by UnConfused 16 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
I know it must but...
Satan is cast down in Oct 1914
Revelation says in 3 1/2 years Jesus inspection comes;
Oct 1915 = 1 year
Oct 1916 = 2 years
Oct 1917 = 3 years
Apr 1918 = 3 1/2 years
How does it become 1919 rather than 1918?
What obvious fact am I missing?
I may be wrong here - but I believe that the dub teaching is that 1918 marked the selection of the 'slave'. 1919 marked the release of the inmates from Atlanta, and hence a renewed 'standing' up of the dead two witnesses, with increased preaching work.
The 3 and a half years was concluded spring of 1918.
Jeff
1919 marked the release of the inmates from Atlanta,
I find it so ridiculous that the bible would even mention such an event.
And here is the PROOF that Jehovah was running things. From the Proclaimers Book Chapter 7 Page 72;
KnowSomethingAbouttheLawoftheLoyal""I
A convention was scheduled in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, January 2-5, 1919, during the time that Brother Rutherford and his associates were in prison. But this was no ordinary convention—it was combined with the annual meeting of the Watch Tower Society, on Saturday, January 4, 1919. Brother Rutherford was well aware of the significance of this meeting. That Saturday afternoon he searched for Brother Macmillan and found him at the prison tennis court. According to Macmillan, this is what happened:
"Rutherford said, ‘Mac, I want to talk to you.’
"‘What do you want to talk to me about?’
"‘I want to talk to you about what’s going on at Pittsburgh.’
"‘I’d like to play this tournament out here.’
"‘Aren’t you interested in what’s going on? Don’t you know it’s the election of officers today? You might be ignored and dropped and we’ll stay here forever.’
"‘Brother Rutherford,’ I said, ‘let me tell you something perhaps you haven’t thought of. This is the first time since the Society was incorporated that it can become clearly evident whom Jehovah God would like to have as president.’
"‘What do you mean by that?’
"‘I mean that Brother Russell had a controlling vote and he appointed the different officers. Now with us seemingly out of commission the matter’s different. But, if we got out in time to go up to that assembly to that business meeting, we would come in there and would be accepted to take Brother Russell’s place with the same honor he received. It might look then like man’s work, not God’s.’
"Rutherford just looked thoughtful and walked away."
That day a tense meeting was in progress back at Pittsburgh. "Confusion, dissension, and arguments reigned for a while," recalled Sara C. Kaelin, who was raised in the Pittsburgh area. "Some wanted to postpone the meeting for six months; others questioned the legality of electing officers who were in prison; others suggested all new officers."
After a lengthy discussion, W. F. Hudgings, a director of the Peoples Pulpit Association, read to the audience a letter from Brother Rutherford. In it he sent love and greetings to those assembled. "Satan’schiefweaponsarePRIDE,AMBITIONandFEAR," he warned. Showing a desire to submit to Jehovah’s will, he even humbly suggested suitable men in the event that the shareholders should decide to elect new officers for the Society.
Discussion continued for a while longer, and then E. D. Sexton, who had been appointed chairman of a nominating committee, spoke up, saying:
"I just arrived. My train was forty-eight hours late, having been snowbound. I have something to say and for my own comfort I better say it now. My dear brethren, I have come here, as the balance of you have, with certain ideas in mind—pro and con. . . . There is no legal obstacle in the way. If we desire to re-elect our brethren in the South to any office they can hold, I cannot see, or find from any [legal] advice I have received, how this will, in any shape or form, interfere with the aspect of their case before the Federal Court or before the public.
"I believe that the greatest compliment we can pay to our dear brother Rutherford would be to re-elect him as president of the W[atch] T[ower] B[ible] & T[ract] Society. I do not think there is any question in the mind of the public as to where we stand on the proposition. If our brethren in any way technically violated a law they did not understand, we know their motives are good. And before Almighty [God] they have neither violated any law of God or of man. We could manifest the greatest confidence if we re-elected Brother Rutherford as president of the Association.
"I am not a lawyer, but when it comes to the legality of the situation I know something about the law of the loyal. Loyalty is what God demands. I cannot imagine any greater confidence we could manifest than to have an election AND RE-ELECT BROTHER RUTHERFORD AS PRESIDENT."
Well, Brother Sexton evidently expressed the sentiments of most of those in attendance. There were nominations; a vote was taken; and J. F. Rutherford was elected president, C. A. Wise vice president, and W. E. Van Amburgh secretary-treasurer.
The next day Brother Rutherford knocked on Macmillan’s cell wall and said: "Poke your hand out." He then handed Macmillan a telegram saying that Rutherford had been reelected president. "He was very happy," Macmillan later recalled, "to see this display of assurance that Jehovah was running the Society."
