Sunday, February 27, 2011

Interview with Greg Stafford

Greg Stafford is a Jehovah's Witness who is no longer associated with the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society.  He has written SEVERAL BOOKS which both defend and criticize particular elements of the Watchtower Society.  The fact that Stafford is so critical of the organization, yet holds to many of its core doctrines, make him quite an interesting and unique apologist.

Recently, Stafford was interviewed by the SIX SCREENS OF THE WATCHTOWER TELENETWORK with regards to his stance on many issues.  Regardless of what you think of Stafford, if you are interested in Jehovah's Witnesses, you should find this interview interesting.  And yes, you'll hear his arguments against the Trinity and other doctrines held by "Christendom."  But you'll also hear his criticisms against the Watchtower Society and why he left.  On that end, any faithful JW in association with the Watchtower will be obliged to view him as an apostate and treated accordingly.  But I do hope that those same JW's will give this interview a chance and perhaps learn something new.

The interview was very disorganized and distracting, as it was held in a conference call format with many honing in to ask questions.  The interview starts at about 20 minutes in, but the full mp3 file is almost 6 hours long.  I haven't gotten through the whole thing, but I doubt Stafford was on the whole time.

If anyone has any thoughts, i'd be very interested in hearing them.  You can download or listen to the mp3 HERE.

6 comments:

Ivan said...

Hello, Mike:

I tuned in and called that night for about an hour and I do think Stafford was on the whole 6 hours (though I'm not certain since I tuned at the end).

I didn't know it was up for download, I'll check it out.

Mike Felker said...

Ivan, I finally got to listen to the full Stafford section. He didn't stay on for the whole 6 hours. If I recall, it was about 3 hours. If you listen to the section where the callers call in, be prepared to pull out at least a 3rd of your hair. It was pretty horrific.

Mark Hunter said...

I personally don't understand Jehovah's Witnesses who leave the lies of the Watchtower but continue to cling to a weird quasi-Christian belief system, spouting terms like "Jah" or "Yah", dropping in terms like "Christian Witnesses".

You see, either the Witnesses are right or they aren't.

Reject the Trinity because you don't see it in the Bible. Reject Jesus' divinity because you don't see it in the Bible. Maintain that God has the personal name "Jah" or "Yah" because it's abundantly clear from the Bible (Old and New Testament, mind).

Or, or, turn away from Watchtower dogma and let God speak to you afresh through the Holy Spirit.

Oh, and Greg? No one wants to become a member of your new religion. Sorry.

Adrian said...

Sorry Mark , but you have a serious chip on your shoulder and its ugly;-)

You need to get over yourself mate, JW's btw are not the only group who hold to a unitarian viewpoint or dont believe in hell and immortality of the soul , these views pre-date Watchtower theology by many centuries as any well informed scholar knows. Have you listened to Dan Mages debate on the trinity and hell, he's a former evangelical who once believed in the trinity and hell ?If not do yourself a favour and hear what he has to say... you may lear something ;-)

Anonymous said...

Adrian,

I have listened to Dan Mages in debate, and though he may be a Unitarian, he does not agree with the Jehovah's Witnesses presupposition that Jesus is "the first created thing that God created."

So it matters little, I can find things I agree with the Jehovah's Witnesses in regards to the pre-existence of Christ, just as I can too find similarity with Dan Mages that Jesus is not the "first created thing created by God."

To argue that Dan Mages was a former Trinitarian turned Unitarian means next to nothing, because I know of former Jehovah's Witness apologists that are now Trinitarian. Though Mages may be a Unitarian, he does not agree at all with Jehovah's Witnesses in regards to a large and many topics, including one of the most fundamental tenets of the JW faith, the pre-existence of Christ.

Arianism has just about as much in common with Socinianism as Trinitarianism has with Sabellianism. Arianism and Socinianism hold to the claim that Jesus is not God, where the Trinitarian and Sabellian retain that Jesus is God (though, in very different senses). In like manner, where Trinitarianism and Arianism hold to the pre-existence of Christ, both Sabellianism and Socinianism do not.

So in some way or another, whether they be Trinitarian, Arian, Sabellian, or Socinian, there is some similarity between them all, but that does not make them all right. Just a peace of reality.

If you would like to discuss this further, you can always shoot an e-mail my way.

Unknown said...

All debates will be settled when Jesus returns. You be certain.