The Watchtower, “Are You Prepared for Survival?”
“From the 1870’s to 1932, elders and deacons were voted into office by members of the congregation. In 1932 the elective elders were replaced with a service committee elected by the congregation to assist an appointed service director. During 1938, arrangements were made for the theocratic appointment of all servants in the congregation.”
A later summary of the same sequence of organisational changes, differing slightly from the 1995 account in dating the body-of-elders arrangement to 1972 rather than 1971.
Official source (opens in new tab)
Provenance and verification note for The Watchtower, Are You Prepared for Survival?
Confidence note. Document opened on wol.jw.org on 19 September 2026; the wording was read in full and the page number taken from the library's own page markers.
Notes. The 1995 retrospective dates the body-of-elders arrangement to 1971; this 2006 article says “since 1972”. The discrepancy is in the organisation's own publications.
Accessed. 19 September 2026 · Source ID. src-chg-d-w-2006-0515-elders