Nana Fofana

Except for people with a combination of tourette's syndrome, dislexia, and one leg shorter than the other, which gives you brain-tilt .... that seems to wrap up THAT discussion.

JWI teachings about 1914 and eschatology are identical  to the teachings of the churches of Christendom. Instead of "getting out of her my people" he and his followers have "gone back to her my people". Rev 18. Some of them say they do not want to have the authority of the Governing Body telling them interpretations of the Bible and therefore have to "share with them in their sins [or mistakes}. But I would rather share in the mistakes of Jehovah's people [mistakes Jehovah allows for a reason] than "share in the sins of Babylon the Great. That is my choice.
He even stated haughtily [with a name like "insider" do you expect him to be humble?} on Saturday the 19th that he has "special interpretation". That his interpretation is correct compared to the Governing Body!!! Obviously there is no reasoning with someone who has strayed that far away from Jehovah's Organization and believes as apostate Christendom does about 1914 and many other doctrines as indicated in his voluminous writings. {which also indicates how he feels superior to others].

Until Satan was put out of heaven there were doubtful ideas spread all the time in heaven and angels (even if perfect) were vulnerable to this as they could use their free choice to turn against Jehovah and disobey him. They also had to prove their loyalty to Jehovah.  Book of revelation indicates that one third of the myriads of angels followed in Satans footsteps.... (it hurt the heavenly family) and angels on their way to earthly missions were intercepted by Satans rulers.... One angel told Daniel that the archangel came to help him!  The heavens was also subject to Satans influence!   So this clears up the flawed thinking above about the heavenly woman!  The book of Jude indicates that Jesus had to rebuke an angel who wanted to take Moses's body to (no doubt) create more false worship and destroy the plans of Jehovah to bring forth the Messiah from the nation of Jews!
Since Satan was a heavenly creature the issue of obedience and loyalty to Jehovah became an UNIVERSAL issue.  This is why the firstborn son came to earth because he was directly created by God - a heavenly creature who became less than the other angels and therefore settled the obedience of heavenly creatures (until death) in addition to the earthly issue to be settled.
The heavens rejoiced greatly when satan was thrown out! For sure.  This 'woman' gave birth to a new nation when a new spiritual land was created!  The 144,000 who were in death received the First resurrection and a new nation (of priests and kings) was born!  These would be part of this new Kingdom!       The logic of the writings I have seen thus far in these 12 pages defies logic and since Jehovah is absolute logic I expect things to fit in perfectly and make absolute sense. As I said before - people become so captured by the minute detail that they lose the larger picture and literally throw out the new born baby (the sacred secret of the kingdom) with the bath water!
I expect to see an unbelievable intensifying of the power of satan on the earth - to the extent that there is no more good people to hold his total influence back!  So far - wickedness has been held back by the decency of societies.... this is a figment of the past.
Whether we will see a third world war - we do not know - but it will just be more of the same on a much larger scale.  However, civil society is becoming so hard to live in with wickedness, love of violence and spiritism everywhere!  The longer the world situation is building the bigger the effect when it cracks open!
Everything is escalating because many issues are coming to a conclusion - such as the destruction of the earth - soon we will reach a point of no return with so many issues regarding the earth on the table.  I can go on and on about the issues we are facing with the earth (climate change is the smallest one!)....
So - this is the time to unitedly preach, preach, preach!

http://www.childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au/getattachment/c2d1f1f5-a1f2-4241-82fb-978d072734bd/Report-of-Case-Study-No-29
Summary of the Royal Commission Report re: Jehovah's Witnesses ..........
""""We do not consider the Jehovah’s Witness organisation to be an organisation which responds adequately to child sexual abuse. We do not believe that children are adequately protected from the risk of sexual abuse for the following reasons:
The organisation relies on outdated policies and practices to respond to allegations of child sexual abuse. Also, those policies and practices are not subject to ongoing and continuous review. The policies and practices are, by and large, wholly inappropriate and unsuitable for application in cases of child sexual abuse. The organisation’s retention and continued application of policies such as the two-witness rule in cases of child sexual abuse shows a serious lack of understanding of the nature of child sexual abuse.
The organisation’s internal disciplinary system for addressing complaints of child sexual abuse is not child or survivor focused in that it is presided over by males and offers a survivor little or no choice about how their complaint is addressed.
The sanctions available within the organisation’s internal disciplinary system are weak and leave perpetrators of child sexual abuse at large in the organisation and the community.
In deciding the sanctions to impose and/or precautions to take in relation to a known or suspected perpetrator, the organisation has inadequate regard to the risk that that perpetrator might reoffend. This demonstrates a serious lack of understanding of the nature and impact of child sexual abuse.
The organisation’s general practice of not reporting serious instances of child sexual abuse to police or authorities – in particular, where the complainant is a child – demonstrates a serious failure by the organisation to provide for the safety and protection of children in the organisation and in the community.""""
Truly .....DECEPTIVE Children !

I'm surprised that the above comment was allowed to stand here, for it has nothing to do with anything. Elsewhere this character was advised to take it out on the street when he likewise tried to hijack a thread to take down a religion he hates. He was advised to start a separate thread. Why should he think he can barge in here and sully a post which consists only of two Bible verses?

Yes @JW Insider please refrain from spreading your light in public.
Keep it hidden from us simple folks like @TiagoBelager and me.....
Let our clergy class in New York do all the bible research for us..... preferably only speaking in Latin from a pulpit.
Please stop preaching about your truths.....
I personally am heading over to a non-latin bible burning now so I'll check in later.

So, JWI,
Why don't you take your theories, very heavily tinged with preterism as they are, and communicate them to the Governing Body? Well, if we are to believe you, all you need to add in your submissions of your theories is that some of them are somewhat like Ray Franz' theories, and like other responsible, not-disfellowshipped Bethelite brothers' theories, but who were not disfellowshipped because they did not promulgate them. Oh, but here your situation is not quite like those other brothers' situation, because you do promulgate what you feel are theories that have greater merit than what are currently identified as the doctrines that are preached by Jehovah's Witnesses, preached with Jehovah's blessings! 
Tiago

I recall that 1914 was the first major war fought with airplane bombing, flame throwers, chemical and gas weapons, many submarines (improved on the tiny ones used in the civil war in USA)... it was also after the development of the telegraph - used extensively;  tank warfare and individual soldiers were issued with machine guns.... battle of the Somme rates on most lists of worst battles ever fought.
Second world war is an improvement on this with aircraft carriers; radar; radio used extensively during war; and atomic bomb; 
What do we have now: improvement on previous weapons: satellites, drones, intercontinental ballistic missiles; nuclear submarines; supersonic jets; electro magnetic pulse; more varieties of nuclear weapons; information warfare, 
Most weapons are all improvements on the communications or weapons used in the 1914 WW1....
The proof is still on the ground.  

