How exactly did J.F.Rutherford wrest control for himself over the Watchtower Society?

by Terry 26 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

  • Band on the Run
    Band on the Run

    I want to express my admiration for the recent entries to this thread. It is a complex problem for me. I only know Nathan Knorr WT which is not Bible Student time. In my private life, I must let many outrages pass b/c vindication is not worth the price of a lawyer. Control of resources, such as cash, communication, property, etc. does make a big difference. Sometimes I am too analytic in legal reasoning - the sign of a large law firm where clients are more than willing to pay all costs and fees.

    I am curious whether Rutherford was so outrageous in those days. Perhaps many saw him as a good thing. A little bit of legal experience might seem substantial if a group is run by non business types. Russell has strange ideas but so do we all. Control started with Rutherford. To be candid, I can even identify with a strong leader wanting to cut corners for more efficiency. I wonder what would have happened if Rutherford lost in the end. Would there be a Jehovah's Witnesses, as we now know it.

    People did not like him. Yet he had to have support.

  • Apognophos
    Apognophos

    Yes, JFR must have been popular with some. That quote at the end from Johnson (who is quoting an unnamed individual) indicates that JFR had a likeable side when he wasn't 'being a lawyer', by which I think he really meant 'being a bully using his lawyerly training' (no offense, BotR :-)

    I think the area where he most relied on popular support was when he was voted in as the obvious choice for President (even if that didn't indicate affection for him, just respect). The bylaws that gave him greater power were apparently approved by a naive Board, and then he replaced the rebellious Board members with friends, so at that point he no longer needed majority support.

    One interesting part from Johnson's testimony (at the time his muscular arm was grabbed by JFR) was that:

    At this Bro. Martin started to hoot at me, and was joined in by quite a number of Bro. Rutherford’s sympathizers. So greatly were the feelings of the majority, myself among them, outraged by this exhibition of rowdyism that they left the dining room.

    He is saying that the majority was not in favor of JFR at that place and time. However, according to Wikipedia, a referendum of subscribers in 1918 gave JFR 95% of the vote. I think it's safe to say that he who had the Society had the reader's support. The average reader knew nothing of JFR's personality and simply assumed that the Lord was with whomever was already in control (who was elected, after all).

    Interesting aside: I see no references to the divine name anywhere in the 1917 publications "Harvest Siftings" et al. It doesn't seem that Bible Students made frequent reference to it back then.

  • Terry
    Terry

    A number of peculiar events, opinions and repercussions attend Rutherford's advent as the sole dictator of the Watch Tower society.

    Rutherford was clearly of the opinion Romans 13.1 was defunct by 1914.

    This, in turn, he viewed as license to express contempt where previously "subjection" was called for.

    How J.F.Rutherford, President of the Society, got away with his false prophecy about 1925 is a VERY PUZZLING question!

    J.F.R.'s sermons, books, tracts and such wrapped MILLIONS NOW LIVING WILL NEVER DIE into a bundle ending with 1925.

    Why would those millions never die? Because 1925 was the beginning of the resurrection which is another way of saying the Millennium.

    These statements--IF they were from the actual Living God--would not prove false.

    IF they failed to come to pass---(which they surely did fail to do)--disqualifies Rutherford as an "anointed" faithful and discreet mouthpiece!

    If we line up all the things which prove Rutherford an illegitimate and Evil Slave we have a Q.E.D.

    1.He wrested complete control of the Society into his own hands so that he could dominate the theology of the "Truth."

    2.He predicted definite outcomes based on definite dates which did not come to pass.

    3.He broke Federal law and landed the Directors in prison and brought the Society into disrepute, thus, blaspheming Jehovah as well.

    4.He urged German Earnest Bible Students and Jehovah's Witnesses to ignore Nazi laws which resulted in extraordinary persecution.

    5.He urged all other JW's to flout any laws of the land which constrained them. In turn, he and Covington and Moyle would select among

    the cases which ones to fight before the Supreme court. This agitation for law-breaking increased public hatred and persecution.

    The Governing Body does does nothing but excuse his human rights violations, false prophecies and Bad Light later replaced.

    In 1929 Rutherford published his wrong interpretation of Romans 13.1. After his death, in 1962, it was changed back again--WITHOUT ANY EXPLANATION GIVEN!!

    The Governing Body loved the idea of using the phony" MILLIONS NOW LIVING" countdown aspect, they tore it away from the original context (bound to 1925) and used it to pump up expectation for a REPEAT of 1925 fifty years later for 1975's fiasco.

    The Society was WRONG TWICE with the same lie.

    These things should be enough for any sane person to recognize the illegitimacy of Jehovah's Witnesses as a valid religious denomination--much less the only TRUE religion.

  • LogCon
    LogCon

    m

  • berrygerry
    berrygerry

    Interesting history.

  • Letmeknow
    Letmeknow

    Very interesting history. Terry, you nailed it. Thanks for your input in this thread. What you wrote makes a sense.

  • dropoffyourkeylee
    dropoffyourkeylee

    Thanks, I must have missed this way back ten years ago. I’ve read a few of PSL Johnson’s books. He was definitely ‘out there’ with all kinds of strange ideas. I remember him applying some scriptures in types and anti- types to him and Rutherford, with Rutherford always the bad guy of course.

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