The Palliative Prophet

Michael R. Pendley

Introduction

Since the founding of the Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society by Charles Taze Russell in 1884, the Bible Students/Jehovah's Witnesses movement has declared without let up that the "last days" have arrived upon mankind with Jehovah God's cataclysmic judgement soon to follow.¹ This apocalyptic fervor is reflected by the sect's recurrent attempts to set the date for Armageddon, resulting in embarrassments in 1914, 1918, 1925, 1941, and 1975.² Although losing some followers after each prophetic misfire, the leadership has always been successful in explaining away the mistakes so that the movement has experienced remarkable growth, with more than five million adherents in 1996.³

The Watchtower Society is now embroiled in its worst crisis since the "Great Apostasy" of 1980.⁴ The current problems began in 1995, when the sect's leadership was forced to confront yet another prophetic failure, this time involving a key tenet of Watchtower eschatology. Since 1951, Jehovah's Witnesses had taught that the "generation" referred to by Jesus in Matthew 24:34 was the generation of people who were alive in 1914 (the date when Jesus returned invisibly according to Watchtower theology). It was believed that this "1914 Generation" would not "pass away" in the sense that some of these people would still be alive when Armageddon came. The length of this generation was initially held to be 40 years, but was later stretched to 60, 70 and finally 80 years to accommodate the delay in Armageddon's arrival.⁵

By 1995, however, time had finally run out on the "1914 Generation." Even using an 80-year generation (which the Society⁶ held to be the maximum length of a generation based on Psalms 90:10) and counting babies born in 1914 as the sole representatives of the "1914 Generation" yielded an obviously incorrect date of 1994. In the 1 November 1995 issue of The Watchtower, the sect's leadership resolved this dilemma by redefining the term "generation" in such a way so that it could refer to any generation at any time in the future, even a thousand years from the present.⁷

At first, this new interpretation seemed to be the long sought after solution to the date-setting follies that have plagued the sect since its earliest days. Jehovah's Witnesses could now proclaim that "the end is near" indefinitely without ever being held accountable. However, the doctrinal change has had an unforeseen negative effect among the sect's followers, most of whom had expected to survive Armageddon and enter into eternal life on a paradise earth without ever experiencing death. With the change in doctrine, it has become disappointingly apparent to many of the sect's followers that Armageddon has been postponed indefinitely.

While the leadership continues to insist that the end is imminent, the widespread disillusionment felt by the rank and file has been manifested by loss of membership and a decline in meeting attendance, proselytizing activity, and donations.⁸ Some angry Witnesses have formed underground "reform" movements, an extremely disturbing turn of events to the authoritarian Watchtower leadership.⁹ To make matters worse, observers of the Watchtower movement have subjected the sect to a barrage of withering criticism over this latest prophetic failure.¹⁰ In an apparent attempt to boost morale and restore confidence in the leadership, the sect published an article entitled "Living for Today or for an Eternal Future?" in the 15 August 1997 issue of The Watchtower.

The subject Watchtower article is divided into five sections and addresses various problems threatening the future of the sect. In the first section, entitled "Keep on the Watch," the anonymous writer¹¹ of the article makes an appeal to the membership to redouble their efforts on behalf of the Watchtower organization. This appeal is followed up by the second section, "Foundations for Belief in Everlasting Life," in which the membership is urged to stay loyal to the Watchtower Society in order to earn the reward of eternal life on a paradise earth. The third section, "In the Distant Future?" is an effort to reassure the membership that Armageddon is "just around the corner." This is followed by a section entitled "A Faithful Watchman" in which the writer attempts to show that, despite its role in promulgating false prophecy on repeated occasions, the Watchtower Society is not a false prophet and has, in fact, been a faithful "watchman" over God's flock. The final section, "Living for an Eternal Future," addresses the disillusionment felt by many Jehovah's Witnesses over the delay in Armageddon's arrival.

The objective of this paper is to critically examine the arguments presented in the Watchtower article in defense of the Watchtower Society against the charges of false prophecy and irresponsible leadership. To this end, this paper will specifically consider the following issues raised in the article: Has the Watchtower Society acted as a false prophet? Has Watchtower doctrine undergone substantive changes? Are the Society's "proofs" that the end of the world is imminent based on valid interpretation of Scripture? Should Jehovah's Witnesses feel disillusioned because their expectations have not materialized? Does the Watchtower Society bear any responsibility for misleading individuals by creating such false expectations? It will be shown that the arguments presented in defense of the Watchtower position ultimately fail when viewed in the light of Scripture, history and reason.

Keeping on the Watch

While the main body of this paper will deal with the three primary sections of the subject Watchtower article, some comments will be made here on the two preceding sections "Keep on the Watch" and "Foundations for Belief in Everlasting Life." The article opens in typical Watchtower fashion with an exhortation to the membership to increase their activities on behalf of the Society. After commenting on Paul's discourse in 1 Corinthians 15, the writer states:

Some may be tempted with the attitude, Maybe I should just slow down a bit and take things more casually.' What a mistake that would be! . . . Now, none of us can know whether our life might end unexpectedly. (Ecclesiastes 9:11; compare Luke 12:20, 21.) So it clearly is wise to keep at a high level our zeal and activity in serving Jehovah. That way will maintain our good name with him and keep living with our eternal future in view.¹²

This statement is reflective of the works-oriented salvation doctrine taught by the Watchtower Society. The individual Witness is made to feel that his salvation depends upon his level of performance in doing works on behalf of God's organization -- the Watchtower Society. During times of organizational turmoil, appeals are often made to "stay loyal to Jehovah" with the understanding that this means being loyal to the Watchtower Society.

The writer next addresses the discontent felt by many Jehovah's Witnesses over the fact that they may have wasted their lives working for a false hope. After recounting the examples of the Apostles James and John, the writer states:

When John was far advanced in years, able to look back on decades of faithful activity, did he view it as a mistake, a life misdirected or unbalanced? . . . John certainly was not living for the present, longing for a slow and calm 'normal life.'¹³

As will be discussed later in this paper, many Jehovah's Witnesses are beginning to long for that "normal life" after years of being on the Watchtower treadmill. In the section of the article entitled "Foundations for Belief in Everlasting Life," the primary objective of the writer appears to be to reassure the disillusioned Witness that the Watchtower will eventually be proved right in its apocalyptic visions. Almost as if he were trying to convince himself as well as the reader, the writer repeatedly states that the promises of the Watchtower leadership are "no fantasy":

Be assured that the hope of everlasting life is no man made dream or fantasy . . . .

. . . Everlasting life is thus the hope of all Christians. It is no fantasy but something solemnly promised by God . . . .

. . . That hope, whether of immortal life in heaven or of everlasting life on earth, is no dream, no fantasy.¹⁴

It is true that everlasting life is the hope of all Christians. The real question is whether the Watchtower vision of that eternal life is a fantasy. The remainder of this paper will address that issue.

In the Distant Future?

The first main section of the article is entitled "In the Distant Future?" and is an attempt to reassure the reader that the Watchtower Society is correct about the nearness of the end. The writer offers four "proofs" to show that we are in "the last days": (1) the "composite sign," (2) the Daniel 11 prophecy, (3) the preaching work of Jehovah's Witnesses and (4) the elderly status of the "anointed" class. The validity of each of these supposed "proofs" will be examined below.

The Composite Sign

The first evidence presented by the writer is the current state of world affairs:

The apostle Paul foretold that "critical times hard to deal with" would indicate that we had arrived indisputably at "the last days." As human society around us crumbles into a state of lawlessness, greed, self-gratification, and ungodliness, do we not realize that Jehovah's day for executing his judgements on this wicked world system is fast approaching?¹⁵

The writer here makes reference to the much-touted "composite sign" upon which the Watchtower Society bases a large part of its end times calculus. This "composite" sign is explained in the following quotations from Watchtower publications:

Concerning his "presence," Jesus gave a composite "sign" involving such developments as unparalleled warfare, earthquakes, famines, pestilences -- yes, and the worldwide preaching of the good news of God's Kingdom.¹⁶

By themselves, some features of the prophecies describing the last days might seem to apply to other periods of history. But when combined, the prophesied evidences pinpoint our day . . . These form a "fingerprint" that cannot belong to any other time period.¹⁷

The Watchtower Society maintains that the "signs of the last days" discussed by Jesus in Matthew 24 and elsewhere have been manifested in an unprecedented manner in both frequency and magnitude since 1914. A detailed response to this assertion is contained in the book The Sign of the Last Days -- When?¹⁸ by Carl Jonsson and Wolfgang Herbst. After exposing the myth of the composite sign by presenting well-documented data regarding the frequency and magnitude of wars, famines, earthquakes, pestilence and other "signs" throughout history, the authors conclude:

Consequently, any claim that our century has seen the calamities of wars, famines, pestilences, earthquakes, and so forth, on a much larger scale than the fourteenth century is not supported by the historical evidence. It shows the opposite to be true. Taken as a whole, the supposed "composite sign" was certainly more palpable in the fourteenth century than it is today . . . .

. . . Simply put, and setting aside conjecture and imagined circumstances, the reality is that our generation is no more plagued by famines, pestilence, earthquakes, war, crime or fear than other generations in the past, and in certain respects is less so.¹⁹

With respect to the specific issue of lawlessness raised by the Watchtower writer, Jonsson and Herbst state:

The evidence to support the claim that our century is experiencing increasing lawlessness worldwide "on a magnitude never before beheld" simply does not exist. To the contrary, historical studies of crime rates in specific cities, states and countries, indicate that there was often greater lawlessness in the past than today in many places. This may well have been true on an earthwide scale, in view of the fact that crime usually increases in times of famine, pestilence and war.²⁰

Besides ignoring historical facts and exaggerating current conditions to fit their preconceived ideas, the Watchtower Society is guilty of an even more fundamental hermeneutical error in that it has taken Jesus' words in the opposite manner to what He intended. Looking at Matthew 24 in context, we see that Christ was warning his disciples not to be misled by such signs. As Jonsson and Herbst explain:

Careful and discreet Bible commentators have often pointed out that Jesus nowhere identifies these events as the "sign" of his coming, but rather appears to warn his disciples not to draw such a conclusion when disasters or catastrophes of this kind take place. From the very start of his reply, his admonishment was: "Don't be misled. Don't be terrified. Such things must take place, but the end is not yet."²¹

Hence, there is no basis from either a historical or Scriptural standpoint for concluding that present world conditions prove that we are living in the end times.

