Posts by TerryWalstrom

17

Creative writing query..

by DATA-DOG in

jw
friends

i am working on a writing project.

just give me your opinion on this subject.

if you worked for your respective government and you were tasked with doomsday preparations, what would you decide to save for future generations?

TerryWalstrom

HERE ARE 10 survival bunkers

http://www.survival-spot.com/survival-blog/10-impressive-doomsday-bunkers/

Apocalypse 2012

26

QUESTIONING THE OBVIOUS or deconstructing Jehovah's Witnesses

by TerryWalstrom in

what is the most obvious thing you can think of about jehovah's witnesses from the standpoint of worldwide recognition?.

wouldn't it be 2 primary things: the name jehovah and secondly, the public testimony or witnessing?.

let's begin deconstructing those two things.. first, why would christians refer to themselves by any other name than christian?.

If you stop and think about it since the vowels FORCED into YHWH are arbitrary and the use of Adonai is pulled out of thin air as a model, the correct pronunciation of God's 'name' could well be ANYTHING.

I vote for: “YaHoo WaHoo!”

66

BART EHRMAN answers my question

by TerryWalstrom in

as a member on bart ehrman's blog, i am able to ask him direct questions.is jehovah in the bible?.

question:.

how firmly grounded in reality is the claim of jehovahs witnesses that the divine name (jehovah) belongs in the new testament?.

TerryWalstrom

If you stop and think about it since the vowels FORCED into YHWH are arbitrary and the use of Adonai is pulled out of thin air as a model, the correct pronunciation of God's 'name' could well be ANYTHING.

I vote for: “YaHoo WaHoo!”

7

LOCAL mini-APOSTAFEST (Sunday 3 /15) Fort Worth (Camp Bowie Starbucks)

by TerryWalstrom in

it looks like 5 of us will get together tomorrow at a starbucks on camp bowie in fort worth, texas.. this is one of those impromptu occasions which either suddenly come together or else just get jaw-jacked into a non-event:).

ricky g is a recently minted ex-jw who is moving to my vicinity from denton.

he has posted his story and other videos on youtube.

TerryWalstrom

It looks like 5 of us will get together tomorrow at a Starbucks on Camp Bowie in Fort Worth, Texas.

This is one of those impromptu occasions which either suddenly come together or else just get jaw-jacked into a non-event:)

Ricky G is a recently minted Ex-JW who is moving to my vicinity from Denton. He has posted his story and other videos on YouTube. He'll be there and we'll meet for the first time.

Also, I'm thrilled to report, a young man who is still a JW (but whose eyes are now open) will attend. Add to that an old alumnus from JW-net, James Woods will drive over in his Rolls Royce from Dallas to keep us company. Rounding out this dangerous pack of Apostates is my old friend Quentin and myself.

If any other eyes see this rather hasty notice and want to join us, PLEASE DO!

On this map (below) the Starbucks is directly across the street from La Madeleine bakery.

https://www.google.com/maps/@32.727978,-97.415421,15z

66

BART EHRMAN answers my question

by TerryWalstrom in

as a member on bart ehrman's blog, i am able to ask him direct questions.is jehovah in the bible?.

question:.

how firmly grounded in reality is the claim of jehovahs witnesses that the divine name (jehovah) belongs in the new testament?.

TerryWalstrom

Bart March 12, 2015

Yes, the tradition going back to Papias is that Matthew produced a Gospel in Hebrew. Later Christians thought he meant the Gospel of Matthew that has come down to us. There are very good reasons for thinking that he meant a different book, however, since the two things he says about Matthew are not true of our Matthew. Ours is not simply a collection of Jesus’ sayings (Logia) and it was certainly not originally written in Hebrew, as is almost universally recognized on very solid grounds (e.g., it copied stories from the *Greek* Gospel of Mark)

18

THEOCRATIC KENOSIS: the Watchtower Organization's ultimate goal for humanity

by TerryWalstrom in

ever wonder why jehovah's witnesses have almost nothing but words instead of love?.

every wonder why jw's praise their corporate leaders rather than jesus?.

every wonder why faith is only demonstrated by allowing children to die and molesters to escape, or disasters to be welcomed through obstinate demonstrations of loyalty to the org?.

