Just who though is Johannes Greber and what is his involvement with the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society? He was a Roman Catholic priest who lived from 1874 to 1944. He also was involved in spiritism, and was used by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society in support of their rendering of John 1:1 calling The Word "a god".
5 But most controversial of all is the following reading of John 1:1, 2: “The Word was in the beginning, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god. This Word was in the beginning with God.” This reading is found in The New Testament in An Improved Version, published in London, England, in 1808. Similar is the reading by a former Roman Catholic priest: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god. This was with God in the beginning. Everything came into being through the Word, and without it nothing created sprang into existence.” (John 1:1-3)* Alongside that reading with its much-debated expression “a god” may be placed the reading found in The Four Gospels—A New Translation, by Professor Charles Cutler Torrey, second edition of 1947, namely: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was god. When he was in the beginning with God all things were created through him; without him came no created thing into being.” (John 1:1-3) Note that what the Word is said to be is spelled without a capital initial letter, namely, “god.”
Footnote: The New Testament—A New Translation and Explanation Based on the Oldest Manuscripts, by Johannes Greber (a translation from German into English), edition of 1937, the front cover of this bound translation being stamped with a golden cross. (Watchtower 1962 September 15 p554 paragraph 5 in the article “The Word”—Who Is He? According to John)
A translation by the former Roman Catholic priest Johannes Greber (1937 ed.) renders the second appearance of the word “god” in the sentence as “a god.” (Aid to Bible Understanding 1971 pg. 1669)
What though about Mr. Greber being involved in spiritism? Was the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society aware of this involvement? Well.......
It comes as no surprise that one Johannes Greber, a former Catholic clergyman, has become a spiritualist and has published the book entitled "Communication With the Spirit World, Its Laws and Its Purpose." (What do the Scriptures Say About "Survival After Death?", 1955, p. 88)
It comes as no surprise that one Johannes Greber, a former Catholic clergyman, has become a spiritualist and has published the book entitled “Communication with the Spirit World, Its laws and Its Purpose.” (1932, Macoy Publishing Company, New York) In its Foreword he makes the typical misstatement: “The most significant spiritualistic book is the Bible; for its principal contents hinge upon the messages of the beyond to those existing in the present.” (Watchtower 10/1/55 page 603 paragraph 33)
I believe that all of the above does prove that the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society did use a known by them spiritist in support of their rendering of John 1:1.
That leads to having to wonder why they were less than honest about how long they knew about Johannes Greber being a spiritist.
Questions From Readers• Why, in recent years, has The Watchtower not made use of the translation by the former Catholic priest, Johannes Greber?This translation was used occasionally in support of renderings of Matthew 27:52, 53 and John 1:1, as given in the New World Translation and other authoritative Bible versions. But as indicated in a foreword to the 1980 edition of The New Testament by Johannes Greber, this translator relied on “God’s Spirit World” to clarify for him how he should translate difficult passages. It is stated: “His wife, a medium of God’s Spiritworld was often instrumental in conveying the correct answers from God’s Messengers to Pastor Greber.” The Watchtower has deemed it improper to make use of a translation that has such a close rapport with spiritism. (Deuteronomy 18:10-12) The scholarship that forms the basis for the rendering of the above-cited texts in the New World Translation is sound and for this reason does not depend at all on Greber’s translation for authority. Nothing is lost, therefore, by ceasing to use his New Testament.(Watchtower 4/1/83 page 31 Questions from Readers
So they were aware, but were not aware, but yet needed him for support of this mistranslation of John 1:1
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