The Watchtower and the Assassination of Robert Kennedy

[Guest Kurt]

Back in the dark days of 1968, with the Vietnam War raging and the very real threat of revolution looming, the political establishment in the United States was in a state of turmoil.

One of the many dramatic events from that period was the assassination of Robert Kennedy, an American politician from Massachusetts and brother of John F Kennedy, who served  as  a Senator for New York from 1965 until his death in 1968.

He was murdered by a Palestinian activist, Sirhan Bishara Sirhan who with many other disgruntled.Palestinians, was incensed by United States support of Israel during the Arab Israeli conflict. 

However, opposers of the truth saw an opportunity to cause mischief,  and reports soon began to appear in the press that Jehovah's Witnesses were somehow involved in the assassination (!) and that various members of the Sirhan family in Pasadena, California were baptized witnesses. 

Needless to say, the United States branch took immediate action to "defend and legally establish the good news" (Phil 1:7), and sent out a document to all congregations in the United States, outlining a series of steps that needed to be taken to handle the adverse publicity these false accusations were creating.

 

The_Watchtower_and_the_Assassination_of_Robert_Kennedy_1968_.pdf

[JW Insider]

When it was announced that the Sirhans had been sponsored by the Nazarene Church of Pasadena, we were probably confused with the Nazarene Church, because JW's were the largest "church" in Pasadena in the view of many.

It's because of the famous 1963 International Convention held at the Rose Bowl. (We held other assemblies there in those years but this was by far the biggest.) For California, this was about as huge as the 1950 and 1958 New York City international conventions. I lived next to Pasadena at the time, and we attended that convention. The news all around Los Angeles gave it a lot of attention. My father claims that a sister died of heat stroke there, and a couple of newspaper reporters covered the continuous stream of stretchers that brought suffering people into the first aid office. (8 day assembly with no shade in 100 degree heat.) My brother fell into one of those famous rose bush hedges planted there and had to wait for first aid with a shirt covered in blood.  The first aid office was just completely overwhelmed, and my brother had what he called "tiger claw scars" whenever someone asked in later years. (Don't know if anyone made a subliminal connection, but our largest Pasadena meeting was the same year that RFK's brother was assassinated).

I found something else quite interesting in the linked materials from the Bethel headquarters (branch). It's also found elsewhere, but this is one of the clearest statements that we had considered the "governing body" to be the equivalent of "The Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania." It says:

"This is bringing letters to . . .  branch offices of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania (governing body for Jehovah's Witnesses) throughout the world."

 

 

[JW Insider]

I should add that I first heard the above theory about the Sirhan connection from my Bethel "table head." I remember the Pasadena assembly very well myself even though I was fairly young. The theory is only about why the story gained traction around Pasadena, even after it was supposedly debunked. This was our "territory" in service and my parents tell me that it came up now and then.

This is not where the story started, however. The Watch Tower's letter is correct that the initial reports came out of Israel/Jordan (and only about Sirhan Sirhan's father). But the sources might have been ignored if local Pasadena & LA stations hadn't played it up. Even if his father was one of the many Greek Orthodox Arabs in the area, the story might have come from neighbors who misunderstood a religious sign he had painted at his home that had the name "Jehovah Most High" in it, or something like that.

 

[John Houston]

Not having the instantaneous new media we have today, communications got garbled back then. And much was confused. When that sign with that writing was confused with our religion it was a story, others some thought and it grew for a time from there. As an organization there was protocol about security somewhat. And the necessary elders and co's were informed. It was a matter that was kept quiet from the populace and frown if asked about.