The King of the North

The writer next turns to prophetic passages in the eleventh chapter of Daniel as another evidence that these are the last days:

Further, the Bible indicates that the last days are "a short period of time." (Revelation 12:12; compare 17:10.) Most of that "short period" has apparently elapsed. Daniel's prophecy, for example, accurately describes the conflict between "the king of the north" and "the king of the south" that has extended into this century. (Daniel 11:5, 6) All that is left to be fulfilled is the final attack of "the king of the north," described at Daniel 11:44, 45.²²

While Bible commentators typically identify the "king of the north" with the Selucids of Syria and the "king of the south" with the Ptolemies of Egypt,²³ the Watchtower Society has always favored more imaginative interpretations. Until recently, Jehovah's Witnesses believed that the "king of the north" represented the Soviet Union while the "king of the south" was the United States and Great Britain. B. J. Kotwall comments on the absurd predictions which the Watchtower Society once based on Daniel 11:

Additional outrageous nonsense in the Your Will Be Done on Earth (1958) book includes: The Soviet Union will gain control of most of the world and its wealth and resources including oil (pp. 297, 303). The Soviet Union will then be terrified by reports issued by the Watchtower Society and initiate an attack against Jehovah's Witnesses (pp. 304, 305). Finally, the Soviet Union and America will join forces to attack Jehovah's Witnesses which leads to the annihilation of both America and the Soviet Union (pp. 306, 307). Billions of people who are not Jehovah's Witnesses will at that time be destroyed (p. 347).²⁴

Prior to the Soviet Union concept, the Watchtower had Adolf Hitler playing the role of "the king of the north."²⁵ Kotwall comments on even earlier Watchtower interpretations of Daniel 11:

In a previous Watchtower book called The New World (1942), "the king of the north" was quite different and "included the Central Powers, or imperial Germany, Roman Catholic Austria-Hungary, Roman Catholic Italy and the Vatican . . . and Japan" (p. 324). An even earlier Watchtower book called Thy Kingdom Come (1891) applied chapter 11 of Daniel to the Napoleonic period in 1799!²⁶

With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Watchtower was forced to rethink the identity of "the king of the north." For the present, the Society has declined further speculation stating: "So who is the king of the north now?. . . We cannot say."²⁷ Despite the fact that the Watchtower admits to having no idea as to whom this enigmatic "king of the north" is, the Society would have its readers believe that some sort of "final attack" is imminent and that this is an ironclad indication that we are in the end times. Since all previous Watchtower interpretations of Daniel's prophecies have failed, it is difficult to see how the Society can contend that its current understanding of Daniel 11 "accurately describes the conflict between 'the king of the north' and 'the king of the south' that has extended into this century." Hence, the second "proof" offered by the writer evaporates even more quickly than the first.

The Preaching Work

The writer next points to the worldwide preaching work of Jehovah's Witnesses as a third proof that these are the end times:

There is also Jesus' prediction that "this good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations; and then the end will come." (Matthew 24:14) Today, Jehovah's Witnesses carry out their work in 233 lands, island groups, and territories. True, untouched territories still exist, and perhaps in Jehovah's due time, a door of opportunity will open. (1 Corinthians 16:9) Still, Jesus' words recorded at Matthew 10:23 are sobering: "You will by no means complete the circuit of the cities of Israel until the Son of man arrives." While this good news will surely be announced throughout the earth, we will not in person reach all parts of the earth before Jesus "arrives" as Executioner.²⁸

The Watchtower Society asserts that it has been granted an exclusive divine franchise to conduct a global preaching work during the end times. This proselytizing activity is considered to be a part of the "composite sign of the last days" discussed earlier. In the statement referenced above, the writer is essentially arguing as follows: since the preaching work of Jehovah's Witnesses was prophesied to be carried out during the end times, then this preaching work is a sign of the last days. This is circular reasoning and is therefore not valid evidence.

The writer attempts to inspire a sense of urgency in the reader by referencing Matthew 10:23 and warning that "we will not in person reach all parts of the earth with the Kingdom message before Jesus 'arrives' as Executioner." However, in Matthew 10:23 is Jesus really referring to the work of Jehovah's Witnesses in the twentieth century? Bible commentators usually take a somewhat broader view of Jesus' words, as illustrated in the following exposition of Matthew 10:23 by Walter Kaiser:

What, then, does the saying mean in context? It means, simply, that the evangelization of Israel will not be completed before the end of the present age, which comes with the advent of the Son of Man. The parallel passage in Mark has a similar statement, which however, takes more explicit account of Gentile as well as Jewish evangelization: before the end time, "the gospel must first be preached to all nations."²⁹

The importance that the writer of the Watchtower article places upon the activities of the Watchtower Society reflects an extremely myopic view regarding the spread of the gospel.

Jehovah's Witnesses arrogantly claim to be the only group preaching the true gospel and denigrate the work that has been done by Christendom's missionaries in spreading the Bible and the Christian message throughout the world.³⁰ The historic work of all other Christian churches and individuals in proclaiming Christ to the world is at best viewed as of no real consequence and at worst as part of a grand satanic deception. Only by ignoring the contributions of all other Christians over the past two millennia can the Watchtower trumpet its own relatively recent activities as being of apocalyptic significance.

Further, the "preaching work" conducted by Jehovah's Witnesses falls far short of the glowing description painted in Watchtower publications. Former Watchtower leader Raymond Franz makes the following comments in this regard:

Even the extent of the "preaching" is notably small. In most countries, the Witness only occasionally engages in any substantial conversation, even less frequently getting past the doorstep. In a large percentage of cases the "witnessing" involves no more than a quick offering of some Watch Tower publications. Even in the minority of cases where people allow the Witness to say more, or invite him or her into the house, what is said in the vast majority of cases could hardly be described as "teaching" and would not even remotely qualify as a 'bearing of thorough witness about repentance and faith in the Lord,' for it consists primarily and principally of a very brief consideration of one or two Bible verses followed by an offer of Watch Tower literature.³¹

In light of the above factors, it can be concluded that there is no special historical or Scriptural significance to the twentieth century preaching work of Jehovah's Witnesses.

The Little Flock

The final piece of evidence submitted by the writer is the declining number of individuals among Jehovah's Witnesses who consider themselves to be of the elite "144,000" class:

Furthermore, the Bible clearly states that it is "on account of the chosen ones" that the opening phase of the great tribulation will be "cut short." (Matthew 24:21, 22) Most of those professing to be of the anointed are quite elderly. Again, would this not indicate that the end is close at hand?³²

In order to examine this last proof, it is first necessary to explain the Watchtower doctrine regarding the 144,000 or "little flock." Briefly stated, Jehovah's Witnesses believe that there are two classes of Christians. The first class is called "the little flock" or "the anointed" and consists of 144,000 individuals who were chosen by God starting in A.D. 33. It is believed that, upon death, the 144,000 are transformed into immortal spirit creatures without physical form and enter Heaven to rule with Christ. The door to Heaven was closed by the Watchtower Society in 1935. Anyone becoming one of Jehovah's Witnesses after that date was automatically assigned to the "great crowd" of second-class Christians who are consigned to spend eternity as perfect human beings on a paradise earth. Annual reports issued by the Watchtower Society show a steady decrease in the population of "the little flock" as the mostly elderly individuals making up the group die off. Today, out of more than five million Jehovah's Witnesses, fewer than 9000 claim to be of the "anointed" class.³³ The significance to all of this lies in the fact that according to Watchtower theology, at least some of "the little flock" will remain on earth until Armageddon to direct Jehovah's organization. The argument made by the writer in the above referenced statement is therefore as follows: most of those in the "anointed" class are elderly (and therefore have short life expectancies) and since some of these will still be alive when Armageddon comes, this indicates that the end is near.

The entire foundation of this fourth proof therefore lies in the idea that there are two classes of Christians. However, this belief is without Scriptural support. As Ron Rhodes explains:

It is the clear testimony of Scripture that a heavenly destiny awaits all who believe in Jesus Christ, not just a select group of 144,000 anointed believers (Ephesians 2:19; Philippians 3:20; Colossians 3:1; Hebrews 3:1; 12:22; 2 Peter 1:10, 11). Drawing a dichotomy between those with a heavenly destiny and those with an earthly one has absolutely no warrant in Scripture. All who believe in Christ are heirs of the eternal kingdom. . . Jesus clearly affirmed that all believers will be together in "one flock" under "one shepherd" (John 10:16). There will not be two "folds" -- one on earth and one in heaven. Scripture is clear: one fold, one Shepherd!³⁴

In a similar vein, Raymond Franz states:

Despite all the intricate argumentation, it seems evident that a true Christian is a true Christian. The inspired Scriptures themselves plainly know and present no other kind. All who hear the good shepherd's voice are called on to show the same kind of faith and love, the same fruitage of God's Spirit, enjoying the same relationship with Him as sons. Two different kinds of Christian "sheep" is the product of human invention.³⁵

The idea of an elite class of anointed Christians with private tickets to Heaven issued prior to 1935 is a figment of the imagination of Joseph Rutherford. The number of Jehovah's Witnesses professing to be in such a class is therefore meaningless and so the last piece of evidence vanishes. At the end of our analysis, the writer of the Watchtower article is left empty-handed in his quest for proof to show that the last days are upon us.

Faithful Watchman or Feckless Prophet?

In the next section of the article, subtitled "A Faithful Watchman," the writer asserts that the Watchtower Society has served as a faithful "watchman" for humanity since its inception:

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 52:7.³⁶

It is interesting to note that the Watchtower Society has taken to describing itself as a "watchman" instead of as a "prophet." This has the advantage of allowing the Society to escape from the strict requirements for accuracy that Scripture places upon prophets. However, the office of "watchman" is an invention of the Watchtower Society. While the Apostle Paul talks about elders, deacons, prophets, and evangelists, the role of watchman is not mentioned in any New Testament listing of church offices. Nor is there any promise or indication in Scripture that God will raise up a last days "watchman" class to notify believers in advance of the time of the end. Such an interpretation can only be obtained through an esoteric reading of Scripture.

