JWSurvery.org articles

Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



← Why it is morally wrong for Watchtower to push baptism on children
Governing Body takes center stage in new Warwick headquarters video →

The Revised New World Translation: Will it stand the test of time?
avatar
Posted on October 10, 2013

As Witnesses embrace the new bible we ask, "will it stand the test of time?"
As Witnesses embrace the new bible we ask, “will it stand the test of time?”

Many Jehovah’s Witnesses are overwhelmed with excitement following the release of the revised New World Translation at the 129th Annual Meeting over the weekend.
A number have taken to social media to express their joy and appreciation at what is being viewed by many as a gift straight from Jehovah. Geoffrey Jackson, who announced the release of the new Bible, even suggested that Jehovah had manipulated weather conditions to better facilitate its printing.
The new Bible has been available online since Monday, giving us the chance to see how it compares with the original. We also now have opportunity to familiarize ourselves with the various features of the book and ponder the question: “Will it stand the test of time?”
Improvements
More research tools
The new revision to the New World Translation boasts a number of research tools that were absent from the original. These include a glossary of Bible terms and two lengthy appendices. I am particularly impressed with the timeline of kings of Judah and Israel (A6), the chart showing biblical weights and measures (B14) and the much clearer Hebrew Calendar (B15). It is also nice to see footnotes on each page to show alternative terms, which (like the appendices) were previously only to be found in the Reference Bible.
The introductions to each Bible book with summaries of each chapter are also helpful, provided these are not used to mislead people (as I will touch on later).
Improved readability
The most obvious improvement to the New World Translation is that it is now written in English that most people will find easier to understand. This can only be a bonus for those who want to be able to read their Bibles more easily. The original edition, released in the 1950s, used language of the era that could at times be confusing. But with this revision it is much simpler to grasp the meaning of certain scriptures.
The English language has changed since the New World Translation was released in the 1950s
The English language has changed since the New World Translation was released in the 1950s

For example, expressions like “there proceeded to be” and “there came to be” are mostly gone, but not in such a way that the meaning is lost. And rather than being spelled out in words, numbers like 144,000 are simply expressed in digits. Because so many unnecessary words have been chopped from the text, this has resulted in a reduced total wordcount from approximately 907,000 words to 786,000 – a 13% reduction!
Another reason for the reduced wordcount has been the omission of a small number of bible verses now deemed spurious, namely the long and short conclusions to Mark, and John 7:53-8:11. As expected, this has not met with universal praise. One JWsurvey reader, author Robert Crompton, had this to say…

“I find it interesting that they have removed the alternative endings of Mark and the story about showing mercy in John 7:53 – 8:11. Usual translation practice is to include these with a note pointing out that they only appear in later (but nevertheless still early) manuscripts. That is, there is some, albeit limited, justification for referenced inclusion of these passages. And this limited justification is vastly greater than their justification for including the divine name which doesn’t appear in any NT manuscripts, only in late translations and other non-NT manuscripts.”
I would tend to agree with Robert on this. The fact that these texts were not in all of the earliest manuscripts does not necessarily mean that they shouldn’t have been. A more scholarly way of dealing with the problem would be to include the text with a clear indication of any reservations as to authenticity – as the original New World Translation did. To do otherwise is to risk omitting verses from the Bible that were intended to be in the original, and are therefore just as deserving to be considered as “inspired” scripture.
For those interested in researching this further, here are some interesting links on the omitted verses…
◾Article on the “adultery pericope” – John 7:53-8:11
◾Long ending to Mark – Mark 16:9-20
Better rendering of 1 Timothy 6:4
I must point out one significant improvement that has been made to one verse in particular that has caused considerable problems for thinking Witnesses – especially over the past two years. I refer to 1 Timothy 6:3-4, which used to read as follows (bold is mine)…

“If any man teaches other doctrine and does not assent to the healthful words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, nor to the teaching that accords with godly devotion, he is puffed up [with pride], not understanding anything, but being mentally diseased over questionings and debates about words. From these things spring envy, strife, abusive speeches, wicked suspicions.” – 1 Tim 6:3,4 New World Translation
This same verse now reads…

“If any man teaches another doctrine and does not agree with the wholesome instruction, which is from our Lord Jesus Christ, nor with the teaching that is in harmony with godly devotion, he is puffed up with pride and does not understand anything. He is obsessed with arguments and debates about words. These things give rise to envy, strife, slander, wicked suspicions.”- 1 Tim 6:3,4 Revised New World Translation
As you can see, the reference to apostates being “mentally diseased” has been removed and the verse translated more correctly to reflect the true intent of the writer. The footnote in the new Bible offers “an unhealthy fascination” as a further rendering, which is also notably different from how people today would consider the term “mentally diseased.”
Despite the obvious translation error in the original New World Translation, this did not stop Watchtower from recently using the term “mentally diseased” to berate those who disagree with organizational doctrine in the July 15, 2011 Watchtower. So loud was the uproar from the article that a journalist for the Independent wrote a piece on the “war of words” that the Society appeared to be waging against their dissenters. Seemingly unfazed by such exposure, the Governing Body had the phrase included recently in the outline for the “Human Apostates” talk at the 2013 District Convention.
The Independent newspaper reports on the July, 15 2011 Watchtower
The Independent’s article on the July, 15 2011 Watchtower (click to enlarge)

Though it is to be applauded that the erroneous and offensive “mentally diseased” expression has finally been extracted from the New World Translation, it can be argued that the damage has already been done. The term “mentally diseased” is now cemented in Witness jargon when it comes to describing any who disagree with the Governing Body.
It remains to be seen whether future writings on apostates will be softened following this change, but I am personally doubtful that there will be any significant toning-down of hateful rhetoric against former believers and free thinkers in the organization.
And can we expect a printed apology for the mischaracterization of so-called apostates based on a previous flawed bible translation? Again, I wouldn’t hold your breath.
And now the bad news…
Poor communication and limited availability
It would not be fair to repeat myself too much on the manner of the book’s release, but I feel a few things should be reiterated in this review. I have already commented on a previous article that there was absolutely no reason for the Governing Body to leave ordinary brothers in the dark as to why there was a shortage of Bibles. The fact that congregations were left guessing as their Bible stocks dwindled suggests strongly that the Governing Body was more interested in having their ticker-tape release than managing the expectations of the brothers.
There is frustration at the way some Witnesses were left out of the new Bible launch
There is frustration at the way some Witnesses were left out of the new Bible launch

I have also learned of a very uneven state of affairs in the way the new Bibles are being distributed in some congregations.
According to one report, Witnesses in England have been instructed to start using the new Bibles immediately, even though only a privileged few who attended the Annual Meeting event (mostly elders and their wives) have received their new Bibles. Until new Bibles are delivered for all, the rest of the congregation must make do with their old Bibles for some weeks.
This is causing frustration at the apparent elitist distinction as to who is more favored or “exemplary” in the congregation. Those not privileged to attend the Annual Meeting events and receive new Bibles are left feeling unworthy and overlooked. This problem could easily have been avoided by releasing the new Bibles simultaneously at the District Conventions once there were enough copies for all (as with any other release). But again, this would not have sufficiently satisfied the Governing Body’s apparent lust for acclaim and recognition.
“Governing body” inserted in chapter summary
Before seeing the new Bible for myself I was apprehensive over one matter in particular. I feared that Watchtower would attempt to spuriously insert the phrase “governing body” in the six instances in Acts chapters 15 and 16 where the phrase “apostles and older men” appears. These verses are often highlighted by Watchtower in an attempt to prove that there was a First Century “governing body” when there was no such thing.
You can imagine my relief when I saw that Watchtower had NOT stooped to such a low. The six instances of “the apostles and the older men” (5 in Acts 15, 1 in Acts 16) have been tweaked only slightly to read “the apostles and the elders.”
But my relief was short-lived.
Though the Bible verses themselves have been left un-touched, someone drew my attention to the fact that Watchtower has very cleverly inserted “governing body” in the chapter summary for Acts (pages 1459-1460) as follows…
new-bible-governing-body
As I said, there was no such thing as a “governing body” in the First Century. Yes, Jesus appointed his 12 apostles, but even Watchtower doesn’t like to compare the apostles directly with the Governing Body because they know how ridiculous this would sound. They therefore zero-in on a passage of scripture in Acts, chapters 15 and 16, and insist that “the apostles and the elders” served as a “governing body.”
There are two major problems with this, namely…
1.You cannot take the circumcision issue of Acts 15 in isolation and use it to extrapolate the idea of the apostles AND elders meeting together from that point onward to decide each and every issue that arose in the Christian congregation thereafter. To do so would be to assume something that is not found in the text.
2.Most crucially, by super-imposing the phrase “governing body” OVER the phrase “apostles and elders,” you are adding to the scriptures. You are effectively telling Jehovah, “You are incapable of explaining yourself because you didn’t describe the apostles and elders under a collective noun similar to ‘governing body’, so we will do that for you.”
By stamping the collective noun “governing body” over the term “apostles and elders,” whether in the bible text itself or in bible commentary, Watchtower is going against 1 Corinthians, which says…

“Now, brothers, these things I have applied to myself and Apollos for your good, that through us you may learn the rule: ‘Do not go beyond the things that are written,’ so that you may not be puffed up with pride, favoring one against the other.” - 1 Cor. 4:6 Revised New World Translation
Shackled to the 1914 teaching
I opened this article by asking whether this revised New World Translation will stand the test of time, and I will now give the main reason why I believe it won’t.
A foundation teaching of Jehovah’s Witnesses is the 1914 doctrine – the belief that Christ arrived in kingly power invisibly in 1914 and banished Satan to the earth for a “short period of time.” (Rev. 12:12) Well, that “short period of time” before Satan is abyssed and the Kingdom is established on the Earth is now 99 years and counting – certainly not a “short period of time” in any human context. And with each passing decade, it is becoming increasingly obvious that despite marking the beginning of World War I, 1914 held no significance in bible prophecy at all.
But with this new Bible, Watchtower is chaining itself to the 1914 teaching for decades to come – perhaps indefinitely. How so? Take a look at a detail from a page in Appendix B of the new Bible…
Taken from page 1767, revised New World Translation
Taken from page 1767, revised New World Translation

The above chart has clearly been produced by Watchtower with the firm belief that Armageddon is imminent. I can think of no other reason why Watchtower would marry itself to the idea of Armageddon and a cleansed Earth being only a “short time” from 1914. They must really be THAT deluded.
The trouble is, as previously stated, it is already obvious to many that 1914 was nothing more than a coincidence of history and a year with no prophetic meaning. As further decades tick by, the above chart will become more and more painful for Witnesses to open their Bibles and look at.
But that’s not the only time the 1914 teaching is referenced in this new Bible. I will now show a chart on page 1780 depicting Daniel’s immense image (to the right of the picture below). The new Bible shows the image with a caption at the bottom saying that the feet of iron mixed with molded clay began in 1914. Notice how similar Watchtower’s picture is to a detail from another chart (to the left), produced more than 170 years earlier.
Left - chart produced by Second Adventists predicting Christ's return in 1843; right - chart on page 1780 of the revised New World Translation
Left – detail from chart produced by Second Adventists predicting Christ’s return in 1843; right – chart on page 1780 of the revised New World Translation attributing 1914 as the start of the iron mixed with clay

The detail on the left is taken from a famous chart that was used by Second Adventist followers of William Miller to pronounce the year 1843 as heralding the second coming of Christ. When nothing happened in that year, Miller’s followers went back to the drawing board and decided that Christ was actually due on October 22, 1844.
That date went down in history as the “Great Disappointment,” because so many had sold their homes and property in expectation of a rapture that would never happen. It was likely this event that made Charles Taze Russell skeptical of Second Adventists, even though he eventually started to mimic the same fascination with date-setting after meeting Nelson H. Barbour.
It is easy to look back on the Adventist chart now, especially the part at the bottom (not shown above) where the date “1843” is inscribed in big bold letters, and smirk at how naive and misguided Miller’s followers were.
1914 is already distant history
1914 is already distant history

So just imagine how future generations of Witnesses will cringe with the same embarrassment when they dust off and open their old 2013 revised New World Translations and are reminded of the certainty with which 1914 was put forth as holding prophetic significance – and in a book that was printed sufficiently far from that date as to make it obvious that the prediction had already failed.
Of course there are bound to be Witnesses reading this who will be thinking: “Ah, you’re saying that now, but just you wait and see! Armageddon will arrive any moment and fully vindicate the 1914 teaching, and then you’ll be sorry!”
Well obviously you are welcome to think that way if it brings you comfort. But the simple fact is the 1914 teaching was already proved false some time ago when the generation that witnessed the events of that year fell asleep in death. With their passing, no longer could it be said by any reasonable stretch of the imagination that 1914 was a “short period of time” in the past. Instead, 1914 is now sliding ever deeper into the annals of history.
What fascinates me is that rather than recognizing their mistake, or acknowledging that they COULD be in error by keeping their options open, Watchtower is tying itself to the 1914 teaching for as long as this new Bible will be in use. And you can imagine it will be in use for many more decades. This is arguably the biggest problem with the new Bible, and one that will become increasingly obvious as the decades roll by. The sell-by date is simply too short.

John Cedars signature logo




Further reading…
◾Article on release of new Bible at annual meeting
◾Article on the Bible being announced as “sister proof” and provided by Jehovah
Related videos…








Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:



Bookmark the permalink.
 
← Why it is morally wrong for Watchtower to push baptism on children
Governing Body takes center stage in new Warwick headquarters video →

114 Responses to The Revised New World Translation: Will it stand the test of time?

← Older Comments

 Judah Maccabee says:

 March 11, 2014 at 2:17 pm

Also, Cedars, thanks for your effort.
Judah
Reply
 

 Pav says:

 March 11, 2014 at 3:49 pm

Comments presented in this article are made by person biased totally to nwt.
 May I know what translation is the best according to the author ???? Is there such???
Reply
 

 cheryl says:

 April 18, 2014 at 10:03 am

I am not an elder’s wife nor were those of my friends that I drove with to the annual meeting and we all got the new Bible. Our whole congregation was invited to the annual meeting and for those who did attend……they all got a new Bible. WE all were told to start using them immediately……and those who didn’t attend the meeting still had to use the old Bibles. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to reason on that. It was within that very month that the shipment of new Bibles was delivered to our Kingdom Hall and then EVERYONE had a new Bible. What’s so horribly wrong with having to wait a couple weeks for your Bible?????
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 April 18, 2014 at 10:08 am

I notice you’re posting from America, so it looks like you need to scroll back up and re-read my comments on Bible distribution. They were based on experiences in the UK, not the States. Hopefully you can appreciate that just because Bibles were quick to arrive in your American congregation, does not necessarily mean the same was true the world over.
Reply
 
 

 Paulo de Tarso says:

 April 24, 2014 at 10:48 am

Hi everybody;
 I am from Brazil and would like to ask how did you find this mistranslated verse, considering that here we haven`t received the new translation. Are you talking from Portugal? Have you received it there? Obrigado pela atenção aferida!
Reply
 

 Ben1957 says:

 May 12, 2014 at 11:42 pm

It is true that no surviving Greek text has the full rendering of the divine name in them. That does not prove that it was not there. YES it does matter if the wrong Proper noun “Jesus” or Jehovah”is used because that has a bearing on the identity of the person being spoken about. If Jesus is used in stead of Jehovah the reader will get the wrong idea.
IN FACT the Divine name IS THERE. You will find a shortened or abbreviated version of Jehovah DOES appear in the NT in Revelation 19:1,3,5 & 6 in the form used by the Psalms many times. The Greek form is “allelouia”. Many English Bibles render it as “ Halleluiah” the last three letters are the abbreviation of Jehovah namely “jah” . Some Bibles render it as “Praise the Lord”.
Strongs Greek Lexicon gives the following meaning “of Hebrew origin praise ye Jah!,” So the writer of revelation John uses a Hebrew expression that is used about 25 times in Psalms. Where it occurs in the Psalms, Most Bibles tend to use the expression “Praise the LORD”. The Calvin Bible, Darby, Good News Bibles all use Hallelujah. Young’s Literal Translation says “Praise ye Jehovah” The NT writers were well aware of the divine name.
There are many texts that show that GOD wanted his divine name made known.
 Isaiah 52:6 “Therefore my people shall know my name:”
Jeremiah 16 21 ”… and they shall know that my name is The LORD.” (LORD = Divine name YHWH = Jehovah)
 Ezekiel 6:7 “… and ye shall know that I am the LORD.” That phrase appears more that 50 times in Ezekiel.
Where Greek texts say simply “kurios” (lord), that can refer to Jesus , or God, or as a matter of fact anyone that was a master. The Context needs to be considered. In many places it may be unclear as to who the word “lord” is referring to. In those cases I support the English use of lord. However when the use of “kurios” in the Greek text is a direct quote from the OT and the OT uses the Divine name, then the Divine name should be used.
Reply
 

 Ben1957 says:

 May 12, 2014 at 11:52 pm

In reply to
 Judah Maccabee
 March 11, 2014 at 2:14 pm
Is it true that the Greek manuscripts of Colossians 3:13 say ““Christ (Christos) freely forgave”.
The truth is Colossians 3:13 reads differently in different master Greek texts. I have electronic copies of the following Greek Master texts. I list them in the order of who uses Christos or who uses kurios
Christos
 Tischendorf’s 8th Edition Greek text (1859)
 Stephanas Textus Receptus (1550)
 Scrivener’s Textus Receptus (1894)
 Byzantine Majority Greek text
The above master Greek texts are all later compilations of texts done after 1550
kurios
 United Bible Society 4 revision
 Nestles Alands 27 Vertion
 Tregelles Greek Text
 Westcot and Horts Greek text
 Codex Vaticanus (Approximate 400 c.e.)
Now this final one is interesting as it uses “theos” and that is the Codex Sinaiticus (Approximate 400 c.e.)
Does 2 Thessalonians 2:2 say “the day of Christ (Christou)” ? The following Master Greek Texts say b>“the day of the Lord”
United Bible Society 4 revision
 Tischendorf’s 8th Edition Greek text (1859)
 Nestles Alands 27 Vertion
 Tregelles Greek Text
 Westcot and Horts Greek text
 Codex Vaticanus
 Codex Siniaticus
2 Thessalonians 2:2 seems to be a quote from Isaiah13:6 “ Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand;” and or from Zephaniah 1:14 ” “The great day of the LORD is near,” where LORD = the Divine name YHWH = Jehovah
Colossians 1:14 and Colossians 1:27 what should the rendering be? It is absolutely true that the base word used there is the Greek preposition “en “ generally rendered as “in”. However that is rarely the case that it has the simple meaning of “in” . Strongs Greek Lexicon gives the following meaning
“a primary prep. denoting (fixed) position (in place, time or state), and (by impl.) instrumentality (medially or constructively), i.e. a relation of rest (intermediate between 1519 eis and 1537 ἐκ); “in, ” at, (up-) on, by, etc.:—about, after, against, + almost, × altogether, among, × as, at, before, between, (here-) by (+ all means), for (… sake of), + give self wholly to, (here-) in (-to, -wardly), × mightily, (because) of, (up-) on, [open-] ly, × outwardly, one, × quickly, × shortly, [speedi-] ly, × that, × there (-in, -on), through (-out), (un-) to (-ward), under, when, where (-with), while, with (-in). Often used in compounds, with substantially the same import; rarely with verbs of motion, and then not to indicate direction, except (elliptically) by a separate (and different) prep”
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon has a lot more to say on this preposition and the way it can be used. Under point 6 it says that a connection or union with another is often meant by this word.
“ of that in which any person or thing is inherently fixed, implanted, or with which it is b>intimately connected; a. of the whole in which a part inheres:  b. of a person to whom another is wholly joined and to whose power and. influence he is subject, so that the former may be likened to the place in which the latter lives and moves.  So used in the writings of Paul and of John particularly of b>intimate relationship with God or with Christ, and for the most part involving contextually the idea of power and blessing resulting from that b>union thus, ….. in Christ, of his disciples and worshippers,…. amplified and strengthened in the fellowship of God and the consciousness of that fellowship, ….. ingrafted as it were in Christ, in fellowship and union with Christ, with the Lord:  …..Since such union with Christ is the basis on which actions and virtues rest, the expression is equivalent in meaning to by virtue of spiritual fellowship or union with Christ; in this sense it is joined to the following words and phrases: “ (Bold Mine italics original)
The NWT gives the full and clearer English idea of what the original language conveyed.
Reply
 

 Ben1957 says:

 May 12, 2014 at 11:55 pm

In reply to
 Judah Maccabee
 March 11, 2014 at 2:14 pm
Is it true that the Greek manuscripts of Colossians 3:13 say ““Christ (Christos) freely forgave”.
The truth is Colossians 3:13 reads differently in different master Greek texts. I have electronic copies of the following Greek Master texts. I list them in the order of who uses Christos or who uses kurios
Christos
 Tischendorf’s 8th Edition Greek text (1859)
 Stephanas Textus Receptus (1550)
 Scrivener’s Textus Receptus (1894)
 Byzantine Majority Greek text
The above master Greek texts are all later compilations of texts done after 1550
kurios
 United Bible Society 4 revision
 Nestles Alands 27 Vertion
 Tregelles Greek Text
 Westcot and Horts Greek text
 Codex Vaticanus (Approximate 400 c.e.)
Now this final one is interesting as it uses “theos” and that is the Codex Sinaiticus (Approximate 400 c.e.)
Does 2 Thessalonians 2:2 say “the day of Christ (Christou)” ? The following Master Greek Texts say “the day of the Lord”
United Bible Society 4 revision
 Tischendorf’s 8th Edition Greek text (1859)
 Nestles Alands 27 Vertion
 Tregelles Greek Text
 Westcot and Horts Greek text
 Codex Vaticanus
 Codex Siniaticus
2 Thessalonians 2:2 seems to be a quote from Isaiah13:6 “ Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand;” and or from Zephaniah 1:14 ” “The great day of the LORD is near,” where LORD = the Divine name YHWH = Jehovah
Colossians 1:14 and Colossians 1:27 what should the rendering be? It is absolutely true that the base word used there is the Greek preposition “en “ generally rendered as “in”. However that is rarely the case that it has the simple meaning of “in” . Strongs Greek Lexicon gives the following meaning
“a primary prep. denoting (fixed) position (in place, time or state), and (by impl.) instrumentality (medially or constructively), i.e. a relation of rest (intermediate between 1519 eis and 1537 ἐκ); “in, ” at, (up-) on, by, etc.:—about, after, against, + almost, × altogether, among, × as, at, before, between, (here-) by (+ all means), for (… sake of), + give self wholly to, (here-) in (-to, -wardly), × mightily, (because) of, (up-) on, [open-] ly, × outwardly, one, × quickly, × shortly, [speedi-] ly, × that, × there (-in, -on), through (-out), (un-) to (-ward), under, when, where (-with), while, with (-in). Often used in compounds, with substantially the same import; rarely with verbs of motion, and then not to indicate direction, except (elliptically) by a separate (and different) prep”
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon has a lot more to say on this preposition and the way it can be used. Under point 6 it says that a connection or union with another is often meant by this word.
“ of that in which any person or thing is inherently fixed, implanted, or with which it isintimately connected; a. of the whole in which a part inheres:  b. of a person to whom another is wholly joined and to whose power and. influence he is subject, so that the former may be likened to the place in which the latter lives and moves.  So used in the writings of Paul and of John particularly of intimate relationship with God or with Christ, and for the most part involving contextually the idea of power and blessing resulting from that union thus, ….. in Christ, of his disciples and worshippers,…. amplified and strengthened in the fellowship of God and the consciousness of that fellowship, ….. ingrafted as it were in Christ, in fellowship and union with Christ, with the Lord:  …..Since such union with Christ is the basis on which actions and virtues rest, the expression is equivalent in meaning to by virtue of spiritual fellowship or union with Christ; in this sense it is joined to the following words and phrases: “ (Bold Mine italics original)
The NWT gives the full and clearer English idea of what the original language conveyed.
Reply
 

 Ben1957 says:

 May 12, 2014 at 11:57 pm

In reply to
 Judah Maccabee
 March 11, 2014 at 2:14 pm
Is it true that the Greek manuscripts of Colossians 3:13 say ““Christ (Christos) freely forgave”.
The truth is Colossians 3:13 reads differently in different master Greek texts. I have electronic copies of the following Greek Master texts. I list them in the order of who uses Christos or who uses kurios
Christos
 Tischendorf’s 8th Edition Greek text (1859)
 Stephanas Textus Receptus (1550)
 Scrivener’s Textus Receptus (1894)
 Byzantine Majority Greek text
The above master Greek texts are all later compilations of texts done after 1550
kurios
 United Bible Society 4 revision
 Nestles Alands 27 Vertion
 Tregelles Greek Text
 Westcot and Horts Greek text
 Codex Vaticanus (Approximate 400 c.e.)
Now this final one is interesting as it uses “theos” and that is the Codex Sinaiticus (Approximate 400 c.e.)
Does 2 Thessalonians 2:2 say “the day of Christ (Christou)” ? The following Master Greek Texts say “the day of the Lord”
United Bible Society 4 revision
 Tischendorf’s 8th Edition Greek text (1859)
 Nestles Alands 27 Vertion
 Tregelles Greek Text
 Westcot and Horts Greek text
 Codex Vaticanus
 Codex Siniaticus
2 Thessalonians 2:2 seems to be a quote from Isaiah13:6 “ Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand;” and or from Zephaniah 1:14 ” “The great day of the LORD is near,” where LORD = the Divine name YHWH = Jehovah
Colossians 1:14 and Colossians 1:27 what should the rendering be? It is absolutely true that the base word used there is the Greek preposition “en “ generally rendered as “in”. However that is rarely the case that it has the simple meaning of “in” . Strongs Greek Lexicon gives the following meaning
“a primary prep. denoting (fixed) position (in place, time or state), and (by impl.) instrumentality (medially or constructively), i.e. a relation of rest (intermediate between 1519 eis and 1537 ἐκ); “in, ” at, (up-) on, by, etc.:—about, after, against, + almost, × altogether, among, × as, at, before, between, (here-) by (+ all means), for (… sake of), + give self wholly to, (here-) in (-to, -wardly), × mightily, (because) of, (up-) on, [open-] ly, × outwardly, one, × quickly, × shortly, [speedi-] ly, × that, × there (-in, -on), through (-out), (un-) to (-ward), under, when, where (-with), while, with (-in). Often used in compounds, with substantially the same import; rarely with verbs of motion, and then not to indicate direction, except (elliptically) by a separate (and different) prep”
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon has a lot more to say on this preposition and the way it can be used. Under point 6 it says that a connection or union with another is often meant by this word.
“ of that in which any person or thing is inherently fixed, implanted, or with which it is intimately connected; a. of the whole in which a part inheres:  b. of a person to whom another is wholly joined and to whose power and. influence he is subject, so that the former may be likened to the place in which the latter lives and moves.  So used in the writings of Paul and of John particularly of intimate relationship with God or with Christ, and for the most part involving contextually the idea of power and blessing resulting from that union thus, ….. in Christ, of his disciples and worshippers,…. amplified and strengthened in the fellowship of God and the consciousness of that fellowship, ….. ingrafted as it were in Christ, in fellowship and union with Christ, with the Lord:  …..Since such union with Christ is the basis on which actions and virtues rest, the expression is equivalent in meaning to by virtue of spiritual fellowship or union with Christ; in this sense it is joined to the following words and phrases: “ (Bold Mine italics original)
The NWT gives the full and clearer English idea of what the original language conveyed.
Reply
 

 Ben1957 says:

 May 12, 2014 at 11:59 pm

Sorry for the repeat of posts. I saw mistakesand tried to edit the posts to fix them. Evidently I can not do that. So again sorry for the repeats
Reply
 

 Ben1957 says:

 May 13, 2014 at 12:14 am

In reply to
 Judah Maccabee
 March 11, 2014 at 2:14 pm
In Colossians 1:16-20 the word “OTHER” must be inserted according to the context. If it is not inserted that that means (according to the context of that chapter) that Jesus created the Father.
The KJV reads at verse 16 “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him”
The first thing here is the word “by”. It is the Greek word en which earlier was argued by you that it means in. Notice part of the meaning that Strongs gives which is what the KJV translators picked up on and that is the word “ instrumentality”. So what the first part of that verse is saying “for by the instrumentality of Jesus God created ” Or Jesus was the instrument that God used in creation.
Now it is this next portion that is extremely important, “ all things created, that are in heaven”. So by the instrumentality of Jesus God created ALL things in heaven.
Now if we take the KJV rendering and the general understanding we have a problem Here it is again ““For by him were all things created, that are in heaven,” If we are to believe that Jesus on his own created ALL things IN HEAVEN then that means Jesus created the Father, for where is the abode of the Father?
Back in verse 3 we see two distinct personalities being addressed as per the KJV “ We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,”
We have GOD who is said to be the FATHER OF (by use of the conjugation and) Jesus.
By inserting the word “other” it tells us that Jesus did not create the father.
Also in verse 15 it tells us Jesus is a PART of creation. “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature” The Greek word “prototokos” that is rendered as “firstborn” can mean pre-eminent one. Now in the Bible the firstborn or pre-eminent one is always a apart of the group that they are the firstborn or pre-eminent one OF . So verse 15 is telling us that Jesus is the pre-eminent one and the firstborn one OF  the group called creation.
Here is an example from the Book of Acts where the KJV adds the word “other” to complete the sense in English. The KJV uses italics to indicate an added word. If other was not added here the casual reader would not know that Peter was an apostle of the Christ.
Acts 5:29 “Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.” (underline mine italic original)
Without the added word “other” this verse says ““Then Peter and the apostles”. The conjunction “and” separates Peter from the group known as apostles, but we all know that Peter was an apostles so with that knowledge the word “other” had been inserted to make it clear to the casual reader that Peter was indeed one of the chosen apostles.
According to the context then, the NWT is correct in adding the word “other”. However I do agree that the brackest should have remained in all casses of where words added to correct the sense in English
Reply
 

 Wild Olive says:

 February 5, 2015 at 8:15 pm

On a slightly different note re the RNWT. I don’t know how many noticed that when Guy Pierce was going through his spiel on the whys and wherefors of the need to revise,some old slides where part of the talk. On those slides where images of the original Westcott and Hort text. I noticed how many amendments and notations where added to that original text by the committee of translation( I use that expression loosely), the real translation by westcott and hort had been altered before going to print,that’s why it important to understand that the RNWT is BASED on their work and is not a word for word translation at all,which actually makes it a version not a translation,the GB could do this because they purchased the copyright and then altered it to suit WT theology,to call it a translation is a lie.
 In that same talk,mr pierce pointed out how inadequate the KJV is,therefore the need to find another “translation”.
One of the changes pointed out was John 17:3,it used to be “take in knowledge of God ” changed to “know God”
To the new JW this is irrelevant,but during my 40 yrs in the truth this verse was hammered in talks,studys, meeting parts,assembly parts,CO meetings et,and now it’s been changed,and guess what,the change is the same reading as the KJV which was translated 400 yrs ago,how’s that for “new light”.
Reply
 

 truenorth? says:

 February 5, 2015 at 8:48 pm

I notice how the new bible timeline says “ABOUT 1914″…looks to me like they are giving themselves a little wiggle room.
Reply
 

 Kevin says:

 March 30, 2015 at 11:26 pm

The NWT is an abomination of lies against Jah’s original Greek right from its first printing in 1950. The Kingdom Interlinear proves it. The GB admit what the Greek says,but do not teach it. See the proof in the link.
Reply
 

← Older Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾25 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     





















                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/the-revised-new-world-translation-will-it-stand-the-test-of-time





















Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



← Why it is morally wrong for Watchtower to push baptism on children
Governing Body takes center stage in new Warwick headquarters video →

The Revised New World Translation: Will it stand the test of time?
avatar
Posted on October 10, 2013

As Witnesses embrace the new bible we ask, "will it stand the test of time?"
As Witnesses embrace the new bible we ask, “will it stand the test of time?”

Many Jehovah’s Witnesses are overwhelmed with excitement following the release of the revised New World Translation at the 129th Annual Meeting over the weekend.
A number have taken to social media to express their joy and appreciation at what is being viewed by many as a gift straight from Jehovah. Geoffrey Jackson, who announced the release of the new Bible, even suggested that Jehovah had manipulated weather conditions to better facilitate its printing.
The new Bible has been available online since Monday, giving us the chance to see how it compares with the original. We also now have opportunity to familiarize ourselves with the various features of the book and ponder the question: “Will it stand the test of time?”
Improvements
More research tools
The new revision to the New World Translation boasts a number of research tools that were absent from the original. These include a glossary of Bible terms and two lengthy appendices. I am particularly impressed with the timeline of kings of Judah and Israel (A6), the chart showing biblical weights and measures (B14) and the much clearer Hebrew Calendar (B15). It is also nice to see footnotes on each page to show alternative terms, which (like the appendices) were previously only to be found in the Reference Bible.
The introductions to each Bible book with summaries of each chapter are also helpful, provided these are not used to mislead people (as I will touch on later).
Improved readability
The most obvious improvement to the New World Translation is that it is now written in English that most people will find easier to understand. This can only be a bonus for those who want to be able to read their Bibles more easily. The original edition, released in the 1950s, used language of the era that could at times be confusing. But with this revision it is much simpler to grasp the meaning of certain scriptures.
The English language has changed since the New World Translation was released in the 1950s
The English language has changed since the New World Translation was released in the 1950s

For example, expressions like “there proceeded to be” and “there came to be” are mostly gone, but not in such a way that the meaning is lost. And rather than being spelled out in words, numbers like 144,000 are simply expressed in digits. Because so many unnecessary words have been chopped from the text, this has resulted in a reduced total wordcount from approximately 907,000 words to 786,000 – a 13% reduction!
Another reason for the reduced wordcount has been the omission of a small number of bible verses now deemed spurious, namely the long and short conclusions to Mark, and John 7:53-8:11. As expected, this has not met with universal praise. One JWsurvey reader, author Robert Crompton, had this to say…

“I find it interesting that they have removed the alternative endings of Mark and the story about showing mercy in John 7:53 – 8:11. Usual translation practice is to include these with a note pointing out that they only appear in later (but nevertheless still early) manuscripts. That is, there is some, albeit limited, justification for referenced inclusion of these passages. And this limited justification is vastly greater than their justification for including the divine name which doesn’t appear in any NT manuscripts, only in late translations and other non-NT manuscripts.”
I would tend to agree with Robert on this. The fact that these texts were not in all of the earliest manuscripts does not necessarily mean that they shouldn’t have been. A more scholarly way of dealing with the problem would be to include the text with a clear indication of any reservations as to authenticity – as the original New World Translation did. To do otherwise is to risk omitting verses from the Bible that were intended to be in the original, and are therefore just as deserving to be considered as “inspired” scripture.
For those interested in researching this further, here are some interesting links on the omitted verses…
◾Article on the “adultery pericope” – John 7:53-8:11
◾Long ending to Mark – Mark 16:9-20
Better rendering of 1 Timothy 6:4
I must point out one significant improvement that has been made to one verse in particular that has caused considerable problems for thinking Witnesses – especially over the past two years. I refer to 1 Timothy 6:3-4, which used to read as follows (bold is mine)…

“If any man teaches other doctrine and does not assent to the healthful words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, nor to the teaching that accords with godly devotion, he is puffed up [with pride], not understanding anything, but being mentally diseased over questionings and debates about words. From these things spring envy, strife, abusive speeches, wicked suspicions.” – 1 Tim 6:3,4 New World Translation
This same verse now reads…

“If any man teaches another doctrine and does not agree with the wholesome instruction, which is from our Lord Jesus Christ, nor with the teaching that is in harmony with godly devotion, he is puffed up with pride and does not understand anything. He is obsessed with arguments and debates about words. These things give rise to envy, strife, slander, wicked suspicions.”- 1 Tim 6:3,4 Revised New World Translation
As you can see, the reference to apostates being “mentally diseased” has been removed and the verse translated more correctly to reflect the true intent of the writer. The footnote in the new Bible offers “an unhealthy fascination” as a further rendering, which is also notably different from how people today would consider the term “mentally diseased.”
Despite the obvious translation error in the original New World Translation, this did not stop Watchtower from recently using the term “mentally diseased” to berate those who disagree with organizational doctrine in the July 15, 2011 Watchtower. So loud was the uproar from the article that a journalist for the Independent wrote a piece on the “war of words” that the Society appeared to be waging against their dissenters. Seemingly unfazed by such exposure, the Governing Body had the phrase included recently in the outline for the “Human Apostates” talk at the 2013 District Convention.
The Independent newspaper reports on the July, 15 2011 Watchtower
The Independent’s article on the July, 15 2011 Watchtower (click to enlarge)

Though it is to be applauded that the erroneous and offensive “mentally diseased” expression has finally been extracted from the New World Translation, it can be argued that the damage has already been done. The term “mentally diseased” is now cemented in Witness jargon when it comes to describing any who disagree with the Governing Body.
It remains to be seen whether future writings on apostates will be softened following this change, but I am personally doubtful that there will be any significant toning-down of hateful rhetoric against former believers and free thinkers in the organization.
And can we expect a printed apology for the mischaracterization of so-called apostates based on a previous flawed bible translation? Again, I wouldn’t hold your breath.
And now the bad news…
Poor communication and limited availability
It would not be fair to repeat myself too much on the manner of the book’s release, but I feel a few things should be reiterated in this review. I have already commented on a previous article that there was absolutely no reason for the Governing Body to leave ordinary brothers in the dark as to why there was a shortage of Bibles. The fact that congregations were left guessing as their Bible stocks dwindled suggests strongly that the Governing Body was more interested in having their ticker-tape release than managing the expectations of the brothers.
There is frustration at the way some Witnesses were left out of the new Bible launch
There is frustration at the way some Witnesses were left out of the new Bible launch

I have also learned of a very uneven state of affairs in the way the new Bibles are being distributed in some congregations.
According to one report, Witnesses in England have been instructed to start using the new Bibles immediately, even though only a privileged few who attended the Annual Meeting event (mostly elders and their wives) have received their new Bibles. Until new Bibles are delivered for all, the rest of the congregation must make do with their old Bibles for some weeks.
This is causing frustration at the apparent elitist distinction as to who is more favored or “exemplary” in the congregation. Those not privileged to attend the Annual Meeting events and receive new Bibles are left feeling unworthy and overlooked. This problem could easily have been avoided by releasing the new Bibles simultaneously at the District Conventions once there were enough copies for all (as with any other release). But again, this would not have sufficiently satisfied the Governing Body’s apparent lust for acclaim and recognition.
“Governing body” inserted in chapter summary
Before seeing the new Bible for myself I was apprehensive over one matter in particular. I feared that Watchtower would attempt to spuriously insert the phrase “governing body” in the six instances in Acts chapters 15 and 16 where the phrase “apostles and older men” appears. These verses are often highlighted by Watchtower in an attempt to prove that there was a First Century “governing body” when there was no such thing.
You can imagine my relief when I saw that Watchtower had NOT stooped to such a low. The six instances of “the apostles and the older men” (5 in Acts 15, 1 in Acts 16) have been tweaked only slightly to read “the apostles and the elders.”
But my relief was short-lived.
Though the Bible verses themselves have been left un-touched, someone drew my attention to the fact that Watchtower has very cleverly inserted “governing body” in the chapter summary for Acts (pages 1459-1460) as follows…
new-bible-governing-body
As I said, there was no such thing as a “governing body” in the First Century. Yes, Jesus appointed his 12 apostles, but even Watchtower doesn’t like to compare the apostles directly with the Governing Body because they know how ridiculous this would sound. They therefore zero-in on a passage of scripture in Acts, chapters 15 and 16, and insist that “the apostles and the elders” served as a “governing body.”
There are two major problems with this, namely…
1.You cannot take the circumcision issue of Acts 15 in isolation and use it to extrapolate the idea of the apostles AND elders meeting together from that point onward to decide each and every issue that arose in the Christian congregation thereafter. To do so would be to assume something that is not found in the text.
2.Most crucially, by super-imposing the phrase “governing body” OVER the phrase “apostles and elders,” you are adding to the scriptures. You are effectively telling Jehovah, “You are incapable of explaining yourself because you didn’t describe the apostles and elders under a collective noun similar to ‘governing body’, so we will do that for you.”
By stamping the collective noun “governing body” over the term “apostles and elders,” whether in the bible text itself or in bible commentary, Watchtower is going against 1 Corinthians, which says…

“Now, brothers, these things I have applied to myself and Apollos for your good, that through us you may learn the rule: ‘Do not go beyond the things that are written,’ so that you may not be puffed up with pride, favoring one against the other.” - 1 Cor. 4:6 Revised New World Translation
Shackled to the 1914 teaching
I opened this article by asking whether this revised New World Translation will stand the test of time, and I will now give the main reason why I believe it won’t.
A foundation teaching of Jehovah’s Witnesses is the 1914 doctrine – the belief that Christ arrived in kingly power invisibly in 1914 and banished Satan to the earth for a “short period of time.” (Rev. 12:12) Well, that “short period of time” before Satan is abyssed and the Kingdom is established on the Earth is now 99 years and counting – certainly not a “short period of time” in any human context. And with each passing decade, it is becoming increasingly obvious that despite marking the beginning of World War I, 1914 held no significance in bible prophecy at all.
But with this new Bible, Watchtower is chaining itself to the 1914 teaching for decades to come – perhaps indefinitely. How so? Take a look at a detail from a page in Appendix B of the new Bible…
Taken from page 1767, revised New World Translation
Taken from page 1767, revised New World Translation

The above chart has clearly been produced by Watchtower with the firm belief that Armageddon is imminent. I can think of no other reason why Watchtower would marry itself to the idea of Armageddon and a cleansed Earth being only a “short time” from 1914. They must really be THAT deluded.
The trouble is, as previously stated, it is already obvious to many that 1914 was nothing more than a coincidence of history and a year with no prophetic meaning. As further decades tick by, the above chart will become more and more painful for Witnesses to open their Bibles and look at.
But that’s not the only time the 1914 teaching is referenced in this new Bible. I will now show a chart on page 1780 depicting Daniel’s immense image (to the right of the picture below). The new Bible shows the image with a caption at the bottom saying that the feet of iron mixed with molded clay began in 1914. Notice how similar Watchtower’s picture is to a detail from another chart (to the left), produced more than 170 years earlier.
Left - chart produced by Second Adventists predicting Christ's return in 1843; right - chart on page 1780 of the revised New World Translation
Left – detail from chart produced by Second Adventists predicting Christ’s return in 1843; right – chart on page 1780 of the revised New World Translation attributing 1914 as the start of the iron mixed with clay

The detail on the left is taken from a famous chart that was used by Second Adventist followers of William Miller to pronounce the year 1843 as heralding the second coming of Christ. When nothing happened in that year, Miller’s followers went back to the drawing board and decided that Christ was actually due on October 22, 1844.
That date went down in history as the “Great Disappointment,” because so many had sold their homes and property in expectation of a rapture that would never happen. It was likely this event that made Charles Taze Russell skeptical of Second Adventists, even though he eventually started to mimic the same fascination with date-setting after meeting Nelson H. Barbour.
It is easy to look back on the Adventist chart now, especially the part at the bottom (not shown above) where the date “1843” is inscribed in big bold letters, and smirk at how naive and misguided Miller’s followers were.
1914 is already distant history
1914 is already distant history

So just imagine how future generations of Witnesses will cringe with the same embarrassment when they dust off and open their old 2013 revised New World Translations and are reminded of the certainty with which 1914 was put forth as holding prophetic significance – and in a book that was printed sufficiently far from that date as to make it obvious that the prediction had already failed.
Of course there are bound to be Witnesses reading this who will be thinking: “Ah, you’re saying that now, but just you wait and see! Armageddon will arrive any moment and fully vindicate the 1914 teaching, and then you’ll be sorry!”
Well obviously you are welcome to think that way if it brings you comfort. But the simple fact is the 1914 teaching was already proved false some time ago when the generation that witnessed the events of that year fell asleep in death. With their passing, no longer could it be said by any reasonable stretch of the imagination that 1914 was a “short period of time” in the past. Instead, 1914 is now sliding ever deeper into the annals of history.
What fascinates me is that rather than recognizing their mistake, or acknowledging that they COULD be in error by keeping their options open, Watchtower is tying itself to the 1914 teaching for as long as this new Bible will be in use. And you can imagine it will be in use for many more decades. This is arguably the biggest problem with the new Bible, and one that will become increasingly obvious as the decades roll by. The sell-by date is simply too short.

John Cedars signature logo




Further reading…
◾Article on release of new Bible at annual meeting
◾Article on the Bible being announced as “sister proof” and provided by Jehovah
Related videos…








Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:



Bookmark the permalink.
 
