Jehovahs Witness History?

Question

The JW are visting me and they love their knowledge but have no testimony and no conversion story. I want to know what the history of the church is, as far as I know a guy started up a bible class and it got popular and so he made it into a religion and they use knowledge to try and `prove` their religion and why other religions are wrong. The witness who is visiting me said that `more than testimony, knowledge is more important, but dont the scriptures tell us the opposite? Sure knowledge is great and helps but we need to know from the bottom of our hearts that the religion is true. Anyway can any Witness please tell me what the religion teaches of its own history and the importance of sharing/having a personal testimony. Thanks.

I am Mormon, so you dont eed to tel,l me about my own religion, thanks. Also I dont need to real alot of quotes from a magazine or copy and pasted from the internet, I just wanted to hear Witnessess testimonies. Thanks.

Danni thanks that was very intersting, but my one concern is that the bible study class he had was all about raising a doctorinal question, and then resloving it through human intelligence. So its bascially like a `knowledge religion,` rather than a religion receiving living revelation from God. right? this isnt an attack just a concern that cant seem to be ... fixed.

Answer 1

We have a great book called "Kingdom Proclaimers" that outlines our entire history from the first century CE down to 1870 and Charles Taze Russell, to our modern day work.

I have enclosed the following excerpt. I apologize for it's length, but it covers everything so well I just couldn't bring myself to edit it down. We have studied this book before and I am sure we will do so again. The Witness who visits you would be more than happy to bring you a copy to examine for yourself. You can also find it online at www.watchtower.org, our only official website :0)

"“The following history is given not merely because I have been urged to give a review of God’s leadings in the path of light, but specially because I believe it to be needful that the truth be modestly told, that misapprehensions and prejudicial misstatements may be disarmed, and that our readers may see how hitherto the Lord has helped and guided.”

FOLLOWING those words Charles Taze Russell proceeded to outline the developments that led to his publishing Millennial Dawn (later called Studies in the Scriptures) and Zion’s Watch Tower and Herald of Christ’s Presence (now known as The Watchtower Announcing Jehovah’s Kingdom). This history is of special interest to Jehovah’s Witnesses. Why? Because their present understanding of Bible truths and their activities can be traced back to the 1870’s and the work of C. T. Russell and his associates, and from there to the Bible and early Christianity.

Who was Charles Taze Russell? Does the history of his work give evidence of the Lord’s help and guidance?

A Search for Truth

C. T. Russell was born in the United States, in Allegheny (now part of Pittsburgh), Pennsylvania, on February 16, 1852. He was the second son of Joseph L. and Ann Eliza (Birney) Russell, who were Presbyterians of Scottish-Irish descent. Charles’ mother died when he was only nine years old, but from an early age, Charles was influenced by both of his religiously-minded parents. As a later associate of C. T. Russell put it, “they trained the small twig; and it grew in the direction of the Lord.” Although brought up as a Presbyterian, Charles eventually joined the Congregational Church because he preferred its views.

Young Charles was evidently quite a businessman. At just 11 years of age, he became a partner with his father in a thriving men’s clothing store. Charles enlarged the business, eventually operating a number of different stores himself. Although things went well for him in business, spiritually he was very troubled. Why was this?

Charles’ parents sincerely believed the creeds of Christendom’s churches and brought him up to accept them too. Young Charles was thus taught that God is love, yet that he had created men inherently immortal and had provided a fiery place in which he would eternally torment all except those who had been predestined to be saved. Such an idea repulsed the honest heart of teenage Charles. He reasoned: “A God that would use his power to create human beings whom he foreknew and predestinated should be eternally tormented, could be neither wise, just nor loving. His standard would be lower than that of many men.”

But young Russell was no atheist; he simply could not accept the commonly understood teachings of the churches. He explained: “Gradually I was led to see that though each of the creeds contained some elements of truth, they were, on the whole, misleading and contradictory of God’s Word.” Indeed, in the creeds of the churches, “elements of truth” were buried under a morass of pagan teachings that had infiltrated tainted Christianity during the centuries-long apostasy. Turning away from church creeds and searching for truth, Russell examined some leading Oriental religions, only to find these unsatisfying.

Reestablished in Faith

The twig, though, had been trained by God-fearing parents; it was inclined “in the direction of the Lord.” While he was still searching for truth, one evening in 1869, something happened that reestablished Charles’ wavering faith. Walking along near the Russells’ store on Federal Street, he heard religious singing coming from a basement hall. In his own words, this is what took place:

“Seemingly by accident, one evening I dropped into a dusty, dingy hall, where I had heard religious services were held, to see if the handful who met there had anything more sensible to offer than the creeds of the great churches. There, for the first time, I heard something of the views of Second Adventists [Advent Christian Church], the preacher being Mr. Jonas Wendell . . . Thus, I confess indebtedness to Adventists as well as to other denominations. Though his Scripture exposition was not entirely clear, . . . it was sufficient, under God, to re-establish my wavering faith in the divine inspiration of the Bible, and to show that the records of the apostles and prophets are indissolubly linked. What I heard sent me to my Bible to study with more zeal and care than ever before, and I shall ever thank the Lord for that leading; for though Adventism helped me to no single truth, it did help me greatly in the unlearning of errors, and thus prepared me for the Truth.”

