JW Insider

I think that if you understood the whole picture of Russell's attempt (and the difficulties) to make all scripture fit into one complete view, you would never call it blasphemy. In fact, I don't think you could even provide any "proof" that he was wrong. Take the following two passages from 1 Corinthians for example:
(1 Corinthians 12:12) For just as the body is one but has many members, and all the members of that body, although many, are one body, so too is the Christ.
(1 Corinthians 6:15) Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ?
Paul could easily be interpreted as saying that each and every one of the "Anointed" (which is an English word for the Greek word "Christ") are therefore all included in the "Anointed." Therefore this interpretation was imposed back upon Ephesians 1:9, so that the very doctrine of all 144,000 being gathered into the Christ, was considered to be the "mystery" or the "sacred secret:"
(Ephesians 1:9, 10) 9 by making known to us the sacred secret of his will. It is according to his good pleasure that he himself purposed 10 for an administration at the full limit of the appointed times, to gather all things together in the Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth. . . .
The better understanding, of course, is that the 144,000 are in close union with Christ, and only the primary one, the Head, should be called "The Christ" or the "Anointed One."
(Galatians 3:16) . . .. It says, not: “And to seeds,” as in the case of many such, but as in the case of one: “And to your seed,” who is Christ.
 

Just for a laugh, people should know that Russell did also claim to be "The Christ." He claimed that all 144,001 members of Christ's body were "The Christ."

No. I don't think he ever took it back. The teaching survived into Rutherford's period of leadership, and there were still echoes of it during the time of Knorr and Franz. I don't recall exactly when it was rejected in print, but some say that Franz, while giving the Memorial talk, would quote the verse from 1 Cor 12:12 and then follow up with an odd statement to the effect that "only the 144,000 share the flesh and blood of the Christ, even though Jesus himself no longer shares flesh and blood." It's scriptural but by putting emphasis on the word "share" he made it sound odd, perhaps invoking John 6.
There's even an echo of it in the expression, "he is one of 'the anointed.'"
Originally this "mystery doctrine" led to some awkward sounding statements from Russell too. For example, he said in 1914 (Watchtower, p.83):
https://archive.org/details/1914WatchTower/mode/2up?q=sum+total
"The word Christ signifies anointed. God has declared that He will have an anointed King and High Priest to be His Agent in the blessing of the world. He has declared that that great King is, primarily, the Lord Jesus Christ. He also declares that instead of the Lord Jesus being the sum-total of the Anointed One, it is His good pleasure that there shall be members added to Him. And the adding of these members has been the completing of this Anointed One."
But if all the anointed were "The Christ" this had led to him also claiming that the anointed 144,000, including himself, were also the "Mighty God" and the "Eternal Father." (Isaiah 9) And his explanations seemed strained.
"Soon follows the power which will, under him as our head, constitute the whole body of Christ the "Mighty God" to rule and bless the nations - and the body with the head, shall share in the work of restoring the life lost in Adam, and therefore be members of that company which as a whole will be the Everlasting Father to the restored race." - (WT November 1881: 298)
Rutherford called this body of Christ: "the Great Messiah." This followed consistently on Russell's statements such as another from the same 1914 Watchtower:
"And as we further study, we find that this is the Mystery mentioned in the Scriptures: to wit, that the great Messiah so long promised should be composed of many individuals;
But I think it was only Russell who delved into statements that would show that this doctrine proved that when Jesus said "Ye are gods" in John 10, that this also had reference to the 144,001. I'm sure that to some, this would have sounded too similar to Mormon teaching.

Just for a laugh, people should know that Russell did also claim to be "The Christ." He claimed that all 144,001 members of Christ's body were "The Christ."

Just for a laugh, people should know that Russell did also claim to be "The Christ." He claimed that all 144,001 members of Christ's body were "The Christ."

Just for a laugh, people should know that Russell did also claim to be "The Christ." He claimed that all 144,001 members of Christ's body were "The Christ."

