Major changes coming to Watchtower and Jehovah’s Witnesses

By: EXJW Analyzer
The Watchtower with this religion of Jehovah’s Witnesses has quietly abandoned the very beliefs it was founded on. The leadership of those door-to-door preachers who for decades warned about Armageddon’s imminent arrival no longer believe it’s coming. Major organizational changes are on the way. You ready? Let’s get into it.

Today we’re diving into something that’s been on my mind for years. The transformation of Jehovah’s Witnesses from an apocalyptic movement convinced the world would end at any moment to an organization focused solely on its own survival.

We’ll walk through over 140 years of failed predictions, doctrinal flip-flops, and recent changes that prove the leadership no longer believes what they’ve always taught. And at the end, I’ll share my predictions for what’s coming next as the Watchtower continues down this path away from doomsday predictions in favor of its own self-preservation.

Transcript:

Now, keep in mind that although I sometimes quote the Bible and my content, this isn’t a faith-based video. For my faith-based content that doesn’t focus on Watchtower or Jehovah’s Witnesses, see the link to my other channel in the video description below.

All right, let me take you back to where it all started. In the 1870s, a young man named Charles Ta Russell got caught up in the religious fervor of his time. After meeting a preacher named Nelson Barber in 1876, Russell became convinced that Christ had already returned invisibly in 1874. According to Russell’s book, Studies in the Scriptures, he taught that quote, “Our Lord, the appointed king, is now present since October 1874 AD, according to the testimony of the prophets.” End quote. Yes, he believed that Jesus had been ruling invisibly since 1874.

So Russell sold his five clothing stores for about $300,000. That’s almost 9 million in today’s money. And threw everything into spreading this message. He really did seem to believe what he was saying. But here’s where it gets interesting. Russell and Barbara predicted that the faithful would be taken to heaven in 1878. When that failed, Russell just moved the goalpost. He wrote, “We not know not the day or hour, but expected during 1881, possibly near the autumn.” End quote. When 1881 came and went, with everyone still firmly planted on Earth, Russell still didn’t give up. He had another ace up his sleeve, 1914.

Now, 1914 is crucial to understanding everything that comes after that. Russell taught that 1914 would being would bring the complete destruction of all human governments. In his book, The Time is at hand, he laid out seven specific expectations for 1914, including that God’s kingdom would take full control of Earth on the ruins of present institutions. He was so confident that he even used the great pyramid of Giza to support his calculations. Yes, you heard that right, pyramidology. According to Russell, the pyramids measurements proved that the passing beyond the veil or rapture would happen before the close of AD 1910 with the final end coming in 1914.

When World War I broke out in 1914, Russell’s followers thought, “This is it. Russell was right. Look at everything that’s happening.” But Russell died in 1916 with his predictions unfulfilled. The world hadn’t ended. Governments still stood. and the faithful were still on earth.

After Russell’s death, Joseph Franklin Rutherford took control through what some called legalistic wrangling. And credit where credit’s due, Rutherford was a genius at keeping the movement alive despite the massive 1914 failure. In February of 1918, just two years after Russell’s death, Rutherford gave a public talk with an incredible title. The world has ended. Millions now living may never die. By March, he made it even more definitive. The world has ended. Millions now living will never die.

Rutherford’s new date, 1925. And he wasn’t wishy-washy about it either. In the Watchtower of July 15th, 1922, he wrote that quote, “This chronology is not of man, but of God. The chronology of present truth is not of human origin.” End quote. He also declared that quote, “The date 1925 is even more distinctly indicated by the scriptures because it is fixed by the law God gave to Israel.” End quote.

What would happen in 1925? Rutherford taught that Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and other Old Testament heroes would be resurrected to rule on earth. When 1925 came and went without any resurrections, Rutherford later admitted, quote, “I made an ass of myself.” End quote. But here’s where it gets really bizarre. Did that stop him? Not at all. Four years after his prediction failed, in 1929, he had a 10-bedroom mansion built in San Diego called Best Serene, Hebrew for House of the Princes. Think about that timing. The resurrection didn’t happen in 1925 as he prophesied. Yet, in 1929, he doubles down and builds a luxury mansion for these still dead patriarchs.