Rather, Jesus warned his followers that the end will come suddenly, without warning (Matthew 24:42-44) and that they were not to possess knowledge of the "day and the hour" (Acts 1:7). Hence, there is no Biblical justification for identifying the Watchtower Society or any other human or human organization as the official "watchman" for Armageddon. The use of the term "watchman" instead of "prophet" is simply a semantic ploy to enable the Watchtower Society to effectively claim prophetic authority without having to meet the standards of a true prophet. A watchman proclaims his own observations while a prophet speaks for God. A watchman may sound a false alarm due to human error but, as Deuteronomy 18:22 makes clear, a prophet of God is not allowed to make even one mistake. However, history shows that in making its prophetic pronouncements, the Watchtower Society has never presented itself as a fallible watchman but has always glorified itself as God's divinely-authorized prophet and "sole channel of communication to mankind."³⁷ Several typical quotations from Watchtower publications illustrate this self-aggrandizement:

As we study the Bible we learn that Jehovah has always guided his servants in an organized way. And just as in the first century there was only one true Christian organization, so today Jehovah is using only one organization. (Ephesians 4:4, 5; Matthew 24:45-47) Yet there are some who point out that the organization has had to make adjustments before, and so they argue: "This shows that we have to make up our own mind on what to believe." This is independent thinking. Why is it so dangerous? Such thinking is an evidence of pride. And the Bible says: "Pride is before a crash, and a haughty spirit before stumbling." (Proverbs 16:18) If we get to thinking that we know better than the organization, we should ask ourselves: "Where did we learn Bible truth in the first place? Would we know the way of the truth if it had not been for guidance from the organization? Really, can we get along without the direction of God's organization?" No, we cannot!³⁸

Consider, too, the fact that Jehovah's organization alone, in all the earth, is directed by God's holy spirit or active force. (Zech. 4:6) Only this organization functions for Jehovah's purpose and to his praise. To it alone God's Sacred Word, the Bible, is not a sealed book . . . How very much true Christians appreciate associating with the only organization on earth that understands the "deep things of God"!³⁹

Who is this prophet? The clergy of the so-called "Christian" nations hold themselves before the people as being the ones commissioned to speak for God. But, as pointed out in the previous issue of this magazine, they have failed God and failed as proclaimers of his kingdom . . . However, Jehovah did not let the people of Christendom, as led by the clergy, go without being warned . . . He had a "prophet" to warn them. This "prophet" was not one man, but was a body of men and women. It was the small group of footstep followers of Jesus Christ, known at that time as International Bible Students. Today they are known as Jehovah's Christian witnesses.⁴⁰

Therefore, more than ever before, Jehovah's Witnesses are firmly convinced of the correctness of their understanding of the meaning of world affairs since 1914. Having such conviction, they have proved to be instruments in the hands of the Most High God. They are the ones who have been charged with delivering the divine message at this momentous time.⁴¹

We will be impelled to serve Jehovah loyally with his organization [the Watchtower Society] if we remember that there is nowhere else to go for life eternal.⁴²

The Watchtower Society has always claimed exclusive authority as God's true prophet and the "sole channel of communication" between God and humanity. While occasionally stating in the "fine print" that it is not inspired, the Watchtower Society claims practical infallibility. One writer notes:

In spite of its denials of claiming to be "inspired," in practice the Watchtower Society really does claim to be inspired -- it simply uses other words to say it. According to Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, "inspire" means to "influence, move, or guide by divine or supernatural inspiration; to exert an animating, enlivening, or exalting influence on; to spur on, impel, motivate . . . quotations from Watchtower publications show that the Society feels its activities fit this definition, although it reserves the word "inspiration" for the Bible alone and uses "guidance" and "direction" with reference to itself. How are guidance and direction different from inspiration? It is a distinction without a difference.⁴³

The Society's stance of "effective inspiration" is demonstrated by the fact that individual Jehovah's Witnesses are strictly forbidden, under threat of excommunication, to make any "private interpretation" or to gainsay any Watchtower teaching. While describing itself as only a "watchman" when confronted with prophetic failure, the reality is that Watchtower Society acts as a tyrannical "thought policeman" forcing the membership to accept its prophetic ideas and other teachings as divine truth. The Watchtower policy is stated bluntly in the 1 April 1986 issue of The Watchtower:

Approved association with Jehovah's Witnesses requires accepting the entire range of the true teachings of the Bible, including those Scriptural beliefs that are unique to Jehovah's Witnesses.⁴⁴

A Vigilant Watchman?

Having claimed that the Watchtower Society holds a divine commission as God's "watchman," the writer must now, however, deal with the Watchtower's poor job performance in this role. The writer turned spin doctor next attempts to transform the Watchtower Society's embarrassing record of prophetic failure into a testimony to the vigilance of the leadership:

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.⁴⁵

The implication here is that the Watchtower leadership, acting as a "watchman," was simply following the Biblical admonition to report "what they saw" at various times in their history. Hence, even if certain prophetic declarations turned out to be "false alarms," no one should find fault since the Watchtower Society was simply acting as a good watchman and did not hold back from sounding a warning "as circumstances seemed to warrant doing so." This argument is flawed, however, on at least two grounds. First, Isaiah 21:6-8⁴⁶ is part of a prophecy against Babylon. It is not a didactic discourse on the responsibilities and limitations of those who act as watchmen, either in a literal sense or as spiritual lookouts for other believers.

Secondly, as noted earlier, there is no Biblical warrant for a "watchman" class that interprets prophecy for the body of believers. However, even if we grant the assertion that Isaiah 21:6-8 has a typological application to such a modern-day "watchman" class, it is difficult to see why any dispassionate observer, in light of the Watchtower's miserable prophetic record, would describe the Watchtower Society as a "faithful watchman." After all, it is the primary responsibility of a competent watchman to distinguish between a potential threat and a harmless situation. What would happen to an inept watchman who sounded false alarms night after night? Would he be extolled by his employer for his alertness or would be he reprimanded for his lack of discernment? Would not his employer eventually discount his warnings altogether as in the case of the fabled boy who cried "wolf"? This is precisely the unenviable situation in which the Watchtower Society now finds itself. Having admitted to sounding numerous false alarms, the sect now has a major credibility problem. As one writer has observed:

[The Watchtower Society] is forced to admit that they have only been expounding their own "man-made theories" and their own "dreams and guesses." The question now arises, if this is true about something so fundamental to the doctrines that Jehovah's Witnesses are required to believe, how much confidence can be put in all the rest of the Society's doctrinal interpretations?⁴⁷

The writer's analogy concerning the lackadaisical firemen is another attempt at excusing the many "false alarms" that the Watchtower has sounded during its history. The inference is that the Watchtower leadership, although having made mistakes, should at least be commended for maintaining their watchful stance while the rest of Christendom has been sleeping.⁴⁸

However, the analogy is misleading since the "house" has never been on fire. Despite predictions of imminent doom on the part of the Watchtower Society for more than a century, at the time of this writing the end of the world has not yet arrived. Hence, a more fitting analogy would be that of firemen who arrive without being called, chop open the front door and hose down the premises only to discover that there is no fire. And imagine this happening not once but on repeated occasions. Would the homeowner praise the bumbling firemen for being on the alert for a possible fire or would he call the mayor to demand their immediate dismissal?

In his continuing effort to excuse the prophetic errors of the Watchtower, the writer next concedes that it is difficult to understand prophecy right ahead of time:

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.⁴⁹

Inasmuch as the Watchtower organization has always glorified itself as the only group on earth having a true understanding of Biblical revelation, it is amazing to hear the Society complain that interpreting prophecy is a tricky business. This new-found awareness concerning the difficulty in understanding prophecy beforehand should serve to make the Society cautious about making new predictions, but, as discussed earlier, in this very Watchtower article the Society prophecies yet again that the end of the world is "fast approaching" and offers several supposed proofs in support of this prediction. Apparently incapable of learning anything from its past, the Watchtower Society continues to be a reckless prophet.

Moses the False Prophet

Having admitted that the Watchtower Society has made prophetic errors, the writer next attempts to minimize the offense by citing Biblical precedents in which, it is claimed, both Old Testament and New Testament believers were also guilty of making prophetic mistakes. In doing so, the Watchtower writer resorts to an ad hominem attack of the tu quoque⁵⁰ form with the targets being Moses, Christ's disciples, and the early church. Moses is the first to be taken to task:

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 7:23-30.⁵¹

The Watchtower case against Moses is as follows: In Genesis 15:13 God tells Abram that his descendants would be enslaved for four hundred years. However, as noted in Acts 7:25, Moses attempted the deliverance of the Israelites forty years ahead of schedule only to be forced to flee Egypt into exile. The implication here is that Moses had miscalculated the time when the four hundred years would be up and attempted his abortive uprising forty years ahead of schedule.

It is true that based on God's promise to Abram the Israelites would have known that the time of their deliverance was approaching. However, the Watchtower position is an argument from silence since there is no evidence in Scripture to support the idea that Moses made Watchtower-style chronological calculations to ascertain in advance when the deliverance of the Israelites was to come. We do not see Moses preaching to the Israelites that their freedom would come by a certain year. Further, there is no indication that Moses timed his actions to satisfy a divine timetable. Rather, it seems that during his visit to the Israelites' camp he reacted to an event (the attack upon a Hebrew by an Egyptian) and, perhaps motivated by the miserable conditions of his countrymen, attempted a spontaneous revolt against Egypt. In any case, Moses could not have calculated the precise date of the Israelites' deliverance in advance since the four hundred year span was apparently not an exact period of time but was a round number, as notedby Bible commentators Walvoord and Zuck:

Later, in Moses' day when the Israelites were in Egypt, they could count the years and see that 400 years had elapsed (from the time of Jacob's entry into Egypt in 1876 B.C.; cf. The chart "Chronology of the Patriarchs," near Gen. 47:28-31) and their time of deliverance from slavery was at hand (they will come out). Exodus 12:40 and Galatians 3:17 state that the Egyptian bondage was 430 years (from 1876 to 1446). Apparently, then, Genesis 15:13 and Acts 7:6, with their references to 400 years, are using rounded figures.⁵²

Hence, there is no basis for charging Moses with misinterpreting prophecy and making the sort of false predictions that have characterized the Watchtower Society.

