Many of the things we learn about the Watch Tower Society and its history might seem random, unconnected with any specific subject that is discussed elsewhere on this site.
For example:
- Why did Russell ask to be dressed in a Roman toga just hours before he died?
- Why did the Watch Tower Society publish a book that they claimed was from a spirit medium about a fallen angel which they assumed was the real story of a fallen angel from Noah’s time who wanted to get back into Jehovah’s favor?
- Why did Rutherford say that the Holy Spirit was no longer working with either himself or the Watch Tower Society?
- Why did Rutherford send a letter to Hitler telling him that they were working toward the same goals?
- Why did Frederick W Franz go to the sauna every Wednesday for several years surrounded by naked and semi-naked Bethelites?
- etc., etc, etc. . . .
Many Jehovah’s Witnesses already know the answers to these specific questions, yet, there are probably hundreds more like them. Other Witnesses will not even believe the questions, much less the answers.
Many such topics come up from time to time on various websites, blogs, discussion boards, podcasts, and various other forms of social media. Now and then we will re-publish such items here. Most will have nothing to do with the 1914 doctrine. Still, one of the purposes of this site is to look back on the history of the Watch Tower organization. For those who might not see such items collected elsewhere, we expect that they will help to create a more complete perspective for those who are interested in the Watch Tower’s history.
Watch this space . . .
_________________________________________
- Recent Finds: How SPIRITISM is still attached to the 1914 doctrine
- Recent Finds: 1914 – Seeing What They WANT To See
Miscellaneous finds . . .
- I Find This “Humerus”
- The “Kingdom Haul” of Jehovah’s Witnesses (Part 1 of 2)
- The “Kingdom Haul” of Jehovah’s Witnesses (Part 2 of 2)
- More Evidence for 1914 Kingdom than for Gravity, Electricity, Wind — says JW Governing Body
1914 - The LAST DAYS of Chronology in the Doctrines of Jehovah's Witnesses (Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society) 
I just found an amazing site called: Santifyname.com
Santifyname.com -???
Hello, I am from Ukraine, please tell me more about this site does not open. I am looking for material on the tower.
I believe that Jean Lowe intended to promote a site called SANCTIFYNAME.COM but misspelled it. In any case, that site is not currently available and the last good “waybackmachine” Web Archive of that site is here: http://web.archive.org/web/20160321135254/http://sanctifyname.com/index.html
Thank you JW answers for your link to Sanctifyname. When I tried to get on it before it indicated the site was closed and I thought perhaps the writer of the site had passed away. Do you know anything about him?
I am sorry, but I do not know anything about the person who ran the site.
Why did the Watch Tower Society publish a book that they claimed was from a spirit medium about a fallen angel which they assumed was the real story of a fallen angel from Noah’s time who wanted to get back into Jehovah’s favor?. . . This is one of the few pieces of history I feel I have never heard of after years of research. Any way you could point me in the direction of that book or any information on it?
What is the book talked about in the second bullet point?
The novel is called “Angels and Women” written anonymously by an International Bible Student back in 1919, and revised in 1924. It’s a prose version of the epic verse poem “Seola” by J. G. Smith (1878). The story is set in the antediluvian world in the years leading up to the Flood, and it is apparently being related to the author by a repentant spirit, formerly allied with Satan, who lived through these times. Oddly, it includes many footnotes to Watchtower materials that blur the line between reality and the novel’s fictional world. The effect it has is to suggest that the spirit relating this story is real and to be believed.
I think you are an unprincipled mudslinger. What Russell did the day before his death is nobody’s business. He might have been out of his mind from the breakdown of his body. As far as I know, Freddie used to go to the sauna because he liked saunas. My roommate used to go because he was a sycophant. I KNOW that that was his motive. I was always too tired to go, I was not a sycophant, and I don’t like to go anywhere I will see half-naked people. But as far as I know, the Bethelites who went to the sauna on Wednesday night dressed like other Americans who went to saunas.
Good point on Russell’s state of mind. That’s also my own take on it. But the question is not posed to denigrate Russell. The point was to try to evaluate why Menta Sturgeon and others were so quick to defend it as something meaningful. The question is whether they were correct in their assumptions, or, just as likely, you are correct about his state of mind.
