Carl Smuda

I really enjoyed studying many things of historical theology and a few really good theologian writers. This enabled me to put our whole mess into perspective. Nothing new under the sun. But if you really want to rate one or two of the 22,000+ denominations of Christiandom...consider that the JW's are in fact more successful than TWI.

So then, doesn't this open us up to all kinds of fun? Theonomy, Reconstructionism, Dominion Theology, and the like?

JerryB, great post. I studied it closely and followed it through. Good, yes. You may be aware of this but I can't pass up the chance to remind everyone: Psalm 110:1 is the most quoted OT scripture in the NT. and this fact, I think, really sets your post on one seriously unmovable Rock!He must Reign until all enemies are His footstool. Upon this Rock shall He build His church. The very gates of Hell cannot prevail against it! and if the preterists are correct, then it may be as you say, . and this makes the Parousia Postmillennial does it not? And postmillennialism was very popular in the U.S. until WWI. Remember, Christians in the colonies believed that North America was the location of the New Jerusalem 200 years before the Latter-Day-Saints made it one of their doctrines.In closing, Albert Schweitzer was a blessing to me for study. He helped me see that all the endtime prophecies of the primitive Christians was completely in the context of ancient Jewish eschatology. There must come a Messianic Kingdom. Jesus was to bring that when He came back. Now, if He came back in 70AD as the Preterists tell us, then where is that Kingdom? We are living in it now, maybe not me but somebody. respectfully, Car

Bliss, it's nice to know that. thank you for the clarification. that what you said has a ring of sound doctrine to it. as far as something we might call 'sound Christian doctrine.' I don't see any other way to explain the "this generation" condition in the Gospels. Carl

In all the readings and studying I've done since The Way Days, what looks the most sense-able is simply: He is coming back at the end of the world. And yet, that IS the rub isn't it? If the preterists are true He already came back when Titus leveled Jerusalem once and for all.

Nice thread. Greetings to all. Preterism IS a good topic and, I think, not to be dismissed. I can't discern the difference tween orthodox and heterodox preterism. someone else can give us those dividing lines. I remember seeing a website that claims that both preterism and futurism are both plots by Catholics to keep us all from seeing that the Roman Catholic church herself (and that old Beast the Pope) Is the very fulfillment of prophecy. Let us not forget the Spanish Inquisition (NO ONE expects the Spanish Inquistion! ooo!). but anyway. IamSteve, I humbly suggest you might enjoy reading a book called When Time Shall Be No More. by Paul Boyer. I found this to be a very very helpful work on the History of Prophecy. I don't remember Mr. Boyer getting into Preterism specifically but the grand history of how Christianity has acted in different centuries is very enlightening. Context is King and History is context. It is a wonderful thing. God Bless you Doctor Hedstrom, where ever you are! In many ways I think a significant jolt of preterism would be a refreshing thing for our Christianity. As for me, providence has placed me in a place where I don't even believe the Lord Jesus Christ is coming back. I believe he is the most recent incarnation of Vishnu. I've taken a more hindu perspective on things -but hey- don't let that get us off track okay? :( Christ Jesus is in my marrow. and I believe He'll come back at the end-of-days. where does that fit into our eschatology? respectfully, Carl

Pat, I looked around again. you're right. months ago when GreaseSpot's new format started I couldn't see all the posts on a thread. They were all one-lines connected like notes for a outline. I had to click each row to read what someone said so I didn't return for a long time. I looked around this time and you're right. now the threads I can scroll through and see the posts without opening and closing. who knows where I was? operator error. sorry folks I apologize for being so gotta for now as always, Carl

Pat, it would be so nice to talk to Gene. I haven't kept good contact with many people in my life. right now it is very much like, or exactly like, a good Neil Young song: "one of these days, I'm gonna write a long letter, to all the friends I've had, one of these days, I'm gonna sit down and write a long letter, ...one of these days...."God Bless us everyone! p.s. is there anyway to see the whole thread on grease spot? what is this open, close, open close none sense? on other sites I can scroll and read?! is this some default format for you all die hard Macintosh devotees? Love Always, Carl

I am very happy to hear that. That means that in the early 90's they had a child. God is Great!

Gene, if you're reading this I am sorry. I am sorry I was such a complete monster when I returned from the states. I'd do it totally different if I could do it over. I've done a lot of growing too and I had to deal with the rug being yanked out from under me too. It was a privelage to learn from you. You were the best until...well, you know. I wish I would have worked with you not against you. It's been 20 years. It doesn't matter anymore. I'm married with children now, a son (9) and a daughter (5). I'm a probation officer and I'm more interested in hinduism than Christianity. They are both very much a part of my marrow and they always have been. It would be nice to talk to you again and make amends with you. Just cause we both got burned by TWI doesn't mean we stop being people. God Bless you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Love always, Carl

I still have pictures of Twig activities on Guam where Sherry was furious at Gene. She was always very calm. But you know how it is. When you spend time with someone several days a week for a couple years you can read the situation. I hope they are both happy. I was a complete butthead with Gene when it all went up in flames. I wish I could talk to him and Sherry.

Are they still married? Did they ever have any children? I hope so. I was on Guam from Jan 1986-Aug 1990. Gene ran a nice fellowship till the stick hit the fan. They are both too smart to still be in TWI?!

LOVE that picture of John Lennon! One of the top three men of the 1960's!

Year2027, thank you for sharing. Godspeed. Carl

Roy, God Bless you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Can you please tell me WHY you believe that the Parousia takes place in the year 2027 A.D.? respectfully, Carl

I spent many hours reading their materials (Ugh!) trying to pin down their theology. I recommend getting ahold of their 2-Volume Bible Dictionary. I married a JW and our worst fights have been over religion. Honestly, the more I figured out the more it blew me away!. If you love the Church Epistles you will never ever belong in a JW group. Unless you want to be one of their "Anointed." And that to me is really offensive. Talk about being talked out of your sonship rights, Christ in YOU? Seated in the Heavenlies? Joint-heirs with Christ? Forget it. That ain't you, that's only the 144.000. And YOU know who you are. I can't decide what is worse: That teaching, or if that that teaching is the truth?

