In defense of
the Governing Body
Often, Christian
apologists portray the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses as
self-concerned men who exist to manipulate all other Jehovah’s Witnesses
through the publications of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society. During
the course of it’s long existence, the Governing Body has presented
much teaching on a wide range of topics. Sometimes, previous teaching
is later seen to be incomplete or in need of clarification. When this
occurs, the Governing Body issues new, revised teaching to update or further
clarify the former teaching. Jehovah’s Witnesses view these necessary
modifications in teaching as an example of the “light getting brighter
and brighter” as they move toward the “new day” (Proverbs
4:18). Critics of the WTBTS make the charge that such changes prove that
the Governing Body is not under the direction of Jehovah God, and thus
should not be followed.
Because
non-Jehovah’s Witnesses do not agree with Jehovah’s Witnesses
on the significance and meaning of these changes, alterations in teaching
can be a stumbling block to non-Jehovah’s Witnesses, and what’s
more, such alterations can prove to be problematic to sincere Jehovah’s
Witnesses.
There’s
good news, though! I have recently come across the Governing Body’s
authoritative defense of any and all modifications to WTBTS teaching.
It’s found in the society book, Insight On The Scriptures (1988),
and in many other publications, some going back to just after the founding
of the modern society. Before going into a discussion of the Governing
Body’s defense, I would like to give an example of a common situation
where the defense applies.
If you have
been a Jehovah’s Witness for any amount of time you have probably
heard of Johannes Greber. If you don’t know who Johannes Greber
was (he’s dead now), it will suffice to say that he was a former
Roman Catholic priest turned spiritualist who translated the New Testament
(1937) with the “help” of the spirit realm. In other words,
Greber was an occultist.
Again, if
you have been knocking on doors for a while, you have heard that Greber
was quoted or cited favorably by the WTBTS in no less than three publications
over the course of fourteen years.[1] Seven years after
the WTBTS had last cited Greber, a careful reader wrote to The Watchtower
with an excellent question regarding the use of material by Johannes Greber.
Both the question and the answer were published in The Watchtower
(April 1, 1983). Although you are probably familiar with both the question
and the answer, I thought it best to reproduce them here in their entirety
as they illustrate the Governing Body’s authoritative defense of
itself.
The question:
Why,
in recent years, has The Watchtower not made use of the translation
by the former Catholic priest, Johannes Greber?
And
the answer:
This
translation was used occasionally in support of renderings of Matthew
27:52, 53 and John 1:1, as given in the New World Translation and other
authoritative Bible versions. But as indicated in a foreword to the
1980 edition of The New Testament by Johannes Greber, this
translator relied on “God’s Spirit World” to clarify
for him how he should translate difficult passages. It is stated: “His
wife, a medium of God’s Spirit world was often instrumental in
conveying the correct answers from God’s Messengers to Pastor
Greber.” The Watchtower has deemed it improper to make
use of a translation that has such a close rapport with spiritism. (Deuteronomy
18:10-12) The scholarship that forms the basis for the rendering of
the above-cited texts in the New World Translation is sound
and for this reason does not depend at all on Greber’s translation
for authority. Nothing is lost, therefore, by ceasing to use his New
Testament.
This is
pretty straight forward. Several Jehovah’s Witness elders have verified
for me that a simple reading of the answer conveys the thought that sometime
after 1980, the Governing Body discovered Greber’s unholy association
with spiritism, and as a result they stopped using his translation or
citing his works. Since the Governing Body did not know before 1980 that
Greber was an occultist, prior use of his work cannot (and should not)
be held against them. This is only fair.
Again, if
you have been a Jehovah’s Witness for any amount of time, you probably
know that this is not the whole story. In the 1950’s, the WTBTS
noted in print that Johannes Greber was a spiritualist and thus should
be avoided.[2] Therefore, the WTBTS knew well before
1980 that Greber was a spiritualist. Consequently, when they quoted Greber
those four times from 1962-1976, they were appealing to a known occultist
for support.
This has
no doubt caused some problems for you if you have run into it in the field.
However, a second look at the April 1, 1983 Watchtower will show
that the Governing Body never said that they did not know that Greber
was a spiritualist prior to 1980 – the reader – you –
just assumed that they said that. The Governing Body cannot be blamed
for your assumption. (Remember 1975?)
Now, there
are two things that you may not already know. First, you might not know
that after 1983, the WTBTS quoted Johannes Greber in print again in the
1987 book, “Ayuda Para Entender La Biblia” (1987,
“Aid To Bible Understanding” (Spanish version), p.
