Another comment on Separate Identity vol. 2

From Andrew G.

Bruce:

 

The book is not too long. It is the stories that matter. Don’t condense it. My own congregation history project is 700 pages and growing, and that goes from the 1890s to present. There are a few who think it is too long, and they won’t read it. That’s OK. I am trying to reach those who really want to understand the entire story. As for Jerome’s comment on the blog that he is disappointed that you have not yet included any stories about the separations after 1916, I think that story will be more clear because of the groundwork you have laid.

 

The stories that you provided, and the depth to which you have written them, are, as you point out, crucial to understanding Russell and his associates, and the separate identity the Bible Students created. Including the letters not included in the Reprints is also a fantastic addition to the story. I have nothing but good things to say about the entire series. I will do all in my power to help others gain access to these books.

 

I think in the past I had told you how my first introduction to the Bible was reading the 1879 – 1916 Watchtowers in the early 1970s. I was raised Roman Catholic, and I didn’t know much about the Bible. The brother who initially called on me let me sit at the Kingdom Hall for hours alone after he dropped me off on his way to work. I admired Russell immediately, and even at that early date, I despaired of ever learning more about him. The Society’s meager attempts to write about him left me hopefully frustrated. I never dreamed of having the opportunity to read a comprehensive work like yours, much less having the privilege of helping you, even if only in a small way. It is a shame that the WatchTower Society itself has not attempted a project of this sort, especially since they possess many times the resources you have and many more of the original sources needed for such a project.

 

For me, what drew me to Russell’s writing was his ideas of the permission of wickedness. I knew about five old Bible Students in the 1970s who had actually met Russell and heard him speak, and they almost always said they were drawn to him because he freed them from the fear of hellfire. I was a paperboy in the 1960s and 1970s, and reading the news made me wonder why God permitted wickedness. It consumed my thoughts for many years. When one of the old Bible Students lent me his copy of Food for Thinking Christians, Russell’s explanation electrified me. I can actually remember the EXACT sentence which moved me. It finally made sense that it was possible for both a loving God and evil to both exist. It drove me to read as much of his writing as I could.

 

Particularly fascinating to me was must have gone through his mind when he received dozens of letters each day telling him that he was an instrument of God, and that the writer felt that receiving literature was providential. How he retained as much humility as he did is astonishing. Including lots of letters of that type makes it easier to understand how he could have felt that way. I think including those letters gives the reader important insight into both Russell and those who read his work.

 

One thing I especially like about the book is how you give Russell and others the chance to express themselves in their own words. The extended quotations make your conclusions more rock solid and believable. You are right when you repeatedly say that if you have someone’s own words, it is much easier to figure out what they believed, and to better understand their actions.

 

Forgive me, but just one more thing. Yes, when Russell met people in person, he no doubt impressed them, but I really believe that one of the reasons why readers considered him the Faithful and Wise servant was because of his writing. I think he is highly underrated as a writer. Since you often have pointed out that nothing that he taught was of his own discovery (even though the combination of teaching was unique), why did readers think him to be the Wise Servant rather than someone else? I believe it was because of the way he wrote. I knew about another 20 old Bible Students in the 1970s who, although never having met Russell, told me that his writings changed the course of their life and the way they thought about God. They insisted they became different on the inside when they read his works. I suppose you could argue that since Russell’s writing were distributed much more widely than those of others who taught similar things, that this is the reason many came to see him at the Wise Servant, rather than someone else.