Posts by deegee

34

Why didn't God also reveal himself to the Canaanites just as he did to Moses in the burning bush?

by deegee in

why didn't god also reveal himself to the canaanites just as he did to moses in the burning bush so that the massacre/genocide of the canaanites could have been avoided?.

why didn't god also invite the native palestinians into his covenant, giving them the same laws he gave the israelites, and establish an egalitarian society where people of all races could live together in harmony?.

instead, he ordered his people to invade and slaughter the natives, killing them to the last man, woman and child, specifically instructing them to show no mercy to anyone under any circumstances.

deegee

Why didn't God also reveal himself to the Canaanites just as he did to Moses in the burning bush so that the massacre/genocide of the Canaanites could have been avoided?

Why didn't God also invite the native Palestinians into his covenant, giving them the same laws he gave the Israelites, and establish an egalitarian society where people of all races could live together in harmony?

Instead, he ordered his people to invade and slaughter the natives, killing them to the last man, woman and child, specifically instructing them to show no mercy to anyone under any circumstances. What followed was a series of terrible, bloody battles in which tens of thousands of people died violently. Finally, God pronounced his campaign of genocide a success (Joshua 11:15).

9

Why blame the Watchtower?

by deegee in

if god has a relationship with every christian and every christian is praying to him then wouldn't he tell every christian the same thing so that christians would agree on matters of doctrine and practice?.

it is certainly puzzling why sincere and devout people equally seek god's will and pray to him yet they all come up with different answers so that there are approximately 40,000 different christian denominations (center for the study of global christianity (csgc) at gordon-conwell theological seminary).. before his death, jesus called for agreement among his followers rather than division (john 17:20-21).

he declared that he would send the holy spirit to guide persons into all the truth (john 14:16 - 17, 26, john 15:26, john 16:7,13 - 15).. so shouldn't anyone who has a relationship with jesus, reads the bible, and listens to the holy spirit come to the same conclusions as others who are doing the same thing?.

deegee

If God has a relationship with every Christian and every Christian is praying to him then wouldn't he tell every Christian the same thing so that Christians would agree on matters of doctrine and practice?

It is certainly puzzling why sincere and devout people equally seek God's will and pray to him yet they all come up with different answers so that there are approximately 40,000 different Christian denominations (Center for the Study of Global Christianity (CSGC) at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary).

Before his death, Jesus called for agreement among his followers rather than division (John 17:20-21). He declared that he would send the Holy Spirit to guide persons into all the truth (John 14:16 - 17, 26, John 15:26, John 16:7,13 - 15).

So shouldn't anyone who has a relationship with Jesus, reads the Bible, and listens to the Holy Spirit come to the same conclusions as others who are doing the same thing?

Isn't Jesus and the Holy Spirit capable of communicating the same ideas, beliefs, and practices to all of his followers so that sincere and devout Christians would all agree on what Jesus is telling them?

It seems to me that if Jesus and the Holy Spirit were capable of communicating the same ideas, beliefs, and practices to all of his followers then the Christianity we would see would look very different from the Christianity we see today, with all of its division and disagreement.

I can only conclude that Jesus tells different people different things, but then why would Jesus contradict himself? Why would Jesus tell some people one thing and others something else?

26

Was it Adam who altered his own DNA so that sicknesses & consequent death would be passed on to his offspring?

by deegee in

the blame for mankind's sicknesses/diseases and consequent death has been placed squarely on the shoulders of adam:.

romans 5:12, 17 - 19:"therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—for if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man.......consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people........for just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners........".

1 corinthians 15: 21, 22:"for since death came through a man........... for as in adam all die.......".

deegee

When a person commits suicide, what is the proximate cause of death, the instrument, the person, or God who made the person mortal?

Interesting question Fisherman.

It seems the underlying causes of suicide are either mental health issues or terminal (physical) illness.

According to researchers, suicide in most cases involves an underlying mental health condition.
For example, researchers have found that if someone close to an adolescent dies by suicide, the adolescent’s mental health history is a bigger predictor of future suicidal behavior than his or her relationship to the suicide victim:

http://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/world/colorado-springs-teens-keep-killing-themselves/ar-AAj9RXy?li=AAggNb9

http://www.jaacap.com/article/S0890-8567(09)60217-3/abstract

Mental health issues usually arise from a chemical imbalance in the brain.

