JW perception of Armageddon's Iminence

by FirstInLine 20 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  FirstInLine

  I am wondering How iminent did Armageddon seem when you were JWs? How iminent does the WTS feel it is today?

  I recall that for me it seemed that it could happen at any moment. It always seemed to be on the verge of happening. I couldnt imagine graduating highschool. That was way too far out, even though I was only about 13. There was no way armageddon wouldnt be there by then. I remember seeing "Back to the Future II" which took place like 25 years in the future. I would be like 35 then. I remember thinking we didnt have a chance of making it to 2015. I am finding out Time moves very fast. I was 18 like yesterday. But that was 6 years ago.

  I specifically recall one elder's expectations he gave right before the thoecratic ministry school. He said "It probably won't come tommorrow but it could. I would say most likely it will happen in 2-5 years. Anything after that and its very iminent." I would say he finally hit the end of his rope. This was in like 1992. So it has been 12 years since armageddon was about 2-5 years out. I cant imagine why Jehovah would not alter his plans to go along with this man's schedule. I wonder if the WTS society is ever going to come out with a statement of somesort saying

  "Ok folks we are all out of ideas. We have no clue when or if ever this armageddon thing is coming. We were pretty sure that the 20th century would be the end. We said it with brazen assumptions, it is true. We are in it for the long haul now, we have come too far to quit on the destruction of nearly the whole human race to give up hope."
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  blondie

  I think the imminence of Armageddon among JWs is influenced by what is going on in their country and/or in the news. 9-11, the war in Iraq, earthquakes, SARS, MCD, floods, forest fires, people in the US being called up and coming home regularly in body bags. When things die down, the "sense of urgency" dies down.

  The time period between 1966 and 1975 included famine, the cold war, Vietnam, demonstrations, etc.

  Blondie
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  Hunyadi

  As I have stated before, I was born and raised in the org. Armageddon was always around the corner and I was never suppose to have grown up, gotten married or even have children in this system of things. Because the end was always very close, I was cheated out of my youth just like so many other JW kids I knew. The GB lies. We all know that.

  HEY WT SOCIETY! You arrogantly f---'d me out of my childhood, my confidence, my education, my God-given talent, my ability to be a better provider for my children, whom you helped me and my fanatical JW x-wife and her fat slob of drunken husband to screw up with your lies and "new light". My mother and my grandmother spent their entire lives devoted to your bullshite and they died very exhausted and lonely . . . they were more devoted to the org than most of the minions holding positions in the congregations and they were shunned and put off constantly. You will answer to the creator of whose interests you claim to serve for all of your lies and deception.

  Corvin
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  OHappyDay

  In fairness, it should be said that this is not just a problem or failing of Jehovah's Witnesses. The New Testament makes it clear that Christians have expected the return of Christ almost from the moment he went away, and that they expected the End in their days...and almost every era since the First Century. They were all disappointed.

  Somewhere along the way, Christians decided, perhaps to keep their sanity, to just live the best life they could, and to leave the End in God's hands.

  Jehovah's Witnesses have not yet appreciated the wisdom of this. But how long can the boy cry "Wolf!" and no wolf appears, before people just lose interest and stop listening?
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  garybuss

  I was 22 when Fred Franz wrote that 1975 was "IT". It was a feeding frenzy. Being raised in the group, I foolishly trusted them just like I trusted my parents and school teachers. I came away from it all much more cautious, I'll tell ya that much:-)
  
  I think it's a dirty trick to shun me because they were wrong, but when I questioned them about it, that's what happened.
  
  GaryB
  
  
  
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  blacksheep

  I think that as a child/teenager (when my youth was wasted by being raised a JW), I personally NEVER thought it was coming. It was too ludicrous. Of course I never said that until I was out. I was never convinced of it. I suspect that many other witnesses don't either, but that's just my opnion.
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  Number 6

  Hi all,

  Back in 1982 when I was a mere 12 year old, a group of us were sitting round after the book study discussing how soon ?it? might be. The general consensus was that it was ?real soon? but a few short years at most away.

