The parable of the faithful and discreet slave is core to Watchtower doctrine and an important aspect of any discussion about the need for an Organization. This article discusses:

• History and current Watchtower understanding of the Slave
• Evidence of 'Jehovah's Witnesses' over the last 2000 years

Watchtower Doctrine on the Slave

Jehovah's Witnesses consider themselves part of "The one original religion introduced by mankind's Creator (as apposed to) the many counterfeit kinds introduced by his adversary." (Awake! 1989 Jan 8 p.7) It is taught that there have always been Jehovah's Witnesses.

"Jehovah's witnesses have a history almost 6,000 years long, beginning while the first man, Adam, was still alive, … [Abel was] the first of an unbroken line of Witnesses…Jesus' disciples were all Jehovah's witnesses [sic] too." Jehovah's Witnesses in the Divine Purpose pp.8-9

It is said that in 33 A.D. Jesus established a Slave Class to spiritually care for his people. The slave has continued uninterrupted since Jesus death, and will continue until the time of his return. Since 1919 that slave has been identified as operating in its cleansed, awaken format as the Watchtower Society.

"Over a period of more than 1,960 years, that work of education has continued, preparing a little flock made up of people from "every tribe and tongue and people and nation" to serve with Christ in his heavenly Kingdom." Yearbook 1996 p.3


Life Everlasting in Freedom of the Sons of God

"In this regard, the book God's Kingdom of a Thousand Years Has Approached stated: "As to just how the 'faithful and discreet slave' class existed and served down through the centuries after the death of the apostles of the Master Jesus Christ, we do not have a distinct historical picture. Apparently one generation of the 'slave' class fed the next succeeding generation thereof. (2 Timothy 2:2)" Watchtower 1995 May 15 p.16

"Jehovah's Witnesses believe that this parable pertains to the one true congregation of Jesus Christ's anointed followers. Beginning with Pentecost, 33 C.E., and continuing through the 19 centuries since then, this slavelike congregation has been feeding its members spiritually, doing so faithfully and discreetly…. the one approved channel representing God's kingdom on earth in the "time of the end."" Watchtower 1981 March 1 p.24 Do You Appreciate the "Faithful and Discreet Slave"?

"That "slave," according to Jesus' description, would be on hand when the Lord departed for heaven and would still be alive at the time of Christ's return. Such a description could not possibly fit an individual human. But it does fit Christ's faithful anointed congregation viewed as a whole." United in Worship of the Only True God p.119

"We understand that this heavenly calling continued down through the centuries, though during the so-called Dark Ages, there may have been times when the number of anointed ones were very few." Watchtower 1996 Aug 15 p. 31

What proof has been provided to support these statements? Not a single historical person or group has ever been identified as part of the Slave, even immediately prior to Pastor Russell. Russell was not a link in a line of a like minded slave class. He rejected his Presbyterian (Calvinist) Church, drifted through several Adventist groups, joined up with Barbour and then split from him to take control of his own unique way of worship. After forming a new religious group he said 'I confess indebtedness to Adventists as well as to other denominations.'^[1]

Who is the Slave?

The common understanding of the parable of the Slave (or Steward as referred to in some Bible translations) is that they are congregational ministers.

"Some state that the "slave" refers to Christian ministers, or their office of oversight, with responsibility to care for the spiritual needs of the congregation. The 'master's' arrival is said to be either the second coming of Christ or the death of the individual minister. Thus it is held that the parable should motivate Christian ministers to care well for what is entrusted to them." Watchtower 1981 March 1 p.24

In Commentary on Matthew 24, Matthew Henry writes:

