Well said Botr. Now I know why I will never survive on "Survivor." I am not a good judge of character. I am not good at ascertaining motive. I'd rather stick with what I know and what I enjoy doing.
Posts by Vidqun
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81What constitutes 'proof' on JWN?
by besty inrecently there have been a few threads where claims have been made alledging personal negative effects in 'real life' following internet activity on jwn and other ex-jw related sites.
discussion then ensues, aspects of which may include 3rd parties either disputing the truth or affirming the likelihood of the claim.
questions are asked.
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81
What constitutes 'proof' on JWN?
by besty inrecently there have been a few threads where claims have been made alledging personal negative effects in 'real life' following internet activity on jwn and other ex-jw related sites.
discussion then ensues, aspects of which may include 3rd parties either disputing the truth or affirming the likelihood of the claim.
questions are asked.
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Vidqun
Please Cofty, keep in mind this is JWN. Believe it or not, you follow the same principles in proving your thoughts on evolution. Different books, different authors, same principle. However, I used above as examples to demonstrate how I would prove "truth," as opposed to the opinions of the WT. When a person makes 'real life' claims, one would want to believe him, until his claims are disproved. There I must admit, I can be gullible, for allowing the benefit of the doubt.
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81
What constitutes 'proof' on JWN?
by besty inrecently there have been a few threads where claims have been made alledging personal negative effects in 'real life' following internet activity on jwn and other ex-jw related sites.
discussion then ensues, aspects of which may include 3rd parties either disputing the truth or affirming the likelihood of the claim.
questions are asked.
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Vidqun
In scientific research (esp. Medical) one looks for a"golden standard." When a new test is developed it is usually compared to a reliable test that have been proved to be accurate, i.e., a golden standard. For the detection of TB in body fluids, a good test to use is the Ziehl Neelson stain (relatively cheap and not too complicated, but might miss small concentrations of acid-fast bacilli). An alternative test is Immunofluorescent Microscopy which is more sensitive, but much more expensive. The latter I would use as a "golden standard" to test newer detection methods coming on the market.
This principle I have applied to Biblical research. Base texts for the NT are numerous. But the latest Nestle-Aland (ed. 28) is an ideal reference point. Biblia Hebraica Stutgartensia for the Hebrew is not perfect, but a good basis to work from. In time the finished products of BHQ and The Hebrew University Bible Project will supersede it as a study edition.
Some books I view as a "golden standard" to establish the meaning of NT words:
1) BDAG: Bauer-Danker Lexicon of NT
2) TDNT: Theological Dictionary of the New Testament
3) Friberg Lexicon
4) Liddell & Scott, etc.
The "golden standard" for OT words:
1) HALOT: Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament
2) TDOT: Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament
3) TWOT: Theological Wordbook of the OT
4) Brown-Driver Briggs Lexicon
5) Gesenius, etc.
This is not a perfect system. Some of above works are quite dated. Kittel, resposible for some of the earlier articles of TDNT was a Nazi. Gesenius, again, had some rationalistic tendencies as pointed out by Tregelles in his translation of Gesenius' Lexicon. But at least it is a foundation to work on. So this is my starting point, right or wrong. One must start somewhere....
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Was Paul a "tentmaker"?
by CyrusThePersian inin acts 18:2,3 we read:.
"there he met a jew named aquila, a native of pontus, who had recently come from italy with his wife priscilla, because claudius had ordered all jews to leave rome.
paul went to see them, and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them.".
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Vidqun
mP, that's off-topic, but I feel I owe you an answer. You seem to be stuck on slavery, blaming the Bible writers for condoning it. Keep in mind that none of the other religions opposed slavery. I think it is unfair that you single out Christians.
For one, ancient economies were dependent on slavery. Trying to change that would make one very unpopular. Secondly, war was commonplace and the victor usually took slaves from those he subjugated. This was a fact of life.
Jesus made it clear how he viewed things. You must love God with your whole heart and your neighbour as yourself. You must even love your enemies and do good to those persecuting you. One should therefore not see his followers as “reformers.” Rather one should view them as regulators. They adapted themselves to their surroundings in order to survive, at the same time trying to stay true to their faith. Yes, they even regulated those that were slaves. They were not interested in transforming the world or rewriting history, but awaited a “city having real foundations and the builder and maker of it is God” (Hebr. 11:10, 39, 40). .
