I Took a Little Break

I guess it was more than a little break. I see that I haven't posted for almost three years. Sorry about that. It's not the fault of my visitors. I recently checked the stats on this website and was surprised to discover that this blog has received over 109,000 visitors.

I have been busy trying to get on with my life. I have also been involved with a book project that I'm excited about. Nevertheless, I will still try to post here from time to time. I will also do some routine maintenance such as removing the videos that no longer work. Thank you for your patience.

Prophetic Dates of Jehovah's Witnesses-1840

"We need not here repeat the evidences that the 'seventh trumpet' began its sounding in A.D. 1840, and will continue until the end of the time of trouble." -The Watchtower Reprints, November 1890, page 1

Later, the Watchtower Society dropped this date and settled for a new one.

"The trumpet blast of the seventh angel was reflected in highlights of the Bible Students' convention in Detroit, Michigan, July 30-August 6, 1928." -Revelation, It's Grand Climax At Hand, page 172

See this page with a large collection of quotes about the Watchtower's understanding of the seven trumpet blasts.

Prophetic Dates of Jehovah's Witnesses-1833

Charles Taze Russel sure liked his Bible prophecy. In 1833, there was a spectacular meteor shower. He explained that this was a sign foretold in the Bible.

"Half a century passed before the next sign appeared, the falling of the stars from heaven, as when a fig tree casteth her unripe fruit when shaken of a mighty wind. Our Lord's words found a fulfilment (though not their complete and only fulfilment, as we shall see later) in the wonderful meteoric showers of the early morning of Nov. 13, 1833." -Studies in the Scriptures IV-Battle of Armageddon, page 589

See also the article on 1780.

Prophetic Dates of Jehovah's Witnesses-1829

The founder of the Watchtower Society, Charles Taze Russel, was strongly influenced by the Millerite movement. Russel even claimed that the beginning of the Millerite movement coincided with Bible prophecy.

"Thus it will be seen that the separating work of the 'Miller movement' had its beginning at the time foretold - at the end of the 1290 days, 1829." -Thy Kingdom Come (1891)

Crazy Quotes #9, Medical Advice

"Air baths are good for preventing colds... What you do is strip naked mornings and evenings and then bob up and down for a while." -The Golden Age (now Awake!) of February 10, 1926 page 310

"All human ailments have their start in the intestines." -The Golden Age of November 28, 1928 page 133

"Sleep on the right side or flat on your back, with the head toward the north so as to get benefit of the earth's magnetic currents. Avoid serum inoculations as they pollute the blood stream with their filthy pus... Stop chewing gum, as you need the saliva for your food." -The Golden Age of November 12, 1929 page 107

See also this article on The Watchtower Society and Medical Quackery.

Prophetic Dates of Jehovah's Witnesses-1799

Jehovah's Witnesses used to think that 1799 was a very important date. The Watchtower of March 1, 1922 said, "The indisputable facts, therefore, show that the "time of the end" began in 1799..."

The actions of Napoleon were seen as confirmation of this important prophetic date.

"Having thus furnished grounds for establishing the identity of this character (Napoleon), whose deeds mark the beginning of the 'Time of the End,' the prophecy proceeds to show which particular event of that time is to be understood as definitely marking the exact date of the beginning of the 'Time of the End.' This event is shown to be Napoleon's invasion of Egypt, which covered a period of a year and nearly five months. He sailed May, 1798 and, returning, landed in France Oct. 9, 1799." -Studies in the Scriptures-Thy Kingdom Come (1915) page 44

They also thought 1799 was significant because it was 1260 years after the fall of the Ostrogothic monarchy in 539 AD. Daniel 12:7 mentions three and a half times or 1,260 days. They just converted the days to years. Jehovah's Witnesses now believe that these 1,260 prophetic days refer to the 684 days (from June 21, 1918 to May 5, 1920) that the second president of the Watchtower Society, Joseph Rutherford, spent in prison on charges of espionage.

See also this page of Watchtower quotes about 1799.

Prophetic Dates of Jehovah's Witnesses-1780

The Bible makes numerous references to celestial signs. Charles Taze Russel took these seriously and looked for visible fulfillments of these prophecies. In 1780, a combination of clouds, fog, and smoke from forest fires caused a great darkness that made it necessary to light candles in some places. For most of us, this is just just an interesting historical curiosity. For Charles Taze Russel, it was a fulfillment of Bible prophecy! Consider his comments in Studies in the Scriptures IV - Battle of Armageddon, page 585.

"On May 19, 1780 (still 'in those days,' the 1260 years of Papal power, but after that power had begun to wane and the brunt of the tribulation had passed) a phenomenal darkening of the sun occurred, for which scientists of that time and since have never been able to account.. This unaccountable day, except as a sign from the Lord, is reckoned to have extended over 320,000 square miles - an area about twenty-five times the size of Palestine, to which the signs of the first advent were limited. Indeed, the fact that these signs were chiefly confined to the New England and Middle States need not surprise us, when we remember that the first movement amongst the 'Virgins'* (Matt. 25:1-5) was chiefly in the same locality."

See also the article on 1833.