"Concerning the good servant; he shows here what he is-a ruler of the household; what, being so, he should be-faithful and wise; and what, if he be so, he shall be eternally-blessed. Here are good instructions and encouragements to the ministers of Christ. First, We have here his place and office. ... The church of Christ is his household … Secondly, His right discharge of this office. The good servant, if thus preferred, will be a good steward; for, 1. He is faithful; stewards must be so, 1 Co. 4:2. He that is trusted, must be trusty; and the greater the trust is, the more is expected from them. It is a great good thing that is committed to ministers (2 Tim. 1:14); and they must be faithful, as Moses was, Heb. 3:2. Christ counts those ministers, and those only, that are faithful, 1 Tim. 1:12. A faithful minister of Jesus Christ is one that sincerely designs his master's honour, not his own; delivers the whole counsel of God, not his own fancies and conceits; follows Christ's institutions and adheres to them; regards the meanest, reproves the greatest, and doth not respect persons." http://www.blueletterBible.org/tmp_dir/c/1152349985-8615.html (July 9th 2006)

In line with this 1 Corinthians 4:1-2 says;

"Let a man so appraise us as being subordinates of Christ and stewards of sacred secrets of God. Besides, in this case, what is looked for in stewards is for a man to be found faithful."

This is not the Watchtower understanding. Vagueness of this parable allows an interpreter, with little effort, to arrive at a range of preconceived notions. This is highlighted by four changes to this Watchtower Doctrine.

Originally Russell said the Slave was an illustration of the little flock -144,000 heavenly rulers. (Zion's Watch Tower 1881 Oct/Nov p.4).

It was then used to refer to a single person, Pastor Russell. (This interpretation was originally suggested by Russell's wife in a letter dated 1895. See Zion's Watch Tower 1906 July 15 pp.215, 216 for a reprint of the letter.) Russell was thought to have been appointed as the Slave to direct the domestics (Jesus true followers) immediately prior to the Second Coming.

"However much we might endeavor to apply this figure to the Lord's people collectively, the fact would still remain that the various items stated would not fit to a company of individuals. For instance, in the 42nd verse, in the common version it is rendered, that faithful steward; the revised version, the faithful steward; as though a particular one were meant and the term not used indefinitely for a number. Turning to the Greek text we find that the emphasis is there also and in double form--the faithful, the wise steward. ...at the time of the parable's fulfillment the Lord would appoint a servant in the household to bring these matters to the attention of all the servants, and that certain responsibilities would rest upon such a one respecting the dispatch of his duties … " Zion's Watch Tower 1904 April 15 p.125

"Thousands of the readers of Pastor Russell's writings believe that he filled the office of "that faithful and wise servant," and that his great work was giving to the Household of Faith meat in due season. His modesty and humility precluded him from openly claiming this title, but he admitted as much in private conversation." Watch Tower 1916 December 1 p.356

With Russell's death in 1916 a new interpretation became necessary. In the 1922 booklet The Parable of the Penny Rutherford was described as the Faithful Steward (Slave).

Finally, in 1927 Rutherford explained that the Slave was not a person but a group of people; Jesus and the 144,000.

"Seeing then that The Servant of Jehovah is The Christ, and that The Christ is composed of Jesus and the faithful members of his body, we find it proper to apply the term "Servant" to Jesus Christ alone or to Jesus Christ and the members of his body collectively as one; and sometimes it is applied only to the members of the body of Christ yet on earth." Watchtower 1927 February 15 p.53

Refinements to this interpretation have resulted in the current understanding being convoluted, with this single Slave described as a class of people that feed the same class of people!

The current Watchtower understanding confusingly claims the slave and the domestics are both the same group of people. The 144,000 anointed ones are the slave as a whole, yet individually the same 144,000 are the domestics that as a group they rule over. The faithful and discreet slave is the 144,000 collectively. The domestics are the 144,000 individually. The 144,000 feed the 144,000. The rest of Jehovah's Witnesses and worldly people are not directly mentioned in this parable. This is explained in the following articles.

"If all the anointed as a group, no matter where on earth they live, are members of the slave class, who are the "domestics"? They are the same anointed ones but considered from a different viewpoint-as individuals. Yes, as individuals they would be of the "slave" or they would be "domestics," depending on whether they were dispensing spiritual food or partaking of it. To illustrate: As recorded at 2 Peter 3:15, 16, the apostle Peter makes reference to Paul's letters. When reading them, Peter would be as one of the domestics feeding on the spiritual food provided by Paul as a representative of the slave class." Watchtower 1995 May 15 p.16

Not only is this bizarre concept unnecessarily confusing (Russell's original statements were more logical), in reality the Watchtower Society does not operate this way. The majority of the 144,000 do not feed the sheep, in that they are not involved in establishing Watchtower doctrines, rules or procedures of the organization. The Governing Body alone has say in what is fed to the sheep.