From the context it seems that the 11 +1 apostles were meeting in Jerusalem to devote themselves to prayer and the ministry of the word. This is probably a reference to the necessary spiritual preparation the apostles needed to focus on for producing the foundation of teaching we now find in the Christian Greek Scriptures. This was the priority so soon after Jesus was resurrected because Jesus had asked them to meet together in Jerusalem, at least until the holy spirit opened up their understanding of the Hebrew Scriptures, and who knew how long it would be before they would be persecuted and even killed:
(Luke 24:45-49) 45 Then he opened up their minds fully to grasp the meaning of the Scriptures, 46 and he said to them, “This is what is written: that the Christ would suffer and rise from among the dead on the third day, 47 and on the basis of his name, repentance for forgiveness of sins would be preached in all the nations—starting out from Jerusalem. 48 You are to be witnesses of these things. 49 And look! I am sending upon you what my Father promised. You, though, stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
(Acts 1:4) . . .While he was meeting with them, he ordered them: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but keep waiting for what the Father has promised, about which you heard from me;
But shortly after the spirit was poured out upon them, and upon many other women and men among the Christians (Acts 2) there was a problem with Jewish prejudice against non-Jewish Christians. The Greek-speaking Christians were being overlooked (ignored) when it came to sharing the supplies of physical food among them. (Some Jews even assumed that this prejudice was Scriptural.)
So the apostles were still devoting themselves to prayer and teaching and didn't have the time at that moment to manage the distribution of food. They needed some capable ministerial servants or "deacons" for this purpose.
(Acts 6:2-4) . . .So the Twelve called the multitude of the disciples together and said: “It is not right for us to leave the word of God to distribute food to tables (literally, to be deacons for tables: διακονεῖν-diakonein). 3 So, brothers, select for yourselves seven reputable men from among you, full of spirit and wisdom, that we may appoint them over this necessary matter; 4 but we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
So the 12 apostles needed some "deacons" (ministerial servants) to manage the daily food distributions. But these deacons were well qualified in that they were filled with the recently poured out holy spirit. They had already gained the respect of the multitude of Christians through their actions and ability to teach. It shows, that like in 1 Timothy, deacons were to have almost the same qualifications as elders, but elders had more of the teaching responsibilities.
(1 Timothy 3:8-13) . . .Ministerial servants [Greek: "deacons"] should likewise be serious, not double-tongued, not indulging in a lot of wine, not greedy of dishonest gain, 9 holding the sacred secret of the faith with a clean conscience. 10 Also, let these be tested as to fitness first; then let them serve as ministers [Greek: "deacons"], as they are free from accusation. 11 ... 13 For the men who minister [Gk: "are deacons"] in a fine manner are acquiring for themselves a fine standing and great freeness of speech in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

