TerryWalstrom

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Posts by TerryWalstrom

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  13

  Governing Body of Pharisees

  by TerryWalstrom in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qqef4vifauxvdqrd8oemaue-4mjf2xh8-dt94-qvsbm/edit?usp=sharing.

  governing body of pharisees.

  alexander (the great) and his army swept through palestine on his way to persia.

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  TerryWalstrom

  Thanks.
  I need to write "something" today and this was all I could come up with :)
• 
  13

  Governing Body of Pharisees

  by TerryWalstrom in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qqef4vifauxvdqrd8oemaue-4mjf2xh8-dt94-qvsbm/edit?usp=sharing.

  governing body of pharisees.

  alexander (the great) and his army swept through palestine on his way to persia.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  TerryWalstrom

  https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qqeF4ViFauxVdQrD8oemAUE-4MJF2xH8-DT94-QVSBM/edit?usp=sharing
  

  Governing Body of Pharisees

  ________________________

  
  

  In 332 B.C.E. Alexander (the Great) and his army swept through Palestine on his way to Persia. After Alexander’s death, two of his generals (Seleucus and Ptolemy) wrested Alexander’s empire and total dominance from local rulers as they grappled with each other ever afterward, with first, one, and then, the other victorious intermittently.

  
  

  While these ambitious and competitive generals fought each other, their territorial holdings changed hands five times during which these regions took advantage of the chaos and ruled themselves more or less autonomously. In particular, the Jews in Jerusalem were tugged and manhandled in extremis. However we define Judaism, it stopped being just one idea or practice. Judaism fractured and splintered and boiled into a stew of many flavors.

  Complicating matters, internal politics and religious differences stirred the mix.

  _____

  ASSIMILATION VS. PURITY

  
  

  The protection offered by Greek military colonies in outposts near Jerusalem and its environs proved irresistible to Jerusalem’s common folk, endangered constantly by raids, intrusions, and upheaval.

  Eventually, marriage between Jewish women and Greek soldiers was encouraged to foster the spread of Hellenistic culture (which was the Greek way of existentially transforming conquered people.) Note: The assimilation of Greek language and wisdom was devastating to traditional Jewish isolationist ethos. Greek was a much more sophisticated language than Hebrew with “a word for everything.”
  
  The final blow to pure Judaism was the SEPTUAGINT (Greek) version of the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) due to the fact Jews couldn’t read Hebrew anymore.
  

  
  

  Greek bureaucracy established trading centers and helped assimilated Jews set up thriving businesses with the ultimate goal of taxation and economic well-being. (Economic security discourages anarchy or rebellion.)

  However--religious fanatics are only interested in purity and separation from polluting outside influences. The High Priest took on a prominence previously unnecessary in matters of politics. Instead of rule by King, priestly aristocrats moved into dominance and influence.

  
  

  A clash between radical religious leaders and Hellenized Jews was inevitable. Disputes led to military intervention from the outside and outright rebellion broke out. (Maccabean Revolt 168-164 B.C.E.)

  _______

  CIVIL WAR

  
  

  In the year 168 B.C.E., the Greek king of the Seleucid empire (Antiochus IV) intervened in the Jews’ Civil War between Hellenized Jews and traditional purists. The result of this clash of religion, culture and political ambition was nothing short of a holocaust for the conservatives. 80,000 men, women and children were destroyed or taken captive; the temple desecrated, and the city of Jerusalem itself was ruined.

  ________

  
  

  THE RISE of the PHARISEES

  
  

  The Maccabee family rulership went from father Simon to son John (called Hyrcanus *ruler) who was selected by Romans as a puppet in the region and recognized as High Priest (instead of a king.) John Hyrcanus had been tutored by the Perushim sect (Pharisees) and his bias leaned their way. He influenced Roman approval of them above the other sects of Judaism.

  
  

  The Pharisaic scholars were recognized by Rome as the governing body for the internal life of the Jewish people, so the Pharisees became a party with political power as well as religious influence. Judaism that emerged and survived was primarily Pharisaic Judaism.

  
  

  For monotheistic Jews, purity of worship was thrown into a crisis of monumental proportions. Judaism disagreed on how to survive and split into three main groups in reaction to the invasion.

