# On becoming a religion...

[ HOURGLASS2 OUTPOST ] [ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ FAQ ]

Posted by felix a [angler] on November 10, 1999 at 05:27:50 {AAJB0ph6mYP6iqioOwugXXuUsiPcoA}:

Below is a thought that went through my mind this morning while on the train into work.

Does anyone know what was going on in the U.S. court system during the early thirties when the name Jehovah’s witnesses was adopted by those associated with the IBSA at the various conventions held that year?

It seems to me that this was the beginning of the efforts of the WBTS and IBSA to create a legally recognizable religious body that was separate and clearly identifiable apart from the WBTS. Since both of these organizations were publishing corporations and not religious bodies, could they have recognized the need for having a religious body that they were affiliated with or tied to for legal needs? Or am I wrong here and that these corporate bodies have been in the past recognized as religious organizations and or bodies?

I guess part of what got me thinking about this was a recent conversation with Jim Penton regarding the WBTS and the events in Nazi Germany at this time. He was talking about how it is often presented that nobody was aware of what Hitler was like at this time or what his taking power would mean to Europe and the U.S. Yet while here in NY doing some research through old issues of the New York Times, the journalists and political commentators of the day were writing about what might happen in Germany if he took power as well as what was happening once he did take power. So it seems that the winds of war were in the making and publicly known at that early date. So the writers of the WBTS knew this information at that time. Having gone through WW I without being to my knowledge a religious body it was realized that as advocates of neutrality they would need to be able to be affiliated with a religious body in order to be declared recognized ministers of religion. So they took a preemptive approach to this upcoming issue of neutrality and the potential legal issues involved.

I do realize that I may be giving them more credit than they deserve in this, but I do wonder how much of this decision was driven by legal needs and their recognition of such, since the president was a lawyer and would have to be cognizant of such things in my opinion.

Regards,

felix a

Follow Ups:

- *On becoming a religion... Amazing 09:55:53 11/10/99 (0)
- *On becoming a religion... Farkel 08:24:52 11/10/99 (0)

Post a Followup

Name:
E-Mail:

Subject: *On becoming a religion...

Comments:

Optional Link URL:
Link Title:
Optional Image URL:

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ HOURGLASS2 OUTPOST ] [ FAQ ]