← Why it is morally wrong for Watchtower to push baptism on children
Governing Body takes center stage in new Warwick headquarters video →

114 Responses to The Revised New World Translation: Will it stand the test of time?

← Older Comments

 Judah Maccabee says:

 March 11, 2014 at 2:17 pm

Also, Cedars, thanks for your effort.
Judah
Reply
 

 Pav says:

 March 11, 2014 at 3:49 pm

Comments presented in this article are made by person biased totally to nwt.
 May I know what translation is the best according to the author ???? Is there such???
Reply
 

 cheryl says:

 April 18, 2014 at 10:03 am

I am not an elder’s wife nor were those of my friends that I drove with to the annual meeting and we all got the new Bible. Our whole congregation was invited to the annual meeting and for those who did attend……they all got a new Bible. WE all were told to start using them immediately……and those who didn’t attend the meeting still had to use the old Bibles. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to reason on that. It was within that very month that the shipment of new Bibles was delivered to our Kingdom Hall and then EVERYONE had a new Bible. What’s so horribly wrong with having to wait a couple weeks for your Bible?????
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 April 18, 2014 at 10:08 am

I notice you’re posting from America, so it looks like you need to scroll back up and re-read my comments on Bible distribution. They were based on experiences in the UK, not the States. Hopefully you can appreciate that just because Bibles were quick to arrive in your American congregation, does not necessarily mean the same was true the world over.
Reply
 
 

 Paulo de Tarso says:

 April 24, 2014 at 10:48 am

Hi everybody;
 I am from Brazil and would like to ask how did you find this mistranslated verse, considering that here we haven`t received the new translation. Are you talking from Portugal? Have you received it there? Obrigado pela atenção aferida!
Reply
 

 Ben1957 says:

 May 12, 2014 at 11:42 pm

It is true that no surviving Greek text has the full rendering of the divine name in them. That does not prove that it was not there. YES it does matter if the wrong Proper noun “Jesus” or Jehovah”is used because that has a bearing on the identity of the person being spoken about. If Jesus is used in stead of Jehovah the reader will get the wrong idea.
IN FACT the Divine name IS THERE. You will find a shortened or abbreviated version of Jehovah DOES appear in the NT in Revelation 19:1,3,5 & 6 in the form used by the Psalms many times. The Greek form is “allelouia”. Many English Bibles render it as “ Halleluiah” the last three letters are the abbreviation of Jehovah namely “jah” . Some Bibles render it as “Praise the Lord”.
Strongs Greek Lexicon gives the following meaning “of Hebrew origin praise ye Jah!,” So the writer of revelation John uses a Hebrew expression that is used about 25 times in Psalms. Where it occurs in the Psalms, Most Bibles tend to use the expression “Praise the LORD”. The Calvin Bible, Darby, Good News Bibles all use Hallelujah. Young’s Literal Translation says “Praise ye Jehovah” The NT writers were well aware of the divine name.
There are many texts that show that GOD wanted his divine name made known.
 Isaiah 52:6 “Therefore my people shall know my name:”
Jeremiah 16 21 ”… and they shall know that my name is The LORD.” (LORD = Divine name YHWH = Jehovah)
 Ezekiel 6:7 “… and ye shall know that I am the LORD.” That phrase appears more that 50 times in Ezekiel.
Where Greek texts say simply “kurios” (lord), that can refer to Jesus , or God, or as a matter of fact anyone that was a master. The Context needs to be considered. In many places it may be unclear as to who the word “lord” is referring to. In those cases I support the English use of lord. However when the use of “kurios” in the Greek text is a direct quote from the OT and the OT uses the Divine name, then the Divine name should be used.
Reply
 

 Ben1957 says:

 May 12, 2014 at 11:52 pm

In reply to
 Judah Maccabee
 March 11, 2014 at 2:14 pm
Is it true that the Greek manuscripts of Colossians 3:13 say ““Christ (Christos) freely forgave”.
The truth is Colossians 3:13 reads differently in different master Greek texts. I have electronic copies of the following Greek Master texts. I list them in the order of who uses Christos or who uses kurios
Christos
 Tischendorf’s 8th Edition Greek text (1859)
 Stephanas Textus Receptus (1550)
 Scrivener’s Textus Receptus (1894)
 Byzantine Majority Greek text
The above master Greek texts are all later compilations of texts done after 1550
kurios
 United Bible Society 4 revision
 Nestles Alands 27 Vertion
 Tregelles Greek Text
 Westcot and Horts Greek text
 Codex Vaticanus (Approximate 400 c.e.)
Now this final one is interesting as it uses “theos” and that is the Codex Sinaiticus (Approximate 400 c.e.)
Does 2 Thessalonians 2:2 say “the day of Christ (Christou)” ? The following Master Greek Texts say b>“the day of the Lord”
United Bible Society 4 revision
 Tischendorf’s 8th Edition Greek text (1859)
 Nestles Alands 27 Vertion
 Tregelles Greek Text
 Westcot and Horts Greek text
 Codex Vaticanus
 Codex Siniaticus
2 Thessalonians 2:2 seems to be a quote from Isaiah13:6 “ Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand;” and or from Zephaniah 1:14 ” “The great day of the LORD is near,” where LORD = the Divine name YHWH = Jehovah
Colossians 1:14 and Colossians 1:27 what should the rendering be? It is absolutely true that the base word used there is the Greek preposition “en “ generally rendered as “in”. However that is rarely the case that it has the simple meaning of “in” . Strongs Greek Lexicon gives the following meaning
“a primary prep. denoting (fixed) position (in place, time or state), and (by impl.) instrumentality (medially or constructively), i.e. a relation of rest (intermediate between 1519 eis and 1537 ἐκ); “in, ” at, (up-) on, by, etc.:—about, after, against, + almost, × altogether, among, × as, at, before, between, (here-) by (+ all means), for (… sake of), + give self wholly to, (here-) in (-to, -wardly), × mightily, (because) of, (up-) on, [open-] ly, × outwardly, one, × quickly, × shortly, [speedi-] ly, × that, × there (-in, -on), through (-out), (un-) to (-ward), under, when, where (-with), while, with (-in). Often used in compounds, with substantially the same import; rarely with verbs of motion, and then not to indicate direction, except (elliptically) by a separate (and different) prep”
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon has a lot more to say on this preposition and the way it can be used. Under point 6 it says that a connection or union with another is often meant by this word.
“ of that in which any person or thing is inherently fixed, implanted, or with which it is b>intimately connected; a. of the whole in which a part inheres:  b. of a person to whom another is wholly joined and to whose power and. influence he is subject, so that the former may be likened to the place in which the latter lives and moves.  So used in the writings of Paul and of John particularly of b>intimate relationship with God or with Christ, and for the most part involving contextually the idea of power and blessing resulting from that b>union thus, ….. in Christ, of his disciples and worshippers,…. amplified and strengthened in the fellowship of God and the consciousness of that fellowship, ….. ingrafted as it were in Christ, in fellowship and union with Christ, with the Lord:  …..Since such union with Christ is the basis on which actions and virtues rest, the expression is equivalent in meaning to by virtue of spiritual fellowship or union with Christ; in this sense it is joined to the following words and phrases: “ (Bold Mine italics original)
The NWT gives the full and clearer English idea of what the original language conveyed.
Reply
 

 Ben1957 says:

 May 12, 2014 at 11:55 pm

In reply to
 Judah Maccabee
 March 11, 2014 at 2:14 pm
Is it true that the Greek manuscripts of Colossians 3:13 say ““Christ (Christos) freely forgave”.
The truth is Colossians 3:13 reads differently in different master Greek texts. I have electronic copies of the following Greek Master texts. I list them in the order of who uses Christos or who uses kurios
Christos
 Tischendorf’s 8th Edition Greek text (1859)
 Stephanas Textus Receptus (1550)
 Scrivener’s Textus Receptus (1894)
 Byzantine Majority Greek text
The above master Greek texts are all later compilations of texts done after 1550
kurios
 United Bible Society 4 revision
 Nestles Alands 27 Vertion
 Tregelles Greek Text
 Westcot and Horts Greek text
 Codex Vaticanus (Approximate 400 c.e.)
Now this final one is interesting as it uses “theos” and that is the Codex Sinaiticus (Approximate 400 c.e.)
Does 2 Thessalonians 2:2 say “the day of Christ (Christou)” ? The following Master Greek Texts say “the day of the Lord”
United Bible Society 4 revision
 Tischendorf’s 8th Edition Greek text (1859)
 Nestles Alands 27 Vertion
 Tregelles Greek Text
 Westcot and Horts Greek text
 Codex Vaticanus
 Codex Siniaticus
2 Thessalonians 2:2 seems to be a quote from Isaiah13:6 “ Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand;” and or from Zephaniah 1:14 ” “The great day of the LORD is near,” where LORD = the Divine name YHWH = Jehovah
Colossians 1:14 and Colossians 1:27 what should the rendering be? It is absolutely true that the base word used there is the Greek preposition “en “ generally rendered as “in”. However that is rarely the case that it has the simple meaning of “in” . Strongs Greek Lexicon gives the following meaning
“a primary prep. denoting (fixed) position (in place, time or state), and (by impl.) instrumentality (medially or constructively), i.e. a relation of rest (intermediate between 1519 eis and 1537 ἐκ); “in, ” at, (up-) on, by, etc.:—about, after, against, + almost, × altogether, among, × as, at, before, between, (here-) by (+ all means), for (… sake of), + give self wholly to, (here-) in (-to, -wardly), × mightily, (because) of, (up-) on, [open-] ly, × outwardly, one, × quickly, × shortly, [speedi-] ly, × that, × there (-in, -on), through (-out), (un-) to (-ward), under, when, where (-with), while, with (-in). Often used in compounds, with substantially the same import; rarely with verbs of motion, and then not to indicate direction, except (elliptically) by a separate (and different) prep”
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon has a lot more to say on this preposition and the way it can be used. Under point 6 it says that a connection or union with another is often meant by this word.
“ of that in which any person or thing is inherently fixed, implanted, or with which it isintimately connected; a. of the whole in which a part inheres:  b. of a person to whom another is wholly joined and to whose power and. influence he is subject, so that the former may be likened to the place in which the latter lives and moves.  So used in the writings of Paul and of John particularly of intimate relationship with God or with Christ, and for the most part involving contextually the idea of power and blessing resulting from that union thus, ….. in Christ, of his disciples and worshippers,…. amplified and strengthened in the fellowship of God and the consciousness of that fellowship, ….. ingrafted as it were in Christ, in fellowship and union with Christ, with the Lord:  …..Since such union with Christ is the basis on which actions and virtues rest, the expression is equivalent in meaning to by virtue of spiritual fellowship or union with Christ; in this sense it is joined to the following words and phrases: “ (Bold Mine italics original)
The NWT gives the full and clearer English idea of what the original language conveyed.
Reply
 

 Ben1957 says:

 May 12, 2014 at 11:57 pm

In reply to
 Judah Maccabee
 March 11, 2014 at 2:14 pm
Is it true that the Greek manuscripts of Colossians 3:13 say ““Christ (Christos) freely forgave”.
The truth is Colossians 3:13 reads differently in different master Greek texts. I have electronic copies of the following Greek Master texts. I list them in the order of who uses Christos or who uses kurios
Christos
 Tischendorf’s 8th Edition Greek text (1859)
 Stephanas Textus Receptus (1550)
 Scrivener’s Textus Receptus (1894)
 Byzantine Majority Greek text
The above master Greek texts are all later compilations of texts done after 1550
kurios
 United Bible Society 4 revision
 Nestles Alands 27 Vertion
 Tregelles Greek Text
 Westcot and Horts Greek text
 Codex Vaticanus (Approximate 400 c.e.)
Now this final one is interesting as it uses “theos” and that is the Codex Sinaiticus (Approximate 400 c.e.)
Does 2 Thessalonians 2:2 say “the day of Christ (Christou)” ? The following Master Greek Texts say “the day of the Lord”
United Bible Society 4 revision
 Tischendorf’s 8th Edition Greek text (1859)
 Nestles Alands 27 Vertion
 Tregelles Greek Text
 Westcot and Horts Greek text
 Codex Vaticanus
 Codex Siniaticus
2 Thessalonians 2:2 seems to be a quote from Isaiah13:6 “ Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand;” and or from Zephaniah 1:14 ” “The great day of the LORD is near,” where LORD = the Divine name YHWH = Jehovah
Colossians 1:14 and Colossians 1:27 what should the rendering be? It is absolutely true that the base word used there is the Greek preposition “en “ generally rendered as “in”. However that is rarely the case that it has the simple meaning of “in” . Strongs Greek Lexicon gives the following meaning
“a primary prep. denoting (fixed) position (in place, time or state), and (by impl.) instrumentality (medially or constructively), i.e. a relation of rest (intermediate between 1519 eis and 1537 ἐκ); “in, ” at, (up-) on, by, etc.:—about, after, against, + almost, × altogether, among, × as, at, before, between, (here-) by (+ all means), for (… sake of), + give self wholly to, (here-) in (-to, -wardly), × mightily, (because) of, (up-) on, [open-] ly, × outwardly, one, × quickly, × shortly, [speedi-] ly, × that, × there (-in, -on), through (-out), (un-) to (-ward), under, when, where (-with), while, with (-in). Often used in compounds, with substantially the same import; rarely with verbs of motion, and then not to indicate direction, except (elliptically) by a separate (and different) prep”
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon has a lot more to say on this preposition and the way it can be used. Under point 6 it says that a connection or union with another is often meant by this word.
“ of that in which any person or thing is inherently fixed, implanted, or with which it is intimately connected; a. of the whole in which a part inheres:  b. of a person to whom another is wholly joined and to whose power and. influence he is subject, so that the former may be likened to the place in which the latter lives and moves.  So used in the writings of Paul and of John particularly of intimate relationship with God or with Christ, and for the most part involving contextually the idea of power and blessing resulting from that union thus, ….. in Christ, of his disciples and worshippers,…. amplified and strengthened in the fellowship of God and the consciousness of that fellowship, ….. ingrafted as it were in Christ, in fellowship and union with Christ, with the Lord:  …..Since such union with Christ is the basis on which actions and virtues rest, the expression is equivalent in meaning to by virtue of spiritual fellowship or union with Christ; in this sense it is joined to the following words and phrases: “ (Bold Mine italics original)
The NWT gives the full and clearer English idea of what the original language conveyed.
Reply
 

 Ben1957 says:

 May 12, 2014 at 11:59 pm

Sorry for the repeat of posts. I saw mistakesand tried to edit the posts to fix them. Evidently I can not do that. So again sorry for the repeats
Reply
 

 Ben1957 says:

 May 13, 2014 at 12:14 am

In reply to
 Judah Maccabee
 March 11, 2014 at 2:14 pm
In Colossians 1:16-20 the word “OTHER” must be inserted according to the context. If it is not inserted that that means (according to the context of that chapter) that Jesus created the Father.
The KJV reads at verse 16 “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him”
The first thing here is the word “by”. It is the Greek word en which earlier was argued by you that it means in. Notice part of the meaning that Strongs gives which is what the KJV translators picked up on and that is the word “ instrumentality”. So what the first part of that verse is saying “for by the instrumentality of Jesus God created ” Or Jesus was the instrument that God used in creation.
Now it is this next portion that is extremely important, “ all things created, that are in heaven”. So by the instrumentality of Jesus God created ALL things in heaven.
Now if we take the KJV rendering and the general understanding we have a problem Here it is again ““For by him were all things created, that are in heaven,” If we are to believe that Jesus on his own created ALL things IN HEAVEN then that means Jesus created the Father, for where is the abode of the Father?
Back in verse 3 we see two distinct personalities being addressed as per the KJV “ We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,”
We have GOD who is said to be the FATHER OF (by use of the conjugation and) Jesus.
By inserting the word “other” it tells us that Jesus did not create the father.
Also in verse 15 it tells us Jesus is a PART of creation. “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature” The Greek word “prototokos” that is rendered as “firstborn” can mean pre-eminent one. Now in the Bible the firstborn or pre-eminent one is always a apart of the group that they are the firstborn or pre-eminent one OF . So verse 15 is telling us that Jesus is the pre-eminent one and the firstborn one OF  the group called creation.
Here is an example from the Book of Acts where the KJV adds the word “other” to complete the sense in English. The KJV uses italics to indicate an added word. If other was not added here the casual reader would not know that Peter was an apostle of the Christ.
Acts 5:29 “Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.” (underline mine italic original)
Without the added word “other” this verse says ““Then Peter and the apostles”. The conjunction “and” separates Peter from the group known as apostles, but we all know that Peter was an apostles so with that knowledge the word “other” had been inserted to make it clear to the casual reader that Peter was indeed one of the chosen apostles.
According to the context then, the NWT is correct in adding the word “other”. However I do agree that the brackest should have remained in all casses of where words added to correct the sense in English
Reply
 

 Wild Olive says:

 February 5, 2015 at 8:15 pm

On a slightly different note re the RNWT. I don’t know how many noticed that when Guy Pierce was going through his spiel on the whys and wherefors of the need to revise,some old slides where part of the talk. On those slides where images of the original Westcott and Hort text. I noticed how many amendments and notations where added to that original text by the committee of translation( I use that expression loosely), the real translation by westcott and hort had been altered before going to print,that’s why it important to understand that the RNWT is BASED on their work and is not a word for word translation at all,which actually makes it a version not a translation,the GB could do this because they purchased the copyright and then altered it to suit WT theology,to call it a translation is a lie.
 In that same talk,mr pierce pointed out how inadequate the KJV is,therefore the need to find another “translation”.
One of the changes pointed out was John 17:3,it used to be “take in knowledge of God ” changed to “know God”
To the new JW this is irrelevant,but during my 40 yrs in the truth this verse was hammered in talks,studys, meeting parts,assembly parts,CO meetings et,and now it’s been changed,and guess what,the change is the same reading as the KJV which was translated 400 yrs ago,how’s that for “new light”.
Reply
 

 truenorth? says:

 February 5, 2015 at 8:48 pm

I notice how the new bible timeline says “ABOUT 1914″…looks to me like they are giving themselves a little wiggle room.
Reply
 

 Kevin says:

 March 30, 2015 at 11:26 pm

The NWT is an abomination of lies against Jah’s original Greek right from its first printing in 1950. The Kingdom Interlinear proves it. The GB admit what the Greek says,but do not teach it. See the proof in the link.
Reply
 

← Older Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾25 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     





















                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/the-revised-new-world-translation-will-it-stand-the-test-of-time




























Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



← Governor Brown’s SB 131 veto leaves Watchtower child abuse victims frustrated
The 1914 Obsession: Watchtower clings to flawed teaching in first magazine of 2014 →

Error found in new “Silver Sword” revised New World Translation
avatar
Posted on October 16, 2013

It looks like the newly-released revision to the New World Translation is already a "limited edition"
It looks like the newly-released revision to the New World Translation is already a “limited edition”

Only a few days have passed since the revised New World Translation was released at the 129th Annual Meeting. But it looks like the first printing of this Bible (or “silver sword,” as some have nicknamed it) is already a limited edition.
Former Witnesses have found an error in the new Bible, ironically in the book of Numbers. The header to page 267 shows the page numbers going down from Numbers chapter 35 to Numbers chapter 33. The header should instead read “Numbers 32:37-33:22.” At the time of writing, this typo is also in the PDF version.
JWsurvey readers will remember Geoffrey Jackson’s grand unveiling of this new Bible, in which he suggested that Jehovah was responsible for the favorable weather conditions at Wallkill while it was being printed. If true, this would mean that Jehovah saw fit to manipulate the weather to speed up printing but somehow neglected to make sure Watchtower’s proofreaders were sufficiently scrupulous.
page-267
The header to page 267 from the revised New World Translation

Though not a huge mistake by any stretch, the typo does highlight that Watchtower publications are not as error-free as many Witnesses are led to believe. It will also be a source of considerable embarrassment to Watchtower that they must now correct their newly-revised Bibles and begin a new print run – with thousands of the faulty Bibles already in circulation. Watchtower’s writing team will also likely want to double-check each page to see whether there are any similar errors lurking elsewhere.
And those English-speaking Witnesses fortunate enough to receive the first new Bibles now have evidence in their book bags that Watchtower’s proofreaders are not as meticulous as you would expect.

John Cedars signature logo




Further reading…
◾The Revised New World Translation – Will it stand the test of time?
◾New English NWT Bible released as Annual Meeting is leaked online
◾Governing Body on show: God fixed weather to produce “sister proof” new bible


Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:



Bookmark the permalink.
 
← Governor Brown’s SB 131 veto leaves Watchtower child abuse victims frustrated
The 1914 Obsession: Watchtower clings to flawed teaching in first magazine of 2014 →

130 Responses to Error found in new “Silver Sword” revised New World Translation

← Older Comments

 Excelsior, formerly known as George says:

 October 27, 2013 at 3:59 am

Bill, in reply to your comment.
Jesus spoke with:
Satan, who is the biggest hater of Jehovah and the original apostate.
The Religious leaders of his time, who had abandoned mercy.
Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
Need I go on? You have no position from which to argue on, do you?
I challenge you. Show me a scripture where Jesus refused to speak with anyone. He spoke with tax collectors, sinners, prostitutes etc.
This narrow road metaphor does not in any way relate to shunning. Your arguments are bogus.
It is none of your business whether I am disassociated or disfellowshipped. I have no desire to share my personal life with someone like you.
Also, Jesus couldn’t not speak to someone expelled from the congregation because there were no congregations at that time, as you we’ll know. Another bogus argument.
You have no ground to stand on. Jesus trumps any apostle or prophet, doesn’t he? I would suggest that you stop trying to convince others of a faith that you so clearly do not understand.
Reply
 

 JK says:

 October 27, 2013 at 6:53 am

You don’t have to resign from the JW. When you stop reporting for field service and meeting attendance, effectively you’ve resigned.
Reply
 

 skally says:

 October 27, 2013 at 2:29 pm

I’ve been df-ed over 35 years now and never thought that the wt god they called jehovah was ever the real god I knew as a child, before the lethal death machine got my mother to join in the holding of bloody hands, that every jw has, whether they are active or just being a fraud for the sake of whatever excuse they want to put in there.
George thinks I am one of you though cedars.
~skally~
Reply
 

 JBob says:

 October 28, 2013 at 1:50 pm

Narrow & cramped is the road leading off to life? Get the quote correct:
Matt 7:14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Luke 13:24 “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able.”
Who is the gate? Who is the Way?
So, if we must go with the numbers game, that would mean, if your group is growing in numbers, it is no longer on a narrow and cramped path?
However, we know the Wt always applied that scripture exclusively to the anointed–a finite group of 144,000 not the general JW population..
Not the mentally diseased masses who chomp down the unleavened wafers and gulp down the wine at Memorial time. The GB is probably trimming that verse back to themselves even as we discuss this, now.
Reply
 

 JBob says:

 October 28, 2013 at 2:24 pm

Every denomination that has arisen without direct, evident apostolic succession claims there were believers of their theology in the 1st century. And, there probably were because the records of history show that 1st century Christianity was a hotbed of diverse ideas, including Gnostic Christianity. The wealthiest and more influential cities and families eventually dominated what would become the major standard.
It’s interesting that you mention the Adventists not existing in the first century because neither were Jehovah’s Witnesses present at that time, yet they’ve inevitably striven to draw a line of succession from themselves through Waldensians back to the first century. And, coincidentally, so do Adventists and so do Christadelphians.
I will correct that the version of df-ing used by most churches does not involve shunning, exceptions being Amish and Mennonites, and some Latter-Day Saint groups, only removing one from membership. JW’s take it to a medieval, inquisition level of torture by loading remaining family and membership with images of demons attacking should they even make eye contact with former members. In this way, it is linked directly to the form of rebuke used by many of the Adventist Founding Fathers and Mother who used df-ing to ostracize those they found unfavorable or out-of-step with their wishes.
Many non-JW’s often will tell someone who is conflicted with being JW and disagreeing with the group, “just leave; can’t you find another church?” But, as you also posted, rather ironically, the adherent is reminded constantly, “Where else can you go to hear the ‘sayings of truth’?” With that blasted into the mind, those who are uninformed about other denominations–2nd, 3rd, 4th generation JW’s–would be reluctant and feeling trapped–self-destructive, if not suicidal.
This same sentiment is echoed by those who remain JW–seeing the group as the sole source of “the Truth”. Often the quote is, “Who HAS the Truth?” Yet, Jesus gave an answer in scripture that does not fit this question. And, in a metaphorical Jeopardy game, the question is, “Who IS the Truth?” The Bible never answers the perverted question, “Who has the Truth”.
Reply
 

 Jeffro says:

 November 2, 2013 at 8:53 am

The error has been fixed in the new new New World Translation in PDF format on the official website. Apart from fixing the heading in Numbers, there are only two other changes to the text: 1) Number of available languages reported as “120” instead of “110”. 2) “August 2013 Printing” is changed to “October 2013 Printing”.
Reply
 

 Rob says:

 November 5, 2013 at 7:36 am

Current literature puts the 1914 calculation based on the 7 Gentile times=2520 years from 607 BCE. The only issue might be the year 607 BCE where there is some dispute by authorities, but certainly not by a wide margin. IIRC I’ve seen some put it 25 years from that. My point, if it is the time of the end, the WT has the message right. Pinning it to a date has never worked out and in fact Jesus said no one would know. But parallel this to world events such a Fukushima close to a full catastrophe, global warming, mass extinction, you can sense these are unprecedented times.
Reply
 

 Wilhelm says:

 November 7, 2013 at 3:42 am

Quite interesting. I downloaded that specific Bible the day after it was publised on the website and page 267’s header read. ” Numbers 32:37-33:22
Reply
 

 Jeffro says:

 November 9, 2013 at 6:10 pm

If the minor error in the page header of Numbers warrants attention, surely their revision of Jeremiah 29:10 deserves an article. It entirely contradicts their own doctrine.
Reply
 

 Wilhelm says:

 November 11, 2013 at 8:56 am

Why is everybody so hastily looking for errors in the revised New world Translation? Nobody is saying anything about the revised King James versioon which is the worst most incorrect translation of any Bible into any language. Many people keep using it. is it because you can’t, according to the King James, sin in any way.
Reply
 

 Wilhelm says:

 November 11, 2013 at 9:01 am

You can’t just stay away from any church and say you resigned. You have to write a letter stating that you resign. Exactly the same with Jehovah’s Witnesses. When stopping to attend meetings or doing field service does not mean that you resigned
Reply
 

 Wilhelm says:

 November 11, 2013 at 9:07 am

Only those doing exactly what GOD’s word tells them to do.
Reply
 

 steve read says:

 November 15, 2013 at 6:24 am

As a former JW, I wonder how before they realise that the error is not the bible translation but doctrines? Long being deceived that scripture show the Great Crowd was on earth. When all the time scripture showed they are in heaven. Revelation 7:15 shows the great crowd ‘they’ rendering sacred service day and night “IN” THE TEMPLE. Not towards or before but IN. Which is in heaven. So they must be in heaven!!
Reply
 

 Wilhelm says:

 November 15, 2013 at 10:24 am

Very interesting to see how you use you words. According to your use of specific words, it show me that you weren’t really one of Jehovah’s Witnesses. If you really are somebody that want the Bible to rule your life, then you will never follow people as you did. You don’t follow Witnesses or the Governing Body. You study their guidelines together with your Bible and you then follow GOD’s Word
Reply
 

 steve read says:

 November 16, 2013 at 8:40 am

Are you replying to my comment?
 I WAS a JW for 2 decades.
 And it is the societies use of words that are wrong!
Reply
 

 Windsurfer says:

 November 17, 2013 at 5:05 am

Yes.
Reply
 

 D says:

 December 14, 2013 at 12:00 pm

They are human and we all make mistakes. Remember we are imperfect.
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 December 14, 2013 at 12:04 pm

D – welcome to the site. I agree that this is hardly a mistake, it’s more of a typo. That said…



Reply
 
 

 Bright Flaxen Wick says:

 December 29, 2013 at 2:53 am

I am a JW in good standing who is very much aware of what is going on and still cannot figure out what to do. I agree with Peter at John 6:68. Where else can I go where I would not be forced to believe the pagan Greek-inspired hellfire, immortal soul, and all good people go to heaven doctrines?
I have a lot of issues with this version of the NWT, however, and am very appalled that it appears to have been, at the least, dumbed-down. All of the beautiful prose and poetry have been castrated, and, as Hakizimana Jean de Dieu points out above, the strength of the original phraseology has been greatly watered down.
My biggest concern is that, formerly, the WTS translated every occurrence of “nephesh” and “psyche” as “soul,” making it clear that a soul is the person him/herself. The latest edition has chosen to interpret many of the occurrences differently, confusing the issue, just as Christendom had done in previous times. Ezekiel 18:20 has been left intact–for now–but it seems like a step in the wrong direction to vary from the consistent translations of those two very important terms.
This is to be expected, I guess, now that there are very few anointed brothers within Bethel. Not that the old anointed ones were worth much; I have a feeling that either they were mistaken about their spiritual calling, lying about it, or that they lost it as they compromised with Satan’s elements on the inside and outside of the organization. “Many are called; few are chosen” (Matt. 22:14), which explains why the number of anointed is rising, much to the FDS’ chagrin: Jehovah is still calling faithful ones to replace the corrupt ones who lost their crown.
I suppose I have just answered my own question. If Jehovah is still calling anointed ones from within the ranks of JWs, despite the fuming response from Bethel toward these newly anointed ones, then it seems clear that Jehovah is still using the organization…for the time being. This makes perfect sense, since the pattern was set with how He handled ancient Israel. They strayed and were corrupted for most of their history, yet Jehovah did not reject them completely until they killed Christ. Which may mean that the FDS class will turn on the newly–and truly–anointed ones in the same manner in which the Pharisees turned on Christ, one of their own, out of jealousy and a fear of losing their power from Satan’s political entities. That, too, should be expected, since Jesus warned that his brothers, the anointed, would be persecuted in the same manner he was (John 15:20). So, the reaction from Bethel toward the newly anointed ones (many of whom must partake in secret, as the venom is very apparent and is a real threat from the elders all the way to the top, I would imagine) may very well be the key to when to leave the Society and head for the hills (Matt. 24:15, 16). Let the reader use discernment. :-)
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 December 29, 2013 at 3:15 am

Welcome to our website! I commend your genuine search for truth. You sound like a decent guy.
All I would say in response to your last paragraph, is that you are not the only one trapped in a “purgatory” of sorts where the belief is held that the organization has clearly gone astray but must still have a place in God’s plan. Please think about this carefully and follow things through to their logical conclusion, however painful that may be. Could not this argument be applied to ANY Christian denomination, the catholic church included? If religions are to be so easily let off the hook when they err, what makes any one of them unique?
Here is a video I recorded recently addressing a similar question…


I would also urge you to read Crisis of Conscience by Ray Franz, which you will find available for download on this link… http://www.scribd.com/doc/20333975/Crisis-of-Conscience-2004-Unencrypted
I know how scary it is to see how deep the rabbit hole goes, but I promise you – it’s worth it.
I wish you well on your journey.
Cedars
Reply
 
 

 Jason says:

 January 14, 2014 at 10:49 am

I was looking for info about the revised edition, but you people are just bitter. Get a life people. Stop being so bitter, can’t you see the truth when you see it. Leave those people alone, at least they live by principles!
Reply
 

 two or five says:

 January 16, 2014 at 2:30 pm

So basically what you’re saying is that the only mistake is instead of a 2 they put a 5?! WOW! What terrible people!
Reply
 

 SDL says:

 March 9, 2014 at 8:05 pm

Beautiful. Thanks, mark. I will be looking into this one. Significant bias if it holds true.
Reply
 

 SDL says:

 March 9, 2014 at 8:17 pm

I thought Bright Flaxen Wick was female for some reason. Sorry if mistaken. Doesn’t matter. Want to add that to me the thing about Peter saying to whom shall I go didn’t mean which autocracy of men shall I go to but more along the vein of not leaving Jesus. What about considering that “getting out of her” may include the JWs book-publishing company and trusting that the way will be shown you. Live into the unknowns rather than requiring a modern-day crutch. Jesus himself left the religion of his youth and replaced it with a law of love. How about imitating that rather than replacing it with a new set of rules off a printing press bowed down to like an idol by men worshipped like idols. It’s scary, I know, but so worth it.
Reply
 

 SDL says:

 March 9, 2014 at 9:57 pm

mark, I called a friend that has the new silver bible and confirmed that what you said is true about those scriptures in Genesis and Exodus. Thanks for that. I find it interesting. To me it says a lot about how their bias sways their translation even when it’s completely unnecessary. It says a lot to me. I hope others pick up on it too.
Reply
 

 SDL says:

 March 9, 2014 at 10:12 pm

@ whatevs – lol, that was funny
Reply
 

 SDL says:

 March 9, 2014 at 10:27 pm

mark, thanks again. I called a friend that has the new silver sword translation and confirmed that those scripts in Genesis and Exodus are contradictory as you said. It says a lot to me about how their priorities and biases impact their translation completely unnecessarily. Hard to picture a God giving them spirit allowing a basic contradiction like that. If they can’t get that much right then how can the deeper things be trusted. I hope others pick up on glaring errors like that too and see the significance and waste no more time procrastinating life we are given for some idealistic rhetoric we are promised by mere men who treat their bible like an alcoholic treats his bottle. Too many are just so desperate or greedy for more life than is naturally granted to a human, so they fall prey to false prophets promising eternal life. If only they would see how completely fulfilling life can be without all the mythological rhetoric.
Reply
 

 Keith Gonzales says:

 March 22, 2014 at 2:17 pm

The problem is that if the foundation is bad then everthing that follows will be a lie .
 Think of a house on a faulty foundation .
 That is why Jesus said to build on the solid rock of divine revelation aka his word and not the sinking sand of human speculation : Mat 7:24 .
 Jude commands us to contend earnestly for the faith once given to the saints .
 Just as Jesus Christ offered that sacrifice once and only once in the same way God gave us the faith once and only once via the Apostles which they wrote and now appear as the New Testament , the Doctrine of Christ .
 2 John 7 tells us that if we abide not in this doctrine we do not have God .
 2 Tim 4 speaks of men not enduring sound doctrine .
 It is being fulfilled even as we speak .
Reply
 

 Damien Auksorius says:

 May 17, 2014 at 8:28 pm

Hi my name is damien Auksorius , my grandfather was a Jehovah’s Witness and he enjoyed using the King James Bible , this was the bible that they used back then , apparently this king James is the most accurate translation at the moment .
Reply
 
 imacountrygirl says:

 May 18, 2014 at 1:30 pm

Hey Damien! Thank you for posting and welcome!
Were you ever associated with Jehovah’s Witnesses yourself? Or, was it only your grandfather?
I enjoy reading the KJV myself.
I don’t know that there really is “the most accurate translation”. They all contain errors of some kind. I have found a site where it will pull the same scripture up from 25 translations so that you can compare them to each other.
I find it very useful.
http://biblehub.com/
Reply
 
 

 trenton crump says:

 May 23, 2014 at 10:32 pm

Moses completely destroyed the original tablets that contained the 10 commandments. Afterward, God had him simply carve out 2 new tablets.
 The governing body make one simple printing error in the NWT and that’d proof they do not have Gods spirit? Like Moses, they corrected the error by simply carving out new tablets, I’m mean new bibles.
Reply
 

 Chris says:

 July 27, 2014 at 12:15 pm

Who cares. The King James Version is riddled with errors that affect doctrine. This is petty
Reply
 

 Wild Olive says:

 February 5, 2015 at 5:23 pm

Ime at the moment still with the JW faith,but I have to say re the new translation,it’s just a huge fail,more than half the cross references have been removed,it feels to me that the GB don’t really want anyone to seriously study the Bible.They want to control what you study.
 At the release of the new bible Guy Pierce talked about some of the changes,one that stood out was John17:3,it got changed from “taking in knowledge ” of God to “know God”.
Now that may be insignificant to a new JW, but for most of my 40 yrs in the truth that scripture was hammered in talks,studys,assembly parts CO visits pioneer meetings etc,and now it’s changed,and guess what,it now reads identical to the KJV,a bible that Guy Pierce said was inadequate,ah the contradictions!
Reply
 
 Lover of Jehovah says:

 February 6, 2015 at 9:12 am

Wild Olive,
I think the the NWT is awesome. I do like the 2013 version, however if they have made some changes, I will be disappointed. I was a fan of the 1984 version and if need be I will just use that one. I am displeased with the wording when they use Homosexual I was surprised that they would use that word. It is an incorrect translation. Just thought it was interesting and wanted to see what other passages say. It really seems more like the current bibles that are out their. I have looked in other Bibles and have decided to stick with Darby. I have spoken to Bible Students and they also like the Darby. (Bible students that broke away from the society when Rutherford took over and changed everything)
Reply
 
 

 Wild Olive says:

 February 11, 2015 at 10:29 pm

@lover of Jehovah ,I also like the 1984 edition,I think it is the pinnacle of NWT,
 After that it’s all downhill,as REAL bible study is not encouraged,only what the GB has said should be studied
 I have 9 different translations that I use,some words that make a difference are important,ie proskenao,translated worship in most bibles but mistranslated as obeisance to fit in with wt theology in the NWT ,the noun in Greek is proskenaotes translated worshipper never obeisancer in all instances,showing a clear dishonesty in NWT
Reply
 

 Imacountrygirl says:

 March 8, 2015 at 4:06 pm

I’m excited that I found the Kingdom Interlinear Greek Scriptures online only yesterday. Someone on Amazon or Ebay?? has one for sale for $250.00. I believe I threw mine away when I purged Watchtower from my life. Who knew how valuable some of those books would turn out to be! Perhaps I was too hasty………..Naaaaaaaaaaaa!!!
https://ia902707.us.archive.org/3/items/KingdomInterlinearGreekScriptures/Kingdom_Interlinear-Greek_Scriptures_1969.pdf
Reply
 

← Older Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾33 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     

















































                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/error-found-in-new-silver-sword-revised-new-world-translation

























Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



← Governor Brown’s SB 131 veto leaves Watchtower child abuse victims frustrated
The 1914 Obsession: Watchtower clings to flawed teaching in first magazine of 2014 →

Error found in new “Silver Sword” revised New World Translation
avatar
Posted on October 16, 2013

It looks like the newly-released revision to the New World Translation is already a "limited edition"
It looks like the newly-released revision to the New World Translation is already a “limited edition”

Only a few days have passed since the revised New World Translation was released at the 129th Annual Meeting. But it looks like the first printing of this Bible (or “silver sword,” as some have nicknamed it) is already a limited edition.
Former Witnesses have found an error in the new Bible, ironically in the book of Numbers. The header to page 267 shows the page numbers going down from Numbers chapter 35 to Numbers chapter 33. The header should instead read “Numbers 32:37-33:22.” At the time of writing, this typo is also in the PDF version.
JWsurvey readers will remember Geoffrey Jackson’s grand unveiling of this new Bible, in which he suggested that Jehovah was responsible for the favorable weather conditions at Wallkill while it was being printed. If true, this would mean that Jehovah saw fit to manipulate the weather to speed up printing but somehow neglected to make sure Watchtower’s proofreaders were sufficiently scrupulous.
page-267
The header to page 267 from the revised New World Translation

Though not a huge mistake by any stretch, the typo does highlight that Watchtower publications are not as error-free as many Witnesses are led to believe. It will also be a source of considerable embarrassment to Watchtower that they must now correct their newly-revised Bibles and begin a new print run – with thousands of the faulty Bibles already in circulation. Watchtower’s writing team will also likely want to double-check each page to see whether there are any similar errors lurking elsewhere.
And those English-speaking Witnesses fortunate enough to receive the first new Bibles now have evidence in their book bags that Watchtower’s proofreaders are not as meticulous as you would expect.

John Cedars signature logo




Further reading…
◾The Revised New World Translation – Will it stand the test of time?
◾New English NWT Bible released as Annual Meeting is leaked online
◾Governing Body on show: God fixed weather to produce “sister proof” new bible


Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:



Bookmark the permalink.
 
← Governor Brown’s SB 131 veto leaves Watchtower child abuse victims frustrated
The 1914 Obsession: Watchtower clings to flawed teaching in first magazine of 2014 →

130 Responses to Error found in new “Silver Sword” revised New World Translation

← Older Comments

 Excelsior, formerly known as George says:

 October 27, 2013 at 3:59 am

Bill, in reply to your comment.
Jesus spoke with:
Satan, who is the biggest hater of Jehovah and the original apostate.
The Religious leaders of his time, who had abandoned mercy.
Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
Need I go on? You have no position from which to argue on, do you?
I challenge you. Show me a scripture where Jesus refused to speak with anyone. He spoke with tax collectors, sinners, prostitutes etc.
This narrow road metaphor does not in any way relate to shunning. Your arguments are bogus.
It is none of your business whether I am disassociated or disfellowshipped. I have no desire to share my personal life with someone like you.
Also, Jesus couldn’t not speak to someone expelled from the congregation because there were no congregations at that time, as you we’ll know. Another bogus argument.
You have no ground to stand on. Jesus trumps any apostle or prophet, doesn’t he? I would suggest that you stop trying to convince others of a faith that you so clearly do not understand.
Reply
 

 JK says:

 October 27, 2013 at 6:53 am

You don’t have to resign from the JW. When you stop reporting for field service and meeting attendance, effectively you’ve resigned.
Reply
 

 skally says:

 October 27, 2013 at 2:29 pm

I’ve been df-ed over 35 years now and never thought that the wt god they called jehovah was ever the real god I knew as a child, before the lethal death machine got my mother to join in the holding of bloody hands, that every jw has, whether they are active or just being a fraud for the sake of whatever excuse they want to put in there.
George thinks I am one of you though cedars.
~skally~
Reply
 

 JBob says:

 October 28, 2013 at 1:50 pm

Narrow & cramped is the road leading off to life? Get the quote correct:
Matt 7:14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Luke 13:24 “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able.”
Who is the gate? Who is the Way?
So, if we must go with the numbers game, that would mean, if your group is growing in numbers, it is no longer on a narrow and cramped path?
However, we know the Wt always applied that scripture exclusively to the anointed–a finite group of 144,000 not the general JW population..
Not the mentally diseased masses who chomp down the unleavened wafers and gulp down the wine at Memorial time. The GB is probably trimming that verse back to themselves even as we discuss this, now.
Reply
 

 JBob says:

 October 28, 2013 at 2:24 pm

Every denomination that has arisen without direct, evident apostolic succession claims there were believers of their theology in the 1st century. And, there probably were because the records of history show that 1st century Christianity was a hotbed of diverse ideas, including Gnostic Christianity. The wealthiest and more influential cities and families eventually dominated what would become the major standard.
It’s interesting that you mention the Adventists not existing in the first century because neither were Jehovah’s Witnesses present at that time, yet they’ve inevitably striven to draw a line of succession from themselves through Waldensians back to the first century. And, coincidentally, so do Adventists and so do Christadelphians.
I will correct that the version of df-ing used by most churches does not involve shunning, exceptions being Amish and Mennonites, and some Latter-Day Saint groups, only removing one from membership. JW’s take it to a medieval, inquisition level of torture by loading remaining family and membership with images of demons attacking should they even make eye contact with former members. In this way, it is linked directly to the form of rebuke used by many of the Adventist Founding Fathers and Mother who used df-ing to ostracize those they found unfavorable or out-of-step with their wishes.
Many non-JW’s often will tell someone who is conflicted with being JW and disagreeing with the group, “just leave; can’t you find another church?” But, as you also posted, rather ironically, the adherent is reminded constantly, “Where else can you go to hear the ‘sayings of truth’?” With that blasted into the mind, those who are uninformed about other denominations–2nd, 3rd, 4th generation JW’s–would be reluctant and feeling trapped–self-destructive, if not suicidal.
This same sentiment is echoed by those who remain JW–seeing the group as the sole source of “the Truth”. Often the quote is, “Who HAS the Truth?” Yet, Jesus gave an answer in scripture that does not fit this question. And, in a metaphorical Jeopardy game, the question is, “Who IS the Truth?” The Bible never answers the perverted question, “Who has the Truth”.
Reply
 

 Jeffro says:

 November 2, 2013 at 8:53 am

The error has been fixed in the new new New World Translation in PDF format on the official website. Apart from fixing the heading in Numbers, there are only two other changes to the text: 1) Number of available languages reported as “120” instead of “110”. 2) “August 2013 Printing” is changed to “October 2013 Printing”.
Reply
 

 Rob says:

 November 5, 2013 at 7:36 am

Current literature puts the 1914 calculation based on the 7 Gentile times=2520 years from 607 BCE. The only issue might be the year 607 BCE where there is some dispute by authorities, but certainly not by a wide margin. IIRC I’ve seen some put it 25 years from that. My point, if it is the time of the end, the WT has the message right. Pinning it to a date has never worked out and in fact Jesus said no one would know. But parallel this to world events such a Fukushima close to a full catastrophe, global warming, mass extinction, you can sense these are unprecedented times.
Reply
 

 Wilhelm says:

 November 7, 2013 at 3:42 am

Quite interesting. I downloaded that specific Bible the day after it was publised on the website and page 267’s header read. ” Numbers 32:37-33:22
Reply
 

 Jeffro says:

 November 9, 2013 at 6:10 pm

If the minor error in the page header of Numbers warrants attention, surely their revision of Jeremiah 29:10 deserves an article. It entirely contradicts their own doctrine.
Reply
 

 Wilhelm says:

 November 11, 2013 at 8:56 am

Why is everybody so hastily looking for errors in the revised New world Translation? Nobody is saying anything about the revised King James versioon which is the worst most incorrect translation of any Bible into any language. Many people keep using it. is it because you can’t, according to the King James, sin in any way.
Reply
 

 Wilhelm says:

 November 11, 2013 at 9:01 am

You can’t just stay away from any church and say you resigned. You have to write a letter stating that you resign. Exactly the same with Jehovah’s Witnesses. When stopping to attend meetings or doing field service does not mean that you resigned
Reply
 

 Wilhelm says:

 November 11, 2013 at 9:07 am

Only those doing exactly what GOD’s word tells them to do.
Reply
 

 steve read says:

 November 15, 2013 at 6:24 am

As a former JW, I wonder how before they realise that the error is not the bible translation but doctrines? Long being deceived that scripture show the Great Crowd was on earth. When all the time scripture showed they are in heaven. Revelation 7:15 shows the great crowd ‘they’ rendering sacred service day and night “IN” THE TEMPLE. Not towards or before but IN. Which is in heaven. So they must be in heaven!!
Reply
 

 Wilhelm says:

 November 15, 2013 at 10:24 am

Very interesting to see how you use you words. According to your use of specific words, it show me that you weren’t really one of Jehovah’s Witnesses. If you really are somebody that want the Bible to rule your life, then you will never follow people as you did. You don’t follow Witnesses or the Governing Body. You study their guidelines together with your Bible and you then follow GOD’s Word
Reply
 

 steve read says:

 November 16, 2013 at 8:40 am

Are you replying to my comment?
 I WAS a JW for 2 decades.
 And it is the societies use of words that are wrong!
Reply
 

 Windsurfer says:

 November 17, 2013 at 5:05 am

Yes.
Reply
 

 D says:

 December 14, 2013 at 12:00 pm

They are human and we all make mistakes. Remember we are imperfect.
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 December 14, 2013 at 12:04 pm

D – welcome to the site. I agree that this is hardly a mistake, it’s more of a typo. That said…



Reply
 
 

 Bright Flaxen Wick says:

 December 29, 2013 at 2:53 am

I am a JW in good standing who is very much aware of what is going on and still cannot figure out what to do. I agree with Peter at John 6:68. Where else can I go where I would not be forced to believe the pagan Greek-inspired hellfire, immortal soul, and all good people go to heaven doctrines?
I have a lot of issues with this version of the NWT, however, and am very appalled that it appears to have been, at the least, dumbed-down. All of the beautiful prose and poetry have been castrated, and, as Hakizimana Jean de Dieu points out above, the strength of the original phraseology has been greatly watered down.
My biggest concern is that, formerly, the WTS translated every occurrence of “nephesh” and “psyche” as “soul,” making it clear that a soul is the person him/herself. The latest edition has chosen to interpret many of the occurrences differently, confusing the issue, just as Christendom had done in previous times. Ezekiel 18:20 has been left intact–for now–but it seems like a step in the wrong direction to vary from the consistent translations of those two very important terms.
This is to be expected, I guess, now that there are very few anointed brothers within Bethel. Not that the old anointed ones were worth much; I have a feeling that either they were mistaken about their spiritual calling, lying about it, or that they lost it as they compromised with Satan’s elements on the inside and outside of the organization. “Many are called; few are chosen” (Matt. 22:14), which explains why the number of anointed is rising, much to the FDS’ chagrin: Jehovah is still calling faithful ones to replace the corrupt ones who lost their crown.
I suppose I have just answered my own question. If Jehovah is still calling anointed ones from within the ranks of JWs, despite the fuming response from Bethel toward these newly anointed ones, then it seems clear that Jehovah is still using the organization…for the time being. This makes perfect sense, since the pattern was set with how He handled ancient Israel. They strayed and were corrupted for most of their history, yet Jehovah did not reject them completely until they killed Christ. Which may mean that the FDS class will turn on the newly–and truly–anointed ones in the same manner in which the Pharisees turned on Christ, one of their own, out of jealousy and a fear of losing their power from Satan’s political entities. That, too, should be expected, since Jesus warned that his brothers, the anointed, would be persecuted in the same manner he was (John 15:20). So, the reaction from Bethel toward the newly anointed ones (many of whom must partake in secret, as the venom is very apparent and is a real threat from the elders all the way to the top, I would imagine) may very well be the key to when to leave the Society and head for the hills (Matt. 24:15, 16). Let the reader use discernment. :-)
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 December 29, 2013 at 3:15 am

Welcome to our website! I commend your genuine search for truth. You sound like a decent guy.
All I would say in response to your last paragraph, is that you are not the only one trapped in a “purgatory” of sorts where the belief is held that the organization has clearly gone astray but must still have a place in God’s plan. Please think about this carefully and follow things through to their logical conclusion, however painful that may be. Could not this argument be applied to ANY Christian denomination, the catholic church included? If religions are to be so easily let off the hook when they err, what makes any one of them unique?
Here is a video I recorded recently addressing a similar question…


I would also urge you to read Crisis of Conscience by Ray Franz, which you will find available for download on this link… http://www.scribd.com/doc/20333975/Crisis-of-Conscience-2004-Unencrypted
I know how scary it is to see how deep the rabbit hole goes, but I promise you – it’s worth it.
I wish you well on your journey.
Cedars
Reply
 
 

 Jason says:

 January 14, 2014 at 10:49 am

I was looking for info about the revised edition, but you people are just bitter. Get a life people. Stop being so bitter, can’t you see the truth when you see it. Leave those people alone, at least they live by principles!
Reply
 

 two or five says:

 January 16, 2014 at 2:30 pm

So basically what you’re saying is that the only mistake is instead of a 2 they put a 5?! WOW! What terrible people!
Reply
 

 SDL says:

 March 9, 2014 at 8:05 pm

Beautiful. Thanks, mark. I will be looking into this one. Significant bias if it holds true.
Reply
 

 SDL says:

 March 9, 2014 at 8:17 pm

I thought Bright Flaxen Wick was female for some reason. Sorry if mistaken. Doesn’t matter. Want to add that to me the thing about Peter saying to whom shall I go didn’t mean which autocracy of men shall I go to but more along the vein of not leaving Jesus. What about considering that “getting out of her” may include the JWs book-publishing company and trusting that the way will be shown you. Live into the unknowns rather than requiring a modern-day crutch. Jesus himself left the religion of his youth and replaced it with a law of love. How about imitating that rather than replacing it with a new set of rules off a printing press bowed down to like an idol by men worshipped like idols. It’s scary, I know, but so worth it.
Reply
 

 SDL says:

 March 9, 2014 at 9:57 pm

mark, I called a friend that has the new silver bible and confirmed that what you said is true about those scriptures in Genesis and Exodus. Thanks for that. I find it interesting. To me it says a lot about how their bias sways their translation even when it’s completely unnecessary. It says a lot to me. I hope others pick up on it too.
Reply
 

 SDL says:

 March 9, 2014 at 10:12 pm

@ whatevs – lol, that was funny
Reply
 

 SDL says:

 March 9, 2014 at 10:27 pm

mark, thanks again. I called a friend that has the new silver sword translation and confirmed that those scripts in Genesis and Exodus are contradictory as you said. It says a lot to me about how their priorities and biases impact their translation completely unnecessarily. Hard to picture a God giving them spirit allowing a basic contradiction like that. If they can’t get that much right then how can the deeper things be trusted. I hope others pick up on glaring errors like that too and see the significance and waste no more time procrastinating life we are given for some idealistic rhetoric we are promised by mere men who treat their bible like an alcoholic treats his bottle. Too many are just so desperate or greedy for more life than is naturally granted to a human, so they fall prey to false prophets promising eternal life. If only they would see how completely fulfilling life can be without all the mythological rhetoric.
Reply
 

 Keith Gonzales says:

 March 22, 2014 at 2:17 pm

The problem is that if the foundation is bad then everthing that follows will be a lie .
 Think of a house on a faulty foundation .
 That is why Jesus said to build on the solid rock of divine revelation aka his word and not the sinking sand of human speculation : Mat 7:24 .
 Jude commands us to contend earnestly for the faith once given to the saints .
 Just as Jesus Christ offered that sacrifice once and only once in the same way God gave us the faith once and only once via the Apostles which they wrote and now appear as the New Testament , the Doctrine of Christ .
 2 John 7 tells us that if we abide not in this doctrine we do not have God .
 2 Tim 4 speaks of men not enduring sound doctrine .
 It is being fulfilled even as we speak .
Reply
 

 Damien Auksorius says:

 May 17, 2014 at 8:28 pm

Hi my name is damien Auksorius , my grandfather was a Jehovah’s Witness and he enjoyed using the King James Bible , this was the bible that they used back then , apparently this king James is the most accurate translation at the moment .
Reply
 
 imacountrygirl says:

 May 18, 2014 at 1:30 pm

Hey Damien! Thank you for posting and welcome!
Were you ever associated with Jehovah’s Witnesses yourself? Or, was it only your grandfather?
I enjoy reading the KJV myself.
I don’t know that there really is “the most accurate translation”. They all contain errors of some kind. I have found a site where it will pull the same scripture up from 25 translations so that you can compare them to each other.
I find it very useful.
http://biblehub.com/
Reply
 
 

 trenton crump says:

 May 23, 2014 at 10:32 pm

Moses completely destroyed the original tablets that contained the 10 commandments. Afterward, God had him simply carve out 2 new tablets.
 The governing body make one simple printing error in the NWT and that’d proof they do not have Gods spirit? Like Moses, they corrected the error by simply carving out new tablets, I’m mean new bibles.
Reply
 

 Chris says:

 July 27, 2014 at 12:15 pm

Who cares. The King James Version is riddled with errors that affect doctrine. This is petty
Reply
 

 Wild Olive says:

 February 5, 2015 at 5:23 pm

Ime at the moment still with the JW faith,but I have to say re the new translation,it’s just a huge fail,more than half the cross references have been removed,it feels to me that the GB don’t really want anyone to seriously study the Bible.They want to control what you study.
 At the release of the new bible Guy Pierce talked about some of the changes,one that stood out was John17:3,it got changed from “taking in knowledge ” of God to “know God”.
Now that may be insignificant to a new JW, but for most of my 40 yrs in the truth that scripture was hammered in talks,studys,assembly parts CO visits pioneer meetings etc,and now it’s changed,and guess what,it now reads identical to the KJV,a bible that Guy Pierce said was inadequate,ah the contradictions!
Reply
 
 Lover of Jehovah says:

 February 6, 2015 at 9:12 am

Wild Olive,
I think the the NWT is awesome. I do like the 2013 version, however if they have made some changes, I will be disappointed. I was a fan of the 1984 version and if need be I will just use that one. I am displeased with the wording when they use Homosexual I was surprised that they would use that word. It is an incorrect translation. Just thought it was interesting and wanted to see what other passages say. It really seems more like the current bibles that are out their. I have looked in other Bibles and have decided to stick with Darby. I have spoken to Bible Students and they also like the Darby. (Bible students that broke away from the society when Rutherford took over and changed everything)
Reply
 
 

 Wild Olive says:

 February 11, 2015 at 10:29 pm

@lover of Jehovah ,I also like the 1984 edition,I think it is the pinnacle of NWT,
 After that it’s all downhill,as REAL bible study is not encouraged,only what the GB has said should be studied
 I have 9 different translations that I use,some words that make a difference are important,ie proskenao,translated worship in most bibles but mistranslated as obeisance to fit in with wt theology in the NWT ,the noun in Greek is proskenaotes translated worshipper never obeisancer in all instances,showing a clear dishonesty in NWT
Reply
 

 Imacountrygirl says:

 March 8, 2015 at 4:06 pm

I’m excited that I found the Kingdom Interlinear Greek Scriptures online only yesterday. Someone on Amazon or Ebay?? has one for sale for $250.00. I believe I threw mine away when I purged Watchtower from my life. Who knew how valuable some of those books would turn out to be! Perhaps I was too hasty………..Naaaaaaaaaaaa!!!
https://ia902707.us.archive.org/3/items/KingdomInterlinearGreekScriptures/Kingdom_Interlinear-Greek_Scriptures_1969.pdf
Reply
 

← Older Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾33 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     

















































                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/error-found-in-new-silver-sword-revised-new-world-translation
































Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



← 2014 Global Survey now launched!
Witness juror’s actions branded “disgraceful” after she forces mistrial over her beliefs →

My review of the 2014 Yearbook
avatar
Posted on January 10, 2014

The Yearbook is a highlight for many Witnesses, but what do the stories really tell us?
The Yearbook is a highlight for many Witnesses, but what do the stories really tell us?