Disciples of Error

Not content with having thrown mud at Moses, the Watchtower writer now points a finger at Christ's disciples:

Consider also the Messianic prophecies. In retrospect it seems crystal clear that the Messiah's death and resurrection were foretold. ... Yet, Jesus' own disciples failed to grasp this fact. ... They did not see that Daniel 7:13-14 would be fulfilled during Christ's future pa·rou·si·a or presence. ... So they were almost 2000 years off in their reckoning when they asked Jesus: "Lord are you restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?" (Acts 1:6)⁵³

The writer here attempts to draw a parallel between the disciples' lack o understanding and the Watchtower's false prophesying. It is true that the disciples did not fully understand the fulfillment of prophecy in the life of Jesus until after His death and resurrection, as noted in John 12:16. However, since there is no scriptural or historical evidence for the invisible return of Christ in 1914,⁵⁴ there is no basis for the writer's assertion that the disciples made a 2000 year mistake by expecting the establishment of the Kingdom in their day instead of in 1914. This is a transparent attempt to minimize the error of the Watchtower prophet. After all, if the disciples had an error of 2000 years in their eschatology, why should anyone get upset if the Watchtower Society only misses the mark by a century or two?

However, the disciples were simply asking Jesus a question. They were not arrogantly claiming to speak for God while proclaiming their own ideas about when the Kingdom would come and then condemning anyone who disagreed, as Jehovah's Witnesses have done and continue to do. Finally, it should be noted that while Jesus told the disciples that the time of His return was not for them to know, the Watchtower Society has repeatedly defied Jesus' instructions by attempting on numerous occasions to calculate the date based on their own understanding of Scripture.

The False Prophets of Thessalonica

In his third example, the writer charges the first century Christian church with a lack of discernment, continuing his deliberate strategy of equating misconceptions with false prophecy:

Even after the Christian congregation became well established, erroneous ideas and false expectations continued to crop up. (2 Thessalonians 2:1, 2)⁵⁵

It is true that some of the Thessalonians had mistaken ideas because of listening to false teachers. In his commentary on 2 Thessalonians 2:1-2, Paul Draper explains:

These Thessalonian saints had been told that the Lord was going to come back and they would ever be with the Lord. But false teachers said the day of the Lord had already come and God's judgement had already fallen. We can imagine their frustration. They thought they had been left behind. Now Paul writes to declare the truth.⁵⁶

The situation described in 2 Thessalonians does parallel the modern case involving the Watchtower Society, but not in the way that the writer intended. The Thessalonians were not guilty of proclaiming false prophecy based on their own understanding of Scripture, instead they had been misled by false teachers. It is these false teachers who typify the Watchtower Society.

Ironically, the Watchtower Society has repeated the error of the early false teachers by misleading its followers into thinking that Jesus has already arrived invisibly in 1914. Hence, an examination of the situations involving Moses, Christ's disciples, and the Thessalonian congregation demonstrates that none of these parties were guilty of making the kinds of false prophetic proclamations that have become a trademark of the Watchtower Society.

As noted earlier, having questions or a misunderstanding does not make one a false prophet. In fairness, it should be stated that the Watchtower Society is not a false prophet simply because it has done such a terrible job of interpreting Scripture, although this betrays a profound lack of knowledge and discernment. Other Christian teachers and commentators have also made serious errors in attempting to predict the timing of future events based on eschatological passages in Scripture. The reason that the Society can justifiably be called a false prophet is because it has claimed that these errant private interpretations were the Word of God spoken through the Watchtower organization as His only true prophet on earth today. Scripture views false prophecy as a very serious matter because it can cause people to lose faith in God's Word. Former Watchtower leader Raymond Franz aptly summed up the responsibility of the Watchtower leadership in this regard:

Knowing them, I am satisfied that many of the men on the [Governing] Body are sincere in the belief that they are serving God. Unfortunately, that belief is accompanied by a parallel belief that the organization they head is God's channel of divine communication, superior to all other religious organizations on earth -- a belief that gives evidence of a state of denial, in which they do not allow themselves to face the reality of the organization's flawed course and record. Whatever their sincerity in their desire to serve God, it regrettably has not protected them from a remarkable insensitivity to the potential disillusioning effect of their failed apocalyptic predictions on the membership, the weakening effect this can have on people's confidence in the reliability and worth of the Scriptures.⁵⁷

New Doctrines For Old

After attempting to excuse the Watchtower Society's record of false prophecy, the writer makes the incredible claim that any changes in Watchtower doctrine have been trivial:

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.⁵⁸

In this statement, the author of the article displays a talent for understatement. The use of the terms "clarify," "adjustments" and "relatively small" suggest that the Watchtower's belief system has required only fine tuning over the years. However, an examination of the evolution of Watchtower doctrine from 1874 to the present demonstrates that Watchtower theology has undergone a number of substantive changes so that the Society's "basic understanding of the Bible" has in fact changed many times. Raymond Franz, who authored many Watchtower publications prior to his excommunication, remarks on the magnitude of the changes:

Many religious works, such as Bible commentaries, that were written one or even two centuries ago are still in print and still counted as of genuine merit. By contrast, there are very few Watch Tower publications that were published during the first 80 years of the organization's 110 year history that are not today considered "out of date."⁵⁹

In addition to the "1914 Generation" issue discussed earlier, other examples of major doctrinal shifts include the complete abandonment of Russell's pyramidology,⁶⁰ the total reworking of Watchtower eschatology after the 1914 disappointment,⁶¹ changing views on military service,⁶² a change in the identity of the "faithful and discreet slave" from Charles Taze Russell to the Watchtower leadership en masse,⁶³ a change in church government from independent ecclesia to a hierarchal structure controlled by Brooklyn,⁶⁴ and multiple changes in the view on the relative subjection of Christians to human governments.⁶⁵ Jehovah's Witnesses have also changed their views on a host of other issues including the worship of Jesus,⁶⁶ the use of the cross as a Christian emblem,⁶⁷ saluting or possessing flags, sexual conduct between married couples, the acceptability of certain medical practices such as vaccinations⁶⁸ and organ transplants,⁶⁹ the celebration of Christmas,⁷⁰ birthdays, and other holidays, and the use of tobacco.⁷¹ Former Watchtower headquarters staff member Randall Watters makes the following comment on the scope of the changes:

Looking back to the very beginning, Charles Russell, the founder of Zion's Watch Tower, claimed that 1799 was the beginning of the time of the end, that world events in the late 1800s were directly fulfilling the "signs" of Matthew 24:3-14, that Christ had come back invisibly in 1874, and that 1914 would bring the definite end of the world. They participated in the military, celebrated birthdays and other holidays, could smoke, vote, and all were going to heaven. Yet none of these earlier beliefs are considered as "truth." Voting, military service, smoking, and celebrating holidays are now grounds for excommunication. The prophecies regarding 1799 and 1874 have been discarded, and 1914 and the "signs of the times" have been reinterpreted.⁷²

Watchtower teachings have changed so often that the Society has coined the terms "present truth" and "new light" to describe current beliefs.⁷³ Jehovah's Witnesses are discouraged from reading the Society's older publications since these contain "old light" or outdated doctrine. The changes in Watchtower theology have been so extreme that one writer has argued that Charles Taze Russell, if he were alive today, would be excommunicated for heresy by the very religious organization that he founded.⁷⁴

A Hope Deferred

The concluding section of the Watchtower article, entitled "Living for an Eternal Future," appears to be targeted primarily at long time Jehovah's Witnesses who are disillusioned by the failure of Armageddon to arrive on schedule. After assuring the reader once again that the Watchtower vision of a paradise earth is "no fantasy" and that "the realization of our hope is near at hand," the author states:

True, this system has already lasted longer than many thought it would. A few may now feel that had they known this before, they might not have made certain sacrifices. But one should not regret having done so. After all, making sacrifices is a fundamental part of being a Christian. "Christians disown themselves." (Matthew 16:24)⁷⁵

The first thing that one notes about this statement is the use of the third person in stating that "this system has already lasted longer than many thought it would." (Emphasis mine.) In keeping with its usual practice when admitting failure, the Watchtower Society avoids using language indicating that the leadership was at fault and ascribes the error to the membership at large. The truth is that the misplaced expectations as to the time of the end originated solely with the leadership since individual Jehovah's Witnesses are strictly forbidden (under penalty of excommunication) to make any private interpretation of Scripture. Further, in order to remain in good standing within the faith, an individual must accept the leadership's end times prophecies and other teachings in toto.

Another interesting observation about this statement is the writer's suggestion that only "a few" malcontents now regret having sacrificed their lives for the bankrupt fantasies of the Watchtower. In fact, it is apparent that many Jehovah's Witnesses are now having second thoughts, as indicated by the need to print Watchtower articles such as this. In another article in the same issue of The Watchtower,⁷⁶ the Society breaks with tradition and counsels Jehovah's Witnesses to buy life insurance, consider a college education for their children, and plan for retirement. Although protesting that the end is near, the Society is advising its followers to prepare as if Armageddon has been postponed indefinitely. By printing articles like this, the Society appears to be attempting to purchase insurance against a future generation of angry, disillusioned Jehovah's Witnesses.

In addition to the observations noted above, one is struck by the cynicism of the writer's statement. Many Jehovah's Witnesses made life-altering decisions based on the Watchtower's assurance that the end was near. A number of persons bowed to pressure from the Watchtower Society to delay marriage or having children until the "new order" and now endure a lonely existence.⁷⁷ Others saw no need to plan for retirement since Armageddon was so near and now face both loneliness and bleak economic prospects in their old age. Several generations of young Jehovah's Witnesses sacrificed their future career opportunities by following the admonition of the Watchtower Society to eschew a college education and devote all of their time to selling Watchtower literature and making converts.⁷⁸ The sad situation is described by former Jehovah's Witnesses Leonard and Marjorie Chretien in their book Witnesses of Jehovah:

There are some who might think that the Watchtower Society is a harmless institution, providing a few people with a meaningful view of the Bible and life. But there are tens of thousands who know better. These are people who have suffered under the harsh demands of the organization. They have watched loved ones needlessly die because of illogical health regulations. They have given up celebrations such as Christmas and birthdays. They have surrendered higher education, careers, even marriage and children, in order to devote their lives to selling literature door-to-door.

They have endured fines and imprisonment for refusing to obey certain laws of the land. Such sacrifices might be laudable when a cause is proven truthful. But such is not the case with the Watchtower Society.⁷⁹

Instead of facing up to its responsibility, however, the Watchtower Society attempts to wash its hands of the disastrous effects that its false teachings have had on people's lives. The writer asserts that such consequences are the expected lot of the Christian based on the Lord's instruction recorded in Matthew 16:24 that a true disciple should "deny himself." It is true that Christians should seek the interests of the Kingdom over those of the world. However, this fact does not excuse the Watchtower Society from failing in its role as teacher by dispensing false doctrine to the membership, especially in light of James 3:1 which warns that teachers will be held to a higher standard. Peter also warns in 2 Peter 2:13 that such false teachers "will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done."

