Shermana
Heretic
I am not a JW, but I often do agree with some of the things they say.
I disagree heavily with their views on the Afterlife and the Soul and the Mosaic Law and Canon.
But I agree with them very much on the issue of the Trinity. They are not the first however to take up this position, it was a minority view to question the Trinity often in history, and the "word was a god" translation that their NWT is famous for is not their own invention but showed up in many scholarly and minority (non Church sanctioned)
Some prominent Secular Scholars like Arizona Professor Dr. Jason Beduhn agree with many of their choices of translation and theology. They are not without their supporters, but have many critics who are more concerned about their Theology than the actual grammar, and apply double standards to their own "scholarship" for translation, when in fact many of the same "scholarly" translations they trust have controversies and issues that are mired down in arguments about the language itself, with the Theology (i.e. Trinity) at stake which guides the honesty of the people on each side of the scholarly debate. Traditional "Conservative" Scholars have even supported concocted grammar rules meant to support their faltering and weak doctrines like with their spurious "Colwell's Rule". Liberal and Secular scholars as well argue with each other on particular details. What makes their scholarship superior?
One of my favorite anti-Trinity sites, ExaminingtheTrinity, was recently called "Drivel" just because it's run by JWs. Does that mean everything in their arguments is drivel? Does that mean one can write off all the things they say? Is it a valid excuse to write off a JW link about the claimed proof texts of the Trinity just because its JW? By this logic, why is a non-JW link supporting the Trinity not drivel?
Examining the Trinity
With that said, can it be argued that the Watchtower scholarship is not any less reliable in terms of Greek manuscript study than any other "Christian" scholar? Why is the Catholic and Protestant Greek scholar acceptable but not the JW? Why is the JW's scholarship motivated by Theological goals and not the others?
I disagree heavily with their views on the Afterlife and the Soul and the Mosaic Law and Canon.
But I agree with them very much on the issue of the Trinity. They are not the first however to take up this position, it was a minority view to question the Trinity often in history, and the "word was a god" translation that their NWT is famous for is not their own invention but showed up in many scholarly and minority (non Church sanctioned)
Some prominent Secular Scholars like Arizona Professor Dr. Jason Beduhn agree with many of their choices of translation and theology. They are not without their supporters, but have many critics who are more concerned about their Theology than the actual grammar, and apply double standards to their own "scholarship" for translation, when in fact many of the same "scholarly" translations they trust have controversies and issues that are mired down in arguments about the language itself, with the Theology (i.e. Trinity) at stake which guides the honesty of the people on each side of the scholarly debate. Traditional "Conservative" Scholars have even supported concocted grammar rules meant to support their faltering and weak doctrines like with their spurious "Colwell's Rule". Liberal and Secular scholars as well argue with each other on particular details. What makes their scholarship superior?
One of my favorite anti-Trinity sites, ExaminingtheTrinity, was recently called "Drivel" just because it's run by JWs. Does that mean everything in their arguments is drivel? Does that mean one can write off all the things they say? Is it a valid excuse to write off a JW link about the claimed proof texts of the Trinity just because its JW? By this logic, why is a non-JW link supporting the Trinity not drivel?
Examining the Trinity
With that said, can it be argued that the Watchtower scholarship is not any less reliable in terms of Greek manuscript study than any other "Christian" scholar? Why is the Catholic and Protestant Greek scholar acceptable but not the JW? Why is the JW's scholarship motivated by Theological goals and not the others?
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