Proof of the Prophetic: Difference between revisions

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Such prophecies are '''made in advance''' but '''contain enough vagueness for deniability''' if they don't happen but also something that can be pointed to as a "fulfillment of prophecy" if it does happen.  With respect to William Branham, a good example of this would be [[Was the birth of Joseph Branham foretold|the "prophecy" of the birth of his son, Joseph]].
Such prophecies are '''made in advance''' but '''contain enough vagueness for deniability''' if they don't happen but also something that can be pointed to as a "fulfillment of prophecy" if it does happen.  With respect to William Branham, a good example of this would be [[Was the birth of Joseph Branham foretold|the "prophecy" of the birth of his son, Joseph]].


===2 - A Prophecy made beforehand (verified) that was not fulfilled===
===2 - Prophecies made beforehand (verified) that was not fulfilled===


We have several occasions where William Branham prophesied of things that would come to pass in the future but '''did not happen as prophesied''' ("failed prophecies").  Examples of this would include:
We have several occasions where William Branham prophesied of things that would come to pass in the future but '''did not happen as prophesied''' ("failed prophecies").  Examples of this would include:
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::B. The [[The Vision of the Meetings in South Africa|vision of the African meetings]].
::B. The [[The Vision of the Meetings in South Africa|vision of the African meetings]].


===A Prophecy made beforehand (unverified) that was not fulfilled===
===3 - Prophecies (unverified) that were not fulfilled===


This would include '''prophecies that William Branham said had been fulfilled but, in fact, were not'''.  Examples of this type of failed prophecy would include:
When we state that such prophecies are "unverified", it means that the first time they were told was after the prophesied event had occurred.  Such prophecies are also referred to as "after the fact".  Some message believers will protest that there is evidence that such prophecies were clearly made in advance but '''we have been unable to find any independent evidence''' that would confirm this.  The only evidence we have is William Branham's own words, which do not qualify as independent evidence.
 
Such prophesies would include those that '''William Branham said had been fulfilled but, in fact, were not'''.  Examples of this type of failed prophecy would include:


::A. [[The Municipal Bridge Vision]]; and
::A. [[The Municipal Bridge Vision]]; and
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:While these are "after the fact" prophecies, it is strange that William Branham held out that they were validly fulfilled, when they clearly were not.
:While these are "after the fact" prophecies, it is strange that William Branham held out that they were validly fulfilled, when they clearly were not.


===A Prophecy made beforehand (unverified) that was clearly fulfilled===
===4 - Prophecies (unverified) that was clearly fulfilled===


Message believers will provide several examples where William Branham stated that he had prophesied something that actually did come to pass.  There are several examples of this such as [[Kari Holma]] or [[The Brown Bear Vision#The 1961 Vision of the Grizzly Bear|the vision of the grizzly bear]].  However, there would appear to be '''no record''' of these events being publicly recorded before the fact.  Therefore, they could simply be '''after-the-fact prophecies'''.  While one would normally think that "after the fact" prophecies would be amazingly accurate, there are significant problems associated with a number of William Branham's "after-the-fact" prophecies.
Message believers will provide several examples where William Branham stated that he had prophesied something that actually did come to pass.  There are several examples of this such as [[Kari Holma]] or [[The Brown Bear Vision#The 1961 Vision of the Grizzly Bear|the vision of the grizzly bear]].  However, there would appear to be '''no record''' of these events being publicly recorded before the fact.  Therefore, they must be considered '''after-the-fact prophecies'''.  While one would normally think that "after the fact" prophecies would be amazingly accurate, there are significant problems associated with a number of William Branham's "after-the-fact" prophecies.


:Any of the following "so-called" prophecies cannot be used as proof of a prophetic ministry.  Why?  There is '''NO EVIDENCE''' that they were made publicly prior to the events occurring.  This would include the following:
:Any of the following "so-called" prophecies cannot be used as proof of a prophetic ministry.  Why?  There is '''NO EVIDENCE''' that they were made publicly prior to the events occurring.  This would include the following:
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::*[[Driverless Cars]]
::*[[Driverless Cars]]


===A Prophecy made beforehand (verified) that was clearly fulfilled===
===5 - Prophecies made beforehand (verified) that were clearly fulfilled===


Anything in this category would be considered a true prophecy.  '''We are unaware of any of William Branham's prophecies that would fulfill this criteria.'''  Because of this, there would appear to be no independent evidence that William Branham actually had a prophetic gift.
Anything in this category would be considered a true prophecy.  '''We are unaware of any of William Branham's prophecies that would fulfill this criteria.'''  Because of this, there would appear to be no independent evidence that William Branham actually had a prophetic gift.