That meeting renewed young Russell’s determination to search for Scriptural truth. It sent him back to his Bible with more eagerness than ever before. Russell soon came to believe that the time was near for those who served the Lord to come to a clear knowledge of His purpose. So, in 1870, fired by enthusiasm, he and a few acquaintances in Pittsburgh and nearby Allegheny got together and formed a class for Bible study. According to a later associate of Russell, the small Bible class was conducted in this manner: “Someone would raise a question. They would discuss it. They would look up all related scriptures on the point and then, when they were satisfied on the harmony of these texts, they would finally state their conclusion and make a record of it.” As Russell later acknowledged, the period “from 1870 to 1875 was a time of constant growth in grace and knowledge and love of God and his Word.”

As they researched the Scriptures, a number of things became clearer to these sincere truth seekers. They saw the Scriptural truths pertaining to the mortality of the human soul and that immortality was a gift to be attained by those who became joint heirs with Christ in his heavenly Kingdom. (Ezek. 18:20; Rom. 2:6, 7) They began to grasp the doctrine of the ransom sacrifice of Jesus Christ and the opportunity that this provision made possible for humankind. (Matt. 20:28) They came to recognize that although Jesus first came to the earth as a man in the flesh, at his return he would be invisibly present as a spirit person. (John 14:19) They further learned that the object of Jesus’ return was, not to destroy everyone, but to bless the obedient families of the earth. (Gal. 3:8) Russell wrote: “We felt greatly grieved at the error of Second Adventists, who were expecting Christ in the flesh, and teaching that the world and all in it except Second Adventists would be burned up.”

The Scriptural truths that became clear to this little Bible class were certainly a departure from the pagan doctrines that had filtered into Christianity during the centuries-long apostasy. But did Russell and his spiritually-minded associates gain these truths from the Bible unaided by others?

Influence of Others

Russell referred quite openly to the assistance in Bible study he had received from others. Not only did he acknowledge his indebtedness to Second Adventist Jonas Wendell but he also spoke with affection about two other individuals who had aided him in Bible study. Russell said of these two men: “The study of the Word of God with these dear brethren led, step by step, into greener pastures.” One, George W. Stetson, was an earnest student of the Bible and pastor of the Advent Christian Church in Edinboro, Pennsylvania.

The other, George Storrs, was publisher of the magazine Bible Examiner, in Brooklyn, New York. Storrs, who was born on December 13, 1796, was initially stimulated to examine what the Bible says about the condition of the dead as a result of reading something published (though at the time anonymously) by a careful student of the Bible, Henry Grew, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Storrs became a zealous advocate of what was called conditional immortality—the teaching that the soul is mortal and that immortality is a gift to be attained by faithful Christians. He also reasoned that since the wicked do not have immortality, there is no eternal torment. Storrs traveled extensively, lecturing on the subject of no immortality for the wicked. Among his published works was the Six Sermons, which eventually attained a distribution of 200,000 copies. Without a doubt, Storrs’ strong Bible-based views on the mortality of the soul as well as the atonement and restitution (restoration of what was lost due to Adamic sin; Acts 3:21) had a strong, positive influence on young Charles T. Russell.

Yet, another man who had a profound effect on Russell’s life also caused his loyalty to Scriptural truth to be put to the test.

Time Prophecies and the Presence of the Lord

One morning in January 1876, 23-year-old Russell received a copy of a religious periodical called Herald of the Morning. From the picture on the cover, he could see that it was identified with Adventism. The editor, Nelson H. Barbour, of Rochester, New York, believed that the object of Christ’s return was not to destroy the families of the earth but to bless them and that his coming would be not in the flesh but as a spirit. Why, this was in agreement with what Russell and his associates in Allegheny had believed for some time! Curiously, though, Barbour believed from Biblical time-prophecies that Christ was already present (invisibly) and that the harvest work of gathering “the wheat” (true Christians making up the Kingdom class) was already due.—Matt., chap. 13.

Russell had shied away from Biblical time prophecies. Now, however, he wondered: “Could it be that the time prophecies which I had so long despised, because of their misuse by Adventists, were really meant to indicate when the Lord would be invisibly present to set up his Kingdom?” With his insatiable thirst for Scriptural truth, Russell had to learn more. So he arranged to meet with Barbour in Philadelphia. This meeting confirmed their agreement on a number of Bible teachings and provided an opportunity for them to exchange views. “When we first met,” Russell later stated, “he had much to learn from me on the fulness of restitution based upon the sufficiency of the ransom given for all, as I had much to learn from him concerning time.” Barbour succeeded in convincing Russell that Christ’s invisible presence had begun in 1874.

“Resolved Upon a Vigorous Campaign for the Truth”

C. T. Russell was a man of positive convictions. Convinced that Christ’s invisible presence had begun, he was determined to proclaim it to others. He later said: “The knowledge of the fact that we were already in the harvest period gave to me an impetus to spread the Truth such as I never had before. I therefore at once resolved upon a vigorous campaign for the Truth.” Russell now decided to curtail his business interests so as to devote himself to preaching.

To counteract wrong views regarding the Lord’s return, Russell wrote the pamphlet The Object and Manner of Our Lord’s Return. It was published in 1877. That same year Barbour and Russell jointly published Three Worlds, and the Harvest of This World. This 196-page book discussed the subjects of restitution and Biblical time prophecies. Though each subject had been treated by others before, in Russell’s view this book was “the first to combine the idea of restitution with time-prophecy.” It presented the view that Jesus Christ’s invisible presence dated from the autumn of 1874.

As Russell traveled and preached, it became evident to him that something more was needed to keep the seeds of truth he was sowing alive and watered. The answer? “A monthly journal,” said Russell. So he and Barbour decided to revive publication of the Herald, which had been suspended because of canceled subscriptions and exhausted funds. Russell contributed his own funds to revive the journal, becoming one of its coeditors.

All went well for a while—until 1878, that is.