A regular highlight for Jehovah’s Witnesses is the release of the Yearbook, which chronicles the accomplishments of the organization over the past service year and beyond.
The 2014 Yearbook has now been released, and I have had some time to skim through its contents. There are the usual heartwarming stories where faith triumphs over adversity. There are also experiences that clearly demonstrate to those with an objective mind that the entrenched problems with the organization lie not far beneath the surface.
This article will attempt to present an honest review of the 2014 Yearbook. It will not take Watchtower’s rose-tinted sugar-coated approach, but will rather look at the stories behind the stories, and what impact the Governing Body is having on people’s lives.
The elephant in the room
It should go without saying that reaching the year 2014 is an unexpected, unwelcome and frankly embarrassing achievement from Watchtower’s perspective. We were simply not supposed to be at this point in human history without planet earth looking radically different, with arrangements of fruit gracing every table and a panda for every child.
Why? Because of what happened in 1914, of course.
Contrary to Watchtower’s sanitized version of its own history, 1914 was expected to signal, not the beginning of the last days, but the climactic end of them. As shown in the quote below from a Studies In The Scriptures volume, Russell believed Christ’s kingdom rule had begun in 1878, and that 1914 would mark the end of the “battle of the great day of God Almighty.”
Excerpt from "The Time Is At Hand," page 101, published in 1907
Excerpt from “The Time Is At Hand,” page 101, published in 1907

Fast forward 100 years since 1914, and we have had only more failed promises spewing forth from the pages of the Watchtower and its affiliated publications.
Russell’s successor Rutherford believed that 1925 would see the resurrection of the “ancient worthies” and the establishment of kingdom rule on the earth. So bold was he regarding this prediction that he then claimed that “millions now living will never die.” Suffice to say, virtually all the millions then living are now very much dead.
Fred Franz predicted that Armageddon would strike in 1975
Fred Franz predicted that Armageddon would strike in 1975

1975 was later touted as the date of Armageddon, with the late Fred Franz pointing to that year as marking six thousand years of human history. The year came and went with Witnesses selling homes and businesses in readiness for the great day of God’s wrath. Watchtower issued only a half-hearted apology years later, essentially blaming Witnesses for being so trusting. (w80 3/15 p.17 par.5,6)
And from my own childhood recollections I refuse to forget that the generation cognizant of the events of 1914 was not supposed to die off before Armageddon struck. So recent is this latter teaching that it still graces page 200 of the Reasoning Book, which in turn is still carried in the bags of Witnesses all over the world as they engage in their preaching work.
And so, as 2014 rolls around, there is every reason for Watchtower to humbly acknowledge a century of false predictions and resolve to be less forthright when making future prophetic estimations. Instead we get the following gleeful introduction to the Yearbook on page 2…

“About one hundred years ago, Jehovah installed Jesus as King in the invisible heavens. Since then, God’s servants have zealously made known the blessings that Christ’s Kingdom will bring. Imagine! Under the loving rulership of Jesus, the earth will become a paradise, filled with people who truly love one another. There will be no crime, no fighting, no sickness, no suffering, and no death.
Soon, those blessings will become a reality. God’s Kingdom is real, and it will come and fulfill all that Jehovah has purposed. Pray for the Kingdom to come, tell others about it, and treasure the hope of all that it will do for you.”
And so no lessons are learned, and no humble remorse is shown. We are simply required to “imagine” – suspend disbelief in the blind hope that Watchtower had it right all along despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.
As was said before, during and after 1914, Armageddon continues to be “soon,” imminent, just around the corner. There seems to be no end to the number of times Watchtower’s boy can cry “wolf!”
armageddon-cartoon
The Yearbook concludes on pages 170-175 under the rather unimaginative heading “One Hundred Years Ago 1914″ with a look back on events in the years leading up to and immediately following 1914.
The reader is reminded how much has changed since then, both within Watchtower and in the world in general. Nowhere is it mentioned honestly what the full expectations of Russell and his followers were for 1914, nor is it explained why a “short period of time” lasting a century is required by Christ before he can take action following his enthronement. (Rev. 12:12)
Instead, the reader is impressed with the need for loyalty. A countdown card circa 1914 is produced bearing the large inscription “be thou faithful unto death.” The message is clear – “Don’t think about whether we could be wrong, just be faithful until you die!”
"Countdown card" from page 175 of the 1914 Yearbook
“Countdown card” from page 175 of the 1914 Yearbook

Letter from the “fellow domestics”
In an obvious reference to the 2012 “new light” regarding the faithful slave, the Governing Body begins their traditional letter on pages 4 to 7 by addressing their readers as “Dear Fellow Domestics.”
Watchtower seems to believe that drilling home this idea that “we are ALL domestics” (to quote David Splane at the 2012 Annual Meeting) will lead Witnesses to the conclusion that the Governing Body are modest men who consider themselves on the same level as the ordinary rank and file. As nice as this idea sounds, it blatantly does not reflect reality. For evidence you need look no further than this very Yearbook.
The Governing Body’s letter best showcases the group’s growing propensity for narcissism. A photograph shows a weekly meeting in New York about to convene, with David Splane in the foreground entering a conference room where fellow members on swivel chairs desperately try to look as though they don’t know they are in a photo shoot.
From pages 4 and 5 of the 2014 Yearbook of Jehovah's Witnesses
From pages 4 and 5 of the 2014 Yearbook of Jehovah’s Witnesses

A quick glance at the letter itself shows the Governing Body wasting no time in reminding Witnesses of their miraculous provision of the revised New World Translation at the 2013 Annual Meeting (or, as they put it, “the finest translation of the Bible available to mankind”).
With this and other apparently bounteous provisions extended (among which is even counted the opportunity for auxiliary pioneers to attend the full pioneer meeting during Circuit Overseer visits), 8 million Witnesses are given yet more reasons to give thanks to their dear faithful slave.
The Governing Body’s hogging of the limelight is perhaps best reflected in a quick comparison between the number of times Jesus is mentioned in the entire Yearbook compared to the Governing Body and its members, past and present. As you will see, though Jesus finds himself mentioned 21 times (including in the phrase “the Memorial of Christ’s death”), his “Slave” including its current and former incumbents receive no less than 36 mentions, as follows…
◾Jesus / Christ – 21 times
◾“Governing Body” – 15 times
◾Anthony Morris / Brother Morris – 6 times
◾Milton Henschel / Brother Henschel – 5 times
◾Guy Pierce / Brother Pierce – 3 times
◾Stephen Lett / Brother Lett – 2 times
◾David Splane / Brother Splane – 2 times
◾Mark Sanderson / Brother Sanderson – 2 times
◾Lloyd Barry – once
If this doesn’t send a clear message as to who’s really in charge of “the earthly part of God’s organization,” I don’t know what does.
Still no mention of profits?
Pages 8 to 13 deal with Watchtower’s selling of its Brooklyn properties and building of a new headquarters at Warwick, upstate New York. As has been repeatedly mentioned on this website, the whole endeavor is essentially a billion-dollar property flip.
Though exact figures are hard to come by, it is easy to calculate that Watchtower has pocketed over a billion dollars from the sale of its Brooklyn portfolio. The sale of the six-building factory complex mentioned on page ten of the Yearbook made Watchtower $375 million alone. In contrast, it has been revealed that total construction costs for Warwick, which is being built mostly with volunteer labor, are estimated at a mere $11.5 million.
And yet for all this blatant profiteering, with some construction volunteers even sacrificing their employment to help build the new headquarters, what you will not find in this Yearbook is any transparency regarding the amounts of money changing hands. Why? You can guess this for yourself, but I would submit that Watchtower is covering up its enormous profits simply because it doesn’t want to discourage people from sending in their donations, which it desperately needs.
Sparlock DVD continues to wreak havoc
In May 2012 the world caught its first glimpse of the “Become Jehovah’s Friend” DVD, in which a young Witness boy named Caleb is coerced by his unhinged mother into throwing his plastic toy wizard into the garbage. Why? Because it made Jehovah sad.
Though it is a vile and blatant attempt at child indoctrination, this DVD has had its positives. As reported on this website, the film has immunized a whole YouTube generation against Jehovah’s Witnesses by showing just how cultlike they are. One Mormon has even been helped to awaken from his indoctrination by seeing how mind control is employed to such great effect by Watchtower through the story of Sparlock and Caleb.
Even so, I still can’t help but wish this dreadful film had never been released. To see why, you need only look at pages 20 to 22 of the new Yearbook under the sinister heading “Animated Videos Touch Righteous Hearts.”
Pictures are shown of children in Vietnam and Croatia laughing and singing along to the film, blissfully unaware that their brains are in the process of being rewired. A series of experiences are related to show how children are responding to the DVD. Unquestionably the most chilling of these is left for the end of the article (pages 21 and 22)…

“In Ecuador two non-Witness Quichua-speaking boys, eight-year-old Isaac and his five-year-old brother, Saul, used to save their daily snack money to buy toy guns, swords, and action figures. One day their mother asked them to tidy up their room and to put all their toys in a cardboard box under the bed. Later, the boys were given the new Become Jehovah’s Friend DVD as a gift, and they watched it together. A week later, while the mother was cleaning the house, she found that the cardboard box under the bed was empty except for a toy car. She asked the boys, ‘Where are the toys?’ They answered, ‘Jehovah doesn’t like those toys, so we threw them in the garbage.’ Now when other neighborhood children play with toys that promote violence, Isaac tells them: ‘Don’t play with that. Jehovah doesn’t like it!'”
I can’t decide what about this experience is more disturbing. Is it the fact that the film is apparently even indoctrinating non-Witnesses? Is it that these two boys in Ecuador ended up wasting their pocket-money on toys Watchtower made them throw away?
Or is it more likely the fact that sword and action figures have now been added to Watchtower’s seemingly endless list of things that make Jehovah sad, with the fate of a shriveled Adam and Eve looming over any child who dares to focus his or her imagination on a harmless object?
Toy swords and ALL action figures now join Sparlock in the blue dumpster
Toy swords and ALL action figures now join Sparlock in the blue dumpster

An incomplete legal report
I was intrigued to stumble on a section spanning pages 27 to 35 entitled “Legal Report.” Could this perhaps contain some reference to the recent glut of child abuse lawsuits, including the Candace Conti verdict that Watchtower is now appealing? Would at least one or two of Irwin Zalkin’s reported 11 child molestation lawsuits against Watchtower receive some acknowledgment?
As you might expect, the report contains nothing of the sort. Instead, all nine pages are devoted to Watchtower’s legal victories in the area of freedom of worship and conscientious objection.
It is a bitter irony that this organization applauds itself for securing its own religious liberties whilst cruelly snatching the same from those who dare to question its practices through the threat of shunning.
Dedications versus downsizing
Yearbooks traditionally report on new branch dedications and this year is no exception, as you will find on pages 39 to 43. South Korea, Liberia, Georgia, Myanmar and Moldova all received newly built or renovated branch facilities, so Governing Body members Lett, Morris, Pierce and Splane were dispatched to bring some celebrity to the proceedings.
But again, we see only one side of the coin, giving us the impression that Watchtower is enjoying relentless international growth. No attempt is made to chronicle or explain the number of branches closed in the same year as part of Watchtower’s ongoing downsizing (or “consolidation”) initiative. It is noteworthy that branch levels continue to plummet from their 2009 peak of 118 to just 91 as of last year.
branch-numbers

Defamatory propaganda?
My eyebrow was raised by an experience recounted on pages 63 and 64, in which an Armenian mother and daughter stood for two hours in bad weather in an effort to meet some Witnesses. Their reason? They had heard “defamatory propaganda” against the Witnesses on TV programs and posters, and couldn’t fathom how any of it could be true.
A close relative of theirs had encountered Witnesses incarcerated as conscientious objectors during his stay in prison. As a result of their influence he had come out a changed man. “My uncle is such a wonderful person. So why are there so many bad things being said about Jehovah’s Witnesses?” exclaimed the daughter, Yeva.
Well, Yeva, though I don’t know what they’ve been saying over there in Armenia (because Watchtower doesn’t tell us), I can tell you that bad things are rightly said about Jehovah’s Witnesses in most other countries because their leaders, the Watch Tower Society, have an atrocious track record of mishandling child abuse, dissuading young people from attending college, making it almost impossible for beaten wives to leave their husbands, allowing people to die by refusing medical treatment involving blood, and coercing families to shun loved ones who decide to leave.
Meanwhile, Watchtower claims that so-called apostates, those who dare to speak out against the organization, are “mentally diseased” liars, the composite “man of lawlessness,” who speak “gangrenous” words and eat at the table of demons and seek to draw off followers after themselves.
And this is not considered “defamatory propaganda?”
Working for the police is NOT okay
I had to gasp in wonder while reading an experience between pages 65 and 67 in which a young Nepalese man with half the name of a Flintstone’s character is brought into the Witness fold.
Bam had been a policeman when he first met the Witnesses, but during the course of studying with them he felt pangs of conscience regarding his profession. It seems being a policeman and arresting bad guys also features on the long list of things that make Jehovah sad.
Bam first asked his superiors for a desk job in the hopes of calming his troubled mind, and they readily agreed. This allowed Bam to hang up his gun and handcuffs and avoid losing sleep as to whether he might end up hurting any criminals. But after attending a District Convention, Bam decided that even this wasn’t going quite far enough to satisfy his new religion.
As a rickshaw driver, Bam now has sore legs but a clean conscience
As a rickshaw driver, Bam now has sore legs but a clean conscience

Bam ended up leaving the police force altogether and becoming a rickshaw driver to the initial (and understandable) consternation of his wife.
Eventually his wife also became a Witness and saw the error of her ways in wanting Bam to remain as a policeman. After all, apart from the money, she had been overly concerned about her “social standing” as the wife of a Nepalese police officer.
And so the whole family became Witnesses and all lived happily ever after, especially after Bam did the math and discovered he was earning more as a rickshaw driver than he was previously as a policeman.
It remains to be seen whether Bam feels the same way about that desk job once he has aged a bit more and his knees have started to buckle.
And the moral of the story is: Jehovah’s Witnesses can benefit from the work of law enforcement – they just can’t become police officers themselves.
Self-sacrifice, or self-endangerment?
A number of stories in the 2014 Yearbook, like the one above, seem to center on individuals making unreasonable and sometimes absurd or even dangerous sacrifices to demonstrate or affirm their loyalty to Watchtower.
Here are just a few examples…
◾Man sells his bike for building project (p.37) Malachi is an elder living in Burundi who decided to sell his bicycle, his main source of livelihood, to free him to take time off work to assist with a kingdom hall build. After giving most of the proceeds from the sale of his bike to his wife to care for his family, he put the rest of the money in the contribution box (as though his volunteer labor wasn’t quite enough). This apparent recklessness was later rewarded when Malachi found employment in construction based on the experience he gained on the building project, and he has even since been able to afford a new bike. Even so, it doesn’t sit well with me for Watchtower to be recommending this kind of gung-ho “endanger your family’s long-term welfare for us, and it will all pan out eventually” approach – especially in poor countries where work can be scarce.
◾Seventy-year-old woman walks in bad weather to attend a meeting (pp.48-49) – apparently walking for two hours in the pouring rain is what you should do if you’re a seventy-year-old Witness woman anxious to attend your meeting and there is no bus.
◾Witness youth incites bullying by preaching at school (p.58) This experience struck a chord with me as someone who was frequently bullied as a child on the grounds of his religion. A young boy in Guyana finds himself sitting in the head teacher’s office with a split lip after being punched in the face by another boy who didn’t like being preached to. Obviously in no way do I condone bullying or violence of any sort, but surely anyone who has been through school can understand that there are things you can do to make life easier for yourself, and make yourself less of a target for mindless thugs. Gleefully telling your classmates about their impending destruction at Armageddon is not such a strategy. And yet, Watchtower is happy for countless young ones to expose themselves to the physical and emotional harm caused by bullying so long as their objectives are furthered.
◾Disabled woman auxiliary pioneers every month for two years (p.67) Do you happen to be a very ill person with a bad leg caused by paralysis as a child? Do you get easily exhausted and suffer frequent falls? If so, you should definitely spend 50 hours per month preaching as an auxiliary pioneer. What’s that? You also experience panic attacks, difficulty breathing, pain caused by tension and anxiety, and side-effects from all the medication you are taking? In that case, I would prescribe auxiliary pioneering every month for at least two years, maybe more.
◾Polio victim serves as a regular pioneer (p.128-129) Again we have a very ill woman, this time a victim of polio crippled from the waist down who suffers from “chronic pain,” being held aloft by Watchtower as proof that there really are NO excuses for not pioneering (unless, of course, you are a Governing Body member). If you are using the fact that you are wheelchair-bound to escape doing your 70 hours of preaching every month, could it be that you just aren’t trying hard enough? Have you thought of enlisting the help of other brothers and sisters to get you from one door to the next, and round all your route calls? Don’t forget that your fellow Witnesses can be called upon in this way at any time, unless of course it is with the aim of attending an international convention as a delegate – in which case, please stay at home and don’t bother anyone!
If I sound flippant or overly sarcastic, please excuse me. It’s just that, having read this Yearbook, I am enraged and astounded at the manner in which the Governing Body seems only too willing to send people into the trenches on their behalf from the comfort of their swivel chairs despite all manner of adversities.
This indifference is best summed up on page 165 where we find Kevin Washington, a Gilead missionary in Sierra Leone, quoted as saying: “Many publishers regularly preach and care for congregation responsibilities in the face of problems that might prompt us to stay home and be cranky.”
By stereotyping as “cranky” those who live according to their limitations rather than throwing themselves on Watchtower’s altar, Kevin tells us everything we need to know about what it means to be a Witness, and how those who refuse to endanger their health to help promote the Governing Body are to be viewed.
Why no more debates?
William “Bible” Brown, a fearless missionary of Watchtower folklore, is frequently mentioned in this Yearbook. When reading some of his story, I am left admiring his tenacity and enthusiasm for his work, if not his misplaced religious convictions. Page 91 provides a perfect example of how the present Governing Body could well learn from his example…

“Rising to the clergy’s defense, a church youth group, dubbed the Gladiators, announced a series of public meetings to put down ‘Russellism,’ as they had styled the Kingdom message. In response, Brother Brown publicly challenged them to a series of debates. The Gladiators refused to accept Brother Brown’s challenge and rebuked the newspaper editor who printed it.”
One is reminded of the debates Charles Russell reportedly engaged in against church leaders of his day – undoubtedly the inspiration behind Brown’s public challenge of the “Gladiators.”
One is also left wondering why the present Governing Body is so fearful of exposing their own opinions to the cauldron of public debate. What precisely has changed since the days of Russell and Brown that makes the idea of speaking in debates so questionable? In refusing to respond to their opponents in this way, the Governing Body comes off looking less like Brown, and more like the Gladiators.
“The friend dropped dead!”
A strange experience is related on page 99. A man tries to dissuade a would-be Witness named Zachaeus from forsaking his local church in favor of a five-mile walk down a steep mountain to the nearest kingdom hall.
The man apparently says to Zachaeus, his friend, “Old man, if you continue to walk those five miles up and down this mountain to go to the hall of those people, you will be dead within a year.”
The man then apparently watches Zachaeus “walk up and down the mountain twice a week for five years.” Then, according to the Yearbook account, “the friend dropped dead!” Zachaeus, on the other hand, was said to be still feeling fit twenty-five years later.
Are we supposed to feel happy that a man’s friend died inexplicably? Was this story inserted as some sort of joke at the expense of non-Witnesses? I will leave it for you to decide.
“Jehovah had clearly protected and blessed it”
In dealing extensively with stories from Sierra Leone, the 2014 Yearbook commendably mentions the military unrest that ravaged that country for many years, including the personal stories of bravery on the part of Witnesses enduring brutal and seemingly endless rebel fighting.
In 1997 the fighting grew so fierce that a group of Watchtower missionaries had to be evacuated by helicopter from Freetown by the U.S. Marines as part of what they were later told was the largest civilian evacuation conducted by the U.S. Navy since the Vietnam War.
The U.S. Marines came to Watchtower's rescue in 1997, but shouldn't expect a thank you
The U.S. Marines came to Watchtower’s rescue in 1997, but shouldn’t expect a thank you

The following year the Sierra Leone Bethel itself was ransacked by rebel forces. It was only after the forces of the Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) had assumed control of Freetown that normality was restored with the missionaries returning. But even then, the violence wasn’t over.
In January 1999, rebel forces launched “Operation No Living Thing” – a campaign of carnage and terror in which 6,000 civilians were massacred, with arms and limbs hacked off randomly. Witnesses were not immune from the violence, with one brother killed (according to the Yearbook) and another bludgeoned in the head with an axe. Only with the intervention of a British expeditionary force in August of that year could peace be restored and the Witnesses allowed to continue their activities undisturbed.
You would think there would be some acknowledgment of the debt of gratitude owed by Jehovah’s Witnesses to government forces (including the armies of “Anglo-America” no less) in rescuing missionaries, purging Sierra Leone of bloodthirsty thugs, and restoring law and order. Instead, this is what we find on page 145…

“How had Jehovah’s organization fared? Jehovah had clearly protected and blessed it. During the conflict, about 700 people were baptized. Hundreds of Witnesses had fled the war zone, yet the number of publishers in Sierra Leone increased by 50 percent.”
It should come as no surprise that emotionally frightened and vulnerable people in a war-ravaged country would throw themselves into the arms of a religion offering an “imminent” transition to worldwide peace and security. It is equally to be expected that Watchtower should give no credit to the protection of the governmental instruments that brought an end to the savagery, thus allowing their religion to flourish. Instead, Watchtower claims it was Jehovah who had “clearly” both blessed and protected the organization.
“Prodigals” welcomed back?
Anyone who has been following my personal story will know that I recently had cause to relate the account of the prodigal son to some elders. During my judicial committee I reminded my accusers that Watchtower’s practice of shunning is unscriptural, because nowhere does the Bible say that family members should shun eachother on religious grounds.
Rather, the prodigal son parable offers an example of a son returning to his father for no other reason than because he had run out of food and money. And while his son was still some way off, even before repentance or lack thereof had been established, the father ran out to him and embraced him.
In sharp contrast, Witness parents are urged to spurn the love of their delinquent teenagers, considering them to be no better than Nadab and Abihu (the errant priests consumed by fire from the heavens). (w11 7/15 p.31)
So you can imagine how intrigued I was to see the prodigal son parable referred to on page 157, as follows…

“In recent times, a growing number of ‘lost sheep’ have been found. These are persons who had drifted away or had been removed from the congregation. Many such prodigals have turned around and made their way back to the truth. Jehovah’s people have welcomed them with open arms.—Luke 15:11-24.”
The above words, which describe individuals in Sierra Leone and Guinea returning to the Witnesses in recent years, hijack the parable of the prodigal son and completely reinvent it.
The prodigal son in Christ’s parable was never disfellowshipped, or even admonished by his religious leaders. There was no acceptance on his part of what was or wasn’t “the truth.” As I mentioned, the son simply returned home and was embraced by his father before repentance was even confirmed.
Rather than applying the prodigal son parable to the family as Jesus intended it, Watchtower seems intent on applying it to the entire organization – the “spiritual mother.” In so doing, it willfully overlooks the fact that the father was ready to show love to his son regardless of his judicial standing.
Though I am now agnostic, I find it sad and disturbing that one of the most beautiful and laudable teachings of Jesus could be so distorted and misappropriated by Watchtower, seemingly without Witnesses noticing.
Wondrous expansion now taking place?
With all the fuss being made about the recently revamped JW.org site on pages 14 to 17 of the Yearbook, you would expect to be blown away by a resulting influx of Witnesses when you finally reach the worldwide report. Instead, we find only a modest improvement in the growth rate, from 1.9% in 2012 to 2.1% in 2013.
Bear in mind that global population growth is estimated at 1.14% annually. Jehovah’s Witnesses can therefore expect to grow by roughly 100,000 publishers per year simply by breeding and dying at the same rate as everyone else. It’s therefore not much to write home about if the organization has beaten global population growth by just one percentage, especially when you consider the recent added impetus of JW.org and the urban preaching effort using push carts.
And the bad news for Watchtower is that, when you look at the growth rate trend over the past ten years, there are few reasons for optimism. Only twice, in 2007 and 2009, has the growth rate nudged over the 3% mark – a far cry from the 7.1% increase recorded in 1984.
percentage-growth
The increasing futility of the preaching work is perhaps best illustrated by the growing ratio of hours to baptisms. The following graph shows that the number of hours required per baptism has steadily increased over the past ten years, from 4,886 in 2004 to 6,639 in 2013 (the equivalent of just over nine months).
hours-baptismAll this means that it is unquestionably getting harder for Witnesses to get tangible results in the preaching work beyond placing literature. This can be due in no small measure to the abundance of objective information about Watchtower now available online. For all Governing Body’s spin, self-publicity and navel-gazing, there is simply no escaping Watchtower’s chequered history and present scandals.
As Abraham Lincoln once said, “You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.”

new-cedars-signature2






Further reading…
◾Download the 2014 Yearbook
◾Read JWsurvey articles on Watchtower downsizing
◾Read the JWsurvey article on the 2012 figures
◾Read the updated JWfacts article on Watchtower statistics


Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:
 Loading...

Bookmark the permalink.
 
← 2014 Global Survey now launched!
Witness juror’s actions branded “disgraceful” after she forces mistrial over her beliefs →

75 Responses to My review of the 2014 Yearbook

← Older Comments

 JBob says:

 January 12, 2014 at 7:15 pm

Why is “Yoda” jumping on me about this?
I concur, no where near the profit made off Brooklyn property sales. And, let’s not forget that Brooklyn land, buildings, refurb, remodels, printing presses purchased–aside from the small Brooklyn Tabernacle initially purchased by Russell from Tower Publishing profits–were all purchased via the “donations for Kingdom activity” line thrown out at every assembly, meeting, Watchtower magazine blurb and special talk.
It’s the same tactic used by scruples-free televangelists who were raking in the dough from the credulous–the religulous (Bill Maher, 2008). Always a bigger satellite dish/equipment; a bigger studio; a need to provide wider distribution of books, DVD’s, etc. requiring those living on meager means to send in a tithe, or a gift that God would return 100-fold.
But, to highlight the dastards at hand (and, you’ll see the d* word aptly applies on this next item), consider that the Watchtower encourages signing over endowments, pension survivor-benefits, life insurance proceeds–the things that orphans and widows need to survive–to its coffers. Of course, one question–given the “materialistic” drive it takes to afford all those benefit cushions, what JW’s (if they’re true believer types) would be able to afford the savings, premiums, and investment it takes to accumulate such wealth?
Highlighting the d* word further, what does it say that a group is willing to recruit “wealthy” sheep and then “shear” them, if not fleece them, of any wealth years of intellectual talent, or labor, provided? And, there are wealthy JW families/individuals–not only artist/entertainers, but business persons, entrepreneurs, doctors, lawyers, financial advisors, inventors, engineers, and educators. Rare, but some do exist–even if for a fleeting moment in the stifling environment of the Watchtower.
And, that’s how you channel frustration and anger…
Reply
 

 JBob says:

 January 12, 2014 at 7:50 pm

Some slow growth in Eastern Europe and Asian countries that were behind the “Iron Curtain” up until the “Evil Empire” fell because when the Watchtower finally reconnected with those individuals they were dismayed at the changes made through the “no contact” years and left–increasingly liberal behavior allowances and token obedience to secular authorities [the reverse of the latter being a chief cause for being “underground” in communist countries].
To Rowland, the Memorial count would be aligned to your view on distorted count of inactive, hangers-on JW’s, and “interested, but not committed” persons. That is the one time per year, where even most inactive Witness will seek out a meeting–just to sit there and watch a pungent glass of wine and a flat cracker/wafer pass them by; even some dissenters on certain points of Watchtower views will attend.
Reply
 

 Nick B says:

 January 12, 2014 at 9:15 pm

Really worth noting that the new World Headquarters is NOT the USA Branch Office, so as you rightly say Cedars, no printing will take place at this site.
There is talk that once Warwick goes live with the new World Headquarters, that the Tuxedo site will be where the USA Branch Office is relocated to.
Reply
 

 Hakizimana Jean de Dieu says:

 January 12, 2014 at 11:05 pm

Page 113 is about “Secret Societies”! It ends with ” Members are forbidden to reveal the group’s knowledge and rituals to outsiders. A person who flouts the laws and protocols of a secret society risks death.”
Are Jehovah’s Witnesses ( a secret society) different in this area?
“Other secret societies regulate sexual behavior…” What about the Watchtower? All this for me means that:
 THE WATCHTOWER SOCIETY = (Ecclesiastes 1:13) . . .calamitous occupation that God has given to the sons of mankind in which to be occupied. . .
 THE WATCHTOWER SOCIEY = (Romans 8:20) . . .the creation was subjected to futility, not by its own will but through him that subjected it. . .
Reply
 

 dubless says:

 January 13, 2014 at 2:18 am

I also never found any evidence that JW leaders are living in movie-star luxury. On the other hand I’m pretty sure that many people – not just in the 3rd world, but also the US – would love to have the life of the GB members: no worries about money or dying alone in poverty, no problems getting all the medical care they need, basically all their needs are taken care of.
And I should add that the same holds true for many, perhaps most other religions. There surely are crazy cult leaders and televangelists rolling in cash and spending it for themselves, but they’re the exception.
Reply
 

 tiger says:

 January 13, 2014 at 4:48 am

Great job again. I cant help but think about the coordinator in my former hall who loves the limelight. He is a terrible speaker yet he gives the memorial talk each year. He regularly accepts assignments at the conventions where his mumbling and getting lost only accentuates his incredible ego that makes him get up there rather than taking it easy in his seat. As for the ones who put him up their, they are bad at giving talks to, but compared to him, they are like cockroaches to a starving man, they are food and better than dung.
The G.B. love the limelight as you have pointed out. The only good thing I can say about them is that they are the biggest bunch of idiots to occupy those seats. At least Russel was a business man. Rutherford was a self appointed judge, and full of garbage and lies, probably the most evil G.B. member of all time. Knor was a selfish man dictating singleness, while going out and getting himself some flesh for his own pleasure. Franz was a very smart man, but full of himself. This bunch is the biggest bunch of idiots assembled ever. They are so transparent and clergy like, I cannot believe anyone wonders what is in it for them. Look at the pope the nuns, the bishops the same could be asked of them. It is simple, personal assistants, doctors, lawyers, drivers, branches with rooms set aside especially for them with their favorite snacks and drinks as well as meals awaiting their arrival. I know as my family stayed in one of their rooms at Watchtower Farms when one of them was to sick to make it. It had a huge gift basket and refrigerator full of anything you could think of. My parents were blown away how well they were treated.
Meanwhile in my crappy room I had nothing of the sort and had no assistants nor the adoration of adoring zombies. I have since been able to enjoy a measure of wealth, but I am unable to afford the lifestyle of the G.B. way to far out of my reach.
As to your point of living like a rockstar, Rockstars go broke living like the G.B. do. Look it up, a lot of them are penniless from such a lifestyle.
Reply
 

 Pepeeltoro says:

 January 13, 2014 at 11:23 am

This numbers in the new yearbook are really Bad. taking the Aver Pubs for the United States for 2013 and 2014 there was great increase of 11,573 add the 32,118 that got Baptized it took average of 6010 hrs for a new pub or new baptz..
 Japan also stands out to me after suffering a Earthquake not to long ago you would think a great increase that not the case they lost 726 publishers, there were 2545 new baptz they had total 82million preachin hours that means it took them 32,225 hours for one person to get baptz what waste of time..
Reply
 

 JSX says:

 January 13, 2014 at 11:43 am

Many JWs from more-affluent lands move over to lands under ban to witness there. This makes a big part of the steady increase. China is an example: thousands of Westerns, Japanese, Koreans, Russians and others moved there.
Reply
 

 Fred Hall says:

 January 13, 2014 at 1:04 pm

Do you know a mass murderer? It Satan. Unless you don’t know it.
Reply
 
 Rowland Nelken says:

 January 13, 2014 at 7:31 pm

Please supply evidence of Satan’s murders, Fred.
As a Jehovah’s Witness, Fred (if that is what you are), you look forward to the day of Armageddon when your fantasy Jehovah monster is due to murder c. 7 billion of your fellow humans. Why do you love this idea of mass murder, Fred?
It is tragic that c. 8 million belong to an outfit that shares this blood soaked delusion. Please, Fred, answer my repeated questions and explain why this horrendous prospect is so alluring.
Reply
 

 Rowland Nelken says:

 January 14, 2014 at 12:39 am

And who murdered the greater part of humanity at the Flood, Fred Hall? According to the Bible it was God.
Please, Fred Hall- you have answered no questions at all. Why are you so pleased to report an increase in membership of an organisation that is obsessed with the imminent Armageddon murder of most of humanity?
You owe us an explanation, not another evasive statement.
We are waiting.
Reply
 
 

 hmmm says:

 January 13, 2014 at 3:24 pm

The sad thing is people like my mom, brother and aunt all never go out in field service due to illness. My mom (85)has demetia yet i know for a fact they still give her 15 minutes a month. My aunt is bed ridden and my brother just gets away with claiming he is sick. They are all counted as an active pub because of the 15 minute rule. Can you imagine how many of these people exist in this religion?
Reply
 

 HAKIZIMANA Jean de Dieu says:

 January 13, 2014 at 11:06 pm

Fred Hall,
 Who is behind this? Satan or Jehovah
 (1 Samuel 15:3) . . .Now go, and you must strike down Am′a‧lek and devote him to destruction with all that he has, and you must not have compassion upon him, and you must put them to death, man as well as woman, child as well as suckling, bull as well as sheep, camel as well as ass.’. . .
(Numbers 31:17-18) . . .And now kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has had intercourse with man by lying with a male. 18 And preserve alive for yourselves all the little ones among the women who have not known the act of lying with a male. . .
killing women just because they had had intercourse with men… Ridiculous!! I am sure SATAN cannot do that!!
Reply
 

 tiger says:

 January 14, 2014 at 2:29 am

zechariah 14:1,2 14 “Look! The day is coming, a day belonging to Jehovah, when the spoil from you* will be divided in your midst. 2 I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem for the war; and the city will be captured and the houses plundered and the women raped. And half of the city will go into exile, but the remaining ones of the people will not be cut off from the city.
He doesn’t just love murder, he loves rape. He is a beast like no other. He sits by and watches it, what a sick ######!
Reply
 

 no-one says:

 January 14, 2014 at 10:23 pm

Many Czechs and Slovakian witnesess moved to UK as well. There are few groups of Czechs and Slovaks I’m aware of.
Reply
 

 Reader says:

 January 15, 2014 at 6:32 am

(Numbers 31:17-18) . . .And now kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has had intercourse with man by lying with a male. 18 And preserve alive for yourselves all the little ones among the women who have not known the act of lying with a male. . .
So they kept the virgins for themselves. What a fantastic holy army of Jehovah.
I find it so repulsive that people continue to worship this monster.
Reply
 

 Tiger says:

 January 15, 2014 at 1:17 pm

Giving gifts to family and friends and food drives and toy drives for the less fortunate = Christmas…. Satans day
Giving candy to children and wearing costumes = Halloween……. Satan’s day
Having family in for dinner and helping the poor with a hot meal = Thanksgiving…… Satan’s day
Watching women be raped, (Zech 14:1,2) preserving young girls to be raped (Numbers 31:17,18) and peoples posessions being stolen, hiding pedophiles = Jehovah’s day.
Wake up JWs this is a sick cult following middle eastern men’s sick set of rules and beliefs, Or celebrate the mental illness and depravity that is called in the Bible the day of Jehovah.
Reply
 

 jimtie says:

 March 8, 2014 at 6:19 pm

Wonderful information. Although they would call it blasphemy. Jesus though as our main example did not hide from the disciples what the Pharisees were about. This “”slave”” class does exactly the opposite they surgar coat what is dishonest or when something is wrong. They do this to lift themselves up. It isnt too unusual that many have followed their dark course, but sad because some are inocent and brain washed.(Rev 2:14-16;12:9)
Reply
 

 Menrov says:

 March 11, 2014 at 1:39 am

I agree, we might disagree with how the funds are used or even agree that there is a lot of secrecy but so far we cannot point to misuse of funds. Although I do agree that there is a big difference in life style when living in Bethel, in whatever country, where food and good living is provided and the more senior people have even better rooms and all services are provided, and the many witnesses around the world that do not have access to that.
Reply
 

 Menrov says:

 March 11, 2014 at 1:54 am

Fred, you are correct, there is a growth reported. From total growth (over 200k), it is not clear how many actually were new and what number was from families already a JW. Let’s take 50% for sake of argument.
 Then over 1.8 billion hours are reported. So, it takes about 16000 hours per any newly (not from JW family) baptized person. Admitting, in these hours are also hours reported for study to family children but that amount is capped.
 My point is, yes, there is gowth but nothing to even brag about, if at all, as Paul says, there is nothing to brag about.
Reply
 

 Thomas Harper says:

 July 8, 2014 at 6:53 pm

The governing body can’t participate in debates because they simply are not willing to humble themselves to the point of considering their contemporaries as being on the same level as them. In every way they consider themselves superior to those around them.
Plus, by sticking close to headquarters, the governing body mirrors Jesus’s perfect example of sitting at his desk, chomping on a cigar, and half-bellowing/half-burping out orders to the volunteers.
Reply
 

← Older Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾29 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     



































                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/my-review-of-the-2014-yearbook



























Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



← 2014 Global Survey now launched!
Witness juror’s actions branded “disgraceful” after she forces mistrial over her beliefs →

My review of the 2014 Yearbook
avatar
Posted on January 10, 2014

The Yearbook is a highlight for many Witnesses, but what do the stories really tell us?
The Yearbook is a highlight for many Witnesses, but what do the stories really tell us?

