Posts by Half banana

7

Yahweh was a pagan cannanite God 2000 years before Abraham??? Shocker!

by Witness 007 in

years ago i used wikipedia to study "yahweh" ..i was shocked to find out yahweh was one of many gods in the cannanite religion.

there i see a cannanite coin with pagan yahweh on his winged chariot???

this was faith destroying.

Half banana

Witness 007, it would be a mistake to study Wikipedia, it is not authoritative and not used as a scholarly source. Better to go directly to those who have researched from the translations of the texts available who have a sound knowledge of the historical environment and the supporting archaeology. One such commentator on the subject whose impartiality is apparent, is the former Catholic researcher Thomas L Thompson. His first PhD dissertation was rejected by his adjudicator because it exposed error in Catholic doctrine...the adjudicator being Joseph Ratzinger who later became the Pope.(A story in itself on how the RC church defends its own doctrinal myths).

TL Thompson in his book The Early History of the Israelite People, Brill, 1992, discusses at length the scholarly arguments including the framework for understanding the gods which the palestinian tribes worshipped.On a site like this it is only possible to give oversimplified information on such remote matters. Most important consideration is who is doing what where and when. To be accurate it is not possible to say the Greeks did this or the Egyptians taught that or the Jews worshipped this god. Time, place, people and evidence must be determined first. (must go now will continue tomorrow)

174

The Bible is NOT Error-Free

by FusionTheism in

for many christians, the bible is viewed as the 100% error-free, perfect book straight from god, where every single word was carefully chosen by god for a reason.

but, usually, when you have a discussion on the topic, these christians will end up saying that only the original copies written directly from the hands of the prophets and apostles were error-free, and all manuscript copies since then are subject to copyist mistakes and other errors.. since zero original copies are in existence, how do we know the originals were error-free?

why should we think the originals should be error-free to begin with?

Half banana

Would it not be more accurate to say that the Bible is not totally truth free?

10

How long will it take?

by John Aquila in

at some point in the future, it has to finally dawn on people that something is seriously flawed about the idea of jesus coming in the clouds to save everyone who believes- and kill everyone who doesnt..

will people still believe in jesus in another 1000 years?

will people still be saying in the year 5015;.

Half banana

Bemused, I just checked the decline of numbers of church-goers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Ten years ago the numbers were 6.3% with a projection of 4% by 2020. The average age being in the mid-fifties. (I would have thought older). Two thirds of British people are not affiliated to any religion and less than 20% nominally and historically associated with the Cof E.

It is my expectation that JWs will decline in accord with the general avoidance of religion here. nevertheless there will always be a rump of desperadoes who cling tightly to their religious hope even if or when the Watchtower org collapses. It is the blind possesion of hope which triumphs over reason. The same for the numbers of those who believe Jesus to be coming... whether on clouds or apparent to all (it is highly ambiguous), the concept must sound more like a foolish fairy-tale to the more literate and educated people of today's world.

52

Bethel Meeting at Regional Convention

by MrTheocratic in

i decided to go to the bethel recruiting meeting yesterday to test out my theory that the organization is in decline.

i assumed that if there is a general feeling of apathy by many in the org, then certainly it would be shown up by the lack of enthusiasm or zeal by many to sign up for bethel service.

well let me say that based on what i observed, this organization is not going anywhere.

Half banana

“Even the Bethel speaker was in amazement and said the future was in good hands”

It sounds like the Bethel speaker was fully aware things are not hunky dory in Dubland and was amazed that so many idle conventioners should bother to turn up.

Another thing; I thought there was to be no “future” to worry about since Armageddon is almost on top of us... why bother with Bethel! Whilst dictating to the faithful about the imminence of the end, the only future the org thinks of is in saving its own skin from financial extinction.

6

The Governing Body was Appointed in 1971, NOT 1919

by FusionTheism in

statements from the watchtower publications show that the scriptural governing body did not exist until 1971!.

watchtower, 01/15/01, pages 28-31:.

these questions were answered at the annual meeting held on october 1, 1971. on that occasion, one of the speakers pointed out that the governing body of the faithful and discreet slave preceded the watch tower bible and tract society of pennsylvania by hundreds of years.

Half banana

I'd love to see exactly how Jesus is supposed to appoint the gb members. Does an albino rook fly in through the open window and on to the governing body's meeting table with a burning twig in its beak, depositing it in front of the prospective new member? Does Jesus speak out loud to them or give them a handwritten note? Or is it a special handshake from a man wearing the Turin Shroud?

Nah! It's the burning twig.

