Regarding Ruth Underwood

There are now some eight billion human souls on this planet. Jehovah God knows each and every one. He also knows those who are spiritually inclined and groping for the truth. They are most precious to him. Jesus said the Kingdom of God belongs to them.

Over the years, the Watchtower has related many experiences where householders had been praying for answers, and in a short while, Jehovah’s Witnesses showed up with an open Bible. I know; years ago, I was one such truth seeker who was brought into contact with Jehovah’s Witnesses.

There is no question in my mind that Christ has used the Watchtower Bible Society to accomplish the foretold preaching of the good news of the Kingdom before the conclusion of the system. Also, God has entrusted his dear sheep to qualified men appointed to serve as shepherds. Appointed shepherds are expected to look after those under their charge. Jesus impressed upon us how precious his sheep are when he related a story of the shepherd who leaves the 99 behind to search for one lost lamb.

I received an email some weeks ago from a sister, Ruth Underwood. Ruth related to me how she had shared some information with a sister in her congregation—unsanctioned information from the Internet, specifically from my website and YouTube videos.

The sister dutifully informed an elder that sister Underwood was sharing “apostate” material. Soon enough, two elders investigated the charge. During the conversation, sister Underwood stated that there was an evil presence in the leadership of the Watchtower. The two elders assured sister Underwood that Jehovah would never allow that to happen. Of course, no biblical support was offered in support of their opinion. It is just widely believed—at least among Jehovah’s Witnesses—that the Watchtower can do no wrong. Jehovah will not allow it.

In the course of the conversation, Ruth stated that she did not believe that Christ returned in 1914. You can only imagine the thoughts that ran through the minds of those two elders. Mind you, sister Underwood—who is a mature woman, a mother of grown children—not a new convert, did not confess to disbelieving the Bible. On the contrary, she wholeheartedly believes Jehovah is God. She has faith in Jesus and the power of his shed blood. She believes in the coming of Christ’s Kingdom and hopes to be numbered among that great crowd who will survive the end of Satan’s world. However, after considering the evidence that I presented to the public, she no longer believes that Jesus began ruling the world in 1914. She is not alone.

A few days after that investigative meeting, an elder called Ruth and requested another meeting, this time with the judicial tribunal. She declined to meet with them. So, sister Underwood was disfellowshipped in absentia. An elder simply rang her up and told her she was out. He neglected to specify what the scriptural grounds were for her expulsion. Apostasy, perhaps? Maybe the Service Department could clarify that for us. In any case, that means that questioning or doubting the organization’s specious interpretation of arcane chronology that has gone through dozens of revisions and adjustments is tantamount to turning one’s back on Jehovah.

The real issue, though, is not 1914. The unspoken reason Ruth Underwood was summarily disfellowshipped is because she expressed doubt in the infallibility of the Governing Body. Of course, the Governing Body does not claim to be infallible. That would be absurd. However, when one of Jehovah’s Witnesses calls into question the truthfulness of some interpretation or the righteousness of some organizational policy, then there are repercussions because, for all intents and purposes, the so-called faithful slave is assumed to be infallible. The Watchtower cannot be wrong. Not on something as important as 1914. Not on anything of importance. Question the faithful and discreet slave, doubt him, and be prepared to be punished by those appointed by him.

Whatever happened to snatching a doubter out of the fire? Isn’t that what elders are supposed to do? In Ruth’s case, the elders did not bother themselves with that. Rejecting 1914 is the same as doubting Jehovah’s existence. There can be no discussion. The Watchtower has made its policy known: Unity over truth. All Jehovah’s Witnesses must be united in their beliefs, even if some of what they believe is a lie. A few individuals who believe unsanctioned truth are not allowed.

I appreciate that the Governing Body did not concoct the 1914 doctrine. They inherited it. The invisible parousia, Kingdom-has-come dogma, has been embedded in the Watchtower since day one. The Governing Body is just committed to zealously maintaining it. What a dirty job that must be. Of course, they cannot defend it in an open debate. 1914 is only true in the closed system guarded by elders committed to disfellowshipping anyone who does not believe what the apostle presciently described as an artfully contrived false story.

