Thought Control (A simple test for JW's)

by TD 143 Replies latest jw friends

TD

In George Orwell's novel 'Nineteen Eighty-Four' the capitulation of the principal protagonist is portrayed in his willingness to assent to the proposition that two and two make five. Once he had denied objective reality, his mental conquest was complete and he was no longer truly the master of his own mind. Nineteen Eighty-Four is in many ways, a very depressing read.
A charge commonly leveled at Jehovah's Witnesses is that the type of mind control envisioned by Orwell has been and continues to be used on them. The Orwellian World of Jehovah's Witnesses is actually the title of a book authors Heather and Gary Botting published through the University of Toronto Press in 1984.
Jehovah's Witnesses don't appreciate this at all and vigorously deny it, but a lingering question remains: If you were no longer the master of your own mind, would you actually be aware of it? How would you even know?
Since we have at least three active Witnesses currently participating in the discussions here, I propose a simple test of a mathematical nature. This will be your chance, served up on a silver platter to shut the critics up and prove that you are not the victims of Orwellian double-think.
Below are four pairs of quotes from JW literature. After each pair are three choices. Simply read the quotes and select the choice you think best describes them.
(1)
"Why then, do the nations not realize and accept the approach of this climax of judgment? It is because they have not heeded the world-wide advertising of Christ's return and his second presence. Since long before World War I Jehovah's witnesses pointed to 1914 as the time for this great event to occur." (The Watchtower June 15, 1954 p. 370)
"We would like to correct this misapprehension once for all, by stating that we do not expect Jesus to come this year, nor any other year, for we believe that all time prophecies (bearing upon Jesus' coming) ended at and before the fall of 1874, and that He came there, and the second advent is now in progress and will continue during the entire Millennial age." (Zion's Watch Tower May 1881 p. 5)
A. The first quote is contradicted by the content and date of the second quote
B. There is no contradiction between the two quotes
C. Not sure
(2)
"As far back as 1879, the publishers of this magazine pointed to the year 1914 as a marked year in Bible prophecy, as the starting point of what the Bible calls the time of the end." (Awake! October 8, 1972 p. 15)
"There are two important dates here that we must not confuse, but clearly differentiate, namely the beginning of the time of the end and of the presence of the Lord. The time of the end embraces a period from A.D. 1799, as above indicated, to the time of the complete overthrow of Satan's empire and the establishment of the kingdom of the Messiah. (The Harp of God (1921) p. 231 See page 236 in 1927 and later editions)
A. The first quote is contradicted by the content and date of the second quote
B. There is no contradiction between the quotes
C. Not sure
(3)
"Similarly, a prophecy providentially caused sincere 19th-century Bible students to be in expectation. By linking the seven times of Daniel 4:25 with the times of the Gentiles, they anticipated that Christ would receive Kingdom power in 1914. (The Watchtower September 15, 1998 p. 15)
"The year A.D. 1878, being the parallel of his assuming power and authority in the type, clearly marks the time for the actual assuming of power as King of kings, by our present, spiritual, invisible Lord the time of his taking to himself his great power to reign." (Thy Kingdom Come (1891) p 307)
A. The first quote is contradicted by the content and date of the second quote
B. There is no contradiction between the quotes
C. Not sure
(4)
"Today, Jehovah's Witnesses point to the sign given by Jesus and look back upon 1914 as the year when his invisible presence in Kingdom power became a reality. But how could they have had advance knowledge of such a momentous event? Not because of extraordinary human wisdom. No, but because they have prayerfully studied the Scriptures, heeded God's prophetic word and paid more than usual attention to what God's Son foretold. (The Watchtower April 1, 1984 p. 16)
"Bible prophecy shows that the Lord was due to appear for the second time in 1874. Fulfilled prophecy shows beyond a doubt that he did appear in 1874. Fulfilled prophecy is otherwise designated the physical facts: and these facts are indisputable." (The Watch Tower November 1, 1922 p. 333)
A. The first quote is contradicted by the content and date of the second quote
B. There is no contradiction between the quotes
C. Not sure
peacedog

Nice!
Looking forward to the responses.
SweetBabyCheezits

Very nice, Mr. Norton.
My mother would fabricate a "D" choice: "I only look at the POSITIVE things about the organization!" She seriously said that to me when I presented similar contradictions and asked how these things didn't raise a red flag in her mind. I was mule-lipped. Orwellian, indeed. Avoid thought-crime at all cost.
bohm

bttt.
alice.in.wonderland

You didn't include the context of this particular article, an article that is addressing individuals confusing the misguided and unrealistic expectations of the Second Advent Church with those of Charles T. Russell and his associates:

ZION'S Watch Tower AND HERALD OF CHRIST'S PRESENCE.

