Charles Taze Russell

Charles Taze Russell as a young man.

Charles Taze Russell (February 16, 1852, Allegheny, Pennsylvania - October 31, 1916, Pampa, Texas), also known as Pastor Russell, was an American biblical scholar. He founded Bible Students, a Christian movement that would later change its name to Jehovah's Witnesses. The Restorationist, Millenarian, and Anti-Trinitarian, and other independent groups, which later split from the Bible Students. He was also editor of Zion ’s Watch Tower and Herald of Christ ’s Presence magazine and president of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society.

In July 1879, Russell began publishing a religious monthly magazine, Zion's Watch Tower and Herald of Christ's Presence (known in Spanish as Atalaya). In 1881 he co-founded the Zion's Watch Tower Tract Society with William Henry Conley as president; in 1884 the corporation was officially registered, with Russell as president. Russell wrote many articles, books, tracts, pamphlets, and sermons, totaling approximately 50,000 printed pages. From 1886 to 1904, he published a six-volume series of Bible studies originally titled Millennial Dawn, later renamed Studies in the Scriptures.), almost 20 million copies of which were printed and distributed worldwide in several languages during his lifetime. (A seventh volume was commissioned by his successor as president of the society, Joseph Rutherford, and published in 1917. The The Watch Tower Society stopped publishing Russell's writings in 1927, although his books are still published by various independent groups.

As many as three-fourths of the approximately 50,000 Bible Students who had joined in 1917 had left by 1931. This change resulted in the formation of several groups that retained variations on the name Bible Students Bible. Those who maintained fellowship with the Watch Tower Society adopted the name Jehovah's Witnesses in 1931, while those who broke ties with the Society formed their own groups, including the Pastoral Bible Institute in 1918, the Lay Home Missionary Movement in 1919 and the El Alba Bible Students Association in 1929.

Early Years

Charles Taze Russell was born to Scots-Irish parents, immigrants Joseph Lytel Russell /ˈlɪtəl/ (1813–1897) and Ann Eliza Birney (1825–1861), on February 16 of 1852 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania. Russell was the second of five children, two of whom survived to adulthood. His mother died when he was 9 years old.

The Russells lived for a time in Philadelphia before moving to Pittsburgh, where they became members of the Presbyterian Church. When Charles was in his teens, his father made him a partner in her Pittsburgh haberdashery. By age twelve, Russell was writing business contracts for clients and was running some of his father's other clothing stores.At thirteen, Russell left the Presbyterian Church to join the Congregational Church. In his youth he was known for chalking Bible verses on fence boards and city sidewalks in an attempt to convert unbelievers; he particularly noted the punishment of hell that awaits the infidels.

At sixteen, a discussion with a childhood friend about perceived flaws in Christianity (such as contradictions in creeds, along with medieval traditions) led Russell to question his faith. He researched various other religions, but concluded that they did not provide the answers he was seeking.In 1870, at the age of eighteen, he attended a presentation by the Adventist minister Jonas Wendell. Russell later said that although he did not entirely agree with Wendell's arguments, the presentation had inspired him with a renewed zeal and belief that the Bible is the word of God.

Marriage

On March 13, 1879, Russell married Maria Frances Ackley ( /məˈraɪ.ə /; 1850–1938) after knowing each other for a few months. The couple separated in 1897. Russell blamed the breakdown of the marriage on disagreements over Maria Russell's insistence on a larger editorial role at Zion's Watch Tower magazine. A subsequent court ruling noted that he had described the marriage as "a mistake" three years before the dispute arose over her publishing ambitions. Maria Russell filed a petition for legal separation in the Court of Common Appeals in Pittsburgh in June 1903 and three years later filed for divorce on grounds of mental cruelty. In 1908 she was granted a separation, with alimony. Russell died at the age of 88 in St. Petersburg, Florida on March 12, 1938 from complications related to Hodgkin's disease.

Ministry

Russell was a charismatic figure, but he did not claim any special insights or revelations for his teachings and no special authority in his own name. He stated that he did not seek to found a new denomination, but rather intended to rally those seeking the truth of God's Word "during this harvest time". He wrote that the "clear development of truth" in his teachings was due to the "simple fact that God's due time has come; and if he did not speak and no other agent could be found, the very stones would cry out." He viewed himself and all other Holy Spirit-anointed Christians as "spokesmen for God" and ambassadors for Christ. his career accepted without protest that many Bible Students viewed him as the "faithful and discreet slave" of Matthew 24:45. After his death, the Watch Tower said that he had been appointed "ruler of all the Lord's goods"..