Sadly, Ruth Underwood is not the only one to have been thrown under the grinding wheels of the theocratic juggernaut. There have been many. Perhaps even more, Jehovah’s Witnesses are quietly walking away and want nothing to do with the Watchtower. Still, the organization is not concerned about their grievances.

There is a growing number of injured, lost, and straying sheep. And that brings to mind what is stated in the 34th chapter of Ezekiel: “Woe to the shepherds of Israel, who have been feeding themselves! Is it not the flock that the shepherds should feed? You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, and you slaughter the fattest animal, but you do not feed the flock. You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bandaged the injured or brought back the strays or looked for the lost; rather, you have ruled them with harshness and tyranny. So they were scattered because there was no shepherd; they were scattered and became food for every wild beast of the field. My sheep were straying on all the mountains and on every high hill; my sheep were scattered over all the surface of the earth, with no one searching for them or seeking to find them.” (Ez 34:2-6)

Some years ago, the Watchtower made the utterly bizarre claim that the negligent shepherds were the “political shepherds” of Christendom. Why Jehovah would expect the tyrants of the world to feed and care for his sheep was never explained. How can you explain nonsense? What would be the benefit if a “political shepherd” actually sought and found one of Jehovah’s lost sheep? The more recent Pure Worship commentary does not mention the self-feeding “political shepherds.” Only that the prophecy was fulfilled in 1914 when Jehovah installed “David” as king, and now Jehovah’s sheep are all well cared for. So much for the denunciation of the self-feeding shepherds.

Realistically, we cannot expect those who sit in their granite castle by the lake, governing the lives of millions of people, to acknowledge themselves as tyrannical shepherds. But Ruth was right. There is an evil presence in the Watchtower’s leadership. What else ought he call it but evil when Bethel callously evicts congregants from a thousand Kingdom Halls—places of worship that they built and dedicated to Jehovah? And why has this been done? Simple. For profit. The inconvenience that this has caused the tens of thousands of Christians who have been dispossessed is no concern of the men who run Watchtower Inc. Sheep are meant to be shorn and slaughtered, even as Jehovah has said: “You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, and you slaughter the fattest animal, but you do not feed the flock.”

I don’t know where Jehovah’s Witnesses came up with the idea that Jehovah would not allow wicked men to run his organization. I have also heard that opinion voiced. God has allowed every organization he has ever used to be dominated by evil men. Why is the Watchtower unique? The fact is, it is not.

Judas was right there with the Son of God when Jesus reclined at the Passover table with his apostles. Later that evening, in prayer, Christ referred to his treacherous betrayer as “the son of destruction.” Years later, an inspired prophet foretold that a man of lawlessness would be the point man for an operation of Satan that would be backed by powerful, deceptive works and lying signs and every unrighteous deception. God would allow this deception to go to those who know the truth in order to test their love of the truth when the time comes.

According to the Christian prophet, written and verbal inspired statements, announced with apostolic authority, would falsely claim that the parousia has begun and the Lord’s day is here. Undeniably, that has been the message of the Watchtower since its inception.

Paul warned that this man of lawlessness, whom he also called “the son of destruction,” would sit down in the spiritual temple of God and exalt himself above every so-called god and object of worship. Has not the Governing Body exalted itself above the clergy? Do they not refer to the religion they preside over as “pure worship”? Is that not elevating the masters of “pure worship” above every form of worship?

Paul foretold that the man of lawlessness would also foment an apostasy. This rebellion against God would be an immediate precursor to the coming of Christ, the manifestation of which would reveal the presence of the man of lawlessness. Laughably, the Watchtower claims the clergy is a composite man of lawlessness, but they do not actually sit in God’s temple, otherwise known as Christ’s congregation. No, according to the Watchtower, the clergy merely claim to sit among the sons of God. I suppose it is this sort of flimflam that has deceived Jehovah’s Witnesses into believing that God would not allow wicked men to infiltrate and subvert his organization into apostasy. But if the clergy is the man of lawlessness and the apostasy that Paul said must come first occurred 1,700 years ago, why would the manifestation of the presence of Christ be needed to reveal the presence of the man of lawlessness?