From the context it seems that the 11 +1 apostles were meeting in Jerusalem to devote themselves to prayer and the ministry of the word. This is probably a reference to the necessary spiritual preparation the apostles needed to focus on for producing the foundation of teaching we now find in the Christian Greek Scriptures. This was the priority so soon after Jesus was resurrected because Jesus had asked them to meet together in Jerusalem, at least until the holy spirit opened up their understanding of the Hebrew Scriptures, and who knew how long it would be before they would be persecuted and even killed:
(Luke 24:45-49) 45 Then he opened up their minds fully to grasp the meaning of the Scriptures, 46 and he said to them, “This is what is written: that the Christ would suffer and rise from among the dead on the third day, 47 and on the basis of his name, repentance for forgiveness of sins would be preached in all the nations—starting out from Jerusalem. 48 You are to be witnesses of these things. 49 And look! I am sending upon you what my Father promised. You, though, stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
(Acts 1:4) . . .While he was meeting with them, he ordered them: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but keep waiting for what the Father has promised, about which you heard from me;
But shortly after the spirit was poured out upon them, and upon many other women and men among the Christians (Acts 2) there was a problem with Jewish prejudice against non-Jewish Christians. The Greek-speaking Christians were being overlooked (ignored) when it came to sharing the supplies of physical food among them. (Some Jews even assumed that this prejudice was Scriptural.)
So the apostles were still devoting themselves to prayer and teaching and didn't have the time at that moment to manage the distribution of food. They needed some capable ministerial servants or "deacons" for this purpose.
(Acts 6:2-4) . . .So the Twelve called the multitude of the disciples together and said: “It is not right for us to leave the word of God to distribute food to tables (literally, to be deacons for tables: διακονεῖν-diakonein). 3 So, brothers, select for yourselves seven reputable men from among you, full of spirit and wisdom, that we may appoint them over this necessary matter; 4 but we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
So the 12 apostles needed some "deacons" (ministerial servants) to manage the daily food distributions. But these deacons were well qualified in that they were filled with the recently poured out holy spirit. They had already gained the respect of the multitude of Christians through their actions and ability to teach. It shows, that like in 1 Timothy, deacons were to have almost the same qualifications as elders, but elders had more of the teaching responsibilities.
(1 Timothy 3:8-13) . . .Ministerial servants [Greek: "deacons"] should likewise be serious, not double-tongued, not indulging in a lot of wine, not greedy of dishonest gain, 9 holding the sacred secret of the faith with a clean conscience. 10 Also, let these be tested as to fitness first; then let them serve as ministers [Greek: "deacons"], as they are free from accusation. 11 ... 13 For the men who minister [Gk: "are deacons"] in a fine manner are acquiring for themselves a fine standing and great freeness of speech in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

I'm sure you are aware of this, but there have been multiple times when you have said things like what you just said here. It can indicate that you do not believe we have currently reached the time of the harvest. Scripturally, of course, this is a strong possibility. But you probably know that the Watchtower teaches that we have been in the harvest since 1914:
*** w2020 May p. 9 Rival Kings in the Time of the End ***
1914 ONWARD
Harvest season; weeds separated from wheat
It is also possible to find a scriptural precedent for the idea that the harvest can cover a period of time, and does not just refer to the time when the wheat and weeds are finally separated.
(Matthew 9:37, 38) . . .Then he said to his disciples: “Yes, the harvest is great, but the workers are few. 38 Therefore, beg the Master of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”
I hoped you would clarify your own view.

From the context it seems that the 11 +1 apostles were meeting in Jerusalem to devote themselves to prayer and the ministry of the word. This is probably a reference to the necessary spiritual preparation the apostles needed to focus on for producing the foundation of teaching we now find in the Christian Greek Scriptures. This was the priority so soon after Jesus was resurrected because Jesus had asked them to meet together in Jerusalem, at least until the holy spirit opened up their understanding of the Hebrew Scriptures, and who knew how long it would be before they would be persecuted and even killed:
(Luke 24:45-49) 45 Then he opened up their minds fully to grasp the meaning of the Scriptures, 46 and he said to them, “This is what is written: that the Christ would suffer and rise from among the dead on the third day, 47 and on the basis of his name, repentance for forgiveness of sins would be preached in all the nations—starting out from Jerusalem. 48 You are to be witnesses of these things. 49 And look! I am sending upon you what my Father promised. You, though, stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
(Acts 1:4) . . .While he was meeting with them, he ordered them: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but keep waiting for what the Father has promised, about which you heard from me;
But shortly after the spirit was poured out upon them, and upon many other women and men among the Christians (Acts 2) there was a problem with Jewish prejudice against non-Jewish Christians. The Greek-speaking Christians were being overlooked (ignored) when it came to sharing the supplies of physical food among them. (Some Jews even assumed that this prejudice was Scriptural.)
So the apostles were still devoting themselves to prayer and teaching and didn't have the time at that moment to manage the distribution of food. They needed some capable ministerial servants or "deacons" for this purpose.
(Acts 6:2-4) . . .So the Twelve called the multitude of the disciples together and said: “It is not right for us to leave the word of God to distribute food to tables (literally, to be deacons for tables: διακονεῖν-diakonein). 3 So, brothers, select for yourselves seven reputable men from among you, full of spirit and wisdom, that we may appoint them over this necessary matter; 4 but we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
So the 12 apostles needed some "deacons" (ministerial servants) to manage the daily food distributions. But these deacons were well qualified in that they were filled with the recently poured out holy spirit. They had already gained the respect of the multitude of Christians through their actions and ability to teach. It shows, that like in 1 Timothy, deacons were to have almost the same qualifications as elders, but elders had more of the teaching responsibilities.
(1 Timothy 3:8-13) . . .Ministerial servants [Greek: "deacons"] should likewise be serious, not double-tongued, not indulging in a lot of wine, not greedy of dishonest gain, 9 holding the sacred secret of the faith with a clean conscience. 10 Also, let these be tested as to fitness first; then let them serve as ministers [Greek: "deacons"], as they are free from accusation. 11 ... 13 For the men who minister [Gk: "are deacons"] in a fine manner are acquiring for themselves a fine standing and great freeness of speech in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

