Better quality pictures of Beth Sarim from 1931

by cabasilas 10 Replies latest watchtower bible

  • cabasilas
    cabasilas

    Recently a friend sent me some better quality pictures of Beth Sarim from Rutherford's era. These are from the 1931 Messenger that was published by the Watchtower Society for the convention in Columbus, Ohio (the same convention that adopted the name "Jehovah's Witnesses.") These pictures show how Beth Sarim looked as Rutherford moved into it. This 1931 Messenger has been made into a PDF and is making the rounds on the Internet. One place to download a PDF (about 17 MB) of the entire 1931 Messenger in PDF format is at:

    http://www.sendspace.com/file/0yju2o

    My friend helped me obtain JPEG files from this Messenger and these are now uploaded to Wikipedia. Here are some links to the pictures. Note that these pictures are not the full resolution, but are previews. The full resolution can be seen by clicking on the picture at the following pages.

    Beth Sarim from the West Side. This shows a unique view of Beth Sarim that reveals how large the mansion actually was. This is the side that looks over the canyon. You don't realize how big the mansion is when you look at pictures taken from the street side:

    http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Beth_Sarim_1931.jpg

    Beth Sarim from the East Side:

    http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Beth_Sarim_East_Side_1931.jpg

    Rutherford posing on the outside stairs at Beth Sarim:

    http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Beth_Sarim_Outside_Stairs.jpg

    The pond behind Beth Sarim (this was before the pool was built):

    http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Beth_Sarim_Pond.jpg

    Rutherford relaxing by the fireplace at Beth Sarim:

    http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rutherford_Beth_Sarim_Fireplace.jpg

    Also from this Messenger is a larger picture of JFR and his Cadillac:

    http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Judge_Rutherford_Cadillac.jpg

    Several of these pictures can be seen at the Wikpedia article on Beth Sarim itself:

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beth_Sarim

  • Homerovah the Almighty
    Homerovah the Almighty

    Thanks for posting those up !

    It really goes to show what a deliberate scam the WTS. is and was. Personally I think Rutherford thought as himself as one of the ancient worthies

    of prestige and honor and therefore sought it suitable and proper for him to live with such luxury and comfort.

    Doesn't this stereotypically follow in suite to religious cult leaders and how they somehow end up with the riches gathered up by the

    people to whom they conversely culled toward them and at many times laying waste to their own personal lives.

    Religion can and will bring power and wealth into hands who aggressively pursue it.

  • cabasilas
    cabasilas

    There's one other picture of Rutherford from that era posing with his Cadillac in front of Beth Sarim:

    http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rutherford_Beth_Sarim.jpg

    The quality of this picture is much poorer, however. It appears to be from a newspaper article. Perhaps someday someone will find a better copy of this picture.

    It's utterly amazing that Rutherford could pose with a 16 cylinder Cadillac in front of a mansion during the Great Depression! What's even more amazing that many of the JWs of the time bought his explanation that he was just a "caretaker" for the Old Testament "princes"!

  • cabasilas
    cabasilas

    I was able to extract the text about Beth Sarim from the 1931 Messenger. This is how they sold it to JWs at the time:

    THE MESSENGER, SATURDAY, JULY 25, 1931 

    Beth-Sarim — Much Talked About House in San Diego

    The House of the Princes


    Somebody Paid a Hundred Thousand
    Dollars for Advertising the Resur-
    rection of the Old Testament
    Saints. But Not Us.
    Ccme Again, Reporters




    no use in expecting men to exercise faith
    when they do not have it. At the present
    time there is only a handful of people
    in the world who really know that the
    Bible is the Word of God. Since the
    Bible is the Word of God, then we may
    depend upon it that it was especially
    written for us who are living just now,
    when Satan's organization is slipping
    down into the abyss from which it will
    never arise.

    God has a people in the earth at this
    time. These people are his people, and
    not the Devil's people. They look like
    other men; but they are not the same.
    They are governed in what they do by
    the Word of God. Their desire to do
    God's will as they find it recorded in his
    Word is the all-consuming passion of
    their lives; it means more to them than
    all else in the world put together.

    We know who the people o£ God are.
    They are, collectively, God's "faithful
    and wise servant" in the earth at this
    time. Collectively this "servant" goes
    to make up the Watch Tower Bible &
    Tract Society. There is no other "ser-
    vant," God does not have fifty-seven
    or even two different ways of doing his
    work in such an hour as this.

    It is the positive conviction of the "ser-
    vant" that the Watch Tower Bible &
    Tract Society is being used and will be
    used by the Lord to proclaim God's name
    and Word and his judgments in the earth
    and to help God's people, both those who
    are free and those who are in the Devil's
    cages, to grasp the blessings and to see
    the duties and privileges of the hour.
    Judge Rutherford, president of the
    Watch Tower Society, is one of the hard-
    est-worked men in the world. Anybody
    can be a Christian in peace-time, but
    Judge Rutherford was one of the war-
    time Christians; and, for daring so to
    be, went to Atlanta Penitentiary under
    four sentences of twenty years each.