When the pandemic began in 2020, and everything was shuttered, it was supposed to be for a few weeks. A year went by, and then the vaccines were rolled out. By means of monthly video updates, the Governing Body zealously promoted the UN’s vaccination program. One member of the Governing Body castigated JWs for foolishly venturing outdoors to enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. Another threatened elders with judicial action for voicing their opinions and daring to caution the friends about allowing themselves to be injected with the untested vaccines. The Governing Body berated Jehovah’s sheep for listening to conspiracy theories on the Internet and thinking that they knew more than the World Health Organization. Another pointed to heaven and claimed that Jehovah knows best. Yes, Jehovah, in his love, provided a vaccine that has proven to be unsafe and ineffective. Not only does it not prevent infection or contagion, it has killed multitudes and is still killing.

What is unknown is how many of Jehovah’s sheep have died as a direct result of following the slave’s medical advice. Brother Splane was right—Jehovah knows. How many will yet fall ill due to the side effects of the experimental gene therapy is unknowable. My question is, how much money did the Watchtower receive for selling Jehovah’s sheep to the slaughter? Was it 30 pieces of silver? At 2021 silver prices, that would equate to about $500 per head. Or, as worded in prophecy: “This is what Jehovah my God says, ‘Shepherd the flock meant for the slaughter, whose buyers slaughter them and are not held guilty. And those who sell them say, “May Jehovah be praised, for I will become rich.” And their shepherds have no compassion for them.” — Zechariah 11:4,5

No one at Bethel is going to be concerned over the loss of a few thousand sheep. There are always more. Those who stray or are slaughtered will be replaced. At least that is the way it has always been. But, alas, that will not always be the case. According to the same prophecy in the 34th chapter of Ezekiel, the entire flock is going to be lost. Woe, indeed, for the shepherds. “For this is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah says: ‘Here I am, and I myself will search for my sheep, and I will care for them. I will care for my sheep like a shepherd who has found his scattered sheep and is feeding them. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered in the day of clouds and thick gloom.”’ — Ez. 34:11,12

What is the day of clouds and thick gloom? We may be certain that Jehovah is not talking about the weather. As I explained to the Governing Body in the book Jehovah Himself Has Become King, gifted to them all in 2005, we are facing the crash of the Anglo-American dyad—really, the collapse of the global system of things. Joel uses the same symbolism of clouds and thick gloom, saying: “Blow a horn in Zion! Shout a war cry in my holy mountain. Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of Jehovah is coming! It is near! It is a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick gloom, like light of dawn spreading out on the mountains. There is a people numerous and mighty; never before has there been one like it, and never again will there be another through the years of all generations.” — Joel 2:1,2

A few years ago the prophets of Bethel revised their take on Joel. Now that the locusts no longer represent Jehovah’s Witnesses the prophecy of Joel has been relegated to the distant past. The invading locust swarms no longer have any relevancy for our times. That means that the virtually infallible Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses has denied that the day of Jehovah is coming. This is apostasy.

The 30th chapter of Ezekiel also uses clouds to symbolize a period of distress and confusion. ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah says: “Wail, ‘Alas, the day is coming!’ For the day is near, yes, a day of Jehovah is near. It will be a day of clouds, an appointed time of nations. A sword will come against Egypt, and panic will overtake Ethiopia when the slain fall in Egypt; its wealth is taken and its foundations are torn down.” (30:2-4)

As regards the fall of “Egypt,” the towering cedar represents the greatest nation on earth at the time of Christ’s second coming. Its sudden downfall symbolizes the crash of America. What a pall of gloom that will cast over the world! Its wealth is already being taken as the national debt represents the servitude that will be imposed upon the entire nation when the central bank creditors come for their pound of flesh.

Who can deny the clouds of war are gathering thick on the horizon? Jehovah’s day is near. It does seem to be hurrying up very much! What will the exalted Governing Body say to the flock when the missiles fly, when nations and kingdoms arise in war, when the grocery store shelves are barren, when the next pandemic is unleashed, when peace is taken from the earth and death and the Grave follow the horsemen of the Apocalypse? Will everyone be disfellowshipped when it becomes obvious that Christ did not begin ruling in 1914? Will we all become Ruth Underwood?