Russell Breaks With Barbour

In the August 1878 issue of Herald of the Morning, there appeared an article by Barbour that denied the substitutionary value of Christ’s death. Russell, who was nearly 30 years younger than Barbour, could see that this was, in fact, denying the essential part of the ransom doctrine. So in the very next issue (September 1878), Russell, in an article entitled “The Atonement,” upheld the ransom and contradicted Barbour’s statements. The controversy continued in the pages of the journal for the next few months. Finally, Russell decided to withdraw from fellowship with Mr. Barbour and discontinued further financial support to the Herald.

C. T. Russell, though, felt that to withdraw from the Herald was not enough; the ransom doctrine must be defended and Christ’s presence must be proclaimed. Hence, in July 1879, Russell began publishing Zion’s Watch Tower and Herald of Christ’s Presence. Russell was the editor and publisher, with five others originally listed as contributors to its columns. The first issue had a printing of 6,000 copies. By 1914 the printing of each issue was about 50,000 copies.

“Not as New, Not as Our Own, But as the Lord’s”

C. T. Russell used the Watch Tower and other publications to uphold Bible truths and to refute false religious teachings and human philosophies that contradicted the Bible. He did not, however, claim to discover new truths.

From the latter part of the 18th century, many ministers and Bible scholars had been exposing the false teachings of the immortality of the soul and eternal punishment for the wicked. This exposé had been thoroughly reported in the book Bible Vs. Tradition, by Aaron Ellis, originally published in England and then in the United States in 1853 by George Storrs. But no one at that time did more than C. T. Russell and his associates to make this truth known.

What about other Bible doctrines that were discussed in the Watch Tower and other publications? Did Russell take full credit for uncovering these gems of truth? Explained Russell: “We found that for centuries various sects and parties had split up the Bible doctrines amongst them, blending them with more or less of human speculation and error . . . We found the important doctrine of justification by faith and not by works had been clearly enunciated by Luther and more recently by many Christians; that divine justice and power and wisdom were carefully guarded tho not clearly discerned by Presbyterians; that Methodists appreciated and extolled the love and sympathy of God; that Adventists held the precious doctrine of the Lord’s return; that Baptists amongst other points held the doctrine of baptism symbolically correctly, even tho they had lost sight of the real baptism; that some Universalists had long held vaguely some thoughts respecting ‘restitution.’ And so, nearly all denominations gave evidence that their founders had been feeling after truth: but quite evidently the great Adversary had fought against them and had wrongly divided the Word of God which he could not wholly destroy.”

Concerning the chronology he often presented, Russell stated: “When we say ‘our’ chronology we merely mean the one we use, the Bible chronology, which belongs to all of God’s people who approve it. As a matter of fact it was used in practically the form we present it long before our day, just as various prophecies we use were used to a different purpose by Adventists, and just as various doctrines we hold and which seem so new and fresh and different were held in some form long ago: for instance—Election, Free Grace, Restitution, Justification, Sanctification, Glorification, Resurrection.”

Then how did Russell perceive the role that he and his associates played in publishing Scriptural truth? He explained: “Our work . . . has been to bring together these long scattered fragments of truth and present them to the Lord’s people—not as new, not as our own, but as the Lord’s. . . . We must disclaim any credit even for the finding and rearrangement of the jewels of truth.” He further stated: “The work in which the Lord has been pleased to use our humble talents has been less a work of origination than of reconstruction, adjustment, harmonization.”

Russell thus was quite modest about his accomplishments. Nevertheless, the “scattered fragments of truth” that he brought together and presented to the Lord’s people were free of the God-dishonoring pagan doctrines of the Trinity and immortality of the soul, which had become entrenched in the churches of Christendom as a result of the great apostasy. Like no one at that time, Russell and his associates proclaimed worldwide the meaning of the Lord’s return and of the divine purpose and what it involved.

‘Building Each Other Up in the Most Holy Faith’

Honesthearted persons quickly responded to the liberating truths that C. T. Russell and his associates were proclaiming both through the printed page and in lectures. Russell, still less than 30 years of age, soon realized that there was a need for the readers of the Watch Tower to get acquainted with fellow believers and encourage one another. The Bible Students in Pittsburgh were doing this by regularly meeting together, but what could be done to help Watch Tower readers in other places?

The answer came in the Watch Tower issues of May and June 1880. There Russell announced his plans to visit a number of towns and cities in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and New York. For what purpose? “Our readers,” the announcement explained, “are much scattered, some places 2 and 3, and on up to 50. Many places they are totally unacquainted with each other, and thus lose the sympathy and comfort which our Father designed should come to them by ‘The assembling of themselves together as the manner of some is.’ It is His design that we should ‘Edify one another,’ and build each other up in the most holy faith. The proposed meetings we would hope, might conduce to personal acquaintance.”—Heb. 10:24, 25.

The “proposed meetings” were held during Russell’s trip, and they proved very successful; readers of the Watch Tower were drawn closer together. These and other trips to visit “little bands of waiting ones” soon resulted in the forming of a number of classes, or ecclesias (later called congregations), located in the aforementioned areas as well as in Ohio and Michigan. These classes were encouraged to hold regular meetings. But what kind of meetings?

The Pittsburgh class had established the custom of meeting together at least twice each week. One meeting of the Pittsburgh class often included a lecture by a qualified speaker to the entire ecclesia, perhaps in a rented hall. But at the other meetings, usually held in private homes, those in attendance were invited to bring Bible, concordance, paper, and pencil—and to participate.

