Russell, The Egyptian Pyramids, Freemasons and Demonology

[Anna]

8 hours ago, Eoin Joyce said:

What's going on here......

What is going on here?

[TrueTomHarley]

On 6/9/2017 at 9:31 AM, Micah Ong said:

I haven't sensed one iota of love

Micah logs onto a site that bills itself ostensibly as a meeting spot for JWs. He hurls incendiary charges about everything under the sun. When he finds some find him unwelcome, he carries on above love! - the love he has positively oozed from his pores.

He even charged that the WTS tries to dictate what ones do in the bedroom. What in the world is he talking about? He provides no backing for his charge.

On 6/9/2017 at 9:31 AM, Micah Ong said:

My job is done here, I won't waste my time around this anymore.

Yes, it is only his time that matters. It is only his time that is too valuable to squander. Let us see if, having declared his mission over, he can resist appearing for an encore.

[Ronald Day Senior]

On 5/27/2017 at 11:42 AM, Micah Ong said:

Mr. Russell introduced Occultism into his religion by teaching that the pyramids in Egypt are divine omens

I will first state that I am not with the Jehovah's Witnesses, but am a Bible Student as was Russell. Russell was never a member of the JW organization, and that organization did not exist while he was alive; indeed, he preached against such authoritarianism.

Thus, I am not here to defend the JW organization, nor do i defend Russell in all that he said. He never claimed to be perfect, or that all of his conclusions were without error; and he never claimed any special authority over fellow believers. I do believe, however, that God did make use of Brother Russell to restore many truths from the Bible that had been distorted by man's dogma, and thus Satan has influenced many to produce a lot of false accusations against Brother Russell that would discourage others from reading what he wrote, except perhaps to find something that may be distorted to bring forth some kind of accusation against him. I have been studying the works of Russell for more than 50 years (along with many other works of other Christian authors), and I know he that he was not in support of any kind of demonic spiritualism, or occultism.

The word "occultism", as it is generally used in Christian circles, refers to secretive religious teachings that are not allowed to be revealed to any but those who have been accepted into the inner circle of the religion, with the inference of demonic influence. The term occultism is often used in connection witchcraft, astrology, seances, ouija boards, spiritism, etc. Russell's study of God's Witness in Egypt in connection with the Bible had nothing to do with such occultism.

Contrary to advocating occultism, Russell constantly admonished Christians to have nothing to do with such occultism. Thus he admonished:

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Quote

"Resist the devil and he will flee from you" is the testimony of the Lord. This implies an assault by the Adversary. It implies that he should be resisted and can be resisted and that in the end he will flee from us, not because of arrogance or power on our part, but, as our Master said, "He hath nothing in me" [John 14:30]; so if he finds it useless to continue his assaults he will probably flee also from us to other fields of service. We remind all of our readers that whoever comes under the influence of Spiritism, Christian Science, Hypnotism or any other form of occultism is thereby endangering himself, not only for the moment, but also for the future, because the evil spirits operating through these various channels seek, some in one way and some in another, to delude, bewilder, confuse the reason and bring into subjection the minds of those with whom they have to do. Hence, any of the Lord's people who have had affiliation at any time with any of these are specially warned of liability to intrusion by these spirits. We remind all that the special channel through which they have had special success is human curiosity. We urge all of the Lord's people to restrain their curiosity and rely on the Lord's Word and have no dealings whatever with any of these occult systems. -- Zion's Watch Tower, April 15, 1909, page 123.

 

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Also contrary to the false accusations, Russell did not teach that "the pyramids in Egypt are divine omens." Russell's interest was in one pyramid, the Great Pyramid. His only interest in the other pyramids was to show their inferiority and differences between them and the Great Pyramid. Nowhere does Russell make reference to the Great Pyramid as some kind of divine omen, although he did believe that the Great Pyramid contains corroborations of the Bible, even as the fact that Egypt's and Israel's existence in this day are also corroborations of the Bible. I also believe that the Great Pyramid is God's witness in Egypt, for I cannot ignore the abundance of evidence that supports this conclusion.

[Ronald Day Senior]

On 5/27/2017 at 11:42 AM, Micah Ong said:

Mr. Russell was so convinced of their mystic power & his exclusive knowledge of their secrets

I do not know of any time that Russell ever claimed that any pyramid had "mystic power" or that he had exclusive knowledge of any secrets related to any pyramid. Most of what Russell knew about the great pyramid, he learned from others. When the Edgar brothers produced a book that does not agree with all the conclusions he presented, he did not condemn them for doing so, but rather he published many positive notices in his magazine about those books, and recommended that readers order those books.