Few of the Anointed Witnesses I have known have written any Watchtower articles or developed any doctrine or procedure. In recent times, most articles are written by members of the Other Sheep and simply authorised by the Governing Body.

"4. Those used as writers must be dedicated, baptized brothers or sisters in good standing with their local congregations and who have writing ability. They should be exemplary, modest, not inclined to talk loosely to others about their writing activity. ... 5. PREPARING MATERIAL: The subjects on which articles may be written are quite varied. Some articles will deal with spiritual matters, and these should be written by brothers." Branch Organization Manual p.24-1 Paragraph 4

The Governing Body is made up of between ten and twenty anointed men. When the Watchtower says to follow the "faithful and discreet slave" the majority of Jehovah's Witnesses understand this to mean following the rules of the Governing Body, as only these members direct the Organization.

Since Jesus

The Watchtower claims that since Jesus there have always been people that believe what the Watchtower teaches, at least in regards to the major doctrine. This is because "Jehovah has always guided his servants in an organized way" (pe p.192), with Jesus directing true Christians over the last 2000 years by means of the Faithful and Discreet slave.

"Down through the years the slavelike congregation has been feeding its true members faithfully and discreetly. From Pentecost, A.D. 33, up to this very present hour this has been lovingly and carefully performed. … Regularly and progressively such a great crowd are receiving their spiritual food through the columns of the eighty-one-year-old instrument in the hands of the "slave" class, The Watchtower, the religious magazine with the largest circulation in the world. Surely Jehovah and Jesus Christ have supplied no hasty, expedient form of leadership for the great crowd of true worshipers. Yes, beyond doubt the old but awake "faithful and discreet slave" stands today as a wonder watchman to the peoples of the nations. Just as their Master, Jesus Christ, stood for the rise and fall of many in Israel in the first century of the Christian Era, so now before the whole world the anointed witnesses stand as a guide to survival for a minority of mankind but prove to be an occasion for stumbling into Armageddon destruction for the rest.-Luke 2:34." Watchtower 1960 July 15 p. 435

"Nevertheless, through all the centuries of apostasy, there would exist individual wheatlike Christians, genuine anointed ones. (Matthew 13:24-29, 36-43) Thus, when the Lord's day dawned in October 1914, there were still true Christians on earth." Revelation - Its Grand Climax at Hand! p. 31

If this is the case why did God chose the apostate Catholic church to compile the Bible Canon in the 4th and 5th century and not use his "Faithful Slave"?

In an attempt to prove this unbroken line, the Watchtower has attempted to find religious groups with similar beliefs from prior centuries, occasionally discussing these groups in Watchtower articles. Historically there are very few groups similar to Jehovah's Witnesses and the ones the Watchtower mentions were around for only a fraction of the last 1900 years. The following research into the groups mentioned show that not a single group has ever believed all core Watchtower doctrine or that can be shown to be part of a Faithful and Discreet slave class.

For a group to be classified as part of the Slave class it is not necessary for them to have understood and taught every current Witness doctrine, such as the Great Crowd and end time prophecies. However, there are several key teachings that they must have held to. For the last 2000 years it should be possible to find an ongoing group of Jehovah's people who were;

• Anti-Trinitarian
• Using God's name Jehovah or it's equivalent translation
• Not teaching hellfire
• Not teaching immortality of the soul
• Not participating in war
• Not engaging in Idolatry or spiritism
• Accepting the Ransom
• Preaching

When the Watchtower writing department was researching this topic for the Proclaimers book in the 1990's, Carl Adams gave Barbara Anderson^[2] just four criteria to identify the Slave:

• rejection of the Trinity
• rejection of hellfire
• rejection of immortality of the human soul
• acceptance of the ransom sacrifice of Christ as defined by Jehovah's Witnesses