The warm spiritual fellowship experienced at those regular weekly meetings was a refreshing change from the cold, impersonal atmosphere at the services of many of the churches of Christendom. But Russell and his associates did not pioneer the idea of regularly meeting together. That custom of assembling, even in private homes, was established by the first-century Christians.—Rom. 16:3, 5; Col. 4:15.

“Are You Preaching?”

C. T. Russell and his associates strongly believed that they were in a time of harvest and that people needed to hear liberating truth. Yet, they were few in number. The Watch Tower was filling a vital need, but could more be done? Russell and his coworkers thought so. During 1880 they began to produce Bible Students’ Tracts (later also called Old Theology Quarterly), and these were provided to readers of the Watch Tower for free distribution to the public.

Yes, readers of the Watch Tower were encouraged to share with others the precious truths they were learning. “Are you preaching?” was the question raised in the combined Watch Tower issue of July and August 1881. How important was it for them to preach? The article went on to state: “We believe that none will be of the little flock except preachers. . . . Yes, we were called to suffer with him and to proclaim that good news now, that in due time we might be glorified and perform the things now preached. We were not called, nor anointed to receive honor and amass wealth, but to spend and be spent, and to preach the good news.”

It is appropriate that those early Bible Students felt keenly the need to preach the good news. In fact, the commission to preach was placed upon the first-century Christians; it is a responsibility that rests upon all genuine Christians to this day. (Matt. 24:14; 28:19, 20; Acts 1:8) But what was the objective of the preaching done by Russell and the early readers of the Watch Tower? Was it simply to distribute Bible literature or awaken churchgoers to Scriptural truths?

“You Must . . . Leave Her”

“Get out of her, my people,” the Bible long ago warned. Out of what? “Babylon the Great, the mother of the harlots and of the disgusting things of the earth.” (Rev. 17:5; 18:4) Why get out of Babylon? “For her sins have massed together clear up to heaven, and God has called her acts of injustice to mind.” (Rev. 18:5) Who is this mother harlot from whom people should separate themselves?

Martin Luther and other leaders of the Reformation identified the Catholic Church and its papacy as Babylon the Great. What about the Protestant churches that sprang up as a result of the Reformation? The fact is, apart from their rejection of the primacy of the pope, some were not much different from Catholicism in church structure, and they retained unscriptural doctrines, such as the Trinity, immortality of the soul, and eternal torment. For this reason some preachers urged people to break free not only from the Catholic Church but also from the main Protestant church systems.

C. T. Russell and his associates also realized that this infamous harlot was not merely the Catholic Church. Thus, while the Watch Tower of November 1879 identified Babylon the Great with the “Papacy as a SYSTEM,” the article added: “We must go further and implicate, (not the individual members, but the church systems) other churches united to the Empires of earth. Every church claiming to be a chaste virgin espoused to Christ, but in reality united to and supported by the world (beast) we must condemn as being in scripture language a harlot church.”

What, therefore, were readers of the Watch Tower encouraged to do? Russell wrote: “If the church with which you are connected, lives in adulterous union with the world, you must, if you would keep your garments white, leave her.” Russell and his associates did not then understand the full range of the influence of Babylon the Great. Nevertheless, readers of the Watch Tower were urged to separate themselves from church systems that were corrupt and worldly.—John 18:36.

“Its Truth Captured My Heart At Once”

The publishing of Bible truths took a significant step forward in 1886 with the release of the first volume of a promised series of books called Millennial Dawn, written by C. T. Russell. Volume I was called The Divine Plan of the Ages. It contained studies on 16 subjects, such as “The Existence of a Supreme Intelligent Creator Established,” “The Bible as a Divine Revelation Viewed in the Light of Reason,” “Our Lord’s Return—Its Object, the Restitution of All Things,” and “The Permission of Evil and Its Relation to God’s Plan.” Eventually, C. T. Russell wrote five other books of the Millennial Dawn series.

Russell did not survive to write an intended seventh volume of the series, but the widespread distribution of the six volumes that he did complete struck a responsive chord in honesthearted persons. “Your book MILLENNIAL DAWN came to me last Fall,” wrote one woman in 1889, “the first hint I ever had of such a work. I received it on a Saturday evening, commenced to read it immediately and never laid it aside, except when obliged, until finished. Its truth captured my heart at once; forthwith I withdrew from the Presbyterian Church where I had so long been groping in the dark for the truth, and found it not.”

It took real courage in those days to withdraw from one’s church. Demonstrating this was a woman in Manitoba, Canada, who came into possession of Millennial Dawn in 1897. At first, she tried to stay with her church and teach in local Sunday schools. The day came, in 1903, when she decided to make a break. She stood up and told all present why she felt she must separate from the church. The nearest neighbor (dear to people in small communities in those days) tried to persuade her to go back to church. But she stood firm, even though there was no congregation of Bible Students nearby. As her son later described her situation: “No study servant [elder] to lean on. No meetings. A contrite heart. A worn Bible. Long prayerful hours.”

What was it about Millennial Dawn, the Watch Tower, and other publications of the Society that captured the hearts of people and moved them to take such decisive action? C. T. Russell took an approach to explaining Bible teachings that was distinct from many writers of his day. He believed the Bible to be the infallible Word of God and that its teachings should be harmonious. Therefore, if any part of the Bible is difficult to understand, he felt, it should be clarified and interpreted by another part of the inspired Word. He did not try to support the explanations he presented with the testimony of theologians of his day or with the views of the so-called early church fathers. As he wrote in Volume I of Millennial Dawn: “We believe it to be a common failing of the present and all times for men to believe certain doctrines because others did so, in whom they had confidence. . . . Truth-seekers should empty their vessels of the muddy waters of tradition and fill them at the fountain of truth—God’s Word.”

