Posted by Kindred [Kindred] on October 25, 1999 at 17:17:18 {DjTI9F5X/YZyDytsQPQ2YW5eok125A}:
In Reply to: *Some 1975 "Truth" posted by Alan on October 25, 1999 at 14:34:00:
You can't deny that the WTS is directly responsible for the consistent maintenance of high anticipations of "the nearing end" in its members...they phrase it as keeping the flock awake, right?
Now couple that built up anticipation with a strong leaning of the ORG on dates (e.g 1914,1919, the 2300 days etc.) and then REPEATED hinting at a possible date for then end, what actions are best to be done by the publishers if that date were in deed the case, and you can see why the more fervent members did "stupid" things. They were stupid in that they let themselves be overly influenced by an organization which really didn't have a solid basis for any of their conjectures.
I for my part hold the ORG responsible for a good deal of what happened especially since they were very likely aware (dare I say pleased?) of just how submissive some people were to there direction.
Mind you, those individuals are also responsible for so completely relying on things without doing adequate research from INDEPENDENT sources. If they had, they would have known that the whole 6000 years outline was just bunk.
Furthermore I beleive that the one teaching has a greater responsibility than the novice learner on what is factual, so the WTS should have known better about just how long H.sapiens have really been around. Even the Roman Catholic Church accepts that fact.