  _______

  EMERGING SECTS of JUDAISM

  
  

  1. The Essenes fled from Jerusalem and founded a hermetic community at Qumran near the Dead Sea all about purifying themselves of contact with the outside world. These “monks” isolated themselves in a contest of purity in diet and sexual abstinence, “holier-than-thou” to the point of self-extinction. These monks believed their personal interpretations were guided by God Himself. Essenes adopted only the solar calendar, unlike the Pharisees and Sadducees who used a combination of lunar and solar. (Essenes had a seething contempt for the puppet ruler John Hyrcanus.)

  Note: the famous Dead Sea Scrolls originated with this sect. Essenes considered themselves the “Teacher of Righteousness” among Jews.

  
  

  2. Perushim or Pharisees embraced the Oral Torah (from memory) and favored molding the law to novel situations as they arose. Traditions (interpretations) were approved by Pharisees and promoted, some would say, intrusively. Pharisees used a methodology taught in rabbinical school by which interpretation was to be applied to the Oral Torah.

  These men were middle class and lower echelon citizens in their society (blue collar Jews) before assuming the role of the governing body. Because of the “oral” nature of the Torah--teachers (rabbi) became necessary among the people. Among Pharisees, the idea of an afterlife of reward and punishment sprung up as well as a Messiah as kind of second David, to usher in world peace.

  
  

  3. Sadducees trusted the written version of the law, resisting constant interpretations, and rejecting the Oral Torah or Talmud. Surprisingly, these elite members of Jewish society were opportunistic enough to embrace the positive changes brought in through Greek influence, business, and world trade. Sadducees rejected the novel Pharisaic notions of an afterlife of reward and punishment. This life is all there is and Jews must make the most of whatever opportunities that arise. The Sadducees made up half of the Sanhedrin (Court) along with Pharisees deciding matters of jurisprudence, often at odds with one another.

  Note: Sadducees is derived from ZADOK-ees or Priests. As in Melchi (king)zadok (priest).

  http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/pharisees-sadducees-and-essenes

  
  

  _____

  
  

  In the 1st century, Jesus was chastised by Pharisees for associating with bad companions.

  Paul studied to become a Pharisee. Jesus, you might say, was violating “Bad associations spoil useful habits,” asserted by the Apostle Paul.

  Jesus embraced prostitutes, tax collectors, and the non-pious.

  https://goo.gl/m9Qp7Y

  
  

  Sadducees accepted only the written law and rejected the interpretations (traditions). Sadducees rejected the angelology and demonology which had developed by Pharisees.

  Jesus constantly dealt with and preach about demons.

  (See: Backgrounds of Early Christianity by Everett Ferguson)

  _________________

  The Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses

  
  

  A misreading of history is to be expected of Jehovah’s Witnesses.

  It is nowhere more evident than the idea that Almighty God needs a puppet government on earth like that established by Rome in the time of the Maccabeans.

  Christianity eventually created a replacement for all things Judaism which had fractured into sects.

  Most of Jesus’ ministry was spent in a debate with the ruling hierarchy of his religion of birth, Judaism. The Governing Body of Judaism considered its own interpretations superior to the written word, let it be recalled. Jesus constantly clashed with this point of view and with elitist attitudes of entitlement to lord it over fellow believers for their own good.

  
  

  When Rome finally stepped in and stamped its foot on Jerusalem, the Pharisees found themselves out of a job, the Essenes were gone with the desert wind and Sadducees headed into Diaspora.

  Interestingly, if you trace the name Perusha from which Pharisee is derived, the preponderance is found in Russia. We know from history the empire split into the Greek city of Constantinople/ Italian Rome. The fall of Rome in the 5th century left only Constantinople until 1453 C.E. By then, Orthodox Christianity had absorbed much of the trappings of Pharisee traditions and outward trappings.

  Today’s Governing Body of JW’s has carried Pharisee tradition into the homes of devout purists around the globe waiting for the next cosmic interpretation of what Oral Christianity “really means.”

  Indeed, the Christian Greek Scriptures can trace to no original documents and has been culled and collated by a series of filters (Early Church Fathers) deciding what is included and excluded.