The election was over, but Brother Rutherford and the seven others were still in prison.
And I recall swallowing this swill. Yuck.
Jeff
I thought it was supposed to be (unofficially) in the spring of 1918 (if you count from the Fall 1914 + 3 1/2 years) when the "first resurrection" took place ......Jesus was sooo busy sorting them all out in heaven, that it took him another year to approve Rutherfraud The Drunk and his band of henchmen as the only means of communicating to men on earth, which bring us to 1919!!
See? It's simple really.
I love the quote from Melvin Curry that James Penton includes in his book Apocalypse Delayed:
"Biblical chronology is the play dough of the millenarians. It can be stretched to fit whatever timetable is needed, or it can be reduced to a meaningless mass of dates and figures so that future predictions can be molded out of the original lump."
Mary is correct ... somehow the details of this escaped me
*** w93 5/1 pp. 15-17 Expanded Activities During Christ’s Presence ***
Expanded Activities During Christ’s Presence
“Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who have been blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the founding of the world.’”—MATTHEW 25:34.
CHRIST’S presence—the long-awaited event! The time like “the days of Noah,” which Jesus spoke of in connection with “the conclusion of the system of things,” arrived in the year 1914. (Matthew 24:3, 37) But what would Christ’s presence, or pa·rou·si´a, mean for the anointed remnant of “the faithful and discreet slave”? (Matthew 24:45) Why, that they would have to become increasingly more active as light bearers! Marvelous things were due to happen! An unprecedented gathering work was about to begin.
2 First, though, these anointed Christians needed cleansing. As Malachi 3:1-5 had foretold, Jehovah God and his “messenger of the covenant,” Jesus Christ, came to inspect the spiritual temple in the spring of 1918. Judgment was to begin with “the house of God.” (1 Peter 4:17) Malachi 3:3 foretold: “He [Jehovah] must sit as a refiner and cleanser of silver and must cleanse the sons of Levi; and he must clarify them like gold and like silver.” It was a period of refining and cleansing.
3 Passing through this judgment, which climaxed in 1918, the remnant of the slave class was cleansed from worldly and religious defilement. Why did Jehovah cleanse them? Because his spiritual temple was involved. This is the templelike arrangement for worshiping Jehovah on the basis of the propitiatory sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Jehovah wanted his temple to be in a clean condition so that when large numbers of worshipers with earthly hopes were brought there, they would find a place where his universal sovereignty is respected, where his divine name is sanctified, and where his righteous laws are obeyed. Thus, they would appreciate Jehovah and join in making known his grand purposes.
Added Privileges
4 In 1919 the cleansed slave class could look forward to ever-expanding activities. Back in 1914, Jesus Christ, their Master, had obtained a heavenly Kingdom. When he returned to his household staff to inspect all his “domestics,” he was arrayed in royal dignity, which he had not possessed when he was down here on earth. What did he find? Was the slave class busy caring for the Master’s interests? As recorded at Matthew 24:45-47, Jesus asked a question that challenged each anointed disciple to examine his personal devotion to Jehovah’s Messiah: “Who really is the faithful and discreet slave whom his master appointed over his domestics, to give them their food at the proper time? Happy is that slave if his master on arriving finds him doing so. Truly I say to you, He will appoint him over all his belongings.”
5 Obviously, Jesus’ description of this faithful slave does not fit any individual human. No, but it does describe Christ’s faithful anointed congregation as a whole, as a group. The domestics are Christ’s anointed followers as individuals. Jesus knew that he was going to purchase these anointed ones with his own blood, so he fittingly referred to them collectively as his slave. First Corinthians 7:23 says of them: “YOU [speaking collectively] were bought with a price; stop becoming slaves of men.” Jesus commissioned his slave class to let their light shine to attract and make other disciples and to feed his domestics progressively by giving them their spiritual food at the proper time.
6 From the time Christ’s presence began and down to 1918, the slave class, despite unpopularity, persecution, and even some confusion, had been seeking to give timely food to the domestics. This is what the Master found when his inspection began. The Lord Jesus was pleased, and in 1919 he pronounced that faithful approved slave class happy. What was the slave’s delightful reward for doing what his Master had appointed him to do? A promotion! Yes, larger responsibilities were given in advancing his Master’s interests. Since the Master was now a heavenly King, why, then, his earthly belongings became even more precious.
7 So, what are “all his belongings”? These are all the spiritual assets on earth that have become Christ’s property in connection with his authority as heavenly King. This definitely included the commission to make disciples of Christ, with the grand privilege of acting as representatives of God’s established Kingdom to all the nations of the world.
