In the sense that people tend to establish a routine and are not looking for anything like this to happen, to say the least. While here's an idea about the end of times and the Book of Revelation which, most people have no idea that it even occurred ...I said:And that would mean...?![]()
You will see for yourselves how modern religious people treat a modern prophet. From ridicule to hostility to curiousity but never spontaneous recognition. In our secular times the prophet must produce evidence of spiritual power as people in the West especially have been educated to disbelieve spiritual gifts. What God has done is to institute an ongoing religious debate wherein the believers of differing faiths are challenging one another for recognition of their own spiritual paths as the best ones available. The Internet Arena is operating now and through this process eventually every major religion will be forced to defend their belief systems which in turn will force the abandonment of religious belief systems that are based on religious frauds of various kinds, e.g, the fraudulent claims of "Moses" as the writer of the Torah, e.g. the fraudulent claims of Pauline Christians for the miraculous stories of Jesus, e.g. the inanity of Muslims believing their holy book is somehow without flaws when right off the bat Mohammad made the same mistake as Pauline Christians and Jews before him, of idolizing and taking as real people, mythical men and mythical events.Phi said:Is Prophecy Dead?
Well let me just say that if a wonderfully sane and upright man or woman, who was in the Holy Spirit like the prophets of old were to say:
"I went out unto the wilderness and for forty days I ate not. And the voice of God came unto me and bade me tell my people..."
Of course in order to follow the command given, were the message more urgent than a book-publisher's time frame, the prophet would need to break into a TV studio or radio station to "tell my people."
He/she would be locked up, or at the very least a kind social worker might lead him/her to a "Behavioral-health center," where drugs would be pumped into the prophet in order to help the prophet "recover" from his mental derangement.
So my answer to the question above is, yes, in the Western culture, it's pretty much dead. Because we ourselves try to kill it wherever we find it.![]()
People expect those with great claims to therefore justify them through action - otherwise the words themselves are meaningless.arielmessenger said:You will see for yourselves how modern religious people treat a modern prophet. From ridicule to hostility to curiousity but never spontaneous recognition. In our secular times the prophet must produce evidence of spiritual power as people in the West especially have been educated to disbelieve spiritual gifts.
I said:There's a general perception in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, that prophecy is effectively dead - that all that required saying is said.
However, is this an interpretation supported directly by scripture - or is this a general assertion from events and human developments?
Does humanity no longer have a direct connection to God, excepting through the pages of books?
A general discussion question.
Pet Zepi said:...Religion is a symbol of our connection with God. No more, no less.
And, when a symbol no longer holds meaning for the people who employ it, no longer represents them... the channel becomes clogged, the connection between the people and the inspiration behind the symbol's design ..is inherently and utterly lost.
smkolins said:..a bit of the pendulum swinging a bit too far...etc.
WHKeith said:I should add that only very, very, VERY rarely does "prophecy" have anything to do with foretelling the future. Propehecy is more properly seen as "forth-telling" rather than "fore-telling."
Pet Zepi said:I think that is basically what I am trying to say.
I, personally, am most optimistic in my walk with God but, then,
I am not just following blindly, wating for a miracle to drop out
of the sky as I drone what has become a meaningless chant.
The miracle comes from God....through us.
So...we either change the chant or learn the history behind it,
its hidden meaning, transfuse it with our own life...and ressurect it.
Then the miracle is seen all around us.
It doesn't really amaze me that some people go on about prophets being wrong, that is pretty typical of those who prefer a different flavor. What amazes me is that the Jewish prophets got things so right, considering they wrote, in the case of David and Psalms 22 prophecying the crucifiction of Messiah, a thousand years before the event. In the case of the "accepted prophets", almost three thousand years have transpired.Mus Zibii said:Its been argued (surprise, surprise) that the accepted prophets in Judaism and elsewhere were wrong... often.
And spin doctors and social commentators can choose to see the glass as half empty. Some of us chose to see the glass as half full. Some social commentators prefer to see the unfulfilled portions of prophecy, and point to these as being "wrong," completely ignoring how often the "accepted prophets" got it right considering how long ago the prophecies were given.One could also say the prophet was replaced by the spin-doctor and social-commentator--who are just as frequently self-serving and in error.
Hello Brian,I said:There's a general perception in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, that prophecy is effectively dead - that all that required saying is said.
However, is this an interpretation supported directly by scripture - or is this a general assertion from events and human developments?
Does humanity no longer have a direct connection to God, excepting through the pages of books?
A general discussion question.
I was on a Govenors Island ferry (New York), listening to a group of sailors poking fun at a young woman who was a bit larger than sexually acceptable. But in the midst of these sailors was one who worked for the Chaplain. And this young man professed to be a devout Christian (prior to this incedent). Yet there he was laughing at the jokes these sailors were making about this young woman.Mus Zibii said:Walking away I felt all proud of myself for teasing some fearfully faithful people. About five minutes later I felt guilty as hell for teasing them. I wasn't moved by anything divine, unless you consider common sense divine. I can't say what lesson exactly I learned, but...
On a related note, I've been plagued by adware popups. Coincidence?