Stop popping those pills CS, they're not good for you.
fulltimestudent
JoinedPosts by fulltimestudent
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Two interesting places in the Bible, Bethel and Megiddo.
by Crazyguy infirst if one looks into the place bethel this is where the king of israel sets up golden calves and tells his people here is your god's go here and to dan to worship.
he didn't want his people going all the way down to jerusalem.
he also made his own priests again to take worship away from jerusalem and it's priests the levites.
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A Bible study web-site that attempts to share scholarly views - Oxford Biblical Studies Online
by fulltimestudent inthe site can be accessed at: http://global.oup.com/obso/about/.
their stated goal:.
quote:oxford biblical studies online provides a comprehensive resource for the study of the bible and biblical history.
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fulltimestudent
The site can be accessed at: http://global.oup.com/obso/about/
Their stated goal:
Quote:Oxford Biblical Studies Online provides a comprehensive resource for the study of the Bible and biblical history. The integration of authoritative scholarly texts and reference works with tools that provide ease of research into the background, context, and issues related to the Bible make Oxford Biblical Studies Online a valuable resource not only for college students, scholars, and clergy, but also anyone in need of an authoritative, ecumenical, and up-to-date resource.
Easy to search and navigate, this site offers a ready access point for a wealth of Bible text and commentary—including the New Oxford Annotated Bible and five other popular Oxford Study Bibles—under the direction of a team of esteemed scholars headed by Editor in Chief Michael D. Coogan.
Texts from selected Oxford Bibles can be viewed in side-by-side display with the user's choice of commentary and annotations from the Study Bibles, the stand-alone Oxford Bible Commentary, and A-Z concordances for the NRSV and NAB translations. The Bible content is supplemented by collections of major apocryphal Old and New Testament texts in translation.My favourite section:
Bible verses with side-by-side scholarly analysis of the text.
Link: http://www.oxfordbiblicalstudies.com/article/sidebyside/bibref/NRSV/commref/NRSV/Gen/1
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Unhappy Valentine's day - so a wild elephant expresses his feelings by damaging 15 cars in China
by fulltimestudent inthere are still wild elephants in china, and this one lives in yunnan province in south china (bordering myanmar).. the wild life department that monitors the elephants says that he'd recently been in a fight with another male elephant over when both wanted to mate with a female elephant.
on the valentine day weekend, this elephant found himself on a main road, and took out his feelings on 15 helpless cars.. however another version of the story states that the elephant was a female.. so ... ?.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mycvrrhtq0e.
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fulltimestudent
There are still wild elephants in China, and this one lives in Yunnan province in south China (bordering Myanmar).
The wild life department that monitors the elephants says that he'd recently been in a fight with another male elephant over when both wanted to mate with a female elephant. On the Valentine day weekend, this elephant found himself on a main road, and took out his feelings on 15 helpless cars.
However another version of the story states that the elephant was a female.
so ... ?
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Turn the (digital) pages of the Codex Sinaiticus (and say thank you to the British Library).
by fulltimestudent inmany surviving documents are now digitised.
the israeli museum has digitised copies of the qumran scrolls and the british library have provided a web-site where you can have a simulated experience of what you would see as you turned the pages of the codex sinaiticus.. http://www.bl.uk/turning-the-pages/?id=b00f9a37-422c-4542-bfbd-b97bf3ce7d50&type=book.
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fulltimestudent
The Orthodox church maintains a web-page for the monastery where the codex was found:
The Holy Monastery of the God-trodden Mount Sinai, Saint Catherine’s Monastery
That church claims that this is the precise spot where god God spoke to Moses in the fable known as the 'burning-bush' incident. Hence the term 'god-trodden,'
The monastery was built at the command of Emperor Justinian I (527-565 CE) an early Christian Emperor. Some claim it to be the oldest monastery still in use.
Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Catherine%27s_Monastery
For the curious, there are many things of interest if you have the wherewithal to make this visit. There are other biblical manuscripts and religious icons ...
including this one, known as 'The 12th century Ladder of Divine Ascent " showing monks, led by John Climacus, ascending the ladder to Jesus, at the top right.
Seems to me that it was a type of my life as a Christian. you can see me (the antitype) falling off as I neared Jesus in the top right of the ladder.
