This kind of selective perception is the root of all religious conviction. Whenever something fortunate happens it is seen as validation of God's support and blessing, When bad happens it is not seen as evidence of disfavor but rather the work of the Devil and allowed as a test of faith. Few people ask objectively if their own actions or that of others may have precipitated the result. Or if the laws of satistical probability could have predicted the likely outcome of any situation. Good and Bad things happen without gods or boogiemen pulling the strings.
peacefulpete
JoinedPosts by peacefulpete
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12
Is the Watchtower out of Blessings?
by jst2laws ini thought this point might have been covered in the march 1, 2003 wt but in searching i could find no reference to the issue.
so i apologize in advance if this point has already been wxhausted.
while at bethel in the 60s i met hayden covington.
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666 THE MARK! but who? Part One
by elumn8_2 in666. you all know it as the mark of the wild beast.
i'm begining studies on this subject and my first impressions so far have been quite interesting.
i believe that the jws have it wrong.
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peacefulpete
the English language did not exist when this was written. A hunger for sensationalism will lead you to some very strange and dark places. Always first consider the simplest and least supernatural explanation. Life simply works in predictable ways like this. Appying this stategy may guard your mind from fanatism and irration extremes.
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666 THE MARK! but who? Part One
by elumn8_2 in666. you all know it as the mark of the wild beast.
i'm begining studies on this subject and my first impressions so far have been quite interesting.
i believe that the jws have it wrong.
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peacefulpete
666 is "a man's number" What man? the name "Caesar Nero" is 666 in Jewish Numerology. The Book of Revelation was written as a not so subtle condemnation of Rome and it's leaders. This is accomplished thru colorful imagery from Gnostic and Pagan religions. It has nothing to do with us.
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Show me the money (WT as Fannie Mae?)
by gcc2k ini posted this on the "remodeling the kh" thread and did not get the desired feedback.. when everyone is done picking on me over in the cbs/silentlambs thread, maybe you can turn your attention to the following questions.. .
1) if the society still charges interest on the loans to the congregations, how does the society justify this, since it is clearly unscriptural?
surely there has been a "questions from our readers" about this?
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peacefulpete
I can not provide documentation but I can confirm that the insurane for health care for COs DOs and specials is with the Society not an outside firm. This is now also the case with Property insurance. They decided to keep the premiums in house 8-10 years ago as I recall. The premiums were not reduced but property loss payouts were based upon replacement cost within the KH building program (materials only) not fair market value. This new arrangement saves millions and generates millions more for the Society.
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O.K., Who Is CONVINCED That They Have The REAL Truth?
by SpannerintheWorks inand if you do, it shouldn't be too difficult to convince us of that!
i mean, you accepted it as the truth, .
can you convince us that you do indeed have the "real" truth?
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peacefulpete
I asked a friend who came to me to "encourage" me the same queston. His answer was that when he was a teenager he masterbated and then read in a 1950's medical book that masterbation robs a young man of vitality and mental clarity. He was now positive that the WT has an inside track on the truth because they discourage the practice. I was not convinced but maybe that was because my mental clarity wasn't what it should have been. I am not making this up.
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THE ONLY ONE BURSTING MY FAMILY WTS BUBBLE!
by be wise inthese things about the society have been nagging me and i just couldnt keep them in any longer.
basically ive just told my mum everything about the org and what i think of it covering itself, misleading its followers and the issues of child abuse.
basically my dad said its people who have a vendetta against the society and a lot of the stories are made up.
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peacefulpete
be wise...Please calm down and stop yourself from destroying your relationship with your parents. Go and get Steve Hassan's book, Releasing the Bonds. Your happiness depends upon your showing insight and restraint.
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son of David?
by peacefulpete induring the first 2 centuries bc and first century ad numerous would be messiahs and jewish militant leaders made claims to being of the tribe of judah and sons of david.
how honest were they?
according to the jewish encyclopedia any tribal claims were meaningless.
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peacefulpete
the great sperm bank in the sky!
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Did Jesus REALLY come from Nazareth?
by gumby inthe gospels tell us that jesus's home town was the 'city of nazareth' .
and in the sixth month the angel gabriel was sent from god unto a city of galilee, named nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was joseph, of the house of david; and the virgins name was mary.. (luke1.26,27).
and all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.
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peacefulpete
Gumby..in addition to this interesting question I will add another. Proponents of a historical Jesus (as opposed to the position of the charactor is of purely mythological nature) often site this "detail" as evidence of an actual man at the core of the legend. Why? Because this element seems an odd bit to invent. It is asssumed that it would have been easier to create a legend about a man of Jerusalem or Bethlehem. The latter to satisfy a first century interpretation of Micah 5:2. This position seems to ignore the use and application that Matt. makes from the name "Nazareth". Matt. creates the impression that the place was prophetic. It was not. At Matt.2:23 he conjures a prophecy from thin air. Most Bible apologists insist that under inspiration Matt. "discerned" a prophecy from Isa 11:1 that speaks of a "sprout" of the root of Jessie. The word at Is. is "nester". It has a similar sound as he city name Nazareth but that is all. So my point is that this "detail" of Jesus being in some way from Nazareth may simply be another of the dozens of patent creations of the writers, in this case a phonetic similarity is spun as if it were a prophecy. The Bethlehem story in Matt and Luke is regarded almost universally as a late addition to the legend added to give persuasiveness to the new faith by making it appear to "fullfill prophecy". This illustrates the literary nature of these Jesus stories.
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NWT says Jesus is NOT Michael !!!
by thinker indaniel's visitor (dan.
"man clothed in linen, with his hips girded with gold" (dan.
10:5) "son of man, clothed in a garment that reached down to his feet, and girded... with a golden girdle" (rev.
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peacefulpete
Thinker...Angelology was in it's hayday at the time of completing the book of Daniel in mid 2nd century BC. The fact that the author of the book of Revelation borowed much of the imagery from Danil and other Jewish apocalyptic ritings is not reason to identify the Daniel figure as Jesus. Jesus did not exist. You are right of course about erroneously identifying Jesus with Michael. It was a theological necessity not a scriptural teaching.
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US "King of the North"?
by patio34 incould it be that since oil rights may be going to us and uk oil corporations, possibly excluding france, russia, etc., that the us/uk coalition could be the new king of the north (kn)?
after all, the daniel book somewhere, and i don't care enough to look.
it's hardly worth mentioning as i don't care what the wtbs says.
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peacefulpete
all that eh...Archer and Price and other bible inerrantists have woven a very complex defense for their position that overwhelms the average reader who is unable to check the references sited or quoted or read in entirety the works referenced. My experience is that these aruments are too much effort to refute even when the point can be discered thru all the diatribe. If you wish to discuss 1 point at a time and dialogue be limited to the known facts you may get a response.