I know that I am not by any means the first person to take note of this article, but today I finally got around to reading it. I quickly found the now infamous line "The Governing Body is neither inspired nor infallible." In the interest of fairness, however, I decided to finish the paragraph, which led me to finish the lesson. Below are my notes on the article which I will place here for anyone who wishes to reference them.
12 The Governing Body is neither inspired nor infallible. Therefore, it can err in doctrinal matters or in organizational direction. In fact, the Watch Tower Publications Index includes the heading “Beliefs Clarified,” which lists adjustments in our Scriptural understanding since 1870. Of course, Jesus did not tell us that his faithful slave would produce perfect spiritual food. So how can we answer Jesus’ question: “Who really is the faithful and discreet slave?” (Matt. 24:45) What evidence is there that the Governing Body is filling that role? Let us consider the same three factors that directed the governing body in the first century.
The first thing that jumps out at me is the use of the word "Clarified." I am no English Professor, but I know and have confirmed through research that to clarify something means to "to make (an idea, statement, etc.) clear or intelligible; to free from ambiguity." Thus, this word carries the connotation that original idea has not been changed, but rather that it has simply been presented in such a way that it makes more sense. A more appropriate title for that heading would be "Beliefs Rescinded," because to rescind something means "to invalidate (an act, measure, etc.) by a later action or a higher authority," which is a more accurate definition of what happens when a religion has a major doctrinal change.
Regardless of that troubling semantic issue, however, I decided to delve into the resource they mentioned. To start with a great number of the links don't go anywhere so there is no way to examine what they say unless you happen to have your own copy. Another thing is that many of the links that do work only link back to the "God's Kingdom Rules!" book which itself contains a doctored version of history and thus does not have any complete versions of the original articles so that the reader can determine for themselves what Russell thought was coming in 1914.
Moving into the end of the paragraph, the writers seem to indicate that some sort of evidence exists which back their claim to the title of "Faithful and Discreet Slave," so once again in the name of fairness, I decided to examine that supposed evidence.
13 Evidence of holy spirit. The holy spirit has helped the Governing Body to grasp Scriptural truths not previously understood. For example, reflect on the list of beliefs clarified that was referred to in the preceding paragraph. Surely, no human deserves credit for discovering and explaining these “deep things of God”! (Read 1 Corinthians 2:10.) The Governing Body echoes the apostle Paul, who wrote: “These things we also speak, not with words taught by human wisdom, but with those taught by the spirit.” (1 Cor. 2:13) After centuries of apostasy and spiritual darkness, can anything other than holy spirit explain the rapid increase in spiritual understanding since 1919?
If there is anything resembling evidence in this paragraph I'm afraid I couldn't locate it. The first sentence seems to indicate that either: the Holy Spirit did not convey the proper "truth" to the Governing Body when they originally published it (in which case how do we know that the Holy Spirit hasn't dropped the ball again with the new revelation), or the Governing Body didn't have the guidance of the Holy Spirit when they made their first attempt tp explain that "truth" (in which case how do we know they have it now if they also claimed to have it the first time.) Furthermore, that sentence itself seems to contradict their earlier admission that they are "neither inspired or infallible," for to be inspired by something is to be "influenced, impelled, communicated with, or suggested by." If the Governing Body is not being influenced by the Holy Spirit, then how does it help them to "grasp" anything?
In the next couple of sentences, they refer back to the list of "clarified" (rescinded) beliefs, as if that somehow proves that they have the Holy Spirit. I fail to see how doctrinal changes prove divine guidance, for there are many religions that have altered their beliefs over the years, especially within the first couple of centuries of their inception. The Catholic Church, for example, is a much different entity than it was 500 years ago, after all, they don't burn people at the stake anymore, does that also indicate that they have been guided to make those changes by Holy Spirit?