Some choose doctor assisted suicide to end their lives when they are terminally ill:

http://www.msn.com/en-ca/health/wellness/first-child-dies-by-euthanasia-with-parent%E2%80%99s-approval/ar-BBwlvwn

There is also the ongoing debate whether the mentally ill should also be allowed the option of doctor assisted suicide:
http://www.msn.com/en-ca/health/medical/my-life-is-a-nightmare-windsor-man-27-wants-legally-assisted-death/ar-AAjH8Oc?li=AAggNb9

I think it is safe to say that the underlying causes of suicide - mental health issues or terminal illness - stem from defects in the human mind and body.

26

Was it Adam who altered his own DNA so that sicknesses & consequent death would be passed on to his offspring?

by deegee in

the blame for mankind's sicknesses/diseases and consequent death has been placed squarely on the shoulders of adam:.

romans 5:12, 17 - 19:"therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—for if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man.......consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people........for just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners........".

1 corinthians 15: 21, 22:"for since death came through a man........... for as in adam all die.......".

deegee

I heard from an older jw that the idea was once that Adam and Eve would have eventually had to eat from the Tree of Life or die. The WTS also says that the difference between humans on earth living forever required support from God, water, air, food, etc, and the anointed in heaven and Jesus, spirit creatures that did not need support to live from God, that their life was within themselves............

Thanks for bringing this up Blondie.

If Adam & Eve needed to eat from the tree of life in order to live, then it means that they were never created with an inherent ability to live forever, they were created detective, to die, to be prone to disease and consequent death. The default position was death and a defective body prone to diseases, so whether or not Adam & Eve sinned they were going to die anyway. This contradicts the WT's position that everything God created was good:

Genesis 1:31: "God saw all that he had made, and it was very good".
1Timothy 4:4:
"For everything God created is good........"

Whether:

1. God created Adam (& Eve) with a perfect body then altered his DNA (my statement above),

OR

2. Adam (& Eve) did not have the inherent ability to live forever as they needed to eat from the tree of life in order to live forever. And so Adam (& Eve) was never created with a perfect body in the first place. God created Adam (& Eve) with a defective body prone to diseases and death.

in both cases, wouldn't it be God who is responsible for sickness and consequent death in the world?

Point 2. brings me to another point: Jesus ransom sacrifice was meaningless if Adam did not lose a perfect body.

31

1000 Years is Like 1 Day?

by Sorry in

anyone else hear about this.

as all j-dubs know, whenever someone complains about how long the "new system" is taking too arrive, they use the excuse that jehovah works on his own time.

quite a few times during the public talks, i've heard speakers say the phrase "1000 years to us is only one day to jehovah" (my parents never stop talking about this).

deegee

BTW, according to the WT "day" has several meanings:
- 1 day
- 77.14 days
- 360 days
- 1 year
- 1,000 years
- 7,000 years

http://smmcroberts.net/blog/its-about-time/

31

1000 Years is Like 1 Day?

by Sorry in

anyone else hear about this.

as all j-dubs know, whenever someone complains about how long the "new system" is taking too arrive, they use the excuse that jehovah works on his own time.

quite a few times during the public talks, i've heard speakers say the phrase "1000 years to us is only one day to jehovah" (my parents never stop talking about this).

deegee

- a 1000 years is as 1 day
- Jesus meant:
* the world would end before the generation that saw 1914 passed away
* the generation of people who were at least 12 years old in 1914
* the generation of people who were babies, at least 0 years old in 1914
* the generations are overlapping

- no one knows the day or hour

............etc etc.............

are all rationalizations and apologetics to avoid admitting that Jesus Christ made a failed end of the world prediction.

31

1000 Years is Like 1 Day?

by Sorry in

anyone else hear about this.

as all j-dubs know, whenever someone complains about how long the "new system" is taking too arrive, they use the excuse that jehovah works on his own time.

quite a few times during the public talks, i've heard speakers say the phrase "1000 years to us is only one day to jehovah" (my parents never stop talking about this).

deegee

This is just another way for the WT (and others) to avoid admitting that Jesus said that he would return before HIS GENERATION had passed away:

and so they resort to all sorts of speculative interpretations to make Jesus' words not mean what they clearly say. To do otherwise would mean admitting that Jesus made a failed end of the world prediction which would make Jesus Christ...........wait for it.........a false prophet!

31

1000 Years is Like 1 Day?

by Sorry in

anyone else hear about this.

as all j-dubs know, whenever someone complains about how long the "new system" is taking too arrive, they use the excuse that jehovah works on his own time.

quite a few times during the public talks, i've heard speakers say the phrase "1000 years to us is only one day to jehovah" (my parents never stop talking about this).

deegee

I recall the 1000 year as 1 day explanation while I was in - I recall it being a part of a WT study during the mid to late 90s.