Even with this short list, not a single group could be found. The result is that the Proclaimers book was reduced to making the following broad statement:

"Throughout the centuries there have always been truth lovers. To mention just a few: John Wycliffe (c. 1330-1384) and William Tyndale (c. 1494-1536) furthered the work of Bible translation even at the risk of their life or freedom. Wolfgang Fabricius Capito (1478-1541), Martin Cellarius (1499-1564), Johannes Campanus (c. 1500-1575), and Thomas Emlyn (1663-c. 1741) accepted the Bible as God's Word and rejected the Trinity. Henry Grew (1781-1862) and George Storrs (1796-1879) not only accepted the Bible and rejected the Trinity but also expressed appreciation for the ransom sacrifice of Christ. Although we cannot positively identify any of such persons as "the wheat" of Jesus' illustration, certainly "Jehovah knows those who belong to him."" Jehovah's Witnesses-Proclaimers of God's Kingdom p.44

The majority of these people believed the Trinity so were not part of the Slave. No one is mentioned prior to 1300 A.D. as before then few people had access to the Bible, apart from the Catholic clergy, so few groups developed a belief system even vaguely similar to Witness beliefs.

During the 150 year period from Henry VIII to Charles I (1500 and 1600's) anti-Trinitarianism was pursued consistently and vigorously by 'heretics'. Many of these 'heretics' such as the Unitarian Bishop of Transylvania (Hungary) had such radical views in other areas they can not be considered acceptable to a Jehovah's Witness.

In 1919 The Finished Mystery pp.23-72 claimed that the Seven Messengers or Revelation 2 and 3 were St Paul, St John, Arius, Waldo, Wycliffe and Luther and Russell. However Waldo, Wycliffe and Luther were Catholics and Protestants whose beliefs were strongly at odds to both Russell and the essential doctrine listed above.

The groups closest to Witnesses that have been mentioned in Watchtower publications are the Waldenses, Cathari, Albigenses. Lollards and Huguenots. These were all basically Protestants and adhered to many Protestant teachings considered wrong by the Watchtower Society. The Minor Brethern (Socianians) is the group most similar to Jehovah's Witnesses today. A brief look shows none of these would be acceptable to be called a Jehovah's Witness.

Albigenses or Cathari

Cathari are made to sound like Jehovah's Witnesses.

"Yet another movement got started in the 12th century in the south of France-the Albigenses (also known as Cathari), named after the town of Albi, where they had many followers. They had their own celibate clergy class, who expected to be greeted with reverence. They believed that Jesus spoke figuratively in his last supper when he said of the bread, "This is my body." (Matthew 26:26, NAB) They rejected the doctrines of the Trinity, the Virgin Birth, hellfire, and purgatory. Thus they actively put in doubt the teachings of Rome. Pope Innocent III gave instructions that the Albigenses be persecuted. "If necessary," he said, "suppress them with the sword."" Mankind's Search for God pp. 281-282

However the Watchtower is forced to admit they held to key teachings that contradicted the Bible and so can not be considered Jehovah's Witnesses.

"Although the Cathari quoted the Bible extensively, they viewed it primarily as a source of allegories and fables….Many Cathar teachings were in direct contradiction to the Bible. For instance, they believed in the immortality of the soul and in reincarnation." Watchtower 1995 September 1 p.29 The Cathari-Were They Christian Martyrs?

Waldenses

"Most historians agree that the movement had its start about the year 1170. … Poverty, preaching, and the Bible were at the heart of Vaudès' life….Among other things, the early Waldenses rejected lying, purgatory, Masses for the dead, papal pardons and indulgences, and the worship of Mary and the "saints." They also held annual observances of the Lord's Evening Meal, or Last Supper. According to Lambert, their form of worship "was, in effect, the religion of the ordinary layman….Over the centuries, Waldensian churches have been established in countries as far away from as and the . However, most historians agree with Audisio, who says that "Waldensianism came to an end at the time of the Reformation," when it was "swallowed up" by Protestantism." Watchtower 2002 March 15 pp.20-21 The Waldenses-From Heresy to Protestantism.

