Do."

1 The Concept

THE concept that held about one hundred members of The Branch Davidians captive was their belief that David Koresh was God’s chosen individual to teach them what he wanted them to believe.

The concept that held about one thousand members of The People’s Temple captive was their belief that Jim Jones was God’s chosen individual to teach them what he wanted them to believe.

The concept that still holds millions of Jehovah’s Witnesses captive is their belief that the Watchtower Society is God’s chosen organization to teach them what he wants them to believe; that all of God’s directions to mankind comes through this one channel of communication

A main difference between the above concepts is the one through whom God is thought to ‘speak.’ In the cases of Koresh and Jones, it was men. But with Jehovah’s Witnesses it is an organization – "God’s organization."¹²

The following statement by former Governing Body Member Raymond Franz may well be the best explanation that has ever been written about what makes Jehovah’s Witnesses ‘tick’...

I try in my own mind and heart to understand the feelings of all [Jehovah’s Witnesses], including those of the Governing Body. Based on my own [60 years] experience among them I believe that they are, in effect, the captives of a concept. The concept or mental image they have of the organization seems almost to take on a personality of its own, so that the concept itself controls them, moves them, or restrains them, by

molding their thinking, their attitudes, their judgments... The ...concept of "the organization’... becomes, in fact, the dominant, controlling force.¹³

The concept that holds Jehovah’s Witnesses captive is their belief that the Watchtower Society is God’s organization.

Their concept of the organization is the dominant, controlling force in their lives without them realizing it.

Total belief in this concept explains why Jehovah’s Witnesses are so willing to accept whatever comes to them from the Watchtower Society no matter how complicated it is or how impossible it may be to understand, and even if it doesn’t make any sense to them. They view what comes from God’s organization as coming from God himself.¹⁴

Once people become thoroughly convinced that God is speaking to them directly or by means of some other person or organization they must act in harmony with their belief or else feel guilty before God Almighty if ever they were to disagree or fail to follow the directions being given. This is certainly true with Jehovah’s Witnesses. It is likely that it was the same with the followers of Koresh and Jones. The destruction of the World Trade Center buildings on 9/11/01 and suicide/homicide bombings show how far people are willing to go when they believe that what they are doing is what God wants (or requires) them to do.

Everything is explained and understood from the standpoint that the Society is God’s organization.

One of the things that makes the Watchtower’s organizational concept so powerful is that nobody notices that it is in fact, the dominant, controlling force in their decision-making process. But it controls them by molding the thinking of those who write the literature (under the direction of the Governing Body) as well as the Witnesses who read it. Everything is explained and understood from the standpoint that the Watchtower Society is God’s organization.

The following is the kind of statement that is accepted, not because it is stated or even suggested anywhere in the Bible, but because those reading it are captives of this organizational concept...

If we highly respect God’s inspired prophets of bygone days, and particularly God’s Son [which Witnesses do], should we not also respect the human agency that Jehovah is using today [i.e. the Watchtower Society]?¹⁵

Such reasoning only works on those who believe that the Society is the human agency that Jehovah is using today. For everyone else there is no connection between respect for God’s Son in heaven and the Watchtower Society on earth.

This concept blocks most Jehovah’s Witnesses from noticing anything wrong no matter how wrong it is.

It isn’t just that Jehovah’s Witnesses simply believe this concept – it’s what that belief does to them.¹⁶ Among other things it prevents most of them from noticing anything wrong no matter how wrong it is. And in case anyone does think they notice something wrong, they are warned that they must never try to do anything about it but simply wait for God to do something about it because, after all, ‘It is his organization’...

’if you really have faith you will know that if something is wrong God will straighten it out eventually.

If [you]¹⁷ have become thoroughly convinced that this is Jehovah’s organization that he is guiding and directing his people [i.e. Once you are a captive of this concept], [you] shall not be unsettled by anything that happens ... If [you] really have faith [you] will know that if something is wrong God will straighten it out eventually.¹⁸

The more Jehovah’s Witnesses allow themselves to be controlled by the above reasoning, the more spiritually mature they are considered to be. But of course, the only way God will straighten it out eventually is if the Society is in fact ‘God’s organization that he is guiding and directing his people.’ Once this concept is accepted, some pretty strange

things can be said without bothering anyone. For example, although they know that the Bible says that one must come to Jesus Christ for salvation, it doesn’t concern them when the Society claims that mankind must also come to them for salvation...

The Society’s religious leaders have made themselves indispensable to the salvation of mankind.

[Our] witness yet includes the invitation to come to Jehovah’s organization for salvation.¹⁹

To question, doubt or disagree with ‘God’s organization’ is to question, doubt and disagree with God!

See Footnote 22

They know the Bible doesn’t say such a thing but since they believe that when Armageddon strikes (in the very near future) only those who are in approved association ²⁰ with the Watchtower Society will be saved, they don’t see anything wrong with such a statement. But again, if the Society isn’t God’s organization then it has nothing to do with the salvation of anyone.

Belief in this concept has given the men of the Governing Body tremendous control over the thinking of the rest of Jehovah’s Witnesses. To question them, to doubt them, to disagree with them becomes the same as questioning, doubting and disagreeing with God himself! And since Witnesses are very sensitive about doing anything that would displease God, they try hard not to notice anything that might cause them to question, doubt or disagree with his organization. ²¹

Witnesses are reminded often enough that it is very offensive to Jehovah God if ever they were to question or doubt anything provided by his faithful and discreet slave organization ...

