First of all, to everyone who responded, WOW! Thank you all for the info and links. And Splash for providing much more detail than I had found. It appears that the 'understanding' sways back and forth.
Aside from your responses, this reminds me of my one 'questions from readers' that I sent in to the Society. It was never published in the magazines, but I did get a polite letter back in the mail a few months later. I asked about a particular verse in the Bible. I quoted the few WT publications that commented on it (that covered about a 50 year period) and then I asked them what reasoning led them to their conclusion on the verse.
The reply, while polite, was maddening. It basically said, 'the publications say so-and-so' (I told them in the letter what the publications said; I wanted to know WHY they said it). At the end of the letter was a tactful, yet definite, reminder to keep in mind the more important things. They patted me on the head and told to remember to be a good little boy.
I should have realized that the person answering the letter was probably under strict orders to simply stick with what the pubs say. Somehow I imagined a truth loving organization that would be happy to expound on its published beliefs.
A couple of years later an MTS brother who seemed to have a lot of connections was assigned to our area. I was still trying to research older WT publications to find the answer to my question. There was a reference to a 1931 WT that I had no access to, so I asked this brother if he could ask one of his friends in Bethel if I could get a scan or xerox of the 1931 article. He said he would check. Some time passed, months. I was patient but I finally asked the MTS brother about it. He told me (only after I had asked) that they didn't have time for that.
And thus, my awakening process was in full swing . . .
How ironic the flood of responses to my request here. Thank you all!
Bobcat