A regular highlight for Jehovah’s Witnesses is the release of the Yearbook, which chronicles the accomplishments of the organization over the past service year and beyond.
The 2014 Yearbook has now been released, and I have had some time to skim through its contents. There are the usual heartwarming stories where faith triumphs over adversity. There are also experiences that clearly demonstrate to those with an objective mind that the entrenched problems with the organization lie not far beneath the surface.
This article will attempt to present an honest review of the 2014 Yearbook. It will not take Watchtower’s rose-tinted sugar-coated approach, but will rather look at the stories behind the stories, and what impact the Governing Body is having on people’s lives.
The elephant in the room
It should go without saying that reaching the year 2014 is an unexpected, unwelcome and frankly embarrassing achievement from Watchtower’s perspective. We were simply not supposed to be at this point in human history without planet earth looking radically different, with arrangements of fruit gracing every table and a panda for every child.
Why? Because of what happened in 1914, of course.
Contrary to Watchtower’s sanitized version of its own history, 1914 was expected to signal, not the beginning of the last days, but the climactic end of them. As shown in the quote below from a Studies In The Scriptures volume, Russell believed Christ’s kingdom rule had begun in 1878, and that 1914 would mark the end of the “battle of the great day of God Almighty.”
Excerpt from "The Time Is At Hand," page 101, published in 1907
Excerpt from “The Time Is At Hand,” page 101, published in 1907

Fast forward 100 years since 1914, and we have had only more failed promises spewing forth from the pages of the Watchtower and its affiliated publications.
Russell’s successor Rutherford believed that 1925 would see the resurrection of the “ancient worthies” and the establishment of kingdom rule on the earth. So bold was he regarding this prediction that he then claimed that “millions now living will never die.” Suffice to say, virtually all the millions then living are now very much dead.
Fred Franz predicted that Armageddon would strike in 1975
Fred Franz predicted that Armageddon would strike in 1975

1975 was later touted as the date of Armageddon, with the late Fred Franz pointing to that year as marking six thousand years of human history. The year came and went with Witnesses selling homes and businesses in readiness for the great day of God’s wrath. Watchtower issued only a half-hearted apology years later, essentially blaming Witnesses for being so trusting. (w80 3/15 p.17 par.5,6)
And from my own childhood recollections I refuse to forget that the generation cognizant of the events of 1914 was not supposed to die off before Armageddon struck. So recent is this latter teaching that it still graces page 200 of the Reasoning Book, which in turn is still carried in the bags of Witnesses all over the world as they engage in their preaching work.
And so, as 2014 rolls around, there is every reason for Watchtower to humbly acknowledge a century of false predictions and resolve to be less forthright when making future prophetic estimations. Instead we get the following gleeful introduction to the Yearbook on page 2…

“About one hundred years ago, Jehovah installed Jesus as King in the invisible heavens. Since then, God’s servants have zealously made known the blessings that Christ’s Kingdom will bring. Imagine! Under the loving rulership of Jesus, the earth will become a paradise, filled with people who truly love one another. There will be no crime, no fighting, no sickness, no suffering, and no death.
Soon, those blessings will become a reality. God’s Kingdom is real, and it will come and fulfill all that Jehovah has purposed. Pray for the Kingdom to come, tell others about it, and treasure the hope of all that it will do for you.”
And so no lessons are learned, and no humble remorse is shown. We are simply required to “imagine” – suspend disbelief in the blind hope that Watchtower had it right all along despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.
As was said before, during and after 1914, Armageddon continues to be “soon,” imminent, just around the corner. There seems to be no end to the number of times Watchtower’s boy can cry “wolf!”
armageddon-cartoon
The Yearbook concludes on pages 170-175 under the rather unimaginative heading “One Hundred Years Ago 1914″ with a look back on events in the years leading up to and immediately following 1914.
The reader is reminded how much has changed since then, both within Watchtower and in the world in general. Nowhere is it mentioned honestly what the full expectations of Russell and his followers were for 1914, nor is it explained why a “short period of time” lasting a century is required by Christ before he can take action following his enthronement. (Rev. 12:12)
Instead, the reader is impressed with the need for loyalty. A countdown card circa 1914 is produced bearing the large inscription “be thou faithful unto death.” The message is clear – “Don’t think about whether we could be wrong, just be faithful until you die!”
"Countdown card" from page 175 of the 1914 Yearbook
“Countdown card” from page 175 of the 1914 Yearbook

Letter from the “fellow domestics”
In an obvious reference to the 2012 “new light” regarding the faithful slave, the Governing Body begins their traditional letter on pages 4 to 7 by addressing their readers as “Dear Fellow Domestics.”
Watchtower seems to believe that drilling home this idea that “we are ALL domestics” (to quote David Splane at the 2012 Annual Meeting) will lead Witnesses to the conclusion that the Governing Body are modest men who consider themselves on the same level as the ordinary rank and file. As nice as this idea sounds, it blatantly does not reflect reality. For evidence you need look no further than this very Yearbook.
The Governing Body’s letter best showcases the group’s growing propensity for narcissism. A photograph shows a weekly meeting in New York about to convene, with David Splane in the foreground entering a conference room where fellow members on swivel chairs desperately try to look as though they don’t know they are in a photo shoot.
From pages 4 and 5 of the 2014 Yearbook of Jehovah's Witnesses
From pages 4 and 5 of the 2014 Yearbook of Jehovah’s Witnesses

A quick glance at the letter itself shows the Governing Body wasting no time in reminding Witnesses of their miraculous provision of the revised New World Translation at the 2013 Annual Meeting (or, as they put it, “the finest translation of the Bible available to mankind”).
With this and other apparently bounteous provisions extended (among which is even counted the opportunity for auxiliary pioneers to attend the full pioneer meeting during Circuit Overseer visits), 8 million Witnesses are given yet more reasons to give thanks to their dear faithful slave.
The Governing Body’s hogging of the limelight is perhaps best reflected in a quick comparison between the number of times Jesus is mentioned in the entire Yearbook compared to the Governing Body and its members, past and present. As you will see, though Jesus finds himself mentioned 21 times (including in the phrase “the Memorial of Christ’s death”), his “Slave” including its current and former incumbents receive no less than 36 mentions, as follows…
◾Jesus / Christ – 21 times
◾“Governing Body” – 15 times
◾Anthony Morris / Brother Morris – 6 times
◾Milton Henschel / Brother Henschel – 5 times
◾Guy Pierce / Brother Pierce – 3 times
◾Stephen Lett / Brother Lett – 2 times
◾David Splane / Brother Splane – 2 times
◾Mark Sanderson / Brother Sanderson – 2 times
◾Lloyd Barry – once
If this doesn’t send a clear message as to who’s really in charge of “the earthly part of God’s organization,” I don’t know what does.
Still no mention of profits?
Pages 8 to 13 deal with Watchtower’s selling of its Brooklyn properties and building of a new headquarters at Warwick, upstate New York. As has been repeatedly mentioned on this website, the whole endeavor is essentially a billion-dollar property flip.
Though exact figures are hard to come by, it is easy to calculate that Watchtower has pocketed over a billion dollars from the sale of its Brooklyn portfolio. The sale of the six-building factory complex mentioned on page ten of the Yearbook made Watchtower $375 million alone. In contrast, it has been revealed that total construction costs for Warwick, which is being built mostly with volunteer labor, are estimated at a mere $11.5 million.
And yet for all this blatant profiteering, with some construction volunteers even sacrificing their employment to help build the new headquarters, what you will not find in this Yearbook is any transparency regarding the amounts of money changing hands. Why? You can guess this for yourself, but I would submit that Watchtower is covering up its enormous profits simply because it doesn’t want to discourage people from sending in their donations, which it desperately needs.
Sparlock DVD continues to wreak havoc
In May 2012 the world caught its first glimpse of the “Become Jehovah’s Friend” DVD, in which a young Witness boy named Caleb is coerced by his unhinged mother into throwing his plastic toy wizard into the garbage. Why? Because it made Jehovah sad.
Though it is a vile and blatant attempt at child indoctrination, this DVD has had its positives. As reported on this website, the film has immunized a whole YouTube generation against Jehovah’s Witnesses by showing just how cultlike they are. One Mormon has even been helped to awaken from his indoctrination by seeing how mind control is employed to such great effect by Watchtower through the story of Sparlock and Caleb.
Even so, I still can’t help but wish this dreadful film had never been released. To see why, you need only look at pages 20 to 22 of the new Yearbook under the sinister heading “Animated Videos Touch Righteous Hearts.”
Pictures are shown of children in Vietnam and Croatia laughing and singing along to the film, blissfully unaware that their brains are in the process of being rewired. A series of experiences are related to show how children are responding to the DVD. Unquestionably the most chilling of these is left for the end of the article (pages 21 and 22)…

“In Ecuador two non-Witness Quichua-speaking boys, eight-year-old Isaac and his five-year-old brother, Saul, used to save their daily snack money to buy toy guns, swords, and action figures. One day their mother asked them to tidy up their room and to put all their toys in a cardboard box under the bed. Later, the boys were given the new Become Jehovah’s Friend DVD as a gift, and they watched it together. A week later, while the mother was cleaning the house, she found that the cardboard box under the bed was empty except for a toy car. She asked the boys, ‘Where are the toys?’ They answered, ‘Jehovah doesn’t like those toys, so we threw them in the garbage.’ Now when other neighborhood children play with toys that promote violence, Isaac tells them: ‘Don’t play with that. Jehovah doesn’t like it!'”
I can’t decide what about this experience is more disturbing. Is it the fact that the film is apparently even indoctrinating non-Witnesses? Is it that these two boys in Ecuador ended up wasting their pocket-money on toys Watchtower made them throw away?
Or is it more likely the fact that sword and action figures have now been added to Watchtower’s seemingly endless list of things that make Jehovah sad, with the fate of a shriveled Adam and Eve looming over any child who dares to focus his or her imagination on a harmless object?
Toy swords and ALL action figures now join Sparlock in the blue dumpster
Toy swords and ALL action figures now join Sparlock in the blue dumpster

An incomplete legal report
I was intrigued to stumble on a section spanning pages 27 to 35 entitled “Legal Report.” Could this perhaps contain some reference to the recent glut of child abuse lawsuits, including the Candace Conti verdict that Watchtower is now appealing? Would at least one or two of Irwin Zalkin’s reported 11 child molestation lawsuits against Watchtower receive some acknowledgment?
As you might expect, the report contains nothing of the sort. Instead, all nine pages are devoted to Watchtower’s legal victories in the area of freedom of worship and conscientious objection.
It is a bitter irony that this organization applauds itself for securing its own religious liberties whilst cruelly snatching the same from those who dare to question its practices through the threat of shunning.
Dedications versus downsizing
Yearbooks traditionally report on new branch dedications and this year is no exception, as you will find on pages 39 to 43. South Korea, Liberia, Georgia, Myanmar and Moldova all received newly built or renovated branch facilities, so Governing Body members Lett, Morris, Pierce and Splane were dispatched to bring some celebrity to the proceedings.
But again, we see only one side of the coin, giving us the impression that Watchtower is enjoying relentless international growth. No attempt is made to chronicle or explain the number of branches closed in the same year as part of Watchtower’s ongoing downsizing (or “consolidation”) initiative. It is noteworthy that branch levels continue to plummet from their 2009 peak of 118 to just 91 as of last year.
branch-numbers

Defamatory propaganda?
My eyebrow was raised by an experience recounted on pages 63 and 64, in which an Armenian mother and daughter stood for two hours in bad weather in an effort to meet some Witnesses. Their reason? They had heard “defamatory propaganda” against the Witnesses on TV programs and posters, and couldn’t fathom how any of it could be true.
A close relative of theirs had encountered Witnesses incarcerated as conscientious objectors during his stay in prison. As a result of their influence he had come out a changed man. “My uncle is such a wonderful person. So why are there so many bad things being said about Jehovah’s Witnesses?” exclaimed the daughter, Yeva.
Well, Yeva, though I don’t know what they’ve been saying over there in Armenia (because Watchtower doesn’t tell us), I can tell you that bad things are rightly said about Jehovah’s Witnesses in most other countries because their leaders, the Watch Tower Society, have an atrocious track record of mishandling child abuse, dissuading young people from attending college, making it almost impossible for beaten wives to leave their husbands, allowing people to die by refusing medical treatment involving blood, and coercing families to shun loved ones who decide to leave.
Meanwhile, Watchtower claims that so-called apostates, those who dare to speak out against the organization, are “mentally diseased” liars, the composite “man of lawlessness,” who speak “gangrenous” words and eat at the table of demons and seek to draw off followers after themselves.
And this is not considered “defamatory propaganda?”
Working for the police is NOT okay
I had to gasp in wonder while reading an experience between pages 65 and 67 in which a young Nepalese man with half the name of a Flintstone’s character is brought into the Witness fold.
Bam had been a policeman when he first met the Witnesses, but during the course of studying with them he felt pangs of conscience regarding his profession. It seems being a policeman and arresting bad guys also features on the long list of things that make Jehovah sad.
Bam first asked his superiors for a desk job in the hopes of calming his troubled mind, and they readily agreed. This allowed Bam to hang up his gun and handcuffs and avoid losing sleep as to whether he might end up hurting any criminals. But after attending a District Convention, Bam decided that even this wasn’t going quite far enough to satisfy his new religion.
As a rickshaw driver, Bam now has sore legs but a clean conscience
As a rickshaw driver, Bam now has sore legs but a clean conscience

Bam ended up leaving the police force altogether and becoming a rickshaw driver to the initial (and understandable) consternation of his wife.
Eventually his wife also became a Witness and saw the error of her ways in wanting Bam to remain as a policeman. After all, apart from the money, she had been overly concerned about her “social standing” as the wife of a Nepalese police officer.
And so the whole family became Witnesses and all lived happily ever after, especially after Bam did the math and discovered he was earning more as a rickshaw driver than he was previously as a policeman.
It remains to be seen whether Bam feels the same way about that desk job once he has aged a bit more and his knees have started to buckle.
And the moral of the story is: Jehovah’s Witnesses can benefit from the work of law enforcement – they just can’t become police officers themselves.
Self-sacrifice, or self-endangerment?
A number of stories in the 2014 Yearbook, like the one above, seem to center on individuals making unreasonable and sometimes absurd or even dangerous sacrifices to demonstrate or affirm their loyalty to Watchtower.
Here are just a few examples…
◾Man sells his bike for building project (p.37) Malachi is an elder living in Burundi who decided to sell his bicycle, his main source of livelihood, to free him to take time off work to assist with a kingdom hall build. After giving most of the proceeds from the sale of his bike to his wife to care for his family, he put the rest of the money in the contribution box (as though his volunteer labor wasn’t quite enough). This apparent recklessness was later rewarded when Malachi found employment in construction based on the experience he gained on the building project, and he has even since been able to afford a new bike. Even so, it doesn’t sit well with me for Watchtower to be recommending this kind of gung-ho “endanger your family’s long-term welfare for us, and it will all pan out eventually” approach – especially in poor countries where work can be scarce.
◾Seventy-year-old woman walks in bad weather to attend a meeting (pp.48-49) – apparently walking for two hours in the pouring rain is what you should do if you’re a seventy-year-old Witness woman anxious to attend your meeting and there is no bus.
◾Witness youth incites bullying by preaching at school (p.58) This experience struck a chord with me as someone who was frequently bullied as a child on the grounds of his religion. A young boy in Guyana finds himself sitting in the head teacher’s office with a split lip after being punched in the face by another boy who didn’t like being preached to. Obviously in no way do I condone bullying or violence of any sort, but surely anyone who has been through school can understand that there are things you can do to make life easier for yourself, and make yourself less of a target for mindless thugs. Gleefully telling your classmates about their impending destruction at Armageddon is not such a strategy. And yet, Watchtower is happy for countless young ones to expose themselves to the physical and emotional harm caused by bullying so long as their objectives are furthered.
◾Disabled woman auxiliary pioneers every month for two years (p.67) Do you happen to be a very ill person with a bad leg caused by paralysis as a child? Do you get easily exhausted and suffer frequent falls? If so, you should definitely spend 50 hours per month preaching as an auxiliary pioneer. What’s that? You also experience panic attacks, difficulty breathing, pain caused by tension and anxiety, and side-effects from all the medication you are taking? In that case, I would prescribe auxiliary pioneering every month for at least two years, maybe more.
◾Polio victim serves as a regular pioneer (p.128-129) Again we have a very ill woman, this time a victim of polio crippled from the waist down who suffers from “chronic pain,” being held aloft by Watchtower as proof that there really are NO excuses for not pioneering (unless, of course, you are a Governing Body member). If you are using the fact that you are wheelchair-bound to escape doing your 70 hours of preaching every month, could it be that you just aren’t trying hard enough? Have you thought of enlisting the help of other brothers and sisters to get you from one door to the next, and round all your route calls? Don’t forget that your fellow Witnesses can be called upon in this way at any time, unless of course it is with the aim of attending an international convention as a delegate – in which case, please stay at home and don’t bother anyone!
If I sound flippant or overly sarcastic, please excuse me. It’s just that, having read this Yearbook, I am enraged and astounded at the manner in which the Governing Body seems only too willing to send people into the trenches on their behalf from the comfort of their swivel chairs despite all manner of adversities.
This indifference is best summed up on page 165 where we find Kevin Washington, a Gilead missionary in Sierra Leone, quoted as saying: “Many publishers regularly preach and care for congregation responsibilities in the face of problems that might prompt us to stay home and be cranky.”
By stereotyping as “cranky” those who live according to their limitations rather than throwing themselves on Watchtower’s altar, Kevin tells us everything we need to know about what it means to be a Witness, and how those who refuse to endanger their health to help promote the Governing Body are to be viewed.
Why no more debates?
William “Bible” Brown, a fearless missionary of Watchtower folklore, is frequently mentioned in this Yearbook. When reading some of his story, I am left admiring his tenacity and enthusiasm for his work, if not his misplaced religious convictions. Page 91 provides a perfect example of how the present Governing Body could well learn from his example…

“Rising to the clergy’s defense, a church youth group, dubbed the Gladiators, announced a series of public meetings to put down ‘Russellism,’ as they had styled the Kingdom message. In response, Brother Brown publicly challenged them to a series of debates. The Gladiators refused to accept Brother Brown’s challenge and rebuked the newspaper editor who printed it.”
One is reminded of the debates Charles Russell reportedly engaged in against church leaders of his day – undoubtedly the inspiration behind Brown’s public challenge of the “Gladiators.”
One is also left wondering why the present Governing Body is so fearful of exposing their own opinions to the cauldron of public debate. What precisely has changed since the days of Russell and Brown that makes the idea of speaking in debates so questionable? In refusing to respond to their opponents in this way, the Governing Body comes off looking less like Brown, and more like the Gladiators.
“The friend dropped dead!”
A strange experience is related on page 99. A man tries to dissuade a would-be Witness named Zachaeus from forsaking his local church in favor of a five-mile walk down a steep mountain to the nearest kingdom hall.
The man apparently says to Zachaeus, his friend, “Old man, if you continue to walk those five miles up and down this mountain to go to the hall of those people, you will be dead within a year.”
The man then apparently watches Zachaeus “walk up and down the mountain twice a week for five years.” Then, according to the Yearbook account, “the friend dropped dead!” Zachaeus, on the other hand, was said to be still feeling fit twenty-five years later.
Are we supposed to feel happy that a man’s friend died inexplicably? Was this story inserted as some sort of joke at the expense of non-Witnesses? I will leave it for you to decide.
“Jehovah had clearly protected and blessed it”
In dealing extensively with stories from Sierra Leone, the 2014 Yearbook commendably mentions the military unrest that ravaged that country for many years, including the personal stories of bravery on the part of Witnesses enduring brutal and seemingly endless rebel fighting.
In 1997 the fighting grew so fierce that a group of Watchtower missionaries had to be evacuated by helicopter from Freetown by the U.S. Marines as part of what they were later told was the largest civilian evacuation conducted by the U.S. Navy since the Vietnam War.
The U.S. Marines came to Watchtower's rescue in 1997, but shouldn't expect a thank you
The U.S. Marines came to Watchtower’s rescue in 1997, but shouldn’t expect a thank you

The following year the Sierra Leone Bethel itself was ransacked by rebel forces. It was only after the forces of the Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) had assumed control of Freetown that normality was restored with the missionaries returning. But even then, the violence wasn’t over.
In January 1999, rebel forces launched “Operation No Living Thing” – a campaign of carnage and terror in which 6,000 civilians were massacred, with arms and limbs hacked off randomly. Witnesses were not immune from the violence, with one brother killed (according to the Yearbook) and another bludgeoned in the head with an axe. Only with the intervention of a British expeditionary force in August of that year could peace be restored and the Witnesses allowed to continue their activities undisturbed.
You would think there would be some acknowledgment of the debt of gratitude owed by Jehovah’s Witnesses to government forces (including the armies of “Anglo-America” no less) in rescuing missionaries, purging Sierra Leone of bloodthirsty thugs, and restoring law and order. Instead, this is what we find on page 145…

“How had Jehovah’s organization fared? Jehovah had clearly protected and blessed it. During the conflict, about 700 people were baptized. Hundreds of Witnesses had fled the war zone, yet the number of publishers in Sierra Leone increased by 50 percent.”
It should come as no surprise that emotionally frightened and vulnerable people in a war-ravaged country would throw themselves into the arms of a religion offering an “imminent” transition to worldwide peace and security. It is equally to be expected that Watchtower should give no credit to the protection of the governmental instruments that brought an end to the savagery, thus allowing their religion to flourish. Instead, Watchtower claims it was Jehovah who had “clearly” both blessed and protected the organization.
“Prodigals” welcomed back?
Anyone who has been following my personal story will know that I recently had cause to relate the account of the prodigal son to some elders. During my judicial committee I reminded my accusers that Watchtower’s practice of shunning is unscriptural, because nowhere does the Bible say that family members should shun eachother on religious grounds.
Rather, the prodigal son parable offers an example of a son returning to his father for no other reason than because he had run out of food and money. And while his son was still some way off, even before repentance or lack thereof had been established, the father ran out to him and embraced him.
In sharp contrast, Witness parents are urged to spurn the love of their delinquent teenagers, considering them to be no better than Nadab and Abihu (the errant priests consumed by fire from the heavens). (w11 7/15 p.31)
So you can imagine how intrigued I was to see the prodigal son parable referred to on page 157, as follows…

“In recent times, a growing number of ‘lost sheep’ have been found. These are persons who had drifted away or had been removed from the congregation. Many such prodigals have turned around and made their way back to the truth. Jehovah’s people have welcomed them with open arms.—Luke 15:11-24.”
The above words, which describe individuals in Sierra Leone and Guinea returning to the Witnesses in recent years, hijack the parable of the prodigal son and completely reinvent it.
The prodigal son in Christ’s parable was never disfellowshipped, or even admonished by his religious leaders. There was no acceptance on his part of what was or wasn’t “the truth.” As I mentioned, the son simply returned home and was embraced by his father before repentance was even confirmed.
Rather than applying the prodigal son parable to the family as Jesus intended it, Watchtower seems intent on applying it to the entire organization – the “spiritual mother.” In so doing, it willfully overlooks the fact that the father was ready to show love to his son regardless of his judicial standing.
Though I am now agnostic, I find it sad and disturbing that one of the most beautiful and laudable teachings of Jesus could be so distorted and misappropriated by Watchtower, seemingly without Witnesses noticing.
Wondrous expansion now taking place?
With all the fuss being made about the recently revamped JW.org site on pages 14 to 17 of the Yearbook, you would expect to be blown away by a resulting influx of Witnesses when you finally reach the worldwide report. Instead, we find only a modest improvement in the growth rate, from 1.9% in 2012 to 2.1% in 2013.
Bear in mind that global population growth is estimated at 1.14% annually. Jehovah’s Witnesses can therefore expect to grow by roughly 100,000 publishers per year simply by breeding and dying at the same rate as everyone else. It’s therefore not much to write home about if the organization has beaten global population growth by just one percentage, especially when you consider the recent added impetus of JW.org and the urban preaching effort using push carts.
And the bad news for Watchtower is that, when you look at the growth rate trend over the past ten years, there are few reasons for optimism. Only twice, in 2007 and 2009, has the growth rate nudged over the 3% mark – a far cry from the 7.1% increase recorded in 1984.
percentage-growth
The increasing futility of the preaching work is perhaps best illustrated by the growing ratio of hours to baptisms. The following graph shows that the number of hours required per baptism has steadily increased over the past ten years, from 4,886 in 2004 to 6,639 in 2013 (the equivalent of just over nine months).
hours-baptismAll this means that it is unquestionably getting harder for Witnesses to get tangible results in the preaching work beyond placing literature. This can be due in no small measure to the abundance of objective information about Watchtower now available online. For all Governing Body’s spin, self-publicity and navel-gazing, there is simply no escaping Watchtower’s chequered history and present scandals.
As Abraham Lincoln once said, “You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.”

new-cedars-signature2






Further reading…
◾Download the 2014 Yearbook
◾Read JWsurvey articles on Watchtower downsizing
◾Read the JWsurvey article on the 2012 figures
◾Read the updated JWfacts article on Watchtower statistics


Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:
 Loading...

Bookmark the permalink.
 
← 2014 Global Survey now launched!
Witness juror’s actions branded “disgraceful” after she forces mistrial over her beliefs →

75 Responses to My review of the 2014 Yearbook

← Older Comments

 JBob says:

 January 12, 2014 at 7:15 pm

Why is “Yoda” jumping on me about this?
I concur, no where near the profit made off Brooklyn property sales. And, let’s not forget that Brooklyn land, buildings, refurb, remodels, printing presses purchased–aside from the small Brooklyn Tabernacle initially purchased by Russell from Tower Publishing profits–were all purchased via the “donations for Kingdom activity” line thrown out at every assembly, meeting, Watchtower magazine blurb and special talk.
It’s the same tactic used by scruples-free televangelists who were raking in the dough from the credulous–the religulous (Bill Maher, 2008). Always a bigger satellite dish/equipment; a bigger studio; a need to provide wider distribution of books, DVD’s, etc. requiring those living on meager means to send in a tithe, or a gift that God would return 100-fold.
But, to highlight the dastards at hand (and, you’ll see the d* word aptly applies on this next item), consider that the Watchtower encourages signing over endowments, pension survivor-benefits, life insurance proceeds–the things that orphans and widows need to survive–to its coffers. Of course, one question–given the “materialistic” drive it takes to afford all those benefit cushions, what JW’s (if they’re true believer types) would be able to afford the savings, premiums, and investment it takes to accumulate such wealth?
Highlighting the d* word further, what does it say that a group is willing to recruit “wealthy” sheep and then “shear” them, if not fleece them, of any wealth years of intellectual talent, or labor, provided? And, there are wealthy JW families/individuals–not only artist/entertainers, but business persons, entrepreneurs, doctors, lawyers, financial advisors, inventors, engineers, and educators. Rare, but some do exist–even if for a fleeting moment in the stifling environment of the Watchtower.
And, that’s how you channel frustration and anger…
Reply
 

 JBob says:

 January 12, 2014 at 7:50 pm

Some slow growth in Eastern Europe and Asian countries that were behind the “Iron Curtain” up until the “Evil Empire” fell because when the Watchtower finally reconnected with those individuals they were dismayed at the changes made through the “no contact” years and left–increasingly liberal behavior allowances and token obedience to secular authorities [the reverse of the latter being a chief cause for being “underground” in communist countries].
To Rowland, the Memorial count would be aligned to your view on distorted count of inactive, hangers-on JW’s, and “interested, but not committed” persons. That is the one time per year, where even most inactive Witness will seek out a meeting–just to sit there and watch a pungent glass of wine and a flat cracker/wafer pass them by; even some dissenters on certain points of Watchtower views will attend.
Reply
 

 Nick B says:

 January 12, 2014 at 9:15 pm

Really worth noting that the new World Headquarters is NOT the USA Branch Office, so as you rightly say Cedars, no printing will take place at this site.
There is talk that once Warwick goes live with the new World Headquarters, that the Tuxedo site will be where the USA Branch Office is relocated to.
Reply
 

 Hakizimana Jean de Dieu says:

 January 12, 2014 at 11:05 pm

Page 113 is about “Secret Societies”! It ends with ” Members are forbidden to reveal the group’s knowledge and rituals to outsiders. A person who flouts the laws and protocols of a secret society risks death.”
Are Jehovah’s Witnesses ( a secret society) different in this area?
“Other secret societies regulate sexual behavior…” What about the Watchtower? All this for me means that:
 THE WATCHTOWER SOCIETY = (Ecclesiastes 1:13) . . .calamitous occupation that God has given to the sons of mankind in which to be occupied. . .
 THE WATCHTOWER SOCIEY = (Romans 8:20) . . .the creation was subjected to futility, not by its own will but through him that subjected it. . .
Reply
 

 dubless says:

 January 13, 2014 at 2:18 am

I also never found any evidence that JW leaders are living in movie-star luxury. On the other hand I’m pretty sure that many people – not just in the 3rd world, but also the US – would love to have the life of the GB members: no worries about money or dying alone in poverty, no problems getting all the medical care they need, basically all their needs are taken care of.
And I should add that the same holds true for many, perhaps most other religions. There surely are crazy cult leaders and televangelists rolling in cash and spending it for themselves, but they’re the exception.
Reply
 

 tiger says:

 January 13, 2014 at 4:48 am

Great job again. I cant help but think about the coordinator in my former hall who loves the limelight. He is a terrible speaker yet he gives the memorial talk each year. He regularly accepts assignments at the conventions where his mumbling and getting lost only accentuates his incredible ego that makes him get up there rather than taking it easy in his seat. As for the ones who put him up their, they are bad at giving talks to, but compared to him, they are like cockroaches to a starving man, they are food and better than dung.
The G.B. love the limelight as you have pointed out. The only good thing I can say about them is that they are the biggest bunch of idiots to occupy those seats. At least Russel was a business man. Rutherford was a self appointed judge, and full of garbage and lies, probably the most evil G.B. member of all time. Knor was a selfish man dictating singleness, while going out and getting himself some flesh for his own pleasure. Franz was a very smart man, but full of himself. This bunch is the biggest bunch of idiots assembled ever. They are so transparent and clergy like, I cannot believe anyone wonders what is in it for them. Look at the pope the nuns, the bishops the same could be asked of them. It is simple, personal assistants, doctors, lawyers, drivers, branches with rooms set aside especially for them with their favorite snacks and drinks as well as meals awaiting their arrival. I know as my family stayed in one of their rooms at Watchtower Farms when one of them was to sick to make it. It had a huge gift basket and refrigerator full of anything you could think of. My parents were blown away how well they were treated.
Meanwhile in my crappy room I had nothing of the sort and had no assistants nor the adoration of adoring zombies. I have since been able to enjoy a measure of wealth, but I am unable to afford the lifestyle of the G.B. way to far out of my reach.
As to your point of living like a rockstar, Rockstars go broke living like the G.B. do. Look it up, a lot of them are penniless from such a lifestyle.
Reply
 

 Pepeeltoro says:

 January 13, 2014 at 11:23 am

This numbers in the new yearbook are really Bad. taking the Aver Pubs for the United States for 2013 and 2014 there was great increase of 11,573 add the 32,118 that got Baptized it took average of 6010 hrs for a new pub or new baptz..
 Japan also stands out to me after suffering a Earthquake not to long ago you would think a great increase that not the case they lost 726 publishers, there were 2545 new baptz they had total 82million preachin hours that means it took them 32,225 hours for one person to get baptz what waste of time..
Reply
 

 JSX says:

 January 13, 2014 at 11:43 am

Many JWs from more-affluent lands move over to lands under ban to witness there. This makes a big part of the steady increase. China is an example: thousands of Westerns, Japanese, Koreans, Russians and others moved there.
Reply
 

 Fred Hall says:

 January 13, 2014 at 1:04 pm

Do you know a mass murderer? It Satan. Unless you don’t know it.
Reply
 
 Rowland Nelken says:

 January 13, 2014 at 7:31 pm

Please supply evidence of Satan’s murders, Fred.
As a Jehovah’s Witness, Fred (if that is what you are), you look forward to the day of Armageddon when your fantasy Jehovah monster is due to murder c. 7 billion of your fellow humans. Why do you love this idea of mass murder, Fred?
It is tragic that c. 8 million belong to an outfit that shares this blood soaked delusion. Please, Fred, answer my repeated questions and explain why this horrendous prospect is so alluring.
Reply
 

 Rowland Nelken says:

 January 14, 2014 at 12:39 am

And who murdered the greater part of humanity at the Flood, Fred Hall? According to the Bible it was God.
Please, Fred Hall- you have answered no questions at all. Why are you so pleased to report an increase in membership of an organisation that is obsessed with the imminent Armageddon murder of most of humanity?
You owe us an explanation, not another evasive statement.
We are waiting.
Reply
 
 

 hmmm says:

 January 13, 2014 at 3:24 pm

The sad thing is people like my mom, brother and aunt all never go out in field service due to illness. My mom (85)has demetia yet i know for a fact they still give her 15 minutes a month. My aunt is bed ridden and my brother just gets away with claiming he is sick. They are all counted as an active pub because of the 15 minute rule. Can you imagine how many of these people exist in this religion?
Reply
 

 HAKIZIMANA Jean de Dieu says:

 January 13, 2014 at 11:06 pm

Fred Hall,
 Who is behind this? Satan or Jehovah
 (1 Samuel 15:3) . . .Now go, and you must strike down Am′a‧lek and devote him to destruction with all that he has, and you must not have compassion upon him, and you must put them to death, man as well as woman, child as well as suckling, bull as well as sheep, camel as well as ass.’. . .
(Numbers 31:17-18) . . .And now kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has had intercourse with man by lying with a male. 18 And preserve alive for yourselves all the little ones among the women who have not known the act of lying with a male. . .
killing women just because they had had intercourse with men… Ridiculous!! I am sure SATAN cannot do that!!
Reply
 

 tiger says:

 January 14, 2014 at 2:29 am

zechariah 14:1,2 14 “Look! The day is coming, a day belonging to Jehovah, when the spoil from you* will be divided in your midst. 2 I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem for the war; and the city will be captured and the houses plundered and the women raped. And half of the city will go into exile, but the remaining ones of the people will not be cut off from the city.
He doesn’t just love murder, he loves rape. He is a beast like no other. He sits by and watches it, what a sick ######!
Reply
 

 no-one says:

 January 14, 2014 at 10:23 pm

Many Czechs and Slovakian witnesess moved to UK as well. There are few groups of Czechs and Slovaks I’m aware of.
Reply
 

 Reader says:

 January 15, 2014 at 6:32 am

(Numbers 31:17-18) . . .And now kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has had intercourse with man by lying with a male. 18 And preserve alive for yourselves all the little ones among the women who have not known the act of lying with a male. . .
So they kept the virgins for themselves. What a fantastic holy army of Jehovah.
I find it so repulsive that people continue to worship this monster.
Reply
 

 Tiger says:

 January 15, 2014 at 1:17 pm

Giving gifts to family and friends and food drives and toy drives for the less fortunate = Christmas…. Satans day
Giving candy to children and wearing costumes = Halloween……. Satan’s day
Having family in for dinner and helping the poor with a hot meal = Thanksgiving…… Satan’s day
Watching women be raped, (Zech 14:1,2) preserving young girls to be raped (Numbers 31:17,18) and peoples posessions being stolen, hiding pedophiles = Jehovah’s day.
Wake up JWs this is a sick cult following middle eastern men’s sick set of rules and beliefs, Or celebrate the mental illness and depravity that is called in the Bible the day of Jehovah.
Reply
 

 jimtie says:

 March 8, 2014 at 6:19 pm

Wonderful information. Although they would call it blasphemy. Jesus though as our main example did not hide from the disciples what the Pharisees were about. This “”slave”” class does exactly the opposite they surgar coat what is dishonest or when something is wrong. They do this to lift themselves up. It isnt too unusual that many have followed their dark course, but sad because some are inocent and brain washed.(Rev 2:14-16;12:9)
Reply
 

 Menrov says:

 March 11, 2014 at 1:39 am

I agree, we might disagree with how the funds are used or even agree that there is a lot of secrecy but so far we cannot point to misuse of funds. Although I do agree that there is a big difference in life style when living in Bethel, in whatever country, where food and good living is provided and the more senior people have even better rooms and all services are provided, and the many witnesses around the world that do not have access to that.
Reply
 

 Menrov says:

 March 11, 2014 at 1:54 am

Fred, you are correct, there is a growth reported. From total growth (over 200k), it is not clear how many actually were new and what number was from families already a JW. Let’s take 50% for sake of argument.
 Then over 1.8 billion hours are reported. So, it takes about 16000 hours per any newly (not from JW family) baptized person. Admitting, in these hours are also hours reported for study to family children but that amount is capped.
 My point is, yes, there is gowth but nothing to even brag about, if at all, as Paul says, there is nothing to brag about.
Reply
 

 Thomas Harper says:

 July 8, 2014 at 6:53 pm

The governing body can’t participate in debates because they simply are not willing to humble themselves to the point of considering their contemporaries as being on the same level as them. In every way they consider themselves superior to those around them.
Plus, by sticking close to headquarters, the governing body mirrors Jesus’s perfect example of sitting at his desk, chomping on a cigar, and half-bellowing/half-burping out orders to the volunteers.
Reply
 

← Older Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾29 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     



































                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/my-review-of-the-2014-yearbook































Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



← Former elder convicted of rape and pedophilia amid claims of non-cooperation and destroyed evidence
When will Watchtower learn? – Karen Morgan speaks out on her abuser’s 14 year sentence →

The Cedars Review: “God’s Kingdom Rules!”
avatar
Posted on July 2, 2014

David Splane releases the book "God's Kingdom Rules!" at the 2014 International Convention in New Jersey
David Splane releases the book “God’s Kingdom Rules!” at the 2014 International Convention in New Jersey

A new book is being released at the 2014 “Keep Seeking First God’s Kingdom” series of conventions. Entitled “God’s Kingdom Rules!,” it marks the centenary of 1914 with a heavily sanitized version of Jehovah’s Witness history over the past 100 years or more.
Prior to this release, “Jehovah’s Witnesses – Proclaimers of God’s Kingdom” was Watchtower’s primary authorized history book. Despite presenting a similarly white-washed perspective of Witness history, at least somewhere in its 750-pages there were hints at some of the skeletons from Watchtower’s past.
For example, page 76 featured a grey box on Beth Sarim, the “House of the Princes.” The fact that it was principally earmarked by Rutherford as a residence for the likes of Abraham, Joseph and David on their resurrection was relegated to a mere footnote – but at least something was there in print.
Every bit as wacky as Rutherford’s notions of bible characters suddenly emerging in suburban San Diego was Russell’s insistence that the Great Pyramid of Gizeh was “God’s Stone Witness.” So convinced was he that every inch in the internal chambers corresponded to years of bible history that he dedicated books, charts and magazine articles to this bizarre theory, which remained official Watchtower dogma until 1928.
The Proclaimers book didn’t explore the pyramid teaching at length, but it at least allowed it a grudging mention on page 201 – enough to provide a basis for further research for those so inclined.
The new God’s Kingdom Rules! book, on the other hand, dispenses with Beth Sarim entirely. And any clue that Russell once indulged in elaborate pyramid fantasies must now be deciphered from a sepia photo of a horsedrawn cart on page 19 with the “divine plan” chart discernible on its side.
Modern Witnesses are thus left with no hint of just how ludicrous the teachings of their prized organization’s former leaders actually were.
With this in mind, consider the following words of David Splane in his concluding talk at the 2014 East Rutherford International Convention in New Jersey…


As Splane acknowledged, there are many countries deprived of any reasonable grasp of Watchtower history because the Proclaimers book is only available in a limited number of languages.
Apparently Christ’s words at Matthew 19:26, “with God all things are possible,” do not stretch to translating a 750-page book into the tongues of all God’s people. Conveniently, the Governing Body would rather throw in the towel and instead release an entirely new, slimmer volume that just so happens to omit almost all unsavory aspects of the organization’s history.
The Proclaimers Book may have re-written Watchtower history, but at least it presented a framework for further research
The Proclaimers Book may have re-written Watchtower history, but at least it presented a framework for further research

This may not seem like such a big deal if you are reading this article from an English-speaking country. However, I happen to live in one of those countries where the Proclaimers book isn’t available in the local language – which in my case is Croatian.
I have experienced firsthand the frustration of trying to reason with indoctrinated relatives on basic flaws in Watchtower history to which they are completely oblivious because they have never been able to read the Proclaimers book.
Now my plight is made even worse, because my relatives will assume they know everything about Watchtower history thanks to this new book. In truth, they will know only what Watchtower has allowed them to know – with a dash of spin, trickery and willful omission thrown into the mix.
But all is not lost. An elder friend from the United States has gone to quite some expense to mail me my own personal copy of the God’s Kingdom Rules! book so that I can dissect it for myself. After going through it, I have found a number of areas that clearly demonstrate the flawed logic behind Watchtower theology and its omission or white-washing of historical details.
This article will attempt to summarize my findings as succinctly as possible. (Edit: and with a final word-count of over 6,000 words will clearly fail! My apologies!)
(A PDF download of the book is available on this link – please remember to click on the blue box that says “Click here to start download from Sendspace”)
“Attractive publications” or style over substance?
As is increasingly becoming customary for Watchtower books, a letter from the Governing Body adorns the introductory pages.
Noteworthy in this latest letter is a paragraph that begins with the words: “With Jehovah’s blessing on the work, we are now able to publish our attractive Bible literature in more than 670 languages and to offer it to everyone without charge.” (page 3)
Firstly, as Splane admitted in the above video, not ALL Watchtower publications are available in 670 languages. It seems Jehovah’s organization will, to quote Splane, “never have the resources” to make certain books available in every tongue. Apparently spiritual food from the faithful slave doesn’t have a passport for certain language borders. So the writers have barely begun their 240-page ramble before foisting a clear exaggeration on the reader.
Secondly, my eyebrows were raised by the term “attractive literature” being coined by the Governing Body. Surely whether literature is visually appealing or not is irrelevant compared to whether it is truthful and informative. To my mind, this Freudian slip speaks volumes about Watchtower’s “style over substance” approach, where aesthetics are paramount and producing factual, honest information falls lower down the pecking order.
“Ample proof,” or ample exaggeration?
Of further interest is the certainty and frequency with which unsupportable claims are made throughout the publication.
Page 11 announces: “We have ample proof that Jesus’ prophecy [at Matthew 24 and 25] has been undergoing fulfillment since 1914.”
“Without question,” we are told on page 77, “the King has blessed the methods we have used to advertize the Kingdom.”
“Our legal victories prove that we walk in the sight of God and in company with Christ,” is the conclusion on page 145.
“All these theocratic schools are powerful proof that our King has fully equipped his followers to accomplish their ministry,” page 185 insists.
Page 208 asserts that the “scores of branch office buildings, hundreds of Assembly Halls, and tens of thousands of Kingdom Halls around the world provide tangible proof that God’s Kingdom is real and is now ruling.”
And page 235, in the final chapter, declares: “Each chapter of this book contains powerful evidence that Christ has brought his followers into a genuine spiritual paradise in this time of the end.”
When invoked for such ludicrous claims, words like “proof” and “evidence” quickly lose all meaning. If ministerial training programs, legal victories or an abundance of buildings are evidence that Jesus Christ is involved in the Watchtower organization, then the same must be said of Roman Catholicism, Mormonism, the Church of England, or almost any significant Christian denomination.
The propensity for exaggeration and outlandish claims in this publication knows almost no limits, and led to my reading it with an almost-constant smirk or face-palm. No opportunity for self-congratulation is bypassed.
Take for example page 78 where a footnote declares: “In the past decade alone, Jehovah’s people have produced more than 20 billion Bible-based publications. In addition, our Web site, jw.org, is now available to the more than 2.7 billion people worldwide who access the internet.”
Chairman Mao has some unlikely admirers
Chairman Mao has some unlikely admirers

And so, in the scramble for impressive stats, the web’s audience of 2.7 billion is annexed by Watchtower without hesitation for the purpose of “bigging up” its achievements. The fact that the likes of JWfacts.com, AAWA.co, JWstruggle.com and indeed this website could make exactly the same claim regarding the internet’s audience is an afterthought.
Then on page 83 a graph is shown in which Watchtower compares the publishing figures for its various publications with those of ‘the world’.
I let out an audible giggle when I glanced at the heading “other books” in which the Bible Teach book’s publication figure of over 201 million is held up against the more than 1 billion copies of Chairman Mao’s “little red book” (or “Quotations From Chairman Mao Tse-tung”).
The irony appears to be completely lost on Watchtower that it has now sunk to measuring its success in propaganda distribution against that of a communist dictator.
New light, and the Governing Body’s “humility”
When reading this book you also can’t help but notice the way key “new light” interpretations are rammed home for emphasis at every opportunity.
Page 12 gets the ball rolling with an image showing the “overlapping generations” teaching, which has been met with considerable derision by thinking Witnesses since its introduction in 2010.
As you may be aware, the “generation” that “will not pass away” referred to by Jesus at Matthew 24:3 has been conveniently sliced into two different groups, one of which lives on into our time. Why? Because the generation that witnessed the events of 1914 has, well, passed away.
What about evidence that Jesus had two groups in mind when speaking to his disciples? Apparently none is needed. Simply switch off your critical thinking faculties and embrace the notion that the “two groups form one generation because their lives as anointed Christians overlapped for a time.”
The latest interpretation of the “faithful slave” teaching is similarly aired in this book, although far more frequently. Page 23 reminds us that, in 1919, Jesus “appointed the ‘faithful and discreet slave’, a small group of anointed men who would take the lead among his people.”
“Especially from that time onward,” we are assured on pages 61 and 62, “that slave began dispensing spiritual food – by means of convention discourses and printed publications – that repeatedly emphasized the responsibility of all Christians to have a personal share in preaching.”
A brief disclaimer regarding the false pronouncements and doctrinal U-turns made by this “slave” features on page 37, but like many things in this book it is heavily spun to make the organization appear saint-like.

“As Chapters 4 and 5 of this book will show, over the past 100 years, God’s people have had to adjust their understanding on a number of occasions. Does that fact mean that they do not have Jehovah’s backing? On the contrary! He supports them. Why? Because those who fear Jehovah have displayed two qualities that he loves – faith and humility. (Heb. 11:6; Jas. 4:6) Jehovah’s servants have faith that all the promises in God’s Word will come true. They show humility when they admit that they misunderstood exactly how those promises would be fulfilled.” – God’s Kingdom Rules, page 37.
“Humility” is an attribute notably absent in the Governing Body’s brutal policy of disfellowshipping any who voice disagreement with their transient “understandings” of scripture, and severing such ones from their families.
If the Governing Body were to publish their “understandings” on a take-it-or-leave-it basis, that would be one thing. The above professions of humility might then hold some water.
But the simple truth is that a person who stands up and voices an understanding of scripture that does not accord with their contemporary teachings is punished in the worst possible means – by family estrangement, including demonization as a “mentally-diseased” apostate.
To illustrate just how crazy this policy is: a publisher could have insisted in 2011 that the Governing Body alone are the “faithful slave,” and not the broader 144,000 spirit-anointed ones, and he would need to be disfellowshipped by his elders on grounds of apostasy. Refuse to make the exact same acknowledgement when pressed on the matter only two years later, and another person meets the same fate.
Such willingness on the part of the Governing Body to mete out punishments for refusing to yield to their latest doctrinal whims renders any professions of humility not only laughable but deeply insulting to those like myself who are victims of their delusional arrogance.
It also renders entirely hypocritical the accounts related on pages 147 and 153 where Watchtower boasts of successfully appealing to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) for the “freedom of thought, conscience, and religion” of its affiliates.
Anyone familiar with Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights will note that, in addition to guaranteeing freedom of religious observance, it also protects the “freedom of thought, conscience, and religion” of anyone who decides to “change his religion or belief” – something you are not allowed to do as a Witness without facing the prospect of permanent family ostracism. (For more information, see this video.)
But as objectionable as Watchtower’s claims regarding new light are, there are some notable areas in this new book where the teaching is demonstrably ludicrous. Hopefully an overview of these may be of use to those seeking ways of reasoning with indoctrinated relatives.
Organizational refinements – finite or indefinite?
One confusing element of the ‘new light’ surrounding the faithful slave is the notion that Christ visited Earth in 1914 and oversaw a cleansing of the early Bible Students over the period to 1919. This teaching is spelled out on page 100…

“From 1914 to early 1919, the Refiner, Jehovah, allowed his people to go through various trials and hardships that served to refine and cleanse them. Happily, those anointed ones emerged from the fiery tests in a cleaner condition, eager to show their support for the Messianic King!” – God’s Kingdom Rules!, page 100
With such a specific period, and with five years for God and Christ to work with, you would assume all the required cleaning would be complete by the 1919 passed. But that is not what we see in the very next paragraph.