It's based on 2 Peter 3:8, which says that "with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day".

This is a popular quibble used to "explain" why Jesus hasn't returned yet. The WT and others will argue that when New Testament writers said that it was the "last hour" or that the end was "at hand," they were speaking in terms of how God perceives time:

"with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day" (2 Peter 3:8).

So we are supposed to believe that God inspired certain writers to tell people that Jesus would come again someday, but he chose to do so in language that had meaning only to an omniscient, omnipotent deity.

"Soon" didn't mean "soon," and "at hand" didn't mean "at hand," as humans understand these terms, but as God understands them.

Such an explanation makes God a devious entity who chose to reveal important information in sort of a secret code that would have meaning only to an omniscient, omnipotent deity.

The WT and others may think that this quibble is a reasonable explanation for the texts that said it was "the last hour" or that the end was "at hand", but they know that it doesn't give a satisfactory explanation to the passages where Jesus said that he would return before his generation had passed away, and so they resort to all sorts of speculative interpretations to make these passages not mean what they clearly say.

26

Was it Adam who altered his own DNA so that sicknesses & consequent death would be passed on to his offspring?

by deegee in

the blame for mankind's sicknesses/diseases and consequent death has been placed squarely on the shoulders of adam:.

romans 5:12, 17 - 19:"therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—for if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man.......consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people........for just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners........".

1 corinthians 15: 21, 22:"for since death came through a man........... for as in adam all die.......".

deegee

The blame for mankind's sicknesses/diseases and consequent death has been placed squarely on the shoulders of Adam:

Romans 5:12, 17 - 19:
"Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—
For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man.......
Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people........
For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners........"

1 Corinthians 15: 21, 22:
"For since death came through a man........... For as in Adam all die......."

But was it Adam (and Eve) who altered his own DNA/genetic makeup so that sicknesses/diseases and consequent death would be passed on to his offspring or was it God who did this?

It is not a part of JW doctrine/practices to pray for healing but there are Christians who do this as it is a part of their doctrine/practices. I find it ironic that such Christians pray for healing from sicknesses/diseases when it is in fact God who altered Adam's (and Eve's) DNA so that his offspring would become sick and die in the first place - that is, it is God who made them prone to sickness yet they are praying to him for healing.

The implication of all of this is that since it is God who altered Adam's (and Eve's) DNA so that his offspring would become sick and die, then God is responsible for the sicknesses/diseases and the consequent death and suffering in the world.

13

So it was claimed that the resolution issued by the meeting at Jerusalem was issued by the Holy Spirit (Acts 15), yet................

by deegee in

according to acts 15, the meeting at jerusalem boldly declared that god's holy spirit issued a formal resolution counselling christians to "abstain from meats offered to idols and from blood, and from things strangled, and from formication", yet in 1 corinthians chapters 8 &10 paul set the holy spirit-issued resolution of the jerusalem meeting regarding the eating of meat sacrificed to idols aside:.

"concerning the eating of food offered to idols … some, because of their former association with the idol, eat food as something sacrificed to an idol, and their conscience, being weak, is defiled.

but food will not bring us nearer to god; we are no worse off if we do not eat, nor better off if we eat.

deegee

So why should we believe the event in Acts 15 actually took place, or if it did, how can we place it chronologically with any certainty ?

I agree with your conclusion Phizzy.

It certainly is doubtful that the Jerusalem meeting in Acts 15 took place.

According to Acts 15:2, 12, 22 - 26, 35, Paul was at the meeting in Jerusalem at which the Holy Spirit issued the requirement to abstain from foods offered to idols etc. However, in Paul's writings in Galatians etc, there is no mention of any such meeting taking place which Paul attended.

It seems the Jewish Christians were just trying to find a way to legitimize the continued observance of the law of Moses - they went so far as to declare that their decree in Acts 15 had the backing of the Holy Spirit.

The Jewish Christians however, had reason to insist on the continued observance of the Law of Moses:

They couldn't see how a covenant given by their perfect God Yahweh could be flawed as claimed by Paul. Paul stated that there was need for a second covenant to replace the first covenant because the first covenant was flawed:

Hebrews 8:7 (NIV):

"For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another."

Apparently it was difficult for the Jewish Christians to understand how the first covenant could have been flawed if Yahweh, the perfect one, had given it to the Hebrews.

This is one of the reasons why the Jews to this day have not accepted the New Testament or Christianity - how could a perfect God have given them a flawed covenant which needs to be replaced?