[YOUR] VIEW OF THE [ORGANIZATION]

If [you] have once established what instrument God is using as his slave to dispense spiritual food to his people, surely Jehovah is not pleased if [you] receive that food as though it might contain something harmful. [You] should have confidence in the channel God is using.²²

Here they begin their reasoning by reminding the Witnesses of the concept ( the instrument God is using ), and end with another reference to it ( the channel God is using ), and then make their point in the middle that ‘surely Jehovah is not pleased if anyone doubts anything that the men of the Governing Body are providing in the way of spiritual food. Again, this kind of reasoning is very intimidating to people who are captives of the Watchtower’s organizational concept.

Witnesses don’t notice how often they accept what comes from the Society simply because they believe it is God’s organization rather than because they can prove it to themselves from the Bible.

It is just as former elder Peter Gregerson so often observed during some fifty years of association with the Watchtower Society...

Everything always comes down to the question, Is the Watchtower Society God’s organization?

It seemed that everything always [comes] back to the question: Is the Watchtower Society and its leadership the faithful [and discreet] slave [organization]? ²³

The Point: Of all the things that can be known about this religion, there is only one thing that needs to be known...

Of all the things that can be known about the Watchtower religion, there is only one thing that needs to be known.

All Watchtower teachings are dependent upon what God’s organization currently says the Bible says.

See p. 82, The Final Authority of Watchtower Teachings

The reason why the answer to the question in the right hand column is the only thing that needs to be known is because all other Watchtower teachings are dependent—not on what the Bible says but, as will be shown, on what God’s organization currently says the Bible says. This has been proven to be true over and over again by the Witnesses’ willingness (i.e. requirement) to change what they believe the Bible says whenever God’s organization changes what it says the Bible says.²⁴

If the Watchtower Society truly is God’s one and only organization that he is using to teach mankind the truth from his Word the Bible (which is what Witnesses believe), then all anyone needs to do is believe everything that currently shows up in the above left hand column whether they understand it or not (which is what Witnesses do).

Whatever is going on today has nothing to do with whether or not the Society is God’s organization.

If you could ask them, Do you believe the Watchtower Society is God’s organization? —they will all confidently answer, Yes. But if you asked them why they believe that it is you will get a variety of answers which usually have to do with what the Society is teaching and doing today.²⁵ But according to their official teaching, whatever is going on today has nothing to do with whether or not the Watchtower Society is God’s organization.

The Only Way An Organization Could Be God’s Organization

It is evident that the only way any organization could be God’s organization would be if God appointed it as such. Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that the Watchtower Society received that appointment in the spring of 1919 in fulfillment of the most important Scripture in Watchtower theology—Matthew 24:45-47.²⁶

The only way any organization could be God’s organization would be if God appointed it to be His organization.

On the Watchtower’s official website under the heading, What Jehovah’s Witnesses Believe they list forty of their teachings. But their most important teaching, the only teaching that needs to be known — The Watchtower Society is God’s organization —is not mentioned.²⁷

Jehovah’s Witnesses usually need to come to realize that what they believe about the Watchtower Society may not be true before they can allow themselves to consider that what they believe about the Bible may not be true.

Which Comes First?

The usual way of thinking is that if Jehovah’s Witnesses can first see that things they believe about the Bible (in the above left hand column) are not true, then they will realize that the Watchtower Society is not God’s organization. But it usually has to work the other way around.

They need to at least begin to have serious doubts about the Society first before they can allow themselves to begin to consider that what they believe about the Bible may not be true.

NEXT: The following chapter will explain their interpretation of Matthew 24:45-47 followed by an examination of the organization’s history to see if the way they interpret this Scripture did in fact happen in Watchtower history. If their interpretation and history do agree with each other then there may be a chance that the Watchtower Society is God’s organization today, but if they do not agree then there is no chance no matter what they are teaching today.

¹² The Society promotes the belief that whatever they say, it is as if God is the One who is speaking. For example, the February 1, 1967 Watchtower says, What (the Witnesses) are telling people is what God in his Word says; he is the one talking.... So too, God uses men to speak to those within the congregation of believers... When they give counsel...it is God who is speaking by means of them.’ The article also asks, How can one identify the organization through which God is speaking to mankind today?" p. 72. On page 15 of the May 1, 2000 Watchtower the Governing Body reminds Witnesses that, Jehovah speaks to us through the Bible and by means of ‘the faithful and discreet slave’ [organization]. – See Chapter 6, Who Is God’s Organization?

¹³ Crisis of Conscience, p. 296.

¹⁴ One Witness expressed her personal feelings in front of her congregation this way: "When I receive my Watchtower magazine in the mail I feel that I am getting a letter from God." But it is not likely that she or any Witness would say this in front of non-Witnesses who are not captives of the same concept.

¹⁵ June 1, 1997 Watchtower, p.10

¹⁶ Raymond Franz explained what it did to him: "My belief in the organization as God's only agency on earth caused me to do what I did at that time without particularly great qualms of conscience. - Crisis of Conscience, p.