1914 is on my WTCD 6398 times...but do they still use it now?

by oompa 16 Replies latest jw friends

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  Jeremy C

  there are still references to 1914 but I do detect that the 1914 message is rapidly losing the credibility it once had.

  The Society has seemed to back away from their assertions regarding earthquakes since 1914. I suspect that some in the organization began to express reservations about the Society's claims regarding earthquake intensity and frequency since 1914. Historical data has shown that the Watchtower's arguments were based more on wishful thinking than fact.

  The pestilence issue is also a bit hazy. Medical technology (especially the development of antibiotics) has wiped out many of the common diseases and infections that routinely killed millions. Life spans are now increasing in industrialized lands. I had noticed while I was still in that the Watchtower was beginning to point to heart disease and cancer as pestilence. This seemed to me like they were reaching a bit.

  Famines were much worse prior to 1914 than they are now. There has been no evidence that food shortages have increased in severity and frequency after 1914. Quite to the contrary.

  As we have seen, world conditions have not gotten progressively worse since 1914; but have gone through cycles. Anyone who seriously studies world history with all of it's atrocities, plagues, famines, and human harships begins to find the Watchtower's arguments to be shaky.

  But, I suppose the Watchtower will find some way to get more mileage out of 1914. They can always point out that Noah had 120 years warning before the flood. There will no doubt be those dyed in the wool Watchtower Witnesses who are eager to swallow such an explanation.
• 

  oompa

  Trevor Scott:

  I did a search for "1914" using the 2007 CD; I only searched the Watchtower mags. I sorted by year and counted the totals for each year from 1978-2007.

  Frequency peaked in 1984 at 178 occurrences. Compare with 17 occurrences last year.

  In the 13 years prior to 1995, "1914" occurs 1027 times. In the 13 years including and following 1995, only 356 occurrences......

  OMG!...you are a god Trevor!...that is even more dramatic than i ever thought!....but how the hey did you do that search?? Even when i pull up WT's only, enter 1914, and click search...it always reverts back to ALL Publications.....somebody educate me please.
  

  Wow from 178 down to 17 last year....ya it will soon be a thing of the past with some new light and it will be rememberd as well as they do Beth Sarim...........oompa
• 

  Trevor Scott

  oompa,

  With the 2007 CD you can filter the results after doing your search. So do your search in All Publications, then select "Watchtower" in the filter list. I'll attach a pic.
• 

  oompa

  Trevor...a god among men!...thanks man.....oompa
• 

  steve2

  The frequency of occurrences of 1914 in the Watchtower literature is probably pretty much the same as in earlier decades. I suspect though, with the "loosening" of the strict definition of the generation of 1914, that currently most, if not all references to 1914 are no longer linked explicitly - and urgently - to the end of this system. That's the big change.

  As seen in the copious examples provided by Blondie, most of the references to 1914 pertain to its spiritual application (i.e., "heavenly" fulfillment conveniently unseen by humans). The emphasis is thus increasingly on the heavenly application with correspondingly far fewer references linking 1914 to the nearness of the end. My grandparents would turn in their graves at the seismic shift away from the end-times urgency of 1914.

  Yep, 1914's going the same sleepy, dreary way as the Adventists 1944: spiritual fulfilment unseen to human eyes.

  Truly, what sad suckers are those are who blindly cling to "special" dates.
• 

  steve2

  Yep, 1914's going the same sleepy, dreary way as the Adventists 1944: spiritual fulfilment unseen to human eyes.

  Just had drawn to my attention that I wrote 1944 when I meant 1844.
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  Mrs. Fiorini

  After reading the 3/15 reference in Blondie's comment I'm left with a question. Would a JW say there is only 906 years left in Christ's 'thousand year reign'? At what point would they start to notice a problem if nothing happens?