1258). Though this quote was in fact in support of WT teaching,
again, a careful reading of the 1983 Watchtower will show that
the Governing Body did not say that they would stop quoting Johannes Greber.
And so again, you,- the reader - assumed that they said that, when once
again they actually had not. This illustrates the great problems in basing
conclusions on things that you have only assumed.
At this
point you might be thinking that since the Governing Body implied these
things,[3] you, as the reader, had every right to interpret
them as meaning these things. You might even feel that my criticism of
your assumptions is unjust. In all probability though, you have not thought
too much about it, and the ethical question doesn’t bother you at
all. However, if you think I have been unfair to you by blaming you for
your assumptions, then as it happens, you just might think that somehow
the Governing Body has been unjust.
The Governing
Body has not been unjust. Their policy is explained in Insight On
The Scriptures, vol. 2, pg. 245 (1988). In the article about Lying
(“Lie”) they write:
“While
malicious lying is definitely condemned in the Bible, this does not
mean that a person is under obligation to divulge truthful information
to people who are not entitled to it.”
The Governing
Body thus outlines a policy by which it is justified to lie to people
who are not entitled to the Truth. Your assumption has been that the Governing
Body means that it is OK in some circumstances to lie to people who are
not Jehovah’s Witnesses. Again, your assumption is wrong. The Governing
Body is here stating that you are not entitled to the truth. That’s
the difference between the Governing Body and Christian apologists. Christians
want you to have the truth. The Governing Body does not.
One thing
the Governing Body was right about was the damning impact of religious
lies. They wrote:
“Especially
serious have been the religious lies, as they have endangered the future
life of persons deceived by them.” (Insight On The Scriptures,
vol. 2, p. 245).
Don’t
throw away eternity because you have assumed things that are not true.
Remember
"... if we [the Governing Body] continued to practice spiritisim
after knowing Jehovah's view of it, we [the Governing Body] would be
siding with the rebellious wicked spirits and would be enemies of God."
(1995, Knowledge That Leads to Everlasting Life", p. 112)
Don't side
with the enemies of God.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1]
1962, in “The Word – Who Is He? – According to John”,
p. 5; 1965, in “Make Sure of All Things – Hold Fast To What
Is Fine”, p. 489; 1971, Aid To Bible Understanding, pgs. 1334 &
1669; and 1976, The Watchtower, April 15, p. 231.
[2]
1955, in “What Do The Scriptures Say About Survival After Death?”,
p. 88; and The Watchtower, October 1, 1955, p. 603. Both publications
contain the following quote: "It comes as no surprise that one Johannes
Greber, a former Catholic clergyman, has become a spiritualist and has
published the book entitled 'Communication with the Spirit World, Its
laws and Its Purpose.' (1932, Macoy Publishing Company, New York) In its
Foreword he makes the typical misstatement: 'The most significant spiritualistic
book is the Bible; for its principal contents hinge upon the messages
of the beyond to those existing in the present.'”
[3]
i.e. that they found out that Greber was a spiritualist sometime after
1980; and, that they would never quote him again.
***
it-2 244-5 Lie ***
LIE (entire article from Insight On The Scriptures,
vol. 2, pg 245)
The opposite of truth. Lying generally involves saying something false
to a person who is entitled to know the truth and doing so with the
intent to deceive or to injure him or another person. A lie need not
always be verbal. It can also be expressed in action, that is, a person
may be living a lie. The Hebrew verb that conveys the idea of speaking
that which is untrue is ka·zav'. (Pr 14:5) Another Hebrew verb
sha·qar' means “deal or act falsely,” and the noun
form is rendered “lie; deception; falsehood.” (Le 19:11;
Ps 44:17; Le 19:12; Ps 33:17; Isa 57:4) Hebrew shaw´, at times
rendered “untruth; falsehood,” basically refers to something
worthless, vain, valueless. (Ps 12:2; De 5:20; Ps 60:11; 89:47; Zec
10:2) The Hebrew verb ka·chash' (deceive) evidently has the basic
meaning “prove disappointing.” (Le 19:11; Ho 9:2) The Greek
term pseu'dos and related words have to do with lying and falsehood.
The father, or originator, of lying is Satan the Devil. (Joh 8:44) His
lie conveyed by means of a serpent to the first woman Eve ultimately
brought death to her and to her husband Adam. (Ge 3:1-5, 16-19) That
first lie was rooted in selfishness and wrong desire. It was designed
to divert the love and obedience of the first human pair to the liar,
who had presented himself as an angel of light, a benefactor. (Compare
2Co 11:14.) All other malicious lies uttered since that time have likewise
been a reflection of selfishness and wrong desire. People have told
lies to escape deserved punishment, to profit at the expense of others,
and to gain or maintain certain advantages, material rewards, or the
praise of men.
