The necessity of "Spiritualizing" prophecy fullfillment

by refiners fire 19 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  mizpah

  OHappyDay:

  Yes, if the scrolls found in the caves at Qumran are those of the Essenes, they did divide the world into the "righteous" (themselves") and the "unrighteous" (all others). They considered themselves God's favored people who would survive the destruction of Jerusalem and the corrupt priesthood. Instead, they were destroyed along with other Jews by the Romans.

  But this view was also held by many Christians as well. The Catholic church has only moderated its views in recent years. But it was clear that originally the Church taught that there was no salvation outside the church. They persecuted and murdered other Christians as "heretics" and "apostates." They equated their Church with God.

  All this has a familiar ring to it. The Watchtower as "God's organization" feels that there is no salvation outside of its domain. They spiritually "kill" all apostates and condemn all other Christians to destruction at Armageddon. They anticipate the time when 6 billion people will be destroyed by God.
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  rocketman

  Interesting post RF. Yes, the interpretations are shown to be wrong, and then, as enough time passes people eventually forget that errors were made.

  By the way, the new King Uh Duh North is the Luxemborg, Latvia, Estonia combine.
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  Prisca

  Another thought-provoking post from our resident history buff. Well done.
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  refiners fire

  "history buff".

  I dont know about that, more of a nut who is obsessed with religious cults of all shapes and sizes.Lol. Ive been reading up on this Raven / Taylor "exclusive brethren" again Pris.They are pretty nutty and Id love to get inside the movement, but I think it will be pretty near impossible. You cant attend a meeting unless you are already a member, and their meetings are conducted in brick fortresses with no windows, no clocks, and surrounded by an eight foot high steel fence that is locked as the meeting commences.

  The speakers dias in every one of their churches has a ramp built leading up to it IN CASE the world leader ( who is wheelchair bound) decides to visit. Thats like expecting that Milty Henschel might just pop in.

  HMMM. could be a challenge this one, I think!!
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  A Paduan

  It is a methodology inevitably necessary with fundamentalism - indeed Adventism is all about that "soon" business.

  But I don't go with the spiritualising thing - rather, there's an attempt to spiritualise - the fact that "generation can actually mean anyone" is not so much truthful as an evasive maneuver - it's still targeted at fundamental rationalising - and becomes a deceit of another style - the avoidance, under the carpet thing.
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  frenchbabyface

  Yeah !!!
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  mizpah

  RF:

  One of the scariest cults is Scientology. Scientologists have used threats and strong armed tactics to silence their opposition. One of their favorite tactics is to counter-sue litigants in long and protracted law suits that exhausts the financial means of an individual.

  Sadly, this seems to be the latest tactic used by the Watchtower Society in the sexual abuse cases. For example: The case involving Vicki Boer in Canada.
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  minimus

  If a fulfillment of a prophecy is kept purposely vague, and "spiritualized", who can say anything bad about it? Yup, Jesus went to heaven in 1914, threw out Satan and his demons from heaven a few years later, we live in a spiritual paradise, we're gonna live in a literal paradise under a symbolic "new heavens", all "Jews" in the New Testament are only "spiritual" ones, we're not going to heaven and we aren't "born again", even if the Bible says we have to be.......They can even prophesy whatever they want and when it becomes painfully evident that it is false, convince their believers that they never even said it in the first place!
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  refiners fire

  Mini: "If a fulfillment of a prophecy is "spiritualized", who can say anything bad about it?... all "Jews" in the New Testament are only "spiritual" ones,"

  Well that spritualization of the Jews in "Antitype" is a reaction to a false literal expectation as well.So thats another one, as you point out. The main thing about invisible fulfillments is they cant be disproved, so Id be inclined to say, one the dubs declare an invisible fulfillment of something, that tends to remain as immovable doctrine.

  Miz: You have me at a disadvantage again regarding Scientology. I tried joining Scientology a few years back but blew the "entrance exam". I told the interviewer that Id been under psychiatric care once and been on prescribed medication for a mental condition. At that point I was sentenced to the "outer darkness". Noone who has taken medication prescribed by a psychiatrist can " cross the bridge" into utopia.
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  mizpah

  RF:

  When Ron Hubbard, writer of Science Fiction, first presented his Dianetics as a "scientific breakthrough" to the psychiatrists and pyschologists they "laughed him off stage." He never forgave them for this insult and this branch of science became his avowed enemy. Because psychiatrists used drugs as part of their therapy (like Ritalin) he denouced the practice with vehemence. From then on, he waged battle with them that continues by his members today.

  When he established Scientology he ran into a lot of trouble with the Government (U.S.) particularly with the Internal Revenue Service. So, he decided to make it a religion: Church of Scientology. It was a shrewd decision. The Government eventually backed away from prosecution of him and his church. But the Church of Scientology and its many cover organizations have run into a lot of difficulty in other countries. In some, it is banned and outlawed.