Think on it!
The Churches don't even believe Jesus DIED!
It took a lot of lies, ignorance and corruption to create CHURCHIANITY!
by TruthMatters 20 Replies latest watchtower bible
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Simon
The Churches don't even believe Jesus DIED!
It's the central tenet of pretty much all Christian religions.
We're not here to listen to your crazy.
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Disillusioned JW
Rocketman123, a moment ago while reading the WT's book called The Finished Mystery (1917 edition) I cam across the word "Churchianity" in the book's explanation of Ezekiel 28:20 - 22. There it seems to be equated with the idea that "men must belong to a church organization". Commentary relating to the term says "The Jews shall enjoy God's earthly blessings, and the true Christians His Heavenly blessings, when He has executed justly earned judgments upon the people that have adhered to or taught the belong-to-a-church-or-go-to-hell idea." The JW religion has now effectively become that which they condemned in 1917 as churchianity. See page 503 of The Finished Mystery book, which can be read at http://www.strictlygenteel.co.uk/finishedmystery/fme28.html .
The following are some online mainstream definitions of churchianity.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/churchianity says "a usually excessive or narrowly sectarian attachment to the practices and interests of a particular church".
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Churchianity says "(derogatory) Any practices of Christianity that place a larger emphasis on the habits of church life or the institutional traditions of the church than on theology and spiritual teachings of Jesus; the quality of being too church-focused."
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Disillusioned JW
Simon, while it is true that the churches teach that Christ died in the sense of Christ's human body having died, they also teach that Christ both had and has an immoral soul/spirit which never died. In that latter sense they believe and teach that Christ (whom they also teach is God and thus immortal) never died.
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Rocketman123
Thanks for the info DJW
Just sounds like a real silly condescending word.
Either way TruthMatters used the word in a nonsensical inappropriate way
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Sanchy
Oooof. The "ChurChianity" guy is back. Deja vu
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TD
I'm not sure what the right word is (Sad, funny, quixotic?) to describe the use of cult-speak in defense of what is claimed to be the one true faith....
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Vanderhoven7
For those interested in a summary of 50 "truths" taught by Russell in the Finished Mystery I found online.
"In 1917 the Bible Students published The Finished Mystery, a powerful commentary on Revelation and Ezekiel." Revelation - Its Grand Climax At Hand! (1988) p.165
1. Charles Taze Russell is the faithful and wise servant (p.4)
2. Jesus gave Russell the key to understanding God’s mysteries in the last days (p.6)
3. Jesus is the Alpha and Omega in Revelation 1:8; 21:6 and 22:13 (p.15, p.318, p.336)
4. The Adventist Nelson Barbour showed Russell Biblical proof that Jesus was present since 1874 and Russell found this evidence satisfactory (p. 54) * 88 "proofs" that Christ's "Second Advent occurred in the Fall of 1874" (pp.68-71)
5. As per Russell, there’s no need to learn the Hebrew or Greek languages to gain a correct understanding of the Bible since the Presbyterians and Methodists have good versions (p. 55)
6. The remnant will be taken to heaven in 1918 (p. 64)
7. The 7 messengers in Revelation are Paul, John, Ario, Waldo, Wycliffe, Luther and Russell (illustration after page 64)
8. The 7 trumpets in Revelation 8:2 are the trumpets of the Lutherans, the Anglicans, the Presbyterians, the Baptists, the Methodists, the Evangelical Alliance and The Bible Students (chart after page 64)
9. Jesus began his reign officially in 1878 after raising the anointed dead (p. 66)
10. Demons will invade the minds of churchgoers in 1918, leading to their destruction. (p.128) "Also, in the year 1918, when God destroys the churches wholesale and the church members by millions...." (p.485)
11. The behemoth mentioned in Job 40: 15-24 is the stationary steam engine (p. 84)
12. The leviathan mentioned in Job 41:2-19 is the locomotive (p.85)
13. The "voice from heaven" of Revelation 18:4 is the voice of The Watchtower Society. (p.276)
14. According to Exodus 28:1 and Numbers 4:46-48, the number of the great crowd will be approximately 411,840,000 (p.103)
15. The horseman on the white horse in Revelation 6:2 is the personal representative of Satan: the bishop of Rome (p. 106)
16. The stars that fell from the heavens in Revelation 6:13 refers to the meteor shower on November 13, 1833 which covered 11 million square miles. The symbolic fulfillment occurred when the bishops and priests lost their influence over the minds and conscience of the people (p.120)
17. There is evidence that proves that the Palestine will be re-established in 1925 (p.128)
18. The demons will invade the minds of the members of Christianity and will bring them to their destruction in 1918 (p.128)
19. The earth was created 48,000 years ago (p.139)
20. The “angel” mentioned in Revelation 8:5 is the Watchtower Society and the “incense vessel” is the book “Finished Mystery” divinely provided to humanity (p.145)
21. According to Revelation 9:15, all of the 177,300,000 protestants on earth, who represent 1/3 of all Christians, will be destroyed in 1918 (p.164)
22. The “Time of the End” started in 1799 (p.171)
23. The “Great Tribulation” started in 1914 (p.178)
24. Michael the Archangel is the Pope of Rome (p.188)
25. The 2 wings of the woman in Revelation 12:14 are the Old and New Testaments (p.191)
26. England is a satanic country because it forcefully exports 5 million pounds of Opium to China each year (p.202)
27. The Great Pyramid of Egypt confirms the fact that the time of Harvest has come (p.226)
28. Revelation 14:20 provides us with the precise distance between Scranton, Pennsylvania (where this book was written) and Bethel in Brooklyn (where this book was printed) … 137.9 miles (p.230)
29. The clergy are like dumb dogs because they prefer to remain silent rather than accept one single “Truth” from Russell’s precious writings (p.238)
30. The republics will disappear in the Fall of 1920. Every nation will cease to exist as they get swallowed up by anarchy (p. 258)
