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Need articles please? Re 1975, and system ending.....
by stuckinarut2 23 Replies latest watchtower bible
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AndDontCallMeShirley
1966 "Discussion of 1975 overshadowed about everything else. 'The new book compels us to realise that Armageddon is, in fact, very close indeed,' said a conventioneer." (Watchtower 10/15/1966, p 629)
1966 "In this twentieth century an independent study has been carried on that does not blindly follow some traditional chronological calculations of Christendom, and the published timetable resulting from this independent study gives the date of man's creation as 4026 B.C.E. So six thousand years of man's existence on earth will soon be up, yes, within this generation." (Life Everlasting in Freedom of the Sons of God, p29, 1966 [Note: 4026 BC to 1975 AD = 6000 years])
1953 "After almost six thousand years of human sorrow, suffering and death, at last permanent relief is near at hand and will be realized within this generation." (New Heavens And A New Earth; 1953; p. 7)
1995 Bible Students, known since 1931 as Jehovah's Witnesses, also expected that the year 1925 would see the fulfillment of marvelous Bible prophecies. ... More recently, many Witnesses conjectured that events associated with the beginning of Christ's Millennial Reign might start to take place in 1975. Their anticipation was based on the understanding that the seventh millennium of human history would begin then. (Awake, June 22, 1995 p. 9)
1968 "The immediate future is certain to be filled with climatic events, for this old system is nearing its complete end. Within a few years at most the final parts of Bible prophecy relative to these last days will undergo fulfilment resulting in the liberation of surviving mankind into Christ's glorious 1000 year reign!" (Watchtower, 1/5/1968)
1968 Eight years from the Autumn of 1967 would bring us to the Autumn of 1975, fully 6,000 years into God's seventh day, his rest day. (Watchtower May 1, 1968 p. 271)
1968 "Why Are You Looking Forward To 1975?" … "What about all this talk concerning the year 1975? Lively discussions, some based on speculation, have burst into flame during recent months among serious students of the Bible. Their interest has been kindled by the belief that 1975 will mark the end of 6,000 years of human history since Adam's creation. The nearness of such an important date indeed fires the imagination and presents unlimited possibilities for discussion." (Watchtower, Aug. 15, 1968, p. 494)
1968 "'Adam Created At Close Of 'Sixth Day' Are we to assume from this study that the battle of Armageddon will be all over by the autumn of 1975, and the long-looked-for thousand-year reign of Christ will begin by then ? Possibly, but we wait to see how closely the seventh thousand-year period of man's existence coincides with the Sabbath-like thousand-year reign of Christ....It may involve only a difference of weeks or months, not years.' (Watchtower, Aug. 15, 1968, p499)
1968 "I know enough of what is going on to assure you that, in fifteen years from today, this world is going to be too dangerous to live in." (Truth That Leads To Eternal Life, p 9, 1968 edition, Quoting USA Secretary of State Dean Acheson in 1960, [1981 edition deleted "in fifteen years from today" ie. in 1975])
1968 "More recently, the book entitled "Famine-1975!" [by W. & P. Paddock, 1967, pp. 52,55,61.] said concerning today's food shortages: "Hunger is rampant throughout country after country, continent after continent around the undeveloped belt of the tropics and subtropics. Today's crisis can move in only one direction -toward catastrophe. Today hungry nations; tomorrow starving nations." … "By 1975 civil disorder, anarchy, military dictatorships, runaway inflation, transportation breakdowns and chaotic unrest will be the order of the day in many of the hungry nations." (The Truth That Leads To Eternal Life, p 88-89, 1968)
1968 "Just think, brothers, there are only about ninety months left before 6,000 years of mans existence on earth is completed... The majority of people living today will probably be alive when Armageddon breaks out, and there are no resurrection hopes for those who are destroyed then. So, now more than ever, it is vital not to ignore that spirit of wanting to do more." (Kingdom Ministry, March 1968, p. 4 [note: 1968 + 90 months = 1975])
Awake May 22, 1969 p.15 - "If you are a young person, you also need to face the fact that you will never grow old in this present system of things. Why not? Because all the evidence in fulfillment of Bible prophecy indicates that this corrupt system is due to end in a few years. ...
Therefore, as a young person, you will never fulfill any career that this
system offers. If you are in high school and thinking about a college education,
it means at least four, perhaps even six or eight more yearsto graduate into a
specialized career. But where will this system of things be by that time? It
will be well on the way toward its finish, if not actually gone!"