The New Catholic Encyclopeadia says the Waldenses were so similar to Cathari that they are assumed to be an offshoot of them. They held to many strange teachings, such as encouraging members to dissolve their marriages in order to live nomadic lives of poverty and continued to take sacrament in the Catholic Church.

Lollards

John Wycliffe and the Lollards were the most significant heretical group in England before the Reformation.

"His followers, the Lollards, were more determined than ever to keep Wycliffe's work alive….The Bible was appealed to in support of what was taught. In training the preachers, Wycliffe himself had stressed the need to follow the simple instructions that Jesus had given when he sent out the 70 disciples. … They roundly denounced pilgrimages, superstitions, indulgences, saints, shrines and the use of images. Gradually, certain prominent Lollards realized that they could no longer remain within the Church. ... Do we today appreciate the courage that may have been displayed by our ancestors? They cherished the Bible as a book worth reading and studying-indeed worth their land, freedom and life. Does that hard-won freedom to study the Scriptures count with us? We can only say that it does if we ourselves take up study of the Bible and display an active faith, sharing its truths with others." Watchtower 1980 August 1 p.24 The Lollards, Courageous Bible Preachers

The Encyclopædia Britannica 2002 Expanded Edition DVD states:

"The most complete statement of early Lollard teaching appeared in the Twelve Conclusions, drawn up to be presented to the Parliament of 1395. They began by stating that the church in England had become subservient to her "stepmother the great church of Rome." The present priesthood was not the one ordained by Christ, while the Roman ritual of ordination had no warrant in Scripture. Clerical celibacy occasioned unnatural lust, while the "feigned miracle" of transubstantiation led men into idolatry. The hallowing of wine, bread, altars, vestments, and so forth was related to necromancy. Prelates should not be temporal judges and rulers, for no man can serve two masters. The Conclusions also condemned special prayers for the dead, pilgrimages, and offerings to images, and they declared confession to a priest unnecessary for salvation. Warfare was contrary to the New Testament, and vows of chastity by nuns led to the horrors of abortion and child murder. Finally, the multitude of unnecessary arts and crafts pursued in the church encouraged "waste, curiosity, and disguising." The Twelve Conclusions covered all the main Lollard doctrines except two: that the prime duty of priests is to preach and that all men should have free access to the Scriptures in their own language."

Lollards share some similarities with Jehovah's Witnesses, having strong focus on Bible reading, preaching, and were against idolatry, celibacy and war. However, Lollards can not be considered Jehovah's Witnesses as they worshipped a Trinity. Nor can they be referred to as the Slave dispensing spiritual food, as there was no central authority or central doctrine.

"Although Lollardy can be said to have originated in the writings of John Wyclif, it is true that the Lollards had no central doctrine. Likewise, being a decentralized movement, Lollardy neither had nor proposed any singular authority. The movement associated itself with many different ideas, but individual Lollards did not necessarily have to agree with every tenet." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lollard (July 8th 2006)

Huguenots

Another group that the Watchtower has mentioned is Huguenots, but this was just another name for Protestants.

"Tired of waiting for changes, many members of the movement for reform within the Catholic Church sided with Protestantism. About 1560, numerous French aristocrats and their supporters joined the Huguenots, as Protestants had come to be called." Awake! 1997 April 22 p.5

Anabaptists, Socinians, Brethren Minor

The groups closest to current Watchtower teaching were the Anabaptists, Socinians and Brethern of the Minor Party. These were all closely related and lasted for around 100 years during the late 1500's. These groups had strong views against the Trinity, infant baptism and other Catholic doctrines.

The following Watchtower article from 2003 gives the distinct impression that they were just like Jehovah's Witnesses today by showing a number of similarities.