“Was that the end of the refining and cleaning for God’s people? No. Throughout the last days, Jehovah by means of the Messianic King has continued to help his followers be clean so that they might remain in the spiritual temple.” – God’s Kingdom Rules!, page 101
It shouldn’t be too hard to see the problem here. If God’s people were indeed cleansed between 1914 and 1919, why have they required decades upon decades of cleansing since that period? Is the cleansing period finite, or indefinite? The Governing Body doesn’t seem to want to make up its mind, and won’t even recognize the need to.
Allow me to illustrate how ludicrous this teaching is.
Last month my wife and I hired a local laborer to install drywall in our bathroom. The laborer told us the job would be done in 2 to 3 days. He turned up with some colleagues and, sure enough, after 2 to 3 days the work was done to our satisfaction and we paid him. He did not cover only one or two walls with drywall and then say, “You can pay me now and I will do the remaining walls progressively over the next few years.” Had he told us that, we would have refused to pay until the work was finished.
For some reason, Watchtower refuses to explain why Christ’s cleansing work is both for a 5-year period and ongoing, or why an Almighty God requires a century or more to whip his one true religion into shape.
The only hint of an explanation is offered on page 108, where we are told that continual refinement is needed because “Satan never stops trying to draw [Christ’s followers] back into the mire of immorality.” But morals are one thing, organizational refinements are another. Take, for example, the elder arrangement.
Going backwards to go forwards
Page 119 discusses organizational refinements regarding elders by referring to Isaiah 60:17: “Instead of the copper I will bring in gold, and instead of the iron I will bring in silver, instead of the wood, copper, and instead of the stones, iron; and I will appoint peace as your overseers and righteousness as your task assigners.”
Notice the very next paragraph after this scripture is quoted (bold is mine)…

“Isaiah’s prophecy states that one material would be replaced by another. But note that the replacements are changes, not from bad to good, but from good to better. Replacing copper with gold is an improvement, and the same is true of the other materials here mentioned. Thus, with this word picture, Jehovah foretold that the condition of his people would improve step-by-step.” – God’s Kingdom Rules, page 119
The message here couldn’t be clearer. Organizational adjustments only go in one direction, and that is forwards – not backwards.
With this in mind, consider what the same chapter reveals regarding the elder arrangement in the preceding paragraphs…

“[The November 15, 1895 Watch Tower] announced a far reaching change. It directed that starting immediately, “in every company, elders be chosen” to ‘take the oversight of the flock’.”- God’s Kingdom Rules, pp.118-119
And so, under Russell’s direction, an arrangement was brought in whereby there would be bodies of elders rather than a single leader for each “company,” or congregation.
But Rutherford was to have other ideas, as revealed by Ray Franz in his book Crisis of Conscience (bold is mine)…

“The Scriptural arrangement of bodies of elders had been summarily ended in 1932 by Judge Rutherford due to a lack of cooperation on the part of some elders with the Society’s programs and policies. His position as President gave Rutherford the necessary authority to take such a stand and all congregations were invited to vote for the disbanding of bodies of elders and their replacement by a Society-appointed ‘Service Director.’ For the next forty years there were no bodies of elders in the congregations. That is why the New World Translation of the Bible published by the Society in the 1950s regularly used the rendering ‘older men’ rather than ‘elders,’ a then officially discredited term.” – Crisis of Conscience by Raymond Franz, pp.26-27
(To read or download Crisis of Conscience, click here.)
This version of events corresponds precisely with the narrative presented in the new God’s Kingdom Rules! book, where it says…

“From 1932 to 1972, congregation oversight had been carried out mainly by one brother. Until 1936, such an appointed brother was called the service director. Thereafter, the name was changed to company servant, then to congregation servant, and finally to congregation overseer. Those appointed brothers cared zealously for the spiritual welfare of the flock. The congregation overseer usually made decisions for the congregation without consulting other servants in the congregation.” – God’s Kingdom Rules, pp.122
Hopefully by now you have spotted the problem, which is as-good-as admitted in this new book. The organization went from having a ‘theocratic’ elder arrangement under Russell, to a non-theocratic “congregation servant” arrangement under Rutherford, and then back to the original elder arrangement under Knorr.
How, precisely, does this clear flip-flop show organizational refinements only going “from good to better” as page 119 explained?
Misrepresenting history
Related to this issue is the way Watchtower seems perfectly content to re-write its history in such a way as to claim for itself the contributions made by a man it ousted and condemned as an “apostate.”
Ray Franz - the Governing Body have claimed his contribution for themselves
Ray Franz – the Governing Body have claimed his contribution for themselves

In Crisis of Conscience, Ray Franz explains meticulously how he was asked by Nathan Knorr, not by any “Governing Body” (for the Governing Body arrangement only formally began in 1971) to do research on a new book Aid to Bible Understanding under the supervision of Karl Adams, who was neither a Governing Body member nor, indeed, of the anointed.
Two of the subjects assigned to Franz were “older man [elder]” and “overseer.” It was his research that would prompt the changes to the elder arrangement that were previously mentioned.
But notice how the God’s Kingdom Rules! book describes the above episode…

“From 1964 to 1971, the governing body supervised an extensive Bible study project that examined, among many other subjects, how the first-century Christian congregation functioned. As to organizational structure, it was learned that the oversight of congregations in the first century was carried out by a body of elders instead of just by one elder, or overseer.” – God’s Kingdom Rules, pp.120
Thus Watchtower not only writes Ray Franz out of history – it also takes the credit for his contribution, which it accepts as an organizational improvement.
Further attempts to rewrite history or gloss over unflattering details can be seen on the following pages…
◾Page 14 – It is mentioned that Henry Grew, George Stetson, and George Storrs “had a profound impact on C.T. Russell and his close associates,” but no mention is made of Nelson Barbour, who had a major influence on Russell’s fascination with date-setting, or William Miller (the founder of adventism on which Russell’s teachings were loosely based) who receives at least some mention in the Proclaimers book.
◾Pages 22 and 23 – The death of Russell is mentioned, but the leadership coup in which Rutherford swept to power (by effectively tearing up Russell’s will and scuppering what would have been something much closer to a “governing body” arrangement of shared power as early as 1917) receives no acknowledgment. Instead, an “outbreak of apostasy” is blamed on “creature worship” of Russell and a bitter resistance of “efforts to move forward.” (For more information on this period in Watchtower’s history, read this article under the heading “A Questionable Character.”)
◾Page 23 – Pre-1914 expectations are characterized thus: “They thought that in 1914, Christ would take his anointed bride class to heaven to rule with him there.” No mention is made of the fact that this ‘rapture’ had also been the expectation for 1878 when Russell and Barbour were working together, or that Russell expected 1914 to mark the END of Armageddon. (For more information, click here) Mention is also made of Rutherford being “unjustly sentenced” in 1918, without any explanation of what prompted his incarceration. Likely his publication of fiercely political anti-war material in pages 247 to 253 of The Finished Mystery would be a little much for the average Witness to stomach.
◾Page 62 – The Golden Age magazine (forerunner to the Awake!) is referred to as “directing people to the Kingdom as mankind’s only hope.” Some who are more familiar with actual Golden Age articles may struggle with this premise, particularly after reading that black people were considered a “race of servants,” that the book Uncle Tom’s Cabin is the “work of Satan” (see here), or that “in the future man will get his food directly from the sun.” (The Golden Age 1927 Oct 5 p.10)
◾Page 70 – The Photodrama of Creation is acclaimed as having been shown in “packed auditoriums” during 1914. No mention is made that in one of these auditoriums in New York black audience members were segregated. (see here)
◾Page 72 – We are reminded that “an estimated 50,000 people heard [Rutherford’s] talk ‘Millions Now Living Will Never Die'” in 1922. Some would argue that this achievement is rather overshadowed by the sad irony that most if not all of those 50,000 are likely now deceased, as will be a significant remainder of the immortal “millions” alluded to by Rutherford.
Rare honesty and some helpful features
Some rare honesty IS to be found on page 50 regarding pre-1914 expectations of Russell…

“As we saw in Chapter 2 of this book, the Bible Students spent decades pointing out that the year 1914 would be significant in fulfilling Bible prophecy. However, at that time they believed that Christ’s presence had begun in 1874, that he had begun to rule in heaven in 1878, and that the Kingdom would not be fully set up until October 1914. The harvest would extend from 1874 to 1914 and would culminate in the gathering of the anointed to heaven.” – God’s Kingdom Rules, page 50
But like most hiccups in Watchtower’s history this is blamed on ‘increasing light’, with a bizarre choice of scripture used to support the idea of God’s people being “blessed with more and more flashes of spiritual light.”

“Light has flashed up for the righteous and rejoicing for those upright in heart.” – Psalm 97:11, New World Translation
It seems that almost any scripture in the Bible featuring the word “light” can now be used to justify the increased light doctrine.
All that aside, the uncharacteristic honesty on this page regarding pre-1914 expectations is refreshing, and may prove to be a useful tool for those who seek to better inform their indoctrinated relatives about Watchtower’s history.
Other parts of the book that might be helpful when reasoning with believing loved ones include…
◾Page 63 – A photograph is shown of the landmark 1922 “Advertize, advertize, advertize!” convention at Cedar Point, Ohio. Look carefully and you will notice American flags draped prominently to the left and right of the stage, and hanging either side of the “ADV” on the stage itself. Not only is the nationalism among “God’s people” at that time worthy of note, it is also interesting to compare the scene with how it is depicted in Watchtower’s 2010 DVD “Faith In Action – Part 1.” In the digital re-enactment, the flags either side of the stage are removed and replaced with rectangular wooden boards. (For more information, click here)
◾Page 74 – A strange confession is made, namely that Watchtower was forced to retreat from using commercial radio stations to publish its message during the 1930’s due to “opposition” to this method. Precisely what form did this opposition take? Who instigated it? And why wasn’t God’s backing enough to help the organization overcome it? We are not told.
◾Page 114 – As this website has already stated, it wasn’t until 1952 that the disfellowshipping procedure was implemented by Watchtower. Only 5 years previously the practice of excommunication, admitted by Watchtower as being equal to disfellowshipping (w96 4/15 p.15 par.18), was blasted in a 1947 Awake! article as being a “weapon” that is “altogether foreign to Bible teachings.” (Awake! scans: Page 1 | Page 2) Page 114 admits to the 1952 date for when the practice was fully introduced – 33 years after Christ supposedly chose the organization. It would not be until 1981 that the rules were further changed to make it impossible to disassociate as a Witness without being punished, but curiously this isn’t mentioned.
◾Page 130-131 – A two-page section focuses attention on the Governing Body, who are depicted seated around a large conference table with a map of the world in the background. The photograph has a rather phoney feel about it, because rather than looking directly into the camera the group of men are posing while involved in a discussion. The six Governing Body “committees” are listed, including the Coordinator’s committee, whose remit includes “use of the media when it is necessary to convey an accurate picture of our beliefs.” Precisely how is it possible to “use” the media if the media is under Satan’s control? (w97 4/1 p.17 par.16)
Misrepresenting the present… and future
As you’ve probably surmised by this point, God’s Kingdom Rules! is just as much about the present and future of the Witnesses as it is about their past. And as you might expect, the writers are just as prone to exaggeration and drawing mistaken conclusions when discussing the modern organization.
Here are a few examples…
Preaching
Though Jehovah’s Witnesses are spread throughout an impressive number of countries, they cannot be truly said to be present “earth wide,” yet this is precisely how page 67 characterizes their preaching work.
As has already been revealed by a bethel representative, there are at least three countries (with a total population of some 65 million people) where Jehovah’s Witnesses are not present at all due to safety fears. (see this video, time marker 03:20) A Somali, Afghan or North Korean would give you a very strange look if you tried to tell him or her that the Witnesses are everywhere in the world.
It is also inadvisable to suggest that numerical increase is evidence of divine favor and blessing, yet the book falls into this trap repeatedly. On page 89 we are told that “Jehovah’s spirit and the power of his Word” are responsible for the “great world-wide harvest.” And on page 96 Keith Gaydon, a circuit overseer from Britain, suggests the increase in his country from 1948 to the present would be “impossible” by human power.
It should go without saying that if you are going to attribute growth in numbers in your own religion to divine backing, you also need to make the same claim regarding the growth and prosperity of other denominations.
Contributions
In light of the increasing use of credit cards by Watchtower and the recent changes in the way kingdom hall construction is financed, page 100 makes for a humorous read when it reviews Christ’s brusque treatment of the temple money changers. His views on money and worship were made abundantly clear according to the account found in Matthew 21.
94 pages later we are reminded of Charles Taze Russell’s approach to funding his efforts. “I am telling you the plain truth,” Russell reportedly tells a skeptical inquirer, “They [interested ones] do ask me this very question, ‘How can I get a little money into this cause?’ When one gets a blessing and has any means, he wants to use it for the Lord. If he has no means, why should we prod him for it?”
It should go without saying that the recent developments with regards to pledged donations by each congregation, as determined on the basis of “confidential surveys,” bear the distinct feel of “prodding.” No doubt this prodding will intensify if congregations fail to send through to Watchtower the fixed amounts they have been forced to pledge.
Many like myself see Watchtower’s increasing eagerness to solicit funds as indicative that all is not well with the organization’s finances – but this is not something they seem likely to admit any time soon. 130 years after Russell claimed Watchtower would “never beg nor petition men for support,” the writers of this new book bullishly insist the organization is “still going strong.” (pages 195, 196)
For those unfortunate enough to feel compelled to ease the financial worries that Watchtower apparently does not have, a chart is prepared on page 200 entitled “Where Do Our Donations Go?” Needless to say, child abuse lawsuit settlements and other legal expenses connected with the organization’s defense of its out-dated and grossly negligent policies in that area are notable by their absence.
Child abuse
Considering the growing media attention surrounding Jehovah’s Witnesses and child abuse, you would assume that the matter was worthy of at least some mention in a book that sets out to cover Watchtower’s past and present. Instead we get a short paragraph on page 117 that says the following…

“Jesus also wants children to be protected from harm. As this morally degraded world has sunk deeper into depravity, the plague of child abuse has become more prevalent. Therefore, clear and direct material has been published to help parents keep their children safe from this vicious practice.” – God’s Kingdom Rules!, page 117
It is not enough for a religious organization with millions of members to simply “publish material.” It must enact policies that treat child abuse as the heinous crime that it is, and urge the deferring of all reported instances to the police accordingly. Instead, Watchtower orders elders to dabble in these complex matters and insists on all reported cases being managed by the branch office.
This has resulted in the organization defending itself in lawsuits where the authorities have been kept out of the picture altogether, with the abuse covered up. Unsurprisingly, none of this gets even the slightest mention in this new book.
As examples of the “clear and direct material” published by the organization, the children’s book Learn From the Great Teacher and the October 2007 Awake! are listed in a footnote. Both offer only preventative advice to parents and children. Certainly neither urge parents to go to the police whenever abuse is uncovered.
When will Watchtower realize that teaching children to say, “Stop that! I’m going to tell on you!” isn’t enough to keep them out of harm’s way?
Inactive ones
Worthy of a mention on page 128 is a box entitled “Fruitful Weekly Visits.” It tells of how elders in a US congregation have made a concerted effort to visit the 30 inactive ones in their territory. Inactive ones are told of how “the congregation has not forgotten the fine work the person did in behalf of Jehovah’s Kingdom.”
The elders in question, and indeed the organization, seem oblivious to the fact that becoming inactive is now the only option available to Witnesses who wish to leave their religion while keeping family ties. Far from being “lost sheep” as they are here characterized, many inactive ones are simply victims of a cruel cult who have awakened from their indoctrination and want their personal beliefs to be respected.
Blood transfusions
Pages 161 to 164 offer three experiences from Japan, Argentina and Canada of Witnesses who have legally defended their right to refuse blood. Conveniently, two of these experiences have “recovered fully” or are in “good health.” The third person mentioned died a month after appearing in court in an ultimately successful attempt to sue her doctor and hospital for a forced transfusion.
Predictably, no mention is made of the exact number of Witnesses, including children, who have died out of mistaken allegiance to Watchtower’s obscene and immoral blood teaching. Neither is any credit given to the various doctors and judges who have intervened to save countless children whose lives have been imperiled by their indoctrinated Witness parents.
Child custody
As with defenses over blood treatment, pages 164 to 166 provide examples of Witness parents who have successfully defeated unbelieving former spouses in legal battles over child custody.
“Some allege that being raised as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses is harmful,” the reader is told with an air of disbelief. We are then regaled with some resounding victories against parents who tried to argue that 24/7 indoctrination and refusal of certain medical treatments might not be in their child’s best interests.
What the book neglects to point out is that Watchtower issues a special pack to assist lawyers in getting custody for Witness clients. Among its advice can be found the following…
child-custody
 (To download the pack, click here and then click on the blue box that says “Click here to start download from Sendspace”)
Likely the above material didn’t make the final cut for the God’s Kingdom Rules! book because most Witnesses won’t want to see evidence of “God’s organization” encouraging young people to knowingly misrepresent their beliefs and aspirations.
Branch reductions
It has been intriguing to observe the reduction in the number of Watchtower branches over the past few years, resulting in a huge decrease in the organization’s global footprint. Coupled with the slashing of printing operations, it would seem to represent clear evidence of Watchtower’s financial woes, especially since the organization used to pride itself in the opening up of branches in new territories.
It certainly seems inconceivable that a Watchtower organization flushed with money would be closing branches down rather than setting up new ones.
In their attempts to downplay the “consolidation,” Watchtower has previously offered the rather fanciful retort that the branch reductions are “proof” that Jesus is “breaking down human barriers.” (w12 12/15 p.28 par.18)
Sticking with a slightly more down-to-earth explanation, the new book broaches the subject in a box on page 205 by suggesting that the downsizing has been caused by “improvements in communications and printing technology.”
What the future holds
Not content with spinning and misrepresenting the organization’s past and present, the future of Jehovah’s Witnesses is also made the subject of the writer’s overactive imagination.
One of two psychedelic pictures of Jesus in the publication
One of two psychedelic pictures of Jesus in the publication

A very sombre-looking chart on pages 224 and 225 confidently predicts events leading up to Armageddon, including an attack on religion by the United Nations, Watchtower’s former bosom buddy. The chain of events climaxes with Armageddon, when “Jehovah sends his King to defend all loyal ones.”
To drive home the ‘reality’ of this future development, a rather psychedelic image appears on page 229 showing a giant Jesus (with a striking resemblance to Kenny Rogers) descending from the heavens, bow in hand, ready to do some unspeakable things to a group of flailing soldiers.
A similar image is shown earlier on in the book on page 20 when giant Jesus is shown appearing invisibly (if that makes any sense) in 1914. But that was 100 years ago, and on page 229 it seems he has unfinished business to attend to.
Once the utter annihilation of all non-Witnesses is complete, the stage is set for the numerous promises surrounding the paradise to come to fruition. These promises are neatly detailed for us in the final chapter.
In reference to one such promise, the resurrection, page 221 has this to say…

“You pluck a luscious apple from the branch. You take in its aroma before adding it to the growing mound in the basket. You have been working for hours, but you feel fine and ready for a bit of work. Your mother is at a tree nearby, happily working and chatting with other family members and friends who are helping with the harvest. She looks so young – the way you remember her when you were just a child all those years ago. It is hard to believe that you saw her grow old in the world that is now long gone. You saw her waste away with illness, you held her hand as she breathed her last, and you wept at her graveside. Yet, here she is, along with so many others, alive and healthy again! Such days will come; we know it.” – God’s Kingdom Rules!, page 221
As someone who DID see his mother “waste away with illness” and DID hold her hand “as she breathed her last” but has since woken up from his indoctrination, I can now look upon the above words and see them for what they are: utterly distasteful and abhorrent propaganda aimed at hijacking the grieving process, and the memory of dead loved ones, for the furtherance of a cruel cult.
Clinging to 1914
Without question the most notable feature of this book is the way it stubbornly clings to 1914 throughout, even though the passage of time has unmistakeably revealed this relic of a doctrine to be deeply flawed.
In pinning everything on this increasingly discredited teaching, the God’s Kingdom Rules! book commits the same mistake as the latest “Silver Sword” edition of the New World Translation – it gives itself a very brief shelf-life.
Banging on about 1914 may seem prudent to most Witnesses on the centenary of that year. But as more decades roll by, this book (along with all other books that point to 1914) will become just as embarrassing to Watchtower as the dusty old works of Russell that tout years like 1874 and 1878 as having biblical significance.
The Governing Body desperately needs to divorce itself from this teaching before they are exposed as fools in their own lifetimes (especially in the case of the relatively young Sanderson), but their inability to do so indicates to my mind that they are just as delusional as most of their followers.
It is not that they lack creativity, this they have clearly demonstrated in some of their outrageous teachings and policy changes in recent years. It is simply that they are dyed-in-the-wool Witnesses, and 1914 is in their DNA.
How the fact that they are so chained to such an obviously flawed date will play out in the decades to come remains to be seen, but don’t expect any radical deviations in understanding any time soon. Not if this book is anything to go by.

new-cedars-signature2






Related video…




Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:



Bookmark the permalink.
 
← Former elder convicted of rape and pedophilia amid claims of non-cooperation and destroyed evidence
When will Watchtower learn? – Karen Morgan speaks out on her abuser’s 14 year sentence →

126 Responses to The Cedars Review: “God’s Kingdom Rules!”

← Older Comments

 Ted says:

 July 12, 2014 at 1:59 pm

Sorry about duplicate postings, Computer problems,
Nearly as bad as trying to sort the dukes and shepherd
 conundrum.
Reply
 

 Searcher says:

 July 13, 2014 at 6:06 pm

Just remember what this organization truly is. It is a business! What do businesses do when their business model starts to go south? They reinvent themselves to survive and then prosper again. This is why there is always “new light”. Most of all, this is why their previous “Proclaimer” book had to be dumped for this new twist and drivel.
The book provides too much information to get a lead on their jaded past. A new direction into fresh territory, new developing nations with fewer internets and less open education opportunity, is needed. Now that’s worth translating a new revisionist history in all the new languages. It’s not that the GB can or cannot translate the “Proclaimers” book. They certainly could! Splaine should explain that is NOT what we WANT to do. It’s just not in the new business model’s best interest.
Unfortunately, the GB is acting just like an unscrupulous business; they are moving on to a new fresh territory, with a sanitized version of their history so that those that are newly converted can be kept in the dark. They remind me of US tobacco companies moving into developing countries, because the developed countries have them on the run. Remember, no matter how noble the cause is, follow the money.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 July 14, 2014 at 2:19 am

I am reading Don Cameron’s book Captives of a Concept and in it he explains about the only way a person who knows the truth about the truth can convince a witness that he is being deceived is by instead of taking a Bible study in the What does the Bible Really Teach book is by asking for a study in the Proclaimers book instead. In Cameron’s book, he points out place after place in the Proclaimers book that the student can draw attention to that shows that in 1919, there is absolutely no way that Jesus and God would have chosen the Watchtower as his one and only spokesman to mankind. So, I think to counteract the real proven from their own book of contradictions in Watchtower history in the Proclaimers book with current teachings, they had to come up with a “new and revised” history.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 July 16, 2014 at 1:22 am

I am done reading Captives of a Concept and Splane is lying through his teeth when he says the reason they made a new history book is because they couldn’t translate the old Proclaimers book into that many languages. It’s to counteract Don’s Cameron’s book and it all has to do with the fact that using the old Proclaimers book, a knowledgeable person can use it to make the witness teacher have doubts about whether or not God would have chosen the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society as his spokesman in 1919. Not today, but 1919. But John Cedars has brought out several places in his article above that you can still use to point out that what the Watchtower was teaching from 1914 to 1919, was not the “refined” truth that we have today. So, the question is, not what Jesus would see today as “truth” but what would he have seen in 1919 as “truth”. If we have the “truth” today, then we didn’t have it in 1919, when Jesus would have come to inspect the Watchtower. You can’t have it both ways. Splane was lying in that little speech. The Governing body aren’t deceived. They are deceivers and they know it. It’s all business.
Reply
 

 Lawrence says:

 July 16, 2014 at 5:14 pm

anonymous,one possible “truth” that they might have today is the non-trinitarian doctrine.Of course,this is subject to a very lengthy debate & discussion.Perhaps the WTBTS should promote discussion of this doctrine rather than pioneering as the “best way of life”.Even a loose association with some churches would be great for the furtherance of Bible study & research.
Reply
 

 Art Fern says:

 July 16, 2014 at 7:37 pm

Really an outstanding review John. On the 5 year cleansing Jesus undertook, (that will continue) I cannot think of anything Jesus did that was not done instantaneously. He didn’t heal a person or bring Lazarus back from the dead over time, it was “snap” you are healed. Judging the small and great could be the only occasion mentioned wherein, time might be involved but who knows? If there is any event or action on the part of Jesus that was completed or started on a time scale let me know, I can’t think of any.
 I have another problem with the doctrine, is the Tower claiming that EVERY untoward event be it war, sickness, accidents etc. is THE WILL OF GOD, initiated by God to test us? This gets us back to insane ideas of our Evangelical friends who carry predestination to the nth degree. All that happens to us is supernaturally controlled by God as part of a plan is the doctrine, which is also accepted by Southern Baptists. We cannot change the events, all we can do is obey and hope for the best. So what good is prayer as far as changing events that harm us? The God of the Old Testament seems to delight in cruelty, killing the evil as well as the innocent even killing a child for the sin of a parent. I cannot worship such a God, nor believe that it’s possible to have free choice when we are led by “the plan”.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 July 19, 2014 at 9:30 am

As far as correct history goes, I am quoting directly from “Light” Book one by Rutherford from 1930 on page 185 Paragraph 2 “From 1918 to the fall of 1919 the servant class was in exile, and therefore in SILENCE……Until 1922 the organization of the workers was progressing and the work was going forward. In 1922 the Lord’s people were permitted to have an understanding of Isaiah’s prophecy wherein the Lord is discerned in his temple, and then it was clearly seen by them that there must be a great witness work concerning the kingdom.” … Page 187, paragraph 2, “It was in 1922 that the people of God first had an understanding that the Lord had come to his temple in 1918. The Lord Jesus, the great Judge, is the One who judges the people of God; but it is noted that John was directed to do the measuring, thus suggesting that after the Lord had come to his temple for judgment the John class, or the faithful ones of the Lord’s servants, must come to a proper understanding of what constitutes the qualifications for membership in the kingdom. They must measure themselves by the divine standard and thus themselves learn the qualifications required.”
From this book written by Rutherford, I get it that there was no way in 1919 that Jesus would have “come” to the earth and saw that the Watchtower was dispensing the correct spiritual food. He says that from 1918 to 1919 they were SILENCED and then when they “understood” that Jesus had come to his temple in 1918, it wasn’t until the year 1922 that they started to figure out what were the qualifications Jesus was looking for, for membership in the kingdom.
How can the Society claim that in 1919, the Society was dispensing the correct spiritual food to the flock with all these old books of Rutherford’s floating around on Ebay? Have any of the Governing Body even looked at those old books? How can they, with a straight face, get up in front of thousands of people and present a new history book like this as “truth” and not worry that God will strike them down dead for their bald faced lies?
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 July 19, 2014 at 10:10 am

and to add to my last comment…. When you read Rutherford’s old books, you see the exact same things that you would expect to see in any book or Watchtower today when it comes to explaining scriptures. Rutherford wrote a lot of books, so the Society has a lot of topics to choose from. The Society has to stick close to what Rutherford wrote in print so as to stick close to the basic doctrines Rutherford established in the 1930’s when he started up his own religion, called Jehovah’s Witnesses. Cult leaders claim to get their directions from God and Rutherford wrote a lot in his books, that it was God’s angels who were directing the organization. Jehovah’s Witnesses are cult followers of Rutherford and even the Governing Body are cult followers of Rutherford.
Reply
 

 Chris says:

 July 20, 2014 at 7:01 pm

Why don’t you promote truth rather than tear down false religion? It would be a better use of time. Haven’t you ever heard of “Whatever you resist persists”. The more you push against something the more it will remain.
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 July 21, 2014 at 1:51 am

Thanks for those insights Chris.
“The more you push against something the more it will remain…” – can you explain precisely the exact logic of how this works? For example, I would be intrigued to know how Hitler’s Nazi Germany was utterly vanquished, or how apartheid in South Africa was wiped out, if it is impossible to successfully resist something.
As to “why don’t you promote truth rather than tear down false religion…” – can you explain how it is MY responsibility, as someone who exposes harm and hypocrisy in the Watchtower cult, to offer an alternative belief system? If I rescue someone from a burning house, do I also bear the duty of building them a new house to live in?
Reply
 
 

 Chris says:

 July 21, 2014 at 1:43 pm

What you resist persists. When you focus on something and say to yourself you don’t want something you aren’t telling it to go away you are focusing in it and are bringing more of it to your life. Have you ever said “I don’t want x, I don’t want x” and x shows up. Law of attraction. When people wiped out Hitlers army, they wanted to. But the more people feared them they eventually were conquered. And it is not your responsibility to do what you do. Jesus shot down false religion WHEN he found it. He didn’t spend his whole time tearing down the Pharisees and all the Saducees. But to spend all your life’s energy on doing what you do is only making you more angry at people who by your influence aren’t going to disband. You’re only preaching to the converted. I used to do what you do about Mormons and it just made me bitter, angry and made me obsess over things I really can’t control. So I just moved on. When I come across mormons I know what to say. But I was wasting time and energy being obsessed over their religion
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 July 21, 2014 at 1:51 pm

“You’re only preaching to the converted.”
***Ahem*** (points awkwardly to the new “Has JWsurvey.org helped you significantly…” mini-survey in the sidebar)
As to the rest of your defeatist “just move on” rhetoric, probably you’ve seen this video before but it sums up how I feel on the subject and I’m getting tired of repeating myself…



Reply
 
 

 PureStrongheart says:

 July 21, 2014 at 3:30 pm

@John Cedars:
 Please DON’T give up. Yours is by far the most comprehensive, level headed, informative site on the internet in regards to those offering an alternative viewpoint for critically thinking Jehovah’s Witnesses.
 Love you, man!
Reply
 

 Excelsior says:

 July 21, 2014 at 3:37 pm

Chris,
I do not know your circumstances, sir. I do not know the road you have travelled.
I will simply say this. Mr John Cedars has the stomach for this battle. I am sure that one day he will find he needs to stop, and on that day we will all thank him for his help and wish him well.
Maybe it’s time for you to stop. You will by no means save all of your Mormon ex brethren. Neither will Mr Cedars save every JW. that’s not the point. Mr Cedars wants to help folks, and provides a survey and articles that expose the monstrous lunacy of the WTBTS.
I for one encourage him to go on. He has been of much benefit to folks who have suffered much. He is a good and decent man.
I wish you success, sir, on your route from here on in. I understand why you made your comment, but I agree with Mr Cedars.
Peace be with you
Excelsior!
Reply
 

 Dustin says:

 July 21, 2014 at 9:49 pm

Great article, John. Also, the child custody literature is veeery interesting.
 Thanks!
Reply
 

 Criticus says:

 July 23, 2014 at 6:08 am

The title of the book is a misnomer. Replace “God’s Kingdom” by “Watchtower”, and it fits. Other suggestions:
“The Watchtower’s Kingdom Rules!”
 “The Governing Body Rules!”
 “The Tony Morrison Gang Rules!”
The WTS has always proceeded acc. to the principle: “When we spit into your face and tell you ‘it’s raining’ – then it IS raining.”
The sickening and bloated WTS-codex of manmade doctrines, rules and regulations boils down to 2 simple axioms:
1. The org is ALWAYS right.
 2. Should it ever happen that the org is wrong, rule no. 1 applies.
Bottoms up!
Reply
 

 mumsy dear says:

 July 27, 2014 at 9:36 pm

The WT reminds me of George Orwell’s book “Animal Farm”.
It’s the same difference. Same schtik, different puddle.
Reply
 

 Criticus says:

 July 30, 2014 at 12:16 pm

Oh yeah:
“2 legs baaaaad. 4 legs goooood.”
 “Worldly people baaaaaad. JW gooooood.”
 “Christendom baaaaaad. Watchtower gooooood.”
 “U r baaaaaaaad. We r goooooood.”
Let all sheep say “BAAAAAAA!”
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 July 30, 2014 at 4:35 pm

A little more of the “real” history of the Watchtower Organization.
Quoting from the book “Light” volume 1 by Rutherford on page 215, paragraph 2 it reads “At an international convention held in Germany in 1925 a poll of the great audience was taken and the result showed that more than half of those present came into the truth since 1922, and nearly all of them since 1919. A similar poll was afterwards taken at other conventions, proving the same general fact.”
Quoting from “The Four Presidents of the Watchtower Society” by Edmond C. Gruss on page 107 it says “Since Rutherford confirmed that just about everyone in the membership during the years 1914-1918 had left by 1928, the rest leaving by 1938 (all but a “handful,” according to Macmillan) primarily due to the iron-fisted, arrogant Rutherford and changes in the Watchtower doctrine and edicts, is not true that, even if Christ had looked down and selected them in 1919, it was no longer the same organization he selected?”
Reply
 

 miroslav says:

 August 1, 2014 at 8:40 am

[evangelical comment removed, final warning]
Reply
 

 miroslav says:

 August 1, 2014 at 12:40 pm

I am really disappointed to have final warning for evangelical comment! Many are allowed to freely blaspheme against God and promote atheism, but I can not defend Bible. Cedars, Is this objective? What happen to freedom of speech?
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 August 1, 2014 at 12:46 pm

Nobody blasphemes God or “promotes” atheism on this website. You are allowed to say what your personal beliefs are, but you are not allowed to tell others what their beliefs must be. The posting guidelines are unambiguous and not open for debate. You either respect them or find somewhere else to leave comments. Clear?
Reply
 
 

 miroslav says:

 August 2, 2014 at 4:43 am

OK. Your website your rules, I respect that. But, I do not know how I crossed the line and aggressively imposed my beliefs. And, I do not wish to be disrespectful, but there are some members who promote atheism and who blaspheme. I qoute: “I can find NOTHING that allows a person to take the messages of “this generation shall not pass away….” to apply to anyone not among the crowd Jesus was speaking to AT THAT TIME. Jesus didn’t return while any of those in his audience were still alive, it is a false prophecy” (this is not direct attack on God, but it is attack on Bible and I provided rebuttal which you deleted) and “I think we are lucky the world is not UNIPOLAR. Satan’s kingdom rules, too. For the last four years, I have realized there is no stupid god except Jehovah!” (If it is not blasphemy then what is?) and “have you read ‘God is not great’ by christopher hitchens? [apparently religion is founded on blood and sperm]..” (this sentence is not aggressively atheistic?) I can find more examples if you wish, but it is enough to prove my point. It seems to me that they are proselytizing atheism or who knows what more than I do my faith. If you found something offensive, please delete that part not the whole comment!
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 August 2, 2014 at 5:10 am

If you take exception to comments posted by other individuals, there is nothing stopping you from sending an email with your grievances rather than jumping on your shoebox about it. I will then look into your complaints and take action if there is deemed to be any breach of our posting policies. BTW – “I can breach the posting guidelines because others have breached them” is not a defense.
Please note, you don’t need to be “aggressively” imposing your beliefs. Imposing them at all is contrary to our posting guidelines, and I notice you don’t deny trying to do this.
I hope now we are finally clear.
Reply
 
 

 Judith Demaestri says:

 August 14, 2014 at 1:26 am

Thank you very much for your viewpoint on this new book.I find it to be very accurate.
Reply
 

 Henry says:

 August 20, 2014 at 4:07 am

Right now I’m in the middle of a project looking into the old Proclaimers book. There is some information here and there on the internet about it and the contradictions but I feel like something more concise and comprehensive is needed. I plan on making this into a YouTube video series. now that this new Proclaimers book came out I’m going to have to go through it but luckily its a lot shorter. I’ve read it and there’s already flat out less in the first few pages. This should be interesting.
If there is anyone out there willing to help me with some of the research and putting the information together please contact me:
your77right@gmail.com
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 August 21, 2014 at 12:36 pm

Hi Henry. There’s an excellent book about the Proclaimer’s book called “Captives of a Concept” by Don Cameron. I got mine off of Ebay and it wasn’t real expensive but you can probably get one off of Amazon too.
Reply
 

 JimmyG says:

 August 21, 2014 at 11:58 pm

Henry. You might find this link helpful:
http://corior.blogspot.com/2006/02/notes-on-proclaimers-book.html
Reply
 

 JimmyG says:

 August 23, 2014 at 6:12 am

Henry. Here’s another link:
http://www.cftf.com/booklets/proclaimers/
Reply
 

 PureStrongheart says:

 September 3, 2014 at 7:42 pm

To tie in loosely with this publication coming out on the “centennial” of 1914: The latest Kingdom Ministry encourages Witnesses to be “Explaining our Beliefs about 1914″ using the October and November 2014 of The Watchtower. Further evidence that the organization is at least cognizant of the jarring arrival of October 2014 and the so-called “centennial” of Christ’s rule.
 (Side point: I didn’t realize that KM is available to the PUBLIC on line all the way back to 2010! Back in the day, it was like pulling hen’s teeth sometimes to get your own copy even as a lowly publisher of the good news!)
Reply
 

 Johan Henze says:

 September 29, 2014 at 4:13 am

On page 20 of this book it shows Jesus riding on a horse saying Jehovah,s Witnesses started to discern Jesus invisible presence since 1914 actually meaning they are contradicting themselves on p. 50 of the book!
Reply
 

 Alan says:

 November 27, 2014 at 1:38 pm

One thing that got me was the flip flops particularly Romans 13. The JWDP book says that the understanding that the Higher Powers were the governments is the thing that kept them in bondage to Babylon the Great. Hence the change of understanding that it is Jehovah and Christ Jesus. So they were “released” from Babylon.
They then go BACK to the understanding that it is the Higher Powers. Hang on!! Didn’t this understanding keep them in Babylon SO HAVE THEY GONE BACK INTO BABYLON????
Reply
 

 Wild Olive says:

 December 9, 2014 at 1:44 pm

I was hoping that the recent international convention would “fix”my growing distrust of the GB,the opposite happened.
 One of the features of the Kingdom Rule book is a double page spread on pg28 &29 outlining Russell’s major talks and publishing work from 1870 to 1914,what is so ridiculous is that none of that material is “truth”anymore,I would be df for teaching anything mentioned in those pages,as a counterpoint to this,the Bible Students,who Rutherford threw out of the org,believe and teach all those things in the Kingdom Rules book,including Russell’s wacky pyramidology,maybe they should rename him Charles Indiana Jones Russell lol.
 So the WTBS has to hang on to Russell because he’s their 1914 prophet but not accept his teachings,same with Rutherford,have to hang on to him because he thought up “The Name”,but can’t accept his teachings either,in the end this becomes a pseudo idolatry of both these nutters,as we aren’t allowed to believe them but still have to accept them as instruments of Gods truth.
 I wonder how long it will be when the GB is in the same position.
Reply
 

 Wild Olive says:

 January 5, 2015 at 11:43 am

@Alan,your observation is an interesting one,the current version of the “higher powers”is the same understanding that Christendom has had for the last 1900 yrs lol.
 Another teaching that also now conforms to traditional Christianity is Jesus arrival to judge the sheep and the goats,He will arrive at sometime in the future to do so,that also had been taught for 1900 yrs.
 I wonder if the GB could do something reeeaally exceptional and publish Raymondus Martinus book in which he came up with the invented name Jehovah,since the Catholic Church has now officially banned the use of the name Jehovah it could show how faithful they are lol
Reply
 

 Srgdc says:

 February 12, 2015 at 8:46 am

It seems that the link for the Keep Seeking First God’s Kingdom is gone. Can you publish it again?
Reply
 

 Phil says:

 February 22, 2015 at 1:33 pm

i agree… Your videos and articles helped deprogram after more than 22 years in this insanity. So thank you so much for your work, I can’t thank you enough.
Reply
 

← Older Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾21 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     















































                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/the-cedars-review-gods-kingdom-rules






















Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



← Former elder convicted of rape and pedophilia amid claims of non-cooperation and destroyed evidence
When will Watchtower learn? – Karen Morgan speaks out on her abuser’s 14 year sentence →

The Cedars Review: “God’s Kingdom Rules!”
avatar
Posted on July 2, 2014

David Splane releases the book "God's Kingdom Rules!" at the 2014 International Convention in New Jersey
David Splane releases the book “God’s Kingdom Rules!” at the 2014 International Convention in New Jersey

A new book is being released at the 2014 “Keep Seeking First God’s Kingdom” series of conventions. Entitled “God’s Kingdom Rules!,” it marks the centenary of 1914 with a heavily sanitized version of Jehovah’s Witness history over the past 100 years or more.
Prior to this release, “Jehovah’s Witnesses – Proclaimers of God’s Kingdom” was Watchtower’s primary authorized history book. Despite presenting a similarly white-washed perspective of Witness history, at least somewhere in its 750-pages there were hints at some of the skeletons from Watchtower’s past.
For example, page 76 featured a grey box on Beth Sarim, the “House of the Princes.” The fact that it was principally earmarked by Rutherford as a residence for the likes of Abraham, Joseph and David on their resurrection was relegated to a mere footnote – but at least something was there in print.
Every bit as wacky as Rutherford’s notions of bible characters suddenly emerging in suburban San Diego was Russell’s insistence that the Great Pyramid of Gizeh was “God’s Stone Witness.” So convinced was he that every inch in the internal chambers corresponded to years of bible history that he dedicated books, charts and magazine articles to this bizarre theory, which remained official Watchtower dogma until 1928.
The Proclaimers book didn’t explore the pyramid teaching at length, but it at least allowed it a grudging mention on page 201 – enough to provide a basis for further research for those so inclined.
The new God’s Kingdom Rules! book, on the other hand, dispenses with Beth Sarim entirely. And any clue that Russell once indulged in elaborate pyramid fantasies must now be deciphered from a sepia photo of a horsedrawn cart on page 19 with the “divine plan” chart discernible on its side.
Modern Witnesses are thus left with no hint of just how ludicrous the teachings of their prized organization’s former leaders actually were.
With this in mind, consider the following words of David Splane in his concluding talk at the 2014 East Rutherford International Convention in New Jersey…


As Splane acknowledged, there are many countries deprived of any reasonable grasp of Watchtower history because the Proclaimers book is only available in a limited number of languages.
Apparently Christ’s words at Matthew 19:26, “with God all things are possible,” do not stretch to translating a 750-page book into the tongues of all God’s people. Conveniently, the Governing Body would rather throw in the towel and instead release an entirely new, slimmer volume that just so happens to omit almost all unsavory aspects of the organization’s history.
The Proclaimers Book may have re-written Watchtower history, but at least it presented a framework for further research
The Proclaimers Book may have re-written Watchtower history, but at least it presented a framework for further research

This may not seem like such a big deal if you are reading this article from an English-speaking country. However, I happen to live in one of those countries where the Proclaimers book isn’t available in the local language – which in my case is Croatian.
I have experienced firsthand the frustration of trying to reason with indoctrinated relatives on basic flaws in Watchtower history to which they are completely oblivious because they have never been able to read the Proclaimers book.
Now my plight is made even worse, because my relatives will assume they know everything about Watchtower history thanks to this new book. In truth, they will know only what Watchtower has allowed them to know – with a dash of spin, trickery and willful omission thrown into the mix.
But all is not lost. An elder friend from the United States has gone to quite some expense to mail me my own personal copy of the God’s Kingdom Rules! book so that I can dissect it for myself. After going through it, I have found a number of areas that clearly demonstrate the flawed logic behind Watchtower theology and its omission or white-washing of historical details.
This article will attempt to summarize my findings as succinctly as possible. (Edit: and with a final word-count of over 6,000 words will clearly fail! My apologies!)
(A PDF download of the book is available on this link – please remember to click on the blue box that says “Click here to start download from Sendspace”)
“Attractive publications” or style over substance?
As is increasingly becoming customary for Watchtower books, a letter from the Governing Body adorns the introductory pages.
Noteworthy in this latest letter is a paragraph that begins with the words: “With Jehovah’s blessing on the work, we are now able to publish our attractive Bible literature in more than 670 languages and to offer it to everyone without charge.” (page 3)
Firstly, as Splane admitted in the above video, not ALL Watchtower publications are available in 670 languages. It seems Jehovah’s organization will, to quote Splane, “never have the resources” to make certain books available in every tongue. Apparently spiritual food from the faithful slave doesn’t have a passport for certain language borders. So the writers have barely begun their 240-page ramble before foisting a clear exaggeration on the reader.
Secondly, my eyebrows were raised by the term “attractive literature” being coined by the Governing Body. Surely whether literature is visually appealing or not is irrelevant compared to whether it is truthful and informative. To my mind, this Freudian slip speaks volumes about Watchtower’s “style over substance” approach, where aesthetics are paramount and producing factual, honest information falls lower down the pecking order.
“Ample proof,” or ample exaggeration?
Of further interest is the certainty and frequency with which unsupportable claims are made throughout the publication.
Page 11 announces: “We have ample proof that Jesus’ prophecy [at Matthew 24 and 25] has been undergoing fulfillment since 1914.”
“Without question,” we are told on page 77, “the King has blessed the methods we have used to advertize the Kingdom.”
“Our legal victories prove that we walk in the sight of God and in company with Christ,” is the conclusion on page 145.
“All these theocratic schools are powerful proof that our King has fully equipped his followers to accomplish their ministry,” page 185 insists.
Page 208 asserts that the “scores of branch office buildings, hundreds of Assembly Halls, and tens of thousands of Kingdom Halls around the world provide tangible proof that God’s Kingdom is real and is now ruling.”
And page 235, in the final chapter, declares: “Each chapter of this book contains powerful evidence that Christ has brought his followers into a genuine spiritual paradise in this time of the end.”
When invoked for such ludicrous claims, words like “proof” and “evidence” quickly lose all meaning. If ministerial training programs, legal victories or an abundance of buildings are evidence that Jesus Christ is involved in the Watchtower organization, then the same must be said of Roman Catholicism, Mormonism, the Church of England, or almost any significant Christian denomination.
The propensity for exaggeration and outlandish claims in this publication knows almost no limits, and led to my reading it with an almost-constant smirk or face-palm. No opportunity for self-congratulation is bypassed.
Take for example page 78 where a footnote declares: “In the past decade alone, Jehovah’s people have produced more than 20 billion Bible-based publications. In addition, our Web site, jw.org, is now available to the more than 2.7 billion people worldwide who access the internet.”
Chairman Mao has some unlikely admirers
Chairman Mao has some unlikely admirers

And so, in the scramble for impressive stats, the web’s audience of 2.7 billion is annexed by Watchtower without hesitation for the purpose of “bigging up” its achievements. The fact that the likes of JWfacts.com, AAWA.co, JWstruggle.com and indeed this website could make exactly the same claim regarding the internet’s audience is an afterthought.
Then on page 83 a graph is shown in which Watchtower compares the publishing figures for its various publications with those of ‘the world’.
I let out an audible giggle when I glanced at the heading “other books” in which the Bible Teach book’s publication figure of over 201 million is held up against the more than 1 billion copies of Chairman Mao’s “little red book” (or “Quotations From Chairman Mao Tse-tung”).
The irony appears to be completely lost on Watchtower that it has now sunk to measuring its success in propaganda distribution against that of a communist dictator.
New light, and the Governing Body’s “humility”
When reading this book you also can’t help but notice the way key “new light” interpretations are rammed home for emphasis at every opportunity.
Page 12 gets the ball rolling with an image showing the “overlapping generations” teaching, which has been met with considerable derision by thinking Witnesses since its introduction in 2010.
As you may be aware, the “generation” that “will not pass away” referred to by Jesus at Matthew 24:3 has been conveniently sliced into two different groups, one of which lives on into our time. Why? Because the generation that witnessed the events of 1914 has, well, passed away.
What about evidence that Jesus had two groups in mind when speaking to his disciples? Apparently none is needed. Simply switch off your critical thinking faculties and embrace the notion that the “two groups form one generation because their lives as anointed Christians overlapped for a time.”
The latest interpretation of the “faithful slave” teaching is similarly aired in this book, although far more frequently. Page 23 reminds us that, in 1919, Jesus “appointed the ‘faithful and discreet slave’, a small group of anointed men who would take the lead among his people.”
“Especially from that time onward,” we are assured on pages 61 and 62, “that slave began dispensing spiritual food – by means of convention discourses and printed publications – that repeatedly emphasized the responsibility of all Christians to have a personal share in preaching.”
A brief disclaimer regarding the false pronouncements and doctrinal U-turns made by this “slave” features on page 37, but like many things in this book it is heavily spun to make the organization appear saint-like.

“As Chapters 4 and 5 of this book will show, over the past 100 years, God’s people have had to adjust their understanding on a number of occasions. Does that fact mean that they do not have Jehovah’s backing? On the contrary! He supports them. Why? Because those who fear Jehovah have displayed two qualities that he loves – faith and humility. (Heb. 11:6; Jas. 4:6) Jehovah’s servants have faith that all the promises in God’s Word will come true. They show humility when they admit that they misunderstood exactly how those promises would be fulfilled.” – God’s Kingdom Rules, page 37.
“Humility” is an attribute notably absent in the Governing Body’s brutal policy of disfellowshipping any who voice disagreement with their transient “understandings” of scripture, and severing such ones from their families.
If the Governing Body were to publish their “understandings” on a take-it-or-leave-it basis, that would be one thing. The above professions of humility might then hold some water.
But the simple truth is that a person who stands up and voices an understanding of scripture that does not accord with their contemporary teachings is punished in the worst possible means – by family estrangement, including demonization as a “mentally-diseased” apostate.
To illustrate just how crazy this policy is: a publisher could have insisted in 2011 that the Governing Body alone are the “faithful slave,” and not the broader 144,000 spirit-anointed ones, and he would need to be disfellowshipped by his elders on grounds of apostasy. Refuse to make the exact same acknowledgement when pressed on the matter only two years later, and another person meets the same fate.
Such willingness on the part of the Governing Body to mete out punishments for refusing to yield to their latest doctrinal whims renders any professions of humility not only laughable but deeply insulting to those like myself who are victims of their delusional arrogance.
It also renders entirely hypocritical the accounts related on pages 147 and 153 where Watchtower boasts of successfully appealing to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) for the “freedom of thought, conscience, and religion” of its affiliates.
Anyone familiar with Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights will note that, in addition to guaranteeing freedom of religious observance, it also protects the “freedom of thought, conscience, and religion” of anyone who decides to “change his religion or belief” – something you are not allowed to do as a Witness without facing the prospect of permanent family ostracism. (For more information, see this video.)
But as objectionable as Watchtower’s claims regarding new light are, there are some notable areas in this new book where the teaching is demonstrably ludicrous. Hopefully an overview of these may be of use to those seeking ways of reasoning with indoctrinated relatives.
Organizational refinements – finite or indefinite?
One confusing element of the ‘new light’ surrounding the faithful slave is the notion that Christ visited Earth in 1914 and oversaw a cleansing of the early Bible Students over the period to 1919. This teaching is spelled out on page 100…

“From 1914 to early 1919, the Refiner, Jehovah, allowed his people to go through various trials and hardships that served to refine and cleanse them. Happily, those anointed ones emerged from the fiery tests in a cleaner condition, eager to show their support for the Messianic King!” – God’s Kingdom Rules!, page 100
With such a specific period, and with five years for God and Christ to work with, you would assume all the required cleaning would be complete by the 1919 passed. But that is not what we see in the very next paragraph.

