When did the WTS begin to require baptismal candidates to answer 2 questions. What were they?

by AndersonsInfo 17 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  AndersonsInfo

  I need some research done so if anybody has the time, please see what you can find on the subject as stated in the title.

  I clearly remember attending my first circuit assembly. On October 30, 1956, I definitely answered two questions, along with about ten other people including my mother, not at the assembly, but we were standing at the side of a small baptismal pool that was in the basement of a Kingdom Hall in Ronkonkoma, then a small hamlet on Long Island in the Town of Islip, Suffolk County, New York, United States.

  I know for a certainty that in 1945 candidates for baptism were not asked any questions but they were informed through their congregation that there would be a baptism and told where and when it was to be held. Usually the baptism was done at a beach and when candidates showed up in bathing attire, they were dunked, no questions asked.

  So sometime between 1945 and 1956 two specific questions began to be asked of candidates. When did that start and what were the questions?

  FYI, here are the baptismal questions from the August 1, 1966 Watchtower, p. 465, the earliest questions for baptism I could find:

  (1) Have you recognized yourself before Jehovah God as a sinner who needs salvation, and have you acknowledged to him that this salvation proceeds from him, the Father, through his Son Jesus Christ?
  
  (2) On the basis of this faith in God and in his provision for salvation, have you dedicated yourself unreservedly to God to do his will henceforth as he reveals it to you through Jesus Christ and through the Bible under the enlightening power of the holy spirit?

  Thanks for any information on this matter.

  Barbara
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  leaving_quietly

  Maybe this will help...?

  http://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/baptism.php
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  wannabefree

  Courtesy of JWFACTS.COM

  Baptism Questions

  Under Russell baptism candidates were simply asked if they had consecrated themselves to the Lord.

  "What are the questions usually put by Brother Russell when receiving candidates for water immersion?
  ANSWER.--You will notice that they are on broad lines--questions which any Christian, whatever his confession, should be able to answer in the affirmative without hesitation if he is suitable to be acknowledged as a member of the Church of Christ:
  (1) Have you repented of sin with such restitution as you are able, and are you trusting in the merit of Christ's sacrifice for the forgiveness of your sins and the basis of your justification?
  (2) Have you made a full consecration of yourself with all the powers that you possess--talent, money, time, influence--all to the Lord, to be used faithfully in His service, even unto death?
  (3) On the basis of these confessions, we acknowledge you as a member of the Household of Faith, and give to you as such the right hand of fellowship, not in the name of any sect or party or creed, but in the name of the Redeemer, our glorified Lord, and His faithful followers." What Pastor Russell Said pp.35, 36

  Later, two questions developed containing reference to the Father, Son and holy spirit, as shown in a scan from the Watchtower 1944 Feb 1 p.44.
  Watchtower 1944 February 1 page 44

  
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  AndersonsInfo

  What a magnificant website jwfacts.com is. I should have looked there first before asking my questions.

  From what I read on jwfacts, in 1944 two questions began to be asked. So in 1945 two questions should have been asked of candidates, but in the case of someone I know who was baptized then as an eleven year old, the 1944 questions were not asked. But the boy was baptized in the ocean anyway.

  This is what I found on jwfacts.com about the two baptismal questions I answered on October 30, 1956 which were introduced to Watchtower readers in the July 1, 1956 issue:

  Under Russell baptism candidates were simply asked if they had consecrated themselves to the Lord.

  "What are the questions usually put by Brother Russell when receiving candidates for water immersion?
  ANSWER.--You will notice that they are on broad lines--questions which any Christian, whatever his confession, should be able to answer in the affirmative without hesitation if he is suitable to be acknowledged as a member of the Church of Christ:
  (1) Have you repented of sin with such restitution as you are able, and are you trusting in the merit of Christ's sacrifice for the forgiveness of your sins and the basis of your justification?
  (2) Have you made a full consecration of yourself with all the powers that you possess--talent, money, time, influence--all to the Lord, to be used faithfully in His service, even unto death?
  (3) On the basis of these confessions, we acknowledge you as a member of the Household of Faith, and give to you as such the right hand of fellowship, not in the name of any sect or party or creed, but in the name of the Redeemer, our glorified Lord, and His faithful followers." What Pastor Russell Said pp.35, 36

  Later, two questions developed containing reference to the Father, Son and holy spirit, as shown in a scan from the Watchtower 1944 Feb 1 p.44.

  

  "Therefore now with your mouth make a public declaration of your faith by answering these two questions that I shall ask you, and let your answers be hearable, that all those about you may be witnesses to the declaration that you solemnly make:
  
  (1) Have you recognized yourself before Jehovah God as a sinner who needs salvation, and have you acknowledged to him that this salvation proceeds from him the Father through his Son Jesus Christ?
  
  (2) On the basis of this faith in God and in his provision for salvation, have you dedicated yourself unreservedly to God to do his will henceforth as he reveals it to you through Jesus Christ and through the Bible under the enlightenment of the holy spirit?" Watchtower 1956 Jul 1 p.407

  Thank you Paul Grundy for all your hard work to make jwfacts.com available to us. And thank you "leaving_quietly" for pointing me to jwfacts for the answers.

  Barbara
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  AndersonsInfo

  wannabefree, you almost had all the answers but you didn't read far enough on jwfacts.com. I was almost guilty of doing that too. However, it was in the second and third paragraphs down after the 1944 quote that told me what I wanted to know:

  "Therefore now with your mouth make a public declaration of your faith by answering these two questions that I shall ask you, and let your answers be hearable, that all those about you may be witnesses to the declaration that you solemnly make:
  
  (1) Have you recognized yourself before Jehovah God as a sinner who needs salvation, and have you acknowledged to him that this salvation proceeds from him the Father through his Son Jesus Christ?
  
  (2) On the basis of this faith in God and in his provision for salvation, have you dedicated yourself unreservedly to God to do his will henceforth as he reveals it to you through Jesus Christ and through the Bible under the enlightenment of the holy spirit?"

  Watchtower 1956 Jul 1 p. 407
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  Atlantis

  1956 Watchtower July 1, Why One Must Be Baptized full article.

  .

  Click the link by the blue arrow.

  .

  https://www.sendspace.com/file/4vdgtx

  .

  Atlantis!
• 

  compound complex

  Hi Barb:

  Somewhat after the barn door was left open and the horse got out . . .

  Apparently the baptismal candidates were not sufficiently versed in Bible/WT teachings prior to 1975. Brother Knorr announced that the "Lamp" book and its coverage of JW articles of faith (my words) and the follow-up questions would help stem the ongoing problem: 'People are coming into the Truth through the front door and then leaving through the back door.'

  Just a side point I recalled after seeing your question. Were you at Bethel prior to that book's publication? I was there circa 1970.

  Best.

  CoCo
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  Pete Zahut

  Does anyone know what the questions would have been in 1974 when as a kid, I was frightened encouraged into saying "yes" to, just before they dunked me?

  Seems like a good idea for me to know what they were, all those years ago.
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  3rdgen

  Pete, (love your last name) They may have changed the word God to Jehovah. I don't remember but until the big change in the 80's the vows were pretty much the same.
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  BluesBrother

  In the old days it was a dedication to "God" and a resolve to do the will of God, whatever that may be. In modern times it has become

  WT 1985 6/1 p 30

  On the basis of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, have you repented of your sins and dedicated yourself to Jehovah to do his will?
  [The second is]
  Do you understand that your dedication and baptism identify you as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses in association with God’s spirit-directed organization?

  Note that the key words are now, Jehovah; Jehovah's Witnesses; and Organization. One can see where the emphasis now lies