Australia Bethel had from 1938 began to make big money! They employed many brothers. They opened a saw mill, bakery, 20 kingdom farms, and an engineering company. The kingdom farm at Ingleburn was across the road from the military acedemy, today it is the Bethel complex. The brothers organisied the washing of military uniforms for all the soldiers...for a good price! The irony is during the war, brothers were going to jail instead of putting on a uniform...that was washed and pressed at Watchtower farms! Yearbook 83 p.64 states "In 1938...one of the reasons for Rutherford's visit was to examine complaints about certain commercial activities that Australia branch had developed to give brothers employment. He was satisfied that this was not harming the preaching...and COMMENDED Brother Macgillivray on his initiative." $$$$$$$ The branch servant and Rutherford were happy with the arrangement. Many were stumbled and left the truth. P.96 "...the vision of some had grown dim and they lapsed into inactivity." In 1947 Nathan Knorr came to sort out Rutherford's mess. All money making was stopped on Knorrs orders. At the convention Knorr gave his apology speech. {P.97} "we desire in the presence of Jehovah God to confess that during the war, we put our hands to the iniquity of this world at war...we put various properties of God's people to what we now realize was part of the war effort and propaganda, thereby violating true neutrality...we do not wish to shift the blame...on any paticular one, or ones...we confess a common responsibility for this matter." {What about blaming Rutherford?} "We Jehovah's Witnesses do...confess our sins and faults...and ask forgiveness." {Yeah it's all the publishers fault!}
W.W 2 - 1940's Australia Bethel helps out war effort!!
by Witness 007 26 Replies latest watchtower bible
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TheListener
Nice find. I can't believe I've never heard of it before.
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watson
Can they use this format to apologize for "75?" "The Generation?" "Malawi?" "Bovine Blood substitutes?" "NGO?" ........
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Witness 007
There is some extra information in "the Proclaimers" book page 640-641 if your interested.
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Tyrone van leyen
An apology from Brooklynn is a strange odditty. I think you'd have more suceess at finding a Sasquatch in New York, than that ever happening again. I have never heard this before. Great find!
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Witness 007
I love how Knorr says you cant blame certain "ones or one" for what happened, which is his reference to Rutherford's previous visit in 1938 where he "commended" those in charge. Then Knorr makes the average Witness apologize for the poor leadship that lead to this sin...not very fair. Knorr should have said: "I apologize to all Australian brothers for the poor leadship of greedy Rutherford and his foolish branch servant. We were wrong and we are so sorry." That would be the decent thing to do not twist it on the brothers, it's like the sheep apologizing for the shepard! This really irrates me, I know Rutherford was just a fool, but Knorr lost all my respect with his arrogant attitude.
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fresia
This is an excellent find, and thanks heaps for this, will be using it.
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WT=watchtrouble
Thanks Great Find - well done
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greendawn
Interesting find but anyone that believes Knorr's apology was genuine doesn't really understand how the WTS works. Later in Mexico unlike in Malawi they compromised their declared moral standards rather than lose their properties there.
Knorr stopped it and apologised because he felt it was doing more harm to the org than good. -
Atlantis
(Credit goes to Witness 007) Yearbook 83 p.64 states "In 1938...one of the reasons for Rutherford's visit was to examine complaints about certain commercial activities that Australia branch had developed to give brothers employment. He was satisfied that this was not harming the preaching...and COMMENDED Brother Macgillivray on his initiative." Scan: http://www.imagger.com/view/388625_scan-10001.jpg.html Many were stumbled and left the truth. P.96 "...the vision of some had grown dim and they lapsed into inactivity." Scan: http://www.imagger.com/view/277260_scan-20001.jpg.html {P.97-98} "we desire in the presence of Jehovah God to confess that during the war, we put our hands to the iniquity of this world at war...we put various properties of God's people to what we now realize was part of the war effort and propaganda, thereby violating true neutrality...we do not wish to shift the blame...on any paticular one, or ones...we confess a common responsibility for this matter." Scans: http://www.imagger.com/view/823142_scan-30001.jpg.html http://www.imagger.com/view/965837_scan-40001.jpg.html There is some extra information in "the Proclaimers" book page 640-641 if your interested. Scans: http://www.imagger.com/view/107835_scan-40001.jpg.html http://www.imagger.com/view/559080_scan-50001.jpg.html Watchtower-1947-June-1-p.173 (mentioned in the Proclaimers Book-p.641-par.3-Ln-18) "There were others who had been called in for work who became so busy with printing things pertaining to this world, working in machine shops producing instruments of war, or serving soldiers in canteens, that they soon lost their appreciation for the truth and were lost in "the sea", eventually drifting right back into the world, no longer having a desire for the good things of the Lord and his full-time ministerial service." Scan: http://www.imagger.com/view/433619_scan-60001.jpg.html Cheers! Atlantis-