As a growing number of such truth seekers responded to what they read in publications of the Watch Tower Society, some unexpected changes became necessary in Allegheny.

Headquarters at the Bible House

The Bible Students in Allegheny, associated with the publishing of the Watch Tower, were considered the most experienced in doing the Lord’s work and were looked to by all the ecclesias, or congregations, as those taking the lead. At first they had headquarters offices at 101 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, and later at 44 Federal Street, Allegheny. In the late 1880’s, however, expansion became necessary. So Russell arranged to build larger facilities. In 1889 a four-story brick building at 56-60 Arch Street, Allegheny, was completed. Valued at $34,000, it was known as the Bible House. It served as the Society’s headquarters for some 19 years.

As of 1890, the small Bible House family was serving the needs of several hundred active associates of the Watch Tower Society. But as the decade of the 1890’s progressed, more showed interest in what these were doing. In fact, according to an incomplete report published in the Watch Tower, on March 26, 1899, the Memorial of Christ’s death was observed at 339 separate meetings with 2,501 participants. What, though, would help to keep the growing number of Bible Students united?

Unifying the Growing Flock

C. T. Russell encouraged all readers of the Watch Tower to come together wherever they could to form groups, small or large, in order to build one another up spiritually. Scriptural counsel was provided through the columns of the Watch Tower. Traveling representatives of the Watch Tower Society were also sent out from headquarters to keep in touch with the various groups and to build them up spiritually.

At intervals, there were also special assemblies attended by Bible Students from many places. “This is a SPECIAL INVITATION to every reader who can come,” urged the March 1886 issue of the Watch Tower. What was the occasion? The annual commemoration of the Lord’s Evening Meal, to be held on Sunday, April 18, 1886, at Allegheny. More, though, was planned: A series of special meetings was scheduled during the evenings of the week that followed. The Bible Students in Allegheny opened their homes—and their hearts—free of charge for the visiting delegates. For the next few years, similar assemblies were held in Allegheny at the time of the Memorial of the Lord’s death.

During the late 1890’s, conventions began to be organized in many places. C. T. Russell frequently spoke on these occasions. What was it like to listen to him?

Ralph Leffler, who heard C. T. Russell speak, recalled: “When on the platform before an audience, he always wore a long black cloak and a white necktie. His voice was not loud, and he would never use a microphone or a loudspeaker, for they had not been invented; yet, somehow his voice always carried to the most distant part of the auditorium. He could hold the attention of a large audience for not just one hour but sometimes two or three hours. He would always begin his lecture with a gentle bow to the audience. While speaking, he did not stand still like a statue, but he was always on the move, gesticulating with his arms and stepping from side to side or from front to back. I never once saw him carry any notes or a manuscript in his hands—only the Bible, which he used very frequently. He spoke from the heart and in a manner that was very convincing. Usually the only article on the platform in those days was a small table with a Bible on it and a pitcher of water and a glass from which the speaker occasionally took a sip of water.”

Those early conventions were periods of warm fellowship and spiritual refreshment. They served to strengthen the unity of all the Bible Students and to publicize Bible truths. Meanwhile, as the decade of the 1890’s drew to a close, it was evident to the Bible Students that much more needed to be done in disseminating Bible truth. But they were still relatively few in number. Was there a way of reaching millions more people than could be contacted by the methods then being used? Indeed there was!

Opening the Door of “Newspaper Gospelling”

By the end of the 19th century, the world was crisscrossed with telegraph lines. Telegraphic communication was inexpensive and fast; it revolutionized the press. News could be quickly transmitted over long distances and printed in newspapers. In the early part of the 20th century, C. T. Russell and his associates saw newspapers as an effective way of reaching large numbers of people. Russell later said: “The newspaper has become the great factor in the daily life of the civilized world.”

The December 1, 1904, issue of the Watch Tower announced that sermons by C. T. Russell were appearing in three newspapers. The next issue of the Watch Tower, under the heading “Newspaper Gospelling,” reported: “Millions of sermons have thus been scattered far and near; and some at least have done good. If the Lord wills we shall be glad to see this ‘door’ keep open, or even open still wider.” The door of “newspaper gospelling” did open still wider. In fact, by 1913 it was estimated that through 2,000 newspapers Russell’s sermons were reaching 15,000,000 readers!

How, though, did Russell manage to get a weekly sermon printed even when he was traveling? Each week he telegraphed a sermon (about two newspaper columns long) to a newspaper syndicate. The syndicate, in turn, retelegraphed it to newspapers in the United States, Canada, and Europe.

Russell was convinced that the Lord had pushed the door of newspaper preaching wide open. During the first decade of the 20th century, the Bible message that Russell and his associates proclaimed became widely known through such newspaper sermons. A publication called The Continent once stated concerning Russell: “His writings are said to have greater newspaper circulation every week than those of any other living man; a greater, doubtless, than the combined circulation of the writings of all the priests and preachers in North America.”

Moving to Brooklyn

As the newspaper preaching gained momentum, the Bible Students looked for another location from which to originate the sermons. Why? The Bible House in Allegheny had become too small. It was also thought that if Russell’s sermons emanated from a larger, better-known city, it would result in the publication of the sermons in more newspapers. But which city? The Watch Tower of December 15, 1908, explained: “Altogether we concluded, after seeking Divine guidance, that Brooklyn, N.Y., with a large population of the middle class, and known as ‘The City of Churches,’ would, for these reasons, be our most suitable center for the harvest work during the few remaining years.”