The deed which was published in the Golden Age magazine in 1930 stated the property was held in trust for quote David who was once king over Israel and Giddon Gideon and Bareric and Samson end quote and other Bible figures. Can you imagine? They literally built a mansion for dead people they failed to resurrect. Their property had olive date and palm trees planted so that the ancient princes would feel at home. And while waiting for Abraham to show up, guess who got to live there? Rutherford himself, complete with not one but two 16cylinder Cadillacs during the Great Depression. He moved in and lived there from 1930 until his death in 1942, still claiming the princes would arrive any day now.

After Rutherford’s death, the pattern was set. Make a prediction, watch it fail, reinterpret it, make a new prediction. The organization now called Jehovah’s Witnesses since 1931 had become masters of this dance. They changed everything retroactively. In 1930 they moved Christ’s presence from 1874 to 1914. They moved the last days from 1799 to 1914. Every failed prediction was reinterpreted as having happened invisibly in heaven.

But they needed to keep the urgency alive. So they came up with a new teaching. The generation that saw 1914 would not pass away before Armageddon. This wasn’t some side doctrine. It was central to their message. Every Awake magazine from 1982 to 1995 stated in its mast head that this magazine quote 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. End quote.

Think about what this meant for regular witnesses. In the 60s and 70s, when someone born in 1914 would be in their 50s and 60s, the end seemed imminent. The Watchtower started to push another date, 1975. From 1966 onward, their publications built anticipation that 75 would mark 6,000 years of human history and likely bring Armageddon. The number of baptisms exploded from 59,000 in 1966 to 297,000 in 1974. People sold their homes, quit their jobs, started pioneering full-time because the end was only months away.

The atmosphere was electric. Circuit overseers were telling people not to have children, not to get married, not to go to college because there wouldn’t be time to finish a degree before the new system arrived. When 1975 passed without incident, the organization blamed the members for reading too much into their suggestions. But here’s what they actually said. The Watchtower of August 15th, 1968 asked, quote, “Why are you looking forward to 1975?” End quote. And talked about how fitting it would be for God to start the millennium then. They knew exactly what they were doing.

By the 1990s, the math had become impossible to ignore. Someone who was only 10 years old in 1914 would have been 91 in 1995. The generation was dying out. In 1984, they’d run a series of magazines with titles like 1914, the generation that will not pass away. They quoted experts saying, “A generation is only 70 to 80 years maximum.”

So in November of 95 they made the change that I believe marked the beginning of the end of their apocalyptic phase. The November 1st, 1995 watchtower redefined this generation completely. It no longer referred to people who saw 1914. Instead, it became a vague reference to wicked people in general who would see the signs whenever they happened. It was an admission that everything they’d been teaching for 80 years was wrong. Of course, they spun it in an entirely different way because they couldn’t admit that.

So, they gaslit everyone instead. The Watchtower stated, quote, “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.” End quote. At times speculated, they weren’t speculating. They were teaching it as absolute truth from God.

After 1995, you can see the organization shifting from preparing for the imminent end to ensuring long-term survival. The changes started slowly then accelerated. In 2000, they restructured the corporation, separating the governing body from the legal directors. Why? If the end is coming soon, why worry about legal structures? In 2007, they admitted there was no scriptural basis for saying the calling of the anointed had closed in 1935. Suddenly, younger people could claim to be anointed. The number of memorial partakers, which had been declining for decades as proof the end was near, started rising again.

Then in 2010, they introduced perhaps the most ridiculous doctrine yet, overlapping generations. David Splain got up with a chart in Mansplain that if someone anointed in 1914 lived at the same time as someone else who was anointed, they’re the same generation. So a baby anointed when 99year-old Fred France died in ‘ 92 is somehow part of Fran’s generation. I remember watching that broadcast. It was like watching someone explain how 2 + 2 equals 5. The mental gymnastics were Olympic level, but what choice did they have? They painted themselves into a corner. They really did used to believe the end was coming and now it was obvious it wasn’t. So, they had to do something.

Now, we get to the really interesting part. The changes happening right now that prove they’ve given up on the imminent end. In 2023, they started allowing beards. For decades, brothers couldn’t have privileges if they had facial hair. It was seen as rebellious, worldly, and then suddenly it was fine. The governing body members are sporting beards in the JW broadcast now. They’re real live TV evangelists.