"What the Brethren of the Minor Party Believed
The following quotes from the 15th- and 16th-century Acta Unitatis Fratrum show some of the beliefs held by the Minor Party. The statements, written by leaders of the Minor Party, are primarily directed to the Major Party.
Trinity: "If you glance throughout the entire Bible, you will not find that God is divided into a kind of Trinity, three persons by names, as people fabricated in their fancies."
Holy spirit: "The holy spirit is God's finger and a gift of God, or a comforter, or God's Power, which the Father gives to believers on the basis of Christ's merits. We do not find in the Holy Scriptures that the holy spirit should be called a God or a Person; nor do the apostolic teachings show that."
Baptism: "The Lord Christ told his apostles: Go into all the world, preach the Gospel to all creation, to those who would believe. (Mark, chapter 16) And only after these words: and being baptized, they will be saved. And you teach to baptize little children who lack their own faith."
Neutrality: "What your early brothers viewed as bad and unclean, to join the army and murder or to walk the very roads clothed with weapons, all that you consider to be good . . . So we feel that you, along with other teachers, look only with your left eye at the prophetic words that point out: Thus he broke the power of the bow, the shields and the sword and the battle. (Psalm 75) And again: They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, for the Lord's earth shall be full of the divine knowledge, and so forth. (Isaiah, chapter 11)."
Preaching: "We well know that, initially, females have brought more people to repentance than all the priests along with a bishop. And now the priests settled at their places and their apportioned rectories. What a mistake! Go into the entire world. Preach . . . to all creation." Watchtower 2003 December 15 p.12 They Searched for the Cramped Road

However, in 1988 it had been shown that these too "were guilty of many errors", such as their belief in reincarnation and denial of the ransom.

"Like the religions around them, they were guilty of many errors. Still, of all the religions of the Reformation, this rivulet of Socinianism adhered to the Bible more than most. …. The Minor Reformed Church (as Socinians were officially called) flourished in for nearly a hundred years. At their peak they numbered up to 300 congregations. Awake! 1988 November 22 pp.19-20 The Socinians-Why Did They Reject the Trinity?

"When the storm of the Protestant Reformation erupted in the 16th century, a radical group called the Socinians was born. They denied that Jesus' death in any way "merited salvation for us," calling such belief "fallacious, erroneous, and very pernicious . . . , repugnant both to Scripture and reason."" Watchtower 1991 February 15 p.6

Though not believing in the Trinity this groups understanding about the nature of God can hardly be deemed acceptable to Jehovah's Witnesses. Anabaptists did not share the Arian concept of God taught by the Watchtower Society. They believed in Modalism, the notion that there is one unique God that manifests Himself in three different modes or stages; the Father in the Old Testament, the Son in the four Gospels and the Holy Spirit since Pentecost.

Other Proof

With no evidence of any historical group of Jehovah's Witnesses, what proof exists to indicate the Watchtower Society is the Slave?

"OVERWHELMING CREDENTIALS The "faithful and discreet slave" has abundant credentials. Following is a partial list of Scriptural and prophetic designations applying to or being represented in the remnant of Jesus Christ's anointed followers since the notable year 1919:" Watchtower 1981 March 1 p.27

The article follows with a list of 80 prophetic designations, including "Noah's wife", "Angels sent to Lot" and the "Gleaning left behind". Can these Bible accounts really be said to provide 'Overwhelming Credentials' of a post 1919 Slave?

"Those mature in Christian growth have, through the Scriptures and the evident manifestation of Jehovah's favor on his faithful and discreet slave, come to appreciate that Jehovah deals with his people as an organization and that his spirit operates in conjunction with that organization. (Matthew 24:45-47)" Watchtower 1958 May 1 p.285

Is self proclamation of being the Slave proof that this is so? Every religion believes they have Scriptural backing for their beliefs and feel their growth is evidence of God's favour.