“Was that the end of the refining and cleaning for God’s people? No. Throughout the last days, Jehovah by means of the Messianic King has continued to help his followers be clean so that they might remain in the spiritual temple.” – God’s Kingdom Rules!, page 101
It shouldn’t be too hard to see the problem here. If God’s people were indeed cleansed between 1914 and 1919, why have they required decades upon decades of cleansing since that period? Is the cleansing period finite, or indefinite? The Governing Body doesn’t seem to want to make up its mind, and won’t even recognize the need to.
Allow me to illustrate how ludicrous this teaching is.
Last month my wife and I hired a local laborer to install drywall in our bathroom. The laborer told us the job would be done in 2 to 3 days. He turned up with some colleagues and, sure enough, after 2 to 3 days the work was done to our satisfaction and we paid him. He did not cover only one or two walls with drywall and then say, “You can pay me now and I will do the remaining walls progressively over the next few years.” Had he told us that, we would have refused to pay until the work was finished.
For some reason, Watchtower refuses to explain why Christ’s cleansing work is both for a 5-year period and ongoing, or why an Almighty God requires a century or more to whip his one true religion into shape.
The only hint of an explanation is offered on page 108, where we are told that continual refinement is needed because “Satan never stops trying to draw [Christ’s followers] back into the mire of immorality.” But morals are one thing, organizational refinements are another. Take, for example, the elder arrangement.
Going backwards to go forwards
Page 119 discusses organizational refinements regarding elders by referring to Isaiah 60:17: “Instead of the copper I will bring in gold, and instead of the iron I will bring in silver, instead of the wood, copper, and instead of the stones, iron; and I will appoint peace as your overseers and righteousness as your task assigners.”
Notice the very next paragraph after this scripture is quoted (bold is mine)…

“Isaiah’s prophecy states that one material would be replaced by another. But note that the replacements are changes, not from bad to good, but from good to better. Replacing copper with gold is an improvement, and the same is true of the other materials here mentioned. Thus, with this word picture, Jehovah foretold that the condition of his people would improve step-by-step.” – God’s Kingdom Rules, page 119
The message here couldn’t be clearer. Organizational adjustments only go in one direction, and that is forwards – not backwards.
With this in mind, consider what the same chapter reveals regarding the elder arrangement in the preceding paragraphs…

“[The November 15, 1895 Watch Tower] announced a far reaching change. It directed that starting immediately, “in every company, elders be chosen” to ‘take the oversight of the flock’.”- God’s Kingdom Rules, pp.118-119
And so, under Russell’s direction, an arrangement was brought in whereby there would be bodies of elders rather than a single leader for each “company,” or congregation.
But Rutherford was to have other ideas, as revealed by Ray Franz in his book Crisis of Conscience (bold is mine)…

“The Scriptural arrangement of bodies of elders had been summarily ended in 1932 by Judge Rutherford due to a lack of cooperation on the part of some elders with the Society’s programs and policies. His position as President gave Rutherford the necessary authority to take such a stand and all congregations were invited to vote for the disbanding of bodies of elders and their replacement by a Society-appointed ‘Service Director.’ For the next forty years there were no bodies of elders in the congregations. That is why the New World Translation of the Bible published by the Society in the 1950s regularly used the rendering ‘older men’ rather than ‘elders,’ a then officially discredited term.” – Crisis of Conscience by Raymond Franz, pp.26-27
(To read or download Crisis of Conscience, click here.)
This version of events corresponds precisely with the narrative presented in the new God’s Kingdom Rules! book, where it says…

“From 1932 to 1972, congregation oversight had been carried out mainly by one brother. Until 1936, such an appointed brother was called the service director. Thereafter, the name was changed to company servant, then to congregation servant, and finally to congregation overseer. Those appointed brothers cared zealously for the spiritual welfare of the flock. The congregation overseer usually made decisions for the congregation without consulting other servants in the congregation.” – God’s Kingdom Rules, pp.122
Hopefully by now you have spotted the problem, which is as-good-as admitted in this new book. The organization went from having a ‘theocratic’ elder arrangement under Russell, to a non-theocratic “congregation servant” arrangement under Rutherford, and then back to the original elder arrangement under Knorr.
How, precisely, does this clear flip-flop show organizational refinements only going “from good to better” as page 119 explained?
Misrepresenting history
Related to this issue is the way Watchtower seems perfectly content to re-write its history in such a way as to claim for itself the contributions made by a man it ousted and condemned as an “apostate.”
Ray Franz - the Governing Body have claimed his contribution for themselves
Ray Franz – the Governing Body have claimed his contribution for themselves

In Crisis of Conscience, Ray Franz explains meticulously how he was asked by Nathan Knorr, not by any “Governing Body” (for the Governing Body arrangement only formally began in 1971) to do research on a new book Aid to Bible Understanding under the supervision of Karl Adams, who was neither a Governing Body member nor, indeed, of the anointed.
Two of the subjects assigned to Franz were “older man [elder]” and “overseer.” It was his research that would prompt the changes to the elder arrangement that were previously mentioned.
But notice how the God’s Kingdom Rules! book describes the above episode…

“From 1964 to 1971, the governing body supervised an extensive Bible study project that examined, among many other subjects, how the first-century Christian congregation functioned. As to organizational structure, it was learned that the oversight of congregations in the first century was carried out by a body of elders instead of just by one elder, or overseer.” – God’s Kingdom Rules, pp.120
Thus Watchtower not only writes Ray Franz out of history – it also takes the credit for his contribution, which it accepts as an organizational improvement.
Further attempts to rewrite history or gloss over unflattering details can be seen on the following pages…
◾Page 14 – It is mentioned that Henry Grew, George Stetson, and George Storrs “had a profound impact on C.T. Russell and his close associates,” but no mention is made of Nelson Barbour, who had a major influence on Russell’s fascination with date-setting, or William Miller (the founder of adventism on which Russell’s teachings were loosely based) who receives at least some mention in the Proclaimers book.
◾Pages 22 and 23 – The death of Russell is mentioned, but the leadership coup in which Rutherford swept to power (by effectively tearing up Russell’s will and scuppering what would have been something much closer to a “governing body” arrangement of shared power as early as 1917) receives no acknowledgment. Instead, an “outbreak of apostasy” is blamed on “creature worship” of Russell and a bitter resistance of “efforts to move forward.” (For more information on this period in Watchtower’s history, read this article under the heading “A Questionable Character.”)
◾Page 23 – Pre-1914 expectations are characterized thus: “They thought that in 1914, Christ would take his anointed bride class to heaven to rule with him there.” No mention is made of the fact that this ‘rapture’ had also been the expectation for 1878 when Russell and Barbour were working together, or that Russell expected 1914 to mark the END of Armageddon. (For more information, click here) Mention is also made of Rutherford being “unjustly sentenced” in 1918, without any explanation of what prompted his incarceration. Likely his publication of fiercely political anti-war material in pages 247 to 253 of The Finished Mystery would be a little much for the average Witness to stomach.
◾Page 62 – The Golden Age magazine (forerunner to the Awake!) is referred to as “directing people to the Kingdom as mankind’s only hope.” Some who are more familiar with actual Golden Age articles may struggle with this premise, particularly after reading that black people were considered a “race of servants,” that the book Uncle Tom’s Cabin is the “work of Satan” (see here), or that “in the future man will get his food directly from the sun.” (The Golden Age 1927 Oct 5 p.10)
◾Page 70 – The Photodrama of Creation is acclaimed as having been shown in “packed auditoriums” during 1914. No mention is made that in one of these auditoriums in New York black audience members were segregated. (see here)
◾Page 72 – We are reminded that “an estimated 50,000 people heard [Rutherford’s] talk ‘Millions Now Living Will Never Die'” in 1922. Some would argue that this achievement is rather overshadowed by the sad irony that most if not all of those 50,000 are likely now deceased, as will be a significant remainder of the immortal “millions” alluded to by Rutherford.
Rare honesty and some helpful features
Some rare honesty IS to be found on page 50 regarding pre-1914 expectations of Russell…

“As we saw in Chapter 2 of this book, the Bible Students spent decades pointing out that the year 1914 would be significant in fulfilling Bible prophecy. However, at that time they believed that Christ’s presence had begun in 1874, that he had begun to rule in heaven in 1878, and that the Kingdom would not be fully set up until October 1914. The harvest would extend from 1874 to 1914 and would culminate in the gathering of the anointed to heaven.” – God’s Kingdom Rules, page 50
But like most hiccups in Watchtower’s history this is blamed on ‘increasing light’, with a bizarre choice of scripture used to support the idea of God’s people being “blessed with more and more flashes of spiritual light.”

“Light has flashed up for the righteous and rejoicing for those upright in heart.” – Psalm 97:11, New World Translation
It seems that almost any scripture in the Bible featuring the word “light” can now be used to justify the increased light doctrine.
All that aside, the uncharacteristic honesty on this page regarding pre-1914 expectations is refreshing, and may prove to be a useful tool for those who seek to better inform their indoctrinated relatives about Watchtower’s history.
Other parts of the book that might be helpful when reasoning with believing loved ones include…
◾Page 63 – A photograph is shown of the landmark 1922 “Advertize, advertize, advertize!” convention at Cedar Point, Ohio. Look carefully and you will notice American flags draped prominently to the left and right of the stage, and hanging either side of the “ADV” on the stage itself. Not only is the nationalism among “God’s people” at that time worthy of note, it is also interesting to compare the scene with how it is depicted in Watchtower’s 2010 DVD “Faith In Action – Part 1.” In the digital re-enactment, the flags either side of the stage are removed and replaced with rectangular wooden boards. (For more information, click here)
◾Page 74 – A strange confession is made, namely that Watchtower was forced to retreat from using commercial radio stations to publish its message during the 1930’s due to “opposition” to this method. Precisely what form did this opposition take? Who instigated it? And why wasn’t God’s backing enough to help the organization overcome it? We are not told.
◾Page 114 – As this website has already stated, it wasn’t until 1952 that the disfellowshipping procedure was implemented by Watchtower. Only 5 years previously the practice of excommunication, admitted by Watchtower as being equal to disfellowshipping (w96 4/15 p.15 par.18), was blasted in a 1947 Awake! article as being a “weapon” that is “altogether foreign to Bible teachings.” (Awake! scans: Page 1 | Page 2) Page 114 admits to the 1952 date for when the practice was fully introduced – 33 years after Christ supposedly chose the organization. It would not be until 1981 that the rules were further changed to make it impossible to disassociate as a Witness without being punished, but curiously this isn’t mentioned.
◾Page 130-131 – A two-page section focuses attention on the Governing Body, who are depicted seated around a large conference table with a map of the world in the background. The photograph has a rather phoney feel about it, because rather than looking directly into the camera the group of men are posing while involved in a discussion. The six Governing Body “committees” are listed, including the Coordinator’s committee, whose remit includes “use of the media when it is necessary to convey an accurate picture of our beliefs.” Precisely how is it possible to “use” the media if the media is under Satan’s control? (w97 4/1 p.17 par.16)
Misrepresenting the present… and future
As you’ve probably surmised by this point, God’s Kingdom Rules! is just as much about the present and future of the Witnesses as it is about their past. And as you might expect, the writers are just as prone to exaggeration and drawing mistaken conclusions when discussing the modern organization.
Here are a few examples…
Preaching
Though Jehovah’s Witnesses are spread throughout an impressive number of countries, they cannot be truly said to be present “earth wide,” yet this is precisely how page 67 characterizes their preaching work.
As has already been revealed by a bethel representative, there are at least three countries (with a total population of some 65 million people) where Jehovah’s Witnesses are not present at all due to safety fears. (see this video, time marker 03:20) A Somali, Afghan or North Korean would give you a very strange look if you tried to tell him or her that the Witnesses are everywhere in the world.
It is also inadvisable to suggest that numerical increase is evidence of divine favor and blessing, yet the book falls into this trap repeatedly. On page 89 we are told that “Jehovah’s spirit and the power of his Word” are responsible for the “great world-wide harvest.” And on page 96 Keith Gaydon, a circuit overseer from Britain, suggests the increase in his country from 1948 to the present would be “impossible” by human power.
It should go without saying that if you are going to attribute growth in numbers in your own religion to divine backing, you also need to make the same claim regarding the growth and prosperity of other denominations.
Contributions
In light of the increasing use of credit cards by Watchtower and the recent changes in the way kingdom hall construction is financed, page 100 makes for a humorous read when it reviews Christ’s brusque treatment of the temple money changers. His views on money and worship were made abundantly clear according to the account found in Matthew 21.
94 pages later we are reminded of Charles Taze Russell’s approach to funding his efforts. “I am telling you the plain truth,” Russell reportedly tells a skeptical inquirer, “They [interested ones] do ask me this very question, ‘How can I get a little money into this cause?’ When one gets a blessing and has any means, he wants to use it for the Lord. If he has no means, why should we prod him for it?”
It should go without saying that the recent developments with regards to pledged donations by each congregation, as determined on the basis of “confidential surveys,” bear the distinct feel of “prodding.” No doubt this prodding will intensify if congregations fail to send through to Watchtower the fixed amounts they have been forced to pledge.
Many like myself see Watchtower’s increasing eagerness to solicit funds as indicative that all is not well with the organization’s finances – but this is not something they seem likely to admit any time soon. 130 years after Russell claimed Watchtower would “never beg nor petition men for support,” the writers of this new book bullishly insist the organization is “still going strong.” (pages 195, 196)
For those unfortunate enough to feel compelled to ease the financial worries that Watchtower apparently does not have, a chart is prepared on page 200 entitled “Where Do Our Donations Go?” Needless to say, child abuse lawsuit settlements and other legal expenses connected with the organization’s defense of its out-dated and grossly negligent policies in that area are notable by their absence.
Child abuse
Considering the growing media attention surrounding Jehovah’s Witnesses and child abuse, you would assume that the matter was worthy of at least some mention in a book that sets out to cover Watchtower’s past and present. Instead we get a short paragraph on page 117 that says the following…

“Jesus also wants children to be protected from harm. As this morally degraded world has sunk deeper into depravity, the plague of child abuse has become more prevalent. Therefore, clear and direct material has been published to help parents keep their children safe from this vicious practice.” – God’s Kingdom Rules!, page 117
It is not enough for a religious organization with millions of members to simply “publish material.” It must enact policies that treat child abuse as the heinous crime that it is, and urge the deferring of all reported instances to the police accordingly. Instead, Watchtower orders elders to dabble in these complex matters and insists on all reported cases being managed by the branch office.
This has resulted in the organization defending itself in lawsuits where the authorities have been kept out of the picture altogether, with the abuse covered up. Unsurprisingly, none of this gets even the slightest mention in this new book.
As examples of the “clear and direct material” published by the organization, the children’s book Learn From the Great Teacher and the October 2007 Awake! are listed in a footnote. Both offer only preventative advice to parents and children. Certainly neither urge parents to go to the police whenever abuse is uncovered.
When will Watchtower realize that teaching children to say, “Stop that! I’m going to tell on you!” isn’t enough to keep them out of harm’s way?
Inactive ones
Worthy of a mention on page 128 is a box entitled “Fruitful Weekly Visits.” It tells of how elders in a US congregation have made a concerted effort to visit the 30 inactive ones in their territory. Inactive ones are told of how “the congregation has not forgotten the fine work the person did in behalf of Jehovah’s Kingdom.”
The elders in question, and indeed the organization, seem oblivious to the fact that becoming inactive is now the only option available to Witnesses who wish to leave their religion while keeping family ties. Far from being “lost sheep” as they are here characterized, many inactive ones are simply victims of a cruel cult who have awakened from their indoctrination and want their personal beliefs to be respected.
Blood transfusions
Pages 161 to 164 offer three experiences from Japan, Argentina and Canada of Witnesses who have legally defended their right to refuse blood. Conveniently, two of these experiences have “recovered fully” or are in “good health.” The third person mentioned died a month after appearing in court in an ultimately successful attempt to sue her doctor and hospital for a forced transfusion.
Predictably, no mention is made of the exact number of Witnesses, including children, who have died out of mistaken allegiance to Watchtower’s obscene and immoral blood teaching. Neither is any credit given to the various doctors and judges who have intervened to save countless children whose lives have been imperiled by their indoctrinated Witness parents.
Child custody
As with defenses over blood treatment, pages 164 to 166 provide examples of Witness parents who have successfully defeated unbelieving former spouses in legal battles over child custody.
“Some allege that being raised as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses is harmful,” the reader is told with an air of disbelief. We are then regaled with some resounding victories against parents who tried to argue that 24/7 indoctrination and refusal of certain medical treatments might not be in their child’s best interests.
What the book neglects to point out is that Watchtower issues a special pack to assist lawyers in getting custody for Witness clients. Among its advice can be found the following…
child-custody
 (To download the pack, click here and then click on the blue box that says “Click here to start download from Sendspace”)
Likely the above material didn’t make the final cut for the God’s Kingdom Rules! book because most Witnesses won’t want to see evidence of “God’s organization” encouraging young people to knowingly misrepresent their beliefs and aspirations.
Branch reductions
It has been intriguing to observe the reduction in the number of Watchtower branches over the past few years, resulting in a huge decrease in the organization’s global footprint. Coupled with the slashing of printing operations, it would seem to represent clear evidence of Watchtower’s financial woes, especially since the organization used to pride itself in the opening up of branches in new territories.
It certainly seems inconceivable that a Watchtower organization flushed with money would be closing branches down rather than setting up new ones.
In their attempts to downplay the “consolidation,” Watchtower has previously offered the rather fanciful retort that the branch reductions are “proof” that Jesus is “breaking down human barriers.” (w12 12/15 p.28 par.18)
Sticking with a slightly more down-to-earth explanation, the new book broaches the subject in a box on page 205 by suggesting that the downsizing has been caused by “improvements in communications and printing technology.”
What the future holds
Not content with spinning and misrepresenting the organization’s past and present, the future of Jehovah’s Witnesses is also made the subject of the writer’s overactive imagination.
One of two psychedelic pictures of Jesus in the publication
One of two psychedelic pictures of Jesus in the publication

A very sombre-looking chart on pages 224 and 225 confidently predicts events leading up to Armageddon, including an attack on religion by the United Nations, Watchtower’s former bosom buddy. The chain of events climaxes with Armageddon, when “Jehovah sends his King to defend all loyal ones.”
To drive home the ‘reality’ of this future development, a rather psychedelic image appears on page 229 showing a giant Jesus (with a striking resemblance to Kenny Rogers) descending from the heavens, bow in hand, ready to do some unspeakable things to a group of flailing soldiers.
A similar image is shown earlier on in the book on page 20 when giant Jesus is shown appearing invisibly (if that makes any sense) in 1914. But that was 100 years ago, and on page 229 it seems he has unfinished business to attend to.
Once the utter annihilation of all non-Witnesses is complete, the stage is set for the numerous promises surrounding the paradise to come to fruition. These promises are neatly detailed for us in the final chapter.
In reference to one such promise, the resurrection, page 221 has this to say…

“You pluck a luscious apple from the branch. You take in its aroma before adding it to the growing mound in the basket. You have been working for hours, but you feel fine and ready for a bit of work. Your mother is at a tree nearby, happily working and chatting with other family members and friends who are helping with the harvest. She looks so young – the way you remember her when you were just a child all those years ago. It is hard to believe that you saw her grow old in the world that is now long gone. You saw her waste away with illness, you held her hand as she breathed her last, and you wept at her graveside. Yet, here she is, along with so many others, alive and healthy again! Such days will come; we know it.” – God’s Kingdom Rules!, page 221
As someone who DID see his mother “waste away with illness” and DID hold her hand “as she breathed her last” but has since woken up from his indoctrination, I can now look upon the above words and see them for what they are: utterly distasteful and abhorrent propaganda aimed at hijacking the grieving process, and the memory of dead loved ones, for the furtherance of a cruel cult.
Clinging to 1914
Without question the most notable feature of this book is the way it stubbornly clings to 1914 throughout, even though the passage of time has unmistakeably revealed this relic of a doctrine to be deeply flawed.
In pinning everything on this increasingly discredited teaching, the God’s Kingdom Rules! book commits the same mistake as the latest “Silver Sword” edition of the New World Translation – it gives itself a very brief shelf-life.
Banging on about 1914 may seem prudent to most Witnesses on the centenary of that year. But as more decades roll by, this book (along with all other books that point to 1914) will become just as embarrassing to Watchtower as the dusty old works of Russell that tout years like 1874 and 1878 as having biblical significance.
The Governing Body desperately needs to divorce itself from this teaching before they are exposed as fools in their own lifetimes (especially in the case of the relatively young Sanderson), but their inability to do so indicates to my mind that they are just as delusional as most of their followers.
It is not that they lack creativity, this they have clearly demonstrated in some of their outrageous teachings and policy changes in recent years. It is simply that they are dyed-in-the-wool Witnesses, and 1914 is in their DNA.
How the fact that they are so chained to such an obviously flawed date will play out in the decades to come remains to be seen, but don’t expect any radical deviations in understanding any time soon. Not if this book is anything to go by.

new-cedars-signature2






Related video…




Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:



Bookmark the permalink.
 
← Former elder convicted of rape and pedophilia amid claims of non-cooperation and destroyed evidence
When will Watchtower learn? – Karen Morgan speaks out on her abuser’s 14 year sentence →

126 Responses to The Cedars Review: “God’s Kingdom Rules!”

← Older Comments

 Ted says:

 July 12, 2014 at 1:59 pm

Sorry about duplicate postings, Computer problems,
Nearly as bad as trying to sort the dukes and shepherd
 conundrum.
Reply
 

 Searcher says:

 July 13, 2014 at 6:06 pm

Just remember what this organization truly is. It is a business! What do businesses do when their business model starts to go south? They reinvent themselves to survive and then prosper again. This is why there is always “new light”. Most of all, this is why their previous “Proclaimer” book had to be dumped for this new twist and drivel.
The book provides too much information to get a lead on their jaded past. A new direction into fresh territory, new developing nations with fewer internets and less open education opportunity, is needed. Now that’s worth translating a new revisionist history in all the new languages. It’s not that the GB can or cannot translate the “Proclaimers” book. They certainly could! Splaine should explain that is NOT what we WANT to do. It’s just not in the new business model’s best interest.
Unfortunately, the GB is acting just like an unscrupulous business; they are moving on to a new fresh territory, with a sanitized version of their history so that those that are newly converted can be kept in the dark. They remind me of US tobacco companies moving into developing countries, because the developed countries have them on the run. Remember, no matter how noble the cause is, follow the money.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 July 14, 2014 at 2:19 am

I am reading Don Cameron’s book Captives of a Concept and in it he explains about the only way a person who knows the truth about the truth can convince a witness that he is being deceived is by instead of taking a Bible study in the What does the Bible Really Teach book is by asking for a study in the Proclaimers book instead. In Cameron’s book, he points out place after place in the Proclaimers book that the student can draw attention to that shows that in 1919, there is absolutely no way that Jesus and God would have chosen the Watchtower as his one and only spokesman to mankind. So, I think to counteract the real proven from their own book of contradictions in Watchtower history in the Proclaimers book with current teachings, they had to come up with a “new and revised” history.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 July 16, 2014 at 1:22 am

I am done reading Captives of a Concept and Splane is lying through his teeth when he says the reason they made a new history book is because they couldn’t translate the old Proclaimers book into that many languages. It’s to counteract Don’s Cameron’s book and it all has to do with the fact that using the old Proclaimers book, a knowledgeable person can use it to make the witness teacher have doubts about whether or not God would have chosen the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society as his spokesman in 1919. Not today, but 1919. But John Cedars has brought out several places in his article above that you can still use to point out that what the Watchtower was teaching from 1914 to 1919, was not the “refined” truth that we have today. So, the question is, not what Jesus would see today as “truth” but what would he have seen in 1919 as “truth”. If we have the “truth” today, then we didn’t have it in 1919, when Jesus would have come to inspect the Watchtower. You can’t have it both ways. Splane was lying in that little speech. The Governing body aren’t deceived. They are deceivers and they know it. It’s all business.
Reply
 

 Lawrence says:

 July 16, 2014 at 5:14 pm

anonymous,one possible “truth” that they might have today is the non-trinitarian doctrine.Of course,this is subject to a very lengthy debate & discussion.Perhaps the WTBTS should promote discussion of this doctrine rather than pioneering as the “best way of life”.Even a loose association with some churches would be great for the furtherance of Bible study & research.
Reply
 

 Art Fern says:

 July 16, 2014 at 7:37 pm

Really an outstanding review John. On the 5 year cleansing Jesus undertook, (that will continue) I cannot think of anything Jesus did that was not done instantaneously. He didn’t heal a person or bring Lazarus back from the dead over time, it was “snap” you are healed. Judging the small and great could be the only occasion mentioned wherein, time might be involved but who knows? If there is any event or action on the part of Jesus that was completed or started on a time scale let me know, I can’t think of any.
 I have another problem with the doctrine, is the Tower claiming that EVERY untoward event be it war, sickness, accidents etc. is THE WILL OF GOD, initiated by God to test us? This gets us back to insane ideas of our Evangelical friends who carry predestination to the nth degree. All that happens to us is supernaturally controlled by God as part of a plan is the doctrine, which is also accepted by Southern Baptists. We cannot change the events, all we can do is obey and hope for the best. So what good is prayer as far as changing events that harm us? The God of the Old Testament seems to delight in cruelty, killing the evil as well as the innocent even killing a child for the sin of a parent. I cannot worship such a God, nor believe that it’s possible to have free choice when we are led by “the plan”.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 July 19, 2014 at 9:30 am

As far as correct history goes, I am quoting directly from “Light” Book one by Rutherford from 1930 on page 185 Paragraph 2 “From 1918 to the fall of 1919 the servant class was in exile, and therefore in SILENCE……Until 1922 the organization of the workers was progressing and the work was going forward. In 1922 the Lord’s people were permitted to have an understanding of Isaiah’s prophecy wherein the Lord is discerned in his temple, and then it was clearly seen by them that there must be a great witness work concerning the kingdom.” … Page 187, paragraph 2, “It was in 1922 that the people of God first had an understanding that the Lord had come to his temple in 1918. The Lord Jesus, the great Judge, is the One who judges the people of God; but it is noted that John was directed to do the measuring, thus suggesting that after the Lord had come to his temple for judgment the John class, or the faithful ones of the Lord’s servants, must come to a proper understanding of what constitutes the qualifications for membership in the kingdom. They must measure themselves by the divine standard and thus themselves learn the qualifications required.”
From this book written by Rutherford, I get it that there was no way in 1919 that Jesus would have “come” to the earth and saw that the Watchtower was dispensing the correct spiritual food. He says that from 1918 to 1919 they were SILENCED and then when they “understood” that Jesus had come to his temple in 1918, it wasn’t until the year 1922 that they started to figure out what were the qualifications Jesus was looking for, for membership in the kingdom.
How can the Society claim that in 1919, the Society was dispensing the correct spiritual food to the flock with all these old books of Rutherford’s floating around on Ebay? Have any of the Governing Body even looked at those old books? How can they, with a straight face, get up in front of thousands of people and present a new history book like this as “truth” and not worry that God will strike them down dead for their bald faced lies?
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 July 19, 2014 at 10:10 am

and to add to my last comment…. When you read Rutherford’s old books, you see the exact same things that you would expect to see in any book or Watchtower today when it comes to explaining scriptures. Rutherford wrote a lot of books, so the Society has a lot of topics to choose from. The Society has to stick close to what Rutherford wrote in print so as to stick close to the basic doctrines Rutherford established in the 1930’s when he started up his own religion, called Jehovah’s Witnesses. Cult leaders claim to get their directions from God and Rutherford wrote a lot in his books, that it was God’s angels who were directing the organization. Jehovah’s Witnesses are cult followers of Rutherford and even the Governing Body are cult followers of Rutherford.
Reply
 

 Chris says:

 July 20, 2014 at 7:01 pm

Why don’t you promote truth rather than tear down false religion? It would be a better use of time. Haven’t you ever heard of “Whatever you resist persists”. The more you push against something the more it will remain.
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 July 21, 2014 at 1:51 am

Thanks for those insights Chris.
“The more you push against something the more it will remain…” – can you explain precisely the exact logic of how this works? For example, I would be intrigued to know how Hitler’s Nazi Germany was utterly vanquished, or how apartheid in South Africa was wiped out, if it is impossible to successfully resist something.
As to “why don’t you promote truth rather than tear down false religion…” – can you explain how it is MY responsibility, as someone who exposes harm and hypocrisy in the Watchtower cult, to offer an alternative belief system? If I rescue someone from a burning house, do I also bear the duty of building them a new house to live in?
Reply
 
 

 Chris says:

 July 21, 2014 at 1:43 pm

What you resist persists. When you focus on something and say to yourself you don’t want something you aren’t telling it to go away you are focusing in it and are bringing more of it to your life. Have you ever said “I don’t want x, I don’t want x” and x shows up. Law of attraction. When people wiped out Hitlers army, they wanted to. But the more people feared them they eventually were conquered. And it is not your responsibility to do what you do. Jesus shot down false religion WHEN he found it. He didn’t spend his whole time tearing down the Pharisees and all the Saducees. But to spend all your life’s energy on doing what you do is only making you more angry at people who by your influence aren’t going to disband. You’re only preaching to the converted. I used to do what you do about Mormons and it just made me bitter, angry and made me obsess over things I really can’t control. So I just moved on. When I come across mormons I know what to say. But I was wasting time and energy being obsessed over their religion
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 July 21, 2014 at 1:51 pm

“You’re only preaching to the converted.”
***Ahem*** (points awkwardly to the new “Has JWsurvey.org helped you significantly…” mini-survey in the sidebar)
As to the rest of your defeatist “just move on” rhetoric, probably you’ve seen this video before but it sums up how I feel on the subject and I’m getting tired of repeating myself…



Reply
 
 

 PureStrongheart says:

 July 21, 2014 at 3:30 pm

@John Cedars:
 Please DON’T give up. Yours is by far the most comprehensive, level headed, informative site on the internet in regards to those offering an alternative viewpoint for critically thinking Jehovah’s Witnesses.
 Love you, man!
Reply
 

 Excelsior says:

 July 21, 2014 at 3:37 pm

Chris,
I do not know your circumstances, sir. I do not know the road you have travelled.
I will simply say this. Mr John Cedars has the stomach for this battle. I am sure that one day he will find he needs to stop, and on that day we will all thank him for his help and wish him well.
Maybe it’s time for you to stop. You will by no means save all of your Mormon ex brethren. Neither will Mr Cedars save every JW. that’s not the point. Mr Cedars wants to help folks, and provides a survey and articles that expose the monstrous lunacy of the WTBTS.
I for one encourage him to go on. He has been of much benefit to folks who have suffered much. He is a good and decent man.
I wish you success, sir, on your route from here on in. I understand why you made your comment, but I agree with Mr Cedars.
Peace be with you
Excelsior!
Reply
 

 Dustin says:

 July 21, 2014 at 9:49 pm

Great article, John. Also, the child custody literature is veeery interesting.
 Thanks!
Reply
 

 Criticus says:

 July 23, 2014 at 6:08 am

The title of the book is a misnomer. Replace “God’s Kingdom” by “Watchtower”, and it fits. Other suggestions:
“The Watchtower’s Kingdom Rules!”
 “The Governing Body Rules!”
 “The Tony Morrison Gang Rules!”
The WTS has always proceeded acc. to the principle: “When we spit into your face and tell you ‘it’s raining’ – then it IS raining.”
The sickening and bloated WTS-codex of manmade doctrines, rules and regulations boils down to 2 simple axioms:
1. The org is ALWAYS right.
 2. Should it ever happen that the org is wrong, rule no. 1 applies.
Bottoms up!
Reply
 

 mumsy dear says:

 July 27, 2014 at 9:36 pm

The WT reminds me of George Orwell’s book “Animal Farm”.
It’s the same difference. Same schtik, different puddle.
Reply
 

 Criticus says:

 July 30, 2014 at 12:16 pm

Oh yeah:
“2 legs baaaaad. 4 legs goooood.”
 “Worldly people baaaaaad. JW gooooood.”
 “Christendom baaaaaad. Watchtower gooooood.”
 “U r baaaaaaaad. We r goooooood.”
Let all sheep say “BAAAAAAA!”
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 July 30, 2014 at 4:35 pm

A little more of the “real” history of the Watchtower Organization.
Quoting from the book “Light” volume 1 by Rutherford on page 215, paragraph 2 it reads “At an international convention held in Germany in 1925 a poll of the great audience was taken and the result showed that more than half of those present came into the truth since 1922, and nearly all of them since 1919. A similar poll was afterwards taken at other conventions, proving the same general fact.”
Quoting from “The Four Presidents of the Watchtower Society” by Edmond C. Gruss on page 107 it says “Since Rutherford confirmed that just about everyone in the membership during the years 1914-1918 had left by 1928, the rest leaving by 1938 (all but a “handful,” according to Macmillan) primarily due to the iron-fisted, arrogant Rutherford and changes in the Watchtower doctrine and edicts, is not true that, even if Christ had looked down and selected them in 1919, it was no longer the same organization he selected?”
Reply
 

 miroslav says:

 August 1, 2014 at 8:40 am

[evangelical comment removed, final warning]
Reply
 

 miroslav says:

 August 1, 2014 at 12:40 pm

I am really disappointed to have final warning for evangelical comment! Many are allowed to freely blaspheme against God and promote atheism, but I can not defend Bible. Cedars, Is this objective? What happen to freedom of speech?
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 August 1, 2014 at 12:46 pm

Nobody blasphemes God or “promotes” atheism on this website. You are allowed to say what your personal beliefs are, but you are not allowed to tell others what their beliefs must be. The posting guidelines are unambiguous and not open for debate. You either respect them or find somewhere else to leave comments. Clear?
Reply
 
 

 miroslav says:

 August 2, 2014 at 4:43 am

OK. Your website your rules, I respect that. But, I do not know how I crossed the line and aggressively imposed my beliefs. And, I do not wish to be disrespectful, but there are some members who promote atheism and who blaspheme. I qoute: “I can find NOTHING that allows a person to take the messages of “this generation shall not pass away….” to apply to anyone not among the crowd Jesus was speaking to AT THAT TIME. Jesus didn’t return while any of those in his audience were still alive, it is a false prophecy” (this is not direct attack on God, but it is attack on Bible and I provided rebuttal which you deleted) and “I think we are lucky the world is not UNIPOLAR. Satan’s kingdom rules, too. For the last four years, I have realized there is no stupid god except Jehovah!” (If it is not blasphemy then what is?) and “have you read ‘God is not great’ by christopher hitchens? [apparently religion is founded on blood and sperm]..” (this sentence is not aggressively atheistic?) I can find more examples if you wish, but it is enough to prove my point. It seems to me that they are proselytizing atheism or who knows what more than I do my faith. If you found something offensive, please delete that part not the whole comment!
Reply
 
 Cedars says:

 August 2, 2014 at 5:10 am

If you take exception to comments posted by other individuals, there is nothing stopping you from sending an email with your grievances rather than jumping on your shoebox about it. I will then look into your complaints and take action if there is deemed to be any breach of our posting policies. BTW – “I can breach the posting guidelines because others have breached them” is not a defense.
Please note, you don’t need to be “aggressively” imposing your beliefs. Imposing them at all is contrary to our posting guidelines, and I notice you don’t deny trying to do this.
I hope now we are finally clear.
Reply
 
 

 Judith Demaestri says:

 August 14, 2014 at 1:26 am

Thank you very much for your viewpoint on this new book.I find it to be very accurate.
Reply
 

 Henry says:

 August 20, 2014 at 4:07 am

Right now I’m in the middle of a project looking into the old Proclaimers book. There is some information here and there on the internet about it and the contradictions but I feel like something more concise and comprehensive is needed. I plan on making this into a YouTube video series. now that this new Proclaimers book came out I’m going to have to go through it but luckily its a lot shorter. I’ve read it and there’s already flat out less in the first few pages. This should be interesting.
If there is anyone out there willing to help me with some of the research and putting the information together please contact me:
your77right@gmail.com
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 August 21, 2014 at 12:36 pm

Hi Henry. There’s an excellent book about the Proclaimer’s book called “Captives of a Concept” by Don Cameron. I got mine off of Ebay and it wasn’t real expensive but you can probably get one off of Amazon too.
Reply
 

 JimmyG says:

 August 21, 2014 at 11:58 pm

Henry. You might find this link helpful:
http://corior.blogspot.com/2006/02/notes-on-proclaimers-book.html
Reply
 

 JimmyG says:

 August 23, 2014 at 6:12 am

Henry. Here’s another link:
http://www.cftf.com/booklets/proclaimers/
Reply
 

 PureStrongheart says:

 September 3, 2014 at 7:42 pm

To tie in loosely with this publication coming out on the “centennial” of 1914: The latest Kingdom Ministry encourages Witnesses to be “Explaining our Beliefs about 1914″ using the October and November 2014 of The Watchtower. Further evidence that the organization is at least cognizant of the jarring arrival of October 2014 and the so-called “centennial” of Christ’s rule.
 (Side point: I didn’t realize that KM is available to the PUBLIC on line all the way back to 2010! Back in the day, it was like pulling hen’s teeth sometimes to get your own copy even as a lowly publisher of the good news!)
Reply
 

 Johan Henze says:

 September 29, 2014 at 4:13 am

On page 20 of this book it shows Jesus riding on a horse saying Jehovah,s Witnesses started to discern Jesus invisible presence since 1914 actually meaning they are contradicting themselves on p. 50 of the book!
Reply
 

 Alan says:

 November 27, 2014 at 1:38 pm

One thing that got me was the flip flops particularly Romans 13. The JWDP book says that the understanding that the Higher Powers were the governments is the thing that kept them in bondage to Babylon the Great. Hence the change of understanding that it is Jehovah and Christ Jesus. So they were “released” from Babylon.
They then go BACK to the understanding that it is the Higher Powers. Hang on!! Didn’t this understanding keep them in Babylon SO HAVE THEY GONE BACK INTO BABYLON????
Reply
 

 Wild Olive says:

 December 9, 2014 at 1:44 pm

I was hoping that the recent international convention would “fix”my growing distrust of the GB,the opposite happened.
 One of the features of the Kingdom Rule book is a double page spread on pg28 &29 outlining Russell’s major talks and publishing work from 1870 to 1914,what is so ridiculous is that none of that material is “truth”anymore,I would be df for teaching anything mentioned in those pages,as a counterpoint to this,the Bible Students,who Rutherford threw out of the org,believe and teach all those things in the Kingdom Rules book,including Russell’s wacky pyramidology,maybe they should rename him Charles Indiana Jones Russell lol.
 So the WTBS has to hang on to Russell because he’s their 1914 prophet but not accept his teachings,same with Rutherford,have to hang on to him because he thought up “The Name”,but can’t accept his teachings either,in the end this becomes a pseudo idolatry of both these nutters,as we aren’t allowed to believe them but still have to accept them as instruments of Gods truth.
 I wonder how long it will be when the GB is in the same position.
Reply
 

 Wild Olive says:

 January 5, 2015 at 11:43 am

@Alan,your observation is an interesting one,the current version of the “higher powers”is the same understanding that Christendom has had for the last 1900 yrs lol.
 Another teaching that also now conforms to traditional Christianity is Jesus arrival to judge the sheep and the goats,He will arrive at sometime in the future to do so,that also had been taught for 1900 yrs.
 I wonder if the GB could do something reeeaally exceptional and publish Raymondus Martinus book in which he came up with the invented name Jehovah,since the Catholic Church has now officially banned the use of the name Jehovah it could show how faithful they are lol
Reply
 

 Srgdc says:

 February 12, 2015 at 8:46 am

It seems that the link for the Keep Seeking First God’s Kingdom is gone. Can you publish it again?
Reply
 

 Phil says:

 February 22, 2015 at 1:33 pm

i agree… Your videos and articles helped deprogram after more than 22 years in this insanity. So thank you so much for your work, I can’t thank you enough.
Reply
 

← Older Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾21 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     















































                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/the-cedars-review-gods-kingdom-rules




















Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



Videos

New videos are constantly being uploaded to the John Cedars YouTube channel.
Here is a playlist featuring the most recent uploads…
 style="overflow: hidden; height: 105px; width: 600px; border: 0;"<br /> scrolling="no" frameBorder="0"><br />
And here is a playlist of recommended videos from other channels…




Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:


 
10 Responses to Videos

 KtotheRAD "Konrad" says:

 August 25, 2013 at 6:55 pm

With every word they reveal and “impart” far more than they ever intended…
Reply
 

 george says:

 August 27, 2013 at 4:45 am

Sorry Cedars, I can only access the first video on my I pad. There are a lot of over sized play icons and they won’t work.
Reply
 

 Luke says:

 October 27, 2013 at 5:27 pm

Continue the good work on this site that expose what Watchtower Organization really are — a fanatic end-time driven cult that only serve interests of its leaders. I left this
 cult three years ago for good. My only regret is that I had not left the Watchtower Cult earlier! On Easter Sunday this year, I was baptized in the Name of the Father, Son, Holy Spirit and received into Eastern Orthodox Church, apostolic Church that preserved the Faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.
Cedar, you have my blessings of your work on this site that
 will yet help millions of JWs to see the truth of so-called ‘Truth’.
Reply
 

 Fred says:

 November 2, 2013 at 12:09 pm

Forget taking your numbers from a 1974 yearbook if you question the amount of those killed, interned, etc get the numbers from the Holocaust museum. You forgot to mention the ‘JEWS’ were and its quoted several times in the Watchtower publications as it is related in the bible, “ONCE GOD’S CHOSEN PEOPLE” but they did not remain that because of their actions. Your quotes from WT publications are based on the latter that they fell out of favour in God’s eyes. They therefor were NOT written in an anti-Semitic nature. Many Jews have become JW’s over the years are they lesser beings because they were of Jewish blood?…ABSOLUTELY NOT! All races are equal so this video in my opinion is twisted in its presentation. Not to mention the ridiculous claim of Rutherford’s so called love letter to Adolf Hitler. No blinders on here, I have checked the facts. Sorry but this video paints an untruthful twist of events and statements about the WT as regards the comments on the Nazi’s and Jews.
Reply
 

 Palma says:

 February 28, 2014 at 3:48 am

Hi everybody! Hi cedars!
 I found this article about a discovery in egypt that brings light to the origin of story of joseph in the bible.
 What do you think?
http://www.davidovits.info/the-lost-fresco-and-the-bible-my-new-book-in-french/
Reply
 

 Idris says:

 March 27, 2014 at 8:12 am

Thank you for this page, it has been a great help to me, as I seek the truth of the word of God, however I noticed in the video ‘Does the Bible speak of ‘Paradise Earth’ the speaker quotes Luke 21v43 twice, regarding Jesus word on the cross, there should be a correction note as the verse he mentions is in Luke 23 v 43.
 Keep up the good work
Reply
 

 Julia Orwell says:

 July 17, 2014 at 3:47 am

Been to internationals before and this elaborate souvenir thing is entirely new. The last one I went to in 2009, the last ones they had, had nothing like this so it’s not a matter of you having not noticed it in the past, it’s a matter of it being a new phenomenon.
 I theorize that the wt motives for this involve keeping the masses busy and therefore obedient. Jws would volunteer to do this because there are no other legitimate outlets for creative expression. Armageddon being near has nothing to do with it: it’s about keeping the sheeple busy and happy. Making stupid trinkets is also a team building activity as it involves jws working together, thus reinforcing the herd mentality jws have.
Reply
 

 frankie fernandez says:

 February 27, 2015 at 4:44 pm

dear friends I was baptized in 1974. Thank God I am no longer a member of the WT. Free at last and oh what a relief it is. A member of my former congregation who I considerd my best friend molested a minor. There was a big argument amognst the elders on the judicial committee. One elder who was a maverick, wanted to notify the police. But, instead they followed the instuctions of the society. They kept this crime against the child, hush hush. So as not to tarnish the name of Jehovah. But in reality it was a coverup to protect the wt’s reputation. Meanwhile this poor child that was raped has to carry the heavy burden of a victim for the rest of thier lives without compensation and without justice. While the abuser has remaind a member in good standing. The congregation he is attending now has not been notified that he is a sexual preditor.
Reply
 

 Kirtley W. Burggraf says:

 March 11, 2015 at 11:16 am

Tell me, since governing body members are elected (replacing someone who dies) at what point do do they become “divinely inspired” or “spirit guided”? Were they always thus in the lower ranks or does this just “happen” the moment that they are appointed? What’s Watchtower’s take on this?
Reply
 

 Alone in MD says:

 March 31, 2015 at 6:00 pm

Regards your video on the Memorial Service. I am one of those “non believers” married to a baptized witness. I go to just keep the peace but I’ve made it known that I consider this service one of the worst religious ceremonies that I have ever been to. “Anointed What”. Also it was announced at last years meeting that “this may be the last memorial service”. They are at it again. Thanks for the great videos.
Reply
 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾25 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     























                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/video-home
































Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



Videos

New videos are constantly being uploaded to the John Cedars YouTube channel.
Here is a playlist featuring the most recent uploads…
 style="overflow: hidden; height: 105px; width: 600px; border: 0;"<br /> scrolling="no" frameBorder="0"><br />
And here is a playlist of recommended videos from other channels…




Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:


 
10 Responses to Videos

 KtotheRAD "Konrad" says:

 August 25, 2013 at 6:55 pm

With every word they reveal and “impart” far more than they ever intended…
Reply
 

 george says:

 August 27, 2013 at 4:45 am

Sorry Cedars, I can only access the first video on my I pad. There are a lot of over sized play icons and they won’t work.
Reply
 

 Luke says:

 October 27, 2013 at 5:27 pm

Continue the good work on this site that expose what Watchtower Organization really are — a fanatic end-time driven cult that only serve interests of its leaders. I left this
 cult three years ago for good. My only regret is that I had not left the Watchtower Cult earlier! On Easter Sunday this year, I was baptized in the Name of the Father, Son, Holy Spirit and received into Eastern Orthodox Church, apostolic Church that preserved the Faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.
Cedar, you have my blessings of your work on this site that
 will yet help millions of JWs to see the truth of so-called ‘Truth’.
Reply
 

 Fred says:

 November 2, 2013 at 12:09 pm

Forget taking your numbers from a 1974 yearbook if you question the amount of those killed, interned, etc get the numbers from the Holocaust museum. You forgot to mention the ‘JEWS’ were and its quoted several times in the Watchtower publications as it is related in the bible, “ONCE GOD’S CHOSEN PEOPLE” but they did not remain that because of their actions. Your quotes from WT publications are based on the latter that they fell out of favour in God’s eyes. They therefor were NOT written in an anti-Semitic nature. Many Jews have become JW’s over the years are they lesser beings because they were of Jewish blood?…ABSOLUTELY NOT! All races are equal so this video in my opinion is twisted in its presentation. Not to mention the ridiculous claim of Rutherford’s so called love letter to Adolf Hitler. No blinders on here, I have checked the facts. Sorry but this video paints an untruthful twist of events and statements about the WT as regards the comments on the Nazi’s and Jews.
Reply
 

 Palma says:

 February 28, 2014 at 3:48 am

Hi everybody! Hi cedars!
 I found this article about a discovery in egypt that brings light to the origin of story of joseph in the bible.
 What do you think?
http://www.davidovits.info/the-lost-fresco-and-the-bible-my-new-book-in-french/
Reply
 

 Idris says:

 March 27, 2014 at 8:12 am

Thank you for this page, it has been a great help to me, as I seek the truth of the word of God, however I noticed in the video ‘Does the Bible speak of ‘Paradise Earth’ the speaker quotes Luke 21v43 twice, regarding Jesus word on the cross, there should be a correction note as the verse he mentions is in Luke 23 v 43.
 Keep up the good work
Reply
 

 Julia Orwell says:

 July 17, 2014 at 3:47 am

Been to internationals before and this elaborate souvenir thing is entirely new. The last one I went to in 2009, the last ones they had, had nothing like this so it’s not a matter of you having not noticed it in the past, it’s a matter of it being a new phenomenon.
 I theorize that the wt motives for this involve keeping the masses busy and therefore obedient. Jws would volunteer to do this because there are no other legitimate outlets for creative expression. Armageddon being near has nothing to do with it: it’s about keeping the sheeple busy and happy. Making stupid trinkets is also a team building activity as it involves jws working together, thus reinforcing the herd mentality jws have.
Reply
 

 frankie fernandez says:

 February 27, 2015 at 4:44 pm

dear friends I was baptized in 1974. Thank God I am no longer a member of the WT. Free at last and oh what a relief it is. A member of my former congregation who I considerd my best friend molested a minor. There was a big argument amognst the elders on the judicial committee. One elder who was a maverick, wanted to notify the police. But, instead they followed the instuctions of the society. They kept this crime against the child, hush hush. So as not to tarnish the name of Jehovah. But in reality it was a coverup to protect the wt’s reputation. Meanwhile this poor child that was raped has to carry the heavy burden of a victim for the rest of thier lives without compensation and without justice. While the abuser has remaind a member in good standing. The congregation he is attending now has not been notified that he is a sexual preditor.
Reply
 

 Kirtley W. Burggraf says:

 March 11, 2015 at 11:16 am

Tell me, since governing body members are elected (replacing someone who dies) at what point do do they become “divinely inspired” or “spirit guided”? Were they always thus in the lower ranks or does this just “happen” the moment that they are appointed? What’s Watchtower’s take on this?
Reply
 

 Alone in MD says:

 March 31, 2015 at 6:00 pm

Regards your video on the Memorial Service. I am one of those “non believers” married to a baptized witness. I go to just keep the peace but I’ve made it known that I consider this service one of the worst religious ceremonies that I have ever been to. “Anointed What”. Also it was announced at last years meeting that “this may be the last memorial service”. They are at it again. Thanks for the great videos.
Reply
 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾25 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     























                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/video-home





































Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



← Full program of United States elders meeting leaked on YouTube
Is the media finally grasping just how bad Watchtower’s child abuse problem is? →

“Pay attention or die!” – A disturbing glimpse of JW child indoctrination at work
avatar
Posted on February 13, 2015

The latest JW child indoctrination cartoon carries a threatening message
The latest JW child indoctrination cartoon carries a threatening message

Anyone who was raised as a Jehovah’s Witness can empathize with the scenario of two children struggling to hold their attention at a kingdom hall meeting. And this is exactly the predicament in which Watchtower’s model cartoon children, Caleb and Sophia, find themselves in the latest “Become Jehovah’s Friend” episode – released earlier this month.
So what does the Governing Body want to say to any children who find themselves bored or distracted at a meeting they have been dragged to by their indoctrinated parents? It’s simple, really: “Pay attention, or die.” That grim message comes across loud and clear in the latest installment of Watchtower’s child propaganda series.
In the newly-released “Lesson 15,” entitled “Pay Attention at the Meetings,” young Caleb and Sophia find themselves reprimanded for playing with a toy car (Caleb) and falling asleep (Sophia) by their parents.


