did taze when originally created this religion did he plan for the massive cult organization that it has become or was it mere chance and did he plan to prey on the weak and downtrodden people in society or was this originally supposed to encompass all people into "life saving" religion
did taze plan for a massive religion that appeals to only the downtrodden?
by Lotus65 16 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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Xavier1
Well i suppose that taze has no plan he only thought 1914 was the end of the world. after that i certainly not understand what happend exactly
Xavier1
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MissingLink
CTR was just a paranoid wacko with christ issues. It was Rutherford who built the cult.
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Satanus
Looking at the big picture, i sometimes wonder if his religion wasn't supposed to be an anticatholic weapon. That is considering the animosity that the top jews at the time, and the freemasons had toward the church. Those were the people w whom he was close friends. Whether russel knew or planned it that way is another story. He may have been a pawn. He was a sort of idiot savant, he knew a lot about a little, very little, really. His attacks were against some of the main rc doctrines.
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wind chimes
I am not sure of his original intent but it is certainly an unintended consequence. People who want and have a desire to better mankind through secular or religious efforts will not be attracted to a religion like this. Why would you go to medical school , if you believe the end is near; why would you work really hard and save to pass on an inheritance if the end is near; why would you go and study science in an effort to cure disease if the end is near,etc. Any religion whether JW or not that takes a doomsday interpretation of Revelation will ultimately end up achieving less or will have a schizophrenic world view. Religions , like JWs, attract the underclass, downtrodden, people who are at a vulnerable point in their lives because its message will only appeal to that set of people.
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kifoy
I'm reading Steven Hassan's "Releasing the Bonds", and on page 96 i read the following:
In any case, when a leader with a questionable background organizes a group so that power is totally centralized, you can assume a destructive cult is being formed. World-renowned Christian apologist Norman Geisler puts it this way:"Whenever you have an individual who claims a direct pipeline with God and has no accountability, if you don't have a cult today, you will have one tomorrow."
So whatever may have been started out of good intentions, when there's only one channel...
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new light
We do know he planned a religion that was agressively anti-mainsteam, yet still bowed to the same God, sort of. This would appeal to those alienated from their church and, maybe, the social activities that were part of it. Has anyone seen a successful, connected, person from a loving family convert to JWism? The disfellowshipping would turn off almost anyone involved in a supportive family. It takes a certain kind of person to join a separatist religion, then take all the crap that comes with it, then make the move to dunk their life away. That person probably did not eat lunch with the popular kids.
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glenster
The phoniness started in the 1870's, and remains to this day, with the claim
of being the spokesperson/one of the few spokesmen for a literal 144,000, then
claiming the particulars meant to define it are meant by the Bible as shown by
the best evidence and reasoning. You can't do that with the basics--God good,
Devil bad, don't lie, steal, or murder, etc. That elitism has always deviated
from sincere belief and got guys forcing points and cooking stuff up from there.The claim of being the spokesman of a literal 144,000 and defining the partic-
ulars of it started with Russell early on--not only that 1st cent.Jewish mono-
theism produced a created Jesus to be worshipped but what year he invisibly ap-
peared, when he will become visible and various other particulars, some miracu-
lous, would happen, young Earth creationism, Adam and Eve were Caucasion, etc.
His particulars were meant to define his little flock and what you had to agree
with beyond the Bible to be saved by the God of the Bible.That was never intended to be all-inclusive, or even most Bible believer-in-
clusive. Aside from Russell's 1910 Hippodrome effort to persuade Jewish people
to move to Israel to make his predicted number come true on time (didn't hap-
pen), the elitism was anti-ecumenical to the point of propaganda aimed at those
who disagreed from the start. He predicted mainstream Christianity would be de-
stroyed from 1910 to 1914, and made up for the fact that it grew instead by bad-
mouthing it a lot, notably for not agreeing with his particulars (not having a
created Jesus you worship, accepting ideas from science about the age of the
Earth and evolution, rejecting his pyramid calculations, etc.).It was marketed for people who like to think they're onto the special truth,
like Popoff's fans, beyond a more common hope in the possible and into a less
common hope for the shown wrong, hoping the customers didn't have good research
habits. The way he persuaded his friends to shun his wife during his divorce
paved the way for later shunning rules, partly meant to get rid of those who get
wise. But you only need to make fans of a small percentage of the public, which
it still is, to make money, even a lot of money, with a career in entertainment
or playing prophet badly. -
Pickled
Russell's message and theology seems to fit perfectly within the religious landscape of that time. He was among many who stood out at that time that had charismatic qualities that they channeled into religion. If you take a brief look at the historical environment during the years that he invented this religion, it becomes clear that he was one of many who were swept up in the same type of movement.
