One thing about the 144,000 that is commonly claimed that isn't true is that Rutherford came up with the new light in 1935 because JWs were growing so fast that there would be more than 144,000 JWs before long. Actually, before 1935 the "great multitude" was believed to be a secondary spiritual class with a heavenly destiny, so there never was any danger of too many JWs partaking the emblems at the Memorial. And already in 1931, Rutherford had introduced the "Jonadab" class that gave an earthly destiny to all new converts to the JWs. But what the change in 1935 accomplished is that by equating the Jonadabs with the "great multitude" he was able to prevent most current members of the "great multitude" from later claiming status in the 144,000 (as Rutherford's "Remnant" doctrine claimed that the number of the elect would decrease until the end), for they would now have an earthly hope instead (thus many stopped partaking of the emblems), and more importantly, it would pave the way for a whole new preaching work, namely, to gather together the "great multitude" from all the nations of the earth (hence the vigorous missionary work of the Knorr years).
What are some common misconceptions about JW's among ex-JW's?
by AlmostAtheist 18 Replies latest jw friends
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greendawn
So Leolaia does that mean that at some time the JWs believed that there were three classes, two going to heaven one superior to the other, and one staying on earth? And did the JWs / Bible Students always believe that the 144 000 number of the elite is a literal number?
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lrkr
Not looking to start a fight, but the whole masonic, illuminati running the WTS and the hidden symbols in artwork are two very dubious (but exciting) claims. There is enough wrong with this system of thinking without ascribing more conspiracy to it than necessary.
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Leolaia
Yup, between 1931 and 1935 there were temporarily three classes. Here are two typical remarks from the period:
*** w34 2/15 pp. 57-58 Tree of Hope ***
Christ Jesus is the righteous and rightful overlord of the earth. His is the capital organization of Jehovah and is therefore the new cesar tree, to which the people must look for hope....The people of good will now on earth, and otherwise designated the Jonadab class, are pictured [in Ezekiel 17] in the tender roots in the old stump which "through the scent of water" reach out after God and lay hold upon the precious truths of his Word and render themselves in obedience to his righteous organization under Christ; and, doing so, they shall live. Into this new tree are first brought the faithful body members of Christ [i.e. the 144,000] who are blessed with the privilege of being made a part of the tree or organization that shall administer blessings to the obedient ones of mankind. Under the organization, and as servants thereto, comes the "great multitude" class...The tree bears the name that Jehovah gives; it is Jehovah's organization.
*** w34 3/15 p. 92 His Name Part 2 ***
As Israel’s firstborn were passed over and preserved on that fateful night, even so the faithful remnant, who are of Jehovah’s firstborn, will be passed over and preserved at the battle of the great day of God Almighty. They will survive Armageddon by virtue of Jehovah’s protection. The "great multitude" will not survive Armageddon, because they are not of the "church of the firstborn" and are not shown in this type or picture. The Scriptures show that God’s promise is to preserve a remnant, and not a vast multitude. (Joel 2:32; Isa. 10:21-23) The "great multitude" are 'appointed to die'. The Scriptures also show that the Jonadab class will survive Armageddon, but not for the same reason that the Lord will preserve the remnant of the firstborn.
That the "great multitude" was still seen as a heavenly class (i.e. they will die in the great tribulation of Armageddon and have a spiritual resurrection) can be seen in the following statement shortly later: "The spiritual house of Israel embraces all who, trusting in the blood of Christ Jesus as the redemption for man, have made a covenant to do the will of God and have been begotten of God, and this necessarily includes the 'great multitude' as well as the 'little flock' " (Watchtower, 15 April 1934, p. 120).
As far as I know, Russell took the 144,000 to be literal.
Now, as I said, in 1881 Messrs. Moody, Sankey, Whittle and Bliss had been stirring up the whole civilized world on the subject of consecration, and apparently a large number made consecration to the Lord. Just suppose at that time, for sake of illustration, that there were forty thousand consecrated people. You say, That is a very small number. Well, dear friends, the more I think of the matter the more I wonder where the Lord is going to find the number. I used to think of how small the number is, 144,000, but of late I have been wondering how it will be possible to find the required number. Suppose there were forty thousand living at the time the call ceased in 1881. These would have been given a certain length of time to prove whether they would have the Lord’s way or not, whether faithful to their covenant of sacrifice. The majority of that forty thousand would not make willing sacrifices, only a Little Flock. And as with that forty thousand, so with all in the past. What proportion of the forty thousand would prove faithful? Well, for sake of illustration, let us make it liberal and say, ten thousand. Let them represent the Little Flock and the thirty thousand the Great Company. What would that mean? It would mean that as they came to the point of testing and trial, it would leave that number of places to be filled. All who are not of the elect class, copies of God’s dear Son, their places would be made vacant. The Lord would not make another call, but merely let others come in to take their places" (Leslie Jones, What Pastor Russell Said, 1917, p. 146; from the 1909 Souvenir Convention Report).
