Bridge of Reason

  The Transfiguration, Carl Bloch, 1865 In the January 2023 Study Edition of the Watchtower magazine the Watch Tower comes up with another of its quaint and awkward 'translations.' “ Be transformed by making your mind over, so that you may prove to yourselves the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”—ROM. 12:2. They write: 'HOW often do you clean your home? Perhaps before you first moved in, you scoured it thoroughly. But what if you neglected it afterward? As you know, dust and dirt can accumulate quickly. To keep your home presentable, you need to clean it regularly. 'A similar ongoing effort is required when it comes to our thinking and our personality. Of course, before getting baptized we worked hard to make necessary changes in our life in order to “cleanse ourselves of every defilement of flesh and spirit.” (2 Cor. 7:1) Now, though, we need to follow the apostle Paul’s counsel to “continue to be made new.” (Eph. 4:23) Why is continual effort neede...

In a lively debate on the Reachout Facebook page I was challenged to share the view of Reachout Trust on the controversial question of The Chosen. This is my take on it, no doubt not held by everyone. For those who don’t know about it, The Chosen has been described as ‘an American religious historical drama television series created, directed and co-written by American film-maker Dallas Jenkins. It is the first multi-season series about the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth.’ Problematic Partnerships: Interfaith? The production has proved controversial because Dallas Jenkins has partnered with Angel Studios , a streaming video company that was co-founded by brothers Neal and Jeffrey Harmon, who are Latter-day Saints. T he fact these men are Latter-day Saints, i t might be argued , is no reason to not work with them. They are, after all, in the same industry as Dallas Jenkins and bring considerable professional talent and resources to the project. T he series is filmed at th...

  In the December 2022 Watchtower Study edition, we read: 'He said: “Jesus, remember me when you get into your Kingdom.” Jesus replied: “Truly I tell you today, you will be with me in Paradise.” (Read Luke 23:39-43.) Nothing suggests that this criminal had accepted the message about “the Kingdom of the heavens,” which Jesus preached during his ministry. And Jesus never did say that the man would get into the Kingdom. (Matt. 4:17) Jesus was speaking about the future earthly Paradise.... 'As a Jew, the repentant criminal would have known about Adam and Eve and the Paradise in which Jehovah had placed them. So the criminal could well have realized that the Paradise that Jesus mentioned would be a beautiful garden here on earth.—Read Genesis 2:15.' Will this Jew's dying request not be enough to get him into the kingdom? What is Paradise, and who might this man expect to see when he gets there? With whom will he walk in this restored garden paradise? I Tell You, Today...

  I recently read a blog post by a Latter-day Saint named Jim Harmer entitled ‘A complete list of things Mormons can’t do.’ He began by saying this: As a life-long member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, I’m asked with frequency what things I “can and can’t do.” That’s always been a little funny of a question to me because I, just like you, can do whatever I want. [1] Is this true? Can Jim do whatever he wants? Yes and No Important within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day is the idea of ‘agency’. Mormonism teaches that we are free agents with the ability to choose good or bad. Agency was given to all Heavenly Father’s spirit children in their pre-mortal state and now, in mortal life, it is to be used to ‘choose the right’. [2] So, while Mormons like Jim, in theory, have the freedom to do whatever they want, in practice choice is not a real option if they want to remain in good standing in the church. Most, if not all, cultic groups operate in this way....

  In last week’s Watch Tower Wednesday on the Facebook Page we saw i n the Reasoning book, p 328, the question 'How can a person know which religion is right?' They suggest a series of tests, beginning with: '(1) On what are its teachings based? Are they from God, or are they largely from men? (2 Tim. 3:16; Mark 7:7) Ask, for example: Where does the Bible teach that God is a Trinity? Where does it say that the human soul is immortal? '(2) Consider whether it is making known the name of God. Jesus said in prayer to God: “I have made your name manifest to the men you gave me out of the world.” (John 17:6) He declared: “It is Jehovah your God you must worship, and it is to him alone you must render sacred service.” (Matt. 4:10) Has your religion taught you that ‘it is Jehovah you must worship’? Have you come to know the Person identified by that name—his purposes, his activities, his qualities—so that you feel you can confidently draw close to him?' Do they hav...