C. T. RUSSELL, Editor and Publisher.

THE YEAR 1881.

"The Second Advent Church" people, and many in other denominations, interested in the Lord's coming and expecting him in the flesh, have turned their attention to 1881, and feel confident that they will see Jesus with their natural eyes this year. Their hopes are based partly upon an old rhyme called "Mother Shipton's prophecy," which concludes thus:

The world unto an end will come,
In eighteen hundred and eighty-one.

and partly upon the teachings of "The Great Pyramid" of Egypt, whose "Grand gallery" measures 1881 pyramid inches. This "Grand gallery" is supposed to symbolize the gospel dispensation, and its 1881 inches are supposed to teach that the gospel dispensation will be 1881 years long, and a further reason for belief in 1881, is that so many other people are expecting something. (Not a prophetic period, can be claimed, as they are all past.) Now to us, these things seem a poor and weak foundation for the hopes built upon them. Our belief that the Lord is present, is based on the "more sure word of prophecy" to which Peter said, we would do well to take heed.

The interest felt and expressed relative to this year by most of those interested in the Lord's coming, and the fact that we expect SOMETHING, has perhaps led some people, who do not understand our position, to suppose that we are looking for much the same things as others. We would like to correct this misapprehension once for all, by stating that we do not expect Jesus to come this year, nor any other year, for we believe that all time prophecies (bearing upon Jesus' coming) ended at and before the fall of 1874, and that He came there, and the second advent is now in progress and will continue during the entire Millennial age. We believe that his presence will be revealed to the eyes of men's understandings gradually, during this "Day of the Lord," (forty years--from 1874 to 1914,) as it now is to ours; except that we, discern it through the word of prophecy revealed by the Spirit, and they will recognize his presence by His judgments upon Nominal Zion, and the World--for the Father "hath committed all judgment unto the Son."

The WATCH TOWER never claimed that the body of Christ will be changed to spiritual beings during this year. There is such a change due sometime. We have not attempted to say when, but have repeatedly said that it could not take place before the fall of 1881.
In this article, Russell addressed some claims by counter movements to the early Bible students and the fact that he included “advent” in the terminology of this address is indicative of this. In this early publication, Russell maintains the same consistency (forty years--from 1874 to 1914) as future publications:

God’s Kingdom Has Approached (1973): chap. 11 pp. 186-187 par. 6 “Here Is the Bridegroom!”
In the following year (1877) Russell joined with one Nelson H. Barbour, of Rochester, New York, in publishing a book entitled “Three Worlds, and the Harvest of This World.” In this book it was set forth that the end of the Gentile Times in 1914 C.E. would be preceded by a period of forty years marked by the opening of a harvest of three and a half years, beginning in 1874 C.E. This harvest was understood to be under the invisible direction of the Lord Jesus Christ, whose presence or parousia began in the year 1874. Shortly afterward was understood to be the beginning of the great antitypical Jubilee for mankind, that had been foreshadowed by the ancient “jubilee” observances of the Jews under the law of Moses. (Leviticus, chapter twenty-five) According to the Bible chronology that was thereafter adopted, the six thousand years of man’s existence on the earth ended in the year 1872 but the Lord Jesus did not come at the end of those six millenniums of human existence, rather, at the start of the antitypical Jubilee in October of 1874. The year 1874 was calculated as being the end of six millenniums of sin among mankind. From this latter date mankind was understood to be in the seventh millennium.—Revelation 20:4.
You may want to consider the world Charles Taze Russel and the early Bible students were living in when Jehovah's Organization began developing in the latter part of 19th century. There were the perverse, hypocritical and anachronistic doctrines, practices of Christendom's churches and religions that branched off from mainstream Christianity, that for the most part carried the same theme as their counterpart:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seventh-day_Adventist_Church

Much of the theology of the Seventh-day Adventist Church corresponds to Protestant Christian teachings such as the Trinity and the infallibility of Scripture.

The restoration of true worship wasn't an easy task for Charles Taze Russel and his contemporaries. Critics of Jehovah's Witnesses often analyze the early development of Jehovah's Witnesses under a microscope for flaws without looking at the big picture.
cofty

The Great Pyramid" of Egypt, whose "Grand gallery" measures 1881 pyramid inches.
TD

Alice,
Nothing in what I said above was intended to imply that there is something inherently wrong when students of the Bible make adjustments to their eschatological views when either new information comes to light or events simply do not unfold as expected.
This test involves simple math, nothing more.
If you can spot the discrepancies then I would say that you are the master of your own mind. If you can't, then....
cskyjw.sun

1)c 2)c 3)c 4)c
Lozhasleft

Nice one TD
Loz x
The Finger

It looks like someone has been untruthful and misleading in their statements.

Thought Control (A simple test for JW's)

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