waysider

Would you like a jelly baby? Sic 'em K-9!

Very well thought out post, Horse. Welcome to GSC. The first slice of cheesecake is complimentary.

This is a good question. Because you are from a non-TWI background, I am assuming you are interested in The Way's take on the matter. What Wierwille taught was that men of God, in OT times, had spirit placed ON them, conditionally, so that God, being spirit, could talk to them. (ie: Spirit talks to spirit.) When they ceased to fulfill the required conditions, or communication was no longer needed, God took the spirit OFF of them. Wierwille went on to use this idea to demonstrate the difference between people in the OT and post-Pentecost "believers". According to Wierwille, present day believers have spirit IN them. This "seed", he said, is delivered via "Christ in you" and becomes a permanent part of your spiritual being, much in the manner that your DNA is a permanent component of your physical being. Thus, because that spirit is always IN you, there is a permanent line of communication in place. I think your question is quite relevant in relation to the concept of inerrancy on many levels.

Death is a process, not an emotion.

If something requires "believing" to operate, it might be a good idea to, first, examine the validity of "believing".

That was one of VPW's little gimmicks, wasn't it?

It's not off-topic. The explanation given in The Way was that, since people in OT times supposedly could not understand spiritual matters (no spirit in them/God only speaks to spirit), God had to resort to explaining things from a "5 senses" point of view.

Yes.

What did we know? We were just a bunch of "kids" who took his word for it.

Thanks I'm sure a lot of folks will find this information helpful.

Yes, and he allowed people to think that he had some kind of spiritual insight that enabled him to discern which works were "on" and which were "off". He was a master at manipulating people and situations. He surrounded himself with people who had real talent so that onlookers would associate him with their creativity. Like a form of name dropping.

The Way was already stifling creativity and individuality in 1972, when I first sat through PFAL. I was essentially told, by local leadership, that I had to make a choice between pursuing my artistic endeavors and going forward with my "spiritual" growth. I made that choice. And, although I can't blame anyone besides myself for making it, I realize now that my decision was, at least partially, based on erroneous or misrepresented information supplied by The Way. The whole movement was mushrooming so fast, it took time for VPW & Co. to get control of the direction it was headed. And, I think, too, that VPW allowed a certain amount of it (independent creativity) to continue as an enticement. There was kind of an idea that you could "redirect" your creativity to more Godly ventures if you fully dedicated yourself to the movement. Thus, there were still renegade artists sprinkled throughout the "ministry" for a good while in the early years. I think VPW had a pretty firm grip on it all by 1975 or 1976.

According to Way theology, the extra books, as well as The Dead Sea Scrolls, etc., are "counterfeit". Not in the manner that a piece of currency is deliberately faked, but in the manner of not being directly inspired by God. They don't fit neatly into the "inerrant" format of the rest of the canon.

Scroll down the main forum page. http://www.greasespotcafe.com/ipb/forum/20-doctrinal/

'Cause when it's rainin' Ain't nothin' but love rainin' down And when the sun shines Ain't nothin' but love shinin' all around And when the wind blows I'll be talkin' to you Sayin' that I loved you always And I know that you loved me too Paul Delay (1/31/52--3/7/07)

Yes, they present serious health problems that put human lives at risk. Remember The Black Plaque?

Another thing you could try is a metal detector. You sweep it around until you find something that "sounds out" a 3-5 inch circle. That could be an old metal well-head. They are buried below the frost line. That's probably about 40 inches down in your area. Or, you could wind up finding an old paint can lid. LOL. But, I have actually dug up old paint can lids that have been purposely buried over the top of the well-head to make it easier to find. If you do find the well-head, don't open the seal on top. There are bolts on it that can be dropped down the well if not properly loosened. Also, some places have code that require you to modify a well to current code standards once it is opened. That entails extending the casing up above ground level. Best to leave that to a pump man.

I didn't say the farmer was eating the chickens. I said it could be his livelihood. (ie: his business) If you owned a restaurant, would you allow rats and roaches to wander about blissfully? They're God's little creatures too.

If you had to choose between feeding your own kids and the coyote feeding her pups, I would certainly hope you would choose your own kids. Coyotes aren't dogs. They are wild animals that have a keen instinct for survival in a cruel world.

Your state's dept. of natural resources may have a record of any wells drilled on your property. It helps if you know your plat number.

To some extent, circumstances dictate right or wrong. For example, if your livelihood depends on raising poultry, it would be ok to kill a coyote that is stealing your chickens. On the other hand, killing a coyote simply because he is guilty of being a coyote would be wrong. Killing anything without a valid reason is wrong. (IMO) Does the coyote experience emotion? I haven't a clue.

Wasn't it you who stated, in a previous post, that you didn't believe the story of Jonah and the whale was literally true?

I never said you "had a screw loose" or were "out to lunch" or were "a couple fries short of a happy meal", or anything of the sort. You said this: "It either is inerrant or it isn't. . . . . you either believe it is or you don't" See, this is the problem. If something is a Palomino Pony, for example, it really makes no difference what I believe it is. It doesn't change reality one tiny bit. It still gallops and kicks up its hooves. You believe it's inerrant. I don't. What does that really change? Nothing, as far as I can see. Unless, of course, we're talking about an organization, like The Way, whose beliefs on the matter had a direct effect on peoples' day to day lifestyle. "If one little piece doesn't fit, the whole thing falls to pieces." By that sort of reasoning, I would need to have a vested interest in making sure any contradictions or discrepancies are resolved. Sorry----I don't subscribe to that train of thought anymore.

Thanks, GT. Your hard work does not go unnoticed.

Very cool, SirG.