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To: Colofornian
The last real prophet died around 2600 years ago i.e around the time of Zechariah or just before that. A monument to him would be like the tomb of the unknowns, since nobody could know his name for certain.

Ancient religious practices were meant to communicate with the spirit realm directoy; those included oracles, prophets, "familiar spirits" as with the case of the "Witch of Endor", and pure electrostatic devices like the ark of the covenant. All of those things involved trance states, all involved static electricity, and they all stopped working around the time of Zechariah.

The first paragraph of the book of Hebrews mentions prophets as a thing of the distant past on the day Jesus was born. Anybody claiming to be a prophet since that time is basically a BS artist.

3 posted on 12/12/2011 7:23:45 AM PST by varmintman
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To: varmintman

Actually “prophesy” is a gift from the Holy Spirit mentioned in the New Testament—a sign that the Kingdom of God has come (I Cor. 14; Act 2:17,18; 13:9; 19:6). St. Paul was warned by the prophet Agabus in Acts (11:28; 21:10). Was Apostle Paul mislead by a “B.S. artist?”

St. John wrote the book of Revelation...probably around AD 100...it is full of prophesies—in fact, it is THE most prophetic book in the Bible. Was John just a B.S. artist?

A prophet in the biblical sense is an extra-special man of God whom, you are correct, receives direct revelation from God. Often (but not always) those revelations were written down. All prophets were...of impeccable character.

There was a great famine of prophets and prophesy...a silence if you will, of around 400 years, from Zachariah to John the Baptist—who, most Bible scholars recognize was the last of the Old Testament style prophets—who communicated the revelation from God that His Kingdom was near—and—John testified as to the Kingship of Jesus Christ.

All of the Apostles, in that sense, were prophets—as they received the ULTIMATE revelation from God—Himself, in the person of Jesus Christ. Of course they wrote down their Holy Spirit inspired writings—in what we now know as the New Testament.

That canon is closed however...and no orthodox Christian has maintained anyone, anywhere at any time has the authority to add to the Bible—the prophetic testimony of the eyewitnesses of the resurrection.

A part of the Jewish bible was called “The Prophets” and, the traditionally recognized prophets were, in New Testament times...from the distant past—as the book of Hebrews shows. However, Jesus Himself, in His role as PROPHET, Priest and King, was indeed, the ultimate Prophet...

Jesus’ designated spokesmen—and eyewitnesses to His resurrection—were the Apostles—and, as mentioned above, they too, were “prophets” as receivers and communicators of direct revelation from God. Their testimony IS the New Testament.

Was Joseph Smith a prophet-from-God? Absolutely not. Many proofs are available of that...but, the easiest is to show that St. Paul made an absolute requirement that ALL Church leaders be the “husband of one wife.” (I Tim 3, Titus 1)

The fact alone that Joseph Smith flagrantly violated St. Paul’s command for monogamy...and taught others to do likewise, proves, very simply, he was a false prophet, a man of terrible character—NOT from God.


7 posted on 12/12/2011 8:03:04 AM PST by AnalogReigns (because REALITY is never digital...)
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To: varmintman

Actually, John the Baptist, whom we Orthodox title “the Holy Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist John” was most assuredly a prophet according to any honest definition. I realize there is some bizarre definition used by dispensationalists who want to herd the gifts of the Spirit into various historical eras, but the key qualities — foretelling the future and calling to repentance, of which the latter is more important, though we don’t use the title prophet without the first — were both there in St. John.

And, there have been plenty of examples of prophets fitting both characteristics among Orthodox monastic elders since, or even among the married clergy (St. John of Kronstadt, being the key example of the latter that comes to mind). For instance both the fall of Russia under atheist domination and its restoration were foretold decades in advance by monastic elders both Russian and Greek, often in terms calling on Russians to repent — St. Seraphim of Sarov and The Elder Heliodorus of Glinsk Hermitage both foresaw the horrors which would come on Russia from a distance of a century, or almost so, the Elder Porphyry also of Glinsk foretold both the fall and restoration in 1868. Even when the prophecy itself lacked the call to repentance as an integral part, the one foretelling was engaged in calling those around him to repentance, that being the chief office of a monastic elder, or in the case of St. John of Kronstadt a major part the ministry of a priest serving in a rough navy town.


8 posted on 12/12/2011 8:03:39 AM PST by The_Reader_David (And when they behead your own people in the wars which are to come, then you will know. . .)
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To: varmintman

That’s Profit not Prophet.

Sheesh, there is a difference yuh know... /S


25 posted on 12/12/2011 11:18:10 AM PST by Vendome (Don't take life so seriously, you won't live through it anyway)
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