I know we have new visitors here (even if registration is turned off for the time being). I'd like to ask those newbies here who are still associating with JWs to check out this file:
Historical Idealism and Jehovah's Witnesses by Thomas Daniels. Now, you may ask, why be interested in Watchtower history? Because, the reason the Watchtower Society claims religious authority is because they say they were chosen to their place of authority in 1919 after the Second Advent of Christ in 1914. Their publications also claim that the people associated with the Watchtower Society before 1914 had a special insight to the significance of that year.
Is this true? Can it be historically verified? Go to:
http://www.archive.org/details/HistoricalIdealismAndJehovahsWitnesses
and download this study by Thomas Daniels. It's in PDF and is 17 MB. (On the left side of the page you'll see a link for a PDF under "Open Source Books." Right click on the link and "save target as" to download to your computer.) The file contains several full page reproductions from early Watchtower publications showing the actual development of Watchtower chronology. Did those who were associated with the Watchtower Society prior to 1914 actually forsee the establishment of Christ's kingdom in heaven in 1914? Or, has there been an idealized history created by the Watchtower Society about the development of their chronology?
This file has been around for a couple of years but this is a new home for it. It's written in a dispassionate style with no rancor or bitterness. As of yet, I have seen no replies to it attempted by Witness apologists.
If you are a newbie, take a moment to check it out.