Bridge of Reason

  In their latest update #4, the Jehovah’s Witnesses' Governing Body has announced that toasting and ‘ clinking glasses’  is now allowed at the individual Jehovah’s Witness’s ‘ bible trained conscience’ .  This, Governing Body member Stephen Lett tells us, is due to ‘ prayerful consideration’  by the Governing Body.  This doesn’t sound unreasonable; who could possibly object to toasting, it’s such an innocuous custom?  The answer to that is the Governing Body itself, until now. Ever since 1952, and possibly earlier, the Watchtower has roundly condemned this practice due to its ‘ pagan roots’  in ‘ false religion’ .  The 15 May 1952 Watchtower (page 319), has this to say on the matter Jehovah God and Christ Jesus are not honored by having pagan customs of toasting switched to them, or to human s In 1968, in an answer to  Questions from Readers,  the 1 Jan Watchtower states If a Christian is going to make a request f...

  Telling the truth means you don’t need to remember what you've said before is a valuable expression to note as it can help us to separate the lies from the truth.   The Watchtower is famous for the vast amounts of literature and information it pumps out to its members.   In recent years the number of written items has reduced, being replaced by visual media mostly on JW Broadcasting, but the sheer volume seems to be remaining the same.  This can sometimes result in slip ups in what pronouncements are made by the Governing Body. During the recent 2024 Annual Meeting of the Jehovah’s Witnesses (available for viewing on JW Broadcasting) an announcement was made, by the Governing Body member Gerrit Losch, that two new members were being added to the Governing Body.   Those new members are Jode Jedele and Jacob Rumph who are both somewhat younger than most of the present members of the body, Rumph now being the youngest at 52.   Losch welcomed these new me...

  Friends, it is happening. After two and a half years of not door knocking, the Jehovah’s Witnesses have been given permission by the Governing Body to return to house-to-house publishing today – September 1 st , 2022. After reporting of their great success in letter-writing, phone calls and online bible studies during the Covid pandemic, I like many, wondered if they would ever return to our streets. But they are back. Many Jehovah’s Witnesses have spoken of their great joy in being able to get back on the doors. Social media is awash with sentiments like ‘ Yes ’, ‘ Can’t wait ’, ‘ So excited ’, but for every positive post I saw, I believe there will be an equal number wanting to scream ‘ Nooooooooo ’. Knocking on people’s doors is hard work. I speak as someone who has done it as a JW and a Christian, and I can say with the utmost conviction that it is much easier to write letters. Still, you cannot be a Jehovah’s Witness and say ‘no’ to door-knocking, or rather say ‘no’ to...

I am not a massive cricket fan, but I do enjoy the odd test match and, of course, the Ashes. I find the battle the battle between the batsman and the bowler fascinating. The bowler seeks to tempt the batsman into playing a shot that will lead to his dismissal, but every now and then the bowler will not quite get it right, giving the batsman the opportunity to hit the ball for six. Now lest you fear the Reachout Trust blog has decided to ditch cults and start commenting on sport, let me share with you where I am going with this. Every now and then a cultic group, like the bowler in the cricket match, will give the batsman (in this case Reachout Trust) the opportunity to hit the ball for six. This is what the Jehovah’s Witnesses have done in their feature article on JW.org. The piece is entitled: ‘Protect Yourself from Misinformation’ and, as I began to read it, I nearly spat out my coffee. If only Jehovah’s Witnesses would take what they are here being taught and apply it to their own ...

  The text given for the convention is the latter part of Psalm 29 verse 11, which reads in the New World Translation as: ‘Jehovah will bless His people with peace.’ Because Jehovah’s Witnesses erroneously, but deliberately, translate the tetragram YHWH (LORD in most Bibles) as Jehovah, every verse that has that name appears to speak directly to them. So, in setting the stage for those virtually attending this convention, the verse clearly says to them that Jehovah will bless His people with peace. Who are His people? Of course, they believe it is them - Jehovah’s Witnesses. To reinforce the opening thought that Jehovah has a people, a musical presentation was shown with Witnesses from around the world singing in their own language. The message is loud and clear. Jehovah has a people, and they are happy, united, and blessed. The Jehovah’s Witnesses are back out in force with their carts, and I recently spoke to an elderly couple of witnesses about the Lord Jesus and the way of salv...

  On their website the Watch Tower asks, 'Is it Necessary to Belong to an Organised Religion? In  Reasoning from the Scriptures ( pp. 283/4 ) Jehovah's Witnesses offer seven characteristics that identify Jehovah's organisation: (1) It truly exalts Jehovah as the only true God, magnifying his name.—Matt. 4:10; John 17:3. (2) It fully recognizes the vital role of Jesus Christ in Jehovah’s purpose—as the vindicator of Jehovah’s sovereignty, the Chief Agent of life, the head of the Christian congregation, the ruling Messianic King.—Rev. 19:11-13; 12:10; Acts 5:31; Eph. 1:22, 23. (3) It adheres closely to God’s inspired Word, basing all its teachings and standards of conduct on the Bible.—2 Tim. 3:16, 17. (4) It keeps separate from the world.—Jas. 1:27; 4:4. (5) It maintains a high level of moral cleanness among its members, because Jehovah himself is holy.—1 Pet. 1:15, 16; 1 Cor. 5:9-13. (6) It devotes its principal efforts to doing the work that the Bible foretold...

  In  an article on jw.org   addressing how we enter God’s rest the Watch Tower emphasise the importance of following ‘scriptural counsel’ from leaders and ‘keeping pace with Jehovah’s organisation.’ This has always been awkward given the history of failed prophecy and changed teachings for which the Watch Tower is known. The Society tries to excuse its past failures, saying,   'It is not easy to accept counsel from an imperfect human,' while trying to keep an iron hold on authority. Historically, they have leaned heavily on the idea of doctrines being refined, counsel being changed because of new light ‘improving’ our understanding. The article explains: 'Many of us can quote Proverbs 4:18 from memory: “The path of the righteous ones is like the bright light that is getting lighter and lighter until the day is firmly established.” That means that our conduct and our understanding of God’s purposes will improve over time... 'In modern times, there have been r...

  “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. Matthew 24:36 Right on Time In this final article covering the talk given by Governing Body member Mark Sanderson at the 2021 Annual Conference, I continue to ask if the Watchtower Society should be trusted.  After reminding his hearers that ‘timing is everything’ Mark Sanderson, spoke of three prophesied events that took place right on time. He said: ‘Jesus was baptised at precisely the right time that the Messiah was due to appear.’ ‘The Kingdom began its heavenly rule right on time in 1914.’ ‘Jehovah has set the time, even the exact day and the hour for the end of this wicked system of things.’ Let’s consider these three events. ‘Jesus was baptised at precisely the right time that the Messiah was due to appear.’ In their book: You Can Live Forever on a Paradise Earth , the Watchtower Society have a picture of Jesus being baptised by John the Baptist. ...