In 1908, therefore, several representatives of the Watch Tower Society, including its legal counsel, Joseph F. Rutherford, were sent to New York City. Their objective? To secure property that C. T. Russell had located on an earlier trip. They purchased the old “Plymouth Bethel,” located at 13-17 Hicks Street, Brooklyn. It had served as a mission structure for the nearby Plymouth Congregational Church, where Henry Ward Beecher once served as pastor. The Society’s representatives also purchased Beecher’s former residence, a four-story brownstone at 124 Columbia Heights, a few blocks away.

The Hicks Street building was remodeled and named the Brooklyn Tabernacle. It housed the Society’s offices and an auditorium. After considerable repairs, Beecher’s former residence at 124 Columbia Heights became the new home of the Society’s headquarters staff. What would it be called? The Watch Tower of March 1, 1909, explained: “The new home we shall call ‘Bethel’ [meaning, “House of God”].”

“Newspaper gospelling,” as it was called, gained momentum after the move to Brooklyn. But it was not the only way of reaching masses of people.

Expanding the Proclamation of the Good News

In 1912, Russell and his associates embarked on a bold educational venture that was far ahead of its time. In fact, it was to reach millions of people worldwide. It was the “Photo-Drama of Creation”—a combination motion picture and slide presentation, synchronized with musical recordings and phonograph-record talks. It was about eight hours in length and was presented in four parts. Besides the regular “Photo-Drama,” the “Eureka Drama,” consisting of either the recorded lectures and musical recordings or the records plus the slides, was also made available. Though it lacked motion pictures, it was successfully presented in less densely populated areas.

Imagine the historic scene: In January 1914, during the era of silent movies, an audience of 5,000 gathered at The Temple, a building on West 63rd Street, in New York City. Many others had to be turned away. The occasion? Why, the premiere in New York of the “Photo-Drama of Creation”! Before the audience was a large motion-picture screen. As they watched—and listened—something truly amazing happened. C. T. Russell, then in his early 60’s, appeared on the screen. His lips began to move, and his words could be heard! As the presentation continued, it took those in attendance—by means of words, color pictures, and music—from earth’s creation to the end of Christ’s Millennial Reign. During the presentation they also saw (by means of time-lapse photography) other things that astounded them—the unfolding of a flower and the hatching of a chick. They were truly impressed!

By the end of 1914, the “Photo-Drama” had been presented before millions of persons in North America, Europe, New Zealand, and Australia. The “Photo-Drama” certainly proved to be an effective means of reaching masses of people in a relatively short period of time.

Meanwhile, what about October 1914? For decades Russell and his associates had been proclaiming that the Gentile Times would end in 1914. Expectations were high. C. T. Russell had been critical of those who had set various dates for the Lord’s return, such as William Miller and some Second Adventist groups. Yet, from the time of his early association with Nelson Barbour, he was convinced that there was an accurate chronology, based on the Bible, and that it pointed to 1914 as the end of the Gentile Times.

As that significant year approached, there were great expectations among the Bible Students, but not all that they expected had been directly stated in Scripture. What would happen?"

Answer 2

Knowledge: #1 ( John 17:3 )
"Importance of sharing?" : ( Matt. 24:14; 28:19,20)
All through the ages ( even the Dark Ages) there have been true Christians preaching and disseminating knowledge, in spite of the Catholic Church's insistence of public ignorance of the Bible. Stephanus; Wm. Tyndale; The Walldences; and many more groups and individuals under the radar ( or trip wire ) kept the flame of Jesus' TRUE teachings alive and SPREADING. It is historical record that it was under the threat of a burning death, ( or even WORSE ), that these courageous souls extended themselves out of love for their fellow. Thousands were "concentrated" by Hitler for the very same. They warned a deaf world and became targeted.
Recent history has proven a resurgence of accurate worship has grown in the last two centuries. A few dozen; it doesn't matter who; formed a group in Pittsburg, Penn. to see, STRICTLY, what the Bible ( the BIBLE, not the CLERGY) had to say on all matters scriptural. By setting aside the presumptions of tradition ( which Jesus warned against), they discerned that hellfire was a lie, the falacy of the doctrine of the immortal soul was too, there should be no payed clergy class, and much more. Highly significant is their accurate understanding in 1879 that 1914 would mark the "beginning of the time of the end". Historians as Arnold Toynbee later came to recognize the outbreak of world war in that year to have marked a complete end of peace on earth. Indeed, our planet has seen barely over a month ( - 40 days) without an armed conflict somewhere at any given time since then.
Fulfillment of prophecies has demonsrated that we are living in the last days fortold by scripture.
The prophecy of Matthew 24:14 is being fulfilled by only one group.
The "knowledge they love" is NOT theirs to give. It's YOURS to learn!

Answer 3

An individual among Jehovah's Witnesses recognizes that the primary issue facing humankind does not concern his personal salvation. Instead, a true Christian is primarily concerned with glorifying God and Christ, and working in harmony with divine purposes.

Jesus patiently helped his followers to understand that divine purposes must remain the primary focus by the priorities he demonstrated in the "Lord's Prayer". The first four priorities:
1. God's name
2. God's Kingdom
3. God's will in heaven
4. God's will on earth

(Matthew 6:8-10) Do not make yourselves like [the nations], for God your Father knows what things you are needing before ever you ask him. “You must pray, then, this way: “‘Our Father in the heavens, let your name be sanctified. Let your kingdom come. Let your will take place, as in heaven, also upon earth.

