Posts by Viviane

7

Simplified Suggestion--The 144,000

by FusionTheism in

the governing body has recently placed a large priority on simplicity and clarity in their teachings and publications.

for example:the watchtower study edition, march 15, 2015, pages 8-10:.

in recent years, the spiritual instruction provided by jehovahs organization has reflected an increased emphasis on simplicity and clarity.

Viviane

Another simplification could result from asking the question of why teach it in the first place?

74

Is Prophecy important?

by EA916 in

hello, i am certainly new to all of this.

i have recently been studying the prophecy's, and i was wondering if they are of any importance at all?

Viviane

In the short time I've been here I have not seen you be passive about anything religious. No, you are very active, forthright and quite forceful in your opposition to religion.

I'm not opposed to religion. I've no idea where you got that idea.

I can say I understand what being a woman is but in no way can I truly understand what being a woman is because I am not a woman. You may intellectually understand what is meant by spiritual or spirituality but unless you experience it for yourself you have no way of truly understanding what is meant.

OK, but you've not even defined what "spirituality" means in any objective sense. Of course there is no hope of understanding it. The same cannot be said for "being a woman".

I will not participate in efforts to divide the flesh from its fat in order to satisfy an atheistic pursuit to put down religious beliefs.

Nor is anyone asking you to. Just what do you mean by, what is "spiritual" and "spirituality"? Define for us, please, this thing you claim is lacking. We can't hope to determine if it is lacking unless we know what it is.

37

The flat earth conspiracy!

by Truthexplorer in

ok. let me first start by saying i am not a flat earther.

i like most on here will have the same view most will have here about our planet.

in saying that however, i am incredibly gob smacked by the book written by eric dubay called 'the flat earth conspiracy'.

Viviane

This is all you need... http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Wronger_than_wrong

74

Is Prophecy important?

by EA916 in

hello, i am certainly new to all of this.

i have recently been studying the prophecy's, and i was wondering if they are of any importance at all?

Viviane

As for the bible haters here, don’t waste your time with them. The bible is of remarkable connections. They are nothing more JWs, they just don’t know it. WTS are not trying to teach the bible, they are trying to disprove it. Isolating one verse at a time, while ignoring the big picture.

Who are you imagining to be Bible haters? Who claimed to hate the Bible in this conversation? Why are you accusing people who critically analyze books and ideas as JWs, who are told to uncritically accept belief and to NOT analyze things? Why are you attempting to claim that not A = A? Why do you claim someone critical of the Bible was isolating text when that was the only person that suggested (and did) that we look at the entire passage and book of Isaiah?

In other words, why are you attempting to claim the exact opposite of reality?

74

Is Prophecy important?

by EA916 in

hello, i am certainly new to all of this.

i have recently been studying the prophecy's, and i was wondering if they are of any importance at all?

Viviane

First you say you not encouraging spirituality (in the first quote above) then you turn around and ask me what spirituality is?
You should know since you already know you are not encouraging it. How can you discourage what you do not know/understand? Puzzling conversation, this.

First, to not encourage is not the same as to discourage. One is passive, the other is active. For instance, I don't encourage people to eat hummus. That in no way means that I discourage people from eating hummus.

Secondly, to not encourage something in no way means I in no way have any idea what that thing is. I don't encourage people to use rhino banana teapot hockey stick positronic cellular ladles when serving beta meson burst Dalek souploaf either, because I've no idea what that is.

You are the one that said there was no spirituality, therefore you have to tell me what that means. You can't throw your burden of defining what you mean on me.

74

Is Prophecy important?

by EA916 in

hello, i am certainly new to all of this.

i have recently been studying the prophecy's, and i was wondering if they are of any importance at all?

Viviane

I did not say you were lacking anything. Please read more carefully.

You said this place was not spiritually encouraging. I am in this place and not encouraging spirituality, so, yeah, you did say that whether you realized it or not.

I am asking you what this spirituality is that this place, and therefore me, is lacking. Until you tell me what it is, you really can't say that it's lacking.

74

Is Prophecy important?

by EA916 in

hello, i am certainly new to all of this.

i have recently been studying the prophecy's, and i was wondering if they are of any importance at all?

Viviane

The bottom line is, no one would ever have thought that two writing styles for two different topics in one book, Isaiah (that has historically always been recognized as one book, going back to 200 BC in the Septuagint), had to have multiple authors unless it predicted events in detail over a century in advance.

Again, you are attempting to tell people what they think while ignoring many other books of the Bible where the same textual analysis has revealed multiple authors and sources or that the books and passages could not possibly have been written by who they claim to have been written by when they were supposed to have been written.

You are making false claims about what scholars think when all you have to do is read what they have written to know what they think and why.

Also, there are several serious issues with chronology in the book of Isaiah. The first 39 chapters speak of the destruction as imminent. The second section speaks of it has having happened and restoration of Israel as a future event. The third section speaks of the restoration has having happened. Why would a person writing prophecy speak of it all in three different contextual time frames, will happened, happening now and has happened? If your model is to be believed, it was all future events, so why the change in mentioning yourself, writing style and tense?

74

Is Prophecy important?

by EA916 in

hello, i am certainly new to all of this.

i have recently been studying the prophecy's, and i was wondering if they are of any importance at all?

Viviane

So one person can't have two different writing styles for two different topics?

Who made that claim? Show me who made it and I will happily refute it.

74

Is Prophecy important?

by EA916 in

hello, i am certainly new to all of this.

i have recently been studying the prophecy's, and i was wondering if they are of any importance at all?

Viviane

From what I have seen just about all here have compassion for their fellow man so you are in a good place though not spiritually encouraging

Until you can tell me what this "spirituality" thing is that I am lacking, you aren't saying anything.

74

Is Prophecy important?

by EA916 in

hello, i am certainly new to all of this.

i have recently been studying the prophecy's, and i was wondering if they are of any importance at all?

Viviane

Have you researched the original reason why the "Two-Isaiah" theory originated?
It was because the skeptic could not believe that a detailed prophecy was written in advance.

That's actually not it at all. It's mainly that in some portions, Isaiah talks about himself quite a bit, then suddenly disappears from the text. At the same line of demarcation for that change, God also changes from a god seeking vengeance to a god of love and mercy. Also, after chapter 39, the writing style changes twice, once in the portion of returning home and secondly in the portion after they have returned him.

Finally, the Talmud claims that King Hezekiah wrote Isaiah.

So, next time you decide to tell "skeptics" what they think, you may not wish to confuse "skeptic" with "scholar" and actually have taken the time to read what they have written that will tell you what they actually think rather than make up something 100% inaccurate.