I believe I do have an open mind and I am open to new ways of looking at things but when one argues about history and dates one really has to have the expertise in the field to distinguish fact from fiction...  And unfortunately most experts will accept dodgy historians of ancient days while overriding what the bible has to say.   This is when I evaluate what the bible has to say first and look at what material the organization has looked at and evaluated before me.  In the past I used to get the books ( quoted in the Insight book) from the library  (when possible)  and look at it for myself.    
I think one should really evaluate the information which the governing body has put together as part of your decision making process and not be an expert on your own.  In collaboration with others one will reach a better conclusion.  I do not reject new thinking but I think that when someone has done the trouble to go through all the available information on the subject to assist us one should NOT be suspicious that they are pushing an agenda as though they are our enemy and wish to harm us. They truly believe they have a mission to uphold Jehovah's word - despite the fact that they are fallible and sometimes grumpy old men. 
This is why I like the idea of writing committees because this ensures that most agree with what must be written before it is published.  Yes there are always domineering individuals but I do think that this is eventually sorted out - and when it comes to history or evaluating ideas - one has to evaluate everything that is available.
One of my first test of any new information is : how does it fit in with what the rest of the Bible says about this subject.... if there are several other places which confirms a particular viewpoint - this is what I will go with.  
I believe that there will in future be wicked individual slaves - like in the past - who will sow seeds of apostasy and as part of Satans final onslaught to attack the slave --- by slanderous material (already happening) and spreading false information (already here) and sowing doubt about basic teachings.  I am vigilant to this - not to be infected by persons who are not really convinced in their heart of the time-line in the purpose of Jehovah.
I have studied this time-line before but now I have renewed vigor to look at it again!   I do look at Darwinian websites so I can think like one of them when I speak to them.  I like to see issues I have not thought of before.  I also like Physics and the new developments... to see where my faith may be challenged ; and I have always love history - ancient history and modern. 
I am NOT a scholar but an autodidact..... and the more I know the more I realize how little I know.... I had a big ego when I was younger and had a great future with a great talent but I have let all that  go and work daily to be the best I can be to the glory of Jehovah.    
Now and then I get on this site and let go - to the chagrin of my fellow witnesses....  Apologies if I hurt someone's feelings because it is arrogant to think that one can be the protector of what Jehovah has said.  He has the power and insight to do it all by himself.  But I do think that I should love my fellows enough, to tell them with honesty when I see that they do not value what has already been prepared for us and value their own ideas more - to the detriment of themselves.  
 

Which test did you do? Did you put in the same search criteria as you said you did in your p. 8 post? Yes
Did you log into your Chrome or Google account on the Library computer? No
 
Why are you here? Haters will hate so i've read compare Muslims to Jehovah's Witnesses !!! How do people in general feel?  http://www.religioustolerance.org/aboutus.htm
Don't want to go to jail? Change your faith
 
Say shibboleth.  
 

Make them say "Shiboleth" to be sure.

Yes about the web browser thingy I did this test at the Public Library {therefore hopefully a neutral ground browsers not tainted by apostates or Witnesses browsing} and unless most of the people using that particular computer were JW well...you get the idea. And of course that dosen't negate the facts about the most important fact I mentioned about JW being now the most read website of all religious websites AND being the most translated.  BTW it is now up to 904 languages.  Of course apostates are not going to like these facts but...oh well deal with it. 
The fact you mentioned about the apostates reveals who we are as the true religion. Just look at religioustolerance website and compare the JW with ANY other and you will see we are the MOST hated religion in the world by far. Who is banned in Russia? Muslims? lol

900.
Nonetheless, be careful that @Ann O'Maly does not nail you on this with some remark about how browsers adjust to the tastes of their masters. Don't misunderstand, I am completely with you on this, but it may be that an 'apostate' browser will not point so unfailingly to where it should.
Consider, too, that nobody has better apostates than Jehovah's Witnesses. Ours are the best. There is no contest. Ours are the most prolific. Ours are the most vitriolic. Ours are the most Velcro-like - they cannot move on. I am proud of them.
You cannot read the Greek Scriptures without being struck with the obsession over battling apostates. Therefore, whoever their successors will be must also be mired in similar battles.

 

Yes the point I was making if one reads the post was about God's Kingdom and the other facts on Translation and so forth it was not about the "targeted questions". I could care less about those I just added those in originally for other types of search options one can do. Make sure you erase all search caches before doing the search however as I stated in the post which some others apparently did not read. and use a neutral computer like at the library which I also stated in the original post.  With my Bible study I only typed in "God's Kingdom" {what true Christians are SUPPOSE to be preaching about}  to show him and the top was JW and that convinced him. As for the ratings well that was just icing on the cake making that fact concrete and helping that family see that JW have the truth after all.
I just think it is remarkable [not the questions people search for but] that JW are #1 religious website in the world as being most visited when we just got started a few yeas ago. Even in "Catholic" countires like Italy!!!  And being most translated is a given for the True Religion as many Scriptures indicate.

I like the blog test. Write something praiseworthy of Muslims and you get a smattering of protests. Write something praiseworthy about Jehovah's Witnesses and you get so many howls that your ISP carrier threatens to increase your rates.
The Canadian website Bruce mentions has had to post a disclaimer: "We are not Jehovah's Witnesses. We are just trying to  report on them. Leave us in peace. We don't want to hear why you  think they are a cult!" They have not had to do that with Muslims although 1000 times more numerous.

I love that story??? Posted many similars in the past.  Its really heart-touching?  yes...  THANK YOU 

