Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses (
JW) are a
nontrinitarian Christian religious group.
The modern denomination traces back to some
Bible study groups founded in the
1870s in
Pennsylvania by
Charles Taze Russell. During Russell's lifetime, the study groups multiplied, and their members came to be known as the International Bible Students. They founded the
Watch Tower Society in
1881, and registered in
1884 with Russell as president. (The full name was originally
Zion's Watch Tower Tract Society, now
Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania.) Later, in
1914 they founded
International Bible Students Association in the
UK, and in
1931, when
Joseph Franklin Rutherford was president of the society, they adopted the name "Jehovah's Witnesses." The name Jehovah's Witnesses was inspired\nby
Isaiah 43:10, which states, "Ye are my witnesses, saith Jehovah . . ." (ASV).
The group's members are noted for their racially diverse and close-knit brotherhood, the use of the name
Jehovah, door-to-door evangelizing, conviction that the present system of things will soon come to an end, rejection of many holidays, refusing to accept blood transfusions, non-participation in politics and military service, and separation from other religions. At times in their history, they have been the subject of religious and political controversy (See
Opposition to Jehovah's Witnesses). Their rejection of Jehovah's Witnesses generally exhibit a high degree of commitment to their religion, attending meetings three times a week in their local Kingdom Halls\nand in private homes.
Larger gatherings, called assemblies or conventions, are held, usually three times a year, in\nassembly halls that are owned or maintained by the Watchtower Society or rented public facilities,\nsuch as sports stadiums or auditoriums.
Membership
As of August 2003, Jehovah's Witnesses has a world-wide practicing membership of more than 6.4 million active individuals. The membership figures refer to the number of registered 'publishers' or door-to-door evangelists and are therefore not always comparable with statistics produced by other religious groups. Besides excluding those who are not really active, counting only publishers also excludes most children under 10 years old. Therefore, it can be said that their statistics are rather conservative. Well over 16 million people attend the Lord's Supper, which is celebrated once in a year.
Publications
Jehovah's Witnesses make vigorous efforts to spread their beliefs throughout the world in a variety of ways, with particular emphasis on the written word. Their teachings are mainly presented through two monthly journals, both based exclusively on the Bible's teachings. Awake, published in 87 languages, is a general-interest magazine covering many topics from a religious perspective. The Watchtower, published in 148 languages, focuses mainly on doctrine. With an average circulation of 25 million copies semimonthly, The Watchtower is the most widely distributed religious magazine in the world, and is available in a large-print edition, in Braille, on audiocassettes, in American Sign Language (on videocassette and DVD) and on CD, in MP3 format. Both The Watchtower and Awake! are published simultaneously in dozens of languages. At their yearly conventions, new books, brochures, and other items pertaining to the religion's current doctrine are usually released. Additionally, a number of audio- and videocassettes have been produced featuring various aspects of the group's beliefs and practices. Recent years have seen a proliferation of material available on their website.
Opposition to Jehovah's Witnesses
Throughout their history, their beliefs, doctrines and practices have met controversy. Political and religious animosity against them has at times led to the point of mob action and government oppression, including being targeted in the Holocaust — and widespread criticism from leaders of other faiths. Hostility from fundamentalist and evangelical Christians has been particularly virulent.
In the United States, many Supreme Court cases involving Jehovah's Witnesses have shaped First Amendment law. Significant cases affirmed rights such as these:
By
1988, the U.S. Supreme Court had reviewed 71 cases involving Jehovah's Witnesses, two thirds of which were decided in their favor. Most recently, in
2002, the
Watchtower Bible and Tract Society disputed an ordinance in
Stratton, Ohio that required a permit in order to preach from door to door. The Supreme Court decided in favor of the Witnesses.
Controversy has also arisen over the Witnesses' refusal of blood transfusions. All active, baptized Jehovah's Witnesses carry personal identification cards with advance medical directives explaining their position regarding blood transfusions, as well as their wishes regarding alternative treatment (i.e., use of blood fillers or substitutes, etc.) should major loss of blood occur.
Many criticise the organization's practice of
excommunicating - called "
disfellowshipping" -\nmembers. JWs who have family members who are disfellowshipped are encouraged to have contact with\nthe disfellowshipped family member only if such contact is important, such as the passing of\nanother family member.
Much criticism has also come from the Watchtower Society's reference to itself being the "Faithful\nand Discrete Slave" of
Matthew 24:45-47.
See Also
External Links
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Category:Jehovah's WitnessesCategory:Christianity