Posts by venus

13

Philosophical implications of Genetic 1:26 and the personality of the Judeo-Christian God.

by doubtfull1799 in

while visiting a still in friend last week we had an interesting discussion on narcissism.

he made a very interesting comment that got me thinking about the above.

we were discussing the nature of celebrity and fame and he mentioned that he would find it very difficult to cope with constant adulation and praise.

venus

I disagree with you doubtfull1799

The idea that “He deserves constant praise and worship because he is the creator” is of human imagination, and such human thinking crept into the Bible writing because writers were inducting their own thinking (1Cor 7:10, 40).

However, God’s attitude must be discerned from the action and inaction of God. For example, He knows the existence of conflicted religions and their scriptures, also knows existence of order and disorder in the world—and HE does nothing to straighten it out. This shows He doesn’t want our praise. This has been hinted at in the famous comparison Jesus made God with sun in Mathew 5:44-48. Sun is a giver (of light and energy), it never receives anything from us. This is a repeat of what has already been declared in the Old Testament. (Psalm 84:11)

11

Big events/developments which Bible failed to foresee!

by venus in

though bible made prophecies about “wars and rumors of war, famines and earthquakes, and persecution, hatred …” as signs of “last days” (mathew 24:6-11) which are neither specific nor extra-ordinary given the history of such events, it failed to foresee the positive development such as communication revolution (e.g.

tv, internet, mobile phone …) which is also favorable to preaching activity—the whole world can be preached to within a matter of hours.

[bible writers thought it would take at least 21 centuries for the whole world to be preached to.—mathew 24:14].

venus

confusedalot,

I admire your deep sense of humor. Looking forward to more of it.

7

judgement and resurrection

by inbetween09 in

another inconsistency in wt theology:.

jw believe, when armegeddon comes, only jw will survive.

good news was preached in most areas and people could decide for or against god.

venus

inbetween09,

Yes, it is really an inconsistency which I never thought of.

11

Big events/developments which Bible failed to foresee!

by venus in

though bible made prophecies about “wars and rumors of war, famines and earthquakes, and persecution, hatred …” as signs of “last days” (mathew 24:6-11) which are neither specific nor extra-ordinary given the history of such events, it failed to foresee the positive development such as communication revolution (e.g.

tv, internet, mobile phone …) which is also favorable to preaching activity—the whole world can be preached to within a matter of hours.

[bible writers thought it would take at least 21 centuries for the whole world to be preached to.—mathew 24:14].

venus

Though Bible made prophecies about “wars and rumors of war, famines and earthquakes, and persecution, hatred …” as signs of “Last Days” (Mathew 24:6-11) which are neither specific nor extra-ordinary given the history of such events, it failed to foresee the positive development such as communication revolution (e.g. TV, Internet, mobile phone …) which is also favorable to preaching activity—the whole world can be preached to within a matter of hours. [Bible writers thought it would take at least 21 centuries for the whole world to be preached to.—Mathew 24:14]

Even though global warming and subsequent sea-level rise are extremely favorable to eschatology which is one of the key subjects of Bible, still they find no mention in the Bible. Interestingly, more details are coming up with regard to this subject such as danger to the fishes in the sea: “Warmer waters increase fish's need for oxygen but climate change will result in less oxygen in the oceans. This means that gills have less oxygen to supply to a body that already grows faster than them. The researchers say this forces fish to stop growing at a smaller size to be able to fulfill their needs with the little oxygen available to them. Some species may be more affected by this combination of factors. Tuna, which are fast moving and require more energy and oxygen, may shrink even more when temperatures increase.”

http://www.sciencenewsline.com/news/2017082117580076.html

7

Miracles and responses—both are not explicable

by venus in

a miracle is an event not explicable by natural or scientific laws.

bible reports many such miracles.

interestingly, responses to these reported miracles could be even labeled as a greater miracle which cannot be explained by any known law, logic or experience.

venus

Drearyweather,

People who were really witnesses of miracles such as resurrection cannot be influenced against the performer of those miracles by things such as indoctrination, money, or threat ...

If people were indoctrinated against Jesus, then it would mean such great miracles have never taken place.

14

New book on early Christianity

by careful in

i'm not quite sure that this post fits under jws/wts since they do not keep up with real biblical scholarship, but i don't know where else to post it.. thomas a. robinson (university of lethbridge) has just published a book through oxford university press on the earliest christians, entitled who were the first christians?