[Ronald Day Senior]

On 5/27/2017 at 11:42 AM, Micah Ong said:

The calculations were first printed in 1897 within which he stated: “…this measurement is 3,416 inches, symbolizing 3,416 years…This calculation shows A.D. 1874 as marking the beginnings of the period of trouble…” –Thy Kingdom Come, Series III, p. 342, 1897 edition.

Then in the 1916 edition it was changed to read: “We find it to be 3,457 inches, symbolizing 3,457 years…This calculation shows that the close of 1914 will be the beginning of the time of trouble...”  Mr. Russell’s pyramid actually grew 41 inches in 19 years.

The above is highly deceptive!

First, the change noted in was originally made in the 1905 edition of "Thy Kingdom Come", not the 1916 edition. Many wish to make it appear that the change was not made until sometime after 1914, so as to make it further appear that the change was made due to an alleged failure of 1874 and/or 1914, although it is often presented in vague manner. 

Second, the change is related to only one of the measurements, and did not effect the other measurements that lead up to both 1874 or 1914.

Third, since debris in the lower part of the desceding passageway made it impossible to measure the floor of the descending passage, the measurement of the lower part of the descending passageway had already been noted as being questionable, and thus the discussion as to its actual length was nothing new. Later the Edgars removed the debris and actual measurements were then made of the floor.

Fourth, Russell often used 1915 to designate what he called Jewish years, beginning in October. Thus, often when he spoke of the beginning of 1915, he was speaking of its beginning as being in October of 1914. That this is what is meant in the latter quote above can be seen from the next sentence: "Thus the Pyramid witnesses that the close of 1914 will be the beginning of the time of trouble such as was not since there was a nation--no, nor ever shall be afterward."

Fifth, neither the date 1874 nor the date 1914 is based on any of the measurements of the Great Pyramid. Those dates are based on study of many Biblical prophetic time features, as Brother Russell presented in his second and third volumes. The measurements of the God's Witness in Egypt only corroborate the dates.

Sixth, Brother Russell gave brief explanation regarding this change in the Watch tower, September 15, 1909, page 283, again showing that the change had originally been made long before 1916.

Seventh, Brother Russell disclaimed many times that he had any authority over fellow believers, and he disclaimed being a prophet. He did not speak as being an authority over a religious organization, and while he was alive, he refused to allow the WTS he created to hold authority over fellow believers. Just before he died, he reiterated this in his words published in the Watch Tower, August 15, 1916, page 248: "Let it be borne in mind that the Society exercises no authority, makes no criticism, but merely gives advice; and that in the interest of the Lord's Cause and the Lord's people." This began to change after Russell died.

For more related to these changes, one might see:
http://rlctr.blogspot.com/2017/01/changes-gp.html

[JW Insider]

2 hours ago, Ronald Day Senior said:

I will first state that I am not with the Jehovah's Witnesses, but am a Bible Student as was Russell. Russell was never a member of the JW organization, and that organization did not exist while he was alive; indeed, he preached against such authoritarianism.

Hope you will feel welcome to make comments here. There is a lot of misinformation about Russell and sometimes it feels like a losing battle to try to correct the more obvious errors.

2 hours ago, Ronald Day Senior said:

I do believe, however, that God did make use of Brother Russell to restore many truths from the Bible that had been distorted by man's dogma, and thus Satan has influenced many to produce a lot of false accusations against Brother Russell that would discourage others from reading what he wrote, except perhaps to find something that may be distorted to bring forth some kind of accusation against him.

As you know, that's pretty much what JWs believe, although there are now only a few of Russell's core teachings that are still accepted. Most Bible Students that I know of appear to hold onto the majority of his teachings. Witnesses give Russell the benefit of the doubt when accusations are raised against him, and most of these claims against him turn out to be without any merit. (I must add, however, that some accusations appear to have been dismissed on the say-so of Joseph Rutherford, and we may have given him too much credit.) 

2 hours ago, Ronald Day Senior said:

Russell's study of God's Witness in Egypt in connection with the Bible had nothing to do with such occultism.

True. Although Rutherford finally tied this teaching about the Great Pyramid to "Satan."