Another interesting document is the
Quote" The Achtiname of Muhammad, also known as the Covenant or (Holy) Testament (Testamentum) of the Prophet Muhammad, is a document or ahdname which is a charter or writ ratified by the Islamic Prophet Muhammad granting protection and other privileges to the Christian monks of Saint Catherine's Monastery. It is sealed with an imprint representing Muhammad's hand."
A tradition is maintained that (quote)
" Muhammad frequented the monastery and had great relationships and discussions with the Sinai fathers.[3] The document claims that the Prophet (570–632) had personally granted by charter in the second year of the Hegira, corresponding to AD 626, the rights and privileges to all Christians "far and near". It consists of several clauses on such topics as the protection of Christians living under Islamic rule as well as pilgrims on their way to monasteries, freedom of worship and movement, freedom to appoint their own judges and to own and maintain their property, exemption from military service and taxes, and the right to protection in war." Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashtiname_of_Muhammad
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Turn the (digital) pages of the Codex Sinaiticus (and say thank you to the British Library).
by fulltimestudent inmany surviving documents are now digitised.
the israeli museum has digitised copies of the qumran scrolls and the british library have provided a web-site where you can have a simulated experience of what you would see as you turned the pages of the codex sinaiticus.. http://www.bl.uk/turning-the-pages/?id=b00f9a37-422c-4542-bfbd-b97bf3ce7d50&type=book.
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fulltimestudent
Are there difference between the Codex Sinaiticus and other manuscripts?
This entry in Wikipedia has a list of omitted phrases and verses, interpolations and significant variations:
It should be helpful for interested readers, but always try to investigate the difference.
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Turn the (digital) pages of the Codex Sinaiticus (and say thank you to the British Library).
by fulltimestudent inmany surviving documents are now digitised.
the israeli museum has digitised copies of the qumran scrolls and the british library have provided a web-site where you can have a simulated experience of what you would see as you turned the pages of the codex sinaiticus.. http://www.bl.uk/turning-the-pages/?id=b00f9a37-422c-4542-bfbd-b97bf3ce7d50&type=book.
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fulltimestudent
Many surviving documents are now digitised. The Israeli Museum has digitised copies of the Qumran scrolls and the British Library have provided a web-site where you can have a simulated experience of what you would see as you turned the pages of the Codex Sinaiticus.
http://www.bl.uk/turning-the-pages/?id=b00f9a37-422c-4542-bfbd-b97bf3ce7d50&type=book
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Two interesting places in the Bible, Bethel and Megiddo.
by Crazyguy infirst if one looks into the place bethel this is where the king of israel sets up golden calves and tells his people here is your god's go here and to dan to worship.
he didn't want his people going all the way down to jerusalem.
he also made his own priests again to take worship away from jerusalem and it's priests the levites.
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fulltimestudent
Crazyguy : First if one looks into the place Bethel this is where the king of Israel sets up golden calves
Sorry CG, feeling facetious this morning (happens occasionally). Did you know that one of the golden calves grew up to become a golden bull?
Said bull now resides in Huaxi village, Jiangsu Province, which is known as "China's richest village" - a village that was once as poor as most villages once were in China. The village now boasts a 328 metre high five star hotel, and somewhere within said building, the golden bull is located, cast from one ton of 24 carat gold:
Is there a prophetic significance?
Must be, or the bible is completely useless in satisfying our need to understand the world in the second or third generation after 1914 and the fading of the seventh world power, and with the eighth world power being so helpless that one wonders why it was necessary for YHWH/JESUS to prophesy about its existence.
(link: Image of the golden bull from the UK Telegraph: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/8799083/Chinas-richest-village-opens-its-own-skyscraper.html )
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Schulz and de Vienn
by Old Goat interry started a thread on schulz and de vienne's book, separate identity, which you should read.
they've posted a partial, rough draft of their current work here:
http://truthhistory.blogspot.com/.
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fulltimestudent
My thanx also, Old Goat.
Shulz and De Viennes, et al have just the right historical attitude that is needed as the bubbub of outrage obscures reality.
It will be very useful to read their final conclusions.
I really appreciate their description of these early believer's connections " affiliation was fluid and loose."
I doubt that most would have followed today's GB through thick and thin.
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Control - Whose worse, the JWs or the traditional churches?
by fulltimestudent inwe once experienced, the "you'll die at armegeddon," fear instilled into us as jw's.. was that worse or better than the fear of eternal torment instilled by more conventional religions?.
john spong gives his view.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkah3hemv3m.