In a subsequent discussion around the dinner table, the children’s parents discuss the serious ramifications of failing to pay attention during a meeting. “Imagine if Noah didn’t pay attention when Jehovah explained how to build the ark?” muses Caleb’s father.
A cartoon segment then shows Noah and his family idling around during God’s instructions for building a vessel that the laws of physics say could never have been seaworthy to avoid a global deluge that archeology, geology and biology testify never happened. (If you find anything I’ve said in this paragraph offensive, please watch this video.)
The result? Noah and his family are shown scurrying into the finished ark when the flood is imminent, only for it to comically collapse under the weight of the first drop of water. The whole family is then shown disappearing under the flood waters with startled looks on their faces.
“That’s not what happened, dad!” protests Caleb. “You are right,” says his dad. “He paid attention, and it saved his life. Paying attention at the meetings can help save YOUR life!”
After this not-so-veiled threat, Caleb and Sophia are shown at the next meeting paying rapt attention, apparently buoyed by the knowledge that failure to do so will result in them being slaughtered.
Child indoctrination: increasingly the only way to turn someone into a Jehovah's Witness
Child indoctrination: increasingly the only way to turn someone into a Jehovah’s Witness

I personally found this video even more hideous than the notorious Sparlock episode – one of the first “lessons” in this ghastly series. Why?
At least in the Sparlock episode the threats made against Caleb by his mother for playing with a wizard toy were slightly more opaque. If he didn’t throw his toy away, Caleb would make Jehovah “sad” and grow old and shriveled like Adam and Eve. But in this latest video, the threats made against Caleb and his sister to coerce them into conformity are all too dire and explicit.
How any parent can watch this video and find threats of death at the hands of the Almighty an appropriate, healthy tool for shaping the attitudes and behavior of their children is beyond me.
I am reminded of the words of Richard Dawkins: “There is no such thing as a Christian child: only a child of Christian parents.” Children are not born religious – they need to have it pummeled into them by parents who were very likely themselves instilled with a specific religion dependent on their own parents or culture.
In the case of Witness children, the modus operandi for indoctrination is not merely gentle persuasion and cheerful recommendations but outright threats and blackmail – all endorsed and prescribed by the Governing Body themselves.
The one useful element of this video is that it openly exposes to any non-JW onlooker what the Witness religion is really all about: “Follow us or die.”
I have only recently made a video on this very subject, as it is my hope that more people will be mindful of the true, grisly nature of the Witness message when they are set upon with enchanting images of paradise, pandas and fruit baskets.
Grab a shovel and start exploring this imaginary utopia recommended to you in Watchtower literature, and you will soon discover that these rolling hillsides, bounteous pastures and idyllic homes have been built on the bodies of billions of people who have been massacred for the crime of not wanting to be Jehovah’s Witnesses. Sparing the next generation from having their lives molded by such a grotesque vision of the future is not merely advisable – it is an obligation.

new-cedars-signature2






Further reading…
◾NYDailyNews article
◾Freethinker article
◾Friendly Atheist article
◾Rawstory article
◾JWvictims article
◾Watchtower’s new “Toy Story” – What parents need to know
◾Why it is morally wrong for Watchtower to push baptism on children
◾JWsurvey articles on child indoctrination
Related videos…






Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:



Bookmark the permalink.
 
← Full program of United States elders meeting leaked on YouTube
Is the media finally grasping just how bad Watchtower’s child abuse problem is? →

105 Responses to “Pay attention or die!” – A disturbing glimpse of JW child indoctrination at work

← Older Comments

 Excelsior! says:

 February 18, 2015 at 6:31 am

Cuthbert,
I am still patiently waiting for your response to my dilemma.
Peace be with you, Excelsior!
Reply
 

 Kurt says:

 February 18, 2015 at 10:52 pm

We already know that Caleb’s mom is a manipulative skunt of the worst sort, and can see that his dad is a dull witted schmuck. What amazes me is how unselfconscious these people are who produce these videos, as if they have no idea of how outrageous they would appear to someone of good conscience.
Reply
 

 Sam says:

 February 19, 2015 at 6:15 am

So the wages of not paying attention are death?
Bit harsh isn’t it? Come to that why does an all powerful almighty God, ruler of the universe, divine creator etc etc give two hoots if a child is paying attention or not?
Reply
 

 disillusioned says:

 February 22, 2015 at 1:29 pm

We all used to let our children fall asleep in meetings and were glad that we did so that we got some peace. How can you force a child to stay awake especially at the evening meeting. I remember a brother on the platform saying that even if our children fell asleep the information was still going in. I and many other adults at assemblies used to fall asleep. (They seemed to have that effect, sending people to sleep.) So how can you keep children awake? By pinching them? That mother is harsh.
Reply
 
 Olive says:

 March 14, 2015 at 7:51 pm

When I watched this, I just felt so bad for Sophia in particular. I mean, the kid is eight years old, and it’s close to nine on a school night, and they’re shocked that she fell asleep at the meeting?
What’s the next video going to be? Telling her about the glory of suffering for Jehovah while she counts blisters from walking two miles in dress shoes?
Reply
 
 MyBirthRight says:

 March 15, 2015 at 7:20 am

They would probably pull something like that.
I feel so hurt for the few children who have parents that will take it even further now that there is JW broadcast, and only allow their children to watch anything beside JW broadcast material even for leisure. I heard 2 people hint before there may be no more Sesame Street for their kids now that they have these, it’s very saddening!
Reply
 
 
 

 StrongHaiku says:

 February 24, 2015 at 1:54 pm

Wow! After watching this a couple of times I wondered if the kids are being toilet-trained at gun point. Of what good use is it to be obedient out of fear? Shouldn’t love be the primary motivation? I don’t get it.
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 5, 2015 at 8:56 am

Yes, those are the looks of car ride anxiety attack because they know they’re on their way to a monumental *** whooping or indoctrination guilt trip speech after the meeting.
I’m surprised they showed poor Caleb being allowed to draw during that meeting, as there was always constant cruelty advising parent’s to not allow their kids to draw. Some parents that were more compassionate were looked down upon as not setting an example if their children drew pictures, chatted or played with toys or books, guess the head didn’t have his household in order. And if you were parent who even gave your kids christian themed coloring pages you were looked at as darn near apostate since it wasn’t the My Book of Bible B.S.
This “keep your kids woke” at the hall is nothing new, they are just amping it up now by targeting kids with threats outright. It used to be the story droned in children many years back about the young boy in the bible who fell out of the window by falling asleep during “Paul’s” talk but was supposedly “revived” by Paul in the story, but now the sinister message flat is out pain of unmourned death for falling asleep! I remember attendants being told at 2 diff circuit assemblies in the late 80’s to wake people up they noticed had fallen asleep. What’s next, cartoon of Sophia and Caleb being professionally treated at their teacher’s request after being groomed of course by the parent’s on just what they are allowed to divulge to the doctors, for insomnia and other social/mental disorders because they became afraid to ever fall asleep at all because of fiery Armageddon literature art inspired nightmares and threat of parental abandonment. As well as Sophia’s depression from not being allowed to have friends at school as we witnessed in the Pray Anytime video filled with all kinds of other evidence of how threatening this cult really is.
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 5, 2015 at 11:33 am

Yup, looks like “car ride anxiety attack” on their faces, ‘cuz they know they are on their way to a monumental butt whooping or fear filled guilt trip speech. I’m surprised they showed poor Caleb being allowed to draw during that meeting, as there was always constant cruelty advising parents to not allow kids to draw during meetings. Some parents were looked down upon as not setting an example if their children drew pictures, chatted or played with toys or books. Even parents that gave their kids “christian themed” coloring pages or books you were looked at as darn near apostate since it wasn’t the My Book of Bible B.S.
Back in the day, they droned in children the story about the young boy who fell out of the window because he fell asleep during “Paul’s” talk but was at least “revived” at the end of the story, now the message is pain of unmourned death for falling asleep! I remember attendants being told at a 2 diff circuit assemblies in the late 80’s to wake anyone up they noticed had fallen asleep. What’s next, a cartoon of Sophia and Caleb being treated for insomnia and other social disorders at the teacher’s request of course but only after they’ve been groomed by the parent’s on what to say, because they’ve grown afraid to sleep at all because of fiery Armageddon literature art inspired nightmares or after watching this video. Might as well treat Sophia for the friends issues while they are at it as a result of her thinking she has to alienate herself from other schoolchildren on the bus in that Pray Anytime video.
Reply
 
 Charles Costante says:

 March 6, 2015 at 8:22 pm

“since it wasn’t the My Book of Bible B.S.”
I’m sure the B.S. stands for Bible Study, MyBirthRight, but I can’t understand why you’ve put another ‘Bible’ in front of the abbreviation. (haha!)
“I remember attendants being told at a 2 diff circuit assemblies in the late 80’s to wake anyone up they noticed had fallen asleep.”
What a bloody cheek! What they should have done is counseled all the brothers giving the talks at these aforementioned ‘nod offs’ and told them to smarten up and make them more interesting!
Reply
 
 

 anonymous says:

 March 6, 2015 at 6:36 pm

Tonight my husband was going on and on about how to discipline a child. He was saying how important it is to explain why your child should be doing this or that etc and how people don’t do that with their kids so this is what I said to him: “I know how to make a child behave” and he stopped talking and said “what?” and I said “I’d tell them that if they don’t behave that Jehovah is going to kill them”. He looked stunned and finally he said “I don’t agree with that at all” so I said, “yes, that is what I’d do. Tell them that if they don’t behave that Jehovah is going to kill them.” Again he looked at me like I had gone crazy and said again, “well, I don’t agree with that at all.” So then I said, “well that’s what the latest cartoon from the Watchtower says.” I offered to show him the cartoon but he didn’t want to see it.
Reply
 
 Charles Costante says:

 March 6, 2015 at 8:10 pm

Nice one, anonymous!
http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/Nice+one! (just in case you didn’t guess the meaning from the context)
Reply
 
 Charles Costante says:

 March 6, 2015 at 9:20 pm

I just checked my previous link and it seems faulty.
Here’s what it says:
 Nice one!
 (British & Australian informal)
 something that you say when you have just heard that someone has done something which you think is good ‘Graham’s brought some champagne along to mark the occasion.’ ‘Oh, nice one, Graham!’
http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/Nice+one!
Reply
 
 anonymous says:

 March 7, 2015 at 3:05 am

Thanks Charles.
Reply
 
 
 
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 8, 2015 at 4:09 pm

@Charles Cosante
 That was comically meant to stand for b.s.(bullcrap) as in “my book of bible bull****”, instead of “My Book of Bible Stories”, that was printed by WatchTower geared towards children. I was referring to the fear tactics/rules they insisted upon that children of Witnesses not be allowed books even remotely religious in nature that weren’t published by this organization only. I refrained from writing bull-s out of respect for the rules of the forum and in order not to offend anyone who might find it offensive, which is not my intent : )
Reply
 
 Charles Costante says:

 March 8, 2015 at 7:43 pm

“That was comically meant to stand for b.s.(bullcrap) as in “my book of bible bull****””
I was being facetious, MyBirthRight – I knew that’s what you meant (you must have missed my ‘ha ha’ at the end).
Reply
 
 MyBirthRight says:

 March 15, 2015 at 7:22 am

yeah I had missed that part : )
Reply
 
 
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 8, 2015 at 4:24 pm

@Charles Costante
 And yes, what cheek Charles, of them to task the attendants to wake people up on those occasions, so as not to risk them missing one single drop of indoctrination for sure! Oh, I wish I could say it ended there Charles, but for a brief time after those two assemblies, which is where I am sure they got this next idea from, the attendants at our congregation were even handed yard sticks to enable them to tap ones furthest across the seats, and were asked to tell members to wake up people near them during the meetings. It didn’t last long thankfully, as it started disagreements and a stop was put to it once the overseer arrived.
ah yes, circuit overseer visits, the time when the congregation put on/out it’s best like they were the parabled wise virgins preparing for their bridegrooms or something when a circuit or district overseer or bethelite came to town. Offering such individuals a figurative alabaster cases brimming in the form of best meals, best show, money and gifts and a mile long list of tattle tales.
I digress, but it’s not surprising that such kinda “wakey wakey or in Armageddon’s bird buffet blazes you’ll bakey” foolishness goes on given the organization’s old time usher period, what I call the Cane Brigade, when old time ushers are said to have walked around “ready to defend” with those white canes, lol
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 8, 2015 at 4:52 pm

@anonymous awesome : )
Reply
 

 Charles Costante says:

 March 8, 2015 at 8:00 pm

“”……… but for a brief time after those two assemblies, which is where I am sure they got this next idea from, the attendants at our congregation were even handed yard sticks to enable them to tap ones furthest across the seats,………………”
It’s a wonder someone didn’t tell them to shove their yardsticks up their @r$#!, MyBirthRight (er, I mean: where the monkey shoved his nuts!).
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 9, 2015 at 10:19 am

@Charles LOL! I think that’s the type of disagreements it started, esp when it was visitor in the hood that it happened to hahaha
Reply
 

 Kat says:

 March 30, 2015 at 5:27 pm

This is disturbing as pediatricians say no TV or vids for children younger than 2 and they didn’t mean months old. My ex would make my 10 yo son stand in the corner for 5 hours if he didn’t sing at meetings. They are a cruel and twisted bunch.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 March 31, 2015 at 3:29 pm

Kurt Metzger, who was raised as Jehovah’s Witness and who is an American comedian appeared on the “Nightly Show/Larry Wilmore” show on March 30, 2015 and they were talking about mega churches. Kurt Metzger said how he hated knocking on people’s doors and Larry Wilmore asked him if he’d rather spend the rest of his life being a Jehovah’s Witness or would he rather die in a hot air balloon crash and he said he’d rather die in a hot air balloon crash all the way. He said at least it would be a “cool” ride all the way down.
Reply
 

← Older Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾26 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     

























                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/pay-attention-or-die-a-disturbing-glimpse-of-jw-child-indoctrination-at-work
























Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



← Full program of United States elders meeting leaked on YouTube
Is the media finally grasping just how bad Watchtower’s child abuse problem is? →

“Pay attention or die!” – A disturbing glimpse of JW child indoctrination at work
avatar
Posted on February 13, 2015

The latest JW child indoctrination cartoon carries a threatening message
The latest JW child indoctrination cartoon carries a threatening message

Anyone who was raised as a Jehovah’s Witness can empathize with the scenario of two children struggling to hold their attention at a kingdom hall meeting. And this is exactly the predicament in which Watchtower’s model cartoon children, Caleb and Sophia, find themselves in the latest “Become Jehovah’s Friend” episode – released earlier this month.
So what does the Governing Body want to say to any children who find themselves bored or distracted at a meeting they have been dragged to by their indoctrinated parents? It’s simple, really: “Pay attention, or die.” That grim message comes across loud and clear in the latest installment of Watchtower’s child propaganda series.
In the newly-released “Lesson 15,” entitled “Pay Attention at the Meetings,” young Caleb and Sophia find themselves reprimanded for playing with a toy car (Caleb) and falling asleep (Sophia) by their parents.


In a subsequent discussion around the dinner table, the children’s parents discuss the serious ramifications of failing to pay attention during a meeting. “Imagine if Noah didn’t pay attention when Jehovah explained how to build the ark?” muses Caleb’s father.
A cartoon segment then shows Noah and his family idling around during God’s instructions for building a vessel that the laws of physics say could never have been seaworthy to avoid a global deluge that archeology, geology and biology testify never happened. (If you find anything I’ve said in this paragraph offensive, please watch this video.)
The result? Noah and his family are shown scurrying into the finished ark when the flood is imminent, only for it to comically collapse under the weight of the first drop of water. The whole family is then shown disappearing under the flood waters with startled looks on their faces.
“That’s not what happened, dad!” protests Caleb. “You are right,” says his dad. “He paid attention, and it saved his life. Paying attention at the meetings can help save YOUR life!”
After this not-so-veiled threat, Caleb and Sophia are shown at the next meeting paying rapt attention, apparently buoyed by the knowledge that failure to do so will result in them being slaughtered.
Child indoctrination: increasingly the only way to turn someone into a Jehovah's Witness
Child indoctrination: increasingly the only way to turn someone into a Jehovah’s Witness

I personally found this video even more hideous than the notorious Sparlock episode – one of the first “lessons” in this ghastly series. Why?
At least in the Sparlock episode the threats made against Caleb by his mother for playing with a wizard toy were slightly more opaque. If he didn’t throw his toy away, Caleb would make Jehovah “sad” and grow old and shriveled like Adam and Eve. But in this latest video, the threats made against Caleb and his sister to coerce them into conformity are all too dire and explicit.
How any parent can watch this video and find threats of death at the hands of the Almighty an appropriate, healthy tool for shaping the attitudes and behavior of their children is beyond me.
I am reminded of the words of Richard Dawkins: “There is no such thing as a Christian child: only a child of Christian parents.” Children are not born religious – they need to have it pummeled into them by parents who were very likely themselves instilled with a specific religion dependent on their own parents or culture.
In the case of Witness children, the modus operandi for indoctrination is not merely gentle persuasion and cheerful recommendations but outright threats and blackmail – all endorsed and prescribed by the Governing Body themselves.
The one useful element of this video is that it openly exposes to any non-JW onlooker what the Witness religion is really all about: “Follow us or die.”
I have only recently made a video on this very subject, as it is my hope that more people will be mindful of the true, grisly nature of the Witness message when they are set upon with enchanting images of paradise, pandas and fruit baskets.
Grab a shovel and start exploring this imaginary utopia recommended to you in Watchtower literature, and you will soon discover that these rolling hillsides, bounteous pastures and idyllic homes have been built on the bodies of billions of people who have been massacred for the crime of not wanting to be Jehovah’s Witnesses. Sparing the next generation from having their lives molded by such a grotesque vision of the future is not merely advisable – it is an obligation.

new-cedars-signature2






Further reading…
◾NYDailyNews article
◾Freethinker article
◾Friendly Atheist article
◾Rawstory article
◾JWvictims article
◾Watchtower’s new “Toy Story” – What parents need to know
◾Why it is morally wrong for Watchtower to push baptism on children
◾JWsurvey articles on child indoctrination
Related videos…






Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:



Bookmark the permalink.
 
← Full program of United States elders meeting leaked on YouTube
Is the media finally grasping just how bad Watchtower’s child abuse problem is? →

105 Responses to “Pay attention or die!” – A disturbing glimpse of JW child indoctrination at work

← Older Comments

 Excelsior! says:

 February 18, 2015 at 6:31 am

Cuthbert,
I am still patiently waiting for your response to my dilemma.
Peace be with you, Excelsior!
Reply
 

 Kurt says:

 February 18, 2015 at 10:52 pm

We already know that Caleb’s mom is a manipulative skunt of the worst sort, and can see that his dad is a dull witted schmuck. What amazes me is how unselfconscious these people are who produce these videos, as if they have no idea of how outrageous they would appear to someone of good conscience.
Reply
 

 Sam says:

 February 19, 2015 at 6:15 am

So the wages of not paying attention are death?
Bit harsh isn’t it? Come to that why does an all powerful almighty God, ruler of the universe, divine creator etc etc give two hoots if a child is paying attention or not?
Reply
 

 disillusioned says:

 February 22, 2015 at 1:29 pm

We all used to let our children fall asleep in meetings and were glad that we did so that we got some peace. How can you force a child to stay awake especially at the evening meeting. I remember a brother on the platform saying that even if our children fell asleep the information was still going in. I and many other adults at assemblies used to fall asleep. (They seemed to have that effect, sending people to sleep.) So how can you keep children awake? By pinching them? That mother is harsh.
Reply
 
 Olive says:

 March 14, 2015 at 7:51 pm

When I watched this, I just felt so bad for Sophia in particular. I mean, the kid is eight years old, and it’s close to nine on a school night, and they’re shocked that she fell asleep at the meeting?
What’s the next video going to be? Telling her about the glory of suffering for Jehovah while she counts blisters from walking two miles in dress shoes?
Reply
 
 MyBirthRight says:

 March 15, 2015 at 7:20 am

They would probably pull something like that.
I feel so hurt for the few children who have parents that will take it even further now that there is JW broadcast, and only allow their children to watch anything beside JW broadcast material even for leisure. I heard 2 people hint before there may be no more Sesame Street for their kids now that they have these, it’s very saddening!
Reply
 
 
 

 StrongHaiku says:

 February 24, 2015 at 1:54 pm

Wow! After watching this a couple of times I wondered if the kids are being toilet-trained at gun point. Of what good use is it to be obedient out of fear? Shouldn’t love be the primary motivation? I don’t get it.
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 5, 2015 at 8:56 am

Yes, those are the looks of car ride anxiety attack because they know they’re on their way to a monumental *** whooping or indoctrination guilt trip speech after the meeting.
I’m surprised they showed poor Caleb being allowed to draw during that meeting, as there was always constant cruelty advising parent’s to not allow their kids to draw. Some parents that were more compassionate were looked down upon as not setting an example if their children drew pictures, chatted or played with toys or books, guess the head didn’t have his household in order. And if you were parent who even gave your kids christian themed coloring pages you were looked at as darn near apostate since it wasn’t the My Book of Bible B.S.
This “keep your kids woke” at the hall is nothing new, they are just amping it up now by targeting kids with threats outright. It used to be the story droned in children many years back about the young boy in the bible who fell out of the window by falling asleep during “Paul’s” talk but was supposedly “revived” by Paul in the story, but now the sinister message flat is out pain of unmourned death for falling asleep! I remember attendants being told at 2 diff circuit assemblies in the late 80’s to wake people up they noticed had fallen asleep. What’s next, cartoon of Sophia and Caleb being professionally treated at their teacher’s request after being groomed of course by the parent’s on just what they are allowed to divulge to the doctors, for insomnia and other social/mental disorders because they became afraid to ever fall asleep at all because of fiery Armageddon literature art inspired nightmares and threat of parental abandonment. As well as Sophia’s depression from not being allowed to have friends at school as we witnessed in the Pray Anytime video filled with all kinds of other evidence of how threatening this cult really is.
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 5, 2015 at 11:33 am

Yup, looks like “car ride anxiety attack” on their faces, ‘cuz they know they are on their way to a monumental butt whooping or fear filled guilt trip speech. I’m surprised they showed poor Caleb being allowed to draw during that meeting, as there was always constant cruelty advising parents to not allow kids to draw during meetings. Some parents were looked down upon as not setting an example if their children drew pictures, chatted or played with toys or books. Even parents that gave their kids “christian themed” coloring pages or books you were looked at as darn near apostate since it wasn’t the My Book of Bible B.S.
Back in the day, they droned in children the story about the young boy who fell out of the window because he fell asleep during “Paul’s” talk but was at least “revived” at the end of the story, now the message is pain of unmourned death for falling asleep! I remember attendants being told at a 2 diff circuit assemblies in the late 80’s to wake anyone up they noticed had fallen asleep. What’s next, a cartoon of Sophia and Caleb being treated for insomnia and other social disorders at the teacher’s request of course but only after they’ve been groomed by the parent’s on what to say, because they’ve grown afraid to sleep at all because of fiery Armageddon literature art inspired nightmares or after watching this video. Might as well treat Sophia for the friends issues while they are at it as a result of her thinking she has to alienate herself from other schoolchildren on the bus in that Pray Anytime video.
Reply
 
 Charles Costante says:

 March 6, 2015 at 8:22 pm

“since it wasn’t the My Book of Bible B.S.”
I’m sure the B.S. stands for Bible Study, MyBirthRight, but I can’t understand why you’ve put another ‘Bible’ in front of the abbreviation. (haha!)
“I remember attendants being told at a 2 diff circuit assemblies in the late 80’s to wake anyone up they noticed had fallen asleep.”
What a bloody cheek! What they should have done is counseled all the brothers giving the talks at these aforementioned ‘nod offs’ and told them to smarten up and make them more interesting!
Reply
 
 

 anonymous says:

 March 6, 2015 at 6:36 pm

Tonight my husband was going on and on about how to discipline a child. He was saying how important it is to explain why your child should be doing this or that etc and how people don’t do that with their kids so this is what I said to him: “I know how to make a child behave” and he stopped talking and said “what?” and I said “I’d tell them that if they don’t behave that Jehovah is going to kill them”. He looked stunned and finally he said “I don’t agree with that at all” so I said, “yes, that is what I’d do. Tell them that if they don’t behave that Jehovah is going to kill them.” Again he looked at me like I had gone crazy and said again, “well, I don’t agree with that at all.” So then I said, “well that’s what the latest cartoon from the Watchtower says.” I offered to show him the cartoon but he didn’t want to see it.
Reply
 
 Charles Costante says:

 March 6, 2015 at 8:10 pm

Nice one, anonymous!
http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/Nice+one! (just in case you didn’t guess the meaning from the context)
Reply
 
 Charles Costante says:

 March 6, 2015 at 9:20 pm

I just checked my previous link and it seems faulty.
Here’s what it says:
 Nice one!
 (British & Australian informal)
 something that you say when you have just heard that someone has done something which you think is good ‘Graham’s brought some champagne along to mark the occasion.’ ‘Oh, nice one, Graham!’
http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/Nice+one!
Reply
 
 anonymous says:

 March 7, 2015 at 3:05 am

Thanks Charles.
Reply
 
 
 
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 8, 2015 at 4:09 pm

@Charles Cosante
 That was comically meant to stand for b.s.(bullcrap) as in “my book of bible bull****”, instead of “My Book of Bible Stories”, that was printed by WatchTower geared towards children. I was referring to the fear tactics/rules they insisted upon that children of Witnesses not be allowed books even remotely religious in nature that weren’t published by this organization only. I refrained from writing bull-s out of respect for the rules of the forum and in order not to offend anyone who might find it offensive, which is not my intent : )
Reply
 
 Charles Costante says:

 March 8, 2015 at 7:43 pm

“That was comically meant to stand for b.s.(bullcrap) as in “my book of bible bull****””
I was being facetious, MyBirthRight – I knew that’s what you meant (you must have missed my ‘ha ha’ at the end).
Reply
 
 MyBirthRight says:

 March 15, 2015 at 7:22 am

yeah I had missed that part : )
Reply
 
 
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 8, 2015 at 4:24 pm

@Charles Costante
 And yes, what cheek Charles, of them to task the attendants to wake people up on those occasions, so as not to risk them missing one single drop of indoctrination for sure! Oh, I wish I could say it ended there Charles, but for a brief time after those two assemblies, which is where I am sure they got this next idea from, the attendants at our congregation were even handed yard sticks to enable them to tap ones furthest across the seats, and were asked to tell members to wake up people near them during the meetings. It didn’t last long thankfully, as it started disagreements and a stop was put to it once the overseer arrived.
ah yes, circuit overseer visits, the time when the congregation put on/out it’s best like they were the parabled wise virgins preparing for their bridegrooms or something when a circuit or district overseer or bethelite came to town. Offering such individuals a figurative alabaster cases brimming in the form of best meals, best show, money and gifts and a mile long list of tattle tales.
I digress, but it’s not surprising that such kinda “wakey wakey or in Armageddon’s bird buffet blazes you’ll bakey” foolishness goes on given the organization’s old time usher period, what I call the Cane Brigade, when old time ushers are said to have walked around “ready to defend” with those white canes, lol
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 8, 2015 at 4:52 pm

@anonymous awesome : )
Reply
 

 Charles Costante says:

 March 8, 2015 at 8:00 pm

“”……… but for a brief time after those two assemblies, which is where I am sure they got this next idea from, the attendants at our congregation were even handed yard sticks to enable them to tap ones furthest across the seats,………………”
It’s a wonder someone didn’t tell them to shove their yardsticks up their @r$#!, MyBirthRight (er, I mean: where the monkey shoved his nuts!).
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 9, 2015 at 10:19 am

@Charles LOL! I think that’s the type of disagreements it started, esp when it was visitor in the hood that it happened to hahaha
Reply
 

 Kat says:

 March 30, 2015 at 5:27 pm

This is disturbing as pediatricians say no TV or vids for children younger than 2 and they didn’t mean months old. My ex would make my 10 yo son stand in the corner for 5 hours if he didn’t sing at meetings. They are a cruel and twisted bunch.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 March 31, 2015 at 3:29 pm

Kurt Metzger, who was raised as Jehovah’s Witness and who is an American comedian appeared on the “Nightly Show/Larry Wilmore” show on March 30, 2015 and they were talking about mega churches. Kurt Metzger said how he hated knocking on people’s doors and Larry Wilmore asked him if he’d rather spend the rest of his life being a Jehovah’s Witness or would he rather die in a hot air balloon crash and he said he’d rather die in a hot air balloon crash all the way. He said at least it would be a “cool” ride all the way down.
Reply
 

← Older Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾26 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     

























                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/pay-attention-or-die-a-disturbing-glimpse-of-jw-child-indoctrination-at-work






























Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



← Did Jehovah’s Witness shunning drive young Brit towards Islamic extremist radicalization?
Victim of pedophile Barry Furlong urges that “children’s welfare should come first” →

“Great balls of fire!” – More doomsday artwork in new May 2015 Watchtower
avatar
Posted on February 20, 2015

The new public Watchtower magazine gives more chilling visions of an anticipated apocalypse
The new public Watchtower magazine gives more chilling visions of an anticipated apocalypse

Not content with telling Witness children they may die if they don’t listen at meetings, Watchtower is making sure its doomsday message is heard loud and clear in the latest May 2015 public edition of the Watchtower magazine.
A striking image of disheveled Armageddon survivors clambering over rubble adorns the front cover, accompanied by the question “Is the End Near?”
On turning the cover, readers are greeted by a photoshop mock-up of a lady staring through a car window as fireballs rain down from the sky consuming buildings while terrified people flee the destruction through city streets.
A similarly apocalyptic image from the January 2013 Watchtower
A similarly apocalyptic image from the January 2013 Watchtower

The gruesome imagery is a re-working of another Watchtower front-cover (above), released only as recently as January 2013, in which similar scenes of fireballs raining from the heavens in an urban environment formed the backdrop to the title “Should You Fear the End of the World?”
An image from the book "Learn From the Great Teacher" - a children's book
An image from the book “Learn From the Great Teacher” – a children’s book

And Witness children will be only too familiar with the above image from page 242 of their “Learn From the Great Teacher” books in which screaming women are depicted running from (you guessed it) fireballs and burning/collapsing buildings, with angelic forces riding overhead in the fiery sky.
The front cover of the May 2015 Watchtower
The front cover of the May 2015 Watchtower
From page 3 of the May 2015 Watchtower
From page 3 of the May 2015 Watchtower

This growing collection of apocalyptic artwork betrays the true nature of Jehovah’s Witness doctrine. Yes, Witnesses are peaceful people, and believe that one day the whole earth will be rid of wickedness – but this “wickedness” from which the planet must be cleansed includes anyone who passes on the opportunity to join the Witness faith.
As I mentioned in a recent article (and in this week’s interview on the David Pakman show) – take a shovel and start digging around in the hypothetical paradise, and you will find it has been built on the corpses of billions of people whose only crime is to not want to be Jehovah’s Witnesses.
destruction2

Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that they alone will walk away from the coming apocalypse unscathed, as the above illustration (which has been reworked countless times over the decades in various books and magazines) depicts.
Apparently, without so much as a speck of blood or smear of debris on their clothing, Witnesses will one day stroll in an orderly line with their smiling children straight from the smouldering wreckage of Armageddon into flowery meadows.
Unfortunately, lots of Witnesses who glance at this artwork won’t bother to stop for a moment and consider that the above vision is impossible according to their own teachings. Why? Because disobedient humankind EVERYWHERE will be destroyed. There will be no convenient demarcation between where the good and ‘bad’ people live. There will be no sweeping grassy pastures to walk towards to escape the carnage. The carnage will be everywhere.
As my video below shows, Governing Body Gerrit Losch has even given disturbingly detailed consideration (in multiple talks, no less) to the fact that teams of Witnesses will one day be required to bury the mountains of dead bodies left behind in Armageddon’s wake. There will be no rest for the righteous when it comes to getting rid of the evidence of the earthwide bloodbath.
In case you need me to spell it out for you: Jehovah’s Witnesses are a doomsday cult. But this new magazine has all its bases covered, and tries rather feebly to mount a case for the defense…
doomsday-prophetsThe above paragraph offers a classic example of Watchtower denying being (or doing) something by redefining what that thing is. For example, the organization denies that it espouses creationism by redefining creationism to refer only to young-earth creationism.
In the latest JW Broadcasting episode, Governing Body member Sam Herd denies that Jehovah’s Witnesses are brainwashed by implying that brainwashing is essentially tantamount to a group of people all agreeing on the same thing, as in learning algebra in a math class.
In this article, Watchtower is yet again deploying word games in the hopes that its readers are stupid. Apparently “doomsday” doesn’t refer to an apocalyptic religiously-inspired day of judgment, but to the WHOLE planet earth being obliterated as though it has fallen prey to the Death Star.
Watchtower’s vision of the future, in which everyone who doesn’t want to be a JW is slaughtered, is therefore a “positive message,” because at least there will be survivors, and a planet for them to live on.
Basically if the shoe fits, Watchtower doesn’t always like to wear it – especially when it comes to words like “doomsday” or “creationist” that make them look bad.
Thankfully, though, not everyone falls for the subterfuge. Non-Witnesses in particular will balk at these magazines once they start adorning the public witnessing carts, and doubtless even a few Witnesses standing near those carts will wince in shame.
There is simply nowhere to hide if you are a doomsday cult. Your morbid, apocalyptic visions of the future will find expression sooner or later and, if you’re deluded enough, you will depict them front and center on your literature for all to see.


new-cedars-signature2






Further reading…
◾“Pay attention or die!” – A disturbing glimpse of JW child indoctrination at work
◾JW Facts: Salvation Only For Jehovah’s Witnesses
Related videos…






Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:



Bookmark the permalink.
 
← Did Jehovah’s Witness shunning drive young Brit towards Islamic extremist radicalization?
Victim of pedophile Barry Furlong urges that “children’s welfare should come first” →

164 Responses to “Great balls of fire!” – More doomsday artwork in new May 2015 Watchtower

← Older Comments

 Catalina says:

 February 24, 2015 at 6:44 pm

My father was an elder until he passed away. When I asked questions he would say, “Let me do your thinking for you.” Then he would quote the society. The society tells everyone what to think, what to say, how to dress and how to look. I tried talking to a coworker. He freaked at the name Jehovah. He called me names. He was very very hateful with me. It got no where and the conversation ended with me being tired and frustrated and him laughing at me and hating me and not caring. He made my skin crawl. He was creepy. So far everyone on this website has been very respectful. It’s helping me a lot. Thank you.
Reply
 

 Charles Costante says:

 February 24, 2015 at 9:15 pm

It’s easy sometimes to allow others to do your thinking for you because doing it yourself requires an enormous amount of mental energy. If you do feel compelled to do something about the doubts that arise when you do get the occasional spurt of mental energy, the thought of creating a whole new set of friends (well, we don’t have any worldly friends because that’s discouraged) becomes rather daunting, not to mention the fear of being shunned, of course.
Some major crisis or situation is often the trigger that gives you the incentive to take the bull by the horns and leave. It certainly was with me.
Reply
 

 Charles Costante says:

 February 24, 2015 at 9:36 pm

Catalina, it’s easy sometimes to allow others to do your thinking for you because doing it yourself requires an enormous amount of mental energy. If you do feel compelled to do something about the doubts that arise when you do get the occasional spurt of mental energy, the thought of creating a whole new set of friends (well, we don’t have any worldly friends because that’s discouraged) becomes rather daunting, not to mention the fear of being shunned, of course.
Some major crisis or situation is often the trigger that gives you the incentive to take the bull by the horns and leave. It certainly was with me.
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 25, 2015 at 5:45 am

“Get out of her my people, if you do not want to share with her in her sins and receive part of her plagues!”
The Holy Spirit has revealed to me that the “her” in this passage refers to the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society!
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 25, 2015 at 5:57 am

Some of you may be interested in certain Youtube clips by a fellow who calls himself nonstampcollector. Now this dude seems to lean toward atheism, which I don’t agree with, but I find many of his analyses (all presented in animated form) of the Bible, especially the old testament, to be right on (imao). Some of my fav’s are yahweh’s perfect justice, yahweh’s amazing test, yahweh’s amazing miracle, 20th Century yahweh, context, offensive, and atheist. They are also quite entertaining, or as David Letterman would put it, “It’s INFOtainment!”
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 February 25, 2015 at 6:00 am

I found another reason why I can’t take anything from the Bible seriously. I found an article in the 1959 Watchtower bound volume about the manner of Jesus’ death and it said that Jehovah took “delight in crushing” Jesus and Jehovah even purposely made Jesus sick when he was being executed so I looked up that scripture and this is what it says at Isaiah 53:10: “But Jehovah himself took delight in crushing him; he made him sick. If you will set his soul as a guilt offering, he will see his offspring, he will prolong his days, and in his hand what is the delight of Jehovah will succeed.” This is what the old Bible said but in the new “silver sword”, they replace delight with “will” with a footnote that says delight.
The Society likes to explain this away in the 1959 Watchtower page 733, by saying that Jehovah made Jesus sick in the garden of Gethsemane before being arrested and shortened his life on the torture stake so he wouldn’t suffer too long. Now they like to explain that scripture away by saying like in the 2009 January 15 Watchtower on page 26 and 27 that it brought Jehovah joy because of seeing Jesus absolute faithfulness to death.
All the years I had been in the “truth” I was never aware that Jehovah could have or would have taken delight in crushing Jesus. I had always understood that it was Satan who was going to be crushed but it’s right there in the Bible at Isaiah 53:10.
I don’t believe the Governing Body can explain that scripture away to make any sense no matter how many excuses they can come up with but like Ray Franz said in his book “Crisis of Conscience”, do the Governing Body members even know what is in their very own Bibles?
I don’t believe the Bible makes much sense but the Society likes to make it look like it makes sense so they come up with all sorts of crazy explanations that the rank and file accept without even thinking about it, simply because they have been convinced that the Governing Body are getting some crazy thoughts “channeled” to them from Jehovah because they are “anointed”.
Reply
 

 kat says:

 February 25, 2015 at 6:28 am

possibly because God foresaw the overwhelming good that it would produce.
Christ knew he was going to suffer a painful death and he wasn’t looking forward to it, this is why he prayed all night for strength to remain faithful till death, but what hurt the most was the accusation of being a blasphemer against his father.
Just my thoughts.
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 25, 2015 at 6:48 am

@ kat
No offense, but I believe being nailed to a tree would hurt a LOT more than being accused of blasphemy.
 BTW, I researched the whole cross vs. upright stake thing, and it’s interesting to note that the Romans used varying types (shapes) of impalement devices. They had a whole range of shapes, such as: X, Y, T, t, I. So even though the Watchtower Society dogmatically claims that they definitively KNOW that jesus (if he ever existed) was impaled on an upright, straight stake, there is NO WAY of knowing for sure, unless you were there. Yes, Constantine ADOPTED the cross as the official symbol of christianity around the 4th Century, but historians and scholars had described jesus having been impaled on a CROSS at least 2 centuries BEFORE Constantine. The “evidence” points to jesus having been “crucified”, or impaled on a cross. Of course, as I said, there is no way of knowing for sure unless you were there. The wt’s dogmatic insistence that he was, UNQUESTIONABLY, impaled on a stake (though possible), has absolutely no basis in reality whatsoever.
Reply
 

 kat says:

 February 25, 2015 at 7:23 am

Hi Neal I agree would be unbelievably painful, but was speaking from the scriptural or view of how he felt in the spiritual sense, as you know from the bible its all about not to worry about the body but think of the soul, and not to think of the flesh but the spirit and so forth.
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 25, 2015 at 7:26 am

I once remarked that the WT overuses and abuses the word “justice”. Another word the jw’s overuse and abuse, and use to manipulate people, is the word “love”. Love this, love that, love, love, love. You think you’re at Woodstock surrounded by potheads. lol “Do what we say or you’re not a loving person, you’ll be worthless, and no one will ever love you.” What a joke!!
 I believe, in this world in general, too high a premium is put on love. No one, except for a newborn baby, needs love to survive. What’s FAR more important is RESPECT. Lack of love does not lead to stress, and the resulting mental and physical illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, and depression and anxiety, which all sometimes kill. No, it’s lack of respect that causes stress and anxiety. When people treat other people like garbage, it has psychoemotional effects, which can even build up over time, and lead to health problems which sometimes lead to actual DEATH. So, RESPECT is what we all need to survive and be happy and healthy. Sure, love is awesome. Get it whenever and wherever you can. But love is like champagne. Respect is like water. You can live without champagne. You can’t live without water. Yet, propaganda is all around us, encouraging us to love, love, love. But that’s “putting the cart before the horse”. You CAN’T love someone unless you FIRST respect them. Trying to love, without respecting, is like trying to blow air into a balloon that isn’t there.
 A lot of these ideas come from places like Hollywood, whom I don’t respect much more than the WT. I mean, we mock ToMo3 about his tirades on tight pants, then you see that guy come out on stage at the academy awards, in his underwear. Makes me wonder who’s worse.
 I’m not religious, but if I was, I’d be a Buddhist. Why? Buddhism is the only religion that tells you this: From the moment you’re born, the world starts indoctrinating you, putting ideas in your head, THEIR ideas. The ultimate goal of Buddhism, as I understand it, is to “de-program” yourself, clear your mind of, at least, all the BAD, negative, false, useless, manipulative, controlling propagandas that have been placed there from Day 1, and then KEEP THEM OUT.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 February 25, 2015 at 7:29 am

@Neal, from what I have read about Rutherford, he came up with Jesus dying on a cross just to be different than the churches and how many Witnesses today, know that early Watchtowers had a cross on the front? Russell believed Jesus died on a cross and since Thomas asked to see the holes in his hands where the “nails” were, it would say to anybody reading the Bible that Jesus did die on a cross which was the Romans killed people in those days. When Witnesses read that scripture about Thomas, they witlessly don’t question it.
@Kat. There are scriptures in the Bible that just don’t make any sense to me like that one I was talking about at Isaiah 53:10. I am going to quote directly from the 1959 Watchtower page 733 in the Watchtower’s really convoluted way of trying to explain away that scripture at Isaiah 53:10. I can understand that Jehovah would take “delight” in Jesus dying faithful but to use the word “crushed” him in that prophecy about Jesus’ death, is what I question. Also, notice to what lengths the Society goes to explain how Jehovah made Jesus “sick” from that prophecy:
“At this point it is interesting to consider a prophecy concerning the death of Jesus that is recorded at Isaiah 53:10, which says: “Jehovah himself took delight in crushing him; he made him sick.” In just what way did that prove to be true? There in Gethsemane Jesus was in great agony. “Getting into an agony he continued praying more earnestly; and his sweat became as drops of blood falling to the ground.” (Luke 22:44) Jehovah permitted this, and for that reason it might be said that he was the one who made Jesus sick in the garden. So severe was Jesus’ agony, even producing bloody sweat that fell to the ground, that he might have died if it had not been cut short. However, it has been suggested that this sickness that he underwent was such that it deadened the sensitivity of his nerves, making the experiences he was yet to undergo bearable. Here we see the mercy of Jehovah in permitting Jesus to be made sick before he was nailed to the torture stake.”
There are no original manuscripts to look at and all Bibles are copies of copies and translations of translations and so there really is no way at all for anybody to even say that any Bible is actually “inspired” so that is why I don’t take anything that the Bible says as believable. That isn’t to say that I think there are a lot of good things in the Bible but I believe that if the Society actually believes in the Bible, they are trying to explain it so it does make sense, and to me, there are just too many things that don’t make sense to me that I find the whole thing questionable, but especially the book of Revelation.
Up until last year, all those predictions about Armageddon made my knees wobble and shake but thankfully after trying to finally make sense of it and not being able to, I came to the conclusion, I am not going to worry about it anymore. I think if the Bible was from a perfect God, that he wouldn’t have the whole thing written down in riddles that nobody could figure out.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 February 25, 2015 at 7:49 am

@Neal Krauni. It is so funny that you bring up respect. I would say that I never really felt “respected” in our congregation and I feel it is because I am a woman. It wasn’t until I decided that I was worth something that I decided that I deserve respect, the respect that I never felt I got from either the elders or many in the congregation and now I am demanding it, not waiting for something that will never happen. Being a woman in the congregation, we are very subtly degraded every time we associate at the Hall. The more we accept that kind of treatment, the more we think we are nothing and we aren’t nothing and we are all deserving of respect.
Reply
 

 kat says:

 February 25, 2015 at 7:51 am

In the org a person is judged by their field service report card, their meeting attendance, doesn’t matter if your a kind loving person willing to help those in need if you haven’t got the hours and miss to many meetings your not spiritual enough or not good enough, one can be the biggest ass but if they have a good field service report they are wonderful.
Reply
 
 Steve says:

 March 2, 2015 at 5:37 pm

Hear, hear. My experience Exactly
Reply
 
 

 MrFair says:

 February 25, 2015 at 8:00 am

Great article Lloyd! One question that came to my mind after seeing the post-Armageddon picture was: where are their emergency “go-bags” that the Hateful Slave encourages witnesses to have? These bags are essential for survival since we can’t be sure if Jehovah will allow looting after Armageddon. Perhaps, that will be in a “Questions From Readers” article of the new scrolls… Here are the contents of my Armageddon “go-bag”: twelve pairs of clean underwear, two one gallon jugs of fresh drinking whiskey, sleeping pills, anti-depressant pills, box of Power Bars, a shovel, a flamethrower (for disposing of decomposing bodies, like the ones used after the fire bombing of Dresden), toilet paper, a silver revised NWT cover with “God Is Not Great” by Christopher Hitchens hidden inside, batteries, a CD player with head phones, Pink Floyd box set and extra shoe laces. Well, I think that about covers all of my post-Armageddon needs.
Reply
 

 disillusioned says:

 February 25, 2015 at 8:22 am

Neil Krouni If you go to jw.org and type in Did Jesus die on a cross? They say, However, the bible does not describe the instrument of Jesus’ death, so no one can know its shape with absolute certainty! Not as dogmatic as they used to be. But then they go on to ‘prove’ that he did.
Reply
 