Touching Story ---> ''Our Apple Tree''
?????
A long time ago, there was a huge apple tree. A little boy loved to come and play around it everyday. He climbed to the tree top, ate the apples, and took a nap under the shadow.
?????
He loved the tree and the tree loved to play with him. Time went by, the little boy had grown up and he no longer played around the tree every day.
?????
One day, the boy came back to the tree and he looked sad.
?????
“Come and play with me”, the tree asked the boy.
????????
“I am no longer a kid, I do not play around trees any more” the boy replied.
?????
“I want toys. I need money to buy them.”
?????
“Sorry, but I do not have money, but you can pick all my apples and sell them. So, you will have money.”
?????
The boy was so excited. He grabbed all the apples on the tree and left happily. The boy never came back after he picked the apples. The tree was sad.
?????
One day, the boy who now turned into a man returned and the tree was excited.
??????
“Come and play with me” the tree said.
??????
“I do not have time to play. I have to work for my family. We need a house for shelter. Can you help me?”
??????
“Sorry, but I do not have any house. But you can chop off my branches to build your house.” So the man cut all the branches of the tree and left happily. The tree was glad to see him happy but the man never came back since then. The tree was again lonely and sad.
?????
One hot summer day, the man returned and the tree was delighted.
?????
“Come and play with me!” the tree said.
??????
“I am getting old. I want to go sailing to relax myself. Can you give me a boat?” said the man.
??????
“Use my trunk to build your boat. You can sail far away and be happy.”
??????
So the man cut the tree trunk to make a boat. He went sailing and never showed up for a long time.
??????
Finally, the man returned after many years. “Sorry, my boy. But I do not have anything for you anymore. No more apples for you”, the tree said. “No problem, I do not have any teeth to bite” the
man replied.
????????
“No more trunk for you to climb on.” “I am too old for that now” the man said. “I really cannot give you anything, the only thing left is my dying roots,” the tree said with tears.
?????
“I do not need much now, just a place to rest. I am tired after all these years,” the man replied.
??????
“Good! Old tree roots are the best place to lean on and rest, come sit down with me and rest.” The man sat down and the tree was glad and smiled with tears.
??????????
This is a story of everyone. The tree is like our parents. When we were young, we loved to play with our Mother and Dad. When we grow up, we leave them; only come to them when we need something or when we are in trouble. No matter what, parents will always be there and give everything they could just to make you happy.
????????????
You may think the boy is cruel to the tree, but that is how all of us treat our parents. We take them for granted; we donÂ’t appreciate all they do for us, until itÂ’s too late.
????????????
~ Moral: ??????
Treat your parents with loving careÂ…. For you will know their value, when you see their empty chairÂ…We never know the love of our parents for us; till we have become parents.
?????
Share with Everyone 
– Contributed from YouTube many videos for children and adults! 
 
 

I'm so proud of you Joanne! So is Jehovah! Us being  human and imperfect, we need Jehovah everyday in our lives! I know he will make  us strong! I just love the words:  in one of our kingdom songs,  For God is my provider, my protector down to end... Jehovah is my father, my god, my friend! Agape love, Shirley

Hello to all my spiritual brothers and sisters! It's been a while since I've posted a topic! I chose the topic "Never Give Up on Jehovah" because three weeks ago my life changed! I was involved in a car wreck! This guy was speeding down his street, I stopped at the stop sign, then I proceeded to go, then he hit me! I hit my chest and couldn't breathe! Someone called 911, the ambulance came, I just suffered some bruises! I'm ok now, thanks to Jehovah, physically,  and not as sore as I was! The police came and wrote down our insurance information! My car had to be towed to the Dallas Police Pound where it's still there! I filed a claim against him, he filed a claim against me!  I'm still waiting to hear from my insurance adjuster! I've had to listen to my meetings over the telephone! But, even though I'm not there, my heart is! They always keep us in their prayers! I attended my meeting Sunday, a week ago! Everyone was so happy to see me! My eyes teared up seeing my spiritual family again! A very sweet sister, picked me up, took me on Saturday, to have a share in our regional convention campaign work! Were in our second week! I would also like to add, when we finished working our street, Jehovah's angels were protecting us, a sister came and told us not to work that street! A mentally ill couple had a baseball bat swinging at Jehovah's Witnesses, because they were mad at us and they hated us!  Our "DONT GIVE UP" regional convention is days away! August 25-27! I'm so excited!  She and I signed up to clean our section were assigned to after each session is over for the day! My very sweet spiritual sister is taking me and her two children, all 3 days!  I haven't worked in two weeks, my son paid my bills, I have one more check this week, it just  goes to pay my rent! Yes, I'm human, I've cried, but mainly,  I pray to Jehovah to give me the strength to cope with my present situation! The blessing Jehovah has bestowed upon me, is some sisters told me Sunday, about a job, being a caregiver for a sister! Today, I found out I got the job! I thanked Jehovah for taking care of not only my spiritual needs, but my physical needs! As of July 29, this year I've been baptized 45 years! I'm so proud to be hi s loyal servant!  I hope you like my topic I chose to write about! I know no matter what I go through I will never give up on Jehovah! He knows what we face in Satan's wicked  world! I hope everyone has a great weekend!  No matter what you are facing,  pray to Jehovah to help you!  Agape love, Shirley! 

The term "governing body" is a legal term, defining within the Christian system a body of men who are charged with responsibility for making sure that the Christian congregation is protected from sectarianism, from those who would create dissension through private interpretation. In the first century, such oversight was per force carried out in a time-costly manner because a congregation in a distant region might have to wait months for the arrival of envoy(s) dispatched with a letter from the governing body, or a letter from its duly commissioned deputy, the apostle Paul, who was approved by the governing body for his work (see Galatians 2:9, 10). The letter might detail corrections that should be implemented, decrees that must be observed to protect the unity of God's people (e.g., 1 Cor. 11:10, 16). 
So, Yes! A decree is a judicial/juridical term, and implies that a governing body had approved it and had dispatched men to deliver it to the congregations (see Acts 16:4). Surely we will not say that the pillars in the Jerusalem congregation, which included more men than just the group of the twelve, were in violation of Jesus' exhortation so that by that violation the men of the governing body issuing decrees had their position in that body because they had gone against the spirit of Jesus' words that "all of you are brothers!" And neither has the Congregation's present-day governing body violated the spirit of Jesus' words. 