"Ruth related to me how she had shared some information with a sister in her congregation—unsanctioned information from the Internet, specifically from my website and YouTube videos. The sister dutifully informed an elder that sister Underwood was sharing “apostate” material."

Such a sad situation. The Org really is going the way of a corporation that is about quantity rather than quality. Have one complaint & you're fired.

Watchman said:

I don’t know where Jehovah’s Witnesses came up with the idea that Jehovah would not allow wicked men to run his organization. I have also heard that opinion voiced. God has allowed every organization he has ever used to be dominated by evil men. Why is the Watchtower unique? The fact is, it is not.

Click to expand...

It is a hard fact to come to terms with. We struggled for several months because we just could not fathom the notion that wicked men were running God's organization. One of the reason we finally accepted it, in addition to the covid debacle, is because of the documentaries we were watching about organizations being infiltrated. by masons, globalist, illuminati, etc. Even then, we tried to reason it away thinking that an infiltration process would take decades of patience and determination. But, we finally realized, Satan is exactly that: patient, determined and he doesn't give up easily. And, of course, watchman played just a "tiny role" in helping us to appreciate the deluding influence that the Bible foretold would take place within God's organization.

But the idolization of the WT is strongly entrenched in their members. It is hard to break that bond. We know from personal experience.

J&P said:

It is a hard fact to come to terms with. We struggled for several months because we just could not fathom the notion that wicked men were running God's organization. One of the reason we finally accepted it, in addition to the covid debacle, is because of the documentaries we were watching about organizations being infiltrated. by masons, globalist, illuminati, etc. Even then, we tried to reason it away thinking that an infiltration process would take decades of patience and determination. But, we finally realized, Satan is exactly that: patient, determined and he doesn't give up easily. And, of course, watchman played just a "tiny role" in helping us to appreciate the deluding influence that the Bible foretold would take place within God's organization.

But the idolization of the WT is strongly entrenched in their members. It is hard to break that bond. We know from personal experience.

Click to expand...

The problem is that most sheep are innocent and trusting. That's why they are sheep. But because they are sheep-like they are easy prey for cunning men. Jehovah described it well in Jeremiah: "For among my people there are wicked men. They keep peering, as when birdcatchers crouch down. They set a deadly trap. It is men whom they catch. Like a cage full of birds, So their houses are full of deception. That is why they have become powerful and rich." - Jeremiah 5:26,27

A song for Ruth...

Watchman said:

According to the Christian prophet, written and verbal inspired statements, announced with apostolic authority, would falsely claim that the parousia has begun and the Lord’s day is here. Undeniably, that has been the message of the Watchtower since its inception.

Paul warned that this man of lawlessness, whom he also called “the son of destruction,” would sit down in the spiritual temple of God and exalt himself above every so-called god and object of worship. Has not the Governing Body exalted itself above the clergy? Do they not refer to the religion they preside over as “pure worship”? Is that not elevating the masters of “pure worship” above every form of worship?

Paul foretold that the man of lawlessness would also foment an apostasy. This rebellion against God would be an immediate precursor to the coming of Christ, the manifestation of which would reveal the presence of the man of lawlessness. Laughably, the Watchtower claims the clergy is a composite man of lawlessness, but they do not actually sit in God’s temple, otherwise known as Christ’s congregation. No, according to the Watchtower, the clergy merely claim to sit among the sons of God. I suppose it is this sort of flimflam that has deceived Jehovah’s Witnesses into believing that God would not allow wicked men to infiltrate and subvert his organization into apostasy. But if the clergy is the man of lawlessness and the apostasy that Paul said must come first occurred 1,700 years ago, why would the manifestation of the presence of Christ be needed to reveal the presence of the man of lawlessness?