With respect to the Wednesday night sauna, I went once, but only once. It was as if all of the 15 or so Bethelites were sycophants, at least the ones who asked questions. Some were silent but the look on their faces was as if they were meeting a demigod. Perhaps more like a Greek painting of Socrates and his disciples. Franz’ haughty style of pontificating showed that he knew very well what pleased the sycophants. Franz came from a different era where naked and semi-naked persons still showered and steam-roomed and sauna’d together. This was the way it was when I took gym in Junior High school and High School (US) and it was the same in the Brooklyn factory buildings for those who worked in the pressroom and bindery.
MEASURUNG A GENERATION
Revised February 21, 2019
BIBICAL QUOTES
Genesis 50:26 states, “And Joseph died at the age of 110, and they had him embalmed, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.”
Exodus 1:6 states “Joseph eventually died, and also all his brothers and all that generation.”
The above two passages show that: (a) members of a generation can live to at least 110 years old and (b) a generation dies. Eccl. 1:4 confirms, “A generation is going and a generation is coming,”
However, the two above passages do not show (a) the number of people composing the population of that generation, (b) the date that generation began, (c) age range from the youngest living person to the oldest living person of that generation and (d) the name, age and death date of the last person in that generation. You don’t know when that generation began or ended.
Current Data
Today the oldest living people generally live to approximately 115 years of age, give or take a year(s). Nevertheless, with vital statistics (birth and death certificates) along with technology, it is possible more than ever to measure, quantify and qualify generations and populations using world population demographics by age (see reference1), vital statistics, gerontology studies, government census, the calendar year, a decade(s) or historical events.
One question: How many people left, from a given time period, amount to a generation? Is it 10,000; 1000; 100; 10 or just 1? There is no answer to this question. However, once the last living verifiable person dies, so dies the generation. No one is left.
Criteria
Various standards of assessments (criteria) can be set up to identify and measure a generation. This study will use the calendar year, Pre-World War One and the World War One generations.
The Calendar Year
A calendar year generation expires when the last oldest “verifiable” living person born in that specific year dies. It’s just that simple. (Criteria for “verifiable” may differ among researchers.)
As an example, Emma Morano (see reference 2) was born November 29, 1899 and was considered the oldest verifiable living person in the world at one time. She died on April 15, 2017, living 117 yrs. 137 days.
Secondly, Emma Morano had another distinction; she was believed to be the very last verifiable person alive who was born in 1899.
When she died, the generation of 1899 died. All other generations in past calendar years, 1898, 1897, 1896 etc. had already passed away.
Therefore, the calendar year generation of 1899 lasted from January 1, 1899 to April 15, 2017. It measured 118 years, 3 months and 15 days, including the end date.
Historical Events
A second way to mark a generation is by using an historical date (or any calendar date). It works the same way as the calendar year except a specific date is used. When the last oldest verifiable living person, who was born on or before that specific day, dies, that generation is dead!
Generation – A World Population
An entire world population can be used to take the measurement of a generation. That means a generation in this context would make up the age range from the newest born babies born on a specific date or calendar year, to the oldest living person and everyone else in between. As time passes, people die until the last one dies.
A Finite Number
A generation is composed of a finite number of people living during a definite specific time. Each generation has a beginning and an end.
Pre- World War One Generation
The first declaration of war, that began World War One, was on July 28, 1914. Therefore, the pre-WWI generation is those who must have been born on or before July 27, 1914.
As of this writing (February 2019) there are still thousands of people who were born before WWI began. When the oldest living verifiable person is found to be born on or after July 28, 1914, the day World War One began, the pre-World War One generation will be dead.
The World War I Generation
WWI ended on November 11, 1918. Therefore, the generation of WWI was composed of those people living when WWI broke out and those who were born during WWI. (July 28, 1914 to November 10, 1918.)
Once the last pre-WWI generation member dies, the next generation to become the oldest living people on the face of the earth will most probably be those who were born during WWI, provided there is nothing that shortens their life span. (I.E. the Spanish Influenza or something currently unknown.)
Anyone born Nov.11, 1918, and after is not of the WWI generation but they are part of the post-WWI generation.
Events and Life Spans
People live through various events. Someone who was part of the pre-WWI generation, if they lived long enough, was also part of the WWI generation and the post-WWI generation. If they lived even longer, they were also part of the WW II generation; some of them actually participated in WWII and the post WW II generation. (Note: the post-WWI generation can also be known as the pre-WII generation depending on how someone presents an idea or sets up criteria.)
It is also true that an event such as war or epidemic can exist a very long time and can outlast generation(s) of people.