RELIGIOUS LANDSCAPE
1730 – 1740’s The First Great Awakening
The First Great Awakening (often referred by historians as the Great Awakening) is the name sometimes given to a period of heightened religious activity, primarily in Great Britain and her North American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s. In New England, the Great Awakening was influential among many Congregationalists; while in the Middle and Southern colonies (especially in the "Backcountry" regions of those colonies) the Awakening was influential among Presbyterians and other dissenting Protestants. Although the idea of a "great awakening" is contested, it is clear that the period was, particularly in New England, a time of increased religious activity. The revival began with Jonathan Edwards, a well-educated theologian and Congregationalist minister from Northampton, Massachusetts, who came from Puritan and Calvinist roots, but emphasized the importance and power of immediate, personal religious experience. Edwards was said to be "solemn, with a distinct and careful enunciation, and a slow cadence." [1] Nevertheless, his sermons were powerful and attracted a large following. "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," is his most famous sermon. The Methodist preacher George Whitefield, visiting from England, continued the movement, traveling across the colonies and preaching in a more dramatic and emotional style, accepting everyone into his audiences.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Great_Awakening
1800 – 1830’s The Second Great Awakening
The Second Great Awakening (1800–1830s) was the second great religious revival in United States history and consisted of renewed personal salvation experienced in revival meetings. Major leaders included Charles Grandison Finney, Lyman Beecher, Barton Stone, Peter Cartwright, Asahel Nettleton, and James B. Finley. It also encouraged an eager evangelical attitude that later reappeared in American life in causes dealing with prison reform, temperance, women's suffrage, and the crusade to abolish slavery.
[…]
, the renewed interest in religion inspired a wave of social activism. In western New York, the spirit of revival encouraged the emergence of new Restorationist and other denominations, especially the Mormons and the Holiness movement. In the West especially—at Cane Ridge, Kentucky and in Tennessee—the revival strengthened the Methodists and introduced into America a new form of religious expression—the Scottish camp meeting.[1]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Great_Awakening
1850-1900’s The Third Great Awakening
The Third Great Awakening was a period of religious activism in American history from the late 1850s to the 1900s. It affected pietistic Protestant denominations and had a strong sense of social activism. It gathered strength from the postmillennial theology that the Second Coming of Christ would come after mankind had reformed the entire earth. The Social Gospel Movement gained its force from the Awakening, as did the worldwide missionary movement. New groupings emerged, such as the Holiness movement and Nazarene movements, and Christian Science.
[…]
The awakening in numerous cities in 1858 was interrupted by the American Civil War. In the South, on the other hand, the Civil War stimulated revivals, especially in General Robert E. Lee's army. After the war, Dwight L. Moody made revivalism the centerpiece of his activities in Chicago by founding the Moody Bible Institute. The hymns of Ira Sankey were especially influential.
The Gilded Age plutocracy came under harsh attack from the Social Gospel preachers and with reformers in the Progressive Era. Historian Robert Fogel identifies numerous reforms, especially the battles involving child labor, compulsory elementary education and the protection of women from exploitation in factories. [2] In addition there was a major crusade for the prohibition of alcohol. The major pietistic Protestant denominations all sponsored growing missionary activities inside the United States and around the world. Colleges associated with denominations rapidly expanded in number, size and quality of curriculum. The YMCA became a force in many cities, as did denominational youth groups such as the Epworth League (Methodist) and the Walther League (Lutheran).
New sects
Mary Baker Eddy introduced Christian Science, which gained a national following. In 1880, the Salvation Army denomination arrived in America. Although its theology was based on ideals expressed during the Second Great Awakening, its focus on poverty was of the Third. The Society for Ethical Culture was established in New York in 1876 by Felix Adler attracted a Reform Jewish clientèle. Charles Taze Russell Founded a Bible Student Institude that we know know as The Jehovah's Witnesses.
With Jane Addams's Hull House in Chicago as its center, the settlement house movement and the vocation of social work were deeply influenced by the Tolstoyan reworking of Christian idealism.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Great_Awakening
1960-1970’s The Fourth Great Awakening
The Fourth Great Awakening was a Christian religious awakening that some scholars - most notably, economic historian Robert Fogel - say took place in the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The terminology is controversial, with many historians believing the religious changes that took place in the USA during these years were not equivalent to those of the first three great awakenings. Thus, the idea of a Fourth Great Awakening itself has not been generally accepted. [1]
Whether or not they constitute an awakening, changes did take place. The "mainstream" Protestant churches weakened sharply in both membership and influence while the most traditional religious denominations (such as the Southern Baptists and Missouri Synod Lutherans) grew rapidly in numbers, spread across the United States, had grave internal theological battles and schisms, and became politically powerful. Other evangelical and fundamentalist denominations also expanded rapidly. At the same time, secularism grew dramatically, and the more conservative churches saw themselves battling secularism in terms of issues such as gay rights, abortion and creationism.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourth_Great_Awakening -
Pickled
Charles Taze Russell (February 16, 1852 – October 31, 1916), also known as Pastor Russell, was a Protestant evangelist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA and founder of the Bible Student movement. [1]
After having published several articles in various religious journals as early as 1876 he formed his own religious journal Zion's Watch Tower and Herald of Christ's Presence in 1879, as well as establishing Zion's Watch Tower Tract Society in 1881. In 1884 Zion's Watch Tower Tract Society published the first in a series of seven books (six of which Russell wrote himself) entitled Studies in the Scriptures with the first six originally entitled The Millennial Dawn. In 1908 Russell transferred the headquarters of the Society to its current location in Brooklyn, New York.
