when i started investigating "the temptations" at matthew chapter 4, i had no idea that i would develop the ideas contained in my study paper.
so it cannot honestly be said that i set out to prove the conclusions i arrived at.. it is available at:.
http://www.jwstudies.com/the_devil_who_tested_jesus.pdf .
Using symbol makes it easy. How difficult it would have been If the Traffic Department were to write every road instruction in its details. Instead, they have put RED signal which we know STOP ....etc.
similarly, religious symbols give us quick reference just like Macbeth is a symbol that reminds 'greed means destruction.' Those who follow the symbol benefit themselves and others, those who do not follow, cause wastage.
i wanted to take a moment to thank everyone who has posted here as i have been reading all of them.
i have realized that i am not alone in my struggles and the realization that the " truth" is a bunch of crap.
i have been over come with emotion over the last years or so.
There is something funny with regard to those who do not examine the religions they were born into. They are under the impression that their birth determines the truthfulness of the religion. In other words, the religion they are born into becomes automatically true because of their birth into it.
when i started investigating "the temptations" at matthew chapter 4, i had no idea that i would develop the ideas contained in my study paper.
so it cannot honestly be said that i set out to prove the conclusions i arrived at.. it is available at:.
http://www.jwstudies.com/the_devil_who_tested_jesus.pdf .
Though Bible writers used poor imagination in creating a setting for the temptation for Jesus, in essence it conveys a profound thought. Just like sea-worthiness of a ship is known when it is placed in the sea and survives a storm (not when it is anchored on the shore), Jesus proved his worthiness through his second “baptism by fire” (Mathew 3:11) which means he was victorious over all the temptations he encountered throughout his life as implied by Mark 1:13 when he said: “He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him” which means he tasted the life as it is with its rough and soft aspects. All those temptations can broadly be categorized in to three:
1) Tendency to use skills and talents for own benefit rather than for others (changing the stones into bread).
2) Putting God into test taking extreme risk (jumping from the top of temple) with an eye on fame through short-cut.
3) Forgetting the main purpose of life (realizing God as the father of all which helps view to everyone as His child) and getting sidetracked on to the splendor of world’s attractions (kingdoms of world in exchange for an act of worship of Satan, personification of bad qualities, which means enjoying worldly pleasures and powers through unjust means)
Thus, in details the account of temptation on Jesus carries wrong messages such as shape of earth is flat, Satan is a person, Jesus followed Satan to be tempted …etc. But in essence it conveys great truth that man can be victorious over any temptation by changing the thought as Jesus did—he did not dwell on any of them. No one can be tempted without his permission. Satan is personification of evil, and evil is absence of virtues just like darkness is absence of light. When one is tempted, he only needs to bring in the corresponding virtue which means he has conquered the temptation.
because of the wts focus on their interpretation of bible history i never realised when other religious thoughts were introduced to the world.
even their publication "mankind's search for the only true god" was skewed to show other belief systems in a negative light.
i recently stumbled upon this informative website, and i am sharing the timeline given on it.
Thank you for posting, interesting information.
a careful reader of the bible can see depiction of two gods in the bible—one that of a loving father figure, and the other an impulsive sort of who has been copied thoughtlessly from other cultures.. 1) god of love (as seen in genesis chapter 1) who creates humans (men and woman simultaneously) “in his image” (which means he gave the best he can to his children, the potential to become like him) as a crown of creation with a command to take care of all species, and goes into silence unconcerned of mankind’s response [gratitude or worship] to him, yet with a presupposition to “renew” in case humans deplete/destroy the resources (mathew 19:28; revelation 21:1-5).
thus god’s action defines him as “the servant of humanity.” (luke 22:26, 27) this is in contrast to the second god (as seen in genesis chapter 2 and 3 and throughout other books) who makes the planning for suffering and death for humans in co-operation with his adversary.. 2) god of impartiality (deut 10:17; mathew 5:44-48) who asks us to love/greet everyone.
this is in contrast to the second god who commands his worshippers not even to greet those who do not share their beliefs.
Second God’s view of woman is like that of King Henry VIII who had an illusion that only a son will save England. When his wife, Anne, gave birth to a girl, he still tried for more marriages to have a son which set in motion for a series of disasters like beheading of Anne. Yet history showed Anne’s daughter, Elizabeth, was one of the greatest rulers of England, despite her not being the son, but a daughter.
