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The Governing Body supervises all the activities of the Jehovah's Witnesses throughout the earth. This includes writing, translating
and publication of literature, planning the program of congregation
meetings, arranging for circuit and district conventions, sending out
missionaries, making appointments of elders, ministerial servants, as
well as circuit and district overseers, and arranging for disaster
relief. This group is sometimes incorrectly referred to as the Watch Tower Society; however, the term "Watch Tower Society" actually refers to one or more of the Legal Instruments Of Jehovah's Witnesses .

BACKGROUND

Until the 1970s , this group was virtually identical with the
Board Of Directors of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of
Pennsylvania. The Governing Body was formally enlarged beyond the board
of directors of the Watch Tower Society in 1971 and the chairmanship
began to rotate annually in that year. From January 1, 1976, all the
activities of the Watch Tower Society and of the congregations of
Jehovah's Witnesses worldwide was brought under the supervision of the
Governing Body and its six committees. (Proclaimers p. 108 - 109, 723)
Since the year 2000 , the Governing Body has delegated to others the
responsibility of serving as directors of the various corporations that
are used by Jehovah's Witnesses. The current president of the Watch
Tower Society, Don A. Adams , is not a member of the Governing Body.

COMMITTEES

The work of the Governing Body is undertaken by six committees:
  • Personnel Committee - arranges for volunteers to serve in the organization's headquarters and branch offices.

  • Publishing Committee - handles legal matters, such as property and printing.

  • Service Committee - takes care of witness work and supervises traveling overseers, pioneers, and the activities of congregation publishers. It is not to be confused with the service committees in the congregations.

  • Teaching Committee - arranges congregation meetings, special assembly days, circuit assemblies, and district and international conventions as well as various schools for elders, ministerial servants, pioneers, missionaries.

  • Writing Committee - supervises the preparation and translation of publications, including magazines, brochures, books, audio, video cassettes, CDs and DVDs.

  • Chairman's Committee - cares for emergencies, disaster relief and other urgent matters.

    • A number of other elders, not members of the Governing Body, serve on

some of these committees as assistants. They can be from the great
crowd (meaning they are not one of the "144,000"), and their work is sometimes compared with that of the
Nethinim in ancient Israel.


MEMBERS

As of April, 2006 , the current members of the Governing
Body of Jehovah's Witnesses, in alphabetical order, are:
  • Carey W. Barber (1977-)

  • John E. Barr (1977-)

  • Samuel Herd (1999-)

  • Geoffrey Jackson (2005-)

  • Theodore Jaracz (1974-)

  • Stephen Lett (1999-)

  • Gerrit Lösch (1994-)

  • Anthony Morris (2005-)

  • Guy Pierce (1999-)

  • David Splane ((1999-)



FORMER (DECEASED) MEMBERS AND YEARS THEY SERVED


only those who died as members of the governing body, Ewart Chitty, Leo K. Greenlees and Raymond V. Franz served but did keep their assigments

  • W. Lloyd Barry (1974-'99)

  • John C. Booth (1974-'96)

  • Charles J. Fekel(1974-'77)

  • Frederick W. Franz (1972-'92)

  • George D. Gangas (1971-'94)

  • John O. Groh (1972-'75)

  • Milton G. Henschel (1972-2003)

  • William K. Jackson(1972-'81)

  • Karl F. Klein (1974-2001)

  • Nathan H. Knorr (1972-'77)

  • Martin Poetzinger (1977-'88)

  • Hugo H. Riemer (1974-?)

  • Albert D. Schroeder (1974-2006)

  • Grant Suiter (1972-'83)

  • Thomas J. Sullivan (1972-'74)

  • Lyman A. Swingle (1972-2001)

  • Daniel Sydlik (1974-2006)



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