WHAT DOES TRUMP THINK ABOUT PUTIN’S WAR ON RELIGION?
BY ROMAN LUNKIN ON 8/12/17 AT 12:20 AM This article first appeared on the Wilson Center site.
Just ten years ago, it would have been hard to imagine that the crackdown on civic activism in Russia would target religious communities, not just NGOs. And yet it is happening.
The Russian state persecutes Baptists, Pentecostals, and Adventists and closes down Orthodox parishes that are not part of the Moscow Patriarchate.
For the first time since the Soviet Union collapsed, preachers are now being fined for proclaiming GodÂ’s word outside church buildings.
And a recent Supreme Court decision has opened the door to liquidating JehovahÂ’s Witnesses communities in Russia.
“Traditional” versus “Nontraditional” Religions
Russia divides all faiths into “traditional” and “nontraditional.” This concept, while absent from the Russian Law on Religious Freedom (although mentioned in the law’s preamble), has been introduced under pressure from the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) and Patriarch Kirill personally.
Orthodox Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and Buddhism are deemed “traditional,” while Old Believers, Catholics, various Protestant denominations, and many others are not.
A member of the 'Union of Orthodox Banner-Bearers' takes part in a demonstration against the movie 'Matilda' in front of the Church of the Resurrection in Moscow on August 1, 2017. 'Matilda', a Russian movie about a love story between the last Russian Tsar Nikolay II and the ballerina Mathilda-Marie Feliksovna Kschessinskaya set for theater release in October, is believed by many Russians to insult the monarchy and offend religious sentiment.MLADEN ANTONOV/AFP/GETTY
The concept of traditional religions not only pits worshippers against each other, it also ignores the religious diversity of Russia. Today there are some 15 million practicing Orthodox believers in Russia, 10 million Muslims, 3 million Protestants, 500,000 Buddhists, 200,000 Jews, 175,000 JehovahÂ’s Witnesses, 100,000 Hindus, and 100,000 followers of other religious faiths (e.g., there are an estimated 10,000 Mormons in Russia).
The ROC has usurped the right to a close relationship with the government and accuses Catholics and Protestants of proselytizing in the territory that it considers its own. As for Muslims, the ROC accepts as “traditional” only those who are loyal to the government.
The ROC’s concern is understandable. According to the Russian Ministry of Justice, ROC organizations are the most numerous in the country (around 16,000 communities), while Protestants and Muslims are second and third (5,000–6,000 communities each).
However, polls show that Protestants and Muslims may be twice as numerous as official figures suggest. For example, evangelicals are now the second largest Christian denomination in Russia after Orthodox Christians in terms of numbers and presence throughout the country.
In fact, in many regions of Siberia and the Far East, the number of Protestant communities and active parishioners is higher than the number of practicing Orthodox believers. In light of this, Patriarch Kirill has repeatedly urged the authorities in the Far East to “fight against sects” and support the Orthodox projects.
Tightening the Screws
The path toward tightening the screws on various non-traditional religions began in 2012, with the “foreign agent” law limiting the activity of foreign-funded noncommercial organizations. Furthermore, the law on meetings and demonstrations was also tightened. And in 2015 a new directive was introduced specifying that all religious groups must inform authorities of their existence.
Then, in June 2016, the State Duma adopted a series of laws known collectively as the Yarovaya Law. Named after Duma Deputy Irina Yarovaya, who initiated it, the law amends Russian public safety and anti-extremism legislation.
The part of the law that has already come into force and has received the broadest coverage consists of the statutes regulating liability for failure to report “extremist activity”—a very broadly defined set of activities under Russian law, ranging from calls for violence to the vague “incitement of racial, nationalist and religious hatred” and “propaganda of exceptionalism” based on religion or nationality.
The part of the Yarovaya Law that has received much less attention is the provision imposing new restrictions on missionary work. The law now imposes a fine of 50,000 rubles on a private citizen for illegal preaching and up to 1 million rubles on a religious organization.
Illegal preaching may mean preaching in a building that is not designated for such purposes and lacks proper signage. As a result, the police and the prosecutor’s office now consider the activity of religious groups lacking official registration as illegal—a change from the recent past.
Targeting JehovahÂ’s Witnesses
The recent court proceedings against JehovahÂ’s Witnesses are a case in point. The campaign against JehovahÂ’s Witnesses began in 2009, during the still relatively liberal Dmitry MedvedevÂ’s premiership.
In a number of cases the courts, relying on poorly and unprofessionally conducted evaluations, concluded that Jehovah’s Witnesses’ literature could be defined as “extremist,” referring as it did to the faith as the only true faith.
The adoption of the Yarovaya Law, therefore, opened the door to liquidating Jehovah’s Witnesses communities on the basis of their possessing “extremist” literature.
On April 20, 2017, on the basis of the totality of these cases, the Russian Supreme Court ruled to liquidate the JehovahÂ’s Witnesses Management Center and all of the regional organizations. On July 17, 2017, a Supreme Court panel declined the JehovahÂ’s WitnessesÂ’ appeal, and the decision entered into force.
The decision means prohibition of activity for over 400 JehovahÂ’s Witnesses organizations all over Russia and criminal prosecutions of more than 170,000 believers if they continue to gather and read faith publications and the Bible in their specific translation. (There are more than 2,000 groups engaged in this activity in Russia.)
On top of that, because Jehovah’s Witnesses organizations are now judged “extremist,” the state is confiscating the profession’s assets: 118 buildings in fifty-seven regions whose total value is 1.9 billion rubles.
For the West, it was specifically the prohibition against JehovahÂ’s Witnesses that came to symbolize pointless religious discrimination in Russia and a drastic reduction of religious freedoms in the country. The EUÂ’s Office of Foreign Policy, the U.S. State Department, and the U.S. Helsinki Committee have all broadly criticized the move and called on Russia to rescind it.
On top of that, JehovahÂ’s Witnesses has filed a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights. It is clear in advance that the judgment wonÂ’t be in RussiaÂ’s favor. Taking into account the losses sustained by the faithful, the fine that the Strasbourg court will impose on Russia for the benefit of JehovahÂ’s Witnesses may reach astronomical heights.
The fact is, authoritiesÂ’ fight against nontraditional religions and religious denominations, which they peg as weird and scary sects, takes ugly, almost caricature forms.
Journalists, politicians, and Orthodox activists accuse those of other faiths of activities that constitute the core religious activities of all faiths, including the ROC itself: collecting donations, engaging in prayers with emotional overtones, and instructing followers, including children, in the tenets of the faith. In the context of the massive anti-West hysteria, xenophobia, and search for spies, all of these generally normal activities become a crime.
Most politicians and public figures, both conservative and liberal, readily jump on the bandwagon, portraying unfamiliar “sects” as threatening to the secular state and even citizens’ psychological health. And the media ignore the persecution of those targeted under the Yarovaya Law.
There are now more than 100 court cases challenging the imposition of fines against religious communities and individual faithful, yet they are proceeding unnoticed by the general public.
Who Benefits?
Many assume that the suppression of religious dissent automatically benefits the ROC. But that is not necessarily the case. Representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate are torn by irreconcilable contradictions.
On the one hand, there are those who would like to prohibit all sects legislatively and in that way eliminate all competitors. (They are particularly troubled by the evangelicals in the Far East, who at this point exceed the number of the Orthodox.)
On the other hand, many experts note that as soon as the word “sect” is introduced into the law, half the Orthodox communities could be prohibited. Rank-and-file priests and believers have stated that the anti-missionary statutes of the Yarovaya Law could also be used to prevent Orthodox sermons and missions among youth.
In Russia, the gap is growing between the discriminated-against non-Orthodox Christians and the Orthodox, between the ROC bureaucracy and Orthodox activists of different persuasions, between the ROCÂ’s leadership and the pro-democracy-minded part of society, between the desires of law enforcement organs and the aims of the missionaries of different churches, including the ROC.
These conflicts are getting sharper because Russian society betrays more civility than the Russian state. Ordinary Russians are much more tolerant of those professing different beliefs than are the police and the prosecutorÂ’s office.
And the trend toward aligning the governmentÂ’s policy with the interests of the ROC produces a boomerang effect: civil society criticizes priests and bishops from the Orthodox standpoint, not from an atheistic one.
This is why the state has decided to safeguard itself against independent religious authority by heavily regulating it.
Roman Lunkin is Senior Researcher at Institute of Philosophy, Russian Academy of Sciences, head of the Center for Religious Studies in the Institute of Europe (Russian Academy of Sciences), a member of Russian team of Keston Institute (Oxford, UK) project “Encyclopedia of religious life in Russia Today”, editor-in-chief of the web-portal “Religion and Law” (www.sclj.ru), a public policy scholar in the Woodrow Wilson Center and the Kennan Institute (2011) and The Galina Starovoitova Fellowship scholar of the Kennan Institute (2017).

