tec

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Posts by tec

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  73

  What Must Be the Case if Christianity is True?

  by leavingwt in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  john loftus:.

  what must be the case if christianity is true?.

  that the highest created being, known as satan or the devil, led an angelic rebellion against an omnipotent omniscient omnibenelovent omnipresent god, and expected to win--which makes satan out to be pure evil and dumber than a box of rocks.. .

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  tec

  Legalistic. That describes how I feel about the JW teaching of ransoming Jesus to counter Adam.

  I think the sacrifice was the willing suffering and death of Jesus, so He could show us the way to his Father, and hence the way to life. It showed his trust and obedience. I think that countered the disobedience and mistrust that led us away from God, through Adam.

  Tammy

  Edited: PSac, I'm not disagreeing with you on the love aspect. Jesus did love his Father and us enough to make this sacrifice, so that we would be under grace and love. He did not have to do that. It was his choice.

  I'm just trying to explain my take on ransom/sacrifice in the legalistic way it has been taught and understood by some. (For myself as well as for anyone else who wonders about this)
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  73

  What Must Be the Case if Christianity is True?

  by leavingwt in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  john loftus:.

  what must be the case if christianity is true?.

  that the highest created being, known as satan or the devil, led an angelic rebellion against an omnipotent omniscient omnibenelovent omnipresent god, and expected to win--which makes satan out to be pure evil and dumber than a box of rocks.. .

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  tec

  I have a hard time understanding that as well, JWoods.

  I'm not convinced of it, at least not completely, that God required it - as in life for life kind of deal. I think the allusions made in the NT might be more metaphor, because that might have been what the people could understand.

  I do think Jesus' sacrifice showed us that he did not fear death, or choose to recant his teachings despite knowing that death waited for him because of them. He trusted in something better after death, he trusted in his Father.

  He showed us that we can, as well - even if we don't believe that there was some kind of tug of war with the angels, satan, and God. Sometimes I look at the story of Job and apply that also - Satan saying, 'no way Jesus stays loyal to you to the point of torture and death', but then Jesus does, and Satan is discredited. (This is total speculation on my behalf. Can't know these things, but I do trust that the story of Job shows us that there are things happening beyond our scope of knowledge.)

  Tammy
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  27

  True Spirituality

  by snowbird in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  but, just read this board and research the personal experiences of sane, rational, intelligent people that have experienced their true spirituality.

  i never fully experienced it as a jehovah's witness because i was in a box.. the poster, journey-on, wrote this in response to one of terry's topics.. it's so profound, imo, that i thought it deserved a thread of its own.. you cannot embrace your true spirituality as a jw - everything is either/or.. if you voice anything, anything, out of line with "the society's view," you are immediately suspected of "prideful, independent thinking.".

  is there any wonder that some of us are screwed up for life?.

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  tec

  Thanks, Sylvia.
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  27

  True Spirituality

  by snowbird in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  but, just read this board and research the personal experiences of sane, rational, intelligent people that have experienced their true spirituality.

  i never fully experienced it as a jehovah's witness because i was in a box.. the poster, journey-on, wrote this in response to one of terry's topics.. it's so profound, imo, that i thought it deserved a thread of its own.. you cannot embrace your true spirituality as a jw - everything is either/or.. if you voice anything, anything, out of line with "the society's view," you are immediately suspected of "prideful, independent thinking.".

  is there any wonder that some of us are screwed up for life?.

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  tec

  Just thought I'd add my two cents here.

  This board, and its different views, have all helped to strengthen both my faith and my security in that faith. I tend to be a more solitary person in my thoughts and feelings and faith, but being too alone can become just as much of 'a box or a vacuum existence', I think, as can being too absorbed in a collective or group dynamic.

  We are both individual and social creatures. Finding a balance between the two is not always so easy, but a worthy goal to work toward.

  Tammy
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  25

  APOPHENIA.....how has it (how DOES it) affect your perception of the world?

  by Terry in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  apophenia.. do you suffer from it?.

  apophenia is the experience of seeing patterns or connections in random or meaningless data.. do bible readers?

  religious believers?

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  tec

  Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Terry expects and encourages people to disagree with him.

  If we all thought the exact same way, we wouldn't really learn anything new from one another.

  Tammy
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  7

  PARAPROSDOKIA.....how has it (how DOES it) affect your perception of a sentence?

  by gubberningbody in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  "a paraprosdokian (from greek "-", meaning "beyond" and "?

  ", meaning "expectation") is a figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected in a way that causes the reader or listener to reframe or reinterpret the first part.

  it is frequently used for humorous or dramatic effect, sometimes producing an anticlimax.

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  tec

  Yes, Tec?

  Oh. Well. Now she has nothing clever to rebut...

  Here. Have a beer.
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  7

  PARAPROSDOKIA.....how has it (how DOES it) affect your perception of a sentence?

  by gubberningbody in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  "a paraprosdokian (from greek "-", meaning "beyond" and "?

  ", meaning "expectation") is a figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected in a way that causes the reader or listener to reframe or reinterpret the first part.

  it is frequently used for humorous or dramatic effect, sometimes producing an anticlimax.

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  tec

  Terry?
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  10

  one flock, one shepard

  by make yourself in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  did anyone else notice that in the watchtower its bringing out jesus is the mediator only for the 144,00. and where did they get it that jesus didn't partake of the emblems?!?!

  it's crazy how true that scripture is that states that satan blinds the minds of the unbelievers.

  but what i don't understand is do you think the governing body is doing this type of stuff like putting stuff in the watchtower like this on purpose since they have the issues only for members of the congregration?

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  tec

  Sneaky.

  Note that they don't say [not, some men] either. Because that's implied.

  Tammy
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  27

  Would you still believe if there were no reward in the afterlife

  by donny in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  some months ago i was listening to a co-worker witnessing to some others about why he believes and why they should to.

  as i listened i kept hearing over and over about the "rewards" of eternal life in heaven in the kingdom of god.

  later on we had a conversation that went like this.. me: can i ask you a question about your beliefs?.

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  tec

  Is it a bad thing to recognise the reward and blessings of our actions from God?

  I don't think its a bad thing to recognize the rewards and blessings. Faith allows us to have certainty in that reward, though we may not fully know what that is exactly, until then.

  But the question is about the character of people, not the promises of God. Are you a believer; are you a 'good' person, only because of the reward?

  I think most of the answers have reflected that people would follow Jesus even without the reward - out of love, and out of faith that He knew what he was talking about. (Not to mention that he showed us, by example, that death was not to be feared)

  Tammy
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  47

  SELF-TESTING for the influences of MIND-CONTROL

  by Terry in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  if you have been "brain washed" the control of your thinking has been wrested away from you and diverted.. .

  hidden cues have replaced the ordinary path of logical analysis when examining your world.. .

  think of this like a detour sign on a highway.

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  tec

  Tammy -- I always enjoy your honest and thoughtful comments. Thank you

  You're welcome, and thank you.

  Tammy