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fulltimestudent
talesin2 days ago
FTS:Your words (if indicating hate) confirm their faith, so when ex-witnesses talk 'hate' they (JWs), recalling the words of Jesus, shut down their thought processes and recall only what Jesus said - been there, done that !!!!
We are survivors who were abused by the JWS.
ExJWs are not 'the world'.
We are survivors who were abused by the JWS.
Do I hate the people who raped me as a chlid? DAMN STRAIGHT That's called 'normal'. Having been also spiritually raped, and physically abused, by the JW cult, it is perfectly natural that I hate it..Do I tell JWS that? Why would I bother? I choose to vent here.
(haha, proofreading this and oops - did I split my infinitive? The horror!)
Do I hate the people who raped me as a chlid? DAMN STRAIGHT That's called 'normal'.
.Having been also spiritually raped, and physically abused, by the JW cult, it is perfectly natural that I hate it.
.Do I tell JWS that? Why would I bother? I choose to vent here.
(haha, proofreading this and oops - did I split my infinitive? The horror!)
Grin - may I invite you to split as many infinitives as you wish. Its not a concern for me.
And (seriously), I was not suggesting that there are no reasons to hate the way that some JWs' have treated their so-called 'brothers and sisters.' The witnesses share that possibility with all those who believe that they follow Jesus. Vicious, inhumane conduct is quite evident among all Christian sects, and always has been. This thread merelyseeks to point out that the problem seems inherent in the Judeao-Christian tradition. The sins of Judeao-Christianity continue to make the world stink
Personally, I cannot say I had a bad time as a witness, (not until the end anyway). I can say that my gullibility was my own fault. As a kid of 17 I lacked the intellectual forensic skills necessary to dissect propaganda (of any sort). Paradoxically, the development of some intellectual skill was at the hands of the witnesses themselves. I took seriously books like 'Qualified to be Ministers' ( and its predecessors) which helped me become more skilled at analysing a topic.
As must be clear, I see the witnesses as just another branch of Christianity, as subject to human error as all the other Christian sects.
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Control - Whose worse, the JWs or the traditional churches?
by fulltimestudent inwe once experienced, the "you'll die at armegeddon," fear instilled into us as jw's.. was that worse or better than the fear of eternal torment instilled by more conventional religions?.
john spong gives his view.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkah3hemv3m.
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fulltimestudent
jhine : Full-time student , l did say l was a long , long time member of the Anglican Church but l believe burning at the stake died out ( pun intended ) just before l was baptised .. Jan
I'm so glad it did Jan, as a former baptised (i.e. the sprinkling format) Anglican, and a long time ex-Anglican, I may already have been burned at the stake.
(BTW - I left said church when I discovered that in the old church in the town where I was growing up, there was the 'grave' of a former convict prison commandant, whose cruelty to the convicts was so extreme that everyone thought that if he had been buried in the local cemetery his body would have been dug up and torn to pieces. So they buried him in the church to prevent that).
Christianity has a long history, is it all honourable? Did the Church seek at times to 'control' the membership in extreme forms? If it did, was it less controlling that the JWs, or was it more controlling?
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David_Jay : To add to the information about "colporteurs"... (the) whole "colporteur" thing was NOT an invention of the Jehovah's Witnesses. They were an invention of the British Bible Society.
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The JWs changed the name to "pioneer" when they wanted to "prove" they were not "engaged in a commercial work." The "filling out of monthly reports" are indeed holdovers from the salesman/colporteur daysIndeed so David, I think that Russell's 'Bible Students' had little interest in being too different. Officially they saw in which 'faithful Christians' existed in many different religions, and thought of themselves as being gathered together. Not so different from the deluded Jesus, gathering more deluded Jews together for an expectation that failed to materialise. However, the terminology used in Judaeo-Christianity percolates through all the off-shoots to this day.
However, I do suggest that Rutherford was fascinated (whether in a good way or bad way, is something that needs further investigation) by the potential possible in the new American sales techniques, as a means of spreading the gospel message.
Other Christian groups may also have seen the potential. Think of the Adventist (the 7th day variety) Kellogg brothers. John Harvey Kellogg (the inventor of corn flakes) and Will Keith Kellogg are with us to this day through the breakfast food companies, Kelloggs and Sanitarium. Both saw the value of 'modern' advertising techniques.
John Harvey Kellogg is an interesting parallel to Charlie Russell and we can better understand the JW background by comparing the two groups. (For those who have curious minds).John Harvey Kellogg
Charles Taze Russell