Especially serious have been the religious lies, as they have endangered
the future life of persons deceived by them. Said Jesus Christ: “Woe
to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because you traverse sea
and dry land to make one proselyte, and when he becomes one you make
him a subject for Gehenna twice as much so as yourselves.” (Mt
23:15) The exchange of God’s truth for “the lie,”
the falsehood of idolatry, can cause a person to become a practicer
of what is degrading and vile.—Ro 1:24-32.
The case of the religious leaders of Judaism in the time of Jesus’
earthly ministry shows what can happen when one abandons the truth.
They schemed to have Jesus put to death. Then, when he was resurrected,
they bribed the soldiers who had guarded the tomb so they would conceal
the truth and spread a lie about the disappearance of Jesus’ body.—Mt
12:14; 27:1, 2, 62-65; 28:11-15; Mr 14:1; Lu 20:19.
Jehovah God cannot lie (Nu 23:19; Heb 6:13-18), and he hates “a
false tongue.” (Pr 6:16-19) His law to the Israelites required
compensation for injuries resulting from deception or malicious lying.
(Le 6:2-7; 19:11, 12) And a person presenting false testimony was to
receive the punishment that he desired to inflict upon another by means
of his lies. (De 19:15-21) God’s view of malicious lying, as reflected
in the Law, has not changed. Those desiring to gain his approval cannot
engage in the practice of lying. (Ps 5:6; Pr 20:19; Col 3:9, 10; 1Ti
3:11; Re 21:8, 27; 22:15) They cannot be living a lie, claiming to love
God while hating their brother. (1Jo 4:20, 21) For playing false to
the holy spirit by lying, Ananias and his wife lost their lives.—Ac
5:1-11.
However, persons who are momentarily overreached in telling a lie do
not automatically become guilty of an unforgivable sin. The case of
Peter, in denying Jesus three times, illustrates that if a person is
truly repentant, God will forgive him.—Mt 26:69-75.
While malicious lying is definitely condemned in the Bible, this does
not mean that a person is under obligation to divulge truthful information
to people who are not entitled to it. Jesus Christ counseled: “Do
not give what is holy to dogs, neither throw your pearls before swine,
that they may never trample them under their feet and turn around and
rip you open.” (Mt 7:6) That is why Jesus on certain occasions
refrained from giving full information or direct answers to certain
questions when doing so could have brought unnecessary harm. (Mt 15:1-6;
21:23-27; Joh 7:3-10) Evidently the course of Abraham, Isaac, Rahab,
and Elisha in misdirecting or in withholding full facts from nonworshipers
of Jehovah must be viewed in the same light.—Ge 12:10-19; chap
20; 26:1-10; Jos 2:1-6; Jas 2:25; 2Ki 6:11-23.
Jehovah God allows “an operation of error” to go to persons
who prefer falsehood “that they may get to believing the lie”
rather than the good news about Jesus Christ. (2Th 2:9-12) This principle
is illustrated by what happened centuries earlier in the case of Israelite
King Ahab. Lying prophets assured Ahab of success in war against Ramoth-gilead,
while Jehovah’s prophet Micaiah foretold disaster. As revealed
in vision to Micaiah, Jehovah allowed a spirit creature to become “a
deceptive spirit” in the mouth of Ahab’s prophets. That
is to say, this spirit creature exercised his power upon them so that
they spoke, not truth, but what they themselves wanted to say and what
Ahab wanted to hear from them. Though forewarned, Ahab preferred to
be fooled by their lies and paid for it with his life.—1Ki 22:1-38;
2Ch 18.
***
w56 2/15 110-1 Triumphing over Wicked Spirit Forces ***
Says Johannes Greber in the introduction of his translation of The New
Testament, copyrighted in 1937: “I myself was a Catholic priest,
and until I was forty-eight years old had never as much as believed in
the possibility of communicating with the world of God’s spirits.
The day came, however, when I involuntarily took my first step toward
such communication, and experienced things that shook me to the depths
of my soul. . . . My experiences are related in a book that has appeared
in both German and English and bears the title, Communication with the
Spirit-World: Its Laws and Its Purpose.” (Page 15, 2, 3) In keeping
with his Roman Catholic extraction Greber’s translation is bound
with a gold-leaf cross on its stiff front cover. In the Foreword of his
aforementioned book ex-priest Greber says: “The most significant
spiritualistic book is the Bible.” Under this impression Greber
endeavors to make his New Testament translation read very spiritualistic."'
(The Watchtower, Feb. 15, 1956, pgs 110-111).
_Chuck_
|