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nvrgnbk
When we falsely accuse the JWs we lose credibility.
There is enough crap in their own literature to damn them.
Let's stick to real personal experience and their own words.
That's enough.
As individuals, they are people like all of us.
Hope they find their way to freedom before they die from disappointment.
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The wanderer
Dear Dave:
Regarding your question:
“What are some misconceptions about JW’s among ex-JW’s?”From my perspective, it seems that some former Jehovah’s Witnesses
paint a group picture of Jehovah’s Witnesses as unsavory, untrusting
child molesters.True, there is that percentage, as in all religions, however, how would
you have felt if you had known you were labeled a criminal by a former
Witness while still a Jehovah’s Witness?Personally, I met a number that were good people. To my knowledge,
not anyone I knew personally fell into any of these categories and still
to this day I miss and love them very much and that is something
I will never forget.Dave, you struck gold again.
Respectfully,
The Wanderer
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bigmouth
Welcome lrkr and yes, I'm with you on this one. That Russel was a closet Mason. There are a lot of freaky things around this one. The pyramid headstone, Freemasonry symbols and his actual burial place! But I think that a lot of well intentioned religious people were interested in these 'societies' at that time in the late 19th century.
That he otherwise pursued Freemasonry outside of his crazy pyramid thang is a matter of conjecture and does not make the modern JW part of the aforementioned group. -
undercover
One thing that has always kinda bugged me is that some people tend to lump all JWs into one category. A category of a sinister group of people.
To me, the WTS is the evil, led by a sinister group of men. Most of the rank and file JWs are just people. People like we were one time...conned into believing that they had found the one true religion.
Unfortunately, many of them are so indoctrinated that they will put the religion and the WTS ahead of family and all that is sensible in life. Because our family, old friends and acquaintances have been brainwashed to act the way they do which causes us great pain and anquish at times, we tend to transfer our anger to the victims. The victims being the everyday dub who tries to be a good Christian based on what they've been taught.
Because this is not the one true religion, they do not have God's holy spirit upon them or their members. Therefore, there will be bad people among the rest of those trying to be good. That's why there is a child abuse issue. That's why some elders are so abusive and tyrannical. That's why some people are so over-righteous and judgemental. What this does is make them just like any other religion which has good and bad people involved in it.
We love to point out the hypocrisy of those who claim to be a JW but yet get caught in trouble with the law. Yes, they are hypocritical, but no more so than a politician who claims to be Christian, makes a show of going to church and then gets caught in some scandal. It's no different than members of the Mafia, who maintain their Catholicism, donate to the churchs, yet make a living by cheating, lying, stealing and killing, except most JWs aren't that bad.
I try hard to reserve my anger or resentment to the leadership of this religion, the men and their lackeys who keep the rank and file under their thumb and under their power. I try hard to feel empathy for the everyday JW who doesn't know that he's in a cult. My family members are decent, good people, but yet do stupid things in the name of the religion. I think most JWs are the same.
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zack
Yes, lumping all JW's into one category is unfair. The LEADERSHIP is at fault. I was duped because my family was duped.
However, I believe that anyone in the religion who teaches its lies as "adjustments" or "current truths" knows he is being dishonest and prefers the lie to the truth.
That being said, it is very sad for some who have their whole lives invested in the system of the WTS to simply walk away and acknowledge that their faith has been
misplaced and their lives wasted. The men who run this corporation and justify their control over people's consciences, rationalize their myths as part of a greater good, and prefer
tradition over a change that will liberate their followers from guilt, are the ones who I hold responsible and for whom a weighty judgement awaits.
Most JW's are just like everyone else: they have problems, they have dreams, they want a better life for their children, and they--- like so many others--- have been duped.