: dismantling the urban thesis.

for some years the idea has dominated scholarship that christianity grew strongly at first in ancient cities like rome, alexandria, and corinth; the notion has been largely influenced by wayne meeks' (of yale) thinking in his book the first urban christians (1986).. i once saw a member here cite meeks' idea of how many christians existed in the roman empire.

venus

Rome was the world power at that time, hence was in a position to influence history and even Bible writing. For example, The Greeks had named the days week after the sun, the moon and the five known planets, which were in turn named after the gods Ares, Hermes, Zeus, Aphrodite, and Cronus, and had called the days of the week the Theon hemerai "days of the Gods". But Romans substituted their equivalent gods for the Greek gods, Mars, Mercury, Jove (Jupiter), Venus, and Saturn. (The two pantheons are very similar.)

Rome wanted a Christianity that should be submissive to it, hence used name of Jesus (who could have been known as a great teacher by then) to their advantage. Hence they ensured a Bible writing in which Jesus is seen as giving pro-Roman commands such as:

* “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you” (Mathew 5:11)

* “do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also; if anyone wants to … take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles (Mathew 5:39-41) …

Hence actual history of early Christianity may never be known!

13

The Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31)

by venus in

jws advise that we should not take this illustration as literal saying things such as heaven and hell are not in close proximity so that both the inmates can speak to each other, dipping the tip of one’s finger in water would not be enough to put off one’s thirst …etc.. interestingly, jesus himself did not want his listeners to take this illustration literally or figuratively because he mixed both, hence wanted to get the message typical of any story.

if we were to take the illustration figuratively, who do “dogs that came and licked sores of lazar” symbolize?

also, the rich man in the story makes a powerful point when he says: ‘if someone from the dead is resurrected and speaks his surviving family members on earth, they will repent.’ (luke 16:27-31) the powerful logic used in this argument is to be literal, can’t be figurative because it concerns about literal death of a person and his resurrection.. those who are concerned about determining whether this illustration is literal or figurative miss the simple message of this story: god plays no role in the affairs of man and everyone can learn from experience (own or from others) that there is sowing and reaping, hence everyone is free to choose his destiny..

venus

Religious founders leave behind simple truths which the religious leaders would complicate so that the readers miss the essence.

This has been the case with most of the religions. In the case of Bible, it started with Paul who openly admits: "I give this command (not I, but the Lord)"; "I think that I too have the Spirit of God." (1Cor 7:10, 40)

7

Romans 4:5

by NJ501 in

romans 4:5new international version (niv).

5 however, to the one who does not work but trusts god who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness.. .

i need help to understand this scripture.

venus

NJ5011,

It is Paul’s word, not God’s word (1 Cor 7:10, 40); hence there is no benefit trying to understand it.

10

Forced to Choose Between Beliefs and Family

by Roger Kirkpatrick in

[please feel free to share.].

forced to choose between beliefs and family.

“no one should be forced to worship in a way that he finds objectionable or be made to choose between his beliefs and his family.” that statement appeared in an article entitled “is it wrong to change your religion?” in the july 2009 awake magazine, published and distributed widely by jehovah’s witnesses.. nearly everyone reading that statement would consider it to be mere common sense.

venus

Anyone who believes shunning is right can never see anything right because that is the rock-bottom one can go in distorted view.

13

The Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31)

by venus in

jws advise that we should not take this illustration as literal saying things such as heaven and hell are not in close proximity so that both the inmates can speak to each other, dipping the tip of one’s finger in water would not be enough to put off one’s thirst …etc.. interestingly, jesus himself did not want his listeners to take this illustration literally or figuratively because he mixed both, hence wanted to get the message typical of any story.

if we were to take the illustration figuratively, who do “dogs that came and licked sores of lazar” symbolize?

also, the rich man in the story makes a powerful point when he says: ‘if someone from the dead is resurrected and speaks his surviving family members on earth, they will repent.’ (luke 16:27-31) the powerful logic used in this argument is to be literal, can’t be figurative because it concerns about literal death of a person and his resurrection.. those who are concerned about determining whether this illustration is literal or figurative miss the simple message of this story: god plays no role in the affairs of man and everyone can learn from experience (own or from others) that there is sowing and reaping, hence everyone is free to choose his destiny..

venus

punkofnice,

You are right--convenience determines which parable is to be taken literally and figuratively.

When I first read the explanation of this parable in "Is this life all there is?" book, I told myself: 'this can't be, this nothing but mere intellectual exercise. If it were to be taken figuratively, Jesus would have explained it clearly without the possibility for anyone to grapple with with later.

Going for the details and trying to establish figurative uses is like "throwing the baby and keeping the bathing water."