To use the illustration of the woman who is pregnant. There is no doubt she is pregnant because the signs are there. One can see she is pregnant long before the birth pains start. ( conclusion of system).  Later the birth pains start to intensify severely (problems intensify - great tribulation) and then the birth/end.
We know the signs are here on earth that Jesus has been ruling amidst his enemies since 1914.   We expect the conditions to severely intensify before the end.

Master Chronological List > 1914
Pastor Charles Taze Russell pointed to 1914 as the end of the "Gentile Times" or "The Appointed Times of the Nations."

Subsequent President of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society Judge Joseph F. Rutherford established 1914 as the date of "Christ's Invisible Return" and crowning as King of God's Kingdom in 1920 which had been previously believed to be 1878. Hence, Jehovah's heavenly Kingdom is established.

Jehovah's Witnesses teach that Satan and his demons were cast down to earth from heaven after October 1, 1914 at which point the end times began.

From 1914 C.E. to the early part of 1918 C.E. or 1,260 days Jehovah's people preached a "sackcloth" message concerning Christendom and the world, in fulfillment of Revelation 11:3, 4. See re pgs. 164-7 pars. 10-18, also see yw pgs. 264-307, also bf pg. 592.

[KING OF THE NORTH is now Germany, the KING OF THE SOUTH is the alliance between Great Britian and the United States of America, see Daniel 11:27-29], Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife, Countess Sophie Chotek, duchess of Hohenberg were assassinated on June 28th in Sarajevo, Bosnia, (now in Bosnia and Herzegovina), by a Serb nationalist. This action precipitated World War I. 
 
On October 2, 1914, Jesus took the throne. Shortly thereafter, a war in heaven broke out wherein Satan and his demons were cast from the heavens. Satan then became so enraged that he began to wreak havoc upon the earth. One of the first things he did was to start the Great War (WWI). So WWI must have started a few days after October 2, 1914.
 
“World War I set the violent twentieth century in motion. It was the first use of chemical weapons; the first mass bombardment of civilians from the sky; the century’s first genocide.” So begins the 1996 PBS series The Great War and the Shaping of the Twentieth Century.


The war’s horrendous prosecution and unsatisfactory end were made even worse by the Versailles Peace Conference, a conclave which created the false peace that only allowed the combatants to rearm and proceed to a second conflict which was even more destructive than the first one. World War II merely took up the Great War’s unfinished business. Indeed many historians call both conflicts Europe’s “Second Thirty Years’ War.”

The First World War led to the birth of the first communist dictatorship. The world flirted with nuclear destruction as that dictatorship engaged in a murderous rivalry with its erstwhile allies. When the USSR finally imploded, some of the splinter states which emerged from its ruins fell to either fighting among themselves or suffering internecine bloodletting. And the problems elsewhere in southwest Asia as well as the Middle East can be traced to hatreds fostered by European colonialism which the Great War only intensified.

The world we have today had its birth pangs in World War I. It was Austria-Hungary’s invasion of Serbia on 28 July 1914 that caused a myriad of dominoes to fall—and they are continuing to tumble even now.


The war shattered an entire world order. In 1914, sixty percent of the world's population lived under the rule of kingdoms or empires. Today less than ten percent do so. The only important royal dynasty to survive the war was the House of Windsor and that was not without challenge. The fragmentation of these empires led to the rise of independent states which continues down to this day as the doctrine of "self-determination", promulgated by Wilson at Versailles, continues to govern many movements in our time.

But what makes the Great War different from its predecessors is that it was the first fought in all four quarters of the globe and by blocs of nations as opposed to just a few. Its carnage also was unmatched in previous world history. Nobody knows how many actually died although estamates range from fourteen to twenty million. Among its aftershocks were the Spanish Flu, the pandemic that killed more people than the war itself, and widespread famine. So to say that the Great War was not much different from earlier ones entirely misses the point,
 
  Post by Jehovah's Witnesses News, Library, History, Videos, Talks, Illustrations.  
 
July 28, 1914. Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia. August 1, 1914. Germany Declares War on Russia. August 3, 1914. Germany declares war on France. August 4, 1914. Britain declares war on Germany. August 6, 1914. Austria declares war on Russia. April 6, 1917 - The United States declares war on Germany.
Depiction from the Nov 1, 2014 Watchtower:

Older depiction from the 1982 book "You Can Live Forever in Paradise on Earth":

Related Links and Questions
Jehovah’s Witnesses gather for convention - 1914 and 2014 - USA-Texas-Arlington - USA-Texas Fort Worth

1914-2014 - One Hundred Years of Kingdom Rule!

Where did you find the theme text for 1914?

Jesus said that "This generation will not pass away until all these things occur." Did he mean the generation that saw saw World War 1 in 1914?

What shows that Christ became King in 1914?

When Jesus began ruling as King in 1914, was that the start of the Millennial reign of the Messianic Kingdom?

IBSA Historical Video from that year 

 
Watchtower Publications from 1914
YearText: “Be strong and courageous.” Joshua 1:9
w-E * The Watch Tower 
Countdown Card 
Berean Studies on The New Creation - C.T. Russell 
The Photo-Drama of Creation 
What Say the Scriptures About Our Lord's Return (his Parousia, Apokalupsis and Epiphania)


Return to the Master List of Watchtower Publications listed by Year

Watchtower_May_15_1984_pages_1_to_7.pdf
Previous Watchtower Publications quotations concerning 1914
“Some persons living A.D. 1914 when the series of foretold events began will also be living when the series ends with Armageddon.” - The Watchtower, September 1, 1952, p. 543

THE TRAIN ILLUSTRATION - Awake!, October 8, 1968, p. 5

“The fact that fifty-four years of the period called the ‘last days’ have already gone by is highly significant. It means that only a few years, at most, remain before the corrupt system of things dominating the earth is destroyed by God...Jesus was obviously speaking about those who were old enough to witness with understanding what took place when the ‘last days’ began. Jesus was saying that some of those persons who were alive at the appearance of the ‘sign of the last days’ would still be alive when God brought this system to its end.” - Awake!, October 8, 1968, p. 13


“But there are people still living who were alive in 1914 and saw what was happening then and who were old enough that they still remember those events. This generation is getting up in years now. A great number of them have already passed away in death. Yet Jesus very pointedly said: ‘This generation will by no means pass away until all these things occur.’ Some of them will still be alive to see the end of this wicked system. This means that only a short time is left before the end comes!” - The Truth That Leads To Eternal Life, 1968 ed., p. 95