Many individuals have devoted their lives to the Jehovah's Witness organization only to find out in their old age that there is no pot of gold at the end of the Watchtower rainbow. According to studies conducted by Dr. Jerry Bergman, a psychologist and college professor, a high state of mental illness exists among Jehovah's Witnesses which is characterized by frequent cases of paranoia, schizophrenia, arrested social development, and high rates of suicides and homicides.⁸⁰ Commenting on the root cause of these problems, Bergman states:

Many Witnesses harbor a deep-seated fear -- fueled by a long history of doctrinal reversals and prophetic failure -- that the Watchtower is a false religious organization. Since this idea has earth-shaking implications for followers of that organization, they refuse to explore their fears, preferring to rationalize or suppress rather than acknowledge and deal with them . . . The Watchtower has been wrong about almost every single prediction it has ever made, and this realization is especially traumatic when a person takes stock of what he or she has sacrificed to become a Jehovah's Witness.

The Watchtower organization once discouraged marriage and having a family, teaching that Armageddon was too close to risk having a family. In 1941 the Watchtower published a book entitled Children, showing how people can "please God" by acquiring "the right kind of knowledge," The book's purpose was primarily to convince the reader that only the Watchtower is God's organization, and it is only by following it that everlasting life can be obtained. Woven within this message is the story of John and Eunice, who decide not to marry but instead to serve the Watchtower full-time. They conclude that they will someday have children, but not until after Armageddon. "Armageddon is surely near," John said. "We can well defer our marriage until lasting peace comes to the earth. Now we must add nothing to our burdens, but be free and equipped to serve the Lord . . . Eunice, my decision is made."

Eunice and John are now in their 70's, still waiting for Armageddon, which in 1941 was prophesied to occur very soon. Witnesses who chance upon older publications can become deeply disturbed by the realization that the Watchtower had deceived and betrayed its earlier followers. Witnesses who lived during the time when these things were written have often been especially bitter because they sacrificed for what turned out to be a false hope.⁸¹

It cannot be denied that the false prophecy and bad life advice that have been dispensed by the Watchtower Society over the years have had a devastating effect on the lives of countless people. As Proverbs 13:12 states, "Hope deferred makes the heart sick." In attempting to sidestep its responsibility in this regard, the Watchtower leadership has exhibited a cynical and callous nature.

The article concludes with a standard Watchtower exhortation to the faithful to forsake personal interests and work for the objectives of the Watchtower Society. The reader is asked: "A thousand years from now, how significant will your job, house, or bank account seem?"⁸²

A much more germane question begs to be asked -- "A thousand years from now, how significant will your work for the Watchtower Society seem?"

Conclusion

In this paper the Watchtower article "Living for Today or for an Eternal Future?" has been analyzed with the objective of determining if the apologetic presented in defense of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society is credible. On the basis of this examination, it can be concluded that the justifications and rationalizations offered in defense of the Watchtower are untenable and unconvincing. This can be demonstrated by reviewing the questions raised in the introduction to this paper.

First, has the Watchtower Society acted as a false prophet? While now claiming that it has only served as a fallible "watchman," the Society's own publications show that it has repeatedly claimed exclusive authority as God's prophet to humanity during the "last days." The Watchtower leadership has steadfastly maintained that Jehovah God has been directing their pronouncements. Despite failure after failure, the Watchtower leadership has strictly enforced the acceptance of its prophetic interpretations upon the membership, subjecting any individual with doubts or questions to immediate excommunication and shunning. In addition, the Watchtower has frequently mocked all other believers as counterfeit Christians and maligned the clergy as "spiritual drunkards" and "sloths" because they have not embraced the Society's apocalyptic schemes. This arrogant attitude does not fit the image of a meek and well-meaning "watchman" but is instead characteristic of an arrogant, self-assured prophet. Only after prophetic failure does the Watchtower talk about "false alarms" and a fallible "watchman" class.

Only after the rank smell of false prophecy fills the air does the "unalterable word of Jehovah" become mere "speculations" and "opinions." Kurt Goedelman comments on this dodge:

Often false prophets when caught, try to shift the emphasis and evoke sympathy by falling back on their humanity. They would like everyone to forget the original facade and arrogance as they pretended to be the pipeline of the Holy Spirit.⁸³

The unadorned truth is that the Society, while claiming to speak for God, has made prophetic utterances which have been proven false time after time. The Watchtower Society therefore fits the Scriptural definition of a false prophet as outlined in Deuteronomy 18:22.

Second, has Watchtower doctrine undergone substantive changes? While the Watchtower leadership claims that any doctrinal changes have been minor, the Society's own publications demonstrate that the Watchtower belief structure has been torn down and rebuilt many times and is still undergoing renovation. The teachings of the Society's founder, Charles Taze Russell, are now largely repudiated and his writings are no longer recommended reading. Like the citizens of Orwell's Oceania in the novel 1984, Jehovah's Witnesses are compelled to believe only "present truth" which may be replaced by "new light" at any moment or even revert back to "old light." Hence, the claim that the doctrines of the Watchtower Society have not undergone significant changes is demonstrably false.

Third, are the Society's "proofs" that the end of the world is imminent based on valid interpretation of Scripture? In light of the Watchtower's singular record of prophetic ineptitude, the answer to this question seems obvious. The composite "sign of the last days" and other supposed evidence presented by the Watchtower Society that these are the end times do not hold up under any kind of historical or Scriptural scrutiny. Like a musician who knows only one song, the Watchtower Society continues to play its worn out Armageddon theme to an increasingly weary audience.

Fourth, should Jehovah's Witnesses feel disillusioned because their expectations have not materialized? Does the Watchtower Society bear any responsibility for misleading individuals by creating such false expectations? The wrecked lives of several generations of Jehovah's Witnesses bear abundant testimony to the Society's culpability in this regard. The membership has been called upon to sacrifice education, career opportunities, marriage, child bearing and retirement security. The faithful have suffered from social isolation due to the Society's policy of non-association with "worldly" people, including close family members. Many have ruined their health or even lost their lives through obedience to the Watchtower's bizarre medical notions. Even today, Jehovah's Witnesses are pressured to eschew a "normal" life in favor of pursuing the Watchtower's goals. The Society continues to warn that Armageddon is imminent, but after years of being misled, it is no wonder that many Jehovah's Witnesses are now beginning to examine the Watchtower's claims in a more critical light.

The overall mind set reflected in the subject Watchtower article is one of denial. Rather than accepting responsibility for besmirching the name of Jehovah by repeatedly associating the divine name with false prophecies, the palliative prophet of Brooklyn dispenses excuses to cover over past mistakes while at the same time proceeding to make new equally unfounded predictions. Rather than accepting responsibility for devastating the lives of many of its followers through its false teachings, the Watchtower leadership callously states that such problems are simply the Christian's lot. Rather than pointing humbly toward Jesus Christ as Savior, the Watchtower Society continues to place the eternal destiny of millions of people in peril by directing them to put their trust in a human organization which exalts itself as the sole "ark of salvation." The tragic situation is fittingly described by one writer:

Nothing has changed in the hundred and twenty years since Russell and Barbour made their first predictions. None of their predictions came true nor did those of Russell's successors. If anything, by crying "wolf" the Watchtower Society may have made itself responsible for the deaths of many at Armageddon. It only adds to its grave responsibility before God by continuing to cover over its mistakes rather than honestly take steps to tell people the full truth and doing whatever is necessary to make amends.⁸⁴

It remains to be seen if the damage control efforts now being conducted by the Watchtower Society will be successful in quelling internal unrest and stemming the exodus from the organization. The pressure on the leadership to deliver upon its apocalyptic promises increases with the passing of each year. Some observers have speculated that the Society will eventually deal with this problem by jettisoning the remaining elements of its 1914-based chronology and spiritualizing Armageddon. An increasing number of former and current Jehovah's Witnesses, however, are convinced that the only real long term hope for the Watchtower movement lies in true reformation and not in another doctrinal whitewash. The recent transformation of the Worldwide Church of God from a cultic to an orthodox body of believers demonstrates that such a reformation is possible provided that the leadership is committed to change and is willing to deal with the attendant challenges. It is the prayer of many that the leaders of the Watchtower Society will one day contritely admit to their past errors, forsake their heretical teachings, repent of the hatred and slander that they have directed at the Body of Christ and join with other believers as fellow servants of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Notes

The Palliative Prophet: An Analysis of the Article "Living For Today or For An Eternal Future?" appearing in the 15 August 1997 issue of The Watchtower. A research paper submitted for the course Introduction to Theology, Professor R. Todd Mangum, Fall 1997, by Michael R. Pendley, Dallas Theological Seminary, Houston, Texas, U.S.A., November 6, 1997. Copyright © 1997 by Michael R. Pendley. All Rights Reserved.

¹ All Scriptural quotations are from the New International Version of the Holy Bible (Colorado Springs: International Bible Society, 1984).

² For a detailed treatment of the propohetic foibles of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society see M. James Penton, Apocalypse Delayed -- The Story of Jehovah's Witnesses (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1985). See also Timothy Cambell, ed. "Prophets in the Watchtower," (book on-line); available from http://members.aol.com/beyondjw/prophets.htm; Internet; accessed 29 Semptember 1997 and "What Happened in 1975?" (article on-line); available from http://members.aol.com/beyondjw/1975.htm; Internet; accessed 16 September 1997.

³ The January 1, 1997 issue of The Watchtower gave the total number of Jehovah's Witnesses worldwide as 5,124,811.

⁴ In 1980, conservatives conducted a purge at Watchtower headquarters in Brooklyn, New York to remove moderate and liberal elements within the leadership. Among those excommunicated were Governing Body member Raymond Franz and other high ranking officials. A widespread paranoia regarding supposed "apostates" soon gripped the entire organization, as reflected by Watchtower publications at the time. In the ensuing witch-hunts, other prominant Jehovah's Witnesses were excommunicated including Dr. M. James Penton, a Canadian university professor and religious historian. These events are chronicalled in Franz's book Crisis of Conscience (Atlanta: Commentary Press, 1983) and Penton's Apocalypse Delayed. For additional accounts of these events see James A. Beverly, Crisis of Allegiance (Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Welch Publishing, 1987), Gary and Heather Botting, The Orwellian World of Jehovah's Witnesses (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1984), Randy Watters, "The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society: The Critical Years 1975-1980," Free Minds Journal 16, no. 5 (1997): 4-8 and David Reed, Blood on the Altar: Confesssions of a Jehovah's Witness Minister (Amherst, New York: Prometheus Books, 1996).

