What Does The Organization Really Teach?

by Sea Breeze 43 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

  • Touchofgrey
    Touchofgrey

    Extraordinary claims demand extraordinary evidence.

    What independent and verified evidence can you provide to prove that jesus was indeed resurrected. Belief and faith are not evidence.

    The four gospels are not eyewitnes accounts as they were written by unknown authors and decades after the so called events. Paul was not a eyewitnes of the resurrection.

    So eyewitness accounts that lived at the time of the resurrection and that can be verified eg Jewish Greek and Roman historians.

  • Beth Sarim
    Beth Sarim

    ""Belief and faith are not evidence"".

    You can believe in something as deeply devoted as possible until you're blue in the face and sweating blood.

    It doesn't necessarily always mean its true, or evidence

    BTW,,, welcome to the forum.

  • Touchofgrey
    Touchofgrey

    Beth sarim

    Was on here a few years ago as fadeaway1962 forgot my password.

    Thanks

  • Sea Breeze
    Sea Breeze

    The Watchtower doesn't believe that Jesus was resurrected. They believe that Jesus was re-created and his body turned to gases.

  • Touchofgrey
    Touchofgrey

    Sea breeze

    You made a statement that most Christians believe that the resurrection happened, can you please provide evidence that it occurred as I requested in my previous post.

  • Vanderhoven7
    Vanderhoven7

    For anyone seriously looking for evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ, I recommend this scholar who is fairly knowledgeable on the subject.

    https://youtu.be/wWhIVFJ4xUo?si=7YftiSswDCea8R-f

  • careful
    careful

    In answer to the original post: come join us! We'll tell you what to believe, what to think, what to do, what to wear, how to groom yourself, how to spend your time, how not to entertain yourself, and most importantly — never to talk to anyone who criticizes us!

  • Halcon
    Halcon
    Seabreeze-Most Christians simply believe that the Resurrection really happened and that is the simple foundation for their faith. Churches are there so that like-minded people can hear the word of God, be encouraged and fellowship with one-another.

    This is more or less what the episcopal church I watch online is. It's mostly ritual, some reading of the Old testament, a gospel and letters of the apostles. People are there mostly, from what I perceive, to listen to the readings, sing the songs, take the Eucharist and listen to the 30 min priest's sermon.

    There's no real promising of anything in regards to the future except for the hope of heaven after death. But the focus is really never on the future, rather it's on living with faith now and simply hope for the best.

    I also attended the meeting this weekend at the KH, and as usual, a very big deal is made of living for the future aka paradise after Armageddon. The public talk speaker tried his best to extract some kind of emotion from the audience when he emphasized the hope for paradise when "all our problems will be solved". But when I looked around people were either yawning or staring into space.

    It seems that more than ever, the live only for the future schtick is really wearing thin these days.

  • Sea Breeze
    Sea Breeze

    @TouchofGrey

    I agree. The whole thing was a pretty big affair because Jesus said he was God and then predicted that he would raise himself from the dead....while he was dead. Something ONLY God could do. Claims don't get any bigger than that. Lots of people have claimed to be God and most everyone acts like they are God from time to time. But, Jesus actually proved it. That's why it's such a big deal. The trajectory of the whole world changed after that.... pretty quickly.

    Dr. Gary Habermas’ 12 Minimal Facts on the Resurrection are:

    1. Jesus died by Roman crucifixion.
    2. He was buried, most likely in a private tomb.
    3. Soon afterward, the disciples were discouraged, bereaved, and despondent, having lost hope.
    4. Jesus’ tomb was found empty very soon after his interment.
    5. The disciples had experiences that they believed were actual appearances of the risen Jesus.
    6. Due to these experiences, the disciples’ lives were thoroughly transformed, even being willing to die for this belief.
    7. The proclamation of the resurrection took place very early, at the beginning of church history.
    8. The disciples’ public testimony and preaching of the resurrection took place in the city of Jerusalem, where Jesus had been crucified and buried shortly before.
    9. The Gospel message centered on the death and resurrection of Jesus.
    10. Sunday was the primary day for gathering and worshipping.
    11. James, the brother of Jesus and former skeptic, was converted when, he believed, he saw the risen Jesus.
    12. Just a few years later, Saul of Tarsus (Paul) became a Christian believer due to an experience that he believed was an appearance of the risen Jesus.”


    The above facts are accepted by the majority of scholars who publish in this area. I think they are difficult if not impossible to explain away without Jesus being raised from the dead. Here is a discussion of each of these facts and how they relate to that event.


    REASONS TO BELIEVE

  • Touchofgrey
    Touchofgrey

    Sea breeze

    Dr Gary habermas is a evangelical Christian so not independent.

    When I was a active jw I could have come up with 12 "facts" that prove jws are the true religion, as could you yourself at one time, but the facts prove they are wrong.

    Fact is a thing that is known or proved to be true.

    The 12 points are not facts ,they seem to be based on the belief that the 4 gospels are eyewitnes accounts they are not ,biblical scholars accept that they are not eyewitnes account and written by unknown authors decades after the so called events and only fragments are available.

    Regarding saul / paul and his spiritual experience being a fact that jesus was resurrection.

    Muhammad had a spiritual experience so does that mean that Islam true?

    Joseph Smith said that god and jesus spoke to him, then a angel gave him golden plates, so does that make the mormon religion is true?

    You have yet to provide independent and verified evidence of jesus being resurrected.

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