  Early Church Fathers acted as a crucible for clashing ideas of who or what Jesus was/is and the New Testament is nothing more or less than the pulp from that pressurized pounding by Gnostics, Roman Catholics, Messianic Christians, and Platonic philosophers the first two hundred years or so. It took the imprimatur of a sun worshipping Roman general (Constantine) to coalesce competing forces into a written document both official and eternal.

  
  

  How long will Watchtower survive? The centralized authority of Jehovah’s Witnesses is precarious. Self-aggrandized doctrine purports to validate their Governing Body as a shadow of early Christianity as described in the Book of Acts. Except it doesn’t.

  Even a casual reading of the clash between Paul and Peter and the “chain of command” reveals Paul as a Lone Ranger figure exempt from the other apostles and distinct in teaching.

  
  

  Judaism is still with us for all the thrashing and trashing of history. It is fractured into sects as always.

  Christianity is subsumed by 40K sects, denominations, churches, and congregations under a generalization of “Jesus” yet separately and definitively understood differently.

  
  

  One thing is certain--everywhere you look.

  Pharisees are still with us!

  _____________________
  
  
• 
  40

  Return of the Dub (plus surprise guest)

  by TerryWalstrom in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  return of the dub (plus surprise guest)dealing with just one frisky, bright-eyed jehovah’s witness is a handful.one on one is manageable.

  two jw’s is more like juggling chainsaws or french kissing alligators.i had a return visit the other day and now, the jw was returning the 2nd time, but with another dub.what would my strategy be?

  that’s how the day was spent.

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  TerryWalstrom

  I plan never to argue doctrine, scripture, or exegesis because you can't establish one OPINION over another OPINION.
  I have to navigate around the rocks and off the shoals.
  The minute a JW opens a Bible or reaches for a Watchtower it is a losing proposition because their magisterium is eisegesis.
  
  I will dance around the usual arguments about the Trinity and such. As a matter of fact--I've had it up to "here" with the idea of debating dogma. I did that when I was younger and that's how I ended up older :)
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  40

  Return of the Dub (plus surprise guest)

  by TerryWalstrom in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  return of the dub (plus surprise guest)dealing with just one frisky, bright-eyed jehovah’s witness is a handful.one on one is manageable.

  two jw’s is more like juggling chainsaws or french kissing alligators.i had a return visit the other day and now, the jw was returning the 2nd time, but with another dub.what would my strategy be?

  that’s how the day was spent.

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  TerryWalstrom

  I know what you mean about time wasting.
  But I have had one big successful intervention.
  
  I can't give you his actual name. He's still inside and in good stead. He's not ready to have his JW family disown him. But he is fully awake and very intelligent about his research, his questions, and the conclusions. ALL OF WHICH began when I walked over to him as he witnessed to a workmate.
  I'm very very grateful I did that. It meant the difference between one life and another for this young man.
  He comes to see me every week. We talk about life. We play chess sometimes. We go for a bite to eat. He's like a son to me. ALL BECAUSE I got up and walked over and interrupted his life with sunlight.
  
  I'm driven by the slim notion this could happen again. Why? It is an undefinable "feeling" about Earl. At the risk of sounding like a lunatic, I'll compare it to the tingle you get when you see somebody you think you're falling in love with. Yeah yeah--I know, I know--a stupid analogy. (I'm not gay.)
  Yet, it's mysterious and almost inevitable--except nothing but death is inevitable. It is a magic only possible IF YOU ACT and say the right things and do the right things.
  
  That's the only explanation and it's not a very good one.
• 
  40

  Return of the Dub (plus surprise guest)

  by TerryWalstrom in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  return of the dub (plus surprise guest)dealing with just one frisky, bright-eyed jehovah’s witness is a handful.one on one is manageable.

  two jw’s is more like juggling chainsaws or french kissing alligators.i had a return visit the other day and now, the jw was returning the 2nd time, but with another dub.what would my strategy be?

  that’s how the day was spent.

  1. 
  2. 
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  TerryWalstrom

  My take on Bill was a whole lot different after the evening was over than before.

