eye,
That's not history. That's propaganda. We don't write propaganda for either side. We write verifiable history, and footnote our stuff so others can see it and verify it.
Watch Tower History
by vienne 30 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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vienne
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eyeuse2badub
vienne
it's the verifiable jw history that has caused so many of us one-time loyal (brain dead) jw's to leave the borg! The footnotes about Pyramid Charley Russell and booze King Joe Rutherford, who lived in his own castle in San Diego, are so small that only 1 in 100,000 know anything about the real history of jw's. When a reasonable person learns the truth about "he truth". it's shocking but real!
just saying!
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vienne
Dear Eye,
Much of what is written about both men is not exactly true, sometimes blatantly false. But I'd never claim that their belief systems were Biblical or that their personal lives were without fault. Because there is so much written by both sides that is wrong, or incomplete, or misleading, we're taking extreme care to be accurate; to tell the story as bluntly and plainly as we can. We base our work on original sources, some of which have been buried for 100 years or more.
We've found and continue to find material hidden in archives leading us to places where Proclaimers will not take you. We've also found astounding misrepresentation in books some of which are seen as authoritative. And example is a book written in 1945 by a Presbyterian minister who wrote as a sociologist. He manufactured quotations. Following his work to the sources he cites shows him to be pretty much a bloody liar.
Then there is plain ignorance. Watchtower books mention people favorably who never were adherents or who left for other belief systems and they do not tell you that. I think they do not know it. Watchtower 'histories' are unfootnoted except for Jehovah's Witnesses in the Divine Purpose, I have an instant distrust of something that presents itself as a history that fails to footnote. In fairness, I should observe that there are respected authors who've done the same.
We footnote everything because we want our readers to be able to follow our train. We think those who read our books have working minds. I am never disturbed by someone making a decision off available information.. We want the narrative to be refreshed and accurate. As I said earlier, most of what is out there on the Internet and in already published books is false or misleading. There are exceptions. Zoe Knoxx's new book is worth a read. It is very expensive, but you should be able to read it via interlibrary loan. The trend among historians now is to question everything. And to dig deeper. No history is without a least minor faults, but Besier and Stokosa's Jehovah's Witnesses in Europe Past and Present, a multi volume work with essays be 'experts' in their field is as close as one comes. If we make a decision based on a group's history, we should verify what we read.
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sparrowdown
V - Do you think Russell and Rutherford were sincere christians just trying to do what the Lord "Jehovah" directed them to do ?
Has WT asked you to write this history, did you need help from them in some areas? Just wondering what WT think of it do they approve?
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vienne
I do not know about Rutherford. I think Russell was sincere, but I don't think he got it right. Obviously his prophetic scheme was skewed. He had a strange view of women. He wasn't the moral degenerate people paint him as, but he believed a wife was subsumed by the husband's headship. This was not uncommon in that era. But it is hard to read his views and not shake the head.
The Watchtower has nothing to do with our books, though they have at least one copy of each. We've asked them questions in the past. If we ask to see a document they most often decline. They sent about 8 photocopies four of which were things we had. I am not a Witness. The closest we got to any sort of approval from them was a vague comment not directed to us that an intensive study of an era by a historian changes the narrative. My impression is that while some at the WT find it interesting, most do not like it at all.
Individual Witnesses have contributed a huge amount of material. Some are deeply interested. An example is an aged Dutch Witnesses who spent hours chasing down newspaper articles contemporary to the events. I loved this old man, who has sadly died since.We use much of what he found. Those on 'the other side' have been equally helpful, reading our blog and sometimes commenting or emailing me directly. And there are cognate religions that join with the Watchtower's past back in the 1870s-1880s. Their historians have provided resources and some guidance where we touch on Russell's interactions. The principal surviving cognate religions are the Abrahamic Faith congregations, especially Church of God General Conference (Atlanta). Their historian has helped us gain access to papers and photos. We owe access to all the surviving copies of The Restitution to her.
Some who read my posts think I'm a man. I'm not. I'm mom to five lovely daughters and a retired [health] former professor and teacher.
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vienne
Our blog is here https://truthhistory.blogspot.com/
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sparrowdown
Interesting.
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Wild_Thing
I don't think Russell and Rutherford can even be compared. Rutherford seems to have had some deep seated mental issues, especially after WWI. When somebody builds (or causes to have built) a fancy mansion for themselves and claims that he's just house sitting until the "princes" arrive, even the most strict Watchtower adherent would question their mental stability. The indication that he seemingly alienated his wife and son is also very telling.
Russell may have been disillusioned, but Rutherford was a full blown kook.
This, of course, is not based on hard research.
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lastmanstanding
I had a look at the link. I found error and wrong thinking. No references. Just opinion.
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lastmanstanding
I personally find no difficulty in demonstrating that the Watchtower and the “Society” built upon it is bunk.
All I have to do is open the pages of the 1st through 3rd editions of The Watchtower and copy and paste.
BS front to back.
nuff said