Jehovaxx..... I recommend testing your theory before suggesting it to others. It is my view that nothing of significance has changed. Choices should be clear eyed and well informed. Then there are no regrets.
peacefulpete
JoinedPosts by peacefulpete
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45
consequences for going against the direction.
by jehovaxx inthere are no serious consequences for doubting the gb.
there are no consequences for going against the direction.
we can now celebrate anything.. what will happen if you take blood, celebrate xmas and birthdays ect?.
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Chat AI shows Jesus was not god
by enigma1863 intitle: jesus' perception of himself: a nuanced view of equality in a patriarchal society.
introduction:.
the perception of jesus christ's divinity has been a subject of theological debate for centuries.
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peacefulpete
Pete, it does make an interesting point about viewing Jesus words through the lens of cultural norms of the time.
If we are to dig a little deeper we find the "cultural norms" include the sectarian usage of "Son of God" to include the purely mystical representation of Deity in action. For example:
Philo of Alexandria | Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy (utm.edu)
As has been repeated many times recently on this forum, the language of begetting, subordination and sonship are not preclusive to identifying Son of God as God. The words have a unique religious meaning that was current in Jewish thought.
I also remind you that the words placed in Jesus' mouth are those of the writers for theological purposes. It is easily demonstrated by comparing recensions/versions of the Gospel that these words reflect the views the writer wished to convey and are not actual quotations.
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Beards vs. Shunning announcements
by slimboyfat induring lett’s announcement that beards are now allowed he elaborated at some length how brothers ought to feel and react to the change in policy.
he warned brothers not to resent not being able to grow beards earlier if they had wished to do so.
he also warned brothers who supported the old policy not to allow themselves to wonder what the point of doing so was now that it has changed.
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peacefulpete
Members of my family who left/exiled got a call from a JW sibling yesterday. No socializing just an invite to "special talk" being given by her husband. All it accomplished is demonstrate that the controls are still in place. Of course I didn't get one, they regard me as dangerous. I'm ok with that.
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Chat AI shows Jesus was not god
by enigma1863 intitle: jesus' perception of himself: a nuanced view of equality in a patriarchal society.
introduction:.
the perception of jesus christ's divinity has been a subject of theological debate for centuries.
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peacefulpete
Anyone who has asked AI to answer a controversial question learns quickly that it just regurgitates the information from popular websites. There is no evaluation of accuracy or objectivity. Garbage. Nothing to do with left or right. It's just repeating crap, often contradictory answers in same response.
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Will New Rules Bring JWs Together or Pull Them Apart?
by doinmypart inthere's been a lot of discussion about the changes in the org.
you might think all this would shake things up, especially for the older or super dedicated jws.
but remember when gb decided all the khs and the bank accounts needed to be transferred/managed from the top?
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peacefulpete
Not so much "sticking together" as believing they have no choice. It's also human nature to preserve status quo, cling to the familiar. It takes a pretty strong push emotionally to convince people to change.
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JWlite like being a Trekkie. You know it’s fictional
by ExBethelitenowPIMA ini now view jwlite like the trekkie conventions.
star trek is fiction and all the fans know this full well.
but they find it beneficial.
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peacefulpete
You must understand millions of people thought they could/would be able to emotionally and psychologically go on as you are. You either find yourself compromised ethically or eventually re-lose yourself.
Then again, if someone is a JW in their outlook and values but has been simply offended by current leadership, I can see such a person loosely clinging to the group awaiting change they hope to see. That wasn't me or many here.
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Finger of God
by peacefulpete ina myriad (or close) of threads have discussed the depiction of deity in the ot and nt.
many exjws simply can't seem to wrap their minds around the concept of hypostases of god.
hypostases as i'm using the term refer to personified conceptualizations of divinity often acting in a particular role.
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peacefulpete
Phizzy, I suspect that exposure to a multicultural superpower alone offered the elite in exile new perspective. The world of ideas got a lot bigger. That combined with the disillusionment of no longer being the center of the world. Reinvention and reform were imperative. Yahweh had to mature along with his people.
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JWlite like being a Trekkie. You know it’s fictional
by ExBethelitenowPIMA ini now view jwlite like the trekkie conventions.
star trek is fiction and all the fans know this full well.
but they find it beneficial.
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peacefulpete
You say you woke up, I say you are still dreaming. -
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JWlite like being a Trekkie. You know it’s fictional
by ExBethelitenowPIMA ini now view jwlite like the trekkie conventions.
star trek is fiction and all the fans know this full well.
but they find it beneficial.
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peacefulpete
And when the congregation announces a member has been disfellowshipped, will you join in the shunning and share in the abusive treatment to keep up appearances?
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Finger of God
by peacefulpete ina myriad (or close) of threads have discussed the depiction of deity in the ot and nt.
many exjws simply can't seem to wrap their minds around the concept of hypostases of god.
hypostases as i'm using the term refer to personified conceptualizations of divinity often acting in a particular role.
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peacefulpete
Hey Phizzy. I'm also rather obsessed with the hypostatic process due to how it resulted in a dualistic image for many careful readers. (I like the word hypostatic and will use it a lot) The 'Spirit' that moves to and fro over the waters of chaos, the 'Light' that exists before the sun and moon, the 'Word' of god that rests and heals and runs, the Wisdom of God that creates and reproves, the 'Name' of God that dwells in the temple (tho likely the result of borrowed Akkadian idiom that meant having name inscribed but Rabbis later mistakenly understood as hypostatic for presence of a deity too great to enter a building made of stone). The Shekinah fire/light as similar stand-in for God's presence, and actually a number more, demonstrate an almost pathological love for hypostatic personification.
As I've expressed before, this was a major contribution to the Christian conception of Logos(Word) and Christ/Wisdom/Light/Son as hypostatic names. John 17:11 goes on to say the Son was given the very Name of God. Which I'm assuming was not suggesting Yahweh but the Name in a hypostatic sense. The divine essence and presence.
As SBF and others have argued, obviously there was no formal Trinity doctrine at the earliest stages of Christian development, however the writings reflect a far more sophisticated and esoteric conception of deity than the WT insists. As I see it, the rise of Christianity was an almost natural result of the evolving understanding of God within Judaism of the Greek world. God was so unapproachable by that time he needed a representative, someone to 'reveal' God to the world and who better than a Son of God that embodied all the earlier hypostatic concepts and whose name was Immanuel "with us is God".