Posts by NeonMadman

23

Could God create a rock so heavy He could not lift it?

by nicolaou in

one question that stretched theologians during the middle ages was; could god envision or make a four sided triangle or a three sided square or some other atrocity.

at first the problem seems foolish, but it really is an instance of a more fundamental problem: is god bound and limited by the laws of reason and logic or not?.

i've had this conversation on jwd before but i was never satisfied with it.

NeonMadman

Ok, I have no idea why the essay posted itself at the TOP of the page...

23

Could God create a rock so heavy He could not lift it?

by nicolaou in

one question that stretched theologians during the middle ages was; could god envision or make a four sided triangle or a three sided square or some other atrocity.

at first the problem seems foolish, but it really is an instance of a more fundamental problem: is god bound and limited by the laws of reason and logic or not?.

i've had this conversation on jwd before but i was never satisfied with it.

NeonMadman

Here's a short essay I wrote some time ago on the topic (though it may largely reflect what others have already said here):

Can God Make a Rock So Big That He Can't Pick it Up? It always gets under my skin a bit when people try to challenge the concept of the omnipotence of God by asking, Can God make a rock so big that He cant pick it up? The implied conclusion is usually that an omnipotent God cannot exist because the quandary is not resolvable. However, I believe that the concept of omnipotence requires that God can do whatever can be done, not that He can do things that are impossible by definition. Asking this question is like asking whether God can make a square circle. Circles, by definition, are not square. Anything that God could make that would be shaped like a square would not, by definition, be a circle. Could God so order the universe so that the definitions of squares and circles are different than we understand them to be such that a circle could be made square? Undoubtedly He could, however that thwarts the intent of the question. One who asks whether God could make a square circle is using the terms as we understand them, and not as they might exist in some other potential universe.

As far as making a rock so big that He couldnt pick it up, the question is really asking whether God can create a situation in which He is not omnipotent. The answer to that is, I believe, no. And a negative answer to that question in no way limits Gods omnipotence. Like the square circle, it is a question of definitions: can an entity be omnipotent and non-omnipotent at the same time in the same way? Obviously not. But the omnipotence of God does not require Him to be able to produce a situation which is semantically contradictory.

Now, someone might object that Christianity posits exactly what I have described. In the Incarnation, it may be argued that God stripped Himself of His omnipotence in order to assume human flesh. In a sense, that is true. But we must remember the teaching of the dual nature of Christ; He was the Fullness of Deity in human flesh (Colossians 2:9). He had the full nature of God and the full nature of man. In His divine nature, his omnipotence was reduced not at all, as He demonstrated in His miracles. In His human nature, He was, of course, limited as any man. So to apply the rock question, we might posit that God could indeed make a rock so big that Jesus, in His humanity, could not pick up; but in His divine nature, He could do all things that are possible to do.

33

Should Elderly People Be Forced To Show ID If They Want To Buy Alcohol?

by minimus in

jw
friends

in a local convenience store, the owners have installed an id checker for anyone purchasing alcohol.

they require you to put your id in this machine to determine whether or not you are of legal age.

even if you are 85 years of age, you have to comply or you can't buy a beer!.

NeonMadman

Last year, at the age of 56, I had the unnerving experience of being asked for the first time by a store clerk, "Would you like the senior discount?"

A month or so after that, my wife and I were driving to VA and stopped along the way to buy a bottle of wine. I got carded.

Somehow, that made me feel a whole lot better.

5

Women Apostles in New Testament Times

by Athanasius in

[if !supportemptyparas] [endif].

NeonMadman

I'm no expert on the Greek, but in scanning a number of different translations, I see that some render the verse as does, for example, the ESV:

Greet Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners. They are well known to the apostles, and they were in Christ before me.

The NET Bible reads similarly, as do several other translations. The commentaries I checked (Barnes' Notes and Believer's Bible Commentary) support the idea that Junia and the others were persons of note, well known to the apostles, but not necessarily themselves apostles.

2

Darkness in the Watchtower (another segment)

by NeonMadman in

the following segment of my presentation on jw's and the occult was just posted on youtube by the producer.

this is a 10-minute clip taken from an hour-long presentation delivered at the "witnesses now for jesus" convention in new ringgold, pa in october, 2008. a dvd of the entire presentation can be purchased at http://www.witnessesforjesus.org/wnfjvideo.php.. .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdpaq8uswjc.

NeonMadman

I don't have a single mp3 because when the retreat center recorded the talk, they broke it up into tracks of about a minute each. If you want to pm me an address, I'd be glad to send you a CD (or a DVD if you prefer)

2

Darkness in the Watchtower (another segment)

by NeonMadman in

the following segment of my presentation on jw's and the occult was just posted on youtube by the producer.

this is a 10-minute clip taken from an hour-long presentation delivered at the "witnesses now for jesus" convention in new ringgold, pa in october, 2008. a dvd of the entire presentation can be purchased at http://www.witnessesforjesus.org/wnfjvideo.php.. .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdpaq8uswjc.

NeonMadman

The following segment of my presentation on JW's and the occult was just posted on YouTube by the producer. This is a 10-minute clip taken from an hour-long presentation delivered at the "Witnesses Now for Jesus" convention in New Ringgold, PA in October, 2008. A DVD of the entire presentation can be purchased at http://www.witnessesforjesus.org/wnfjvideo.php .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDPaQ8USwjc

42

What advice would you give your 16 yr oil dself.

by scotsman in

jw
friends

NeonMadman

"Joe's a really nice guy and you should keep playing basketball with him if he'll still come over after you discontinue the study. But under NO circumstances should you join that cult! Oh, and that girl you're going to date next year when you're a senior? MARRY HER!"

23

fruit of the loom

by John Doe in

jw
friends

i remember as a child, before i knew what a "loom" was, i thought it must have been a groin, and therefore the fruit of the loom was dangly bits.

after all, that's what fruit of the looms protects, right?

what misconceptions did you have as a child?.

NeonMadman

I thought that when the trees waved their branches, it made the wind blow.

9

I'm perfect you're doomed: Tales from a Jehovah's witness upbringing

by superman in

jw
friends

me and my wife just got this great book from the library entitled 'i'm perfect you're doomed:tales from a jehovah's witness upbringing' writtin by kyria abrahams (an ex-jw).

i'm not sure if anyone else has mentioned or read it (it's still fairly new), but it is a great book.

for anyone who was raised in the 'troof' or group up in it you will find it very interesting.