⁵ For studies tracing the length of the "1914 Generation" see Leonard and Marjorie Chretien, Witnesses of Jehovah (Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 1988), Jan Haugland, "Did the 1914 Generation Die Anyway?" (article on-line); available from http://home.sol.no/~jansh/wteng/1914gen1.htm; Internet; accessed 30 September 1997; Steve Rudd, "The Incredible Flip flop in the Landmark '1914 Generation' Doctrine," (article on line): available from http://www.bible.ca/jw-1914 generation.htm; Internet: accessed 10 October 1997; and "Linking a 'Generation' to a Number of Years," The Investigator, January 1996, 18-21.

⁶ The original name of the organization founded by Charles Taze Russell is the Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society. The modern designation is the Watchtower Bible & Tract Society. Both of these terms will be used in this paper along with other commonly used appellations including the "Society," "Watchtower," and "Watchtower Society."

⁷ According to the new interpretation, the generation of Matthew 24:34 is defined as "the peoples of the earth who see the sign of Christ's presence but fail to mend their ways." ("A Time To Keep Awake," The Watchtower, 1 November 1995, 19). Unlike the previous teaching, there are no chronological markers to establish the time of the last days generation.

⁸ The Watchtower Society publishes an anual "state of the sect" report each January in The Watchtower magazine. This report lists the number of Jehovah's Witnesses in each of the 233 nations and teritories where they are active and summarizes prostelytizing activities (hours spent in "field service," number of Bible studies conducted, amount of literature distributed, number of new converts baptized, etc). The report for 1996, published in the 1 January 1997 issue of The Watchtower showed decreases in membership and proselytizing activity in much of the western world. More recent reports from individuals and organizations monitoring the Watchtower movement have described a marked decrease in meeting attendance, proselytizing activity, and donations. See Gary Bussellman, "Generation Concept Reinstated," Free Minds Journal 16, no. 2 (1997): 8. See also David Reed, "WT Squirms over '1914' impact," Comments From The Friends 16, no. 3 (1997): 14; Randall Watters, (article on-line); "Whole Congregations Fold up in Africa," http://www.freeminds.org; Internet; accessed 29 September 1997, and Jerry Bergman, "Why Jehovah's Witnesses Leave the Watchtower," JW Research Journal 3, no. 1 (1996): 29-32. Another measure of the disillusionment currently felt by members of the sect has been the dramatic increase in calls to national toll-free "helpline" by disaffected Jehovah's Witnesses since the change in the "1914" doctrine (see Marilyn Zweiful, "Manning the Helpline," BRCI Quarterly, Spring 1996: 3).

⁹ See David Reed, "The Reform Movement Among Jehovah's Witnesses," Comments From The Friends 16, no. 4 (1997): 2-8. This article is also available on the Internet at http://www.webshowplace.com/CommentsfromtheFriends/1997FALLp0203.html. See also "News and Announcements," http://www.xjw.com/xbeacon; Internet; accessed 29 September 1997. Reform minded Jehovah's Witnesses have set up web sites entitled "Free Zone -- Associated Jehovah's Witnesses for Reform" at http://www.aracnet.com/-ajwr/ and "The Liberal Elder" at http://www.visiworld.com/starter/newlight/home.htm.

¹⁰ Typical examples of this criticism include Kenneth Woodward, "Apocalypse Later -- Jehovah's Witnesses Decide the End is Fluid," Newsweek, 18 December 1995, 59; Timothy Campbell, ed., (book on-line); "Jehovah's Witnesses and the Divine Promise," http://members. aol.com/beyondjw/index.htm; Internet; accessed 29 September 1997; Raymond Franz, 1996 Update to Crisis of Conscience, (Atlanta: Commentary Press, 1996); Kurt M. Goedelman, "Not So New Light?" The Ouarterly Journal 16, no. 1 (1996): 2-17; Ronald E. Frye, "The Generation of 1914: Another Failed Watchtower Prediction," BCRI Ouarterly (Winter 1996): 4-6; Ken Raines, "The Generation of 1914 Dies A Slow Death," JW Research Journal 3, no. 1 (1996): 8-13; David Reed, "Jehovah's Witnesses Drop Failed Prophecy," Christian Research Newsletter 9, no. 2 (1996): 6-7; Lex Splicer, "Redefining a Generation," Watchtower Unplugged no. 1 (1996); (Journal on-line); http://www.aracnet.com/-ajwr/wtup/wtupl/generation.htm; Internet; accessed 10 October 1997; James K. Walker, "Watchtower Redefines '1914 Generation'," The Watchman Expositor 13, no. 1 (1996): 3-20; and Randall Watters, "'1914 Generation' Discarded by Watchtower," Free Minds Journal 14, no. 5 (1995): 2-6.

¹¹ Since the death of the Watchtower Society' s second president, Joseph F. Rutherford, in 1942 it has been the official policy of the sect not to identify the authors of any of its publications. Hence, the anonymous author of the Watchtower article will be referred to in this paper as "the writer." Written material for The Watchtower and the Watchtower Society's other publications is produced by staff members employed by the Writing Department in the sect's Brooklyn, New York headquarters. All published material is reviewed and approved by the Watchtower leadership (the Governing Body) and represents the official position of the sect on doctrinal matters.

¹² "Living for Today or for an Eternal Future," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 13.

¹³ Ibid.

¹⁴ Ibid., 13-16.

¹⁵ Ibid., 14.

¹⁶ "What God's Kingdom Can Mean to You," The Watchtower, 15 March 1992, 6.

¹⁷ Knowledge That Leads to Everlasting Life (New York: Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, 1995), 106-107.

¹⁸ Carl O. Jonsson and Wolfgang Herbst, The Sign of the Last Days -- When? (Atlanta: Commentary Press, 1987). Although not specifically mentioning Jehovah's Witnesses, another excellent resource on the pitfalls of apocalypticism is Doomsday Delusions -- What 's Wrong with Predictions About the End of the World," by C. Marvin Pate and Calvin B. Haines, Jr. (Downers Grove, Illinois: lnterVarsity Press, 1995).

¹⁹ Ibid.

²⁰ Ibid., 176.

²¹ Ibid., 3.

²² "Eternal Future," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 14.

²³ See John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck, ed., The Bible Knowledge Commentary -- Old Testament (Victor Books, 1985), 1367. See also Henry H. Halley, Halley's Bible Handbook (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 1965), 351.

²⁴ See B. J. Kotwall, "Kings of the North and King of the South -- Another Failed Prophecy," (article on-line); available from http://www.nano.no/~telemark/doctrine/king.html; Internet; accessesd 10 October 1997.

²⁵ Kent Steinhaug, "Daniel Chapter 11," (article on-line): available from http://www.nano.no/~telemark/doctrine/ daniel.html; Internet; accessed 24 October 1997.

²⁶ Kotwall, "Kings," 2.

²⁷ "The Final Victory of Michael, the Great Prince," The Watchtower, 1 November 1993, 21.

²⁸ "Eternal Future," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 14.

²⁹ Walter C. Kaiser, Jr. et. al., Hard Sayings of the Bible, (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1996), 377.

³⁰ The following quotation is typical of the Watchtower view: "Such a witness, given by Jehovah's Witnesses since the end of World War I on November 11, 1918, has enormously surpassed the international witness given during the "last days" of the Jewish system of things in 29 to 70 C.E. Back there the witness was given in Asia, Europe and Africa. Today it has been given not only on those continents but also in the Americas, in Australia and on the islands of the Pacific Ocean, yes, globally. Scoffers at this may minimize this achievement and emphasize that the missionaries of Christendom during the centuries past got to all those places before ever the Christian witnesses of Jehovah came along. True! But the Kingdom witnessing of Jehovah's Witnesses since 1914 has been something far different from what Christendom's missionaries have published both before and since 1914 . . . What Jehovah's Witnesses have preached world wide since 1918 is something unique, something that has distinguished these as being the "last days" of the political, social, judicial, militarized system of things. ("After These 'Last Days' God's Messianic Kingdom!" The Watchtower, 1 October 1980, 28).

³¹ Raymond Franz, In Search of Christrian Freedom (Atlanta: Commentary Press, 1991), 232-233.

³² "Eternal Future," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 15.

³³ The 1 January 1997 Watchtower listed the number of the "anointed" class at 8,757 as indicated by those partaking of the emblems at the Memorial celebration. The Memorial is the Watchtower version of Communion held annually on Nisan 14. Only those of the "anointed" class are allowed to partake of the wine and the bread.

³⁴ Ron Rhodes, Reasoning From the Scriptures With the Jehovah's Witnesses, (Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 1993), 265.

³⁵ Franz, In Search, 471.

³⁶ "Eternal Future," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 15.

³⁷ For a study of the Watchtower's claims in this regard see Ken Raines, "New Light: a Divine, Demonic or Human Interpretation of Scripture?" JW Research Journal 3, no. 1 (1996): 14-17.

³⁸ "Armed for the Fight Against Wicked Spirits," The Watchtower, 15 January 1983, 27.

³⁹ "Praise Jehovah With His People," The Watchtower, 1 July 1973, 402.

⁴⁰ "They Shall Know That a Prophet Was Among Them," The Watchtower, 1 April 1972, p. 197.

⁴¹ "Keep Awake in the Time of the End," The Watchtower, 1 May 1992, 23.

⁴² "Serve Jehovah Loyally," The Watchtower, 15 November 1992, 21.

⁴³ Timothy Campbell, ed. Waiting for the End of the World (book on-line); available from http://members.aol.com/ beyondjw/eoworld.thm; Internet; accessed 16 September 1997, 16.

⁴⁴ "Questions From Readers," The Watchtower, 1 April 1986, 31.

⁴⁵ "Eternal Future," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 15-16.

⁴⁶ Isaiah 21:6-8 reads: «This is what the Lord says to me: "Go post a lookout and have him report what he sees. When he sees chariots with teams of horses, riders on donkeys or riders on camels, let him be alert, fully alert." And the lookout shouted, "Day after day, my lord, I stand on the Watchtower; every night I stay at my post."»