  My stepfather then chipped in with this comment. ?I tell you all here tonight. If we are all sitting here in the year 2000 then I will have some serious thinking to do, because obviously by then we would know it could not be true!? He said this in all seriousness secure in his own mind that what he was saying was never going to happen, and indeed the nods and smiles of the mindless drones also in the room re-enforced that view. Namely that of course we were never going to wait as long as the year 2000 and how silly to even think such a thing.

  When I see my mother and stepfather now I just see burnt out hollow shells of their former selves. Of course they cannot see that they have been sold a dud. They still live for the hope of ?any day now.?

  I recently repeated my stepfather?s comments back to him and all he could come back with was a feeble ?well we don?t serve for a specific date and we must have faith that the end will come soon?.

  They are going to go to their graves mindless tired and lonely old people.

  How sad.

  I HATE you Watchtower for the hurt you have caused my family.

  Craig
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  blacksheep

  One of the few precise memories I have is sitting in the KH for a Sunday public talk; it was around 1980. I distinctly remember the speaker--actually a fairly smooth young guy, not alientating at all, say this: What would you do if you found out Armageddon wasn't coming until 5 years down the line? In other words, 5 years was a m-a-j-o-r stretch of their perception of how long it would take for Arm. to occur. I remember thinking: 5 years? That's it? That's the time frame in the JW minds that would the outmost edge of it's likely occurance? They MUST keep up the "just around the corner" attitude. As I have been out for a while, I have not been privy to their new techniques to keep everyone on their toes.

  Disaster's just around the corner is yet another sign of a very dangerous cult.
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  seedy3

  I remember in the mid 70's how urgent it was suppose to be, if you tink about it they came out with the "Truth" book in 68 so that people cold get streamlined to getting dunked. People were leaving their earthly goods to the WT because their children wouldn't need them when they grew up, because we would already be in the "New System". Often they sold all their goods to go into the full time preaching work, because the time was urgent and in just a couple of years the "New System" would be here and worldly goods would be of no use. I often wonder about the ones that did that, and think about how they are getting along now that they are pennyless and living on welfare or S.S. Because building for a future was nonsence because it would be useless in the "New System". College was stupid, it was nothing more then satanic influence and to go was shameful, it was a waste of time as the education you got would not be of use in the "New System". So now what you have is a bunch of middle aged Dubs, with an average of less the a high school Diploma.

  Most Dubs say "The Watchtower never said that 1975 was the end" Well partly true but only partly, they never said it was, but surley they did promote it as the end. I remember sitting around before the Book Study one night and they were talking about President Nixon stating the all famous phrase "We truly have peace and security inour world" when he decided to pull allthe toops out of Vietnam and sign a treaty with the North. It was like WOOOO did you hear him say that, WOW the end is truly near, it has to be very very very soon!!. I remember the talks at the large assemblies and how they pushed the 1975 date to suggest "Look 1975 is approching, we MAY not have much time left!" but don't take that as a prediction, just a suggestion, but give us you earthly belongings so we can do more preaching work to make more people to give us more of their earthly belongings to make more............................ Sheesh what a sham. I'm sure they will be pushing the 2034 date in the future, it only seems logical to have another urgency date to bring in more dupes, but I'm sure they will do the same as 1975 and never really come out and say it directly, just suggest it strongly.

  Seedy
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  Hunyadi

  ?I tell you all here tonight. If we are all sitting here in the year 2000 then I will have some serious thinking to do, because obviously by then we would know it could not be true!?

  Your step-dad hit it right on the head.

  I use to see that look of weariness in my mother's face often. She had been df'd for having a relationship with a worldly man, and she was working toward her reinstatement. Two weeks before her reinstatement she said to me, "I no longer care if I make it or not, I just wish Armageddon would get here . . .". The night of her reinstatement she was killed by a drunk driver as we left the Kingdom Hall.

  She had waited soooooo long for the promises of the GB. She went from hell to breakfast, and I love that about her. I could tell that she had lost faith in the promises tho.

  Corvin