Yes! the big Big BIG difference between JW's and TWI is SONSHIP RIGHTS. The very heart of the revelation given to Paul the Apostle is only to the 144,000 from the book of Revelations. Only the 144,000 can eat the bread and drink the wine at their annual communion. Manifestations of the Spirit? Fruit of the Spirit? Walking by the Spirit? Dying-and-Rising with Christ? Body-of-Christ? As far as I could tell, the very best of the very best from the Church Epistles is only describing "the anointed" which to the JW teachings is the 12,000 from each of the twelve tribes listed in Revelations.

So Mel got a DUI. So he said some hideous things. It causes me to see Mel as more human. God Bless the man I say. I saw "Passion." boring. didn't move me. right in the middle of a gory beating of the Christ I heard an older woman whisper to her adult daughter, "after this let's get tacos." Mel made, what, close to 700 million world wide on "Passion"? A lot of people went to see it. I think the film was a movement of God in his heart. My prayer is that he takes all that money and makes the Ultimate film on the Book-of-Acts. Can you imagine? A no-holds-barred movie of the rise and expansion of the first century church. WOW. O Mel can't you do that for us? all that $$$ sitting around in boxes in the garage...do for Saint Paul what you did for Lord Jesus. As for your DUI. Thank God you didn't kill someone. You are human and I forgive you. Now go make my dream movie about PAUL!!

"The discovery comes at a time when teenagers are increasingly experimenting with legal drugs such as OxyContin, widely known as "hillbilly heroin," and Vicodin, often bought online or taken from medicine cabinets, even before trying marijuana or alcohol, health officials say." Hey Sudo, I never heard anyone call OxyContin "hillbilly heroin" either until I read the article in the first post by Shellon. I did have a kid who was really into Vicodin and some other medical painkillers of which the name escapes me. I've never used that nick name myself nor have I ever heard anyone us it. As for these people procreating?...no I don't. But they do. And you have given me something to think about. God Bless, Carl

I'm a probation officer. the kids I deal with come from very broken homes with poverty ignorance disease and violence. they don't even consider marijuana a drug. they see their adult Uncles and Aunts with pounds of Meth and Heroin and Cocaine. some have huffed carpet cleaner and air-freshners. several do the "hillbilly heroin" and pain meds. Acid, Shrooms, selling their body for drugs. A few have tried to take their own lives and several have been sexually molested by people in the community. I've picked them up out of the gutter at 1:00 in the morning because they drank themselves to unconsciousness. Some develop anti-social tendencies, others reach adutlhood and get diagnoses with Borderline Personality Disorder. Others have fetal alcohol effects. over 50% will never finish High School and their families don't care. And those are just the juveniles. The adults just go to jail but the juveniles never had a chance. I'm sorry to just vent here. We do what we can do. In three years in this field-of-work I've had one juvenile thank me for trying to help.

Thank God our country is going to really honor this fallen Soldier. Thank God.

Bramble, thank you for the perspective on Wiccan dates. In Fernley Nevada (not too far from me) the family of a deceased soldier is trying to get the VA to put the Wiccan symbol next to their son's name. There is a monument to fallen U.S.Soldiers and there is Christian and Jewish symbols. But they won't put the pentagram next to this man's name because the VA doesn't recognize Wiccan. It's been in the news. Too bad this pilot gave his life for our freedoms but his freedoms are not respected by the very government he served. :(

this tickles my ears. This IS the dawning of the Age of Aquarius.

I have a real problem with David Stern. No doubt he is very qualified in his work but what he did to the New Testament with his "Jewish New Testament" makes me crazy! When I was studying hard about Law & Grace I fugured out from Bullinger that some times the word law (nomos) has a little article in front of the word. So Bullinger had it "law" or "THE Law". I tried to see a observable difference in the NT text but this was too subtle for me. Then I saw in the Jehovah's Witnesses Bible (New World Translation) that they capitalized the word "Law" when the article appeared and used lower case (law) when there was no article. Well, Dr. David Stern took it upon himself to translate "nomos" in at least six (6!) different words!! So naturally this totally destroys the letter to the Galatians. It is one thing to explore the mysteries of Law&Grace. It is another thing to destroy the text to give the text a meaning that nobody anywhere ever saw in the text. does that make sense. Christians beware of Jews who translate the New Testament. Given that, when I was on Guam, I use to get up every day early and SIT for 15 minutes, pray with understanding for 15 minutes and read the Scripture for 15 minutes. Usually Ephesians. and then at work (I was in the Navy) all of us would walk in a long line across the Flight Line to look for debri on the runway. One morning while doing this I had a beautiful instant of realizing that we were all one. Somehow I saw that all of our hearts were one and that we all had in our hearts brahma, or Vishnu. I don't know. At the time I was very Christian but the image was like that you might see in a colored painting in a Hare Krishna book. It was one of the few epiphanys in my life. But I remember. I think when Adam&Eve ate that forbidden fruit what they got was EGO. Ego seperates us into seperate individuals. I don't fully understand it in my studies yet, but, Ego is part of the illusion.

I read over 90% of Bahnsen's book on Theonomy. I was searching for a reason to NOT keep the Sabbath. I was trying to understand WHY they thought Sunday was okay. Now it does not matter, but then I was very interested in a good explanation. I'm convinced the Christian truth is that you can fellowship on any day of the week and no one has the right to say they have more blessings from Almighty because they keep the ancient Sabbath.