8 Such a promotion to oversight of all the Master’s belongings demanded that the slave class give more time and attention to getting the Kingdom work done and, yes, develop larger facilities for that work. It now had a much greater field of work—the entire inhabited earth."
More specifically, here is the application of the 3.5 years:
*** dp chap. 9 pp. 142-143 pars. 28-31 Who Will Rule the World? ***
28
Jehovah’s angel referred to a prophetic period of "a time, and times and half a time." How long is that? Bible expositors generally agree that this expression denotes three and a half times—the sum of one time, two times, and half a time. Since Nebuchadnezzar’s "seven times" of madness amounted to seven years, the three and a half times are three and a half years. (Daniel 4:16, 25) An American Translation reads: "They shall be handed over to him for a year, two years, and half a year." James Moffatt’s version says: "For three years and half a year." The same period is mentioned at Revelation 11:2-7, which states that God’s witnesses would preach dressed in sackcloth for 42 months, or 1,260 days, and then be killed. When did this time period begin and end?29
For the anointed Christians, World War I meant a time of testing. By the end of 1914, they were expecting persecution. In fact, the very yeartext chosen for 1915 was Jesus’ question to his disciples, "Are ye able to drink of my cup?" It was based on Matthew 20:22, KingJamesVersion.Hence, beginning in December 1914, that small band of witnesses preached "in sackcloth."30
As war fever took hold, the anointed Christians encountered mounting opposition. Some of them were imprisoned. Individuals, such as Frank Platt in England and Robert Clegg in Canada, were tortured by sadistic authorities. On February 12, 1918, the British Dominion of Canada banned the recently published seventh volume of StudiesintheScriptures, entitled TheFinishedMystery, as well as the tracts entitled TheBibleStudentsMonthly. The following month, the U.S. Department of Justice pronounced the distribution of the seventh volume illegal. The result? Why, homes were searched, literature was confiscated, and Jehovah’s worshipers were arrested!31
Harassment of God’s anointed ones climaxed on June 21, 1918, when the president, J. F. Rutherford, and prominent members of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society were sentenced on false charges to long prison terms. Intending "to change times and law," the "small" horn had effectively killed the organized preaching work. (Revelation 11:7) So the foretold period of "a time, and times and half a time" ended in June 1918.
From this we find that the 3.5 years began in December, 1914 and ended on June 21, 1918.
If the 3.5 "times" stand for three-and-a-half years of 365 days each, this calculation works out perfectly.
June 21, 1918 - 3.5 years = (June 21, 1915 - 182.5 days) = December 21, 1914.
(Alternately you could use 42 modern calendar months and you end up with the same result:
June 21, 1918 - 42 months = December 21, 1914)
BUT THERE'S A PROBLEM HERE! (warning: the following is a bit hard to explain but I'll try & do my best!)
The number of days between December 21, 1914 to June 21, 1918 is 1,278! Not 1,260!!!
Check it out: http://www.onlineconversion.com/days_between.htm
The WTS goofed here! They used modern solar years and to calculate time expressed in "prophetic years".
Thus their application of the 3.5 years is demonstrably a load of crap!
Counting back 1,260 days before June 21, 1918, actually brings you to January 8, 1915.
There goes the supposed link between the magic year 1914 and the sentencing of the WT leaders in June of 1918.
But what if the WTS insists that the number 1,260 is a symbolic number representing three-and-a-half 365-day years?
This essentially would mean that the 1,260 days is symbolic of 1,278 actual days.
...And thus Christ returned invisibly 2,555 actual years after 607 BCE, in the year 1949. (as the Seven Times are calculated by doubling 3.5 times)
The WTS goofed here! They used modern solar years and to calculate time expressed in "prophetic years".
Thus their application of the 3.5 years is demonstrably a load of crap!
Counting back 1,260 days before June 21, 1918, actually brings you to January 8, 1915.
There goes the supposed link between the magic year 1914 and the sentencing of the WT leaders in June of 1918.
But what if the WTS insists that the number 1,260 is a symbolic number representing three-and-a-half 365-day years?
This essentially would mean that the 1,260 days is symbolic of 1,278 actual days.
...And thus Christ returned invisibly 2,555 actual years after 607 BCE, in the year 1949. (as the Seven Times are calculated by doubling 3.5 times)
MJ - you might be responsible for "New Light" once the new-age FDS see this new date of 1949 and a way to get there! The Generation doctrine will be back in vogue after they switch Jesus new arrival to be in 1949.
