re: rutherford, johnson and england

Rutherford did not send Bro Johnson to England... Bro Russell had already made that arrangement. The announcement of the trip was in the same issue of ZWT that housed Bro Russell's last minute death notice.... an issue of the Tower that Bro Russell had already put together. It states Pilgrim Bro. Johnson would be going to England. Bro Russell had already had dealings with the English leadership who wanted to succeed, to which he agreed if they would also take over the financial responsibilities, a thing they were not prepared to do.

Rutherford seized power before Bro Johnson's boat reached British shores... he cabled ahead that Bro Johnson was "absolutely without authority",... but as Bro Johnson showed, his papers were signed by Bro Russell... This trip was long in the planning... funny how the Lord had arranged the permission to let the brotherhood fall apart (Zech 11:14) just as the great leader was passing away.... Remember the Pastor taught that the LF and GC would separate and stand distinctly apart from one another. Within 10 years Rutherford had changed most of the teachings except for the minimal few the witness still hold to and the "greater multitude" followed him into this darkness. And as the moderator here has stated... "by his work, Bro Johnson shows he is in more agreement with Pastor Russell that the Bible Student world could ever imagine" (from a 2004 post)... much closer than they, who are currently in some part denying the beginning of the Time of Trouble, the return of Christ, the true chronology, the loosening of the four winds; etc etc.


Bro Johnson's showing of his weakness and moments of uncertainty in volume ten is much like the Bible showing the weaknesses of great men like Abraham and Samson... he was indeed human... and living in the smoke of the temple.. this is a biblical sign that the priesthood was indeed complete... when the temple was dedicated there was so much smoke in the temple that the priest could not give service until it cleared (2 Chron. 7: 1, 2). The proof is in the pudding... and though the writings of his volumes or any others writings cannot and should not be the SOURCE of one's beliefs... that stand as a testimony of what kind of man he was and that what he stood for (the Parousia Truth found in SITS) went virtually unchanged.