From the context it seems that the 11 +1 apostles were meeting in Jerusalem to devote themselves to prayer and the ministry of the word. This is probably a reference to the necessary spiritual preparation the apostles needed to focus on for producing the foundation of teaching we now find in the Christian Greek Scriptures. This was the priority so soon after Jesus was resurrected because Jesus had asked them to meet together in Jerusalem, at least until the holy spirit opened up their understanding of the Hebrew Scriptures, and who knew how long it would be before they would be persecuted and even killed:
(Luke 24:45-49) 45 Then he opened up their minds fully to grasp the meaning of the Scriptures, 46 and he said to them, “This is what is written: that the Christ would suffer and rise from among the dead on the third day, 47 and on the basis of his name, repentance for forgiveness of sins would be preached in all the nations—starting out from Jerusalem. 48 You are to be witnesses of these things. 49 And look! I am sending upon you what my Father promised. You, though, stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
(Acts 1:4) . . .While he was meeting with them, he ordered them: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but keep waiting for what the Father has promised, about which you heard from me;
But shortly after the spirit was poured out upon them, and upon many other women and men among the Christians (Acts 2) there was a problem with Jewish prejudice against non-Jewish Christians. The Greek-speaking Christians were being overlooked (ignored) when it came to sharing the supplies of physical food among them. (Some Jews even assumed that this prejudice was Scriptural.)
So the apostles were still devoting themselves to prayer and teaching and didn't have the time at that moment to manage the distribution of food. They needed some capable ministerial servants or "deacons" for this purpose.
(Acts 6:2-4) . . .So the Twelve called the multitude of the disciples together and said: “It is not right for us to leave the word of God to distribute food to tables (literally, to be deacons for tables: διακονεῖν-diakonein). 3 So, brothers, select for yourselves seven reputable men from among you, full of spirit and wisdom, that we may appoint them over this necessary matter; 4 but we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
So the 12 apostles needed some "deacons" (ministerial servants) to manage the daily food distributions. But these deacons were well qualified in that they were filled with the recently poured out holy spirit. They had already gained the respect of the multitude of Christians through their actions and ability to teach. It shows, that like in 1 Timothy, deacons were to have almost the same qualifications as elders, but elders had more of the teaching responsibilities.
(1 Timothy 3:8-13) . . .Ministerial servants [Greek: "deacons"] should likewise be serious, not double-tongued, not indulging in a lot of wine, not greedy of dishonest gain, 9 holding the sacred secret of the faith with a clean conscience. 10 Also, let these be tested as to fitness first; then let them serve as ministers [Greek: "deacons"], as they are free from accusation. 11 ... 13 For the men who minister [Gk: "are deacons"] in a fine manner are acquiring for themselves a fine standing and great freeness of speech in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