Principles

Around 1870, Russell and his father established a group with various acquaintances to undertake an analytical study of the Bible and the origins of Christian doctrine, creed, and tradition. The group, heavily influenced by the writings of Millerite Adventist ministers George Storrs and George Stetson, who also attended frequently, concluded that many of the main doctrines of the established churches, including the Trinity, hellfire, and the inherent immortality of the soul, were not corroborated by the Scriptures.

About January 1876 Russell received a copy of Nelson Barbour's Herald of the Morning by post. Barbour was an influential Adventist writer and editor. Russell wired Barbour to arrange a meeting. Barbour and John Henry Paton visited Allegheny in March 1876 at Russell's expense so that he could listen to his arguments and compare the conclusions each side had made in their studies. Russell sponsored a speech by Barbour at St. George's Hall, Philadelphia, in August 1876, and attended other Barbour lectures.

Among the teachings introduced by Barbour was the view that Christians who had died would be resurrected in April 1878. Russell, who had previously rejected prophetic chronology, was moved to dedicate his life to what he was convinced was which were now the last two years before the spiritual and invisible return of Christ. He sold his five clothing stores for approximately $300,000 (2021 value $7,203,000). With Russell's encouragement and financial backing, Barbour wrote an outline of his views in Three Worlds and the Harvest of This World, published in 1877. A text Russell had previously written, titled The Object and Manner of Our Lord's Return, was published simultaneously through the offices of the Herald of the Morning Russell was eager to lead a Christian revival and called two separate meetings of Christian leaders in Pittsburgh. Russell's ideas, particularly emphasizing the imminence of the rapture and the second coming of Christ, were rejected on both occasions.

Barbour separation

When 1878 came around, the failure of the expected rapture brought great disappointment to Barbour and Russell, and their associates and readers. But one of Russell's associates claimed that Russell was not upset.

As I spoke to Russell about the events of 1878, I told him that Pittsburgh newspapers had reported that he was on the Sixth Street bridge dressed in a white robe on the night of the Commemoration of Christ's death, hoping to be taken to heaven along with many others. I asked, "Is that correct?" Russell laughed good and said, "I was in bed that night between 10:30 and 11:00 p.m. However, some of the most radicals could have been there, but not me. Nor did I expect them to take me to heaven at that time, I felt that there was much work to do by preaching the message of the Kingdom to the peoples of the earth before the church was taken away.

Alexander Hugh Macmillan

Confused by what was perceived to be a miscalculation, Russell reexamined the doctrine to see if he could determine if it had Biblical origins or was simply Christian tradition.^{[citation needed]} He concluded that the doctrine was Christian tradition. Through the pages of the Herald, he wrote about what he had concluded on the subject. Barbour, embarrassed by the failure of his expectations, rejected Russell's explanation. They conducted a debate in successive issues of the magazine from early 1878 to mid-1879. Within months, Barbour changed some of the views he and Russell had previously shared, no longer relying on prophetic chronology. They began debating over the issue of 'Christ's ransom', and the two eventually parted ways due to their disagreements.

Russell withdrew his financial support and started his own journal, Zion's Watch Tower and Herald of Christ's Presence, publishing its first issue in July 1879. Barbour formed The Church of the Strangers that same year, and went on to publish the Herald of the Morning.

Watch Tower Society

In 1881, Russell founded Zion's Watch Tower Tract Society, with William Henry Conley as president and Russell as secretary-treasurer; they intended to disseminate treatises, articles, doctrinal treatises, and Bibles. All materials were printed and bound by Russell's private Tower Publishing Company for an agreed price, then distributed by canvassers. The Society was incorporated in 1884, with Russell as president, and in 1886 its name was changed to the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society.

In 1908, Russell moved the headquarters of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society to Brooklyn, New York, where it remained until 2016, when it moved to Warwick, New York.