Answer 4

you do no longer understand extra in regards to the history of Jehovah's Witnesses than we do yet you valuable act such as you do judging through your comments. you're saying we've the backside retention fee of any prepared faith? Now you're calling us a "faith" while in simple terms the day in the previous as we communicate you noted as us a "cult"? Make up your innovations. Cult or faith? what's your source for having the flexibility to declare that we've the backside retention fee? And who're those in many situations making claims that the Jehovah's Witnesses do no longer understand their history? You throw distinctive meant aspects asserting this and that yet every physique could make statements that misinform the readers. Apostates in many situations go away out innovations as a fashion to reason the readers to question or advance suspicion? you in simple terms do no longer sound like a satisfied guy or woman. you come off sounding like a disgruntled guy or woman. You exhibit the fault finding spirit of Dathan, Korah and Abirum and all of us understand what occurred to them. Even devil raised doubts interior the backyard of Eden while he puzzled Eve through asserting, " Is it so as that God has mentioned....?"

Answer 5

History of Jehovah's Witnesses http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Jehovah%27s_Witnesses

Christian refutation of Jehovah's Witnesses:
http://www.carm.org/witnesses.htm

Answer 6

Start here:

http://www.premier1.net/~raines/offshoot.html

Answer 7

its in wikipedia!

Answer 8

The Jehovah’s Witnesses are quite forthcoming about their religious beliefs. Their religion, unlike Mormonism, isn’t an esoteric one with secret doctrines known only to an initiated few.

When Mormons come to your door, they don’t tell you that they believe in many gods, that Jesus and Lucifer were "spirit brothers," and that dark skin (in the case of blacks, Indians, and Hispanics) is
supposedly a curse from God in punishment for wickedness. If they told you such things up front, you’d close the door immediately. Such teachings are saved for initiates. Thus, Mormonism is an esoteric religion (Webster: "esoteric: designed for or understood by the specially initiated alone").

The religion of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, on the other hand, is exoteric (Webster: "suitable to be imparted to the public"). They’re happy to tell you up front exactly what they believe, and they tell you not just when at your door, but in their publications.

In their booklet entitled Jehovah’s Witnesses in the Twentieth Century, for example, may be found a chart titled "What Jehovah’s Witnesses Believe." This chart list beliefs and the supposed scriptural authority for them.

Let’s examine some of the beliefs, which are peculiar to the Jehovah’s Witnesses. (In this tract we give scriptural passages from the Revised Standard Version, a sound Bible translation that is recognized by Catholics and Protestants alike as one of the most accurate and dignified English translations of Scripture. Bear in mind that the Witnesses’ use their own "in-house" Bible called the New World Translation (NWT), though it is regarded by Greek and Hebrew scholars as an extraordinarily poor and highly inaccurate translation. There are many places where it is not faithful to the Hebrew and Greek, especially where the text fails to support and often openly contradicts the Witnesses’ peculiar doctrines. In addition, the five members of the translation committee for the NWT completely lack credentials as Bible scholars. Four of them never studied the biblical languages, and the fifth studied non-biblical Greek for a short period.)


Is Christ God?



1. "Christ is God’s Son and is inferior to him." Given in support of this position are these verses: "And lo, a voice from heaven, saying, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased’" (Matt. 3:17). "I proceeded and came forth from God" (John 8:42). "If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I go to the Father; for the Father is greater than I" (John 14:28). "I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God" (John 20:17). "The head of every man is Christ, the head of a woman is her husband, and the head of Christ is God" (1 Cor. 11:3). "When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things under him, that God may be everything to every one" (1 Cor. 15:28).

At first glance these citations seem imposing. It does seem that Christ is inferior to God the Father in some sense. But the New Testament also has verses which clearly show Christ and the Father to be equals. For example, there is John 10:30: "I and the Father are one." Or, "He who has seen me has seen the Father" (John 14:9). Or, "All that the Father has is mine" (John 16:15). Or, "The Jews sought all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the Sabbath but also called God his Father, making himself equal with God" (John 5:18). Or, "[Jesus], though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped" (Phil. 2:6). These seem to contradict the other verses.

How do we make sense of all this? By keeping in mind that Jesus is both God and man. Some verses, such as these last five, refer exclusively to his Godhead. Others refer to his humanity. So far as he is God, Jesus is equal to the Father. Christ’s human nature, though, is created and is therefore inferior to the Father. But to focus on this aspect of Christ to the exclusion of his divine nature is a gross misunderstanding of who and what the Bible says Jesus Christ is. Other verses cited by the Witnesses, such as Matthew 3:17, show merely that Christ is God’s Son, not that he is inferior (in fact, John 5:18 shows that being God’s Son is being equal to God).


Was Christ Created?



2. "Christ was the first of God’s creations." Verses cited by Witnesses in support of this claim include: "He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation" (Col. 1:15). "And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ‘The words of the Amen [Christ], the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation’" (Rev. 3:14).

In the first of the two verses, Witnesses think that "first-born" implies succession and inferiority. But the title "first-born" refers to Christ’s place as the chief and unique Son of God (cf. Rom. 8:29).
Further, the Greek of this verse can also be translated as "the first-born over all creation," as in the New International Version of the Bible.

Regarding the second verse from Revelation, it’s hard to see how it helps the Witnesses at all. It merely says Christ was the source of creation. This implies Christ is divine, since God created everything.

The fact that there was no time when the Son did not exist is indicated in John 1:1–3: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made." This passage also shows that the Son is not a creature because all created things were made through him, and no created things were made except through him.


Hell No, We Won’t Go?



3. "Wicked will be eternally destroyed" (that is, no hell, just annihilation). Verses given in support: "Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels . . . And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life" (Matt. 25:41, 46). (The NWT renders Matthew 25:46 as "And these will depart into everlasting cutting-off, but the righteous ones into everlasting life." This is one example of many where the NWT distorts the text to suit the Witnesses’ beliefs.) "They shall suffer the punishment of eternal destruction and exclusion from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might" (2 Thess. 1:9).

