Hi all. I have taken the time to transcribe part of the public talk given at the DC. It was interesting because it basically said the Witnesses used the bible to fortell the fall of the Axis Powers in WWII. Now when I first heard the speaker say it - my ears perked up. I was like that's such a specific claim for a public talk - anybody in the public would certainly fact check what he said and if proved wrong or twisted it would really make them look bad.
After the talk I asked some others if they caught that. I basically said, "you guys heard him say that right? - that we foretold that the Axis Powers would lose WWII?" They said at first, 'no that's not what he said - he just said the witnesses would come out victorious.' I was like 'no - he said that we (JWs) said the Nazis would lose and the Allied forces would win - and that we said that before it happened.' -
Later I asked someone I knew who was working on the program if I heard right. He said yes -absolutely - the talk said that and so did we. I could've talked to the speaker but this was someone just as knowlegeable about the talk outline. Now when I pressed him if we actually proclaimed the Axis Powers would fall in WWII he said we probably didn't use the term 'Axis Powers' but likely pointed to the King of the North (which was wierd because I always thought the King of the North was Russia - which was part of the Allied forces??). This was a bit different explanation than that given in the talk as transcribed below.Below it says the reason we knew was because of Revelation claiming that the Anglo-American power would prevail. (Too bad that wouldn't have worked so well for Viet-Nam).
Now I know some have already addressed the rise of the UN and how weak the claim was as made last year at the DC - but this is something that I have never heard before. I don't remember reading it in Daniel bookstudy or Revelation Bookstudy. Worse, I feel it might be one of the most blatant attempts at re-writing history that I've ever seen. So here it is: Thanks to Yknot for uploading the talk.
"I would imagine that many of you were thinking and have used the point too, that the bible is accurate in the sense of prophecy. That is what sets it apart really, from everything else. And you’re right. But we’re not going to talk about old prophecies; we’re going to talk about one that happened within your lifetime for many of you.
And this is one that took place near the end of the second world war. And that was before the second world war ended, Jehovah’s Witnesses knew from their study of the scriptures, that the Axis powers made up of Hitler, Germany, and also Japan and Italy – they would lose the war.
This was based upon their understanding of Revelation chapter 17:9,10 where it mentions there would be only 7 world powers and the 7 th one, the Anglo American one, was in existence.
And also they used the scriptures to see that what had been formerly known as the League of Nations, would go out of existence temporarily but would come back in a very similar form. And in that talk given in 1942, “Peace Can it last” – right during the second world war, it mentioned that fact, that there would be a ‘uniting of nations’ – they didn’t say the ‘United Nations’, they said a ‘uniting of nations’. Some of you have read that before. So they were in understanding of that.
Heimlich Himmler, who was one of the henchmen of Adolph Hitler, and was head of the Nazi SS, once bragged that the Witnesses would give in, they would capitulate. Now at the end of the Nazi regime, he was on the run. And when he was fleeing he encountered brother Lubke at Harzwalde, and asked him, “well Bible students, what happens now?” [speaker says this attempting to mimic a German accent]. His regime had fallen apart and he was an outlaw. He was on the run. Well brother Lubke gave him a thorough witness and showed that Jehovah’s Witnesses had always reckoned with the collapse of the Nazi regime and with their own deliverance. Well Himmler turned away and not too long after that he committed suicide by poising himself.
Interestingly enough, another German who was an SS officer, a former SS officer, and this was right after the war, was contacted by Jehovah’s Witnesses who gave him the Booklet, “Peace Can it Last?” and it was written in German. He sat down and read it. And he told his wife, “look this was written in 1942, three years before the war ended. And here they said exactly what was going to happen. These people used the Bible to do this. They must know something. I want to find out.” And he became one of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Now you can read about brother Lubke’s experience in the 1974 yearbook on page 211 and the experience of this other German officer who we just talked about in the 1995 Awake, Jan 8 th issue page 13. Modern day fulfillment of prophecy."
What, if any, reference could a believing Witness use to show that there is any truth to this? And of course on the other hand - what references should those wanting just the truth look to see what the WT was really saying in regards to the Axis Powers and WWII?