Following Russell's death controversy arose over the practices of the new president of the Society, and a widespread schism erupted which divided the movement. The majority of the membership broke away, eventually resulting in the formation of several smaller groups known as Bible Students, while those who remained in fellowship with the Watch Tower Society took on the name Jehovah's Witnesses.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Taze_Russell
What was going on in the world around Russell and during the formation of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society?
1838 Samuel Morse invents the Morse Code
1848 Gold discovered in California
1850 Religion’s Third Great Awakening begins
1851 Isaac Singer invents the Sewing Machine
1852 Charles Taze Russell is born
1853 George Crum invents the Potato Chip
1856 Louis Pasteur invents Pasteurisation
1857 Joself Gayetty invents Toilet Paper (Gayetty’s Medicated Paper)
1860 Abraham Lincoln elected 16th President of the U.S.
1861 Civil War begins
1862 Abraham Lincoln proclaims abolition of slavery
1862 Dr. Richard Gatling patents the Machine Gun
1862 Alexander Parks invents the first man-made Plastic
1865 Civil War ends
1876 Custer defeated at Little Big Horn
1876 Russell begins writing articles in religious journals
1876 Alexander Graham Bell patents the Telephone
1877 Edison invents the Phonograph
1879 Edison produces an incandescent bulb for commercial us
1879 Russell prints the first edition of Zion’s Watchtower and Herald of Christ’s Presence
1881 David Houston patents the Roll Film for cameras
1886 Gottlieb Daimler builds the world’s first Four-Wheeled motor vehicle
1886 John Pemberton invents Coca-Cola
1893 American, W.L. Judson invents the Zipper
1898 Edwin Prescott patents the Roller Coaster
1899 I.R. Johnson patents the Bicycle Frame
1901 The first Radio Receiver successfully receives a radio transmission
1903 The Wright Brothers invent the first gas motored and manned airplane
1903 Mary Anderson invents Windshield Wipers
1904 Teabags are invented by Thomas Sullivan
1904 Benjamin Holt invents a Tractor
1905 Albert Einstein published the Theory of Relativity and made famous the equation, E=mc2
1906 William Kellogg invents Cornflakes
1908 The first Model T car is sold
1909 Instant Coffee invented by G. Washington
1910 Thomas Edison demonstrated the first Talking Motion Picture
1912 Clarence Crane created Life Savers candy
1913 Arthur Wynne invents the Crossword Puzzle
1913 Mary Phelps Jacob invents the Bra
1914-1918 World War I
1916 Radio tuners invented that receive stations
1919 Short-Wave Radio invented
1919 Charles Strite invents the Pop-Up Toaster
1921 The first Robot is built
1922 Insulin invented by Sir Frederick Brant Banting
1922 The first 3-D movie requiring spectacles with one red and one green lens is released
1923 Garrett A. Morgan invents a Traffic Signal
1923 Clarence Birdseye invents Frozen Food
1924 The Dynamic Loudspeaker is invented by Rice and Kellogg
1924 Notebooks with Spiral Bindings invented
1925 The Mechanical Television, a precursor to the modern television is invented by John Logie Baird
1927 Erik Rotheim patents an Aerosol Can
1927 Philip Drinker invents the Iron Lung
1928 Alexander Fleming discovers Penicillin
1929 Yo-Yo invented
1930 The “Differential Analyzer”, or Analog Computer invented by Vannevar Bush at MIT in Boston
1930 Frank Whittle and Dr. Hans von Ohain invent a Jet Engine
1931 Max Knott and Ernst Ruska co-invent the Electron Microscope
1932 Polaroid Photography invented by Edwin Herbert Land
1932 Radio telescope invented by Karl Jansky
1932 The Zoom Lens and Light Meter invented
1932 Carl C. Magee invents the first Parking Meter
1933 Adolph Hitler becomes the leader of Germany
1933 FM Radio invented by Edwin Howard Armstrong
1933 Stereo Records invented
1933 Richard M. Hollingshead builds a prototype Drive-In Movie Theater in his driveway
1935 First canned Beer is made
1937 Second Sino-Japanese War (a precursor to World War II)
1939 German invasion of Poland (another precursor to World War II)
1940 Karl Pabst invents the Jeep
1945 World War II comes to a close