by middleman 32 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
leo -
Your figures of 90 000 for the memorial, just makes the case against them in my thread ("144 000 blasted by the math") look even more solid. These numbers make their claims even more ridiculous, especially as the Gibbering Buddy is now made up mostly of those who were not even alive in 1935, when they claimed the door was closed (but really left ajar?) NO - left open.
HB
Unfortunately that thread was hijacked by trinitarians so the main point was lost.
That suggests that the attendance was so low in 1928 and in the years following that it didn't serve the organization's purposes to release the data.
As of January 2009, the Kingdom Ministry no longer reports the monthly totals of publishers by country. And neither the Watchtower nor Kingdom Ministry reports the annual totals of publishers any more. The only counts now available are to be found in the yearbook.
History repeating itself?
well that's an interesting change. I'm sure we'll be able to get a yearbook scanned
Seems like 1975 was a repeat of 1925... it took a few years, but large numbers left after the debacle and were labled enemies of the WTS
Screw society information (lies),... here's wikipedia.....
In January 1917, Joseph Franklin Rutherford was elected president of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, despite a series of disputes over the election process. Further disputes arose over interpretation of sections of Russell's Last Will & Testament dealing with the future contents of Zion's Watch Tower magazine, as well as who, if anyone, had authority to print new literature. By the end of the 1920s, nearly three-quarters of existing Bible Student congregations had rejected [citation needed] Rutherford's on-going changes in organizational structure, doctrinal interpretations, and congregational practices, [33] [34] [35] some of which began to appear in material printed by the Watch Tower Society as early as 1917. Many Bible Students were disaffected by Rutherford's rejection of Russell's views regarding his role in the restoration of the "truth" [36] and support of the Great Pyramid as having been built under God's direction [37.
Gotta LOVE the pyrimids!!!!!
Here is a portion of a letter concerning the trouble in Holland, from the point of view of those who parted company from the Society:
"We had furthered the work of the Watch Tower in Holland to such an extent that we became identified with it. All those brethren down here that are connected to said Society, came to a knowledge of its exposition by our preaching. When our eyes were opened and we took our turn to the faith once delivered to the saints, the cry of the opposition tarred and smirched us, so that we were made impossible, being denoted as imposters and hypocrites, lawless and children of the Devil. One of our brethren was called the Devil himself, and those who were weak were warned against him and threatened with excommunication if they ventured to intermingle with any of the brethren that stayed by said brother. Furthermore we had no communication whatever with foreign brethren, so we could not exchange opinion, and because the brethren in Holland in general are not versed in the English language, neither in the German, they were not acquainted with the Truth sufficiently to appreciate to the full the cunning and subtle way which was used by 'God's Organization' to entrap those humble children of the Lord. Therefore, we could not have the assistance, morally and spiritually, of others of like precious faith, as for example, in England and America" (Herald of Christ's Kingdom, August 1929).
How these figures remind us that one generation after the other falls prey to human stupidity.Ray Franz also speaks about the 1925 debacle;from memory one of his relatives dropped out after 1925.
Thank you very much for the additional figures. I think it is also interesting to note that in 1925 there were 90,434 at the memorial, we would assume the overwhelming majority of whom were partakers. In 1938 there were 69,345 in attendance however only 36,732 were partakers! For what it's worth there were 59,047 publishers that year.
George
btt
Leolaia's figures:
90,434 1925
84,777 1926
82,409 1927
17,380 1928
Perhaps we should be asking - "what happened in 1927, rather than 1925"?
I sort of had the feeling that it was a Brooklyn-based takeover of the Bible Students congregations, and the expelling of the elected elders at that time - more than the failed 1925 prophecy.
