Introduction

Any modern religious organization that has nothing to do with the to the Church of Christ, reacts very painfully to the question of historical connection with apostolic times (1st century A.D.) and strives in some way to fill the vacuum between the first century and the real date of the formation of society. Jehovah's Witnesses are no exception. In the preface to the posthumous publication of the sermons of the first president of the Society, C. T. Russell, it was said: "His (i.e., C. T. Russell, — G. D.) commentaries on the Bible are much more extensive, than the combined writings of St. Paul, St. John, Arius, Waldo, Wycliffe and Martin Luther, the six Preachers of the Church who preceded him." (Russel Ch. T. Pastor Russel Sermons. WTB&TS. Brooklin 1917. — R. 2. Cit. to 15, 19). Jehovah's Witnesses today try to do without Name indications. In the book "The Millennial Kingdom of God Has Drawn," they were are forced to admit: "We do not have accurate historical data on how he lived and the class of the "faithful and discreet slave" has been active for centuries after the death of the Apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ. Obviously, one generation of the class of "slave" passed on food to its next generation" (Quoted from the SB 15.05.1995.—P. 16). Under the class of the "faithful and discreet slave" there are meaning "all anointed Christians taken together, at whatever time they lived on earth" (SB 15.05.1995.—p. 16), "Jehovah's special people", around whom Ordinary Jehovah's Witnesses from the "great crowd" gather (SB 1.12.1992. — P. 17). By "food" is understood a certain teaching that corresponds to their ideas. But the trouble with Jehovah's Witnesses here is that they can't prove anything that this "food" corresponded to their modern "taste", nor that so that entire generations pass it on from one to another. History of the Society Jehovah's Witnesses begins in the 19th century.

1

The true founder of the Society of Jehovah's Witnesses is Charles Taze Russell. He was born on February 16, 1852, in Allegheny, Pennsylvania. United States. His parents were wealthy people (his father owned a ready-made store clothes) and were members of the Presbyterian community of the city [2]. Young Charles, not finding satisfaction in Presbyterianism, he attended meetings for some time Congregationalists[3], but at the age of 16 he left them. He even comes out of the the local branch of the International Young Men's Christian Union [4]. For more than a year, Charles tried to determine which of the "churches" he knew of the truth is found until he joined the Adventists [5], whose club was located not far from his father's shop. Later, in one of his letters, he recalled: "One evening I happened to look into a dusty and dirty room in which some religious services were held... At first, I listened to the teachings there The Second Adventists [6] and their preacher Mr. John Wyndell" (Op. cit. 15:39).

Charles had been tormented by the question of predestination since childhood [7], so he I was delighted with the Adventists' denial of heaven and hell, of human immortality Soul. Soon he created a Bible study circle, which included Five of his close friends entered, jokingly calling him "pastor." Starting "a thorough Bible study independent of religious affiliation" (7, 8), this group in fact repeated the doctrines of the Adventists, asserting that “... the doctrine of the Trinity is not biblical, because only Jehovah appears Almighty God and Creator, that Jesus Christ is His first creation and only-begotten Son, that the Holy Spirit is not a person, but the invisible active force of God. This The group found out that the soul is not immortal, but dies, that hope is for the dead — resurrection, and that the punishment for unrepentant sinners is not eternal torment, but complete annihilation" (7:8).

In 1876, C. Russell got his hands on the magazine "Herald of the Morning" ("The Negald of the Morning"), published by Adventist Nelson Barbower of Rochester, New York State. The magazine said that in 1874 the invisible advent of Jesus Christ and "biblical proofs" of the accuracy of the of this date [8]. Russell became interested in Barbower's calculations and a few years later months met with him. At the meeting, it turned out that theological concepts "a Bible student independent of religious affiliation" and extreme Adventists completely coincide.

N. Barbower's journal was on its last legs and even announced about the temporary suspension of publications due to lack of financial support. Charles Russell became co-editor of the magazine and its main sponsor. Jointly with N. Barbower, he published a number of articles in it advocating extreme Adventist ideas. It was also decided to merge the Pittsburgh Russell's group of Bible Students with the Rochester group of followers N. Barbower.

In 1877, C. Russell and N. Barbower worked together on the book "The Three Worlds or the Plan of Salvation".

"This book proclaimed their belief that Christ's presence in the world invisibly began in the autumn of 1874, and from that time began the forty-year "Harvest period". At the same time, surprisingly accurately, they established 1914 as The end of the time of the Gentiles" ("Qualified to be Ministers of WTV & TS. 1955,—R. 300. Op. cit. to 16, 255).

After the publication of the book, C. T. Russell called a general meeting of his followers, in which he presented in an expanded form the "biblical proofs" of the invisible presence of Christ since 1874. But an embarrassment awaited him: most of the participants The assemblies recognized this evidence as "worthless and unreliable" (15, 41. Nevertheless, Russell remained unconvinced and even decided to limit business activity in order to have more time to promote new Ideas.