When the pandemic began in 2020, and everything was shuttered, it was supposed to be for a few weeks. A year went by, and then the vaccines were rolled out. By means of monthly video updates, the Governing Body zealously promoted the UN’s vaccination program. One member of the Governing Body castigated JWs for foolishly venturing outdoors to enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. Another threatened elders with judicial action for voicing their opinions and daring to caution the friends about allowing themselves to be injected with the untested vaccines. The Governing Body berated Jehovah’s sheep for listening to conspiracy theories on the Internet and thinking that they knew more than the World Health Organization. Another pointed to heaven and claimed that Jehovah knows best. Yes, Jehovah, in his love, provided a vaccine that has proven to be unsafe and ineffective. Not only does it not prevent infection or contagion, it has killed multitudes and is still killing.

What is unknown is how many of Jehovah’s sheep have died as a direct result of following the slave’s medical advice. Brother Splane was right—Jehovah knows. How many will yet fall ill due to the side effects of the experimental gene therapy is unknowable. My question is, how much money did the Watchtower receive for selling Jehovah’s sheep to the slaughter? Was it 30 pieces of silver? At 2021 silver prices, that would equate to about $500 per head. Or, as worded in prophecy: “This is what Jehovah my God says, ‘Shepherd the flock meant for the slaughter, whose buyers slaughter them and are not held guilty. And those who sell them say, “May Jehovah be praised, for I will become rich.” And their shepherds have no compassion for them.” — Zechariah 11:4,5

No one at Bethel is going to be concerned over the loss of a few thousand sheep. There are always more. Those who stray or are slaughtered will be replaced. At least that is the way it has always been. But, alas, that will not always be the case. According to the same prophecy in the 34th chapter of Ezekiel, the entire flock is going to be lost. Woe, indeed, for the shepherds. “For this is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah says: ‘Here I am, and I myself will search for my sheep, and I will care for them. I will care for my sheep like a shepherd who has found his scattered sheep and is feeding them. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered in the day of clouds and thick gloom.”’ — Ez. 34:11,12

What is the day of clouds and thick gloom? We may be certain that Jehovah is not talking about the weather. As I explained to the Governing Body in the book Jehovah Himself Has Become King, gifted to them all in 2005, we are facing the crash of the Anglo-American dyad—really, the collapse of the global system of things. Joel uses the same symbolism of clouds and thick gloom, saying: “Blow a horn in Zion! Shout a war cry in my holy mountain. Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of Jehovah is coming! It is near! It is a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick gloom, like light of dawn spreading out on the mountains. There is a people numerous and mighty; never before has there been one like it, and never again will there be another through the years of all generations.” — Joel 2:1,2

A few years ago the prophets of Bethel revised their take on Joel. Now that the locusts no longer represent Jehovah’s Witnesses the prophecy of Joel has been relegated to the distant past. The invading locust swarms no longer have any relevancy for our times. That means that the virtually infallible Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses has denied that the day of Jehovah is coming. This is apostasy.

The 30th chapter of Ezekiel also uses clouds to symbolize a period of distress and confusion. ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah says: “Wail, ‘Alas, the day is coming!’ For the day is near, yes, a day of Jehovah is near. It will be a day of clouds, an appointed time of nations. A sword will come against Egypt, and panic will overtake Ethiopia when the slain fall in Egypt; its wealth is taken and its foundations are torn down.” (30:2-4)

As regards the fall of “Egypt,” the towering cedar represents the greatest nation on earth at the time of Christ’s second coming. Its sudden downfall symbolizes the crash of America. What a pall of gloom that will cast over the world! Its wealth is already being taken as the national debt represents the servitude that will be imposed upon the entire nation when the central bank creditors come for their pound of flesh.

Who can deny the clouds of war are gathering thick on the horizon? Jehovah’s day is near. It does seem to be hurrying up very much! What will the exalted Governing Body say to the flock when the missiles fly, when nations and kingdoms arise in war, when the grocery store shelves are barren, when the next pandemic is unleashed, when peace is taken from the earth and death and the Grave follow the horsemen of the Apocalypse? Will everyone be disfellowshipped when it becomes obvious that Christ did not begin ruling in 1914? Will we all become Ruth Underwood?