Protestant tradition is one of 'Sola Scriptura'; that the Bible alone is the complete basis for Christian teaching. Though paying lip service to 'Sola Scriptura' the Watchtower doctrine of a Slave class has more in common with Catholic 'Magisterium'. The New Catholic Encyclopaedia explains that truth is provided through the Church and Pope progressively:

"Must it be admitted that Christ instituted His Church as the official and authentic organ to transmit and explain in virtue of Divine authority the Revelation made to men? The Protestant principle is: The Bible and nothing but the Bible; the Bible, according to them, is the sole theological source; there are no revealed truths save the truths contained in the Bible; according to them the Bible is the sole rule of faith: by it and by it alone should all dogmatic questions be solved; it is the only binding authority. Catholics, on the other hand, hold that there may be, that there is in fact, and that there must of necessity be certain revealed truths apart from those contained in the Bible… There is, therefore in the Church progress of dogma, progress of theology, progress to a certain extent of faith itself, but this progress does not consist in the addition of fresh information nor the change of ideas. What is believed has always been believed, but in time it is more commonly and thoroughly understood and explicitly expressed."

The Watchtower similarly holds that since Jesus the Anointed Slave have been the only bearers of truth. The Bible cannot be understood without the help of the Slave who are spirit directed to reveal its meaning. Changes in Watchtower doctrine are similarly explained away, not as errors, but God's progressive revealing of doctrine as the light gets brighter.

Consequences

The Watchtower Society claims a direct line back to Jesus. If anyone has right to such a claim it is surely only the Catholic Church. The Watchtower Society can not trace its roots back to Jesus; it can not even prove the first step to a Slave before Pastor Russell. Not a single known group lives up to the essential basic Watchtower beliefs and standards. Furthermore, a study of the history of the Watchtower Society reveals that prior to 1930, Bible Students bore little resemblance to Jehovah's Witnesses today. With Rutherford's significant overturn of Russell's beliefs even Russell can barely be said to have belonged to the modern day Watchtower Slave.

The Governing Body uses the Slave concept to say that without them the Bible is beyond understanding.

"All who want to understand the Bible should appreciate that the "greatly diversified wisdom of God" can become known only through Jehovah's channel of communication, the faithful and discreet slave" Watchtower 1994 October 1 p.8

"We have the opportunity to show love for our brothers who take the lead in the congregation or in connection with Jehovah's visible organization worldwide. This includes being loyal to "the faithful and discreet slave." (Matthew 24:45-47) Let us face the fact that no matter how much Bible reading we have done, we would never have learned the truth on our own. We would not have discovered the truth regarding Jehovah, his purposes and attributes, the meaning and importance of his name, the Kingdom, Jesus' ransom, the difference between God's organization and Satan's, nor why God has permitted wickedness." Watchtower 1990 December 1 p.19

"Thus the Bible is an organizational book and belongs to the Christian congregation as an organization, not to individuals, regardless of how sincerely they may believe that they can interpret the Bible. For this reason the Bible cannot be properly understood without Jehovah's visible organization in mind." Watchtower 1967 October 1 p.587

The Bible has been provided for us to know Jesus requirements. Has the Watchtower enlightened people beyond the words of Jesus? Is it not more accurate to say that what the Watchtower has said beyond that contained in the Bible has regularly been wrong and later changed? Information such as:

• Numerous failed time prophecies
• Strange medical information and dangerous decrees such as that vaccinations and transplants are unchristian
• The changing stance on blood

By going beyond the guidelines given in the scriptures on disfellowshipping have not the Slave created a practice that has had a destructive effect on the lives of hundreds of thousands of people, dividing families for decades?

When a group of men claim special guidance from God as his sole representatives, they risk controlling people without justification, leading to disastrous results for the followers.

The Governing Body has managed to deflect attention from Jesus by means of their doctrine that Jesus is mediator for the Slave class alone and that salvation can only be achieved through association with them.

"He is the Mediator between his heavenly Father, Jehovah God, and the nation of spiritual Israel, which is limited to only 144,000 members. " Worldwide Security Under the "Prince of Peace" (1986) pp.10-11

"Jesus knew that he was going to purchase these anointed ones with his own blood, so he fittingly referred to them collectively as his slave." Watchtower 1993 May 1 p.16

"To keep in relationship with "our Savior, God," the "great crowd" needs to remain united with the remnant of spiritual Israelites." Watchtower 1979 November 15 p.27 Benefiting from "One Mediator Between God and Men"

Rather than assist draw people to Jesus the parable of the Faithful and Discreet Slave is being misapplied to direct peoples attention to themselves.

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