How Did the Jehovah's Witnesses Start?

There were "giants" in the land in the 19th century. Good guys and bad guys, from a Christian perspective. Among the former we could include Moody and Sankey, Spurgeon, Hudson Taylor, Fanny Crosby, David Livingstone. Aimee Semple McPherson began in those days too. The entire holiness movement was launched, some of whose fruit was good and remains. The Second Great Awakening attempted to call America to God once more. Booth and his Salvation Army cannot be ignored.

On the other side was Christian Science, Mormonism, and the catalyst of the future Watch Tower, Adventism.

SATAN

Of course, the history of the Jehovah's Witness lies must begin in the mind of the Enemy of our soul. From day one in the Garden, he was questioning the Word of God. Israel's story is one of enticement to other gods, by which that nation fell into the hands of the empires of their day.

Jesus was surrounded by those who challenged His truths. And after His return to Heaven, the attacks continued. The apostle John was already responding to groups of philosophers and even supposed believers who were getting it wrong about who Jesus is. Notice the use of the word "know" in his epistles. The knowledge given by God is juxtaposed in his mind to the so-called knowing of the Gnostics.

Many false prophets and antichrists had gone out into John's world. And after the days of John. The church fathers slowly took into their fellowships and minds the teachings of men unworthy the name of Jesus. As they do to this day.

ARIUS

And decades before one Arius of Libya, a presbyter in the Egyptian Church, would intensify the attack on the person of Jesus in the early 4th century, the awful idea had been floated and discussed and argued, namely, that Jesus is not really God after all.

Paul of Samasota would say in the third century that Jesus was born a mere man, and "became" (a) God later. Lucian of Antioch, mentor of Arius, would espouse similar notions.

The final formation of that doctrine, intensified and passed on by Arius, though condemned soundly by the church of that day, was that Jesus was no more than a creation of the Father, therefore distinct from the Father, therefore subordinate to the Father.

The Nicean Council of 325 and the first Council of Constantinople, soundly and forever rejected this blasphemous notion...

... from the church, that is. But not from the world. Satan's lies continue. In the Germanic tribes coming to Christ from the 5th to the 7th centuries, this particular lie continued to be spread. After the Protestant Reformation allowed free thought in the world, without martyrdom attached, it surfaced again. Among some Unitarians, it was also present.

And most famously, and to the point of our study, it came alive once more in the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society.

The Witnesses do not claim to be Arians, and indeed their version of the lie, though very similar in parts, actually takes Arius to a new level: they even deny the person of the Holy Spirit!

Anyway, the lie is not new. From the garden until now, the person and character and word of the Creator is under attack. I speak here of only a more recent group to grab hold of this "wisdom" from below.

Be it known that the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society is a human organization of human and Satanic derivation. Begun by and continued by some very strong and very organized, and now very rich, men.

William Miller/Adventism. 1830's

Many things came out of the second "Great Awakening" of the United States. Not all of them were of the finest quality. William Miller appeared during this time and soon gathered a following because of the sincere attempt he had made to set dates for the coming of Jesus, that is, Jesus' "advent." The Millerites were the founding branch of this fairly sizeable Adventist movement, the main branch for some time. Between 50,000 and 100,0000 people got behind William Miller and his predictions. As with many groups that began in that era, the Adventists differed on a lot of smaller issues, but came together on some of the basics of the faith. They truly believed the Scriptures to be literally the Word of God. But their emphasis, their reason to be, was the coming again of Jesus to the Earth, and knowing the exact date thereof.

The Adventists, by the way, have survived to the present time, with the largest group being the Seventh-day branch, an evangelical group with a mixture of legalism in it that has caused some to stay away from it.
Early on, date-setters among this new denomination turned to the Witness trick of moving from literal to spiritual -as they called it - fulfillment of their prophecies. Jesus was supposed to return in 1844, for example (October 22 to be exact). His form did not fill the sky on that day. Many left the movement, but many swallowed hard and moved on. Others decided that it really had happened, but "spiritually," by which they mean "invisibly, so you can't prove us wrong."

Famous Adventist Nelson Barbour caught the attention of one Charles Taze Russell around this time. Russell was fascinated by it all, and though he never officially joined the Adventists, there is no question that Adventism joined him.

So what do we have so far? An Arian Adventist is now ready to push his own version of both of these teachings onto the American stage, and the stage of the world. But first, a man unknown to most moderns becomes the enabler, unwittingly helping to launch this set of lies.

WILLIAM HENRY CONLEY. President, 1881-1884

Strangely enough, the first elected President of the organization that would become the Jehovah's Witnesses, was not exclusively a "Witness" at all. William Henry Conley was a resident of Pittsburgh, a big-hearted man who loved to give to the work of the Lord or any good cause that touched his heart. In his lifetime he helped the new Witnesses, the Christian Missionary Alliance movement, an orphanage-school for African Americans, and a local hospital. His income was from the industrial world and was evidently considerable.

The Conleys opened their home (nicknamed "Bethel") often to prayer meetings and Christian events. One such event was a yearly meeting of the Witness-style communion service, still in its infancy and nurtured by Conley with finances and other support. This support brought to Conley the first official Presidency of the new "Zion's Watch Tower Tract Society" in 1881. (Charles Taze Russell was the Watch Tower Society's first Secretary/Treasurer, and his father, Joseph Russell, was the Society's first Vice-President.)

Conley held this position for three years, after which the Society was incorporated, renamed, and presided over by Charles Taze Russell, whose theology would shape the movement.