Posts

With the formation of the Watch Tower Society, Russell intensified his ministry. His Bible study group had grown to hundreds of local members, with followers in New England, Virginia, Ohio, and elsewhere. He is re-elected "Pastor" annually, and is commonly referred to as "Pastor Russell". Congregations that eventually formed in other nations also followed this tradition.

In 1881, Russell published his first work for wide distribution: Food for Thinking Christians. The "pamphlet" The 162-page book was published using donated funds in the amount of approximately $40,000 (current value $1,059,724). It had a circulation of almost 1.5 million copies during a four-month period distributed in the United States, Canada and Great Britain by various channels. During the same year he published Tabernáculo y sus Enseñanzas, which was rapidly expanded and republished as Tabernáculo Sombras de los Mejores Sacrifices, highlighting his interpretation of the various animal sacrifices and tabernacle ceremonies instituted by Moses. Russell claimed that the Watch Tower Society's distribution of these works and other tracts during 1881 exceeded eight times that of the American Tract Society for the year 1880.

In 1903, newspapers began to publish his written sermons. These newspaper sermons were syndicated worldwide in as many as 4,000 newspapers, eventually reaching an estimated readership of some 15 million in the United States and Canada.

In 1910, the secular magazine Overland Monthly estimated that by 1909, Russell's writings had become the most widely distributed and privately produced works in English in the United States. He said that the entire corpus of his works was the third most widely circulated on earth, after the Bible and the Chinese Almanac. In 1912, The Continent, a Presbyterian magazine, declared that in North America Russell's writings had achieved a greater circulation "than the combined circulation of the writings of all the priests and preachers in America. of the North".

Russell also had many critics, and was often described as a heretic in this period.

Scripture Studies

Russell devoted almost a tenth of his fortune, along with the funds contributed, to the publication and distribution of Food for Thinking Christians in 1881. That year he also published The Tabernacle and its teachings and Tabernacle Shadows of the best sacrifices. In 1886, after reportedly failing to recoup most of the money spent on publishing these three titles, he began publishing what was intended to be a series of seven volumes. The volumes were collectively called Millennial Dawn, later renamed Studies in the Scriptures to clarify that they were not novels.

The complete series consists of the following volumes:

• (1) The divine plan of the ages (only of the series published in Spanish) (1886)
• (2) Time is near (1889)
• 3) Come Your Kingdom(1891)
• 4) The Battle of Armageddon (1897)
• (5) Reconciliation between God and man (1899)
• 6) The new creation (1904)

Creation

Photodrama of Creation

Theology and teachings

After his examination of the Bible, Russell and other Bible Students came to regard Christian creeds and traditions as harmful errors. They saw their own work as restoring Christianity to the purity of its first century. Many contemporary Church leaders and scholars considered his views heretical. Russell agreed with other Protestants on the primacy of the Bible and on justification by faith alone, but thought that errors had crept into interpretation. Russell agreed with many 19th century Protestants, including the Millerites, in the concept of a Great Apostasy beginning in the 1st century AD. He also agreed with many other contemporary Protestants in believing in the imminent Second Coming of Christ and in Armageddon.

Russell's interpretations of Scripture differed from those of Catholics and many Protestants in the following areas:

