I can't say much out of fear of getting caught, but I overheard a JW I know on the phone with a friend talking about "how close we are to the end." Yeah, yeah, I know. We've been on the brink of Armageddon for well over a century, but what struck me about this particular instance was what she said next.
She informed her friend that someone she knew (a CO or something similar, by the sound of it) had given her a little hint at what the big talk at the next annual convention (or assembly? Sorry, I get them confused and don't remember what she said) would be about. Apparently the title of said talk is going to be "This Is It!"
Does anyone here recall attending talks of a similar nature in years or decades past, where the belief was that the Great Tribulation was finally imminent? Did they talk about what to expect, (i.e. Revelation 8:13 means this and this will happen) or what steps to take in order to prepare and ride it all out?
This Is It?
by Nevuela 39 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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Nevuela
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Nathan Natas
Let me point you to a free download of
"Visions Of Glory: a History and a Memory of Jehovah's Witnesses" by Barbara Grizzuti Harrison
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Nathan Natas
I'll be back in a few minutes after I find what I want to show you...
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Nathan Natas
page 282:
"For those who remain Witnesses for ten, twenty, or thirty years - preoccupation with
Armageddon growing with the passing time - each year provides at least one occasion
for refreshment, one source of sweetness: the communal tenderness that is so lacking in
dreary local congregational meetings is at evidence at large conventions of Jehovah's
Witnesses, and particularly at international conventions."
I'm still looking for the thing I'm looking for...
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Nathan Natas
Ah! Here it is! (Page 283)
"Even when something is anticlimactic, at a large convention, it is made to feel, at least in
retrospect, climactic - as, for example, at Yankee Stadium in August, 1950, where the
Witnesses were reminded of the old belief that God’s faithful - Abraham, Joseph, David
- would rise from the dead before the end of the world. This aroused tremendous
expectations, which were heightened by the speaker, F. W. Franz, when he suggested
that among those gathered together were the "Princes of the New Earth."
The spectators were roused to tears by the prevailing excitement, expecting to see these
biblical figures. Some stood up; others rushed to the entrance near the speakers' stand,
where they would have a better view. The speaker quieted the crowd and then compared
the new Jehovah's Witnesses to those of old. In effect, he assured them that they were the
new princes, those who had turned their backs on a world slated for doom and who must
persevere in going forward to build the New Jerusalem.
Forward, indeed. This was, in fact, a denial of a previously cherished and defended
belief, couched so as to make conventioneers feel that something had been added unto,
not taken away from, them. David didn't pop out of the dugout, and Solomon didn't
surface on the speaking stand; but Franz had thrilled his audience nonetheless. (I myself
was irritated - though I applauded as fervently as anyone else; I had a distinct sense of
having been had, and I felt guilt as a consequence. And I wondered how many coronaries
Franz had occasioned by his initial provocative remarks. And from some of the
mutterings I heard as I left the Stadium that night, I I deduced that others were irritated
as well, though not, perhaps, as guilt-stricken as I was for allowing myself to feel vexed.)"
My point is that this happened 68 years ago in 1950. Franz was the Watchtower's "Wizard of OZ," hiding behind his cloak of sanctimony, he uttered bald-faced LIES to gullible true believers.
The Watchtower still LIES to the flock, but today's LIARS don't have the phony gravitas that adorned Franz.
Barbara Grizzuit Harrison is as special to me as RAY Franz (Freddy's nephew) is to many XJWs today. Barb's book came out as I was exiting the WTB&TS, and it gave me the encouragement of knowing I was doing the right thing, even though it was not easy. I had the opportunity to speak with BGH before she died and I thanked her for the help she had given me.
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snugglebunny
For you, Nathan: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gY75dw64sqI
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Nathan Natas
So far, the ONLY advantage of getting OLD (I'll be 70 in the summer) is that I can remember things that happened before many of you were born. I hope my memory holds up for a few more years and I prove to be an ancient worthy of your appreciation. Then I will follow my fathers into dust, and the next OLD GUY will have to step up.
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Nathan Natas
THANKS, Snugglebunny, but I DID find it, in less than an hour!
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Diogenesister
Nate My point is that this happened 68 years ago in 1950. Franz was the Watchtower's "Wizard of OZ," hiding behind his cloak of sanctimony, he uttered bald-faced LIES to gullible true believers.
The Watchtower still LIES to the flock, but today's LIARS don't have the phony gravitas that adorned Franz.
Brilliant!
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Listener
Thanks Nathan, I remember reading about that just the other day.
They really love to stir up their followers, almost into a frenzy at times. It keeps them excited and with the feeling that the FDS is providing them with important information.