“However, there are people still living who were alive in 1914 and saw what was happening then and who were old enough that they still remember those events. This generation is getting up in years now. A great number of them have already passed away in death. Yet Jesus very pointedly said: ‘This generation will by no means pass away until all these things occur.’ Some of them will still be alive to see the end of this wicked system. This means that only a short time is left before the end comes!” - The Watchtower, February 15, 1969, p. 101

“Men of this world offer you nothing stable, nothing sure. Their promises and predictions of better things have failed time and again. Why let yourself be carried along with them in a steadily downward course to ultimate disaster due to rejecting God’s will? God’s prophetic Word has not failed. Time has confirmed its truthfulness, its unerring accuracy. The generation that saw the start of the time of distress that began in 1914 is now dwindling in numbers. Before it passes off the scene the prophesied ‘great tribulation’ will come. You can be among the joyful survivors, experience deliverance from a world system that has proved oppressive, unworkable and death dealing.” - The Watchtower, February 1, 1971, p. 69

“And the remaining ones of that generation of 1914 are still talking about it. Some of them will be talking about it right down to the time when the ‘great tribulation’ wipes Satan’s wicked system of things off the face of our globe. For Jesus Christ himself assures us: ‘Truly I say to you that this generation [the generation that saw the ‘beginning of pangs of distress’ in 1914] will by no means pass away [completely] until all these things occur. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will by no means pass away.’--Matthew 24:3,8,34,35.” - The Watchtower, May 1, 1982, p. 15

“After drawing attention to the many things that have marked the period from 1914 onward, Jesus said: ‘This generation will by no means pass away until all these things [including the end of this system] occur.’ (Matthew 24:34,14) Which generation did Jesus mean? He meant the generation of people who were living in 1914. Those persons yet remaining of that generation are now very old. However, some of them will still be alive to see the end of this wicked system. So of this we can be certain: Shortly now there will be a sudden end to all wickedness and wicked people at Armageddon. Some of the generation living in 1914 will see the end of the system of things and survive it.” - You Can Live Forever In Paradise On Earth, 1982 ed. p. 154

ILLUSTRATION: “1914 The Generation That Will Not Pass Away” - The Watchtower, May 15, 1984, title page

“If Jesus used ‘generation’ in that sense and we apply it to 1914, then the babies of that generation are now 70 years old or older. And others alive in 1914 are in their 80’s or 90’s, a few even having reached a hundred. There are still many millions of that generation alive. Some of them ‘will by no means pass away until all things occur.’ --Luke 21:32” - The Watchtower, May 15, 1984, p. 5

“From a purely human viewpoint, it could appear that these developments could hardly take place before the generation of 1914 disappears from the scene. But fulfillment of all the foretold events affecting the generation of 1914 does not depend on comparatively slow human action. Jehovah’s prophetic word through Christ Jesus is: ‘This generation [of 1914] will by no means pass away until all things occur.’ (Luke 21:32) And Jehovah, who is the source of inspired and unfailing prophecy, will bring about the fulfillment of his Son’s words in a relatively short time.--Isaiah 46:9,10; 55:10,11.”
- The Watchtower, May 15, 1984, pp. 6-7

“Today, a small percentage of mankind can still recall the dramatic events of 1914. Will that elderly generation pass away before God saves the earth from ruin? Not according to Bible prophecy. ‘When you see all these things,’ Jesus promised, ‘know that he is near at the doors. Truly I say to you that this generation will by no means pass away until all these things occur.’--Matthew 24:33,34” - The Watchtower, May 1, 1992, p. 3

“Most important, this magazine builds confidence in the Creator’s promise of a peaceful and secure new world before the generation that saw the events of 1914 passes away.” - Awake!, October 22, 1995, p. 4


“Eager to see the end of this evil system, Jehovah’s people have at times speculated about the time when the ‘great tribulation’ would break out, even tying this to calculations of what is the lifetime of a generation since 1914. However, we ‘bring a heart of wisdom in,’ not by speculating about how many years or days make up a generation, but by thinking about how we ‘count our days’ in bringing joyful praise to Jehovah. (Psalm 90:12) Rather than provide a rule for measuring time, the term ‘generation’ as used by Jesus refers principally to contemporary people of a certain historical period, with their identifying characteristics.” - The Watchtower, November 1, 1995, p. 17


“Therefore, in the final fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy today, ‘this generation’ apparently refers to the peoples of earth who see the sign of Christ’s presence but fail to mend their ways...Does our more precise viewpoint on ‘this generation’ mean that Armageddon is further away than we had thought? Not at all! Though we at no time have known the ‘day and hour,’ Jehovah God has always known it, and he does not change.” - The Watchtower, November 1, 1995, pp. 19-20

“Most important, this magazine builds confidence in the Creator’s promise of a peaceful and secure new world that is about to replace the present wicked, lawless system of things.” - Awake!, November 8, 1995, p. 4
 
One hundred years on from the Great War

 