• Hell. He said that there was a heavenly resurrection of 144,000 righteous, as well as a "great multitude," but he believed that the rest of mankind slept in death, waiting for an earthly resurrection, rather than suffering in a literal hell.
• The Trinity. Russell believed in the divinity of Christ, but differed from orthodoxy by teaching that Jesus had received that divinity as a gift from the Father after dying on the cross. He also taught that the Holy Spirit is not a person, but the manifestation of God's power.
• The second coming of Christ. Russell believed that Christ had returned unseenly in October 1874 and had been ruling from heaven since that date. He believed that then began a "time of anguish" that would mark a gradual deterioration of civilized society that would lead to the end of the "Times of the Gentiles", with a culminating multinational attack on a restored Israel, world anarchy and the sudden destruction of all the governments of the world in October 1914. After the outbreak in July 1914 of World War I, Russell reinterpreted 1914 as the beginning of Armageddon.
• Piramidology. Following the views taught for the first time by Christian writers such as John Taylor (1781–1864), Charles Piazzi Smyth (1819–1900) and Joseph Sixs (1823–1904), Russell believed that the Great Pyramid of Giza was built by the Hebrews (associating them with the Hicsos) under the direction of God, but to be understood only in the modern era. He adopted the Sixs terminology, referring to the pyramid as "the Bible in stone". He argued that certain biblical texts, including Isaiah 19: 19-20, prophesied a future understanding of the Great Pyramid. He believed that the various ascending and descending passages of the pyramid represented biblical concepts such as the fall of man, the provision of the Mosaic Law, the death of Christ and the exultation of the saints in heaven. The calculations were based on the assumption that each inch of the different passages represented a year. Dates like 1874, 1914 and 1918 allegedly emerged from the study of this monument.
• Christian Zionism. Enlarging an idea suggested by Nelson Barbour, Russell already taught in 1879 that God's favor had been restored to the Jews as a result of a prophetic "double" that had ended in 1878 (Jacob's love of Jesus, then defavor of Jesus until 1878). In 1910, he led a meeting at the Hippodrome Theatre in New York, which was attended by thousands of Jews. His teaching that Jews should not convert to Christianity shocked Jews and Christians alike. Russell believed that the land of Palestine belonged exclusively to the Jewish race, that God was then calling the Jews back to their land and would be the center of earthly leadership under the Kingdom of God. At the beginning of his ministry, Russell speculated that the Jews could go to Palestine and form their own nation by 1910. Shortly before his death in 1916, he used the Jewish press to emphasize that 1914 marked prophetically the time when the Gentiles no longer had earthly authority; he said that all the Jews, from that moment on, God allowed them and guided them to meet in Palestine and claim the land boldly for them.
• Spiritism and occultism. "Russell attacked Spiritism (he who called Spiritism)."

The Great Pyramid of Giza

Russell's chronological calculations contrasted with Cheops' great pyramid measurements.

Russell draws attention to astronomer Piazzi Smyth and Lutheran pastor Seiss on the belief that the Great Pyramid of Giza corroborates biblical time periods and is "the Stone Witness". This is apparently reflected with some frequency in his life and in his own writings; although it is not that it is said that it is one of the most prominent beliefs of his. So apparently even his will is affected by this idea, since after his death, a pyramid-shaped memorial is placed in the cemetery where he is buried; still seen in the Rosemont United Cemetery.

Throughout the period of the president of the Watchtower Society, Joseph Franklin Rutherford, some of his teachings and doctrines were discarded, including that of the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Works

In 1877, he wrote the pamphlet The Object and Manner of the Lord's Return. Although some later Witness publications give a publication date of 1873, the book Proclaimers corrects it, stating that the pamphlet is written in 1877 and is published by the publisher of The Herald of the Morning. All extant copies give a publication date of 1877. About 50,000 copies are printed.

In 1879, he began publishing Zion's Watch Tower and Herald of Christ's Presence, now known as The Watchtower.

Other published works include:

• Three Worlds, and the Harvest of This Worldby N.H. Barbour and C.T. Russell, 1877
• Three Worlds Tract, the same book in fascicles format, year 1877
• Food for Thinking Christians pamphlet, 1881, 1884
• Millennium-Tagesanbruch and Studies of Scripture7 vols. 1886
• The (Divine) Plan of the Ages, 1886, 1891, 1895, 1898, 1901-20, 1923-7
• The Time is at Hand 1889
• Thy Kingdom Come 1891
• The Day of Vengeance - later entitled The Battle of Armageddon 1897
• The Bible versus The Evolution Theory, pamphlet, 1898
• The At-one-ment Between God and Men year 1899
• The New Creation 1904.

His books and written tracts (especially his six volumes of Studies in the Bible and the notes to the seventh volume) reach a distribution of 16 million copies in 35 languages, and 2,000 newspapers publish his weekly sermons.

The Photodrama of Creation

Rusell in a poster of the Photodrama of Creation.

He also understands that the possibilities that cinema offers to motivate people are high, so in 1912, he began to prepare the «Photodrama of Creation». "Photodrama of Creation" it combined motion pictures and a slide show, and had synchronized sound. That impressive presentation took the audience from the time of creation to the end of the Millennium. Many of those illustrations are based on the engravings of the famous artist Gustave Doré. At least twenty sets of four parts each were prepared, allowing one part to be shown in 80 different cities each day. By the end of 1914, more than 9,000,000 people had seen the 'Photo-Drama' in North America, Europe and Australia.

