Sunday's public talk about 1914 mentioned 586 (page 3)

GBSJG

eby wrote: Possibly the speaker got his information here:
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w8611/1p.6ADreamRevealsHowLateItIs***

I think you are right those are almost his exact words. There are a lot of quotes from that article that he used in his talk.

DannyHaszard

I can't recall ever hearing 586 mentioned from the platform.

I have heard the 586/587 dates countless times expounded by my old time elder/pioneer family members going back to early 1960's

They would wind up saying that the society is the only ones who say 607 which means Jehovah is the revealer of truths. Now howz dat for circular reasoning?

avidbiblereader

The apostle Paul spoke of individuals who would worry about this kind chronology and said this in the Amplified Translation at 1 Tim 1: 3-7

3 As I urged you when I was on my way to Macedonia, stay on where you are at Ephesus in order that you may warn and admonish and charge certain individuals not to teach any different doctrine, 4 Nor to give importance to or occupy themselves with legends (fables, myths) and endless genealogies, which foster and promote useless speculations and questionings rather than acceptance in faith of God's administration and the divine training that is in faith ( [ a ] in that leaning of the entire human personality on God in absolute trust and confidence)-- 5 Whereas the object and purpose of our instruction and charge is love, which springs from a pure heart and a good (clear) conscience and sincere (unfeigned) faith. 6 But certain individuals have missed the mark on this very matter [and] have wandered away into vain arguments and discussions and purposeless talk. 7 They are ambitious to be doctors of the Law (teachers of the Mosaic ritual), but they have no understanding either of the words and terms they use or of the subjects about which they make [such] dogmatic assertions.

The constant trying to figure out times and dates has led many to leave the witnesses because of this very fact that Paul spoke of, it has nothing to do with faith and love and salvation. If Christ was humble enough to say he didn't know the day or hour, if we claim to be His followers shouldn't we do the same. If we are his followers, hmmm.

Tyrone van leyen

Giving a talk mentioning that date on stage is witness suicide. Opening a huge can of worms in public like that I can't help but think that was totally pre-meditated. That took balls! It also served a threefold purpose. 1. pissing off the elders 2.sewing seeds of doubt and curiosity 3 opening the door to a more dignified exit after dropping a bomb. I hope this is something that happens more on account of the internet in the future.

M.J.

The other point he tried to make was that WO I was proof of the 1914 date calculation quoting some historians who said that it was a turning point in history.

Okay, so NOW they're finding out when Jerusalem fell by picking a date of their liking over 2,500 years after the fact and counting BACKWARD.

PrimateDave

It is a kind of modern mythology among the Witnesses to mention the date 1914 and how supposedly conditions have greatly worsened since then. I have been reading A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn.

The reality is that things have actually been getting better since 1914. Granted, I'm not saying that wars of the 20th century haven't been horrific, but the life of the average person has greatly improved in many ways.

The 1800's were a time of great turmoil for people and nations. Is it any wonder that Russell believed that the "last days" began in 1799, a teaching that was still taught by the Society in the 1920's (I have a PDF of 1925 Golden Age that says so.)?

They were looking for Armageddon in 1914 because things were so bad. The Society failed in this prediction and only later created the mythology to save face.

Dave

Sunday's public talk about 1914 mentioned 586