    When he emerged he was in poor physi-
    cal condition, and even now has the use
    of but one lung. Since his return from
    Atlanta, prudence and good common sense
    dictated that, working as hard as he con-
    stantly works, he should have the bene-
    fit of the most equable winter climate to
    be found. It is a matter of com-
    mon knowledge among meteorologists
    (weather experts) that San Diego, Cal-
    ifornia, is as near perfection for a win-
    ter climate as it is possible to get. About a
    a quarter of a million people besides
    meteorologists have made the same dis-
    covery and make the city their winter
    home.

    For years after he emerged from
    prison, Judge Rutherford went to San
    Diego to work during the winter months,
    renting such quarters as could be se-
    cured. His physician, Dr. A. G. Eckols,
    of San Diego, urged him to make the
    city his permanent winter home; and in
    the latter part of the year 1929 some
    brethren, out of their own personal funds,
    arranged for the erection of Beth-Sarim,
    "the house of the princes," of which sev-
    eral illustrations appear in this issue.

    Before Judge Rutherford would ac-
    cept and use the home, he insisted upon
    writing the deed that it shall forever be
    held in trust by the Watch Tower Bible
    & Tract Society for the use of the Lord's
    work in the earth, with the expectation
    that in due time Abraham, Melchisedec,
    Joseph, Moses, Joshua, David, Isaiah or
    some others of the patriarchs or proph-
    ets of olden times will appear and will be
    glad to use this home which has been
    prepared for one or more of them in the
    western edge of the new world.

    The climate is the same as that of
    Palestine. The place is planted with
    date and palm trees, such as would be
    familiar and pleasing sights to these
    men. On the part of Judge Rutherford,
    the dedication of this home to God's
    work and for the use of these men was
    a simple act of faith. To a few news-
    paper men this exhibition of true faith
    in God and in his Word has seemed to
    give occasion for a little display of semi-
    mirthful incredulity; but for the most
    part the newspapers have treated the
    item with dignity, and the story of Beth-
    Sarim has gone around the world, con-
    veying to millions of people the thought
    that shortly David and others will no
    doubt be awakened from the sleep of
    death.

    Whatever the motive of the newspaper
    men, their action resulted in giving free
    world-wide publicity to a Bible truth, the
    resurrection on earth of the faithful
    Old Testament saints, publicity such as
    would have cost the Society thousands
    and thousands of dollars.

    Another feature, an ominous one for
    those caught in Satan's toils, is that the
    "evil servant" class, instead of being
    glad to see the preparation for and the
    use of adequate equipment for doing the
    Lord's work, seem to have the spirit of
    Judas when he said, "Why was not this
    ointment sold and the proceeds given to
    the poor?"

    The record shows that Judas cared
    nothing about the poor. What he really
    wanted was to get his hands on that
    money for himself. And the reason he
    wanted it for himself was not so that he
    could use it to the glory of God. His
    thought in the matter was wholly selfish,
    wholly indefensible. And the Judas
    class are like Judas himself. They are all
    of the same stripe.
    One permanent location to download the 1931 Messenger (complete with pics)
    is at:
    http://www.archive.org/details/1931MessengerBethSarim
  • jwfacts
    jwfacts

    Hi Cabasilas, thanks for the scan. I have purchased more space now at jehovah.net.au and loaded it at http://jehovah.net.au/books/1931_Messenger.pdf for a permanent home.

  • rebel8
    rebel8

    Wow, I will put these to good use, thanks

  • cabasilas
    cabasilas

    jwfacts and rebel8, you're welcome!

    For those who have Google Earth, try typing in "Beth Sarim San Diego" and you can see a picture of Judge Rutherford in the backyard!

  • VM44
    VM44

    Thanks cabasilas. Great work!

    Whatever the motive of the newspaper
    men, their action resulted in giving free
    world-wide publicity to a Bible truth, the
    resurrection on earth of the faithful
    Old Testament saints,
    publicity such as
    would have cost the Society thousands
    and thousands of dollars.

    Why was that a Bible truth in 1931, but not now?

  • VM44
    VM44

    Cabasilas,

    Do you know where it was published that the Beth Sarim's caretaker's son (Balko?) would be an office boy when the ancient worthies would be resurrected at Beth Sarim?

    Was that contained in another issue of The Messenger?

    Looking at this issue I wonder about all the people in the 1930's who came to listen to Judge Rutherford. All that time and energy. It almost looks like a cult centered around "The Judge" himself.

    What did it get all those people?

  • cabasilas
    cabasilas

    Hi VM44!

    The part about the Balko's kids ("Princess Bonnie" and "Prince Joseph Barak") is from a later issue of the Messenger, dated July 30, 1931. From what I understand, there were 5 issues of the Messenger for that convention. The 12 page PDF is from the first two issues.

    For those interested, the article about the Balko kids (named "Princess" and "Prince") -- their parents were caretakers at Beth Sarim -- can be found in this earlier PDF (lower quality scans) at:

    http://www.catholic-forum.com/members/popestleo/1931_Messenger_Beth_Sarim.pdf

    That name Balko is so familiar. When I was at Bethel in the mid-70s I remember a guy who had that last name. I wonder if he was related to the Balkos who were mentioned in this Messenger article?

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