How long would slavery be around for? Till 200-300 years ago, just the other day. If you watch the news, you’ll see that some forms of it is still with us today. But then slavery was the order of the day. To understand the position Christians found themselves in, one could utilize form criticism, developed by Hermann Gunkel. He coined the phrase Sitz im Leben des Volkes, creating a critical methodology of form criticism (Formgeschichte), by examining the genres used in the biblical text to identify the Sitz im Leben (setting in life) that produced the text. His approach is based on the assumption that each genre is organically associated with a particular social and historical situation. Form criticism is in fact the separation of genre history from text history, and the relationship of transmission history to the history of religions and culture. See The Hebrew Bible and Its Modern Interpreters, pp. 136, 149.
One cannot dress the Bible in 21st century garb. By being biased or ignoring historical or social realities, one tears the apostle out of his age, tears the gospel out of history and blocks off Scripture from the light of modern research.
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Are Jehovahs Witnesses a Cult?
by The Quiet One inhttp://sianrose.wordpress.com/2011/07/15/are-jehovahs-witnesses-a-sect-or-a-cult/.
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Vidqun
Scholars call those Israelites centering their worship around the temple in Jerusalem a cult. Why should JWs not be called a cult? The difference, they centre their worship around a GB.
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Was Paul a "tentmaker"?
by CyrusThePersian inin acts 18:2,3 we read:.
"there he met a jew named aquila, a native of pontus, who had recently come from italy with his wife priscilla, because claudius had ordered all jews to leave rome.
paul went to see them, and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them.".
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Vidqun
mP, read the scriptures. See what he wrote.
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48
Was Paul a "tentmaker"?
by CyrusThePersian inin acts 18:2,3 we read:.
"there he met a jew named aquila, a native of pontus, who had recently come from italy with his wife priscilla, because claudius had ordered all jews to leave rome.
paul went to see them, and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them.".
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Vidqun
Whatever Paul did, he worked hard at earning a living. He did not expect his brothers or sisters to look after him. In fact he said that one should not owe anybody a thing except to love one another (Rom. 13:8). It's called: "You practice what you preach" (cf. 1 Tim. 5:8). He set an excellent example.
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155
Protecting pedophiles while protecting children
by stillin ini know that a lynch mob forms whenever there's a hint of anybody being a pedophile, but the truth is that not all are the slavering, predatorial animals that they are painted to be.
each circumstance has its' own specifics.
in defense of the wts, they do keep track of confirmed pedophiles now.
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Vidqun
Stillin, you are welcome to your views, I just don't agree with you. I have also given this a lot of thought, even confronted the elders about it. What they told me was revealing. They view pedophilia as "just another sin" and they deal with it as they do with all other sins.
But think about it, is it "just another sin"? First of all, it is not consensual, e.g., fornication. In most countries, sex with a minor is viewed as rape. Secondly, minors are involved, so it is a serious breech of trust. Thirdly, lifelong damage is caused. It cannot be handled as "just another sin."
Coming back to the pedophile/predator, he or she is addicted to having sex with a child. Do you really think they are going to stop? Most pedophiles are repeat offenders and are removed from society for a reason. I really believe the welfare of the victim must take precedence, and not that of the pedophile offender. The WT does it the other way round, they protect the perpetrator and sideline the victim.
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Former Unbaptized Publisher, New Here
by GloomySunday informer unbaptized publisher, here.. i'm new to the forums and have hesitated for months to join this forum.
i was raised in a jw family, and was never baptized, because one of my parents didn't think i should be baptized early.. my mother became inactive, but i eventually went back for social contact, eventually starting a study.
i raised a few questions, only to find that the conductor would get irritated and defensive when my questions would get deeper into the topic.
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Vidqun
Welcome Gloomy! Things can only get better from here on. Now go and study and get your degree or qualification in the field of your choice, according to your aptitude. Be supportive of your family. Don't look back.
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14
I am amused by my new Job offer
by recovering ini have just been hired as the new clinical director for a large company.
i think the following email from them is hilarious.
they want me to basically define my duties by writing my own job description.
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Vidqun
Or they are an extremely young and innovative company that welcomes you to their ranks in order to make use of your expertise to take them to the next level. Is the cup half full or half empty? I'd say the cup is half full. Go for it and show them what you got!