It was Conley who donated about 70% of the first $5000.00 needed to get things going. Russell's dad came up with $1000.00, followed by Russell himself at $500.00 Hence the offices given out.

There were only 5 people total in that original coming together. The two Conleys, Charles, his sister, and his father. Both families belonged to an Adventist Christian group, with whom they both split and formed their own group in Conley's home.

Conley's faith in Russell began to waver as he saw some of Russell's predictions fail (more on failed prophecy elsewhere). He began to wonder if he should continue to contribute great amounts of money to this new division. He also showed a preference for Trinitarian teachings, and certain prophetic men of the day, over Russell's new teachings and failed prophecies.

It is reported in some places that Conley joined a Presbyterian church later in his life. This may be true, but he also helped the new and growing Christian and Missionary Alliance. He was a seeker after Truth, and a man who desired to bless the people of God, whatever their label. Though he was deceived by Russell for a short time, he moved on, and we thank God for it!

Because of this defection, the Russell-directed Watchtower publications have not honored him through the years. In fact, slander was the first order of the day, as Russell and others have had to do to justify the leaving of prominent men. But history is clear. Conley was indeed their first President, a significant donor, and one who opened his home and his heart to much of the new ideas being presented.

Perhaps Mr. Conley left voluntarily, or perhaps he was an early victim of the very common practice among later JW people of "dis-fellowshipping" (excommunicating) members who do not tow the party line.
Though the Watchtower literature, governed by Russell early on, refused even to print an obituary of their deceased former colleague, that job was done nicely by the other Christian group he helped by his generosity to found, in Pittsburgh:

It is with deep sorrow that we are called upon to record the death of one of our most valued fellow-laborers in ______, and one of the few princely Christian merchants we have in our ____. We refer to Mr. Henry Conley, of Pittsburgh, Pa., who passed away at his home in Pittsburgh on Sabbath evening, July 25th, after a brief illness of only about a month. Indeed, he was only confined to his room about a week before the end. Mr. Conley was a business man of very high standing in Pittsburgh, and a vast concourse of his fellow citizens gathered at his funeral to pay their last tribute of respect and affection to his memory. The funeral services were conducted at his home in Pittsburgh by Rev. [Founder], Rev [Board Member], Rev. [Board Member], and Rev. [___], of Pittsburgh, who referred in appropriate terms to his high character and great usefulness.

Mr. Conley was an earnest and loyal member of _____ and one of the leading officers of _____. The remarkable progress which the ______ work during the past two years was largely due to his untiring labors and his wise and earnest counsels. He carried the spirit of business enterprise into his Christian work and did nothing by halves. He was one of the few Barnabases of the church and it is easier to supply a dozen preachers than one such whole-hearted Christ-filled business man. But God remains and He is equal to every need.

Mr. Conley's heart was much in the work of [evangelizing], and his spontaneous liberality has largely helped to keep in operation the blessed [evangelizing] which has been so successfully carried on by our _____ friends in Pittsburgh.

But his heart had also caught the Master's greater thought for the evangelization of the world. And he has been for many years in the very front of the great missionary movement. Many years ago he supplied the means for planting the present ____ mission in Jerusalem, and he sustained [the missionary's] work up to the close of his death. He was a member of the Board [of the national organization]. He has been from an early day one of the official Board [of their seminary] and took the deepest interest in its welfare.

He leaves a wife, who has long been the sharer of his Christian hopes and plans, to take up the broken thread and finish his life and hers. We are sure the blessed Master will both sustain and use her.

The inspiration of Mr. Conley's life and the theme of his constant testimony was the coming of the Lord Jesus. As our loved ones leave us how earnestly we long for that blessed morn to break on the night of earth and time.

We are very sure that our beloved brethren in Pennsylvania will take up and carry on the work in their State with un-slackened zeal, and that God will still prove that while He may bury the workers the work will still go on.

The blanks in the above piece are easily filled in by the following selection from Wikipedia, identifying this group, a denomination that may be a bit reticent to acknowledge its illustrious founder also, since he had earlier connections with the Watchtower's beginnings. But again, facts are facts:

"Conley was a member of the board of managers of the non-denominational Christian and Missionary Alliance (CMA), and was instrumental in funding and organizing it at local, state and national levels through the International Missionary Alliance (IMA) In 1889, Conley funded and organized the CMA mission in Jerusalem under control of his home mission which would later come under the auspices of the IMA and eventually the CMA. In the same year, the International Missionary Alliance was legally incorporated with W. H. Conley's $5000 contribution. The Pittsburgh branch of the Christian and Missionary Alliance was formally established in 1894. Conley was elected president of both the Pittsburgh branch and at the state level, an office which he retained until his death in 1897."

Such was the caliber and quality of one of the early founders of the Watch Tower. An honest dedicated man who lived for Christ and His coming. Thankfully, he "saw the light" about Russell's coming monstrosity, and jumped ship in time!

Look for Bob Faulkner's creations on http://sermonaudio.com including a through-the-Bible course, works about the Christ, the antichrist, the rapture, the church, prophecy and the persecution in North Korea. Look also for series on Muhammad and Islam, written for Christian believers. All of these works are now in book form available at Amazon. Go to http://www.amazon.com/author/bfaulkner to look at all these books.
As for me, I'm a man found of God over 55 years ago, called to the ministry, now retired from school teaching, and serving the Lord as a nursing home minister, and podcaster.

 

 

By Bob Faulkner

 

 

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