31. The “glory” of the angel mentioned in Revelation 18:1 enlightened to earth resulting in such great discoveries and inventions such as the electrical motors, airplanes, the Panama Canal, vacuum cleaners, the books from the Watchtower, etc. (p.273)
32. The “voice out of heaven” mentioned in Revelation 18:4 is the voice of the Watchtower (p.276)
33. According to Revelation 18:14, during the millennium, the clergy will have to work for a living. This means that each preacher in Christianity will have to spend 65 cents for an alarm clock (p.285)
34. The God sitting on the throne in Revelation 19:4 is Jesus (p.290)
35. God assumes full responsibility for the entire volume of Studies in the Scriptures (p.295)
36. The Kingdom of a thousand years started in 1874 with the second coming of Jesus (p.301, p.386)
37. According to Revelation 21:17, the number of sheep at the end of the thousand-year reign will be approximately 20.7 Billion (p.323)
38. When Russell understood the full import of God’s Word, he took a firm stand. The spirit, power and influence of God entered him, never to leave (p.377)
39. Ezekiel 5:2, 12, 16, 17 refers to the way in which Jerusalem was destroyed in 606BCE and 70-73EC and it also refers to the way Christianity is being destroyed between 1914 and 1918 (p.398)
40. God’s Day of Vengeance started in 1914 and will culminate in 1918 (p.404)
41. The literal fulfillment of Ezekiel occurred in 1898 when a miller, who publicly thanked the Virgin for dear bread, literally threw gold and silver at a crowd in the streets in a vain attempt to pacify them. But they demanded his life and took it (p.407)
42. According to Ezekiel 11:9, Christianity will literally fall in the hands of labor unions, socialists and anarchists (p. 425)
43. The preachers of Christianity say things that originate in their own imagination (p.432)
44. According to Ezekiel 17:22 and 20:42, Zionism and Judaism will proper on Earth as their leaders will be Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and others upon their resurrection (p.450, p.462)
45. The congregation mentioned in Ezekiel 23:46 are union workers, socialists, democrats and anarchists (p.480)
46. In fulfillment of Ezekiel 24:15-19, God took away Russell’s desire for his wife by putting a spiritual plague over her which made her “dead” in the eyes of Russell (p.483, p.484)
47. God will destroy all of the churches on earth including all of its millions of members in 1918. It is expected that this will occur on or around April 27, 1918 (p.485, p.513, p.530)
48. All Jews will return to their native land according to God’s promise. Russell has been preaching the message Zionism since October 1910 (p.536, p.554, p.555)
49. In 1878, during the First Resurrection, God raised up the members of the Body of Christ, the “stem of David” (p.539)
50. According to Ezekiel 40:1, the establishment of the Kingdom on earth will occur 13 years after 1918 (p.569)
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Disillusioned JW
Though the The Finished Mystery was published with the claim of being written by Russell it shouldn't really thought of as written by Russell. It was published after Russell died and it was prepared by others, though using prior writings of Russell as ideas for some of the content. Furthermore page 485 of the book does not claim that all of the members of the churches will be destroyed, since it says that some of them will survive. Not is says 'Also, in the year 1918, when God begins to destroy* the churches and the church members by millions, it shall be that any that escape shall come to the works of Pastor Russell to learn the meaning of the downfall of "Christianity." ' But it is true that even that sentence in the book makes a false claim. It also true that the WT/JW (at least during the time I was an active JW) teaches that virtually everyone who will survive the Battle of Armageddon will be Jehovah's Witnesses - implying that billions of other people will be destroyed.
Regarding your point number 19, neither Russell nor The Finished Mystery book says the earth was created 48,000 years ago. Page 139 of the book says "... the dawn of earth's creative week 48,000 years ago." Russell accepted the idea that there was (or might have been) a time gap between the creation of heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1) and the start of the first creative day. Thus, while Russell taught the first creative day began about 48,000 years ago (the 1,000 year portion of Christ's reign was thought to be the final part of the 6th creative day - with each creative day being 7,000 years long), Russell (and even current WT/JW teaching) left doctrinal room for the Earth to have come into existence before the first creative day. The creative days are considered a transformation of an already existing Earth.
In the Studies In The Scriptures volume called The New Creation, in chapter one of that book, on page 18 Russell says "Examining the Genesis expressions critically, we discern that a distinction is made between the creation of the heaven and the earth (verse 1) and the subsequent regulations, or ordering of these, and the further creations of vegetable and animal life. It is these subsequent operations that are described as the divine work of six epochal days. Verse 2 tells us that in the very beginning of the first day of that creative week the earth was — though without form (order), and void (empty) —waste, empty and dark. This important item should be distinctly noted. If recognized, it at once corroborates the testimony of geology thus far; and, as we shall be obliged to dispute the deductions of geologists on some points, it is well that we promptly acknowledge and dismiss whatever does not need to be contended for in defense of the Bible. The Bible does not say how long a period elapsed between the beginning when God created the heaven and the earth, and the beginning of the creative week used in perfecting it for man: ..." On page 19 of that volume Russell says "We do, then, find satisfactory evidence that one of these creative "days" was a period of seven thousand years and, hence, that the entire creative week would be 7,000 x 7=49,000 years." See http://www.strictlygenteel.co.uk/newcreation/ncstudy1.html for chapter one of that volume.
I consider The Finished Mystery book to be largely written by Rutherford. Several of the books written in Rutherford's name make extreme failed claims like the one quoted above. A huge percentage of the Bible Student movement (a movement created by Russell) separated from the Watchtower society largely as a result of the publishing of the highly flawed book called The Finished Mystery.
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Vidiot
Drive-by witnessing.