All true. It is hard waiting in expectation. I've found it better if I keep looking at the Bible from as many different viewpoints as I can find. This makes the truth stand out by way of comparison. Even false expectations by other groups can be oddly encouraging. I was  watching this four part movie "Noah" on Amazon and the first part was pretty good. It dealt w/all the various evidences for the flood.  The next part made it clear that the guy who was producing the film was a seventh day adventist, and quite sincere and though I found fault with a number of things, I didn't find fault with the desire to get right with God and try to understand prophesy in a more than cursory manner.  Fortunately the WT index had a 1997 article on SDA's and their interpretations. Still a lot of what was said in the movie I found myself resonating to. Much like when I read how certain Jewish holidays aren't required, but in and of themselves aren't sinful - any more than trying to follow the law (as an exercise, though not a requirement) could be an interesting and useful exercise. Even people like Mike Heiser say things and write things I've found of interest (though obviously I'm not a devotee). Or say the Portland, Oregon group that puts together the animated youtube series. "The Bible Project". I've found these interesting as well. I know others aren't interested in these things to the same degree and even would find it odd (or dangerous), I still read all of it - even when it's like nails on a chalkboard to listen to some of the arguments. I just want to know where people are coming from in their faith (or lack thereof).

I'm sure you are aware of this, but there have been multiple times when you have said things like what you just said here. It can indicate that you do not believe we have currently reached the time of the harvest. Scripturally, of course, this is a strong possibility. But you probably know that the Watchtower teaches that we have been in the harvest since 1914:
*** w2020 May p. 9 Rival Kings in the Time of the End ***
1914 ONWARD
Harvest season; weeds separated from wheat
It is also possible to find a scriptural precedent for the idea that the harvest can cover a period of time, and does not just refer to the time when the wheat and weeds are finally separated.
(Matthew 9:37, 38) . . .Then he said to his disciples: “Yes, the harvest is great, but the workers are few. 38 Therefore, beg the Master of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”
I hoped you would clarify your own view.

(Luke 21:8) . . .He said: “Look out that you are not misled, for many will come on the basis of my name, saying, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The due time is near.’ Do not go after them.
(Mark 13:32, 33) 32 “Concerning that day or the hour nobody knows, neither the angels in heaven nor the Son, but the Father. 33 Keep looking, keep awake, for you do not know when the appointed time is.
(Luke 12:46) the master of that slave will come on a day that he is not expecting him and at an hour that he does not know. . .
(Acts 1:7) . . .He said to them: “It does not belong to you to know the times or seasons that the Father has placed in his own jurisdiction.
(Matthew 24:36)  “Concerning that day and hour nobody knows, neither the angels of the heavens nor the Son, but only the Father.
(2 Thessalonians 2:1-3) . . .However, brothers, concerning the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you 2 not to be quickly shaken from your reason nor to be alarmed either by an inspired statement or by a spoken message or by a letter appearing to be from us, to the effect that the day of Jehovah is here. 3 Let no one lead you astray . . .
(1 Thessalonians 5:1, 2) . . .Now as for the times and the seasons, brothers, you need nothing to be written to you. 2 For you yourselves know very well that Jehovah’s day is coming exactly as a thief in the night.
 
 

I'm sure you are aware of this, but there have been multiple times when you have said things like what you just said here. It can indicate that you do not believe we have currently reached the time of the harvest. Scripturally, of course, this is a strong possibility. But you probably know that the Watchtower teaches that we have been in the harvest since 1914:
*** w2020 May p. 9 Rival Kings in the Time of the End ***
1914 ONWARD
Harvest season; weeds separated from wheat
It is also possible to find a scriptural precedent for the idea that the harvest can cover a period of time, and does not just refer to the time when the wheat and weeds are finally separated.
(Matthew 9:37, 38) . . .Then he said to his disciples: “Yes, the harvest is great, but the workers are few. 38 Therefore, beg the Master of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”
I hoped you would clarify your own view.