75

Guns. Well said Mr President, if only your countrymen had the same courage to consider changing course.

by nicolaou in

ive had to make statements like this too many times.

communities like this have had to endure tragedies like this too many times.

once again, communities [were harmed] because someone who wanted to inflict harm had no problem getting their hands on a gun.. lets be clear: at some point, we as a country will have to reckon with the fact that this type of mass violence does not happen in other advanced countries.

Half banana

Don't the tragic news reports show that the problem is not simply gun ownership but that the socially disaffected or mentally unstable have ready access to arms.

As Jhine indicated that in Europe, apart from sport, the majority have little interest in firearms because the macho gun-culture is not there.

Isn't the real issue the mass availability of weaponry permitting the reckless to massacre the innocent?

How can it be stopped? Possibly by reducing the glamour and need for gun ownership by having in place welfare provisions which stop the vulnerable individuals feeling the need for revenge on society?

I don't know the answer.

14

WT April 15, 2015... Odd first paragraph

by StarTrekAngel in

flipping thru the pages of the april 15 wt study edition, i bumped into something that strikes me as odd.

not that the wt never publishes odd things, but usually such comes in the form of misapplied scripture or hidden second meanings.

i've never paid attention before but to me this is the first time i see a whole paragraph with no bible verses to read.. in the article tiled "always trust in jehovah!

Half banana

It is worth noting that the word in Greek used by the Roman authorities as mentioned in Wikipedia in Fulltimestudent's quotation; is 'chrestian' and not 'christian'. This described the 'good ones' or cultists who claimed messianic prophecies and roamed the streets (as portrayed in that monument of christian satire The Life of Brian). The authorities would not be using the later cult word 'christian' meaning 'anointed ones' as yet, they woud be referring to the pre-jesus variety which had existed for centuries preaching the myth of the holy god-man saviour.

At 65 CE The chrestians were present but their is little to no evidence of Jesus' followers being there.

It is so easy to read history and make assumptions which will claim connections which never existed and to write in things later with a false memory.

75

Guns. Well said Mr President, if only your countrymen had the same courage to consider changing course.

by nicolaou in

ive had to make statements like this too many times.

communities like this have had to endure tragedies like this too many times.

once again, communities [were harmed] because someone who wanted to inflict harm had no problem getting their hands on a gun.. lets be clear: at some point, we as a country will have to reckon with the fact that this type of mass violence does not happen in other advanced countries.

Half banana

(I know I am idealistic...but what do you expect from a UK ex JW!)

More seriously, two of my offspring have just returned from California after a few weeks visiting their uncle. Whilst there a close friend of his was murdered by gunshot. Having myself spent time in California when a JW, I was surprised at the frequency of stories people told of gun crimes, they or their relatives had experienced.

However passionate Americans are about their national freedoms, surely the right to hold firearms is a stubborn blind spot in your democracy. More a liability than a liberty.

75

Guns. Well said Mr President, if only your countrymen had the same courage to consider changing course.

by nicolaou in

ive had to make statements like this too many times.

communities like this have had to endure tragedies like this too many times.

once again, communities [were harmed] because someone who wanted to inflict harm had no problem getting their hands on a gun.. lets be clear: at some point, we as a country will have to reckon with the fact that this type of mass violence does not happen in other advanced countries.

Half banana

How about this for a deal: swop the right to private gun ownership (hunters excepted) with the right of universal health-care free at the point of delivery?

10

The Governing Body and Modern Man's World How Do They Do It?

by Brokeback Watchtower in

i mean how can these guys run a corporation and make good policies when they are so deluded and hide the fact from themselves and their readers?.

ok sure they got a legal department but they are all brain washed just like the gb, and these guys think that every decision they make is jehovah's come on they are so out of touch with reality how can they every make good policy that is truley good?

even when they are deceiving and coniving they are making blunder all over the place because they are old and deluded and full of shit..

Half banana

The JW org is like an old fashioned steam roller. It puffs and clanks along squashing the life and worldly ambitions out of its masochistic devotees and they pay the price for the privilege.

It is the inertial force in a social context. The Watchtower cult has fed its own community with impossible-to-realise hope for 136 years. The end is forever declared to be imminent and to leave the lumbering organisation would be to miss out on the joys of Armageddon. So it’s a great unsavoury pudding of hope and promises enjoyed with a few million like-minded suckers and an illusory anchor for the soul. The price you pay is with your freedom ... your whole life’s endeavour is to be given over in favour of the WTBTS. The leadership get reflected glory from their delusional role as “God’s appointed” and receive the funds from the stock exchange and the punter’s family inheritances.

It is almost impossible to stop a steam roller...unless you are in the driving seat. (Nevertheless they cannot cope with driving into sink holes!)