Is it true that 95% of JWs still believe the door was closed in 1935?

by 1914BS 17 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  civicsi00

  This has been my experience with my family, as far as doctrinal matters are concerned:

  -My dad (now deceased) after 1995. I believe that the Generation caused him to stop attending. But he still went took us to all the conventions, so I think he still believed in all the crap. Up until he passed away in 2000, he thought the end was "just around the corner".

  -My mom still believes the 1914-Generation doctrine that was taught for over 50 years. Even after I showed her the 1995 article, she still believes it. This is mainly due to her father (my grandpa), having been born in 1913 or 1914, is still alive and breathing. So to her, she thinks the end will come before he passes away. Oh yeah, and she still thinks the preaching work is for separating the sheep and the goats.

  -I'm the oldest sibling, and the next sibling down is my sister who is a Witness and believes whatever the next Watchtower teaches her. That's it.

  -After her is my youngest sister, and I've shared with her a lot of "apostate" things. I want her to realize what the Watchtower really teaches before she tries to get baptized. She's doing well, but she's conflicted because she still lives at home with my JW mom. She's still trying to grasp everything I've taught her, but before I started telling her everything, she barely knew anything.

  -My brother-in-law (who married my first sister) didn't know that the Watchtower teaches that Michael the Archangel is Jesus. He didn't know that the Watchtower claims they were picked in 1919 as the only true religion. He didn't even know that Jesus wasn't the mediator for the great crowd! But he is pretty gung-ho about being a Witness and going door-to-door.

  I'll be honest. I didn't know much about anything when I started researching. Even though I was a Witless for most of my life (until recently), I never took the time to study all of the old crap. And the old crap never gets brought up anyway, so I was plain ignorant. The one thing I'll never understand is how full-grown adults can accept all of the changes that have occurred over the past decades. I'll never understand that... I guess when you think that the Watchtower is truly guided by God, you're willing to accept anything.
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  no more kool aid

  I have to say I never thought about it until I read CoC and until I saw a site about the new GB members who are annointed and in their late 50's. I don't know where I was! What was I thinking about? I do remember the stir about the new light in 1995, I was in the midst of raising a very small child (brain dead) and the one time I did ask about it, I got"where else are you going to go ? If armegeddon was never going to come, would you live your life any different? Those comments just shut me up for a while and I kept going. Who has time to study when you are getting ready for all the meetings and service? Blondie, I have never given it a second thought that Jesus mediates the 144,000 only! It is really laughable that I was pushing something down my kid's throats that I don't even understand.
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  jwfacts

  I find that many jws still don't grasp the change away from the 1914 generation that occurred in a study article in 1995 and was further "clarified" I think in 1997.

  I feel the same. JW's don't want to accept that those born prior to 1914 may all die out before the end comes. Neither do they want to accept that the calling did not close in 1935. To do so admits that Armageddon may not be just around the corner. JWs are conditioned to need Armageddon to come, not to think that they may grow old and die in this system.

  Though the GB have deemed these changes necessary (since even they seem to recognise Armageddon is not coming any time soon), to admit it creates great Cognitive Dissonance for the average JW, something they do not want to consider.
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  independent_tre

  This may be slightly related to this topic ( how JW's treat 1935), but I really don't understand what this daily text was getting at. I even asked an elderette what were they were trying to say with this teaching, and her reply was.."I don't know, but whatever the slave feeds us, I'll accept it even if I don't understand it". Here's the text, taken from the Friday, January 4, 2008 daily text [ Examining the Scriptures Daily]:

  "Happy and holy is anyone having part in the first resurrection." - Rev. 20:6. When did the first resurrection begin? In a vision, the identity of the "great crowd" was revealed to John by one of the 24 elders, and these elders represent the 144,000 joint heirs with Christ in their heavenly glory. (Rev. 4:4;7:9 -15; Luke 22:28-30) Since John was still a man on earth when the elder spoke to him, John must represent anointed ones on earth. Thus, it seems that resurrected ones of the 24-elders group may be involved in the communicating of divine truths today. The correct identity of the great crowd was revealed to God's anointed servants on earth in 1935. If one of the 24 elders was used to convey that important truth, he would have had to be resurrected to heaven by 1935 at the latest. That would indicate that the first resurrection began sometime between 1914 and 1935. w07 1/1 2:5, 10, 11

  - I'm sure folks read this shrugged their shoulders and read the next daily text the next day. That seems to be the jw norm when you come across some doctrine that really seems new or foreign....FYI - Just when you thought the WTS was trying to become more mainstream and move away from numerology and dates
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  flipper

  I agree with Sir 82 and Darth Frosty- 95 % of JW's don't know what they believe as they change their version of " new light " so often- just like you change your clothes. So the rank and file are in a constant flux as to what to believe. This frustrated me 5 years ago bfore I got out- I'd ask an elder a question and I could get a completely different answer on any number of subjects in their views on it. No consistency- even the elders are confused
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  justhuman

  I back up Mr Flipper...JW's DON'T have a clue what they believe..END OF STORY

  When I went through the Judical Comitee for apostasy I asked them: If Russell and Jo are consider apostates since their "light" it is completely different from the one we preach now?

  The answer was we are progressive Organization, and we MUST wait on Jehovah to REVEAL that light trought the Org....

  So JW'S don't care what they believe since they have become a CLUB that the ONLY thing to do is to accept WT as God's mouthpiece
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  independent_tre

  You should have asked them to show you where in the bible this "progressive" theory about God's "sole channel" is...
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  ex-perfectdaughter

  Since John was still a man on earth when the elder spoke to him, John must represent anointed ones on earth. Thus, it seems that resurrected ones of the 24-elders group may be involved in the communicating of divine truths today.

  1 Tim 3:5 : For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, a man Christ Jesus.