Crazy Quotes #8, Physiognomy

"The size of the nose, as also the size of the eyes, is not without significance. The small-nosed man cannot have a judicial mind, whatever his other excellencies may be. And a man whose nose upturns can no more be expected to administer justice than a pug dog can be expected to act as a shepherd." -Golden Age (now Awake!) of January 19, 1921 page 224

A New Video Site About Scientology

I started this blog because I believe videos are a great way to learn about cults and high control groups. I was pleased when I learned of a site that takes a similar approach with Scientology. The website Scientology Victims Testimonies contains numerous videos of former scientology members who are speaking out about their mistreatment at the hands of the Church of Scientology. It's well worth a visit.

See also the Committe on Religious Shunning. They also have some videos of former memebrs discussing Scientology.

Prophetic Dates of Jehovah's Witnesses-1776

It's a little known fact that Charles Taze Russel, the first president of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, thought 1776 had prophetic significance. He thought that year marked the end of a period of persecution.

"And this long persecution, in which 'many were purified and made white and tried,' and in which the Mother of Harlots was 'drunk with the blood of the saints and the martyrs of Jesus' (Rev. 17:6) ended as we have already shown, practically in 1776..." -Studies in the Scriptures IV, page 584

Jehovah's Witnesses no longer discuss 1776 as a prophetic date in their literature. It is comical that they also had problems with dates that they discussed after the fact and didn't involve any type of prediction.

Prophetic Dates of Jehovah's Witnesses-Introduction

Jehovah's Witnesses have a long history of assigning prophetic importance to certain dates in both the past and future. They have tried to cover up this shameful history of false prophecies and doctrinal flip flops. Most Jehovah's Witnesses are unaware of most of these dates or are ignorant of what there own religion has said about certain years like 1914, 1925 and 1975.

This series will take one year at a time and include direct quotes from Watchtower publications. You can judge their history of date setting for yourself.

Please click on this label link to see all the articles published in this series so far.

Crazy Quotes #7, Psychiatry

It is believed that depression and various forms of mental illness are much more common among Jehovah's Witnesses than the general population. They have a rigorous schedule of about five hours of meetings a week plus door knocking and studying. They often feel like they just can never do enough. One study indicated that Jehovah's Witnesses have a rate of schizophrenia that is about three times the rate of the general population and a rate of paranoid schizophrenia that is almost four times the rate of the general population. With this in mind, it may be interesting to examine some of their past quotes about psychiatry.

"So we must shun the false guides of men and their false religions, babbling psychologists, wordy psychiatrists and polluted politicians, all of which have built up such tremendous reputations as colossal failures. Look at the messes they have made, know them by their rotten fruits, reject them for their fruits." -Watchtower of January 15, 1952 page 53

"As a rule, for a Christian to go to a worldly psychiatrist is an admission of defeat, it amounts to 'going down to Egypt for help.' —Isaiah 31:1.

Often when a Witness of Jehovah goes to a psychiatrist, the psychiatrist will try to persuade him that his troubles are caused by his religion, entirely overlooking the fact that the Christian witnesses of Jehovah are the best-oriented, happiest and most contented group of people on the face of the earth. They have the least need for psychiatrists." Awake! of March 8, 1960 page 27

See also this article.

Crazy Quotes #6, Teddy Bear Discipline

It's hard to be a kid among Jehovah's Witnesses. There are five meetings a week, door knocking and strict discipline. Consider this quote from the February 1, 1956 Watchtower on page 95.

"Modern parents, in this age of delinquent youngsters, can take a lesson from the mother "teddy bear," the koala. When baby koalas "are really naughty," writes Ivan T. Sanderson in his new book Living Mammals of the World, "the mother turns them over her knee and spanks them on their bottoms for minutes on end with the flat of her hand, during which time their screams are soul-rending."

This next quote from the February 1, 1960 Watchtower on page 80 is far more sinister.

"There may be rare instances where a child is so hardened in its stubbornness that even the rod of correction cannot drive it out. In the days of Israel parents were instructed by Jehovah to take such a rebel to the city fathers and they, in turn, took the incorrigible one out and stoned him to death. There were no juvenile delinquents under such a system. (Deut. 21:18-21) So also today, the New World society of Jehovah's witnesses can not and will not tolerate juvenile delinquency to exist in its midst."

Just to be clear, they are threatening disfellowshipping and shunning, a type of spiritual death, in their view.

See also this page at Watchtower Society Quotes.

Crazy Quotes #5, The Pleiades

Jehovah's Witnesses used to believe that God lived on the star Alcyone in the Pleiades star cluster. Consider this quote from Thy Kingdom Come (1903 edition) page 327.

"Alcyone, then, as far as science has been able to perceive, would seem to be the 'midnight throne' in which the whole system of gravitation has its central seat, and from which the Almighty governs his universe. And here is the wonderful corresponding fact, that at the date of the Great Pyramid's building, at midnight of the autumnal equinox, and hence the true beginning of the year as still preserved in the traditions of many nations, the Pleiades were distributed over the meridian of this Pyramid, with Alcyone precisely on the line."

See also this article at JW Files.

