by glenster 4 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
1935 Saluting flags and singing national anthems and serving in the military
were banned by Rutherford.
("Jehovah's Witnesses in the Divine Purpose," 1959, pp.143,144)
http://www.freeminds.org/history/dates.htm
http://www1.tip.nl/~t661020/wtcitaten/part3.htm
All the 1959 book quote says is "1935." Does anyone have 1935 dates and books or tracts for those rules?
Here's what I found so far:
According to "Jehovah's Witnesses in the Divine Purpose," 1959, pp.143,144,
in 1932, JWs didn't salute the flag of Germany, the USA, or Canada (it doesn't
say why other than due to allegiance to God, but I'm guessing it was due to
Rutherford's teaching of June 1 and 15, 1929, that the higher authorities of Ro-
mans 13 were God and Jesus, leading to ideas that human government was too
worldly, in an expanded idea of "worldly," and even controlled by Satan).
On June 3, 1935, Rutherford said he wouldn't salute a flag because doing so would
be to ascribe salvation to it (actually, it wouldn't be a matter of ascribing
Biblical salvation to it) and be unfaithful to God (it wouldn't). On Oct.6,
1935, during a radio broadcast, "Saluting a Flag," later published in the book-
let "Loyalty," he added that it would be worship of an image or representation
in disobediance to Ex.20:4-6 (it wouldn't--the Exodus section is meant as a ban
of worship of a thing rather than God, idolatry, not serving a country symbol-
ized by a thing).
Interestingly, there was an offshoot of the Society in 1923 who did not salute the flag, the Elijah Voice Society. Most likely the Judge got this "new light" from them.
RR
I thought he was deep in thought taking a crap and it came to him
I am just starting to search but came across this recording from 1936 (I haven't listened entirely either -18.36 minutes)
http://www.archive.org/details/FlagSalutingByJudgeRutherford
