i have not got an answer (theoretical or not) to the above question.. but the main text book (introducing the new testament- its literature and theology - achtemeier, green and thompson) for my study unit (early christian literature and thought) in the assigned reading for today's lecture on the gospel of john, has a section on the ransom.
it says (p. 237): one of the few passages that explicitly speaks of jesus dying for others is mark 10:45:.
"for even the son of man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.. .
The ransom seems to be an invention to solve an imaginary problem.
But the teachings of love and compassion that go beyond tribe and family--these are necessary and universal.
If we still look to the bible for any reason we are forced to be cherry-pickers, what? After all, what was left to us-- just the gleanings of the church"fathers" who left behind only what they wished us to find--hiding so much and adding their own thought to it.
Theologians. Wthat a complicated mess religion is!
yesterday evening my wife and i were invited to friends house for new year's eve.
we met them when i was a christian and we have kept in touch.
they had a few other friends there as well, including the new church pastor and his wife.
Psac,
Does it matter to ignore the teaching of Jesus you claim to believe? AGAIN:The golden rule is irrefutably linked with compassion by Jesus in Luke 10 (as I wrote you above). This teaching is called one of the greatest. So why is that law not observed by God himself?
It may seem tedious of me to write you this again, but I find it tedious of you not to respond or acknowlege the question.
Maeve
i have not got an answer (theoretical or not) to the above question.. but the main text book (introducing the new testament- its literature and theology - achtemeier, green and thompson) for my study unit (early christian literature and thought) in the assigned reading for today's lecture on the gospel of john, has a section on the ransom.
it says (p. 237): one of the few passages that explicitly speaks of jesus dying for others is mark 10:45:.
"for even the son of man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.. .
Karen King is one of many scholars whose work in the field of early church writing explores the alternate words and worlds left completely out of our indoctination by the prevailing church.
www.earlychristianwriting.com/gospelmary.html is a site that opens some of the doors to these lost avenues. The Church did no good by suppressing the variant writings.
It has been thought control from the very beginnings of an organized church.
I think Jesus didn't promote a ransom only a little spiritual freedom--
thought i am gonna introduce myself.
i am a girl from a country in europe, and not an english speaking one, so if i am writing strange or something, you know why.
anyway, have been reading here for a while now, the other day i thought it was time to register as a member.
Good to hear from you, PoM.
It is a powerful moment to declare yourself even through the veil of the internet.
So you have a grate ickskews reeson for bad spilling an poor inglish.
Dont worry, theers plenty of folks heer to currect you-- lik me fur instints--who hav iglish as there #1 langwige.
Maeve
( important note: my husband hated that i became a jw.
hated everything about it.).
he is the one who every morning makes our coffee in his beat-up metal perculator.
Funny stuff^^^^^^, ya'll !
It's Sunday and I am not at the K Hall. After we (husband, daughter, son, his GF and myself) spent an hour and a half eating homemade donuts, drinking coffee and watching a Christopher Hitchens debate online, I decided I should sew my husband a couple of hotpads. If he likes, I'll mark them Watchtower and Awake!--Or not.
It's good now to finally laugh about a period of time that was then so without humor or understanding between us. How amazing to be moving past it.
hi everyone.. i just realized that it has been over a year since i discovered this site and started to recognize i was shackled by invisible chains.
i am still in the process of chipping away on those chains.. i posted on another thread how these threads here are like little time capsules.
the moment, the emotions, the attitudes are all there frozen.. .
Watching how you've gone along I can see how there are commonalities between us as we come out from this tightly managed religious group.
I have had a little therapy but couldn't afford to continue. It is hard to sort it all out. But in general I am vastly relieved to be working my life out without the crushing load of the WT on my back.
I am glad you opened your story one year on, MissFit.
maeve
is there any way we can try to start a crowd-fund to help terry get some wheels quicker than he currently can?
with craigslist and a couple of bucks from a few members we can help terry get moving.
does anyone have any ideas how we can do a "theists for terry" bike fund raiser and challenge the atheists to a bucket-head challenge?
Yep--Paypal! Can do!
Maeve
ps. Yadda yadda, it's okay to sometimes drop a few coins for a friend--as someone or other once said: the poor are always with us :)
as a jehovah's witness:.
two things finally struck me:.
for now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now i know in part, but then i will know fully just as i also have been fully known.. _______________________.
Right--we were always given the GB "milk" instead of solid food-any sign that we were trying to chew any solid food we had taken away and our teeth knocked out. so to speak
( important note: my husband hated that i became a jw.
hated everything about it.).
he is the one who every morning makes our coffee in his beat-up metal perculator.
minimus, Terry--
Yep--I am still smiling about it-
Poor guy--22 years of having a JW for a -(cough)-partner. He hasn't said much about it since I left--until this morning's coffee.
I DID use to pour over those mags.
We are both glad I finally got OUT!
Happy Saturday morning to you!
( important note: my husband hated that i became a jw.
hated everything about it.).
he is the one who every morning makes our coffee in his beat-up metal perculator.
( Important note: My husband HATED that I became a JW. Hated everything about it.)
Now----
He is the one who every morning makes our coffee in his beat-up metal perculator. And this morning shuffling around the kitchen with the fresh perked coffee pot in his hand exclaimed "There is one thing I will say that I really miss about you leaving the Witnesses"
--and I will say I was shocked to hear this. My mind drew a complete blank as to what this fervent and thoughtful hater of the Organization would MISS about me being a JW... so I waited to hear this revelation:
"In the past I could always find one of those GOD-DAMNED Awakes or Watchtowers on the table to set the coffee pot on!"
