I think that this topic does not contradict the guidelines as you are not promoting false doctrines. Perhaps the guidelines should say that no posts are allowed to promote false doctrines (wait, it does say that!) but that we are allowed to discuss false teachings just as we discuss it in other topics on traditional religions in Relationship vs Religion or God Damn Religion. These other false teachings may be those of, say, fuzzy-haired Hindu gurus or of the Church of Alien Abductees, or Feng Shui Followers. We must be careful not to mock them while deconstructing their beliefs, though, even while being politically incorrect.

It's a legitimate question to ask: Do guys like Nostradamus, Edgar Cayce, and Harry Houdini have real "gifts"? What was the deal with Balaam, to whom was given the privilge of uttering some very significant early Messianic prophecies, even though he was a self-proclaimed "prophet for hire" who gave Israel's enemies counsel that proved disastrous to God's people? What are we to say about Solomon, who penned significant portions of God-breathed scripture and yet slipped badly in his walk with Yahweh during his later life?

We tend to get hung up answering the question, "Can sinners speak the truth?". The answer is: yes, they can. But that's not the point. We really need to keep another question firmly in mind instead: "What is the standard by which the veracity of their statements should be judged?" It is the Word of God, the scriptures He has seen fit to provide for us to read and study. It is incumbent upon us to know them so well we can't be fooled by the lies, half-truths, and educated guesses of pundits and prognosticators. Yes, our errant translations can be a problem, but most significant truths have been repeated in scripture so many times in so many ways, Yahweh's intents are clear in spite of the foibles of human language.

Yahweh went out of His way to make sure we had everything we needed to know for "life and godliness." The stories, precepts, historical narratives, poetry, and prophecy of the Bible all contribute to that goal as much as the doctrinal expositions. But such cannot be said of the quatrains of Nostradamus. They were written to tickle our ears, to pique our curiosity, to amaze us with visions of the future. They may entertain us---they do not edify us. They may frighten us---they do not call us to repentance. If they glorify anyone, it is Nostradamus, not Yahweh. Even if we wanted to, there is no way to change our lives for the better based upon what they tell us, for they tell us nothing of life and godliness. If anything, they are a monument to the folly of man's wisdom. Thus even if some of them can be made to accurately line up with current events, they are still "false teaching" if we rely upon them to peer into our future.

Therefore, it is my view that we should pay attention to Nostradamus and his ilk only so our familiarity with them might help us to contrast their blatherings with the words of Yahweh, who holds eternity past, present, and future in His hands and calls it all Now.

kp