TerryWalstrom

Terry a question in the 3rd last paragraph you write: " --Few can replace this emptiness with anything resembling a formal worship ritual. --"

why should formal worship ritual be so important?

__________________________

The first time an EX-JW decides to participate in Christmas, Easter, Halloween, donating blood, voting, etc. can be quite a neurotic crucible of existential angst!

I vividly recall the day I donated blood for my newborn daughter who was experiencing severe jaundice. I had to run a 'mental gantlet' of self-talk to arrive at that decision. It was nothing more than superstitious reaction to a bugaboo! Any other parent would not have hesitated even a half-second! I even knew intellectually it was the correct thing to do--and it disturbed me emotionally for a while afterward!

We tend to formalize important things in our life with ritual: weddings, funerals, graduations, etc.

My essential thought centers on the absence of alternatives for Ex-JW's to formalize through ritual practice because of the TAINT psychologically implanted by association with Watchtower doctrine.

6

IDENTITY and Fairies; The Salem Witch Trials and JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES

by TerryWalstrom in

two ball bearings manufactured at the same time, in the same factory, by rigorous engineering standards, and produced to serve the same function inside a particular machine.. question: are they identical?.

answer: no.

there is one on your left and there is one on your right.. these do not occupy the same space.. you can remove one and the other will not follow.. _________________.

TerryWalstrom

I guess we could say, "JW's lose their bearing and become bearings" :)

66

BART EHRMAN answers my question

by TerryWalstrom in

as a member on bart ehrman's blog, i am able to ask him direct questions.is jehovah in the bible?.

question:.

how firmly grounded in reality is the claim of jehovahs witnesses that the divine name (jehovah) belongs in the new testament?.

TerryWalstrom

If Jesus or his apostles had uttered the Tetra., don't you think it would have caused a tremendous accusation by the Pharisees who were looking for any pretense whatsoever with which to accuse them?

Beautiful reasoning; simple and elegant!

66

BART EHRMAN answers my question

by TerryWalstrom in

as a member on bart ehrman's blog, i am able to ask him direct questions.is jehovah in the bible?.

question:.

how firmly grounded in reality is the claim of jehovahs witnesses that the divine name (jehovah) belongs in the new testament?.

TerryWalstrom

Treating God's Divine personal Name as though it were Holy would mean treating it the same way the Holy of Holy's in the Temple was treated. You wouldn't "go there."

Off limits!

Look how JW's bandy the name about like it is their Uncle Chucky. Jehovah this and Jehovah that--especially attaching it to fake Armageddon predictions that plop embarrassingly flat.

The Watchtower pretends it was silly superstition on the part of Jews to NOT say the name aloud.

The contrast between respect and over-familiarity is quite distinct, don't you think?

66

BART EHRMAN answers my question

by TerryWalstrom in

as a member on bart ehrman's blog, i am able to ask him direct questions.is jehovah in the bible?.

question:.

how firmly grounded in reality is the claim of jehovahs witnesses that the divine name (jehovah) belongs in the new testament?.

TerryWalstrom

TODAY'S REPLY on Ehrman's blog:

Bart March 11, 2015

Short responses:
1. “The name” is another way to say the name of God without saying the name of God. You just say, “the name” and you mean “God” or “Yahweh”
2. Yes, there are Septuagint manuscripts that preserve the tetragrammaton. But most don’t.
3. I don’t know of any evidence that NT authors actually used the Hebrew letters for the tetragrammaton in their quotations of the OT. Do these authors actually say what the evidence *is*? I’ve looked at probably all the earliest manuscripts of the NT Gospels and I can’t think of a single stitch of evidence for that claim. But maybe I’m wrong!