Regarding Ruth Underwood

There are now some eight billion human souls on this planet. Jehovah God knows each and every one. He also knows those who are spiritually inclined and groping for the truth. They are most precious to him. Jesus said the Kingdom of God belongs to them.

e-watchman.com

Click to expand...

After reading this I feel deeply sad for the Brothers and Sisters who will have to endure the ”terror”. I guess we will all be enduring some terror but at least some of us already understand what is coming. It reminds me of what Jesus expressed at Matthew 23:37: “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the killer of the prophets and stoner of those sent to her—how often I wanted to gather your children together the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings! But you did not want it.”

Watchman said:

The problem is that most sheep are innocent and trusting. That's why they are sheep. But because they are sheep-like they are easy prey for cunning men. Jehovah described it well in Jeremiah: "For among my people there are wicked men. They keep peering, as when birdcatchers crouch down. They set a deadly trap. It is men whom they catch. Like a cage full of birds, So their houses are full of deception. That is why they have become powerful and rich." - Jeremiah 5:26,27

Click to expand...

Very true.
Then, that trust makes one more vulnerable to the manipulation of high control groups and/or individuals.
It is not about intelligence. It is not about “strength” or “weakness.”
It is about programming, priming, and conditioning.
WT is very good at what they do. And, as a consequence, people like Ruth fall victim to these men and, sadly, have to suffer the consequences.
.

SusanB said:

After reading this I feel deeply sad for the Brothers and Sisters who will have to endure the ”terror”. I guess we will all be enduring some terror but at least some of us already understand what is coming. It reminds me of what Jesus expressed at Matthew 23:37: “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the killer of the prophets and stoner of those sent to her—how often I wanted to gather your children together the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings! But you did not want it.”

Click to expand...

As you might imagine, I encouraged Ruth to meet with the judicial committee and offered to coach her up so as to put the onus on them. But that's not really realistic. One woman in a room with three men? She wisely declined my offer and has avoided needless strife and futility. Now the onus really is on the elders. I am going to be sending this article out here and there, especially to the elders of her former congregation.

The elders have no way to respond to this. Nothing to say.

Brings to mind from Hosea 4:

My people will certainly be silenced, because there is no knowledge. Because the knowledge is what you yourself have rejected, I shall also reject you from serving as a priest to me; and because you keep forgetting the law of your God, I shall forget your sons, even I.

Watchman said:

As you might imagine, I encouraged Ruth to meet with the judicial committee and offered to coach her up so as to put the onus on them. But that's not really realistic. One woman in a room with three men? She wisely declined my offer and has avoided needless strife and futility. Now the onus really is on the elders. I am going to be sending this article out here and there, especially to the elders of her former congregation.

Click to expand...

This treatment of the sheep, however, really demonstrates completely, what frauds WT really is. As I keep pointing out, like my brother and his wife said, "once they get on the internet it's over." That is to say, your faith as one of Jehovah's Witnesses is so fragile, that even the mildest, most milk toast of criticism cannot standup to "the truth" coming from WT!!!! That is the message coming from WT regarding avoiding "apostates on the internet."

But it also reveals something else about the R&F. They themselves have no confidence in their own faith, they think, no they believe their faith is so fragile all it takes is some "half truths" and "apostate driven lies", to destroy their faith. That's WT real message!

This subject also brings to mind the fact that your faith to really be strong has to be refined. How is you faith refined? Adversity! But not the version WT pushes, but by questioning what you yourself believe! If it can hold up to scrutiny then you have strong faith. If it cannot, either you do not have strong faith, or you have no bases for your faith. It seems both are true to WT and the GB.

This article comes to mind.