  He had an Observer/Scientist vibe going on. All the JW's I grew up with would have taken the reins. Something different happened last night.

  I doubt there is a new policy. I don't think it is personality either. The paranoid side of me (which occurs when I'm in the company of Da Bruthas) brings that out in me--sort of like having a squad car pull up beside you at a red light. You know that feeling?
  
  I begin to wonder..."Do they know I'm Apostate and are reconnoitering?
  Nobody put up even a moderate pushback.
  Is this the NEW freestyle technique?

  What's really going on?
  If I ever hear back I might get more info. I know a young brother still in who is awake. I asked him if he knew these Brothers. He doesn't. He's going to try and find out something. It's good to have a mole :)
  
  
• 
  40

  Return of the Dub (plus surprise guest)

  by TerryWalstrom in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  return of the dub (plus surprise guest)dealing with just one frisky, bright-eyed jehovah’s witness is a handful.one on one is manageable.

  two jw’s is more like juggling chainsaws or french kissing alligators.i had a return visit the other day and now, the jw was returning the 2nd time, but with another dub.what would my strategy be?

  that’s how the day was spent.

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  TerryWalstrom

  That made me laugh, Anders. Thanks.
• 
  20

  Another Hollywood Memory

  by TerryWalstrom in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  another hollywood memory____________________“thanks for the pink chablis, marta.

  who’s that singing?

  sounds familiar.”.

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  TerryWalstrom

  I'm devoting much of my writing time to capturing moments which include people I've known and interacted with significant to my "journey" through life. Just getting it down on a page makes it seem "archived" in some small sense.
  I've been working on turning all this into my next book. I've wanted to steal the title to humorist Jack Douglas' book: "A Funny Thing Happened to Me on my way to the grave."
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  40

  Return of the Dub (plus surprise guest)

  by TerryWalstrom in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  return of the dub (plus surprise guest)dealing with just one frisky, bright-eyed jehovah’s witness is a handful.one on one is manageable.

  two jw’s is more like juggling chainsaws or french kissing alligators.i had a return visit the other day and now, the jw was returning the 2nd time, but with another dub.what would my strategy be?

  that’s how the day was spent.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  TerryWalstrom

  In the last several years at different Starbucks locations, I've run into interesting people and some of the write-ups I've done (mostly as a daily exercise I force myself to write about at least one thing during my day and seek to find some kernel of "story" in it)--all of which to say, I've done maybe 8 or 9 encounters with either seminary students or JW's. If I had the patience, I'd dig them up and put them in some order.
  
  Thanks for the suggestion.
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  13

  Mexico Earthquake - Tsunami Alert

  by cofty in

  1. social
  2. current

  a magnitude 8.1 earthquake has struck off the pacific coast of mexico triggering tsunami alerts.. mexico is also threatened by hurricane katia with winds of 90mph which is expected to hit the east coast later today.. earthquakes, hurricanes, solar flares, nuclear threats - our jw relatives are going to be so excited..

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  TerryWalstrom

  The Second Coming

  W. B. Yeats, 1865 - 1939

  Turning and turning in the widening gyre
  The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
  Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
  Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
  The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
  The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
  The best lack all conviction, while the worst
  Are full of passionate intensity.
  
  Surely some revelation is at hand;
  Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
  The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
  When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
  Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert
  A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
  A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun, 
  Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
  Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds.
  The darkness drops again; but now I know
  That twenty centuries of stony sleep
  Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
  And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
  Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?
  
  

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPbBVJfuzws
  
  
• 
  40

  Return of the Dub (plus surprise guest)

  by TerryWalstrom in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  return of the dub (plus surprise guest)dealing with just one frisky, bright-eyed jehovah’s witness is a handful.one on one is manageable.

  two jw’s is more like juggling chainsaws or french kissing alligators.i had a return visit the other day and now, the jw was returning the 2nd time, but with another dub.what would my strategy be?

  that’s how the day was spent.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  TerryWalstrom

  The more I reflect on it--the more it seems like it was all a Nothing Burger.
  My bad.
  IF I get another go at him or them--and I really doubt it--I'll just go for the jugular and get into the BIG ISSUES.