Posted by Duncan [Duncan] on October 23, 1999 at 20:02:54 {Fflr7qpqSgyFxDw0nNAc4uXMiiHhZQ}:
WE WON'T BE COMING ROUND MUCH LONGER"
There was this Circuit Assembly - back in 1968 it was - when a presentation was given which, as I remember things, caused a bit of a sensation in our congregation and surrounding ones. Everyone I knew talked about it for weeks afterwards.
It was when the "1975 mania" was in its full spate, and the gist of the thing was that it was now ("only MONTHS to go!") Officially Okay to say to non-interested householders that they were getting their last chance. "We won't be around very much longer calling on you. Either what we say will come to pass, or the whole world will see that we've proved to be false prophets!"
This from The Platform, the CO and DO and everyone, much repeated by all the brothers the following week back at the Hall, and further repeated to householders on the door.
I often look back on that and smile.
My point is this: since it was SO strident a message, and went way beyond anything ever said in the Watchtower - which habitually used circumspect, future-deniable language - was this message just something that was cooked up locally by the Circuit brothers (I live in London, England) - or does anyone else remember the same kind of thing being said in their circuits?
"... or we'll be proved False Prophets" was a pretty large hostage to fortune being given, after all, but it was always a feature of being in the truth that what was said in meetings, talks, conversations ALWAYS went way beyond what was written
Duncan