Beards and Jehovah’s Witnesses - End of an Era, Rutherford’s last quark removed.
In the early 1900’s a take over happened in the Jehovah’s Witnesses organization. Joseph Rutherford, an attorney exiled the leadership supporters of Charles Taze Russell’s ideology and officially kicked them out of the home office on a legal technicality. The organization became much more radical in the years following, due to one stupid blunder after another. Rutherford's actions got him and his directors thrown in jail, created numerous attacks on innocent followers by his attacks on religion, and the insipid purchase of a mansion for him to live in while waiting for resurrected rulers to return, just to mention a few. One of the less frivolities was Rutherford’s hatred of beards. If you note in past pictures of Russell and his directors they often wore beards.
Russel himself was never seen without a beard if you look back and review all of his pictures.
Charles Taze Russell
Apparently this was a sore point for Rutherford and when he committed his hostile takeover beards became a thing of the past for anyone that wanted power in the organization.
Joseph Rutherford
All Rutherford’s men including even his bodyguards were forbidden to wear beards.
When Nathan Knorr took power in his mid thirties after Rutherford’s death, it seems he continued the tradition as his preference was to follow his old boss and remain clean shaven.
Nathan Knorr
In all Jehovah’s Witness publications from Rutherford’s time until the late 1960s they even portrayed Jesus without a beard .
This was a child’s story book (Paradise Lost to Paradise Regained) from the late 1950s.
This policy was enforced upon all male members, with being ostracized in the organization not being able to have any leadership roles and being marked as a bad example. Elders were removed from their positions and outcast. No one was allowed on convention stages if there was a hint of a beard. Mustaches were begrudgingly allowed, but not to come past the corners of your mouth. In the early 1970s it was suggested that only hippies wore beards as they were in rebellion against society and thus a bad example for humankind. Year after year this policy was challenged and slowly over time in certain countries where it was completely the norm, some allowances were made. In the USA the only state allowed to grow beards was Alaska due to the cold temperatures and practically everyone in the state having beards. In the rest of the states, the only allowance was if you had a skin condition that required a beard, but even then, you were only allowed limited privileges. Meanwhile the rest of the USA remained under the iron fist of Rutherford idiosyncrasy until December 2023. For well over one hundred years, a confrontational bully, determined the lives of millions of men because of a personal preference. Well, Stephen Lett, a member of the current Governing Body, made this announcement:
"A good number of branches around the world have written to us to explain that questions continue to arise about whether it is appropriate for a brother who is a ministerial servant or an elder to have a beard. After praying and analyzing the matter, the governing body has decided it is necessary to clarify the matter. The governing body doesn't see any problem with brothers having beards, why not?. Because the Bible does not condemn the use of beards, and not only that, over time we have noticed that in many places it does not look bad that men in positions of responsibility in government or business have beards. So if a brother wants to grow a beard, it's a personal decision. The requirements that a brother has to meet to be an elder or ministerial servant are related to his spirituality and not the fact that he has or does not have beard. This also applies to full-time special servants at Bethel and those serving in the field as special precursors, missionaries, and circuit superintendents. According to Romans 14:4, neither elders nor any other Christian should judge a brother who decides to wear a beard.. We hope these ideas will help us stay alert so that we don't let anything cause division between Jehovah's servants. ”
Stephen Lett, December 15, 2023
Future Stephen Lett??
This was further confirmed by Lett in a Jworg broadcast a few days ago.
It starts at the four minute mark but really states policy at the ten minute mark. So, the result is, beards are a “conscience matter”. As with any new thing you can be sure this will bring a host of “guidelines” that will follow. For what you ask? How long can a beard be? Can it be braided? Can it be died a different color? Can it be scruffy? What does neatly trimmed mean? And on and on. You can be sure the little demagogue elders will have a field day in determining the fate of a brother that decides to wear a beard. The Service Department will be busy for years sorting all this out.
In the bigger picture what does all this mean? It appears the Governing Body are becoming much more leaning to the liberal side. Past years were under the control of Ted Jaracz, a bully and accused child molester, that basically run the organization into the ground. The rumor was that Jaracz was Knorr’s revenge for displacing him with the Governing Body in the mid 1970s. Jaracz had issues playing well with others and caused huge problems in Australia when he was basically kicked out for his mean spirited policies. You have to wonder if the policies in Australia that caused so many problems before the ARC (Australian Royal Commission) was in fact the result of Jaracz policies enacted when he was there. Well, in that window of willowing power Knorr put some poison in the pudding as his last gesture to say, screw all of you. Jaracz ruled the Governing Body with the conservative iron fist that resulted in many harsh policies in shunning and child abuse that has created so many issues for the organization. Yet, in the last ten years we have seen a swinging pendulum move in a more liberal direction. The investment into social media, cart witnessing, videos for kids and young teens, reenacted movies with better quality, investment in internet, tablet usage endorsed by organization, electronic literature, Tribulation approved associates, stopping the counting of time for publishers, and now beards. This is a lot of liberal stuff! It could suggest more changes to come.
Ted Jaracz
Four years ago I wrote an article that most of the problems of the organization would cease to exist if they simply did away with shunning. There would be no apostates if former members could simply be accepted as family and treated as normal people without bringing in the religion. Former members might even attend a meeting to see old friends again. It could be much like people today approach politics with family members, if you agree, only then can can you talk about it, if not there are many other things to discuss. Four years later, it is my opinion we are closer to this than ever before. For the organization it would be a very smart move as it would do away with 90% of their hostilities and move them closer to main stream religion. The only thing left would be blood and that should soon become a conscience matter as well. What would there be left to challenge JWs about?
So that being said it is my hope that the liberals continue to guide the organization to safer pastures. While it is true everyone has an opinion and doctrinal discussions can become heated, at the same time doing so in a kinder environment, would create much good will on behalf of Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwide. So this holiday season as many see “peace on earth and good will toward all men”, it is my hope that this trend continues within Jehovah’s Witness to make it a better religion and much kinder to its members.