Statistics on violence given on this post (Thanks cognisonance) which features a comparison of the 20th century with, what many think, was a relatively peaceful 19th century.
Posts by Bobcat
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541914 - "A Turning Point In History"?
by Bobcat inthe february 2014 public wt has a cover series of articles dealing with world war i, and by inference 1914. the articles describe wwi as 'causing the world to be changed' and as "a turning point in history.".
setting the wt's defective 1914 chronology aside for a minute, how do these statements about wwi coincide with the view of the nt?.
certainly wwi was a big war.
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Sledgehammer subtlety: The insidious reworking of Micah 6:8
by rory-ks inmicah 6:8 might be - or have been - a favourite verse of many.
the verse used to read:.
"he has told you, o earthling man, what is good.
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Bobcat
For any who have access to TWOT (Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament), there is a nearly three page article (under "698" which corresponds to Strong's # 2617) for the Hebrew hesed. This is the word that the NWT would nornally translate as "loving kindness" and footnote as "loyal love." (But translated "loyalty" in the rNWT at Micah 6:8. "Cherished" is 'ahab, Strong's # 157.)
The article gives a history of its translation, listing several milestone studies. (E.g. Nelson Glueck, Hesed in the Bible, 1927, translated into English from German by one A. Gottschalk. This is described by TWOT as a sort of watershed on the subject, and the views expressed therein generally held to by modern translators. See here for resources available on Google Books.)
Although the article in TWOT discusses hesed in various contexts, a train of thought underlying the discussion is whether hesed refers to loyalty required as a part of covenant agreements, or whether the covenants were the result of God's already existing hesed. In the judgment of the TWOT article (written by a Richard L. Harris), hesed precedes/supercedes covenant obligations, and, in fact, it is this hesed that prompts God to enter into covenant contracts with people.
The article ends saying, "The word "lovingkindness" of the KJV is archaic, but not far from the fulness of the meaning of the word."
To be sure, there is an aspect of fidelity or loyalty to hesed. To illustrate, a husband and wife would have loyalty/fidelity towards one another. The question is, 'Are they loyal because they have a marriage contract, or is the marriage contract a result of their loyalty/fidelity towards one another?' If you chose the latter, then you will agree with the gist of the TWOT article on hesed.
I get the feeling, though, that the Society would lean towards the former. But I think (IMO) that view is ultimately self-defeating.
Take Care
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Qualifications for Gods Sole Channel--interesting article from the meletivivlon site
by Jon Preston inqualifications to become gods channel of communication[this article was contributed by apollos].
the new teaching of the appointment of the faithful and discreet slave has arguably made 1919 an even more important date to jehovahs witnesses than 1914. appendix b1 of the revised nwt bible shows a time line of the message of the bible in relation to gods rulership.
it is of note that the official doctrine of the establishment of gods kingdom in 1914 is not even mentioned only that satan was cast down around that time.. ever since the 1919 doctrine was announced at the 2012 agm, and subsequently published in the july 15th watchtower 2013, the appointment of the slave seems to have become a much more prominent topic in our teaching, and indeed in general discussion among witnesses.. of course we should remind ourselves that this new level of interest really has nothing to do with the date, and everything to do with the nature of the appointment.
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Bobcat
Jon:
There are a lot of interesting articles on that site. And I appreciate that the ones I've looked at (so far) appear to make an effort to not be inflammatory in their writing style. Thanks for posting this.
Take Care
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The Lord's Evening Meal - How Often?
by Bobcat inthe 12/15/2013 study wt has the article, "this is to be a memorial for you.
" in it, paragraph 7 (on page 18) makes the statement, ".
27 also, he took a cup and, having given thanks, he gave it to them, saying: drink out of it, all of you; 28 for this means my blood of the covenant, which is to be poured out in behalf of many for forgiveness of sins.. (note that matthew's rendition leaves out the "keep doing this .
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Bobcat
Comment (from comments section) on this blog/thread. The main writeup is concerning the Nisan 14/15 question. But the particular comment has numerous non-Biblical Christian references to a weekly Lord's Evening Meal.
The references appear to be drawn from this Wiki article.
Another thread mostly on the Nisan 14/15 issue.
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Why Trolls Start Flame Wars
by Bangalore inwhy trolls start flame wars: swearing and name-calling shut down the ability to think and focus.http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2014/02/trolls-start-flame-wars-swearing-name-calling-web-shuts-ability-think-focus.html.
internet psychology 101psychological studies show that swearing and name-calling in internet discussions shut down our ability to think.. 2 professors of science communication at the university of wisconsin, madison dominique brossard and dietram a. scheufele wrote in the new york times last year:.
in a study published online last month in the journal of computer-mediated communication, we and three colleagues report on an experiment designed to measure what one might call the nasty effect.. we asked 1,183 participants to carefully read a news post on a fictitious blog, explaining the potential risks and benefits of a new technology product called nanosilver.
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Bobcat
Appreciate this Bangalore.
Take Care
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Watchtower Library 2013 Download
by outinthemeadows inhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=el1ad1-qnxa.
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Bobcat
The 2013 WTLib has both the rNWT and the previous Reference Bible. When you mouse-over a text it is the rNWT that is in the popup.
So far, besides including the latest pubs, I see no other changes. (Wait, it includes the "Research Guide" also.)
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Some help on the Israel journey of 40 years.
by jam inat what time did god blind the israelites, (to wonder for.
40 years)?
after crossing the red sea exodus states 15;22.
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Bobcat
In a 40 year trip, it averages roughly 11 months, 13 days per stopover. I take it the stopovers were for the purpose of keeping them in the wilderness until the 40 years expired.
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1914 - "A Turning Point In History"?
by Bobcat inthe february 2014 public wt has a cover series of articles dealing with world war i, and by inference 1914. the articles describe wwi as 'causing the world to be changed' and as "a turning point in history.".
setting the wt's defective 1914 chronology aside for a minute, how do these statements about wwi coincide with the view of the nt?.
certainly wwi was a big war.
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Bobcat
Bump (while the February public WT is still being offered.)
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The Lord's Evening Meal - How Often?
by Bobcat inthe 12/15/2013 study wt has the article, "this is to be a memorial for you.
" in it, paragraph 7 (on page 18) makes the statement, ".
27 also, he took a cup and, having given thanks, he gave it to them, saying: drink out of it, all of you; 28 for this means my blood of the covenant, which is to be poured out in behalf of many for forgiveness of sins.. (note that matthew's rendition leaves out the "keep doing this .
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Bobcat
Bump (again, while the topic is still on minds from the WT study of 2/23/14)
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Some help on the Israel journey of 40 years.
by jam inat what time did god blind the israelites, (to wonder for.
40 years)?
after crossing the red sea exodus states 15;22.
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Bobcat
Jam:
For your research, Numbers chapter 33 should be useful. It lists the 42 stopover points during the wilderness stay.