 Ted says:

 February 25, 2015 at 2:14 pm

On the cover of May15th W,T, top right, the smoke formation is
 in the form of a human face, devoid of any emotion, presumably
 presiding over the slaughter.
Is it supposed to be Jesus or JHVH, who are said to be spirits
 not humans. It’s just ludicrous, the thing is like some degenerate
 ogre from a kids fairytale, “fee, fi, fo, fum.
Well it’s all fantasy , from beginning to end, isn’t it?
Reply
 

 Charles Costante says:

 February 25, 2015 at 9:29 pm

“…. judged by their field service report card, their meeting attendance, doesn’t matter if your a kind loving person willing to help those in need …….”
Kat, there was a sister in our congregation who was one of those people you could bet your bottom dollar would be there whenever there was anything to be done. She organized and provided tea, coffee, sandwiches and biscuits for the morning and afternoon teas of the Kingdom Hall ‘busy bees’ (this is what we called the regular spring cleaning and garden tidy-up of the hall in Australia). If there were any couples that were getting engaged or married and couldn’t afford a caterer, she was in her element! She did the flower arranging for the hall, played the piano for the Kingdom songs at meetings, she was there whenever any of the brothers or sisters were in hospital or had broken an arm or leg and needed help to do the shopping, etc..
In spite of all this she was considered “weak in the truth” because she wasn’t one much for door knocking. In retrospect I would actually call her more of a christian than the rest of us put together (now as an onlooker I’m able to see more of the game than I did when I was a player). She popped into my head about a year or so ago now and I thought of ringing her to tell her how much she was appreciated but found out she had already passed away. It’s so sad! She probably died doubtful she was going to be resurrected into the new system.
Reply
 

 Charles Costante says:

 February 25, 2015 at 9:34 pm

“…… judged by their field service report card, their meeting attendance, doesn’t matter if your a kind loving person willing to help those in need …….”
Kat, there was a sister in our congregation who was one of those people you could bet your bottom dollar would be there whenever there was anything to be done. She organized and provided tea, coffee, sandwiches and biscuits for the morning and afternoon teas of the Kingdom Hall ‘busy bees’ (this is what we called the regular spring cleaning and garden tidy-up of the hall in Australia). If there were any couples that were getting engaged or married and couldn’t afford a caterer, she was in her element! She did the flower arranging for the hall, played the piano for the Kingdom songs at meetings, she was there whenever any of the brothers or sisters were in hospital or had broken an arm or leg and needed help to do the shopping, etc..
In spite of all this she was considered “weak in the truth” because she wasn’t one much for door knocking. In retrospect I would actually call her more of a christian than the rest of us put together (now as an onlooker I’m able to see more of the game than I did when I was a player). She popped into my head about a year or so ago now and I thought of ringing her to tell her how much she was appreciated but found out she had already passed away. It’s so sad! She probably died doubtful she was going to be resurrected into the new system.
Reply
 

 Guru says:

 February 26, 2015 at 5:07 am

Sister wearing tight jeans, how she survive?
Reply
 

 Innocent Son says:

 February 26, 2015 at 2:21 pm

Kat
 So true,it doesn’t matter what is happening in your life,filling in a field service report card is all that matters.The org.really press that home and continue to frighten, shock you with End of the World images.You see want they want is blind obedience….Peace to all.
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 27, 2015 at 3:58 pm

@ anonymous
I LOVE your point about DEMANDING respect! I recall now I was going to include that point in my drunken tirade, but it slipped my mind.
 BTW, I mentioned some subliminal stuff in the WT’s kiddie training video, I believe it’s the one entitled, “Be jehovah’s Friend (Fiend? lol)”. Here’s another: In the first couple of minutes, you see the “little lady” on her hands and knees, scrubbing the living room floor. Talk about archaic stereotypes! And of course, the “head of the house” is this big, superfit, macho musclehead. Really? Seriously? And even if they wanted to portray the Mom in a subservient role, which they clearly did want to do, ever heard of Mop n’ Glo??? Idiots.
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 27, 2015 at 4:05 pm

“The more you tighten your grip, the more star systems will slip through your fingers.” — Princess Leia to Governor Tarkin – Star Wars (1977)
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 27, 2015 at 4:18 pm

@ anonymous
I was actually thinking of Swiffer WetJet. Sorry.
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 27, 2015 at 5:21 pm

Don’t mean to get off-topic, but since we’re talking about Doomsday, I think it’s important to make sure we don’t have a real one. Saw a movie on Netflix the other nite, called 4:44 – Last Day on Earth (2011?, Willem Dafoe). Scared the piss out of me, and NOT because it was sensational or graphic, because it wasn’t. Got me thinking, are we doing things now that are causing environmental damage we’ll discover too late? Or not discover at all, just POOF, everything goes? Remember, almost EVERYTHING we use, from iPods to toothbrushes to Toyotas to 747s, have to be MANUFACTURED. And manufacturing (as well as using many of these things) produces environmental toxins. The scary thing is that this process has been going on nonstop since the beginning of Industrialization about 150 years ago. WE NEED TO GIVE THE EARTH A BREAK. If someone is sick, you don’t force them to go to work or run around the block or go work out at the gym. They need time to heal. Is it worth the extinction of the human race to have a shiny new iPhone every year, or the latest Hyundai model, or whatever? When I was a kid, people were concerned about overpopulation, then everyone forgot about it, like everyone’s forgotten about Al Gore, but the fact is, the more people there are, the more junk is manufactured and used, so the more pollution there is. The human species needs to SLAM THE BRAKES on production, not only of things, but also of people. We need to give our only Home a chance to heal, or we may be screwed.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 February 28, 2015 at 7:38 am




Reply
 

 DAC says:

 February 28, 2015 at 9:51 pm

The master, Christopher Hitchens, explains religions fascination with the end of the world and the slaughter of non-believers. Really, is it any different then ISIS today. Religious faith is the Bain our existence, weather it’s people beheading other people or a powerful and secretive organization covering up and protecting pedophiles. Open your mind to reason. Join in with the sane thinkers. Shrug off the superstitious beliefs of a primitive mind.
Reply
 

 DAC says:

 February 28, 2015 at 10:04 pm

The master simply know as “Hitch”.
Reply
 

 DAC says:

 February 28, 2015 at 10:05 pm

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NE2eNoa5jEA&w=420&h=315
Reply
 

 Dblaron42 (formerly stuck with a jdub) says:

 February 28, 2015 at 11:45 pm

Hitchslap!
Reply
 

 XXbaptisedtwiceJW says:

 March 4, 2015 at 6:54 am

Thanx again for your perspective,it’s so reassuring to be free of “stuff” it’s sad that unfortunately fear& guilt are motivators! I remember a phone call from my (fleashly) sister,she was crying& upset with herself,it was the end of the month& she had been S pioneering,the C Os wife had spent some time going to door with her& had been very critical of how she was doing at the doors,tell he to speak up& be more…I don’t know…but being that she had her hours in…still wasn’t good enough!! My moms middle name is guilt,ha,ha! So anyway thanx for the sharing,it’s appreciated!
Reply
 

 Ian Foote says:

 March 7, 2015 at 8:51 pm

‘Why destroy buildings?,I mean there just ‘buildings!’
Reply
 
 Charles Costante says:

 March 7, 2015 at 9:21 pm

They were built by followers of Satan, Ian. The ones built by JWs would be few and far between, so let’s get rid of all of them and start afresh!
Reply
 
 

 Chris says:

 March 8, 2015 at 10:22 am

I was baptized in 1987 & back then the faithfull & discreet slave was represented by a governing body, now the new light reveals that only the governing body is now the faithfull slave. Why did it take 26 years for these anointed men to recieve this new light? There is no logic in this
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 8, 2015 at 5:20 pm

@chris In effort to wake up other loved ones, I have been just asking them to say the things they doubt out loud in sensible way. Like “the light got brighter and brighter and brighter still, oops someone turned out the lights! There, it;s on again now it’s brighter brighter brighter, nope cleansing phase, now it’s brighter for sure, oh wait ”
I’m reminded of the game some of us played as children Duck Duck Goose, and I picture the WT’s GB going around the circle of lies/failed doctrines and saying Bright, Bright, Dim, in a game they’d call Duck, Duck, Dummy as they get a chuckle and fat paycheck. The people they do this to not dummies though, WT is just cunning & evil!
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 8, 2015 at 5:39 pm

@Guru I know right, lol
Reply
 

 Excelsior! says:

 March 9, 2015 at 7:45 am

Neal Krouni,
Sir, I am confused.
I have just read a post, apparently by you, that states that you don’t believe in God.
And yet, on another post, you castigated scientists for having an agenda to dispense with God.
Which is it? Do you believe in God or do you not believe in God? I find it hard to understand your apparent shifting of opinion.
I am also patiently waiting for your evidence to discredit the latest discoveries of genetics. You stated that you see this research as pseudoscience. That is a strong accusation, and it requires some evidence to back it up.
I look forward to your clarification of your seemingly contradictory statements.
Peace be with you, Excelsior!
Reply
 

 Excelsior! says:

 March 9, 2015 at 7:56 am

Folks,
Excuse my dark humour here, I do not mean to offend.
Perhaps the gentleman clutching the child in his arms is fleeing the many paedophiles that will, of course, survive Armageddon, because they are all “in good standing”?
I should imagine that those lovely, outstanding paedophiles will be looking for the next victim of their disgusting lust. After all, most little children will have been murdered by a Loving God, so they won’t be able to abuse them. Little Witness children will be VERY popular with these fine, outstanding Christians!
Paradise, as described by the WTBTS, is no paradise for paedophiles! Eventually, when the earth is full, THERE WILL BE NO MORE CHILDREN. This so called paradise will not be able to provide a paradise for ever for these disgusting criminals!!
These apocalyptic images belong in a history book, not in general circulation. Any Loving God could not and would not slaughter billions of people, just so that eight million, including a great number of paedophiles and other criminals, can cuddle pandas and stroke tigers. It is simply hate speech and abuse.
I hope none have been offended by my opening comments. I simply wanted to make the point that all of this is revolting and wrong.
Be assured that I have great respect and pity for anyone who has been abused. I want to help to stop this happening, and to see full redress in the courts for any victims.
Peace be with you, Excelsior!
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 9, 2015 at 10:16 am

@Excelsior Great point. I totally see where you are coming from. Sometimes people need to hear it put such a way that shows just how ridiculous these things WT puts out really sound, if anything people should be offended by these things you mentioned that WT promotes, not in the nice way you made it clear : )
Reply
 

 NaHomTima says:

 March 27, 2015 at 9:12 pm

dude I have been in and out of the so-called truth for 54 years probably more out than ever in though I will tell you sadly most of my family is still in the JW even though I do not want any more to do with this religion at this point in my life I have to tell you I just can’t keep hating and hating and hating because it makes me hate myself it is enough that I walked away never look back and I have to tell you that I’m really getting tired of reading all of the stuff because it’s over and over and over again the same thing what is the message you are really Trying to display here because I think anybody who’s ever been in this already knows I just needed to speak my mind because it’s seriously causing my blood to have bad blood pressure and I am going to have to pull away and quit reading all these things so that I can have peace of mind they are out of my life. You could not tell me one thing about them that I do not already know thank you peace and prayers Choctaw Native American Tumwater Washington USA
Reply
 

 Grace says:

 March 27, 2015 at 9:58 pm

Good for you NaHom,
If you can walk away that’s true freedom but spare a thought for some here that still have family locked in. I suppose it’s like those that have fled from North Korea to South Korea but look back over the border North Korea hoping that they can free their families one day. I hope that you can appreciate their situation.
I don’t have family trapped in & one year on since finding out that this religion speaks lies & splits families, I still find it hard to move on. You would understand strong family ties from what I can gather by your sign off, you are a native American. I have native roots too, I’m of Melanesian, Polynesian descent & we are very family orientated so that is why I truly empathise with ones who need this site & want to help them to have peace one day with their loved ones from this cult.
There would be nothing harder than to have to love your family from a far because evil men have put a wedge up between them.
Reply
 
 anonymous says:

 March 28, 2015 at 5:24 am

Hi NaHom. I would like to add to Grace’s comment. I have been coming to jwsurvey for almost a year now and yes, I do see some anger but then mostly what I see is information to those either coming out of the JW’s that helps them to not be afraid of the Org. for their decision to get out and information for those who have doubts to see what they have been involved in all their lives.
Also, this site lets people express themselves because as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, when you have been hurt and damaged by the organization, you have nobody that you can talk it over with for fear of being disfellowshipped for disclosing what the elders and the Society would be considered “confidential”. For a lot of us, this site has been our only way of surviving.
Being in a cult all your life with not being allowed to have any friends who are not Jehovah’s Witnesses, leaves you all alone when you leave. It is so devastating that many even commit suicide. It is that terrible.
Reply
 
 

← Older Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾20 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     













































                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/great-balls-of-fire-more-doomsday-artwork-in-new-may-2015-watchtower



















Skip to content
JWsurvey 


Welcome

Cedars’ Blog

About JW Survey

Global Surveys
»




















Videos

JW Broadcasting

Get Involved

Links

Contact Us
  



← Did Jehovah’s Witness shunning drive young Brit towards Islamic extremist radicalization?
Victim of pedophile Barry Furlong urges that “children’s welfare should come first” →

“Great balls of fire!” – More doomsday artwork in new May 2015 Watchtower
avatar
Posted on February 20, 2015

The new public Watchtower magazine gives more chilling visions of an anticipated apocalypse
The new public Watchtower magazine gives more chilling visions of an anticipated apocalypse

Not content with telling Witness children they may die if they don’t listen at meetings, Watchtower is making sure its doomsday message is heard loud and clear in the latest May 2015 public edition of the Watchtower magazine.
A striking image of disheveled Armageddon survivors clambering over rubble adorns the front cover, accompanied by the question “Is the End Near?”
On turning the cover, readers are greeted by a photoshop mock-up of a lady staring through a car window as fireballs rain down from the sky consuming buildings while terrified people flee the destruction through city streets.
A similarly apocalyptic image from the January 2013 Watchtower
A similarly apocalyptic image from the January 2013 Watchtower

The gruesome imagery is a re-working of another Watchtower front-cover (above), released only as recently as January 2013, in which similar scenes of fireballs raining from the heavens in an urban environment formed the backdrop to the title “Should You Fear the End of the World?”
An image from the book "Learn From the Great Teacher" - a children's book
An image from the book “Learn From the Great Teacher” – a children’s book

And Witness children will be only too familiar with the above image from page 242 of their “Learn From the Great Teacher” books in which screaming women are depicted running from (you guessed it) fireballs and burning/collapsing buildings, with angelic forces riding overhead in the fiery sky.
The front cover of the May 2015 Watchtower
The front cover of the May 2015 Watchtower
From page 3 of the May 2015 Watchtower
From page 3 of the May 2015 Watchtower

This growing collection of apocalyptic artwork betrays the true nature of Jehovah’s Witness doctrine. Yes, Witnesses are peaceful people, and believe that one day the whole earth will be rid of wickedness – but this “wickedness” from which the planet must be cleansed includes anyone who passes on the opportunity to join the Witness faith.
As I mentioned in a recent article (and in this week’s interview on the David Pakman show) – take a shovel and start digging around in the hypothetical paradise, and you will find it has been built on the corpses of billions of people whose only crime is to not want to be Jehovah’s Witnesses.
destruction2

Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that they alone will walk away from the coming apocalypse unscathed, as the above illustration (which has been reworked countless times over the decades in various books and magazines) depicts.
Apparently, without so much as a speck of blood or smear of debris on their clothing, Witnesses will one day stroll in an orderly line with their smiling children straight from the smouldering wreckage of Armageddon into flowery meadows.
Unfortunately, lots of Witnesses who glance at this artwork won’t bother to stop for a moment and consider that the above vision is impossible according to their own teachings. Why? Because disobedient humankind EVERYWHERE will be destroyed. There will be no convenient demarcation between where the good and ‘bad’ people live. There will be no sweeping grassy pastures to walk towards to escape the carnage. The carnage will be everywhere.
As my video below shows, Governing Body Gerrit Losch has even given disturbingly detailed consideration (in multiple talks, no less) to the fact that teams of Witnesses will one day be required to bury the mountains of dead bodies left behind in Armageddon’s wake. There will be no rest for the righteous when it comes to getting rid of the evidence of the earthwide bloodbath.
In case you need me to spell it out for you: Jehovah’s Witnesses are a doomsday cult. But this new magazine has all its bases covered, and tries rather feebly to mount a case for the defense…
doomsday-prophetsThe above paragraph offers a classic example of Watchtower denying being (or doing) something by redefining what that thing is. For example, the organization denies that it espouses creationism by redefining creationism to refer only to young-earth creationism.
In the latest JW Broadcasting episode, Governing Body member Sam Herd denies that Jehovah’s Witnesses are brainwashed by implying that brainwashing is essentially tantamount to a group of people all agreeing on the same thing, as in learning algebra in a math class.
In this article, Watchtower is yet again deploying word games in the hopes that its readers are stupid. Apparently “doomsday” doesn’t refer to an apocalyptic religiously-inspired day of judgment, but to the WHOLE planet earth being obliterated as though it has fallen prey to the Death Star.
Watchtower’s vision of the future, in which everyone who doesn’t want to be a JW is slaughtered, is therefore a “positive message,” because at least there will be survivors, and a planet for them to live on.
Basically if the shoe fits, Watchtower doesn’t always like to wear it – especially when it comes to words like “doomsday” or “creationist” that make them look bad.
Thankfully, though, not everyone falls for the subterfuge. Non-Witnesses in particular will balk at these magazines once they start adorning the public witnessing carts, and doubtless even a few Witnesses standing near those carts will wince in shame.
There is simply nowhere to hide if you are a doomsday cult. Your morbid, apocalyptic visions of the future will find expression sooner or later and, if you’re deluded enough, you will depict them front and center on your literature for all to see.


new-cedars-signature2






Further reading…
◾“Pay attention or die!” – A disturbing glimpse of JW child indoctrination at work
◾JW Facts: Salvation Only For Jehovah’s Witnesses
Related videos…






Share this:



















in
Share
.

Print
.
Like this:



Bookmark the permalink.
 
← Did Jehovah’s Witness shunning drive young Brit towards Islamic extremist radicalization?
Victim of pedophile Barry Furlong urges that “children’s welfare should come first” →

164 Responses to “Great balls of fire!” – More doomsday artwork in new May 2015 Watchtower

← Older Comments

 Catalina says:

 February 24, 2015 at 6:44 pm

My father was an elder until he passed away. When I asked questions he would say, “Let me do your thinking for you.” Then he would quote the society. The society tells everyone what to think, what to say, how to dress and how to look. I tried talking to a coworker. He freaked at the name Jehovah. He called me names. He was very very hateful with me. It got no where and the conversation ended with me being tired and frustrated and him laughing at me and hating me and not caring. He made my skin crawl. He was creepy. So far everyone on this website has been very respectful. It’s helping me a lot. Thank you.
Reply
 

 Charles Costante says:

 February 24, 2015 at 9:15 pm

It’s easy sometimes to allow others to do your thinking for you because doing it yourself requires an enormous amount of mental energy. If you do feel compelled to do something about the doubts that arise when you do get the occasional spurt of mental energy, the thought of creating a whole new set of friends (well, we don’t have any worldly friends because that’s discouraged) becomes rather daunting, not to mention the fear of being shunned, of course.
Some major crisis or situation is often the trigger that gives you the incentive to take the bull by the horns and leave. It certainly was with me.
Reply
 

 Charles Costante says:

 February 24, 2015 at 9:36 pm

Catalina, it’s easy sometimes to allow others to do your thinking for you because doing it yourself requires an enormous amount of mental energy. If you do feel compelled to do something about the doubts that arise when you do get the occasional spurt of mental energy, the thought of creating a whole new set of friends (well, we don’t have any worldly friends because that’s discouraged) becomes rather daunting, not to mention the fear of being shunned, of course.
Some major crisis or situation is often the trigger that gives you the incentive to take the bull by the horns and leave. It certainly was with me.
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 25, 2015 at 5:45 am

“Get out of her my people, if you do not want to share with her in her sins and receive part of her plagues!”
The Holy Spirit has revealed to me that the “her” in this passage refers to the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society!
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 25, 2015 at 5:57 am

Some of you may be interested in certain Youtube clips by a fellow who calls himself nonstampcollector. Now this dude seems to lean toward atheism, which I don’t agree with, but I find many of his analyses (all presented in animated form) of the Bible, especially the old testament, to be right on (imao). Some of my fav’s are yahweh’s perfect justice, yahweh’s amazing test, yahweh’s amazing miracle, 20th Century yahweh, context, offensive, and atheist. They are also quite entertaining, or as David Letterman would put it, “It’s INFOtainment!”
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 February 25, 2015 at 6:00 am

I found another reason why I can’t take anything from the Bible seriously. I found an article in the 1959 Watchtower bound volume about the manner of Jesus’ death and it said that Jehovah took “delight in crushing” Jesus and Jehovah even purposely made Jesus sick when he was being executed so I looked up that scripture and this is what it says at Isaiah 53:10: “But Jehovah himself took delight in crushing him; he made him sick. If you will set his soul as a guilt offering, he will see his offspring, he will prolong his days, and in his hand what is the delight of Jehovah will succeed.” This is what the old Bible said but in the new “silver sword”, they replace delight with “will” with a footnote that says delight.
The Society likes to explain this away in the 1959 Watchtower page 733, by saying that Jehovah made Jesus sick in the garden of Gethsemane before being arrested and shortened his life on the torture stake so he wouldn’t suffer too long. Now they like to explain that scripture away by saying like in the 2009 January 15 Watchtower on page 26 and 27 that it brought Jehovah joy because of seeing Jesus absolute faithfulness to death.
All the years I had been in the “truth” I was never aware that Jehovah could have or would have taken delight in crushing Jesus. I had always understood that it was Satan who was going to be crushed but it’s right there in the Bible at Isaiah 53:10.
I don’t believe the Governing Body can explain that scripture away to make any sense no matter how many excuses they can come up with but like Ray Franz said in his book “Crisis of Conscience”, do the Governing Body members even know what is in their very own Bibles?
I don’t believe the Bible makes much sense but the Society likes to make it look like it makes sense so they come up with all sorts of crazy explanations that the rank and file accept without even thinking about it, simply because they have been convinced that the Governing Body are getting some crazy thoughts “channeled” to them from Jehovah because they are “anointed”.
Reply
 

 kat says:

 February 25, 2015 at 6:28 am

possibly because God foresaw the overwhelming good that it would produce.
Christ knew he was going to suffer a painful death and he wasn’t looking forward to it, this is why he prayed all night for strength to remain faithful till death, but what hurt the most was the accusation of being a blasphemer against his father.
Just my thoughts.
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 25, 2015 at 6:48 am

@ kat
No offense, but I believe being nailed to a tree would hurt a LOT more than being accused of blasphemy.
 BTW, I researched the whole cross vs. upright stake thing, and it’s interesting to note that the Romans used varying types (shapes) of impalement devices. They had a whole range of shapes, such as: X, Y, T, t, I. So even though the Watchtower Society dogmatically claims that they definitively KNOW that jesus (if he ever existed) was impaled on an upright, straight stake, there is NO WAY of knowing for sure, unless you were there. Yes, Constantine ADOPTED the cross as the official symbol of christianity around the 4th Century, but historians and scholars had described jesus having been impaled on a CROSS at least 2 centuries BEFORE Constantine. The “evidence” points to jesus having been “crucified”, or impaled on a cross. Of course, as I said, there is no way of knowing for sure unless you were there. The wt’s dogmatic insistence that he was, UNQUESTIONABLY, impaled on a stake (though possible), has absolutely no basis in reality whatsoever.
Reply
 

 kat says:

 February 25, 2015 at 7:23 am

Hi Neal I agree would be unbelievably painful, but was speaking from the scriptural or view of how he felt in the spiritual sense, as you know from the bible its all about not to worry about the body but think of the soul, and not to think of the flesh but the spirit and so forth.
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 25, 2015 at 7:26 am

I once remarked that the WT overuses and abuses the word “justice”. Another word the jw’s overuse and abuse, and use to manipulate people, is the word “love”. Love this, love that, love, love, love. You think you’re at Woodstock surrounded by potheads. lol “Do what we say or you’re not a loving person, you’ll be worthless, and no one will ever love you.” What a joke!!
 I believe, in this world in general, too high a premium is put on love. No one, except for a newborn baby, needs love to survive. What’s FAR more important is RESPECT. Lack of love does not lead to stress, and the resulting mental and physical illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, and depression and anxiety, which all sometimes kill. No, it’s lack of respect that causes stress and anxiety. When people treat other people like garbage, it has psychoemotional effects, which can even build up over time, and lead to health problems which sometimes lead to actual DEATH. So, RESPECT is what we all need to survive and be happy and healthy. Sure, love is awesome. Get it whenever and wherever you can. But love is like champagne. Respect is like water. You can live without champagne. You can’t live without water. Yet, propaganda is all around us, encouraging us to love, love, love. But that’s “putting the cart before the horse”. You CAN’T love someone unless you FIRST respect them. Trying to love, without respecting, is like trying to blow air into a balloon that isn’t there.
 A lot of these ideas come from places like Hollywood, whom I don’t respect much more than the WT. I mean, we mock ToMo3 about his tirades on tight pants, then you see that guy come out on stage at the academy awards, in his underwear. Makes me wonder who’s worse.
 I’m not religious, but if I was, I’d be a Buddhist. Why? Buddhism is the only religion that tells you this: From the moment you’re born, the world starts indoctrinating you, putting ideas in your head, THEIR ideas. The ultimate goal of Buddhism, as I understand it, is to “de-program” yourself, clear your mind of, at least, all the BAD, negative, false, useless, manipulative, controlling propagandas that have been placed there from Day 1, and then KEEP THEM OUT.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 February 25, 2015 at 7:29 am

@Neal, from what I have read about Rutherford, he came up with Jesus dying on a cross just to be different than the churches and how many Witnesses today, know that early Watchtowers had a cross on the front? Russell believed Jesus died on a cross and since Thomas asked to see the holes in his hands where the “nails” were, it would say to anybody reading the Bible that Jesus did die on a cross which was the Romans killed people in those days. When Witnesses read that scripture about Thomas, they witlessly don’t question it.
@Kat. There are scriptures in the Bible that just don’t make any sense to me like that one I was talking about at Isaiah 53:10. I am going to quote directly from the 1959 Watchtower page 733 in the Watchtower’s really convoluted way of trying to explain away that scripture at Isaiah 53:10. I can understand that Jehovah would take “delight” in Jesus dying faithful but to use the word “crushed” him in that prophecy about Jesus’ death, is what I question. Also, notice to what lengths the Society goes to explain how Jehovah made Jesus “sick” from that prophecy:
“At this point it is interesting to consider a prophecy concerning the death of Jesus that is recorded at Isaiah 53:10, which says: “Jehovah himself took delight in crushing him; he made him sick.” In just what way did that prove to be true? There in Gethsemane Jesus was in great agony. “Getting into an agony he continued praying more earnestly; and his sweat became as drops of blood falling to the ground.” (Luke 22:44) Jehovah permitted this, and for that reason it might be said that he was the one who made Jesus sick in the garden. So severe was Jesus’ agony, even producing bloody sweat that fell to the ground, that he might have died if it had not been cut short. However, it has been suggested that this sickness that he underwent was such that it deadened the sensitivity of his nerves, making the experiences he was yet to undergo bearable. Here we see the mercy of Jehovah in permitting Jesus to be made sick before he was nailed to the torture stake.”
There are no original manuscripts to look at and all Bibles are copies of copies and translations of translations and so there really is no way at all for anybody to even say that any Bible is actually “inspired” so that is why I don’t take anything that the Bible says as believable. That isn’t to say that I think there are a lot of good things in the Bible but I believe that if the Society actually believes in the Bible, they are trying to explain it so it does make sense, and to me, there are just too many things that don’t make sense to me that I find the whole thing questionable, but especially the book of Revelation.
Up until last year, all those predictions about Armageddon made my knees wobble and shake but thankfully after trying to finally make sense of it and not being able to, I came to the conclusion, I am not going to worry about it anymore. I think if the Bible was from a perfect God, that he wouldn’t have the whole thing written down in riddles that nobody could figure out.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 February 25, 2015 at 7:49 am

@Neal Krauni. It is so funny that you bring up respect. I would say that I never really felt “respected” in our congregation and I feel it is because I am a woman. It wasn’t until I decided that I was worth something that I decided that I deserve respect, the respect that I never felt I got from either the elders or many in the congregation and now I am demanding it, not waiting for something that will never happen. Being a woman in the congregation, we are very subtly degraded every time we associate at the Hall. The more we accept that kind of treatment, the more we think we are nothing and we aren’t nothing and we are all deserving of respect.
Reply
 

 kat says:

 February 25, 2015 at 7:51 am

In the org a person is judged by their field service report card, their meeting attendance, doesn’t matter if your a kind loving person willing to help those in need if you haven’t got the hours and miss to many meetings your not spiritual enough or not good enough, one can be the biggest ass but if they have a good field service report they are wonderful.
Reply
 
 Steve says:

 March 2, 2015 at 5:37 pm

Hear, hear. My experience Exactly
Reply
 
 

 MrFair says:

 February 25, 2015 at 8:00 am

Great article Lloyd! One question that came to my mind after seeing the post-Armageddon picture was: where are their emergency “go-bags” that the Hateful Slave encourages witnesses to have? These bags are essential for survival since we can’t be sure if Jehovah will allow looting after Armageddon. Perhaps, that will be in a “Questions From Readers” article of the new scrolls… Here are the contents of my Armageddon “go-bag”: twelve pairs of clean underwear, two one gallon jugs of fresh drinking whiskey, sleeping pills, anti-depressant pills, box of Power Bars, a shovel, a flamethrower (for disposing of decomposing bodies, like the ones used after the fire bombing of Dresden), toilet paper, a silver revised NWT cover with “God Is Not Great” by Christopher Hitchens hidden inside, batteries, a CD player with head phones, Pink Floyd box set and extra shoe laces. Well, I think that about covers all of my post-Armageddon needs.
Reply
 

 disillusioned says:

 February 25, 2015 at 8:22 am

Neil Krouni If you go to jw.org and type in Did Jesus die on a cross? They say, However, the bible does not describe the instrument of Jesus’ death, so no one can know its shape with absolute certainty! Not as dogmatic as they used to be. But then they go on to ‘prove’ that he did.
Reply
 

 Ted says:

 February 25, 2015 at 2:14 pm

On the cover of May15th W,T, top right, the smoke formation is
 in the form of a human face, devoid of any emotion, presumably
 presiding over the slaughter.
Is it supposed to be Jesus or JHVH, who are said to be spirits
 not humans. It’s just ludicrous, the thing is like some degenerate
 ogre from a kids fairytale, “fee, fi, fo, fum.
Well it’s all fantasy , from beginning to end, isn’t it?
Reply
 

 Charles Costante says:

 February 25, 2015 at 9:29 pm

“…. judged by their field service report card, their meeting attendance, doesn’t matter if your a kind loving person willing to help those in need …….”
Kat, there was a sister in our congregation who was one of those people you could bet your bottom dollar would be there whenever there was anything to be done. She organized and provided tea, coffee, sandwiches and biscuits for the morning and afternoon teas of the Kingdom Hall ‘busy bees’ (this is what we called the regular spring cleaning and garden tidy-up of the hall in Australia). If there were any couples that were getting engaged or married and couldn’t afford a caterer, she was in her element! She did the flower arranging for the hall, played the piano for the Kingdom songs at meetings, she was there whenever any of the brothers or sisters were in hospital or had broken an arm or leg and needed help to do the shopping, etc..
In spite of all this she was considered “weak in the truth” because she wasn’t one much for door knocking. In retrospect I would actually call her more of a christian than the rest of us put together (now as an onlooker I’m able to see more of the game than I did when I was a player). She popped into my head about a year or so ago now and I thought of ringing her to tell her how much she was appreciated but found out she had already passed away. It’s so sad! She probably died doubtful she was going to be resurrected into the new system.
Reply
 

 Charles Costante says:

 February 25, 2015 at 9:34 pm

“…… judged by their field service report card, their meeting attendance, doesn’t matter if your a kind loving person willing to help those in need …….”
Kat, there was a sister in our congregation who was one of those people you could bet your bottom dollar would be there whenever there was anything to be done. She organized and provided tea, coffee, sandwiches and biscuits for the morning and afternoon teas of the Kingdom Hall ‘busy bees’ (this is what we called the regular spring cleaning and garden tidy-up of the hall in Australia). If there were any couples that were getting engaged or married and couldn’t afford a caterer, she was in her element! She did the flower arranging for the hall, played the piano for the Kingdom songs at meetings, she was there whenever any of the brothers or sisters were in hospital or had broken an arm or leg and needed help to do the shopping, etc..
In spite of all this she was considered “weak in the truth” because she wasn’t one much for door knocking. In retrospect I would actually call her more of a christian than the rest of us put together (now as an onlooker I’m able to see more of the game than I did when I was a player). She popped into my head about a year or so ago now and I thought of ringing her to tell her how much she was appreciated but found out she had already passed away. It’s so sad! She probably died doubtful she was going to be resurrected into the new system.
Reply
 

 Guru says:

 February 26, 2015 at 5:07 am

Sister wearing tight jeans, how she survive?
Reply
 

 Innocent Son says:

 February 26, 2015 at 2:21 pm

Kat
 So true,it doesn’t matter what is happening in your life,filling in a field service report card is all that matters.The org.really press that home and continue to frighten, shock you with End of the World images.You see want they want is blind obedience….Peace to all.
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 27, 2015 at 3:58 pm

@ anonymous
I LOVE your point about DEMANDING respect! I recall now I was going to include that point in my drunken tirade, but it slipped my mind.
 BTW, I mentioned some subliminal stuff in the WT’s kiddie training video, I believe it’s the one entitled, “Be jehovah’s Friend (Fiend? lol)”. Here’s another: In the first couple of minutes, you see the “little lady” on her hands and knees, scrubbing the living room floor. Talk about archaic stereotypes! And of course, the “head of the house” is this big, superfit, macho musclehead. Really? Seriously? And even if they wanted to portray the Mom in a subservient role, which they clearly did want to do, ever heard of Mop n’ Glo??? Idiots.
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 27, 2015 at 4:05 pm

“The more you tighten your grip, the more star systems will slip through your fingers.” — Princess Leia to Governor Tarkin – Star Wars (1977)
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 27, 2015 at 4:18 pm

@ anonymous
I was actually thinking of Swiffer WetJet. Sorry.
Reply
 

 Neal Krouni says:

 February 27, 2015 at 5:21 pm

Don’t mean to get off-topic, but since we’re talking about Doomsday, I think it’s important to make sure we don’t have a real one. Saw a movie on Netflix the other nite, called 4:44 – Last Day on Earth (2011?, Willem Dafoe). Scared the piss out of me, and NOT because it was sensational or graphic, because it wasn’t. Got me thinking, are we doing things now that are causing environmental damage we’ll discover too late? Or not discover at all, just POOF, everything goes? Remember, almost EVERYTHING we use, from iPods to toothbrushes to Toyotas to 747s, have to be MANUFACTURED. And manufacturing (as well as using many of these things) produces environmental toxins. The scary thing is that this process has been going on nonstop since the beginning of Industrialization about 150 years ago. WE NEED TO GIVE THE EARTH A BREAK. If someone is sick, you don’t force them to go to work or run around the block or go work out at the gym. They need time to heal. Is it worth the extinction of the human race to have a shiny new iPhone every year, or the latest Hyundai model, or whatever? When I was a kid, people were concerned about overpopulation, then everyone forgot about it, like everyone’s forgotten about Al Gore, but the fact is, the more people there are, the more junk is manufactured and used, so the more pollution there is. The human species needs to SLAM THE BRAKES on production, not only of things, but also of people. We need to give our only Home a chance to heal, or we may be screwed.
Reply
 

 anonymous says:

 February 28, 2015 at 7:38 am




Reply
 

 DAC says:

 February 28, 2015 at 9:51 pm

The master, Christopher Hitchens, explains religions fascination with the end of the world and the slaughter of non-believers. Really, is it any different then ISIS today. Religious faith is the Bain our existence, weather it’s people beheading other people or a powerful and secretive organization covering up and protecting pedophiles. Open your mind to reason. Join in with the sane thinkers. Shrug off the superstitious beliefs of a primitive mind.
Reply
 

 DAC says:

 February 28, 2015 at 10:04 pm

The master simply know as “Hitch”.
Reply
 

 DAC says:

 February 28, 2015 at 10:05 pm

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NE2eNoa5jEA&w=420&h=315
Reply
 

 Dblaron42 (formerly stuck with a jdub) says:

 February 28, 2015 at 11:45 pm

Hitchslap!
Reply
 

 XXbaptisedtwiceJW says:

 March 4, 2015 at 6:54 am

Thanx again for your perspective,it’s so reassuring to be free of “stuff” it’s sad that unfortunately fear& guilt are motivators! I remember a phone call from my (fleashly) sister,she was crying& upset with herself,it was the end of the month& she had been S pioneering,the C Os wife had spent some time going to door with her& had been very critical of how she was doing at the doors,tell he to speak up& be more…I don’t know…but being that she had her hours in…still wasn’t good enough!! My moms middle name is guilt,ha,ha! So anyway thanx for the sharing,it’s appreciated!
Reply
 

 Ian Foote says:

 March 7, 2015 at 8:51 pm

‘Why destroy buildings?,I mean there just ‘buildings!’
Reply
 
 Charles Costante says:

 March 7, 2015 at 9:21 pm

They were built by followers of Satan, Ian. The ones built by JWs would be few and far between, so let’s get rid of all of them and start afresh!
Reply
 
 

 Chris says:

 March 8, 2015 at 10:22 am

I was baptized in 1987 & back then the faithfull & discreet slave was represented by a governing body, now the new light reveals that only the governing body is now the faithfull slave. Why did it take 26 years for these anointed men to recieve this new light? There is no logic in this
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 8, 2015 at 5:20 pm

@chris In effort to wake up other loved ones, I have been just asking them to say the things they doubt out loud in sensible way. Like “the light got brighter and brighter and brighter still, oops someone turned out the lights! There, it;s on again now it’s brighter brighter brighter, nope cleansing phase, now it’s brighter for sure, oh wait ”
I’m reminded of the game some of us played as children Duck Duck Goose, and I picture the WT’s GB going around the circle of lies/failed doctrines and saying Bright, Bright, Dim, in a game they’d call Duck, Duck, Dummy as they get a chuckle and fat paycheck. The people they do this to not dummies though, WT is just cunning & evil!
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 8, 2015 at 5:39 pm

@Guru I know right, lol
Reply
 

 Excelsior! says:

 March 9, 2015 at 7:45 am

Neal Krouni,
Sir, I am confused.
I have just read a post, apparently by you, that states that you don’t believe in God.
And yet, on another post, you castigated scientists for having an agenda to dispense with God.
Which is it? Do you believe in God or do you not believe in God? I find it hard to understand your apparent shifting of opinion.
I am also patiently waiting for your evidence to discredit the latest discoveries of genetics. You stated that you see this research as pseudoscience. That is a strong accusation, and it requires some evidence to back it up.
I look forward to your clarification of your seemingly contradictory statements.
Peace be with you, Excelsior!
Reply
 

 Excelsior! says:

 March 9, 2015 at 7:56 am

Folks,
Excuse my dark humour here, I do not mean to offend.
Perhaps the gentleman clutching the child in his arms is fleeing the many paedophiles that will, of course, survive Armageddon, because they are all “in good standing”?
I should imagine that those lovely, outstanding paedophiles will be looking for the next victim of their disgusting lust. After all, most little children will have been murdered by a Loving God, so they won’t be able to abuse them. Little Witness children will be VERY popular with these fine, outstanding Christians!
Paradise, as described by the WTBTS, is no paradise for paedophiles! Eventually, when the earth is full, THERE WILL BE NO MORE CHILDREN. This so called paradise will not be able to provide a paradise for ever for these disgusting criminals!!
These apocalyptic images belong in a history book, not in general circulation. Any Loving God could not and would not slaughter billions of people, just so that eight million, including a great number of paedophiles and other criminals, can cuddle pandas and stroke tigers. It is simply hate speech and abuse.
I hope none have been offended by my opening comments. I simply wanted to make the point that all of this is revolting and wrong.
Be assured that I have great respect and pity for anyone who has been abused. I want to help to stop this happening, and to see full redress in the courts for any victims.
Peace be with you, Excelsior!
Reply
 

 MyBirthRight says:

 March 9, 2015 at 10:16 am

@Excelsior Great point. I totally see where you are coming from. Sometimes people need to hear it put such a way that shows just how ridiculous these things WT puts out really sound, if anything people should be offended by these things you mentioned that WT promotes, not in the nice way you made it clear : )
Reply
 

 NaHomTima says:

 March 27, 2015 at 9:12 pm

dude I have been in and out of the so-called truth for 54 years probably more out than ever in though I will tell you sadly most of my family is still in the JW even though I do not want any more to do with this religion at this point in my life I have to tell you I just can’t keep hating and hating and hating because it makes me hate myself it is enough that I walked away never look back and I have to tell you that I’m really getting tired of reading all of the stuff because it’s over and over and over again the same thing what is the message you are really Trying to display here because I think anybody who’s ever been in this already knows I just needed to speak my mind because it’s seriously causing my blood to have bad blood pressure and I am going to have to pull away and quit reading all these things so that I can have peace of mind they are out of my life. You could not tell me one thing about them that I do not already know thank you peace and prayers Choctaw Native American Tumwater Washington USA
Reply
 

 Grace says:

 March 27, 2015 at 9:58 pm

Good for you NaHom,
If you can walk away that’s true freedom but spare a thought for some here that still have family locked in. I suppose it’s like those that have fled from North Korea to South Korea but look back over the border North Korea hoping that they can free their families one day. I hope that you can appreciate their situation.
I don’t have family trapped in & one year on since finding out that this religion speaks lies & splits families, I still find it hard to move on. You would understand strong family ties from what I can gather by your sign off, you are a native American. I have native roots too, I’m of Melanesian, Polynesian descent & we are very family orientated so that is why I truly empathise with ones who need this site & want to help them to have peace one day with their loved ones from this cult.
There would be nothing harder than to have to love your family from a far because evil men have put a wedge up between them.
Reply
 
 anonymous says:

 March 28, 2015 at 5:24 am

Hi NaHom. I would like to add to Grace’s comment. I have been coming to jwsurvey for almost a year now and yes, I do see some anger but then mostly what I see is information to those either coming out of the JW’s that helps them to not be afraid of the Org. for their decision to get out and information for those who have doubts to see what they have been involved in all their lives.
Also, this site lets people express themselves because as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, when you have been hurt and damaged by the organization, you have nobody that you can talk it over with for fear of being disfellowshipped for disclosing what the elders and the Society would be considered “confidential”. For a lot of us, this site has been our only way of surviving.
Being in a cult all your life with not being allowed to have any friends who are not Jehovah’s Witnesses, leaves you all alone when you leave. It is so devastating that many even commit suicide. It is that terrible.
Reply
 
 

← Older Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Comment
You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

applications-education-miscellaneous.png
Comment posting guidelines:
Kindly observe the following requirements before posting any comments to our articles or pages:
◾ABUSIVE COMMENTS - Do not post comments that include swear words or may be considered abusive, lewd, blasphemous, obscene or threatening
◾ILLEGAL COMMENTS - Do not post comments that condone or propose illegal activity, or that breach copyright law
◾OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS - Do not post comments that are off-topic and bear no relation to the page or article
◾RELIGIOUS NEUTRALITY - Do not post comments that are evangelical in nature or may be construed as imposing one person's religious beliefs (or lack thereof) over those of another
◾LANGUAGE - Visitors from all countries and language groups are welcome. You may post comments in languages other than English, but we would appreciate if you could make any such comments brief. We would also be grateful if you could run any such comments through Google Translate and convert these to English, but this is not an absolute requirement.
◾LINKS - You may post links to third party websites, so long as (1) you limit these to 2 links per comment, and (2) the content on these links doesn't contravene ANY of the first four points. Specifically, you may not post URLs to websites that are evangelical in nature. Our links page has an extensive list of such sites for any who are curious about Christian beliefs in the context of Jehovah's Witnesses.
JWSurvey.org thanks all visitors in advance for respectfully observing these guidelines. Any who persistently fail to do so, despite warnings, may find themselves blocked from making further comments at the discretion of the site moderators, whose decision will be final and not open for debate.

  


 Notify me of new posts by email.
  
 



Click on 
Visit JWalumni.org for help and advice with leaving Jehovah's Witnesses
Visit JWfacts.com for more information on JW beliefs
Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses
JW Recovery forum
Visit JWstruggle.com for helpful information on exiting JW mind control

 

Support JWsurvey
Help us make continued improvements to this website and its content.

       

Article Categories
◾Apostates (23)
◾Blood transfusions (11)
◾Books (4)
◾Cedars' Blog (199)
◾Cedars' Story (4)
◾Celebrity JWs (2)
◾Child Abuse (44)
◾Child Indoctrination (12)
◾Divine Direction (4)
◾Domestic Abuse (2)
◾Doomsday Predictions (1)
◾Downsizing (6)
◾Evolution and creation (6)
◾General Information (1)
◾Governing Body (31)
◾Higher education (3)
◾History and scandals (6)
◾JW.org (7)
◾Life Stories (9)
◾Mental health (5)
◾Mini-Surveys (5)
◾News (174)
◾Property sales (5)
◾Publications (6)
◾Shunning (10)
◾Support (5)
◾Survey (10)
◾Undue influence (11)
◾Warwick headquarters (3)

Search JWsurvey

  

Subscribe to JW Survey


Enter your email address to receive notices of new posts by email.
Join 747 other subscribers
Email Address  
    

Listen to JWpodcast

Check out the latest episode of JW podcast! 

Latest John Cedars video


Popular JW sites in other languages
Languages         
More languages...

Select... Croatian Czech Dutch Estonian Finnish 1 Finnish 2 French 1 French 2 French 3 German 1 German 2 Hungarian Italian 1 Italian 2 Italian 3 Japanese Polish 1 Polish 2 Polish 3 Portuguese 1 Portuguese 2 Romanian Russian 1 Russian 2 Russian 3 Serbian 1 Serbian 2 Serbian 3 Slovak Spanish 1 Spanish 2

Top Posts & Pages
JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
 JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote 
Links 
 Links 
So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
 So, how were you rated? - Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing 
"We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
 "We are not done yet!" - Candace reacts to appeal court decision 
My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
 My response to the haters (and why I can't always shake it off) 
Videos 
 Videos 


 

Key Articles

Is JWsurvey.org an apostate website?
What is the new light on the faithful slave?
Has Watchtower ever lied or withheld informatiion?

Open Offer

Open Offer to all bethelites
 Do you work at Brooklyn, Patterson or Wallkill? If so, please click here.

Our Promise
Making corrections
 Is there something incorrect or unfactual on this website? If so, please let us know and we will correct it.

2015 results at a glance
Number of respondents to the 2015 Global Survey
Site Stats
Visitor stats for JWsurvey

Like us on Facebook!

Cedars’ Twitter Feed
 

 

Who's Online
◾0 Members.
◾20 Guests.

Reader Comments
◾Gilbert on About JW Survey
◾AlF on JW.org does partial U-turn over Awake! magazine Rama Singh misquote
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing
◾anonymous on So, how were you rated? – Elders rate pioneers from A to E for metropolitan witnessing

Menu
◾About JW Survey
◾Contact Us
◾Experiences
◾Get Involved
◾Global Surveys ◾2011 Global Survey
◾2012 Global Survey
◾2013 Global Survey
◾2014 Global Survey
◾2015 Global Survey
◾JW Broadcasting
◾JWthink.com
◾Links
◾Videos
◾Welcome

Login
 ◾Login

Scan JWsurvey.org

 



Copyright © 2011-2013 JWsurvey.org. Site design and support by The Small Web Master.

    StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter     













































                     

  http://jwsurvey.org/cedars-blog/great-balls-of-fire-more-doomsday-artwork-in-new-may-2015-watchtower