 

2 hours ago, Ronald Day Senior said:

Also contrary to the false accusations, Russell did not teach that "the pyramids in Egypt are divine omens." Russell's interest was in one pyramid, the Great Pyramid. His only interest in the other pyramids was to show their inferiority and differences between them and the Great Pyramid. Nowhere does Russell make reference to the Great Pyramid as some kind of divine omen, although he did believe that the Great Pyramid contains corroborations of the Bible, even as the fact that Egypt's and Israel's existence in this day are also corroborations of the Bible. I also believe that the Great Pyramid is God's witness in Egypt, for I cannot ignore the abundance of evidence that supports this conclusion.

I agree with your first point, and even made the same point earlier. But I have not seen any abundance of evidence that shows that the Great Pyramid is God's witness in Egypt. If you have some time, I'd be happy to join a conversation on that topic.

[Ronald Day Senior]

On 6/4/2017 at 4:09 AM, Micah Ong said:

"I said that I had been in conference with the Great Master Workman, the Lord himself, and I have secret information through the Holy Spirit and guidance in respect to what the Bible says, and that contains all the truth, I believe on every subject. And so if we talk to our Masonic friends about the Temple and its meaning, and about being good Masons, and about the Great Pyramid, which is the very emblem they use, and what the Great Pyramid signifies, our Masonic friends are astonished....We are going to discuss free and accepted Masonry--the Bible Masonry, my dear friends".

I am not sure why this is being quoted; I presume it is thought to give some kind of proof that Russell was a freemason. Russell pointed out that he was discussing "Bible Masonry". The quote is from Brother Russell's sermon, entitled, "The Temple of God". The sermon is about how God is building his temple as spoken of in the Bible, and how this temple building is a secret not understood by the world in general.

Russell, in the context, showed his source as being the Bible, when he stated: "in respect to what the Bible says, and that contains all the truth, I believe, on every subject." In other words, Russell was saying that he went into conference with the Lord through prayer, requesting God's spirit to help understand what has been revealed in the Bible. Russell presented elsewhere how the message of the Bible is kept secret from the world, and thus to appreciably understand anything revealed in the Bible would mean that one has secret information that the world does not have. See Russell's sermon, Who May Know God's Secrets? Thus, those acquainted with Russell's works would know what Russell meant by his statement. It is only by taking that statement out of context of Russell's teachings that one would think that Russell was speaking of receiving special or inspired revelation from God.

Those who are familiar with Russell's works would know immediately that Russell was not claiming that he received his information directly from Jesus in the sense, for instance, that Jesus gave a revelation to John. (Revelation 1:1-5) It could be claimed that any understanding of the Bible is direct revelation from God in the sense to a child of God who is guided by the Holy Spirit through the words of the Bible itself. Any Christian can be in conference with God through Jesus when he prays; likewise, to the extent that a Christian submits to what has been revealed in the Bible, that Christian is guided by God's Holy Spirit. In whatever sense one may claim that the Bible itself is a direct revelation from God, then one can claim direct revelation from God as it is found in the Bible. Nevertheless, the understanding of the Bible comes as result of one's having God's spirit to the extent that one submits to what God's spirit has revealed in the Bible. This principle applies to any and every child of God, irrespective of denominational ties.

I have the entire sermon on my website at:
http://rlctr.blogspot.com/2016/11/temple.html

[Ronald Day Senior]

On 6/4/2017 at 4:09 AM, Micah Ong said:

"...If you feel that you want to become a member of the Free and Accepted Order of Masonry, and do not feel free and masonic enough as a follower of Christ, God bless you, use your own judgement; that is yours to decide not mine. But now I am talking about this great order of masonry of which Jesus is the Grand Master. This Order is to be entered in a peculiar way. There are certain conditions--the low gate, the narrow way, the difficult path".

This is another quote from Brother Russell's sermon, The Temple of God. Here Brother Russell is speaking discouragingly of a Christian being a member of the Freemasons, without assuming authority to tell anyone they cannot be a member of the Freemasons, and points to submission to Christ as the only way to be built up as a member of God's temple.

 

[Ronald Day Senior]

On 6/4/2017 at 4:09 AM, Micah Ong said:

"Our Masonic friends have it down very fine. I do not know where they got it so well. I have often wondered where they found out so many of the secrets of our High and Accepted Order of Masonry. From the time you come in to be a member of the Royal Priesthood, a living stone, a member of the craft of Masonry, from the Lord's stand-point,...if any man will be a living stone in the Temple, if any man will be a member of this High, Free and Accepted Masonry--let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me".