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and, WT now completely contradicts its own earlier, bold statements regarding 1975/6,000 years of man's existence-
1975 "Does this mean, then, that mankind has now reached 6,000 years into the 7,000 year period that God blessed and made sacred as his rest day? ... No, It does not mean that." (Watchtower 10/1/1975 p. 579)
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1974 "Yes, the end of this system is so very near! Is that not reason to increase our activity?...Reports are heard of brothers selling their homes and property and planning to finish out the rest of their days in this old system in the pioneer service. Certainly this is a fine way to spend the short time remainingbefore the wicked world's end." (Kingdom Ministry, May 1974, p. 3)
compare this statement to one made 58 years earlier:
1916: "We see no reason for doubting, therefore, that the Times of the Gentiles ended in October, 1914; and that a few more years will witness their utter collapse and the full establishment of God's kingdom in the hands of Messiah." (Watchtower Reprints, VI, Sept 1, 1916, p. 5950)
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WT....condemned by its own words:
"True, there have been those in times past who predicted an "end" to the world, even announcing a specific date. Yet nothing happened. The 'end' did not come. They were guilty of false prophesying. Why? What was missing? Missing from such people were God's truths and the evidence that He was using and guiding them.'' (Awake, Oct. 8, 1968)
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AndDontCallMeShirley
"Today there is a great crowd of people who are confident that a destruction of even greater magnitude is now imminent. The evidence is that Jesus' prophecy will shortly have a major fulfilment, upon this entire system of things. This has been a major factor in influencing many couples to decide not to have children at this time." Awake! 1974 Nov 8 p.11
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Even external news sources understood the message that the Watchtower was indicating. The July 18th 1969 issue of Time contained an article "Witnessing the End" that stated;
"In fact, they fully expect the cataclysm of Armageddon within the next few years. The latest calculations of this energetic, eschatology-minded sect date the end of the world in autumn, 1975. Fearful as it may be to other religious believers, the end is a prospect that rejoices the hearts of the 323,688 U.S. members of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, as the Witnesses are..."
Proclaimers of God's Kingdom 1993 Pg. 633: "Following 1925, meeting attendance dropped dramatically in some congregations... Again, in 1975, there was disappointment when expectations regarding the start of the Millennium failed to materialize. Again, some withdrew from the organization."
(question: if 1925 and 1975 were not highly promoted, official teachings of the WT, why did so many leave the Organization?? If these dates were the incorrect speculations of just some JWs, as WT claimed, then very few would have left after WT's failed prophecies. WT tried to excuse its false dates by saying they never said it....but only after the failure, not before).
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Ironically, despite its admission made above, WT has the audacity to claim this:
In the Watchtower (2011-07-15) it says "This organization has NEVER disappointed us and ALWAYS gives us an abundance of pure water of truth from God´s Word".
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AndDontCallMeShirley
A few years after the complete collapse of everything C. T. Russell had predicted, J. F. Rutherford began a process of replacing Russell's unfulfilled predictions with a series of invisible and spiritual events associated with the years 1914 and 1918. By the early 1930s the process was complete.
Carl Sagan, in his book Broca's Brain (New York: Ballantine Books, 1979, pp. 332-333), said about Watchtower/Jehovah's Witnesses:
"Doctrines that make no predictions are less compelling than those which make correct predictions; they are in turn more successful than doctrines that make false predictions.
But not always. One prominent American religion confidently predicted that the world would end in 1914. Well, 1914 has come and gone, and -- while the events of that year were certainly of some importance -- the world does not, at least so far as I can see, seem to have ended. There are at least three responses that an organized religion can make in the face of such a failed and fundamental prophecy. They could have said, "Oh, did we say '1914'? So sorry, we meant '2014.' A slight error in calculation. Hope you weren't inconvenienced in any way." But they did not. They could have said, "Well, the world would have ended, except we prayed very hard and interceded with God so He spared the Earth." But they did not. Instead, they did something much more ingenious.
They announced that the world had in fact ended in 1914, and if the rest of us hadn't noticed, that was our lookout. It is astonishing in the face of such transparent evasions that this religion has any adherents at all. But religions are tough. Either they make no contentions which are subject to disproof or they quickly redesign doctrine after disproof. The fact that religions can be so shamelessly dishonest, so contemptuous of the intelligence of their adherents, and still flourish does not speak very well for the tough-mindedness of the believers. But it does indicate, if a demonstration were needed, that near the core of the religious experience is something remarkably resistant to rational inquiry."