Death

Russell's health had become increasingly failing in the three years leading up to his death. During his last ministry tour of the western and southwestern United States, he became increasingly ill with cystitis, but he ignored advice to leave the tour. He was getting sicker and weaker during his last week. Russell died on October 31, 1916 at age 64 near Pampa, Texas while returning to Brooklyn by train. An associate of Russell's testified that at age 64 his body was more worn out than his father's, who died at age 84. He was buried at United Cemetery, Pittsburgh. The grave (vide coordinates above) is marked with a tombstone; nearby is a 7-foot (2.1 m) memorial pyramid erected by the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society in 1921.

Legacy

More information: Joseph Franklin Rutherford § Reorganization

In January 1917, Joseph Franklin Rutherford was elected president of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, despite disputes over the election process. Further disputes arose over the interpretation of the sections of Russell's will dealing with the future content of Zion's Watch Tower magazine as well as who, if any someone, had authority to print new literature. By the late 1920s, nearly three-fourths of Bible Student congregations had rejected Rutherford's ongoing changes in organizational structure, doctrinal interpretations, and congregational practices, some of which began to appear in literature. printed by the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society as early as 1917. Many Bible Students were unhappy with Rutherford's rejection of Russell's views regarding his role in restoring 'truth'; and the support of the Great Pyramid as having been built under the direction of God.

Those who continued to support Rutherford adopted the new name "Jehovah's Witnesses" in 1931. They changed the name of their magazine to The Watchtower. Many of the leading Bible Students who had left the society held their own meeting in October 1929 to rally other dissenters; the First Annual Meeting of Bible Students was held in the old "Bible House" from Pittsburgh that Russell used for a long time. These conventions were held annually, but the "meeting" it took almost twenty years.

On the death of its other president, Nathan Homer Knorr followed as his successor. As of 2018, his group was led by its 8-member Governing Body.

Disputes

Leadership Style

As early as 1892, certain people associated with his ministry sharply criticized Russell's views and management style. In 1893, associates Otto van Zech, Elmer Bryan, JB Adamson, SG Rogers, Paul Koetitz, and others wrote a document that was circulated among Bible Students in Pittsburgh. He accused Russell of being a dictatorial leader, a shrewd businessman who seemed eager to raise funds from the sale of Millennial Dawn books, cheating one of them financially, and publishing thousands of books. of Millennial Dawn under a female pseudonym. Russell wrote a pamphlet A Conspiracy Exposed and Harvest Siftings in response, and published it as an extra to Zion's Watch Tower magazine > April 1894.magazine. He intended to preempt the efforts of his critics to circulate his views to a wider audience of Bible Students. Russell printed copies of letters he had received from these former associates to show that his claims were false and that those involved "were led by Satan in an attempt to subvert his work." as a "minister of the gospel".

Allegation of immoral conduct

In 1897, Russell's wife, Maria, left him after a disagreement over the management of Zion's Watch Tower magazine. According to Russell's successor, Joseph Franklin Rutherford, she believed that, as his wife, she should have the same control over his administration and the same privileges to write articles, preach, and travel abroad as his representative. In 1903 she petitioned for legal separation on the grounds of mental cruelty, referring to her forced celibacy and his frequent cold and indifferent treatment. The separation was granted in 1908, and Russell undertook to pay alimony.

At trial, Mrs. Russell's lawyer alleged that in 1894 Mr. Russell had been "improperly intimate" with Rose Ball, by then a 25-year-old woman. The Russells had cared for her as a foster daughter who was said to be an orphan. Ms Russell alleged that Ball had told her that Mr Russell claimed to be a 'floating jellyfish'; loving to different women until someone responded to her advances. Russell denied the accusations and said that he had never used such language to describe himself. When the judge asked Ms. Russell if she was accusing her husband of adultery, she replied: "No."

The Washington Post and Mission Friend of Chicago reprinted the "jellyfish" and they also accused Russell of immoral conduct. Russell sued the newspapers for libel; the jury decided in his favor awarding him one dollar. After an appeal, Russell received a cash settlement of $15,000 (current value $427,000) plus court costs, and an agreement that the two newspapers publish his weekly syndicated sermons, as well as a retraction defending his character.

