The statement has appeared in several forums that Charles Taze Russell claimed direct revelation from God. (I suspect the this statement might appear also on several sites, but so far I haven't found a site that directly states that Russell made this claim, but some sites put Russell in the category of others who claimed to be prophets and receiving direct revelation from God.) However, did Russell ever make such a claim?
Charles Taze Russell never claimed any direct revelation from God. His opponents, as well as some others who claimed to be his followers, have made this claim for him, but he denied such from the very beginning and continued in such denial until the day he died. He certainly never claimed to be a prophet, as did Joseph Smith.
Charles Taze Russell (although he stated his views firmly as his beliefs) was never dogmatic about his beliefs on chronology and time prophecy, nor did he demand of the Bible Students associated with him or anyone else accept his beliefs. His statements were:
"Our own views are not prophecy, but interpretations of the holy prophets of old." (Watch Tower, October 1890, page 8)
"Neither must you lean upon the DAWN and the TOWER as infallible teachers. If it was proper for the early Christians to prove what they received from the apostles, who were and who claimed to be inspired, how much more important it is that you fully satisfy yourself that these teachings keep closely within their outline instructions and those of our Lord; -- since their author claims no inspiration, but merely the guidance of the Lord, as one used of him in feeding his flock." ("The Watch Tower", June, 1893)
"We are not prophesying; we are merely giving our surmises, the Scriptural basis for which is already in the hands of our readers in the six volumes of SCRIPTURE STUDIES." (Watch Tower, January 1, 1908, page 5).
"I am not a prophet." (What Pastor Russell Said, Q272:1, 1910)
"Some people try to make out that I claim I am infallible, and know everything. You are all witnesses that that is not true." (What Pastor Russell Said, Q14:1, 1911)
"We try to be careful about every word that goes into the Watch Tower, but we do not claim to be infallible; we are doing the best we can." (What Pastor Russell Said, Q56:1, 1910)
"We have never set forth anything to indicate that our view in the matter was infallible. I do not know positively that the times of the Gentiles will end in October, 1914, or at any other particular time. We think there is strong reason for believing that the Gentile Times will end in October, 1914. We give it as our opinion, and set before you the Scriptural reason. Some may believe and some not. This is our thought and if it is correct, about that time, or shortly thereafter, a great time of trouble will come upon the world." (What Pastor Russell Said, Q313:2, 1914)
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Many more quotes could be provided.
What one will not find anywhere in Russell's writings is that he claimed that his writings were a direct revelation from God, or that his predictions were directly from God.
I will say that, after Russell died, that Rutherford made all kinds of claims for Russell that Russell himself never claimed, including the claim that Russell was a prophet. As far as I can determine by doing a electronic search through Russell's writings, he never used the term "Jehovah's organization." A few times Russell did refer to the church and the local ecclesia under Christ as "the Lord's organization", but he never used such an expression in the same manner or with the same meaning that Rutherford referred to his organization as "Jehovah's organization."
http://www.agsconsulting.com/volumes/htdb0143.htmhttp://ctr.reslight.netChristian love,
Ronald