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http://corior.blogspot.com/2006/02/carl-sagans-remarks-about-jehovahs.html
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Heaven
Check JWFacts at: http://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/1975.php
There are articles as well as recordings at the above link. At the 1967 DC Wisconsin Sheboygan District Overseer Brother Charles Sunutko presented the talk "Serving with Everlasting Life in View", making the following statement:
"Well now, as Jehovah's Witnesses, as runners, even though some of us have become a little weary, it almost seems as though Jehovah has provided meat in due season. Because he's held up before all of us, a new goal. A new year. Something to reach out for and it just seems it has given all of us so much more energy and power in this final burst of speed to the finish line. And that's the year 1975. Well, we don't have to guess what the year 1975 means if we read the Watchtower. And don't wait 'till 1975. The door is going to be shut before then. As one brother put it, "Stay alive to Seventy-Five""
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DuvanMuvan
stuckinarut2 would love to hear the brother's reaction to this
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baldeagle
AndDontCallMeShirley: Great collection of references and observations. Good comments from everyone.
The approaching of 1975 was indeed a big deal for many. I personally know of two families that sold their homes in the early 70’s. They were very sincere, and well meaning, both were raising young children. When Armageddon did not occur, years passed as they rented, using up most of their savings. The housing market had changed in the meantime and they weren’t able to ever get back in.
All of this enthusiasm and eagerness was clearly built up over years by the WTS leaders. They hyped the idea using charts showing the 6000 years ending in 1975 etc. What I found truly despicable, callous and cold-hearted was the Watchtower comments the following summer blaming all the obedient JW’s for misunderstanding things.
WT 1976 July 15 pp. 440-441 pars. 11, 13, 15-16
11 It may be that some who have been serving God have planned their lives according to a mistaken view of just what was to happen on a certain date or in a certain year. They may have, for this reason, put off or neglected things that they otherwise would have cared for. But they have missed the point of the Bible’s warnings concerning the end of this system of things, thinking that Bible chronology reveals the specific date.
13 Did Jesus mean that we should adjust our financial and secular affairs so that our resources would just carry us to a certain date that we might think marks the end? If our house is suffering serious deterioration, should we let it go, on the assumption that we would need it only a few months longer? Or, if someone in the family possibly needs special medical care, should we say, ‘Well, we’ll put it off because the time is so near for this system of things to go’? This is not the kind of thinking that Jesus advised.
15 But it is not advisable for us to set our sights on a certain date, neglecting everyday things we would ordinarily care for as Christians, such as things that we and our families really need. We may be forgetting that, when the “day” comes, it will not change the principle that Christians must at all times take care of all their responsibilities. If anyone has been disappointed through not following this line of thought, he should now concentrate on adjusting his viewpoint, seeing that it was not the word of God that failed or deceived him and brought disappointment, but that his own understanding was based on wrong premises.
16 However, say that you are one who counted heavily on a date, and, commendably, set your attention more strictly on the urgency of the times and the need of the people to hear. And say you now, temporarily, feel somewhat disappointed; are you really the loser? Are you really hurt? We believe you can say that you have gained and profited by taking this conscientious course. Also, you have been enabled to get a really mature, more reasonable viewpoint. Eph. 5:1-17.
Just like that the WTS leaders washed their hands of this mess. Finally in March 1980 an acknowledgement was made that the year 1975 had been oversold and touted more than it should, but no formal apology was given.
If you sold your house, quit a good job, or gave up a once in a lifetime opportunity; well it sucks to be you. Get over it already. The GB loves you!
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tim hooper
Plenty here on 1918, 1925 and 1975: http://corior.blogspot.com/2006/02/part-3-statements-concerning-1918-1925.html
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stuckinarut2
Wow!! Thanks so much everyone!
I will indeed need to be careful how I introduce these points (for fear of being an apostate!)
I am also keen to find the info showing how the cd rom of an older article had the wording changed compared to the original actual article. I remember that the original said "the system will end before the end of the 20th century". The cd rom version said "the system will end in a short time" or words changed like that?
So it's manipulating the history and pretending "we never said it"
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