"So you and I as under-masons are waiting for the return of our Master Mason, who gave his life on this very account in connection with this secret of the construction of the Temple, the Church".

Christ died for our sins to set us free from the condemnation of sin and death, not for some secret regarding the Temple. Russell is way off base from the gospel.

Evidently, by the last statement, what Russell stated is being misunderstood as saying something he did not say. Russel'sl statements were, in effect, in agreement with the statement, "Christ died for our sins to set us free from the condemnation of sin and death." It is the Bible itself, however that refers to the spiritual temple of God -- the church, of Christ and his kingdom -- as being a secret, a mystery. -- Matthew 13:11; Mark 4:11; Romans 16:25; 1 Corinthians 2:7; Ephesians 3:4-9; 5:32; 6:19; Colossians 1:26,27; 2:2; 4:3; 1 Timothy 3:16; Revelation 10:7.

[Ronald Day Senior]

On 6/4/2017 at 4:09 AM, Micah Ong said:

He goes on to equate the Christian walk with the degrees of Masonry saying, "...we must go on to higher degrees, because those who are in the first degree practically know very little".

He then states again how exclusive he is in his own opinion, how clever, and how full of secret knowledge he considered himself,

 

"...Not everybody has the hearing ear and the seeing eye. It is only those who have come into this divine masonry that have this spiritual insight, and this spiritual guidance, and may know the things that are freely given unto us. It is something that is freely given to one class, and not intended for anybody else".

Again, this appears to be a reading a lot into what Russell said that he did not at all say. The author appears to reading later JW claims back into what Russell said. From Russell's standpoint, the "one class" he was speaking of was any child of God, irrespective of denominational ties, who belongs to Christ. 

Russell believed that the true church -- the one class referred to in the quote above -- is "composed of consecrated followers of Christ, irrespective of all denominational lines — those who, turning from sin, accept Jesus as their Redeemer, through whom they have forgiveness of sins and reconciliation to the Father–those who have become disciples of Christ, taking up their cross to follow him, and who have received the begetting of the holy Spirit." (1910 International Bible Students Convention Report, page 79) Thus, he could refer to Baptists, Methodists, Catholics, Presbyterians, etc., as well as Freemasons who profess to be Christian as "brethren". At other times, he also spoke of himself as being a Baptist, a Methodist, as Catholic, without meaning that he was a member of those denominations. Similarly, he spoke of himself as being a Mason, not meaning that he was a member of the Freemasons' organization, but as being a mason for Christ.

 

[Ronald Day Senior]

On 6/5/2017 at 10:29 PM, Micah Ong said:

@Allen SmithIf this branch of Freemason Cults(one of many including the Mormons) works for you, then by all means I wish you the best!

By the way the snap shot you took of that clip, you can still faintly see the symbol.

I will first say that the statement, "Charles T. Russell, founder of the 'Jehovah's Witnesses', was a mason," is in error in two ways. 1) Russell was not the founder of the "Jehovah's Witnesses". He did not believe in, and even preached against, such authoritarianism until his death in 1916. Russell did not believe in such an organization, preached against such an organization, and preached against the kind of Armageddon message that is preached by that organization.

Russell was definitely never a member of man's "Mason" organization. Again, his life works overwhelmingly prove that he was not in support of the goals of that organization, and especially the idea that sinful, imperfect, man should conspire to take over the world is the opposite of what he spent most of life preaching.

The Biblical study of God's witness in Egypt definitely is not of the Masons, although some Masons may have endeavored a Biblical study of God's witness in Egypt.

The Biblical cross and crown symbol definitely is not of the Masons, nor is it an "occult symbol". Contrary to what is stated, although the form used by Bible Students is similar to that used by the Knights Templar, is not exactly "the same". As far as Masons who do not profess to be Christian, I do not see that it would hold any particular meaning. The fact that the Knights Templar adopted this symbol from historic usage of Christians does not make every form of that symbol be inherently of the Masons, anymore that the fact that the Knights Templar make use of the Bible makes the Bible itself to be a "Masonic" book.

I have written more concerning this on my website:
http://rlctr.blogspot.com/2016/12/cross-symbol.html