Miten Vartiotorniseura on toiminut historiansa aikana sotien ja puoleettomuuden suhteen?
Hieman historiaa seuran todellisuudesta ja sen USA-sotaoblikaatioiden ostosta ja kannustuksesta sellaiseen.
Russell.
"Originally, Bible Students participated in non-combatant duty and even went to the trenches."
"There is no command in the Scriptures against military service. It would be quite right to shoot, not to kill." Zion's Watch Tower 1898 Aug 1 p.231 (see also jv p.191)
"There could be nothing against our conscience in going into the army. Wherever we would go we could take the Lord with us, the Captain of our salvation, and wherever we would go we could find opportunities to serve him and his cause." Zion's Watch Tower 1903 Apr 15 p.120
- ww.jwfacts.com/watchtower/war.php
Vt-seuran johtajien vihakirjoitukset sodan aikaan vei heidät vankeuteen ja josta vapauduttuaan alkoivat sovitella ja ostivat, sekä kannustivat ostamaan USA:n sotaoblikaatioita Rutherfordin johdolla1918 ja olivat halukkata ottaman Brooklynin tiloissaan hallitksen edustajien promootiotilaisuuden sotaoblikaatioiden puolesta.
OUR STATEMENT TO THE PRESS
"The people of our Association are not against the Government, nor against the Liberty Loan. Our thought is that the Liberty Loan is not a religious question, but purely one pertaining to the affairs of the Government; and that each person should be left to the free exercise of his individual conscience as to whether he will or will not purchase Liberty Bonds. Our views are very well expressed in a statement given to the public press some weeks ago, as follows:
"`The International Bible Students' Association is not against the Liberty Loan. Many of its members have bought and hold Liberty Bonds. Some have not money with which to buy."
"`The Liberty Loan is not a religious question. It has solely to do with the Government. Every person who mails a letter supports the Government to that extent by paying the additional postage on account of the war.
"As to the members of the Bethel Home, it is well known that those who labor there receive merely their food and lodging and a small allowance for incidental expenses. This was thoroughly aired in the _Brooklyn Eagle_ libel case, as the record shows. At that time the amount received was only $10.00 per month, which since, on account of increased cost of necessities, is now $15.00 per month. At the opening of the Third Liberty Loan cmapaign, a very elegant gentleman of the Borough of Brooklyn called on me with reference to soliciting the members of the Bethel Home to buy bonds. I invited him to see each one of them personally. He questioned me as to their ability to buy; and when I told him of the amount they received monthly he said, `Then they cannot buy on that amount and it is useless for me to see them. I am sure you must be doing much good here in your own way when men and women sacrifice their time for such a small allowance.' It is a well known fact that there are other institutions that are not asked or even expected to buy Liberty Bonds because of their financial inability.
"Members of our Association who have some personal means have bought Liberty Bonds, including Tabernacle workers who are paying 25 per cent. of their monthly allowance to purchase a bond. We do not believe the Government would expect any one to purchase bonds who receives barely enough for his daily expenses."
May 15, 1918 WT p. 152 (=reprint p.6257)
- http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/scandals/108621/1/War-Bonds-WWI-does-anybody-have-info
Hieman historiaa seuran todellisuudesta ja sen USA-sotaoblikaatioiden ostosta ja kannustuksesta sellaiseen.
Russell.
"Originally, Bible Students participated in non-combatant duty and even went to the trenches."
"There is no command in the Scriptures against military service. It would be quite right to shoot, not to kill." Zion's Watch Tower 1898 Aug 1 p.231 (see also jv p.191)
"There could be nothing against our conscience in going into the army. Wherever we would go we could take the Lord with us, the Captain of our salvation, and wherever we would go we could find opportunities to serve him and his cause." Zion's Watch Tower 1903 Apr 15 p.120
- ww.jwfacts.com/watchtower/war.php
Vt-seuran johtajien vihakirjoitukset sodan aikaan vei heidät vankeuteen ja josta vapauduttuaan alkoivat sovitella ja ostivat, sekä kannustivat ostamaan USA:n sotaoblikaatioita Rutherfordin johdolla1918 ja olivat halukkata ottaman Brooklynin tiloissaan hallitksen edustajien promootiotilaisuuden sotaoblikaatioiden puolesta.
OUR STATEMENT TO THE PRESS
"The people of our Association are not against the Government, nor against the Liberty Loan. Our thought is that the Liberty Loan is not a religious question, but purely one pertaining to the affairs of the Government; and that each person should be left to the free exercise of his individual conscience as to whether he will or will not purchase Liberty Bonds. Our views are very well expressed in a statement given to the public press some weeks ago, as follows:
"`The International Bible Students' Association is not against the Liberty Loan. Many of its members have bought and hold Liberty Bonds. Some have not money with which to buy."
"`The Liberty Loan is not a religious question. It has solely to do with the Government. Every person who mails a letter supports the Government to that extent by paying the additional postage on account of the war.
"As to the members of the Bethel Home, it is well known that those who labor there receive merely their food and lodging and a small allowance for incidental expenses. This was thoroughly aired in the _Brooklyn Eagle_ libel case, as the record shows. At that time the amount received was only $10.00 per month, which since, on account of increased cost of necessities, is now $15.00 per month. At the opening of the Third Liberty Loan cmapaign, a very elegant gentleman of the Borough of Brooklyn called on me with reference to soliciting the members of the Bethel Home to buy bonds. I invited him to see each one of them personally. He questioned me as to their ability to buy; and when I told him of the amount they received monthly he said, `Then they cannot buy on that amount and it is useless for me to see them. I am sure you must be doing much good here in your own way when men and women sacrifice their time for such a small allowance.' It is a well known fact that there are other institutions that are not asked or even expected to buy Liberty Bonds because of their financial inability.