I didn't expect this topic to wind up with so much discussion of the 70 years, but I'd like to bring it back to specific topics brought up in Matthew 24. One major topic, not really discussed yet, is the "SIGN." But even before we discuss the sign, we should notice that it's the SIGN OF THE PAROUSIA and the SIGN of the SYNTELEIA, that they asked about. For that reason, it would probably be useful to review whether or not it is proper to understand this as a SIGN of a PRESENCE and a SIGN of a CONCLUSION. If it should mean that, then perhaps a generation full of signs is an accurate meaning. But if it refers to a "signal event" that gives them advance warning of the time of the "Judgment Day" then this cannot very likely refer to a generation full of signs.
THE LIKELY MEANING or DISTINCTION between PAROUSIA, SYNTELEIA, EPIPHANEIA, APOKALYPSIS
The point of this part of the topic is to see whether it is possible, or even more likely that the terms Parousia and Synteleia, in context, refer, respectively, to the ROYAL VISITATION & MANIFESTATION (i.e., JUDGMENT DAY) and the FINAL END & DESTRUCTION (i.e., JUDGMENT DAY) rather than merely a "presence" and "conclusion." When that evidence is included in the question about the sign, we have another way of looking at the question. This other way of looking at the question sheds a lot more light on why Jesus answered in the way he did. In fact, it removes what would otherwise appear to be some awkward wording or even a contradiction on the part of Jesus. We know Jesus did not contradict himself, so we should be interested in a meaning that makes more sense with the total context of Jesus' words.
We have already discussed evidence that many contemporary Jews would have understood the meaning of the terms as the signal events referring to the timing of the Judgment Day. If we were to insert those meanings into the verse in Matthew, we would have the following, in context:
(Matthew 24:1-4 -- [with the question in vs 3, paraphrased]) 1 Now as Jesus was departing from the temple, his disciples approached to show him the buildings of the temple. 2 In response he said to them: “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, by no means will a stone be left here upon a stone and not be thrown down.” 3 While he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples approached him privately, saying: “Can you tell us WHEN this will happen? Can you tell us what will be THE WARNING SIGN OF YOUR JUDGMENT VISITATION and the FINAL END OF THE AGE?" [NWT: "Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your presence and of the conclusion of the system of things?”] 4 In answer Jesus said to them: “Look out that nobody misleads you, . . .
The NWT is translated in such a way that you would never get this idea from the question, and yet we have already shown that this is what the actual words Matthew used would have meant to many Jews in Matthew's audience. And we also know that this is the basic idea that the disciples themselves had about the Kingdom of God. They wanted to know when it would MANIFEST itself.
(Luke 19:11) 11 While they were listening to these things he spoke in addition an illustration, because he was near Jerusalem and they were imagining that the kingdom of God was going to display itself instantly.
(Acts 1:6, 7) 6 So when they had assembled, they asked him: “Lord, are you restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?” 7 He said to them: “It does not belong to you to know the times or seasons that the Father has placed in his own jurisdiction.
Of course, if the disciples had known that Jesus would be ruling invisibly from heaven they would not have had this idea that a time would come for it to "display itself instantly" upon the physical nation of Israel. Therefore, they must have been looking for an advance warning sign so that they could know when to be away from the disaster.
This is consistent with the idea that the "parousia" of a powerful godlike person could be considered to be a "theophany," or an "appearance" like some kind of bright and shining manifestation. To make this clearer we will use the original word PAROUSIA or SYNTELEIA in the following verses, to make it easier to understand the original meaning.
(2 Thessalonians 2:8, NWT, KIT) . . .the Lord Jesus will do away with by the spirit of his mouth and bring to nothing by the manifestation of his [PAROUSIA].
But even this does not fully match the likely meaning of the word that the NWT uses here. Note the KJV and NIV, for example:
(2 Thess. 2:8, KJV) the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
(2 Thess 2:8, NIV) the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming.
That's because the word in Greek is ἐπιφάνεια (epipháneia) which according to Thayer's Greek Lexicon:
epipháneia -- an appearing, appearance; often used by the Greeks of a glorious manifestation of the gods, and especially of their advent to help; in 2 Maccabees of signal deeds and events betokening the presence and power of God as helper."
It's the same word used in 2 Timothy and Titus:
(1 Timothy 6:14) 14 to observe the commandment in a spotless and irreprehensible way until the manifestation [EPIPHANEIA]  of our Lord Jesus Christ,
(2 Timothy 4:1) I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his manifestation and his Kingdom:
Note that the NWT in 2 Tim 4:1 uses the word "AND" here, although most translations follow a Greek text which has the word "AT" in this place, so that the verse reads more smoothly as:
(2 Tim 4:1, NLT) I solemnly urge you in the presence of God and Christ Jesus, who will someday judge the living and the dead when he appears to set up his Kingdom:
In fact, the sense of the "AND" in some Greek texts is very likely intended to offer the meaning that shows up in the NLT, because the point is that Jesus will judge the living and the dead AND he will do this through his glorious manifestation AND through his kingdom. This fits the illustration in Matthew:
(Matthew 13:39-43) The harvest is a [SYNTELEIA: Destruction/Final End] conclusion of a system of things, and the reapers are angels. 40 Therefore, just as the weeds are collected and burned with fire, so it will be in the [SYNTELEIA: Destruction/Final End] conclusion of the system of things. 41 The Son of man will send his angels, and they will collect out from his Kingdom all things that cause stumbling and people who practice lawlessness, 42 and they will pitch them into the fiery furnace. There is where their weeping and the gnashing of their teeth will be. 43 At that time [the harvest] the righteous ones will shine as brightly as the sun in the Kingdom of their Father.. . .
This is the same scenario that Paul mentions when he includes the resurrected ones into the same picture about the time when righteous ones will shine at the SYNTELEIA. The only difference is that Paul refers to it as the PAROUSIA.
(1 Thessalonians 4:15-17) 15 For this is what we tell you by Jehovah’s word, that we the living who survive to the [PAROUSIA: ROYAL VISITATION AND GLORIOUS MANIFESTATION] presence of the Lord will in no way precede those who have fallen asleep in death; 16 because the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a commanding call, with an archangel’s voice and with God’s trumpet, and those who are dead in union with Christ will rise first. 17 Afterward we the living who are surviving will, together with them, be caught away in clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and thus we will always be with the Lord.
According to our current Watchtower doctrine, Paul can never be completely correct. If, as the Watchtower claims, the resurrection has already occurred (back between the years surrounding 1918 and up through as late as 1935, per the current teaching), then those who survived until the presence (1914 and on)  may easily precede those who fall asleep in death during the "presence."  Russell, for example, survived until the "presence," in 1914 and he died in 1916 and therefore easily preceded, let's say, Rutherford, Knorr, and Fred Franz, and probably at last 44,000 others, according to our current teaching.
But also note that the expression translated "together" has a word in front of it that is not translated in the NWT's 1 Thess 4:17,  creating an expression that means not just "together," but, "at the same time together." This is why Thayer's, Vine's and Strong's all offer this definition, especially in the adverbial sense which is obvious here: 
Strong's ἅμα (háma) adv   a primary particle; properly, at the "same" time, but freely used as a preposition or adverb denoting close association:—also, and, together, with(-al).
Thayer's ἅμα (háma) 1. adverb, at the same time, at once, together. . . .  In 1 Thess 4:17 and v.10 where ἅμα (háma) is followed by syn, ἅμα is an adverb (at the same time) and must be joined to the verb.
Vine's ἅμα (háma) "at once" . . . in Romans 3:12; 1 Thess 4:17
This is obvious even in the way the NWT translates this in other places where ἅμα (háma) is used.
(Acts 24:26, NWT) 26 At the same time he was hoping that Paul would give him money.. . .
If the PAROUSIA is the time when those who survive until then are taken at the same time as the resurrected ones, then clearly the Parousia could not have really been ongoing in 1918 to 1935:
