaligncellwithsp /> <w:dontbreakconstrainedforcedtables /> <w:dontvertalignintxbx /> <w:word11kerningpairs /> <w:cachedcolbalance /> </w:compatibility> <w:browserlevel>microsoftinternetexplorer4</w:browserlevel> <m:mathpr> <m:mathfont m:val="cambria math" /> <m:brkbin m:val="before" /> <m:brkbinsub m:val=" " /> <m:smallfrac m:val="off" /> <m:dispdef /> <m:lmargin m:val="0" /> <m:rmargin m:val="0" /> <m:defjc m:val="centergroup" /> <m:wrapindent m:val="1440" /> <m:intlim m:val="subsup" /> <m:narylim m:val="undovr" /> </m:mathpr></w:worddocument> </xml><!
[endif][if gte mso 10]> <style> /* style definitions */ table.msonormaltable {mso-style-name:"table normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"times new roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif].
over the last couple of years, i have done a lot of reading, and rather than answering my questions, it has made me think even more - particularly about god and the bible.. when i was kicked out of the wtbts, it was because of my personal belief in jesus.
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Paulapollos
Hi Snowbird,
Thanks for your answer. Forgive me for presuming, but I take it you believe in certain parts of the Bible – so, how do you decide? Do you choose the parts that seem to fit with your picture of God? Or is there a more unbiased method?
I can see your view of YHWH follows a logical process – but it seems to point to a God who has no problem “sanctioning” violence against those who violate his moral dictates. So exactly how this God can be spoken of as a God who values free will seems to be a total juxtaposition. It makes no sense – he is essentially saying that “you should do what I say, because you want to; but of course, if you choose not to, I will kill you. Now, what is your choice?”. That isn’t free will – it seems closer to dictatorship?
I hate to say it, but if that is God’s view, what is the difference (and believe me, I shudder when I say this, because I have always been a God-fearing person) between God and Adolf Hitler?
PP
ExpandedMind – I love your points. They seem to sum up mine, almost to a tee! The fact that the existence of God may be highly improbable, does not make it impossible.
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Honest questions for believers.....
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over the last couple of years, i have done a lot of reading, and rather than answering my questions, it has made me think even more - particularly about god and the bible.. when i was kicked out of the wtbts, it was because of my personal belief in jesus.
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Paulapollos
Hi Snowbird,
I see what you are saying about the Bible being God's message, but compromised by man. That makes sense to me, in that there is clear evidence of man revising, editing, and selectively compiling the Bible.
I was just thinking, can I ask you this: you said that Jehovah was fighting fire with fire, to defend his own people. That I can understand, except for one thing - why would Jesus/Jehovah then say that we should "turn the other cheek" when attacked? What was the reason for the change?
Also, I was wondering, why would God have punishments like burning people, and stoning people, to death? Ostensibly, these were not in the defense of his people. So, why such brutal punishments? Or would you consider them to be the "human" part of the Bible - and if so, how do you know?
PP
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52
Honest questions for believers.....
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over the last couple of years, i have done a lot of reading, and rather than answering my questions, it has made me think even more - particularly about god and the bible.. when i was kicked out of the wtbts, it was because of my personal belief in jesus.
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Paulapollos
Hi TenyearsAfter,
Thanks for your thoughtful reply. I would agree with you, that if you are a believer, then it is probably a good thing if you find a religion very different to the WT.
However, and please don’t think I’m being rude because that isn’t my intention, but my questions are more focused on the “factual” side. It was interesting to note you said “I can understand how others can't [believe in God] as a result of the intolerant and high control tactics they were subjected to while JW's.”
I’m sure this is not how you are using it, but some believers I have spoken to use that as a sort-of cliché – “the WT turns people into atheists”. But my questions have nothing to do with people’s experiences in the WT. They are more fundamental than that. I suppose what I am asking is:
How can believers maintain faith in the Bible, when so much of scholarship casts doubt on the claims the Bible makes about itself? How do they account for the parts of the Bible that have clearly been redacted, revised, and manipulated for contemporary political and psychological reasons? If the Bible is the book which points them to Jesus, surely it matters if it is reliable or not?
How do some believers (on this forum) say that only parts of the Bible are inspired, but others are not – and how do they determine which is which? Is this done on the basis of some personal relationship with Jesus, who tells them what is to be trusted, and is not to be trusted?
What prophecies in the Bible can be clearly shown to point to Jesus Christ?
What accounts for the acts of Jehovah, the vicious, bigoted acts? Why did Jesus have such a different personality? And how is it that he did not condemn the actions of Jehovah?
Why has Jesus, who is gathering the “body of Christ”, waited so long to “return”?
I’m asking these questions of believers, because I too said I had a personal relationship with Jesus, and had faith in the body and the blood. And I really want to know – after all it’s important. Either there is a God, or there isn’t. Either the Bible is totally reliable or it isn’t. Either Jesus is Lord, or he isn’t. I'd like to ask believers these questions. Truth matters. As far as I know, two contradictory “truths” cannot be both “true”.
PP