Second God treats woman as good for nothing. (1 Timothy 2:11-15) Yet no other book has influenced me like You can heal your life, written by Lousie L Hay, a woman, with an incredible insight into the workings of body and mind. It is a book I read daily, even though I am familiar with its contents.
i have a nephew that has just recently being diagnosed with a life threatening disease through bad choices he has made in his life over the last 20 years.
now he has asked myself and my sons to be there for him and without being judgemental we have being up at the hospital every other day for the last couple of weeks.
now this is the part where i am just pissed right off.. one of my nephews other cousins goes to the hospital and starts giving him a guilt trip, saying that this was all his own fault that she couldn't talk to him for the last 20 years and his sickness now is all because he left jehooba organization blah blah blah.
If a farmer says "I produced all these agricultural products," we take it as a joke because we know that he is ignorant about many factors and forces that are behind the production of agricultural crops--including sun with its photosynthesis and greater SUN (God) who is ultimately responsible for the marvelous process called photosynthesis.
Similarly, diseases occur because of so many factors and forces acting together, and the recipient's role is too insignificant.
important note: i am not a theist and this is all meaningless of course from an atheist perspective, but this critique is written from a theistic perspective for those who are interested in picking apart jw theology or are still religious.
if this is not you, please just ignore!.
comments, additions, corrections to my crazy ramblings all welcome.
doubtfull1799,
Every point is better than the other. I especially liked "
“Satan cannot force people to act against their own will.”
Evidence? Actually the writer claimed just the opposite a few paragraphs ago! If Satan can trick people into worshipping demons when they think they are worshipping God, then he is in fact forcing them to act against their will."
When a plane is hijacked, the first one who is held responsible for is the security-check personnel whose negligence is obvious in the episode. Similarly, God could have guarded the Garden 'by placing cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth' against Satan's entry rather than the reentry of Adam and Eve. (Gen 3:24)
Story is full of flaws because it has never happened, it is a poor copying from other sources. Satan is personification of evil, and evil is absence of virtue. Hence writers got everything hopelessly mixed and confused.
has anyone come across detailed 2017 jw org statistics so we can compare them to previous years?
or are they now obscured in a soapy film of praise to the demi-gods at warwick to disguise the decline?.
According to 2017 Service Year * Report, Number of Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwide is 8,457,107. If everyone of them is serious and brings one more person every year, their membership would double in every year, as the chart below:
|
16914214 |
|
33828428 |
|
67656856 |
|
135313712 |
|
270627424 |
|
541254848 |
|
1082509696 |
|
2165019392 |
|
4330038784 |
|
8660077568 |
And in 10 years, the whole world population would be JWs with no exception.
1 timothy 2:11-15let a woman learn in silence with full submissiveness.
i do not permit a woman to teach, or to exercise authority over a man, but to be in silence.
for adam was formed first, then eve.
By saying “Adam was formed first, then Eve; also, Adam was not deceived, but the woman was thoroughly deceived and came to be in transgression” Paul is talking about a different God than the one found in Genesis Chapter 1.
In the first creation account, God is a God of order because He creates plants, land, rivers, sea species, land animals, etc. before he creates humans “in His image” which suggests He is benevolent whereas in the second creation account, we find a different God who creates man first out of dry earth before he creates rivers, plants, animals, etc. then a woman from his rib, a God who treats humans much harsher than the first God as He restricts Adam and Eve to a plot of land, forbids them from accessing true knowledge, and then exiles and brings torment to all human beings for the disobedience of Adam and Eve.
It is understandable why Paul chose the second creation account to project his idea about inferiority of women.
1 timothy 2:11-15let a woman learn in silence with full submissiveness.
i do not permit a woman to teach, or to exercise authority over a man, but to be in silence.
for adam was formed first, then eve.
They are 'straining out a gnat but swallow a camel.' (Mathew 23:24) Paul wanted to re-establish patriarchal theocracy, hence he conveniently ignored the First Creation account in the Genesis book which says "God created mankind (original Hebrew word is Adam) as male and female in His image" which makes men and woman equal.
Second creation account is full of flaws: God is shown as correcting mistakes done in the earlier account with changing the order of creation, planting a garden and enjoying walking in it, assembling a man out of mud only to realize later that He did not make a mate as He had done in the case of all animals, and finally making woman out of a [superfluous] rib taken out of man.
Paul obviously bases his degrading teaching about woman on this second creation account filled with flaws. What best can come out of flaws?
