Is the Governing Body Guilty or not guilty of 1975 speculations going too far?

by Terry 56 Replies latest social humour

• 

  Ding

  Fred Franz knew all about Russell's failed predictions... and Rutherford's.

  He even laughed about them in a public talk...

  Then he did the same thing.

  He blamed the rank and file for excessive speculation and was kept on as WTS president for years after his own speculations came to nothing.

  He continued to insist on the imminence of Armegeddon based on his now abandoned 1914 generation teaching.

  Now the GB has simply redefined "generation" without admitting responsibility for over 100 years of false prophecies on which JWs relied.

  Who has been hurt by all this?

  Not outsiders who didn't believe any of it...

  ... but sincere JWs who did...
• 

  Terry

  The only thing that explains the go along attitude of rank and file JW's is their fear that there is no place else to go.

  I was once told by a brother at the hall that The Truth is like water in an oasis in a burning desert. You stumbled in half dead of thrist

  and see the water--but, right there in front of you a nasty sweaty stinking camel has its head down slurping it with goopy saliva running out

  into the same water. "What can you do but bend down, hold you nose and drink!?"
• 

  thetrueone

  The question remains when did the WTS. ever not over speculate anything, the truthful answer to that of course is never.

  Right from its very beginning in the late 19th century, C Russell was taken in by other Adventist Christian theology, only to further those proclamations

  into a commercial field, namely Zions Watchtower. He knew he had something to grab the publics attention.

  When Rutherfurd took control of the printing operation as acting president and head editor thats when the real bullshit train took off.
• 

  Smoky

  Shilmer wrote: " the summer conventions of 1979 Watchtower had its Bethel speakers acknowledge that Watchtower had culpability in unrealized expectations regarding 1975"

  I never heard of this ACKNOWLEDGEMENT? Does anyone else recall this. or where we can get the Audio of this talk?
• 

  VoidEater

  As my dad says: "I heard it from Knorr's mouth."
• 

  karter

  If there was ever an open debate with the GB about 1975 they would loose hands down.

  Terry and others have put enough everdance on this thread to hang them all.

  But so many in were not around before 1975 and they swollow the WTS official line.

  At least 3 CO's i know were not around and not aware what was said and done by the GB.
• 

  Terry

  Gene Smalley:

  The Four Presidents of the Watchtower Society says this on page 75:
  
  After the Judge's death, as World War II was ending, and persecution against the Witnesses began declining, along with the attendant drop in news-media publicity, Hayden C. Covington told the author that Fred Franz saw the prohibition against blood transfusions as a way to accomplish two things: to continue to publicize the religion, and to create an uproar in the community. This reaction would convince the membership they were being "persecuted" and "suffering for righteousness sake," a sure sign they were "in the truth."
  
  Freddy was a sick, demented old man. He went nuts in the end... they had to remove him from Bethel. I knew him. And Knorr, who had contempt for even the young Bethelites, had no concern for the welfare of others. I watched him daily for 3 years before he died.