⁴⁷ Campbell, Waiting, 27.

⁴⁸ Both the Protestant and Catholic clergy come under frequent vitriolic attacks in Watchtower publications. One of the oft repeated criticisms is that the clergy has fallen into a state of spiritual sleep or drunkenness and no longer expects the Day of the Lord to come. The following quotation is typical: "As the people of Jerusalem scoffed at Jeremiah, so Christendom scoffs at Jehovah's Witnesses today. The Witnesses' warning of a coming destruction at Armageddon is dismissed as worthless. 'God is not interested in the earth,' says Christendom. 'Let him run heaven; we'll run the earth. And if Armageddon comes, it won't be in our generation. We've heard that story before. We're not going to be taken in by that!' Is this to be a repeat of history? Is it to be another time when millions will discover that it was later than they thought?" ("It Was Later Than They Thought," The Watchtower, 1 April 1991, 4).

⁴⁹ "Eternal Future," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 16.

⁵⁰ "A third form of the ad hominem argument occurs when a speaker, trying to show that he is not at fault, argues that his opponent has said or done things just as bad as those of which he, the speaker, is accused . . . This is the tu quoque (Latin: "you're another") form of the ad hominem argument." Stephen F. Barker, The Elements of Logic, (New York: McCraw-Hill, 1965), 201.

⁵¹ "Eternal Future," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 16 .

⁵² Walvoord and Zuck, 55.

⁵³ "Eternal Future," The Watchlower, 15 August 1997, 16.

⁵⁴ For a detailed study of the Society's flawed 1914 doctrine see Carl Jonsson, The Gentile Times Reconsidered (Atlanta: Commentary Press, 1986). Jonsson, a former Jehovah's Witness elder, discovered a major flaw in the Watchtower chronoiogical calculations used to arrive at the 1914 A.D. date for the invisible return of Christ. These calculations use the destruction of Jerusalem as the starting point for a period of 2520 years termed "the Gentile Times." While the Watchtower assigns a date of 607 B.C. for this event, Jonsson produced evidence from archeology and other sources demonstrating that the actual date was 587 B.C. Since much of Watchtower theology is based on the 1914 date, an error of this magnitude would cause the collapse of the entire doctrinal structure. After presenting his research to the Watchtower leadership, Jonsson was summarily excommunicated for questioning official doctrine.

⁵⁵ "Eternal Future," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 16.

⁵⁶ James T. Draper, Jr., What to Do Till the Lord Comes -- Studies in 1 and 2 Thessalonians, (Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndale House Publishers, 1983), 192-193.

⁵⁷ Franz, 1996 Update, 6.

⁵⁸ "Eternal Future," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 16.

⁵⁹ Franz, In Search, 480.

⁶⁰ Russell believed that the Great Pyramid was a "Bible in stone" and that its dimensions contained coded historic and prophetic information. Much of Russell's theology, as expressed in The Divine Plan of the Ages (1886), was based on pyramidology. In 1928, Watchtower president Joseph Rutherford denounced Russell's pyramidology as unscriptural and satanic. For an interesting discussion concerning the origins of the nineteenth-century fad of pyramidology and Russell's fascination with this pseudo-science see David J. Penton and M. James Penton, "A Case of Science, Pseudo-science and Religion -- Pyramidology in the Adventist-Bible Student Tradition," (article on-line); http://www.nano.no/-telemark/fraud/penton.html, Internet; accessed 10 October 1997.

⁶¹ Campbell explains how second Watchtower president Joseph Rutherford dealt with Russell's prophetic failures: "After the lapse of some years, J. F. Rutherford began the process of replacing Russell's unfulfilled predictions with a series of invisible and spiritual events associated with the years 1914 and 1918. By the early 1930s the process was complete." See Campbell, Prophets, 35.

⁶² During the Russell years, Jehovah's Witnesses were allowed to serve in the military, although noncombatant work was preferred. This changed during the Rutherford administration when a strict prohibition against any type of military service was enacted which extended even to noncombative service such as hospital work. In various nations, many Jehovah's Witnesses went to prison over this issue and a number were executed. In 1996, the policy was reversed and Witnesses were again allowed to accept alternative service. See David Reed, "Watchtower Reverses Itself on Policy That Sent JW's to Prison for Years," Comments From The Friends 15, no. 3 (1996), 2-7 and Ronald Frye, "New Light on Alternative Service," BCRI Ouarterly, Summer 1996, 4.

⁶³ Charles Taze Russell once played a central role in Watchtower theology as the personal fulfillment of "the faithful and discreet slave" mentioned in Matthew 24:45-47. Russell is still canonized in this fashion by many of the Bible Student groups which broke away from the Watchtower Society during the 1917 Rutherford schism. In 1935, the Watchtower Society adopted a new doctrine which identified the "faithful and discreet slave" with the "little flock" of 144,000 individuals chosen by God from A.D. 33 through 1935. Today, this "little flock" of "anointed" brethren is comprised of an elite group of fewer than 9,000 eiderly Jehovah's Witnesses. Although in theory the "faithful and discreet" slave is composed of the entire "little flock", in practice the term refers to only the select few in the Watchtower leadership. For a detailed examined of changes in this doctrine see Ronald Frye, "The Watch Tower Society and Spiritual Authority: The Doctrine of the 'Faithful and Discreet Slave' in Light of Bible Student-Jehovah's Witness History, (article on-line); http://www.nano.no/telemark/doctrine/doctrineindex.shtml; Internet; accessed 10 October 1997. See also Gordon E. Duggar, Jehovah's Witnesses -- Watch Out for the Watchtower, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1993), 80-91.

⁶⁴ For accounts detailing how the once independent Bible Student congregations were brought under the direct control of the Watchtower Society see William J. Schnell, Thirty Years a Watchtower Slave, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1971) and M. James Penton, Apocalypse Delayed, 62-64.

⁶⁵ Russell faught that the higher authorities mentioned in Romans 13:6-7 referred to earthly governments and held this view until his death in 1916. In 1929, Russell's successor to the Watchtower presidency, Joseph Rutherford, rejected Russell's view and declared that the higher authorities were actually Jehovah God and Jesus Christ. In 1962, the original view was reinstated. See Raymond Franz, In Search, 483-488.

⁶⁶ Although Jehovah's Witnesses now consider the worship of Jesus to be improper (since they view Him as a created being and not as God), the Society's 1884 charter lists as one of its purposes the "public Christian worship of Almighty God and Christ Jesus." For a discussion of the doctrinal change in this regard see Gordon E. Duggar, Jehovah's Witnesses -- Watch Out for the Watchtower, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1993), 34-36.

⁶⁷ While Jehovah's Witnesses now condemn the cross as a pagan symbol, the cross graced the cover of The Watchtower magazine for more than fifty years and also appeared in illustrations in other Watchtower publications. Rutherford outlawed the use of the cross in 1931 as part of a deliberate effort to distance Jehovah's Witnesses from other Christian denominations. It is now an excommunicable offense for a Jehovah's Witness to wear or possess a cross. See Raymond Franz, In Search, 148 and David Reed, Answering Jehovah's Wirnesses Subject by Subject (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 1996), 85.

⁶⁸ During the 1930s and 1940s, the Watchtower Society taught that medical vaccinations were "a direct violation of the law of God." David Reed explains that in order to circumvent public school regulations requiring children to have smallpox vaccinations, "some Witnesses would have a friendly doctor burn a mark on the child's arm with acid to make it look as if the youngster had been vaccinated." See David Reed, Blood on the Altar, 254-255. The ban was dropped in 1952 without explanation. See also William J. Cetnar, Questions for Jehovah's Witnesses. (Kunkletown, Pennsylvania: privately printed, 1983).

⁶⁹ 0rgan transplants were banned by the Watchtower Society in 1967 on the grounds that they were a form of cannibalism. The ban was quietly repealed in 1980. See David Reed, Blood on the Altar, 122-123.

⁷⁰ While the Watchtower Society today denounces Christmas as a pagan holiday, it was celebrated by Jehovah's Witnesses until 1927. For an examination of the reasons behind the change see David Reed, Blood on the Altar, 86-87 and M. James Penton, Apocalypse Delayed, 66.

⁷¹ For a review of changes in various doctrinal issues see David Reed, Blood on the Altar, 238-241, and Index of Wachtower Errors: 1879 to 1989. See also Duane Magnani, The Watchtower Files, (Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 1983).

⁷² Randall Watters, "The Active Force Behind the Watchtower," Bethel Ministries Newsletter 8, no. 6, 2-3.

⁷³ For a discussion explaining how the fluid beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses have resulted in the use of this terminology see Raymond Franz, In Search, 583-587.

⁷⁴ See M. Kurt Goedelman, "Charles Taze Russell -- Disfellowshipped!" Personal Freedom Outreach Newsletter 2, no. 3 (July/September, 1982): 1-2.

⁷⁵ "Eternal Future," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 16.

⁷⁶ "Soundness of Mind as the End Draws Close," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 17-22.

⁷⁷ The Watchtower Society actively discouraged marriage throughout the Russell and Rutherford administrations. Marriage became somewhat more acceptable after the Society's third president, Nathan H. Knorr, married in the 1950s. However, even today, young Witnesses are pressured to delay marriage and childbearing in order to devote more time to proselytizing. See M. James Penton, Apocalypse Delayed, 261-267.

⁷⁸ The ban against higher education was not lifted until the 1980s. See M. James Penton, Apocalypse Delayed, 270-272.

⁷⁹ Chretien, 18-19.

⁸⁰ Jerry Bergman, "Paradise Postponed... and Postponed: Why Jehovah's Witnesses Have a High Mental Illness Level," Christian Research Journal 19, no. 1, (1996): 36-41. For another analysis on the effects of failed prophecy on Jehovah' s Witnesses see Randall Watters, "When Prophecies Fail -- A Sociological Perspective on Failed Expectation in the Watchtower Society," Bethel Ministries Newsletter, (May/June, 1990): 1-4.

⁸¹ Ibid., 39-40.

⁸² "Eternal Future," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 17.

⁸³ M. Kurt Goedelman, "Brownsvielle Pastor Confirms Non Prophet Status," The Quarterly Journal 17, no. 4 (1997), 19.