Rose Ball later married and lived in Australia. Like Rose Ball Henninges, she died on November 22, 1950 at the age of 81 in Melbourne. For several years she had written articles for The People's Paper and she was associated with the Bible Students in Australia until her death.

'Miracle Wheat'

On March 22, 1911, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported that Russell was accused of profiting from a strain of wheat called "Miracle Wheat" by KB Stoner of Fincastle, Virginia who claimed to have discovered this strain. Russell sold the wheat for $60 a bushel, well above the average cost of wheat at the time. Throughout 1912 and 1913, Eagle continued to report on Russell's alleged fraud. Russell sued the Eagle for defamation, but lost. A government expert investigated "miracle wheat" and said he "was low on government testing." Before entering the court, the Águila declared that "at trial he will show that" Pastor 'Russell' Russell defended himself publicly and in writing, stating that the wheat was donated to the Watch Tower Society. He said that although it sold for $1 a pound, Stoner allegedly routinely sold it for $1.25 a pound. Russell claimed to have no financial connection to the wheat and said no one claimed a refund, though he had offered one up to a year later for anyone not happy with their purchase. In 1975, the Watch Tower Society stated that gross receipts from the "Miracle Wheat" totaled "about $1800" (current value $49,000), of which "Russell himself did not receive a dime". He also said that "the Society itself did not make any claim for the wheat to its own knowledge and the money received was as a donation for Christian missionary work."

Qualifications

In June 1912, Rev. JJ Ross (1871-1935), pastor of James Street Baptist Church in Hamilton, Ontario, published and widely distributed a four-page pamphlet entitled, Some Facts About the & #34;shepherd" self-styled Charles T. Russell (of Millennial Dawn Fame). He alleged that Russell was engaged in questionable business practices, had defrauded his estranged wife, and denounced his qualifications, legitimacy and moral example as a shepherd Russell, in turn, sued Ross for libel on December 2, 1912. After several delays, the case came before Police Court Magistrate G. F. Jelfs on March 17, 1913. During cross-examination, Russell said that he had attended public school for seven years, and had left when he was about fourteen years of age, after which he received instruction. through private tutors. He said that he was conversant in Latin terms "to some extent"; but that he did not know Hebrew or Greek, that he had never been ordained by any bishop or minister, and that he had never attended a theological seminary or any school of higher learning. Newspapers in Hamilton and Toronto, Ontario, reported on the claims de Ross and provided a brief summary of the court proceedings. They did not refer to any alleged misconduct on Russell's part. They criticized Ross for having fled Ontario when he was subpoenaed and not being present during any of the court proceedings.

On April 1, 1913, the Superior Court of Ontario returned a verdict of "No Bill" and ruled that Russell was not entitled to compensation because the defamation was not likely to result in violence within Canada. After the libel case, Ross published a 48-page expanded edition titled, Some Facts and More Facts About the "Pastor" with his own style Charles T. Russell (of Millennial Dawn Fame). In this work, Ross claimed that during the proceedings of March 17, 1913, Russell had repeatedly lied under oath in stating that he was ordered, but denied the same thing when questioned, stating that he knew the Greek language, but when shown by Councilor Staunton an extract from the New Testament in Greek by Westcott and Hort, he could not admit it, and that he had not divorced his wife, but retracted the statement under questioning. In response, Russell stated through various print and public sources that he had never claimed knowledge of the Greek language, merely the alphabet, and that early Christians were also criticized by religious authorities for being illiterate and ignorant. He believed his ordination was "of God"; according to the biblical model, which did not require any denominational approval or theological training. He suggested that the annual election of him as "Pastor" by more than 500 congregations throughout the world constituted him duly ordained. Russell maintained that Ross and others were attacking him because they could not respond to his theological arguments, preferring instead to resort to libel and character assassination.

Use of Masonic Symbolism

Monument to Charles Taze Russell near his grave

Some have claimed that several symbols Russell used in his published literature are Masonic in nature, and that such associations implied that he was engaged in occult activities. However, Russell justified the use of the winged sun as an understanding of Malachi 4:2

so it's funny that it's been compared to them, so it's controversial. On September 1, 2021, the pyramid was removed from the cemetery since it was an obstacle to the integration of new faithful and the excessive questioning of the people.