There may be some claims that generations are built around historical events. However, this brings up the questions, how many years after an historical event has passed must be counted to qualify a specific generation in existence? In addition, when does that particular generation end? This may become arguable and hazy, yielding no certain answer. It is much more specific to count those who were born after an event ended as the post-generation of such an event, whether or not they are affected such an event.
Statistical Data
In 2014, it was estimated by the United States that 450,549 people around the world were 100 years old or older. (See reference (1) (5))
One statistic states, of all those who live to be 100 years old, only 1 out of 1,000 will live to be 110. That means at the 110-year mark from 1914, in the year 2024, there will be approximately 451 people round the world who will be 110 years old and older.
Another statistic stated there would be approx. as many as 600 people alive at the 110-year mark. The true number nonetheless will be low, unknown and will “zero out”.
According to supercentenarian studies, ((people 110 years old and older)(see reference 3)) once people hit the age of 110 they will die off at 2 out of every 3, until full mortality is reached at around 115 years of age, with possibly, not always, a very few, 1 or 2 or so, going beyond that age. Very few make it to 116 or older. (See references # 2 for updated info.as it becomes available.)
As to the future how long others live and mark the end of any generation, only time will tell. Nevertheless as always, when the last verifiable oldest living person dies within the criteria, regardless of age, that generation dies.
Unverifiable Ages
Without verifiable birth records there is a failure to prove a pedigree to a specific generation.
Those with unverifiable claims of being older than those with verifiable proof will have difficulty being viewed as legitimate. Below are some of the hurdles that must be cleared. (See reference 4.)
1) Is the person male or female? Usually women live longer than men do. Therefore, the odds against male claimants having extraordinary ages are greatly reduced but not out of the question.
2) Is the person from a developed country or a third world country? In third world countries, there is usually little to no health care, poor diet and more lawlessness. Life is cut short by these and other factors.
3) Is the person literate? If the person is not literate, they probably cannot count. Nonetheless, to be certain, ask the person if they can count? If yes, ask when did they learn how to count? If late in life, this is not a valid test. But if a person claims they learned to count at an early age, use this test:
Example: if a person claims to be 150 years old, ask the person to count from zero to 150. If half the numbers are missed than its probable, that person is 75 years old or close to that age. Basically, however many numbers they miss during the count, subtract that from the claimed age as an estimate.
4) Does the claimant know what a calendar is and how to use it? If they never or sporadically had a calendar, then it is easier to lose track of time. They may have guessed at their age now and then.
5) Does the person smoke, chew tobacco, use recreational drugs or engage in any habits that cut a person’s life short? In developed countries these habits, despite medical care, cut life short; so it becomes very questionable if a claimant is the claimed age.
6) Does the person have any health problems? As an example, a weak heart. A weak heart does not pump enough blood to the brain and so may affect the memory.
In conclusion, anyone who cannot verify their claims to be older than those who can validate their age is probably not accurate, may be a part of the infamous “Fake News” and may be discounted
Conclusion and Use of the Word “Generation”
To determine the beginning, end or length of a generation, simply determine the criteria to be examined, search public records for birth and death records, population numbers, etc. and calculate the desired information. Once the last known verifiable person dies within the criteria, that generation is dead.
Caution: It is important to know how the word generation is applied within the context of the study, speaker or writer to understand the specific meaning of the word (i.e. the baby boomer generation, and other ways to mark a particular generation). This report does not cover every use of the word. See a dictionary or other reference work(s) for more information and a better understanding.
References: (Note, although some references or lists below may be incomplete, they are nevertheless a valid point of reference. Anyone with enough proof can challenge the information. Without a valid challenge the information stands. You, the reader are encouraged to check other valid sources.)
(1) World Population by Age and Sex – U.S. Census Bureau
https://www.census.gov › … › Data › International Data Base
(2) List of the verified oldest people – Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_verified_oldest_people
See also List of oldest living people – Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_oldest_living_people
List of the oldest living people – Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_oldest_living_people
(3) Supercentenarian – Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supercentenarian
(4) Typologies of Extreme Longevity Myths – Hindawi
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/cggr/2010/423087/
(5) (http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/theme/ageing/index.shtml). Their current estimate for world population 100+ in the year 2015 is 451000
See Also:
Centenarian – Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centenarian
Guinness World Records, see oldest living person.
(https://esa.un.org/unpd/popdev/Profilesofageing2015/index.html). If you have further questions on this information, you can contact Population Division directly at population@un.org.
“Table C – World’s Oldest Person (WOP) Titleholders Since 1955”. grg.org. Retrieved 27 July 2015.