⁸⁴ Campbell, Waiting, 46.

Bibliography

Critiques of Jehovah's Witnesses and the Watchtower Society

Bergman, Jerry. "Paradise Postponed . . . and Postponed: Why Jehovah's Witnesses Have a High Mental Illness Level," Christian Research Journal 19, no. 1 (1996): 36-41.

Bergman, Jerry. "Why Jehovah's Witnesses Leave The Watchtower," JW Research Journal 3, no.1 (1996): 29-32.

Beverly, James A. Crisis of Allegiance. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Welch Publishing, 1987

Botting, Gary, and Heather Botting. The Orwellian World of Jehovah's Witnesses. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1984

Busselman, Gary. "Generation' Concept Reinstated," Free Minds Journal 16, no. 2 (1997): 8.

Campbell, Timothy, ed. Jehovah's Witnesses and the Divine Promise (book on-line); available from http://members.aol.com/beyondjw/index.htm; Internet; accessed 16 September 1997.

Campbell, Timothy, ed. Prophets in the Watchtower? (book on-line); available from http://members.aol.com/beyondjw/prophets.htm; Internet; accessed 16 September 1997.

Campbell, Timothy, ed. Waiting for the End of the World. (book on-line); available from http://members.aol.com/beyondjw/eoworld.htm;Internet; accessed 16 September 1997.

Campbell, Timothy, ed. "What Happened in 1975?" (article on-line); available from http://members.aol.com/beyondjw/prophets.htm; Internet; accessed 16 September 1997.

Cetnar, William J. Questions for Jehovah's Witnesses. Kunkletown, Pennsylvania: privately printed, 1983.

Chretien, Leonard and Marjorie Chretien. Witnesses of Jehovah. Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 1988.

Duggar, Gordon E. Jehovah's Witnesses -- Watch Out for the Watchtower. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1993.

Franz, Raymond. Crisis of Conscience, 2d ed. Atlanta: Commentary Press, 1992.

Franz, Raymond. 1996 Update to Crisis of Conscience, 2d. Ed. Atlanta: Commentary Press, 1996.

Franz, Raymond. In Search of Christian Freedom. Atlanta: Commentary Press, 1991.

Frye, Ronald E. "The Generation of 1914: Another Failed Watchtower Prediction," BCRI Quarterly, (Winter 1996): 4-6.

Frye, Ronald E. "New Light on Alternative Service," BCRI Quarterly, (Summer 1996): 4.

Frye, Ronald E. "The Watch Tower Society and Spiritual Authority: The Doctrine of the 'Faithful and Discreet Slave' in the Light of Bible Student-Jehovah's Witness History," (article on-line); available from http://www.nano.no/~telemark/doctrine/doctrineindex.shtml;Internet; accessed 10 October 1997.

Gerstner, John H. The Theology of the Major Sects. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1960.

Goedelman, M. Kurt. "Brownsville Pastor Confirms Non-Prophet Status," The Quarterly Journal 17, no. 4 (1997): 2-19.

Goedelman, M. Kurt. "Charles Taze Russell -- Disfellowshipped!" Personal Freedom Outreach Newsletter 2, no. 3 (July/September, 1982): 1-3.

Goedelman, M. Kurt. "Not So New Light?" The Quarterly Journal 16, no. 1 (1996): 2-17.

Haugland, Jan. "Did the 1914 Generation Die Anyway?" (article on-line); available from http://home.sol.no/~jansh/wteng/1914gen1.htm; Internet; accessed 29 September 1997.

Jonsson, Carl O. The Gentile Times Reconsidered. Atlanta: Commentary Press, 1986.

Jonsson, Carl O. and Wolfgang Herbst. The Sign of the Last Days -- When? Atlanta: Commentary Press, 1987.

Kotwall, B. J. "Kings of the North and King of the South -- Another Failed Prophecy," (article on-line); available from http://www.nano.no/~telemark/doctrine/king.html; Internet; accessed 19 October 1997. "Linking a Generation' to a Number of Years," The Investigator, January, 1996.

Magnani, Duane. The Watchtower Files. Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 1985.

"News and Announcments," (article on-line); available from http://www.xjw.com/xbeacon; Internet; accessed 29 September 1997.

Penton, David J. and M. James Penton, "A Case of Science, Psuedo-science and Religion -- Pyramidology in the Adventist-Bible Student Tradition," (article on-line); available from http://www.nano.no/~telemark/fraud/penton.html; Internet; accessed 10 October 1997.

Penton, M. James. Apocalypse Delayed -- The Story of Jehovah's Witnesses. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1985.

Raines, Ken. "New Light: a Divine, Demonic or Human Interpretation of Scripture?," JW Research Journal 3, no. 1 (1996): 14-17.

Raines, Ken. "The Generation of 1914 Dies A Slow Death," JW Research Journal 3, no. 1 (1996): 8-13.

Reed, David A. Answering Jehovah's Witnesses Subject by Subject. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 1996.

Reed, David A. Blood on the Altar: Confessions of a Jehovah's Witness Minister. Amherst, New York: Prometheus Books, 1996.

Reed, David A. ed. Index of Watch Tower Errors: 1879 to 1989. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1990.

Reed, David A. "Jehovah's Witnesses Drop Failed Prophecy," Christian Research Newsletter 9, no. 2 (1996): 6-7.

Reed, David A. "The Reform Movement Among Jehovah's Witnesses," Comments From The Friends 16, no. 4 (1997): 2-8.

Reed, David A. "WT Squirms Over 1914 Impact," Comments From The Friends 16, no. 3 (1997): 14.

Reed, David A. "Watchtower Reverses Itself on Policy That Sent JW's to Prison for Years," Comments From The Friends 15, no. 3 (1996): 2-5.

Rhodes, Ron. Reasoning from the Scriptures with the Jehovah's Witnesses. Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 1993.

Rudd, Steve. "The Incredible Flip-flop in the Landmark 1914 Generation' Doctrine," (article on-line); available from http://www.bible.ca/jw-1914-generation.htm; Internet; accessed 10 October 1997.

Schnell, William J. Thirty Years a Watchtower Slave. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1971.

Splicer, Lex. "Redefining a Generation," Watchtower Unplugged, no. 1 (Spring 1996) (journal on-line); available from http://www.aracnet.com/~ajwr/wtup/wtup1/generation.htm; Internet; accessed 10 October1997.

Steinhaug, Kent. "Daniel Chapter 11," (article on-line); available from http://www.nano.no/~telemark/doctrine/daniel.html; Internet; accessed 24 October 1997.

Walker, James K. "Watchtower Redfines 1914 Generation," The Watchman Expositor 13, no. 1 (1996): 3-20.

Walters, Wesley, and Kurt Goedelman. Jehovah's Witnesses. Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1983.

Watters, Randall. "1914 Generation Discarded by Watchtower," Free Minds Journal 14, no. 5 (1996): 2-6.

Watters, Randall. "The Active Force Behind the Watchtower," Bethel Ministries Newsletter 8, no. 6 (1989): 2-3.

Watters, Randall. "The Watchtower Bible & Tract Society: The Critical Years 1975-1997," Free Minds Journal 16, no. 5 (1997): 4-8.

Watters, Randall. "When Prophecies Fail -- A Sociological Perspective on Failed Expectation in the Watchtower Society," Bethel Ministries Newsletter, (May/June, 1990): 1-4.

Watters, Randall. "Whole Congregations Fold Up in Africa," (article on-line); http://www.freeminds.org; Internet; accessed 29 September 1997.

Woodward, Kenneth. "Apocalypse Later -- Jehovah's Witnesses Decide the End is Fluid," Newsweek, 18 December 1995, 59.

Zweifel, Marilyn. "Manning the Helpline," BCRI Quarterly, Spring 1996, 3.

Commentaries, Reference Works, and Books on Theology

Barker, Stephen F. The Elements of Logic. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1965.

Draper, James T., Jr. What to Do Till the Lord Comes -- Studies in 1 and 2 Thessalonians. Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndale House Publishers, 1983.

Halley, Henry H. Halley's Bible Handbook. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 1965.

Kaiser, Walter C., Jr. Hard Sayings of the Bible. Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1996.

New International Version of the Holy Bible. Colorado Springs: International Bible Society, 1984.

Pate, C. Marvin, and Calvin B. Haines, Jr. Doomsday Delusions -- What's Wrong with Predictions About the End of the World. Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1995.

Walvoord, John F. and Roy B. Zuck, ed. The Bible Knowledge Commentary -- Old Testament (Victor Books, 1985).

Publications of the Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society

Anonymous. "After These 'Last Days' God's Messianic Kingdom!" The Watchtower, 1 October 1980, 25-30.

Anonymous. "Armed for the Fight Against Wicked Spirits," The Watchtower, 15 January 1983, 23-27.

Anonymous. "A Time to Keep Awake," The Watchtower, 1 November 1995, 16-21.

Anonymous. "It Was Later Than They Thought," The Watchtower, 1 April 1991, 3-4.

Anonymous. Jehovah's Witnesses in the Divine Purpose. New York: Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society, 1959.

Anonymous. Jehovah's Witnesses -- Proclaimers of God's Kingdom. New York: Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society, 1993.

Anonymous. "Keep Awake in the Time of the End," The Watchtower, 1 May 1992, 19-23.

Anonymous. Knowledge That Leads to Everlasting Life. New York: Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, 1995.

Anonymous. "Living for Today or for an Eternal Future?" The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 12-17.

Anonymous. "Praise Jehovah With His People," The Watchtower, 1 July 1973, 401-407.

Anonymous. "Questions From Readers," The Watchtower, 1 April 1986, 31.

Anonymous. "Serve Jehovah Loyally," The Watchtower, 15 November 1992, 18-23.

Anonymous. "Soundness of Mind as the End Draws Close," The Watchtower, 15 August 1997, 17-22.

Anonymous. "The Final Victory of Michael, the Great Prince," The Watchtower, 1 November 1993, 18-23.

Anonymous. "They Shall Know That a Prophet Was Among Them," The Watchtower, 1 April 1972, 197-200.

Anonymous. "What God's Kingdom Can Mean to You, " The Watchtower, 15 March 1992, 4- 7.

Anonymous. "1996 Service Year Report of Jehovah's Witnesses Worldwide," The Watchtower, 1 January 1997, 19-22.

Russell, Charles T. The Divine Plan of the Ages. Brooklyn: Watch Tower & Tract Society, 1886.