"Watch out for researchers and don't express personal viewpoints!"
By Rado Vleugel
On April 25, 2001 the Watchtower Society send a letter to all bodies of elders in the United States to warn them for academic researchers. The letter shows that hey are afraid that individual Witnesses might express personal viewpoints that deviate from official Watchtower teachings.
The letter writes:
“we certainly want to avoid having publishers expressing personal viewpoints that may not be in line with the Bible principles that really govern each Christian’s conduct and the united efforts of the brotherhood to carry out Jehovah’s will.”
In this way the Society desperately tries to uphold the illusion that Jehovah’s Witnesses are a perfect unity where everyone believes the same and everyone fully agrees with Watchtower teachings.
Happily most academic researchers see through this veneer.
Below are the scans of this letter:
This letter is obviously written at times in the third person. I agree with Laura, this is not authentic. I have written to the Watchtower Society and have received a letter back from them and this is not the format they use and the signature is not the signature they use.
Dear Blanche, as far as I know this letter is authentic. I would be glad to publish the letter you received from the WTS. On Watchtower Information Service I strive to publish only objective information.
Rado Vleugel
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