Rivergang

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Posts by Rivergang

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  18

  Unlocking Hidden Meanings: A Fresh Look at the Creation of Eve

  by TimWexler in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  hello!i am an independent scholar and researcher with a deep curiosity for ancient cultures and texts.

  i do not adhere to any religious tradition, but my passion for understanding the mysteries of our past has led me to explore biblical stories in depth.

  my particular interest lies in the original hebrew text of the bible, which i find fascinating both as literature and as a source of historical riddles.i recently completed a study that might change the way you perceive some well-known biblical stories.

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  Rivergang

  Thanks once more, Kaleb, for setting the discussion fairly and squarely back on the ground!
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  17

  Creation, Not Evolution Best Explains Genetics

  by Sea Breeze in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umnhg0a9dlu.

  evolutionists can change their model, and invent stories whenever they want to accomodate data.

  biblical literalists are stuck with just one model, one account, and are unable to change it.

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  Rivergang

  Kaleb,

  Thanks as always for your input. It is always interesting to hear things from a Jewish point of view. A point of view, which, I hasten to add, should always be considered - as after all, it was your people who compiled the writings of the Old Testament. (Something, which, in the “Fog of War”, seems to have completely lost sight of!)
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  53

  Half hearted JWs compared to past generations

  by JohnR1975 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  is it just me or has there been a massive change in jws of late?.

  when i grew up in the cult they had a real sense of urgency and would do an hour minimum, these days it’s not even ten mins before coffee break.. same goes for everything else, it’s half hearted .

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  Rivergang

  Since before COVID, the only ones who have knocked on my door are from the LDS
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  26

  How frequent is this among Jehovah's Witnesses

  by vienne in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  my grandmother, an immigrant from austria, was.

  two of my aunts, their husbands, both elders, various cousins and two of my sisters are witnesses.

  so is my grand uncle.

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  Rivergang

  According to Raymond Franz, in Crisis of Conscience, the then president of the Watchtower Society once even volunteered that the JWs do not care for the welfare of their rank and file members. Furthermore, he (Nathan Knorr) then went on to admit that such groups as the LDS do a much better job of that than the Witnesses.

  What else is there to say?
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  73

  JWN, 23 years posting Blondie

  by blondie in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  can i call you friends, i think so after 23 years posting here.

  i am dismayed how jwn is being "dominated" or taken over by a few posters, peppering the comments.

  in the past, the admin did not approve of this and did remove some posters from jwn.

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  Rivergang

  But the decisions ultimately were mine.

  Maybe not nearly as much as you might think!

  This concept of a "Free Will" is a myth which was actually generated by Christian theologians.

  Humans certainly have a will - but it isn't always free. Humans do make choices, but these are by no means always independent choices. Nearly every choice depends on a lot of biological, social (including religious) and personal conditions which you cannot determine for yourself. These conditioned are determined in part by such things as ones gender, biochemistry, genetic makeup, family background and national culture.

  Christian theologians would have us believe that we all have a "Free Will", but the Advertising Industry has always known otherwise!

  Link
  
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  164

  How did JWs arrive at a clearer understanding of what the Bible teaches than other Christian denominations?

  by slimboyfat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  for jws who believe that jehovah had a hand in reviving the truth in the nineteenth century this is enough explanation for how jws managed to achieve a closer approximation to early christian beliefs and practices than other groups.

  but is there an explanation for this phenomenon that doesn’t rely on supernatural intervention?

  new testament scholar james dunn explains the difficulty of interpreting the biblical texts in this way:.

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  Rivergang

  When I first became a JW, I recall hearing a lot said about "Constatine the Great" - most of which proved to be quite inaccurate (to put things diplomatically!)

  For example:

  • That he made Christianity the State Religion of the Roman Empire, whereas that happened during the reign of the emperor Theodosius.
  • That he appointed himself the first Pope (back then this was commonly believed by the JWS). In actual fact, Constantine only converted to Christianity while on his death bed.
  • That the Council of Nicaea was convened to help maintain political unity within the Roman Empire. (i.e. by settling religious differences and making the faith of the Christians into the "State Religion")

  What was that about a "Clearer Understanding"?
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  164

  How did JWs arrive at a clearer understanding of what the Bible teaches than other Christian denominations?

  by slimboyfat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  for jws who believe that jehovah had a hand in reviving the truth in the nineteenth century this is enough explanation for how jws managed to achieve a closer approximation to early christian beliefs and practices than other groups.

  but is there an explanation for this phenomenon that doesn’t rely on supernatural intervention?

  new testament scholar james dunn explains the difficulty of interpreting the biblical texts in this way:.

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  Rivergang

  Your appeal to Alexander Hislop’s The Two Babylons as a source for claiming that the Trinity is rooted in paganism has been thoroughly debunked by modern scholarship.

  Hislop was also roundly debunked even back in his own time, which was over 160 years ago. (Not in any way surprising - Alexander Hislop was a clergyman, not an historian. He also had a rabid dislike for the Catholic church).
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  6

  JW girl trafficked?

  by neat blue dog in

  1. social
  2. current

  anybody heard of this?

  a lot on social media are saying she was jw.. https://m.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10213113850013380&id=1007975796&set=p.10213113850013380.

  http://leftmeltdowns.blogspot.com/2018/11/missing-teen-linda-marie-sex-trafficking.html?m=1.

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  Rivergang

  Rule No.1 - Don't feed the troll.
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  6

  JW girl trafficked?

  by neat blue dog in

  1. social
  2. current

  anybody heard of this?

  a lot on social media are saying she was jw.. https://m.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10213113850013380&id=1007975796&set=p.10213113850013380.

  http://leftmeltdowns.blogspot.com/2018/11/missing-teen-linda-marie-sex-trafficking.html?m=1.

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  Rivergang

  Bloody Hell!

  She’s broken out in a fresh place.

  (Or as the Australian comedian Kevin Bloody Wilson described it “That £#cking cat’s back”)
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  62

  Ten reasons Jehovah’s Witnesses have the true religion (plus a bonus one)

  by slimboyfat in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  thinking back when i was a true believer these are probably the top ten reasons why i believed jws are the true religion.

  1. they show love among themselves by not going to war.

  not killing your fellow believers in any circumstances, including war, would seem to be a very basic requirement for true christianity.

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  Rivergang

  “It’s a fantasy of the future”

  Is that the same thing as a “Pie in the Sky”?

  That about domes the whole JW business up.