interpret john 1:1 by john 1:1. .
the greek language has the definite article which has approximately thirty variations, is translated into english as “the”, and points to an identifiable personality, someone we have prior knowledge of.
but the greek language has no indefinite article corresponding to the english “a”, or “an”.
Whatever the grammar and hence the meaning intended, it might be more important to understand why the church leaders wanted to include this text which stands outside of the normal run of NT scripture.
It is borrowed from contemporary Gnostic and Greek philosophy and would be useful in imparting some apparent gravitas to the usual rigmarole of cultic instructions and moral tales. Look it worked, we are still considering it today!
i often wonder if the current crop of witnesses, especially the youth and younger ones simply don't care about facts?.
i mean for some, even with knowledge of the past scandals, misleading teachings, mistruths, etc etc, they simply don't care.
"it is the truth after all".. they are so intertwined in the operations and activities of the society, that they cant see anything outside of it.
The purpose of religion is always political. Its function is to pacify the masses.
Why should anything be believed if it has no factual evidence?
i often wonder if the current crop of witnesses, especially the youth and younger ones simply don't care about facts?.
i mean for some, even with knowledge of the past scandals, misleading teachings, mistruths, etc etc, they simply don't care.
"it is the truth after all".. they are so intertwined in the operations and activities of the society, that they cant see anything outside of it.
Some JW 'facts':
Jehovah created everything
The Bible was written under inspiration of Jehovah
The JW org leadership is the mediator between humans and Jehovah
If you believe and do what the GB tell you; you will live forever in paradise
Note that the above beliefs have no chance of being proved and this is why religious doctrine is of no scientific or practical value. How can anyone seriously say "God is love" when there is no God willing to show itself in the first place? God only exists in the collective imagination of believers, and most of them were taught to believe so from infancy.
Religious belief only has value for the individuals who require hope beyond hope that a magic world exists somewhere. You cannot make any further developments from such elusive and slippery dogma.
By contrast a good example of the thoroughness required by scientific progress is seen in medical practice. Here exhaustive and critically appraised test evidence, including blind trials, is vital before we start using new medicines.
Why not use the same rigorous and factual "evidence based testing" for religion?
i don’t remember having any invisible friends when i was a really little boy, i don’t know if such a thing actually exists, i’ve only ever seen it in movies?
of course it might have looked to others like i was talking to someone on occasions, but i’m sure it would have just been me talking to myself.
the thing is though, i got introduced to an invisible friend in my pre-teens, and i kept the relationship going well into adulthood.
Good point Xanthippe, people who don't reply are not worth talking to again but with prayer to God there comes a time when you realize was no one there in the first place.
When I was young I had a bible study trying to recruit a school friend and he said that prayer is like talking to yourself, it doesn't go above your head. I really understood that he was right but stubbornly persisted in trying to be a good JW. Stupid or what?
i remember when i first came on this site back in 2007 many of the threads talk about after you leave a cult you need to find your authentic personality.
i have found this takes a lot of effort.
i found this article from the huffington post under healthy living date 7-29-2014.
STadd, a very sound post, I think you are trustworthy and authentic!
It is however a sad state of affairs when many of the eight million true believers among the congs today do struggle with lack of self belief and do not experience the normal confidence that adult life should bring with it.They are taught not to follow their instincts, so when they do leave the org; they have no experience in self determination and are likely to fail. The reason has to be that their upbringing as children enforced not humility but a life of subservience and subservience to an unworthy cult leadership at that.
The JW organisation has destroyed the self esteem of countless millions of followers...and to what end?....................To ruthlessly further its own financial standing and hence its status as a business corporation.
The JW org cares not a fig for its members, the only beneficiaries of this charade are the leaders, the ones who make up the stupid stories they claim to be "God's will".
May it soon be exposed and dismantled.
i often wonder if the current crop of witnesses, especially the youth and younger ones simply don't care about facts?.
i mean for some, even with knowledge of the past scandals, misleading teachings, mistruths, etc etc, they simply don't care.
"it is the truth after all".. they are so intertwined in the operations and activities of the society, that they cant see anything outside of it.
Are you are poor, uneducated and maladjusted?
If you can honestly answer these three questions in the affirmative; then you can win a free pass to join Jehovah’s Christian Witlesses!
Indeed Tor, the org is a magnet for the nuttier members of our species and I should know having been one of them.
i often wonder if the current crop of witnesses, especially the youth and younger ones simply don't care about facts?.
i mean for some, even with knowledge of the past scandals, misleading teachings, mistruths, etc etc, they simply don't care.
"it is the truth after all".. they are so intertwined in the operations and activities of the society, that they cant see anything outside of it.
The JW cult like all religions, depend only on collective beliefs.
Beliefs can happily flourish without any facts at all.
The 'truth' of a matter in a religion is validated, not by concrete evidence but instead by the number of people in a particular community who have been convinced to believe it.
So 'belief' is something to be shared in your culture group for the feel good factor and for forming a sense of group solidarity... and facts are for people who care about accurate perception like scientists and academics and many ex-JWs.
If you sit down exactly in the middle of a crop circle and meditate on your navel and say the right mantra, a flying saucer will come down above you and a long tube will descend and it will suck you up the tube and you will go up into the flying saucer. You then will be taken to an alien planet where they will purify your body and your blood and you will never catch a cold again and you will live on a paradise planet and pet soft furry animals in a beautiful garden and you will have lots of colourful fruit and everyone will wear permanent smiles and it will look exactly like a New England fall all the time and all the women will wear ironed summer dresses and all men will wear ironed short sleeved shirts and everything will be............................ and..................and
And then you will wake up.
sometimes theists challenge atheists about what evidence would be required before they would believe.
various unlikely scenarios are offered in reply.
i have taken the bait myself in the past.. i think the correct answer is much more ordinary.
If you live your life using only the information about those things for which evidence exists, God or gods become an irrelevance.
We have five direct senses by which we negotiate the world, how could it ever be possible to know about something, such as God for instance, which is not detectable by our five senses?
The Bible is just a collection of ancient literature edited and sanctified by religious demagogues.
Are you believers not able to smell a rat?
i was thinking today about the descriptions of the future "paradise" presented by the watchtower, and i was struck by something about it.
most of us are aware that the watchtower promotes an interpretation of the apocalypse that would result in the immediate execution of 99.9% of the population with no hope for resurrection.
additionally, we have been told about the large group of people that are supposed to side with satan at the end of the thousand year reign of christ.
A valid point Saethydd, perfect people like Adam and Eve can sin! Will Big J have to be testing people all the time in the JW paradise to catch them out or to prevent the arrival of a new Satan? Will he in his infinite loving kindness provide another saviour for the new sinners?
When scrutinized the idea of perfect people in a perfect society can only ever be a dream.
We don’t question the logic or reality of our nightly dreams but Biblical dreams are no different! No one ever has or could ever realize the dream of perfection.
To cling to unrealistic hopes completely wastes our potential in making our own lives more fulfilling in the here and now-- in the only life we will ever get.
When it actually comes to attempt a realization of the dreams promised by the Watchtower, it is about as practical as building a snowman on a tropical beach.
