Remaining anointed persons diminishing?

truthseeker1

How come every year during the memorial talk they say the number of partakers is dwindling. If they just look back at the numbers in their own literature, its hovered around 8-9k, going up and down for decades

example 2000: 8755 partakers
1992: 8683 partakers

Oh, and another thing. Does anyone laugh at the attendance records? you could be at a convention and they say there are 4,432 people there. How can they be this accurate? do they count people in the bathroom, mothers with babies not in their seat most of the day. I heard they average the count, so why not make it sound like an average instead of haveing a number in the one's place holder....just something that makes me laugh

hooberus

In his book "Approaching Jehovah's Witnesses In Love" Wilbur Lingle gives a reference from an 1880 watchtower in which Russell says that there were only about 8,000 of the remnant left! I guess these same 8,000 are still alive . . . Hey maybe the Watchtower does give everlasting life!

dungbeetle

truthseeker1:

becasue, my dear, they are liars!! liars!! liars!!!

Since AT LEAST 1921...and probably way before. Russell himself lost a few lawsuits becasue of his lying. Great start to a religion, hey?

Nathan Natas

Hi truthseeker1,

The WTS will tell you that the way you know if you're of the annointed is that "the spirit bears witness to you," yet the Governing Body has decided that they can second-guess the "spirit" - they have made statements to the effect that they believe that fully HALF of those "annointed ones" are BOGUS, and that the real figure is approximately 4,000.

Back in the 70's the number of partakers was in excess of 10.000 - I don't knnow about what it was earlier than that. In C.T. Russel's time, of course, they were ALL "annointed". Rutherford invented the other sheep class as ~~a way to increase the size of the organization.~~ "new light" was revealed/

- Nathan Natas, UADNA
(Unseen Apostate Directorate of North America)

out4good3

Did anyone else who happened to attend the memorial notice how most of the talk centered around those who are supposed to partake and how if there's any doubt, you should not? I got the distinct impression that the non-dimishing annointed class has been an unexplainable thorn in the Society's side for some time now and they are taking steps now to ensure that the number diminish. It's my guess that soon, they will stop announcing the number of the annointed remnant since they have moved to the new understanding of the generation doctrine. I can imagine that it's gonna get pretty hard 13 years from now to explain to the R & F why there are still some 8000 of the remnant still left on earth, those who were supposed to have been born in 1914.

Abaddon

Of course, one could suggest that it's far better they be kept comparatively under control with their yearly pantomime, than not have the outlet for their dellusions that they do.

Just think, if different doors had been knocked on, those who died in 'Heaven's Gate', Waco and Jones' Town might be swelling those figures by, what? Around a thousand? If you add in the poor sods in that Nigerian church, well over a thousand. Add that to those killed by suicide bombers convinced that they would be in paradise as a result of killing women and children, the death toll of 911... hell, I think memorial partakers represent an important safety valve; they don't often blow themselves up, commit mass suicide, or stage terrorist outrages.

See how Jehovah blesses his organisation!

If you don't accidentally bleed to much you'll be fine.