I'm sure you are aware of this, but there have been multiple times when you have said things like what you just said here. It can indicate that you do not believe we have currently reached the time of the harvest. Scripturally, of course, this is a strong possibility. But you probably know that the Watchtower teaches that we have been in the harvest since 1914:
*** w2020 May p. 9 Rival Kings in the Time of the End ***
1914 ONWARD
Harvest season; weeds separated from wheat
It is also possible to find a scriptural precedent for the idea that the harvest can cover a period of time, and does not just refer to the time when the wheat and weeds are finally separated.
(Matthew 9:37, 38) . . .Then he said to his disciples: “Yes, the harvest is great, but the workers are few. 38 Therefore, beg the Master of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”
I hoped you would clarify your own view.

That's so funny that you are telling us what JB meant. It's almost like you know him 😜

I might even get in trouble for this because no one gave me permission to capture images of posts. But I promise The Librarian and admin(s?) that this is the only place I will do this (for this particular topic). Here is an image of BillyTheKid (Cesar Chavez) responding to the words of John Butler (4Jah2me) and another image in response to action taken by The Librarian:
Personally, I believe that the words from John Butler did not constitute a specific imminent threat, but they still reveal something dangerous. Even if it only reveals a "fantasy" that God by some miracle will "one day soon" find a way to kill a specific group of people, this fantasy may result in someone acting on it. If I were the forum owner/admin, I would have removed it and given the person a warning because the death fantasy is about a specific group of identifiable individuals. In this case I think BTK46 did the right thing to bring it to the attention of the forum owners. If they had allowed the continued promotion of these ideas, they could possibly even be held liable if someone had acted upon the fantasy.
I am only repeating two of the posts here because they put JB's words in an expository context, and they are being rightly confronted by BTK46 in this case.

 

I might even get in trouble for this because no one gave me permission to capture images of posts. But I promise The Librarian and admin(s?) that this is the only place I will do this (for this particular topic). Here is an image of BillyTheKid (Cesar Chavez) responding to the words of John Butler (4Jah2me) and another image in response to action taken by The Librarian:
Personally, I believe that the words from John Butler did not constitute a specific imminent threat, but they still reveal something dangerous. Even if it only reveals a "fantasy" that God by some miracle will "one day soon" find a way to kill a specific group of people, this fantasy may result in someone acting on it. If I were the forum owner/admin, I would have removed it and given the person a warning because the death fantasy is about a specific group of identifiable individuals. In this case I think BTK46 did the right thing to bring it to the attention of the forum owners. If they had allowed the continued promotion of these ideas, they could possibly even be held liable if someone had acted upon the fantasy.
I am only repeating two of the posts here because they put JB's words in an expository context, and they are being rightly confronted by BTK46 in this case.

 

I agree that what you said at first, and it is probably true quite often. But I honestly couldn't tell if you were trying to be funny or ironic when you appeared to be coming "full circle" by putting yourself in the judgment seat to judge these behaviors of others as even more filthy, offensive and disgusting.

I agree that what you said at first, and it is probably true quite often. But I honestly couldn't tell if you were trying to be funny or ironic when you appeared to be coming "full circle" by putting yourself in the judgment seat to judge these behaviors of others as even more filthy, offensive and disgusting.

Quite an appropriate lesson for this weekend:
https://www.jw.org/en/library/magazines/watchtower-study-january-2021/Lessons-From-the-Disciple-Whom-Jesus-Loved/
 
 

You tried, but really this is comparing apples to oranges. When a group that shares a hobby gets together for a few hours or couple of days, sure it's all fun. But the real test comes when you remove that hobby, and that group has to get on with each other with love in normal day to day problems, despite cultural and personality differences, and not only that, but do this over months and years. Try that with your car enthusiasts. Loving cars, is not going to make you into a loving person.

 
Or it's never a problem if there isn't a problem.