In March of 24, they announced more massive changes. Women could wear pants to meetings. Men don’t need ties or jackets. You can greet dysfellowship people at the Kingdom Hall. The harsh shunning rules that destroyed families for decades slightly softened, but really not changed much at all. They’ve stopped requiring most publishers to report their time. For over a century, every witness had to track and report their preaching hours. It was how they measured spiritual maturity, now optional for most members.

But here’s the smoking gun. They recently reversed their stance against higher education. David Splain announced that pursuing college is now a personal choice. Think about what that means. For decades, they told young people not to pursue higher education because the end was so close. Think of the people who turned down scholarships, who could have been doctors or engineers, who are now struggling in their 60s with no retirement savings because they really believe the end would come before they got old.

Why would an organization expecting the imminent end of the world now encourage young people to spend four to eight years getting degrees they would never use? Why invest in education that takes years to pay off if paradise is right around the corner? The answer is obvious. They don’t believe it anymore. They’re planning for the long haul.

Now, let’s talk about money for a second. The organization sold off prime Brooklyn real estate for billions of dollars. They built a massive new headquarters in Warwick, New York. They’re constructing a media production facility that rivals Hollywood studios. These aren’t the actions of an organization expecting the world to end tomorrow. These are longterm investments. They’re positioning themselves to be around for decades, maybe even a century or more. Other religions have done this. Look at the Seventh Day Adventists who thought the end was coming in 1844.

And here’s something most witnesses don’t know. The organization has been investing in hedge funds and has a massive investment portfolio. Why would you need investment returns if Armageddon is imminent? You wouldn’t unless you know it’s not coming. The push for higher education just makes financial sense, too. College graduates generally earn more money. More money means more donations. It’s simple math. They need educated members who can fund the organization long-term. And they also need educated professionals for their legal, medical, media departments, among others.

Look at how they’re slowly dismantling the very doctrines the religion was originally built on. The generation teaching has been stretched so thin it’s meaningless. By their current definition, the overlapping generation could extend another 50, maybe even 100 years. The number of anointed, which was supposed to be sealed at 144,000, just keeps growing. In 2005, there were 8,500 memorial partakers. by 2020 was over 21,000. If the number is literally 144,000 and most are already dead, how are the numbers increasing?

They’ve redefined the faithful and discrete slave from all anointed ones to just the governing body. This consolidated power while removing the urgency of gathering the 144,000. They’ve even started backing away from 1914. While they haven’t abandoned it officially, and I don’t think they will, they talk about it less and less. The overlapping generation teaching has made 1914 almost irrelevant. It’s just a starting point for an indefinitely extending timeline.

Based on everything I’ve observed, here’s what I believe is coming next. Within the next five years, I predict there will be further relaxation of shunning policies, possibly allowing family contact regardless of spiritual status. Now, keep in mind, I don’t think this will be official policy. I think enforcement through soft shunning of family members and full shunning of non-family members who associate with those that were currently removed, that’s likely to stop. They’ll wag their finger at people who associate with removed people, but they won’t really do anything about it.

I also think that celebrating birthdays, which already isn’t a dysfellowshipping offense, will become a matter of conscience. The two witness rule will be quietly abandoned for child abuse cases due to legal pressure and legal consequences. Though, I might be overly optimistic on the timeline for that one. It could take longer, but I absolutely believe that change has to come or they’re going to get sued into the ground.

Now, within 10 years, I think 1914 is going to be reinterpreted as being more symbolic and that the 144,000 will also be explained as being symbolic and not literal. With the number of people claiming to be anointed now, they have no choice but to jettison that number as literal. And it’s not going to be hard for them to change because pretty much every other number mentioned in Revelation is already taught as being symbolic. So, it’s just going to add to that.

I think the field service requirement will be eliminated entirely. Not even a box to check on a monthly form. It’ll become completely voluntary with no reporting. There will still be pioneers with other members occasionally making themselves feel more spiritual by manning a literature card, but for the most part, Jehovah’s Witnesses simply won’t do any kind of formal preaching. I think they’re going to allow the celebration of other holidays as conscience matters. And yes, I do believe that Christmas is coming back at some point to Jehovah’s Witnesses. Up until 1927, they celebrated it. And I do think that they will be celebrating it again eventually.

