1974 Special Meetings

NeonMadman

As we all know, Armageddon was just around the corner in 1974. At the District Conventions that year, it was announced that there would be two special meetings during the month of September; one would be for interested people (e.g., Bible studies, family members, inactive, etc.), and the other would be for baptized publishers. These were to be held in place of the Service Meetings for the two weeks, IIRC. In the September KM, there were two letters provided that would be handed out to the attenders at each meeting. This provision was intended to seal in our minds the closeness of Armageddon. It was hoped that people who had been hanging onto the org without making a commitment would now 'get off the pot,' as it were, and that those already in the org would work ever harder trying to get people saved before Armageddon hit, any minute now. Anyway, I was digging through some old JW stuff a few days ago and found copies of the letters. Thought you folks might enjoy reading them.

A Letter From People Who Care

To All Dedicated Servants of Jehovah

Je.suis.oisif

Awesome. Many thanks NeonMadman.

Finkelstein

I remember the stirring up the WTS. did in propagating that the world is going to end very soon, bringing all sorts of anxiety and anxiousness to myself and most other JWS at the time, unfortunately even influencing ones to commit suicide. Two in my town of about 200 witnesses.

Magnum

Thanks. Just downloaded. Valuable addition to my JW material.

millie210

In the first link - the one for interested people. on the second page in the right hand column near the top (at the start of the second paragraph) it says if you are afraid to go out in service dont be......

"No one is going to insist you do anything in the congregation you dont want to do..."

I had to laugh and shake my head at that!

ToesUp

Looks like they used fear and guilt in 1974. Same crap, different day!

Phaedra

The shell game. Too bad we invested our lives in this.

stuckinarut2

Oh they are so priceless...

Thanks for uploading!

If the society just changed the date, they could re-issues these for a new (overlapping) generation!

Keep the Intensity and hype up! Keep the FOG (Fear, Obligation, Guilt up!

freddo

Nice catch, Neon!

And perhaps surprisingly you can find these letters on the WT CD-ROM. Certainly for 2014 anyway. They are there in all their glory in the August 1974 KM. Including:-

(italics theirs)

"... we do know that God's judgment is to be executed within the lifetime of the generation that saw the beginning of the "last days." Jesus Christ said: "This generation will by no means pass away until all these things occur." (Matt. 24:34) Accordingly, the generation of people that witnessed the events of 1914 C.E. is the one that will also see the "great tribulation." Already nearly sixty years have passed. Those persons who were at an age of understanding in 1914 are diminishing in numbers. ..."

Note the "age of understanding" which of course made all of us back then believe that the very last of the generation would have to have been born well before 1914.

If we take age 10 as a minimum "age of understanding" then of the generation that would by "no means pass away" there are only forty verified people alive in the world born on or before Jan 1st 1904* as of February 13th 2016.

If we take age 13 as a minimum then there are only four born on or before Jan 1st 1901*.

*According to wiki's List of verified oldest living people.

Finkelstein

Its somewhat comical and ironic that a religion like this got started by corn ball disingenuous late 19th century religious charlatans but there you have it.

I wonder why Jehovah choose the most corrupt disobedient men or organization as his earthly publishing house ?

Jesus clearly made instructions in how to define false prophets and what to do when you come across them ???

1974 Special Meetings

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