In doing some research on the history of the Watchtower Bible & Tract Society after the death of Charles Taze Russell, and after Joseph Rutherford became president, it appears that Rutherford was the one who required the shunning of those who disagreed with the new publication, The Finished Mystery, which was misleadingly labeled as the posthumous seventh volume of Russell's Studies in the Scriptures, though it was written by Fisher and Woodworth, and "contained several interpretations and viewpoints not espoused by Russell. These included urging of all Bible Students to cast judgment upon Christendom and its clergy, the adoption of new dates for the fulfillment of particular prophecies, a claim that salvation is tied to membership within the Watch Tower Society, as well as shunning and censuring any who reject the interpretations given in the volume or related articles in Zion's Watch Tower magazine."
Information sourced from Wikipedia, under the topic: Joseph Franklin Rutherford

This is also from the same article in Wikipedia:
"At the 1922 Cedar Point convention Rutherford began teaching that Christ's reign had begun in 1914, and not 1878 as Russell had taught. Rutherford expanded on this view in the March 1, 1925, issue of The Watch Tower in the article "Birth of The Nation", which he later acknowledged "caused a real stir or shake-up within the ranks." In 1927 he moved the date of the resurrection of the "sleeping saints" (all Christians who had died since Jesus' time) from 1878 to 1918 and as early as 1930 began to dismiss the year 1874 as the date for the invisible presence of Christ in favor of the year 1914."

Link to this article:

Watchman said:

The problem is that most sheep are innocent and trusting. That's why they are sheep. But because they are sheep-like they are easy prey for cunning men. Jehovah described it well in Jeremiah: "For among my people there are wicked men. They keep peering, as when birdcatchers crouch down. They set a deadly trap. It is men whom they catch. Like a cage full of birds, So their houses are full of deception. That is why they have become powerful and rich." - Jeremiah 5:26,27

Click to expand...

And you know, of course, that it is precisely this text that is regularly repeated at large meetings about the evil outside world, together with a quotation from Proverbs 7:23 '...Like a bird rushing into a trap, he does not know that it will cost him his life.' Talking about gaslighting......

Serenity said:

"At the 1922 Cedar Point convention Rutherford began teaching that Christ's reign had begun in 1914, and not 1878 as Russell had taught.

Click to expand...

Apparently the spiritual choo-choo train moves so fast, it takes them 8 years after the event to realize it happened. Somewhere there must be a joke about JWs ending up in paradise without realizing they have lived through the Great Tribulation and the judgment already.

Who can say about an organization that didn't allow beards up until recently while prominently featuring bearded Jesus and Apostles in their own magazines?

DavidCJ said:

Apparently the spiritual choo-choo train moves so fast, it takes them 8 years after the event to realize it happened. Somewhere there must be a joke about JWs ending up in paradise without realizing they have lived through the Great Tribulation and the judgment already.

Who can say about an organization that didn't allow beards up until recently while prominently featuring bearded Jesus and Apostles in their own magazines?

Click to expand...

It seems 1874 was the original date that Russell claimed Christ's invisible presence began, and 1878 is when Christ's reign began, both dates, were however, incorrect. Rutherford began teaching that both Christ's invisible presence and his reign began in 1914. Russell, however, didn't require shunning or rejection of those who didn't agree with his calculations.

Interestingly, Russell made made this statement in The Divine Plan of the Ages:
"A similar mistake, and a very common one, is to suppose that God's kingdom is now established and ruling over the earth, and that his will is now done among the nations. This is manifestly far from the truth, for the kingdoms of this world are supported and enriched through oppression, injustice and deceit, to as great an extent as the increasing intelligence of the people will permit. Satan, the present "prince of this world," must yet be displaced, and these kingdoms, now under his control, must become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Anointed, when he shall take unto himself his great power, and reign."
Study IV, The Epoch's And Dispensations Marked In The Development of The Divine Plan", pg. 75.

evw said:

And you know, of course, that it is precisely this text that is regularly repeated at large meetings about the evil outside world, together with a quotation from Proverbs 7:23 '...Like a bird rushing into a trap, he does not know that it will cost him his life.' Talking about gaslighting......

Click to expand...

Yeah, but Jehovah clearly identifies the location of the wicked men: "among my people." So, as Jesus might say, let him who has an ear hear.

I keep asking myself why can't my family members see this? It is so clear to us on the forum. Many of the witnesses including my aunt are planning for the summer assemblies. She wanted to be invited by the org. to go to Bulgaria. Can you imagine going that far to listen to them? She did not get invited. I can't talk to her about any of this or I will be labeled. Thank you Robert for a great article.