I don't like the fact that they had to administer laughing gas to get this sister to be happy:

Not necessarily. Perhaps 98 of the backlog of cases are rank-and-file and he has had trouble arguing that all JWs are "ordained ministers" and representatives of the WTS. But perhaps the case of 1 ministerial servant and 1 elder he knows will be easy to argue. Therefore, he will only take on new cases of ministerial servants and elders since he has too many rank and file cases.
That's a purposeful exaggeration to make a point. I actually don't know anything about the make-up of his backlog except that a reliable Witness told me that his backlog is about 100 cases and he is now very selective in the new cases he will take. And that this is supposedly something that new attorneys know, who are anxious to pick up cases that Zalkin can no longer take on.
@TrueTomHarley does not say it's only rank-and-file Witnesses who commit CSA, he says that it is probably a lot more rank-and-file than appointed servants. I would agree with him on this. His main point is that you can't usually make a comparison between JWs and Catholics by looking at the raw numbers in the statistics. For example if the ARC had reported that there were 5,000 perpetrators of Catholic CSA, he says this was mostly "appointed priests" whereas if you also saw a parallel report of 1,000 perpetrators of JW CSA, this would have been "appointed servants" along with a large percentage of "rank-and-file" JWs.
I think that there could be a bit of wishful thinking in TTH's view, but I can't say he is wrong. My view, after looking at several collections of evidence and statistics, is that most rank-and-file cases still go unreported, and under-reported. This is just one anecdote, but I was at a Witness funeral/memorial a couple years ago where the brother "eulogized" the late elder, and this resulted in some whispers, hushes, and then escalated into a real disturbance and then several sisters "took it outside" to keep the disturbance down. It turns out that the elder, from 20 to 30 years prior, had been incestuous with his own daughter, and perhaps another of his daughters starting well before becoming an elder, but it had evidently continued for years.
Most CSA cases are "familial" and the experience told me that most cases don't ever get reported, much less prosecuted. And why would an attorney take on such a case unless the family had a lot of money and could afford to sue themselves, basically?
The case I mentioned was an elder, well respected all his life by the congregation, but with notable exceptions within the congregation as I discovered.
The spreadsheet that the ARC provided for the JW cases, had a high percentage of elders and ministerial servants. (And at least one, probably more, were not listed as elders at the time of the crime, but became elders later -- this is something I wanted to look into as a problem outcome of not reporting cases.) But a friend in Australia has told me that if you look at the breakdown among Catholics: priests, nuns, brothers, school teachers, volunteers, etc., then it seems that they did have records on more than just appointed priests. And the breakdown was apparently similar to that of the JW breakdown. But you can't make too many conclusions about what it means overall if we realize that so many cases are never reported, or were thought to fall under "elder-congregant" or "priest-penitent" privilege. It also turns out that some of the other churches somehow did have a breakdown that included rank-and-file members. The media tends to report on those cases where the church authorities were perpetrators and victimizers, and this gives everyone the impression that it is just the higher-ups.
I remember from the US reports after the ARC, and preliminary discussions of investigations elsewhere in the world, that there was a lot of talk and interviews about treating some of the Catholic entities, even the church itself (in Australia) as a criminal organization. This type of talk reminds me of when TTH speaks of the ARC as going after the others as institutions but going after the JWs as a religion. I know what he means, but I can't say that I agree. In the media outlets, I saw/heard some talk about JWs not reporting any of these 1000 abusers of 1,500 victims, and how terrible it was. But I heard and read much more talk that made it appear that that made it appear they were going after the Catholics as a "criminal" institution, because, it ran so many entities that had such high rates of CSA crime.
My overall impression that it's going to about the same for JWs, Catholics, Mormons, Hasidic Jews, Boy Scouts, Government employees, etc. Namely that most CSA will be familial, and therefore it will be underreported and not make statistical lists. But OUTSIDE of familial CSA, the perpetrators will tend toward those with some level of presumed authority over rank-and-file members, and will therefore tend toward priests, Catholic brothers, JW elders, JW ministerial servants, Scout leaders, bosses, etc.