*** w07 1/1 pp. 27-28 pars. 10-12 “The First Resurrection”—Now Under Way! ***
10 Can we say more precisely when the first resurrection begins? An interesting clue is found at Revelation 7:9-15, where the apostle John describes his vision of “a great crowd, which no man was able to number.” The identity of that great crowd is revealed to John by one of the 24 elders, and these elders represent the 144,000 joint heirs with Christ in their heavenly glory. (Luke 22:28-30; Revelation 4:4) John himself had a heavenly hope; but since he was still a man on earth when the elder spoke to him, in the vision John must represent anointed ones on earth who have not yet received their heavenly reward.
11 What, then, can we deduce from the fact that one of the 24 elders identifies the great crowd to John? It seems that resurrected ones of the 24-elders group may be involved in the communicating of divine truths today. Why is that important? Because the correct identity of the great crowd was revealed to God’s anointed servants on earth in 1935. If one of the 24 elders was used to convey that important truth, he would have had to be resurrected to heaven by 1935 at the latest. That would indicate that the first resurrection began sometime between 1914 and 1935. Can we be more precise?
12 At this point, it may be helpful to consider what might be viewed as a Bible parallel. Jesus Christ was anointed as the future King of God’s Kingdom in the fall of 29 C.E. Three and a half years later, in the spring of 33 C.E., he was resurrected as a mighty spirit person. Could it, then, be reasoned that since Jesus was enthroned in the fall of 1914, the resurrection of his faithful anointed followers began three and a half years later, in the spring of 1918? That is an interesting possibility. Although this cannot be directly confirmed in the Bible, it is not out of harmony with other scriptures that indicate that the first resurrection got under way soon after Christ’s presence began.
That was an odd mix of speculation, along with both dogmatic and very undogmatic statements. Still, while it's true that the first resurrection gets underway as soon as or soon after Christ's PAROUSIA begins, none who survived until the PAROUSIA were taken to heaven along with (together at the same time with) those who were resurrected somewhere between about 1918 to 1935. Yet, it is recognized that the first resurrection got under way "soon" after Christ's PAROUSIA would begin. What was that "harmony with other scriptures"? The example is given in the next paragraph, but with an interesting bit of bracketed information that is in the original Watchtower article -- not something added here as an explanation:
For example, Paul wrote: “We the living who survive to the presence of the Lord [not, to the end of his presence] shall in no way precede those who have fallen asleep in death; because the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a commanding call, with an archangel’s voice and with God’s trumpet, and those who are dead in union with Christ will rise first. Afterward we the living who are surviving will, together with them, be caught away in clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and thus we shall always be with the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17) Therefore, anointed Christians who died before Christ’s presence were raised to heavenly life ahead of those who were still alive during Christ’s presence. This means that the first resurrection must have begun early in Christ’s presence, and it continues “during his presence.” (1 Corinthians 15:23) Rather than occurring all at once, the first resurrection takes place over a period of time.
But the writer who recognized the point that he put in brackets did not recognize that the Greek of 1 Cor 15:23 never says DURING his presence. It actually harmonizes with 1 Thess 4, by saying "AT HIS PAROIUSIA" as if PAROUSIA were an event rather than a duration:
(1 Corinthians 15:23) 23 But each one in his own proper order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who belong to the Christ during his presence.
The Greek word here would usually mean "AT" in a case like this. It is only translated "DURING" because our traditional doctrine tells us to believe that it is a DURATION of time.
Strong's Definition:
ἐν (en) --a primary preposition denoting (fixed) position (in place, time or state), and (by implication) instrumentality (medially or constructively), i.e. a relation of rest (intermediate between G1519 and G1537); "in," at, (up-)on, by, etc.:
The NWT agrees that this is true in the way the following verse is translated along with the NWT footnote:
(1 Corinthians 15:51, 52) . . .We shall not all fall asleep [in death], but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, during* [fn. "at"] the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised up incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
(The updated NWT removed this footnote so that the word "at" is no longer shown and instead now footnotes the word "blink" with "twinkling.")
It's for the exact same reason that the NWT almost always chooses to say "in the conclusion" (IN the SYNTELEIA), even though it is just as proper to say "at the conclusion" (AT the SYNTELEIA).
There are times, however, when the NWT has chosen to translate the exact same word as "AT"
(1 Thessalonians 2:19) 19 For what is our hope or joy or crown of exultation before our Lord Jesus at his presence [PAROUSIA]?
(1 Thessalonians 3:13) 13 so that he may make your hearts firm, blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the presence [PAROUSIA] of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones.
(1 Thessalonians 5:23) . . .And may the spirit and soul and body of you brothers, sound in every respect, be preserved blameless at the presence [PAROUSIA] of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The reason that the word is translated above as "at" instead of "during" is because it is too clear that the parousia refers to a judgment event in these places. We think of it as the "END" of the parousia when this judgment event happens. But we should remember that Paul always recognized that the relief given to all those of faith would include resurrected ones, and that this resurrection was to be at the same time as Jesus brings judgment on the disobedient. All this obviously happens at the PAROUSIA, not during the PAROUSIA, as shown in the quotes above.
(2 Thessalonians 1:7-10) 7 But you who suffer tribulation will be given relief along with us at the revelation [APOKALYPSIS] of the Lord Jesus from heaven with his powerful angels 8 in a flaming fire, as he brings vengeance on those who do not know God and those who do not obey the good news about our Lord Jesus. 9 These very ones will undergo the judicial punishment of everlasting destruction from before the Lord and from the glory of his strength, 10 at the time when he comes to be glorified in connection with his holy ones and to be regarded in that day with wonder. . .
It's the exact same word that could have been translated as "during" except that the NWT chose "at" when the reference seems to be to a specific time of judgment. But notice that this "specific time of judgment" is called PAROUSIA and APOKALYPSIS (which means revealing).
In fact, every reference to the parousia of Jesus appears to be more appropriately associated with his revelation (apokalypis) and manifestation (epiphaneia). Both the language structure AND content of these phrases about the PAROUSIA are also used with reference to the APOKALYPSIS, even though our current doctrine claims that only one of the two words refers to a judgment event.
(1 Peter 1:7) 7 in order that the tested quality of your faith, of much greater value than gold that perishes despite its being tested by fire, may be found a cause for praise and glory and honor at the revelation [APOKALYPSIS] of Jesus Christ.
(1 Peter 1:13) . . .keep your senses completely; set your hope on the undeserved kindness that will be brought to you at the revelation [APOKALYPSIS] of Jesus Christ.
(1 John 2:28) 28 So now, little children, remain in union with him, so that when he is made manifest we may have freeness of speech and not shrink away from him in shame at his presence [PAROUSIA].
Similar phrases show that the primary point was the judgment event even when other words and phrases were used. But these ones, also, give us a good sense of the meaning of the terms Parousia, Synteleia, Apokalypsis, Epiphaneia, etc:
(Jude 24) 24 Now to the one who is able to guard you from stumbling and to make you stand unblemished in the sight of his glory with great joy. . .
(1 Corinthians 1:7, 8) . . .while you are eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. 8 He will also make you firm to the end so that you may be open to no accusation in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Cor 1:8, just quoted, could have translated the same word for "AT" above as "DURING" instead of "IN" as was done here (i.e., "during the day of our Lord Jesus Christ"). The point was emphasized here so that no one thinks that the word "during" is what implies a long period of time. It's the belief about whether the reference is to a long period of time that determines how the NWT has translated the word in every case.
The overall point is that it appears likely that the words Parousia and Synteleia refer to judgment events rather than long durations of time such as a generation during which to watch for signs. That would explain why Jesus could liken the parousia to the judgment event of Noah's day, or the judgment event of Sodom, or the judgment event of the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 C.E., and lastly the judgment event at the revelation and manifestation of Jesus Christ in judgment of the entire world.