Crazy Quotes #4, The Biola Machine

This is what the Golden Age magazine (now Awake!) of April 22, 1925 had to say about the amazing Biola machine.

"The Biola automatically diagnoses and treats diseases by the use of the electronic vibrations. The diagnosis is 100 percent correct, rendering better service in this respect than the most experienced diagnostician."

The back page of that magazine advertised these machines for only $35.

The Golden Age magazine was infamous for making crazy scientific claims. Please see this article from AJWRB.

Crazy Quotes #3, Beth Sarim

In the early 1920's, the Watchtower Society declared that the ancient worthies like Abraham and Moses would be resurrected in 1925. Joseph Rutherford had a beautiful mansion built in California for their use. He even equipped it with two chauffeur driven Cadillacs.

Well, the worthies never arrived, so Joseph Rutherford lived there until he died in 1941. He enjoyed the use of a luxurious mansion while his followers struggled through the Great Depression.

This amusing quote is from the San Diego Sun of March 15, 1930. "But how will you identify King David or any of the other representatives from God?' Rutherford was asked. 'I thought all that out before I wrote the deed,' the judge replied with a twinkle in his gray eyes. 'I realized the possibility of some old codger turning up bright and early some morning and declaring he was David. The men whom I have designated to test the identity of these men are officers of my societies and have consecrated themselves to the Lord, they will be divinely authorized to know impostors from the real princes."

Additional information:
Beth Sarim
1925 prophecy
Joseph Rutherford

Crazy Quotes # 2, 1,600 Furlongs

Jehovah's Witnesses believe they are special and that much of the Bible is talking about them. For example, the Watchtower Society said that the 1,600 furlongs mentioned in Revelation 14:20 was a reference to the publishing of the book The Finished Mystery. Work on the book was done in Scranton, Pennsylvania and it was then sent to the Bethel headquarters in Brooklyn, New York. Using questionable math, they go to great lengths to show that the distance between these sites is a prophetic fulfillment of Revelation 14:20.

First, they calculate the 1,600 furlongs as being equal to 137.9 miles. Then they use railroad time tables to show that the "Shortest distance from place where the wine press was trodden by the Feet Members of the Lord, Whose Guidance and help alone made this volume possible. (John 6:60, 61; Matt. 20:11.) mi., 137.9" (The Finished Mystery, 1917 edition, p.230)

See also this page at Watchtower Quotes.

Crazy Quotes #1, Vaccinations

"Avoid serum inoculations and vaccinations as they pollute the blood stream with their filthy pus." (The Golden Age, November 13, 1929, pp. 106-107)

"Quite likely there is some connection between the violation of human blood [vaccines] and the spread of demonism..." (The Golden Age, Feb 4, 1931 p. 293)

Jehovah's Witnesses have changed their mind and now allow vaccinations.

See this page at www.Quotes-Watchtower.co.uk for more crazy quotes on vaccinations.

Things to Say When Jehovah's Witnesses Knock on Your Door #1

If you don't want to speak to Jehovah's Witnesses, you can politely yet firmly request that they put you on their "do not call list". They should know what you are talking about. They may still come to your door to just make sure you want to stay on that list, but it should reduce the frequency of visits. You can also call the local Kingdom Hall and ask to be put on that list.

See also:
"Put Me on Your Do Not Call List"
A Message to Jehovah's Witnesses

About this Blog

I started this blog to help counteract the propaganda efforts of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of Jehovah's Witnesses. This is a multibillion dollar corporation with millions of adherents that spread their peculiar doctrines around the world.

Their beliefs on blood result in thousands of deaths. Their practice of ritualised shunning breaks up families, destroys lives and even causes suicide. Their long history of false prophecies is comical to any who haven't succumbed to their mind control techniques. Their policies have loopholes which frequently protect pedophiles, at the expense of the most innocent members of their congregations.

This giant propaganda machine has done a good job of hiding these facts from the general public and from their own members. I had the misfortune of being born into this religion and am well aware of the damage it does. I have joined thousands of other former members in an effort to educate and, hopefully, protect the public.

I believe that most Jehovah's Witnesses are victims of a dictatorial leadership and are largely ignorant of the true facts of their religion. My intention isn't to persecute them, but to challenge the leaders in their organisation, especially their Governing Body that claims to be God's channel of communication on Earth.

The videos aren't mine. They are embedded from sites like Google Video and Youtube. As a result, they won't always reflect my beliefs. They may advocate religious beliefs that are not my own. I urge you to be open minded, yet skeptical. I would be happy if this site prompts you to ask questions and do further research.

Currently I'm an agnostic, but I have an interest in religion because I know how influential and important it is. We can't really understand our fellow humans without understanding their beliefs. Religion is a root of many prejudices and religious extremism is a profound threat to modern society. However, I also believe that an open minded inquiry into religion can help us to fight this.

Aside from the main topic of this blog. I hope to also include some information on other cults, dangers in more conventional religions, agnosticism and atheism. I welcome your comments and ask that they reflect a measure of respect (even if the subject matter makes this difficult). I reserve the right to moderate comments if I feel this is necessary.