"Members of our Association who have some personal means have bought Liberty Bonds, including Tabernacle workers who are paying 25 per cent. of their monthly allowance to purchase a bond. We do not believe the Government would expect any one to purchase bonds who receives barely enough for his daily expenses."
May 15, 1918 WT p. 152 (=reprint p.6257)
- http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/scandals/108621/1/War-Bonds-WWI-does-anybody-have-info
Vastaukset 6
Vanhimmat
aika mielenkiintoista tekstiä ja toimintaa. jumalan järjestö osti sotaoblikaatioita ja kannusti sellaiseen. sitten tekeydytään sodan vastustajiksi.
Outoa ettei tämä mielenkiintoinen avaus ole ruokkinut keskustelua.
Jos on totta mitä avauksessa kerrotaan niin jehovan todistajien opetus sotiin osallistumattomuudesta joutuu väistämättä uuteen valoon.
Taidanpa perehtyä asiaan tarkemmin.
USA:n sotaoblikaatioiden osto ja siihen kannustus on mustaa vakoisella seuran tuon ajan lehdissä.
Ei tule hämmästyä miksi Vartiotorniseura ei laita siisteille monikieliselle sivutoilleen vanhaa materiaaliana kaikkien halukkaiden tutkittavaksi ja ne jäsenet jotka itsenäisesti asioita selvittävät ja ottavat kiusallisi asioita puheeksi saavat epäilyttävien potentiaalisti luopiohenkisen leiman.
Vartiotorniseura myös kahoitti rukoilemaan sodan menestyksen puolesta.
On hyvä muistaa, että juurinoihin aikoihin tapahtui myös väitetty Vartiotorniseuran tupatarkastus, jonka seurauksena Jeesus ja Jehova valitsivan sen ainoaksi putaiden totuuksien puhekanavakseen.
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Pieni off-topic.
Edelleen tuolloin ja vuosia sen jälkeen se mm. opetti Jesuksen palanneen 1874.
Kuitenkin edelleen tänä päivänä se valehdellen väittää kauan edeltä opettaneensa Jeesuksen paluun / kuninkuuden ja lopun ajan alkua alkavaksi vuodelle 1914.
"Surely there is not the slightest room for doubt that in the mind of a truly consecrated child of God that the Lord Jesus Christ is present and has been since 1874." (w24 Jan. 1 p. 5)
"The second coming of the Lord therefore began in 1874..." (Creation 1927 pp. 289, 291, 297, 298, 318)
"The Scriptural proof is that the second presence of the Lord Jesus Christ began in 1874 A.D." (Prophecy 1929 p. 65)
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"The Watch Tower Gave its Blessing to the US Army Fighting in WWI"
"In accordance with the resolution of Congress of April 2nd, and with the proclamation of the president of the United States of May 11, it is suggested that the Lord's people everywhere make May 30th a day of prayer and supplication. God was graciously pleased to cause the nation to be formed and to grow under the most favorable conditions in the world for the preservation of liberty, civil and religious."
"Let there be praise and thanks-giving to God for the promised glorious outcome of the war, the breaking of the shackles of autocracy, the freeing of the captives (Isaiah 61:1) and the making of the world safe for the common people--blessings all assured by the Word of God to the people of this country and of the whole world of mankind."
(1 June 1918 Watch Tower, p. 174)
- http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/71805/watch-tower-gave-blessing-us-army-fighting-wwi?page=1&size=20
Osa tuon ajan todistajista eivät hyväksyneet tuota sovittelua (Standfasters) siirtyen pois tuosta uskonyhteisöstä ja he joutuivat täysin häikäilemättömän hegellis-henkisen takaa-ajon ja pieksennän kohteiksi Vartiotorniseuran taholta, joka syytti heitä mm. hajaannuksen aiheuttamisesta.
Lojaalisuus organisaatiolle on täreämpää kuin uskollisuus Jumalalle ja henkilökohtaisen kritillisen omantunnon säilytäminen. Organisaatiolle tulee alistua ehdoitta, oli sitten oikeassa tai väärässä. Eriäviä ajatuksia lausuvat eliminoidaan ja eritsetään luopioina, sekä savat aktiivisen demonisoivan mustamaalauskampanjan osakseen.
Onko noita vanhoja vt-seuran julkaisuja mahdollista saada vielä jostakin?
Vaikka todistajat itse pitävät turhana kaivella vanhoja juttuja heidän järjestönsä historiasta niin aina löytyy kuitenkin niitä jotka todella haluavat tietää myös menneisyydestä.
Historia opettaa monesti hyvin paljon ja auttaa omalta osaltaan ymmärtämään myös nykyisyyttä vaikka asiat ja asenteet olisivatkin jo muuttuneet.
”Zion's Watch Tower 1898”
Suomi oli silloin osa Venäjää.
Vartiotorniseura itse ei mahdollista pääsyä sen vanhana materiaaliin (sattuneesta yystä), mutta kolmannet osapuolet ovat tehneet niistä alkuperäistä vastaavia kopioita, sekä CD:lle että kirjoiksi painetussa muodossa.
Mikäli alla olevista CD-levyistä kiinnostuu, niin kannattaa varmistaa millä Windows-versiolla ne toimivat. Ilmeisesti ainakin osa edellyttää XP:n uudempien W:n sijaan.
- http://www.amazon.com/Rutherfords-Rainbow-Research-Applications/dp/0972465014/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_y
- http://www.amazon.com/Watchtower-1920-1929-Research-Applications/dp/0972465057/ref=pd_sim_b_1
- http://www.amazon.com/Studies-Scriptures-Volumes-Charles-Russell/dp/0972824391/ref=pd_sim_b_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=1ATX25MQJX6Z37ZHR01P