Another WOL "Gem"

thinker

First a quoted post from W.O.L. :

Why we sometimes adjust our beliefs
When a watchman is posted on the watchtower, he must report all perceived approaching threats. Sometimes poor light or distance makes accurate reporting difficult or just plain impossible at first. However, if the watchman waits until he is CERTAIN of all the facts, it will probably be too late to sound a warning that will save lives. So an ongoing report of changing conditions is necessary. The effective watchman does not worry what people will think if he has to revise his report. He knows that lives are at stake. If he waits until the arrows are coming over the wall, lives will be lost.
So with God's true servants today. Many will ask us: "Does truth get 'truer'"? Of course not! It is just seen more clearly as "the light gets brighter" and the day draws nearer. We must report as conditions change, and too bad what people think if we have to adjust our report.

A story told in very general terms can seem quite reasonable, but let's see what happens when we add a few "minor" details:
There was once a watchman who's job it was to protect the inhabitants of the castle. One day the watchman tells everyone that the pyramid in the distance was made according to God's plan. A few years later, he says it's really Satan's stone. On his daily rounds, the watchman passes by the infirmary and tells the patients suffering from appendicitis and typhoid that worms are the real cause of their problems. Years ago the watchman told of an important visitor who would be coming to the castle. When no one came, the watchman told everyone that the visitor was here, but invisible. The watchman built an addition onto the castle, so that the visitor's dead friends would have someplace to stay when they came back to life. Time and time again the watchman wakes the inhabitants with shouts of "The world is coming to an end !!!" And nothing ever happens.
Now, the king was a kind and patient man, but even he had his limits. The watchman is now a court jester. There are still those who believe every word the jester utters and this amuses the king to no end.
And they all lived happily ever after...The End
thinker

Edited by - thinker on 30 January 2001 8:43:22

Edited by - thinker on 30 January 2001 8:46:17

JT

YOU ARE SICK!!!!!!!!!

smile

but I loved every word of it- you guys had to be the life of all the jw parties-

it is so funny to see how we can at least look back at our life in WT and Laugh

"Court Jester"

you are bad --i can old Karl Klein before he died being the court jester

smile

i love it

JT

Gozz

Thinker,
Are those words from the Watchtower?

"The sons of Adam are made from dust, if not humble as dust, they fall short of being men".

JAVA

Time and time again the watchman wakes the inhabitants with shouts of "The world is coming to an end !!!" And nothing ever happens.

thinker, thinker, thinker; there you go thinking again. When will you ever learn Jehovah gave the thinking-license to the Watchtower Society? Here's how it really works:

Everyone knows the Watchtower Society has failed in all their ends-time predictions; this fact alone makes them the true religion. You see, Jehovah is a Zen Master and He teaches by not teaching. We see by not seeing. The light of truth is found in its darkness. In 1914 the Great Zen Master found one religion always getting it wrong, thus the Watchtower Society has the license on "the Truth" until they get something right. If history repeats itself, that might never happen, thus truth remains the same.

Glad I could help by not helping, and remember, by leaving I am here for you.

JAVA, working the Coffee Shop territory without a watch.

Edited by - JAVA on 30 January 2001 10:48:9

thinker

Gozz,
the quote is from someone at Witnesses Online.

amicus

thinker, Gozz-
The quote is from the evil slave...er, I mean the WTBTS. I remember it from the mid '90's. Perhaps someone out there with the CDROM will provide the reference?

eyes_opened

Hi amicus, did some searching and here is one that is close: It is from the 8/15/97 WT

13 In the meantime, we do well to heed the direction given by the 'faithful slave.' (Matthew 24:45) For over a hundred years, the modern-day "slave" has faithfully served as a "watchman." (Ezekiel 3:17-21) The Watchtower of January 1, 1984, explained: "This watchman observes how events are developing on earth in fulfillment of Bible prophecy, sounds the warning of an impending 'great tribulation such as has not occurred since the world's beginning' and publishes 'good news of something better.'"-Matthew 24:21; Isaiah 52:7.

14 Remember: It is a watchman's job to call out "just what he sees." (Isaiah 21:6-8) In Bible times a watchman would sound a warning even when the potential threat was too far in the distance to be clearly identified. (2 Kings 9:17, 18) False alarms surely occurred back then. But a good watchman would not hold back out of fear of embarrassment. If your house was on fire, how would you feel if the firemen failed to appear because they figured it might be a false alarm? No, we expect such men to respond quickly to any sign of danger! In a similar manner, the watchman class has spoken out as circumstances seemed to warrant doing so.

15 As events develop, though, our understanding of prophecy has become clearer. History shows that rarely, if ever, are divine prophecies fully understood before their fulfillment. God told Abram exactly how long his seed would be "an alien resident in a land not theirs," namely, 400 years. (Genesis 15:13) Moses, however, offered himself as deliverer prematurely.-Acts 7:23-30.

16 Consider also the Messianic prophecies. In retrospect it seems crystal clear that the Messiah's death and resurrection were foretold. (Isaiah 53:8-10) Yet, Jesus' own disciples failed to grasp this fact. (Matthew 16:21-23) They did not see that Daniel 7:13, 14 would be fulfilled during Christ's future pa·rou·si'a, or "presence." (Matthew 24:3) So they were almost 2,000 years off in their reckoning when they asked Jesus: "Lord, are you restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?" (Acts 1:6) Even after the Christian congregation became well established, erroneous ideas and false expectations continued to crop up. (2 Thessalonians 2:1, 2) Though some occasionally had mistaken views, Jehovah undeniably blessed the work of those first-century believers!

17 Today's watchman class has likewise had to clarify its views from time to time. Can anyone doubt, though, that Jehovah has blessed the 'faithful slave'? Besides, viewed in context, are not most of the adjustments that have occurred relatively small? Our basic understanding of the Bible has not changed. Our conviction that we are living in the last days is stronger than ever!

"One Persons Heresy Is Anothers Truth"

eyes_opened

Oh, and for all those JWs out there who think that the WTBTS doesn't think that only Jehovah's Witness are going to make it through armageddon, check out this gem from the 9/15/88 WT:

JEHOVAH'S "watchman" is speaking God's message right now. Are you listening? Your very life depends on your responding to that message with appreciation and action. Soon, 'the nations will know Jehovah' when he sanctifies his holy name by destroying this wicked system and preserving his people. Do you hope to be among them? (Ezekiel 36:23; 39:7; 2 Peter 3:8-13) You may be, but only if you listen when Jehovah's "watchman" speaks.

Yikes! Sounds like that's what they meant!

"One Persons Heresy Is Anothers Truth"

amicus

eyes_opened
Thanks for the time you spent on this research.
I shouldn't have made my comment without proof. I should have said "I remember reading something very similar to that.". What you found is close, but I believe I read something much closer to the WOL statement. It could have come from a public talk outline? The WTBTS has a lot of proprietary information that isn't available to the public or even the rank and file.

Gozz

Amicus, I had the same feeling. It sure sounded like a quote from the Watchtower. Thinker, thanks for the search.

These comments, they're averse to reason. God's mouthpiece raising a flase alarm? I'm getting more and more discomfited. Those guys at the writing department, where do they train them? And then JWs are to take their words as the law of God. Someone's said this before at witnet, a lot of those men will have a personal accounting to do. I fail to understand the motivations for those things, it's unbelievable they can't see reason. There's something locked in the minds of those who write such things. Who wknows what it is?

Another WOL "Gem"

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