for at least 87 years the WTS has said that millions now living will never die; that the OS can look forward to being unique among humans, having never died.
Those in my parents generation are seeing contemporaries die, and are wondering if they will personally realize that promise. In the minds of those who made that promise, they have not lied if only one person surivives w/o dying. Where are the millions, only baptized jws. The WTS conditions their statments by saying "as a group" these will survive. No guarantees for individuals. What about those who put off marriage and/or children "for the sake of the good news"?
Blondie
"Therefore we may confidently expect that 1925 will mark the return of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the faithful prophets of old...." (1920, Millions Now Living Will Never Die p. 89-90)
The whole basis of the statement
"millions now living will never die" (which the WTS still proudly uses) was based upon the teaching of the WTS that the end was going to occur in 1925. Notice how the writer says
"we may confidently expect." Notice a similar statement in the
WT January 1, 1997 p. 11: "In the early 1920’s, a featured public talk presented by Jehovah’s Witnesses was entitled 'Millions Now Living Will Never Die.' This may have reflected overoptimism at that time. But today that statement can be made with full confidence."The fact that a woefully false and inaccurate statement was made is glossed over by saying it was merely
"overoptimism." In addition, the author makes the same mistake that Rutherford made back in the 1920's. Just as in the early 1920's they were sure they could
"confidently expect" something that didn't happen, likewise, in the 1997 article reference is made to having
"full confidence." How can I, or anyone else, have
"full confidence" in a statement made by an organization that made the same statement 75 years earlier that turned out to be completely wrong? The only thing I am confident about is that I can't trust the Watchtower Society.