Now within 20 years, I think the generation teaching will be completely abandoned or reinterpreted beyond recognition. I believe Armageddon will shift from being imminent to being in God’s due time with no real urgency attached. I think the blood doctrine will be all but abandoned for legal and public relation reasons. And I believe the organization will function more like a mainstream conservative Christian denomination than a doomsday cult. With how quickly everything’s changing, that just seems inevitable.

Now, my final prediction is that at some point, though it’s hard to say when, elders will be fully acknowledged as clergy and become paid positions. The Watchtower is already having a very difficult time getting younger men to reach out in the congregation. They desperately need people to step up and take over congregational responsibilities. The only way to get people to put that kind of time and effort into the religion is going to be what almost all other religions do. Pay the clergy. It’s either that or there’s not going to be any physical kingdom halls and it’s all going to go online.

Now, the wild card in all this is the internet. Information is spreading faster than ever. Young witnesses are learning about the organization’s history, the failed predictions, the coverups. They’re seeing testimony from around the world about child abuse. They’re reading experiences of former members. The organization used to control information completely. Now, a teenager with a smartphone can fact check a Watchtower article in real time during the meeting. That’s a gamecher.

But let’s not forget the human cost of all this transformation. Millions of people built their entire lives around the belief that the end was imminent. They didn’t save for retirement. They didn’t pursue careers. They didn’t have children or delayed having them until the new system. People in their 70s and 80s who have nothing because they gave everything to an organization that promised them they’d never grow old in this system. Now they are old. They’re poor. And the organization that made those promises is telling young people to go to college and plan for the future. That children are a blessing from Jehovah now because well, the Watchtower can’t grow without you having kids.

That cognitive dissonance must be crushing for those older people. How do you reconcile giving up everything for a promise that the organization now tacitly admits was false? And what about those who died refusing blood transfusions? Who died believing they were months away from paradise? Who spent their last years shunning their own children because the organization told them to do so.

This organization will never apologize for this. I do not believe for one instance they ever will. They’re never going to admit they were wrong. They’ll just keep making adjustments and expecting everyone to forget what they used to teach. And to be real, that’s worked with a lot of witnesses up until now.

Here’s what it all comes down to. The W share organization was founded on the belief that the end was imminent. Every major doctrine, every policy, every aspect of witness life was built around this belief. But after 140 years of failed predictions, they’ve realized it ain’t coming. They can’t admit this openly. It would destroy the organization overnight. There would be a mass exodus. So instead, they’re slowly transforming from an apocalyptic movement into a traditional religious organization focused on its own survival.

The recent changes aren’t new light. They’re admissions of failure. Every relaxed policy, every adjustment to doctrine, every long-term investment is a tacit acknowledgment that they no longer believe what they’ve always taught, that the end is coming any day now.

For current witnesses watching this, I know this is hard to hear. I lived it. The organization was my entire world. But ask yourself, if the governing body really believed Armageddon was imminent, would they be encouraging young people to pursue careers that take years to establish? Would they be building massive facilities designed to last for decades? Would they be investing in hedge funds? The answer is obvious once you allow yourself to see it. No, they wouldn’t be doing that.

The former witnesses watching, you were all right to leave. Your doubts were justified. The organization that demanded everything from you never believed its own message or at least hasn’t for a very long time. They don’t believe it anymore. I you will not convince me otherwise.

And for never witnesses watching this, understand that when those nice people come to your door or stand at a cart and talk about the end of the world, even their leaders don’t believe it anymore. They’re just trying to keep the organization alive, one adjustment at a time.

The Watchtower started as a movement convinced the end would come in their lifetime. I fully believe they fully believed it. It’s evolving into an institution designed to last indefinitely because all that failed. That transformation isn’t complete, but it’s undeniable. The question isn’t whether they’ll eventually abandon their apocalyptic teachings. just how long it’s going to take and how many more lives will be damaged in the process of them doing that.

Thanks for watching everybody. If you found this video helpful, please share it with anyone who might benefit from it. Don’t forget to like this video, to subscribe to my channel, and definitely leave a comment with what you believe is coming next in the Watchtower in the religion of Jehovah’s Witnesses. And remember, your life is yours to live. Don’t let anyone convince you to put it on hold for a tomorrow that will never come. Until next time, keep thinking, keep questioning, and keep living your life to the fullest.