You can see for yourself that these verses actually prove the opposite of what the Witnesses teach that is, they prove the existence of hell. This is compounded when Revelation says of the damned: "And the smoke of their torment goes up for ever and ever; and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name" (Rev. 14:11). If they are not given any rest, day or night, then obviously they are still around to experience torment.


No Blood Transfusions!



4. "Taking blood into the body through mouth or veins violates God’s laws." The Jehovah’s Witnesses are perhaps best known to other Americans as people who won’t allow themselves or their children to have blood transfusions. In fact, they will go so far as to allow a loved one to die rather than accept a transfusion, as they believe transfusions are a gross violation of God’s law. They support this notion with these verses: "Only you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood" (Gen. 9:4). "You shall not eat the blood of any creature, for the life of every creature is its blood" (Lev. 17:14). "For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from unchastity" (Acts 15:28, 29).

There are several problems with interpreting these verses to mean that transfusions are forbidden, not the least of which is the fact that the context is referring to animal blood, not human blood. Moreover, there is a great difference between eating blood and receiving a life-giving blood transfusion. Eating blood was wrong because it profaned the life of the animal. But for a person to willingly share his blood intravenously in order to share life with someone does not profane anything. Indeed, even ultra-Orthodox Jews, who strictly observe the Old Testament kosher laws, recognize that blood transfusions are not prohibited by the command not to eat blood.

The Witnesses must avoid other problematic passages that deal with God’s prohibition of eating blood because these passages include a prohibition against eating fat. Witnesses do not believe eating fat is wrong, and would see no problem at all with someone munching on fried pork rinds (i.e., deep-fried pieces of pig fat) or sitting down to dinner and enjoying a nice fatty cut of prime rib. But their vehement opposition to eating blood, when contrasted with their approval of eating fat, presents a serious problem for them. Why? Because Leviticus, the book they go to in order to substantiate their prohibition of eating (and receiving transfusions of) blood, contains, in the same passages, prohibitions against eating fat.

Consider these examples: "It shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations, in all your dwelling places, that you eat neither fat nor blood" (Lev. 3:17). "The Lord said to Moses, ‘Say to the people of Israel, You shall eat no fat, of ox, or sheep, or goat. The fat of an animal that dies of itself, and the fat of one that is torn by beasts, may be put to any other use, but on no account shall you eat it. For every person who eats of the fat of an animal of which an offering by fire is made to the Lord shall be cut off from his people. Moreover you shall eat no blood whatever, whether of fowl or of animal, in any of your dwellings. Whoever eats any blood, that person shall be cut off from his people’" (Lev 7:22–27).

These verses and others like them are difficult for Witnesses to explain, given that they lean heavily on the prohibitions against eating blood. It’s totally inconsistent to maintain that God’s "perpetual statute" against eating blood must be observed, while his "perpetual statute" (that appears in the very same context) against eating fat can be safely ignored. On this subject, as on many others, the Witnesses are highly selective and must ignore much of the Bible in order to make their beliefs seem "biblical."

Also, the Old Testament dietary laws simply don’t apply to Christians today (cf. Col. 2:16–17, 22), and the ones given at the Council of Jerusalem passed into disuse as Jewish conversions to Christianity became uncommon toward the end of the first century and the Church became mainly Gentile. They weren’t immutable doctrines, but disciplinary rules.


No Clergy!



5. "A clergy class and special titles are improper." In support of this position, Witnesses refer to these verses: "I will not show partiality to any person or use flattery toward any man" (Job 32:21). "But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brethren. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called masters, for you have one master, the Christ" (Matt. 23:8–10). "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you; but whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave" (Matt. 20:25–27).

These verses simply show our Lord was saying we shouldn’t give to men credit for what really comes to us from God the Father and that his followers should be willing to serve. But Jesus shouldn’t be understood in a crassly literal way. If Matthew 23:9 were taken that way, you’d have trouble finding a title for the man who married your mother.

Furthermore, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul called himself the father of the church he founded in Corinth: "For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel" (1 Cor. 4:15). He also referred, under divine inspiration, to Timothy as "my son" (1 Tim. 1:18, 2 Tim. 2:1), but if he could call Timothy "my son" then Timothy could call him "my father," so long as he didn’t confuse Paul’s fatherhood with the kind of Fatherhood God has (Matt. 23:9).

The Witnesses also ignore Scripture’s teaching concerning the authority of Church leaders and the appropriate honor that’s due them because of their office: "Respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and...esteem them very highly in love because of their work" (1 Thess. 5:12–13), "Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor . . . " (1 Tim. 5:17), and "Obey your leaders and submit to them; for they are keeping watch over your souls, as men who will have to give account. Let them do this joyfully, and not sadly, for that would be of no advantage to you" (Heb. 13:17).

In summary, then, understand that the Witnesses’ use of the Bible typically involves two main problems. First, they quote passages out of context, highlighting only those verses which appear to support their beliefs, while ignoring others which contradict those beliefs. Second, their own NWT often distorts the text so as to support their beliefs. Be wary, then, when the Witnesses come to your door.


NIHIL OBSTAT: I have concluded that the materials
presented in this work are free of doctrinal or moral errors.
Bernadeane Carr, STL, Censor Librorum, August 10, 2004

IMPRIMATUR: In accord with 1983 CIC 827
permission to publish this work is hereby granted.
+Robert H. Brom, Bishop of San Diego, August 10, 2004

Peace and every blessing!