...Religions Report Jehovah’s Witnesses Stephen Devon Hill Jr. Axia College of the University of Phoenix January 10, 2009 In modern society there are numerous forms of Christianity. Many may be familiar with Catholics, Baptist, or Protestants. One form of Christianity that has created mixed views since its start is that of Jehovah’s Witnesses. Some thoughts that may come to mind when people think of Jehovah’s Witnesses are cult activity, unusual Christian practices, and domineering individuals. This paper will take a look at the life as a Jehovah’s Witness. The paper will cover some of the common practices and beliefs of Jehovah’s Witnesses. The paper will also try to clear up some of the misconceptions that others believe about Jehovah’s Witnesses. The author of this paper has taken the time to research the Jehovah Witness religion by visiting a local Kingdom Hall, conducting an in-person interview with an actual Jehovah Witness, and also conducting research on the internet, as well as the library. Background Information The religion of the Jehovah’s Witness began in at the end of the 19th century. The religion was started a small group of Bible students close to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 1879 the students began publishing what is known as the Watchtower Announcing Jehovah’s Kingdom. The group that was formerly known as International Bible Students became Jehovah’s Witnesses in 1931. Membership of religion is marked by baptism. According to the Jehovah’s Witness...
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...A COMPARISON OF CHRISTIAN BELIEFS TO THOSE OF JEHOVAHS WITNESSES A comparison of Christian beliefs to those of Jehovah’s Witnesses Dana A. Lambert Axia College of The University of Phoenix This small step into identifying and exploring the beliefs and practices of Jehovah’s Witnesses has been both interesting and challenging. Relatively young in years, the religion was founded in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania in 1879 by Charles Taze Russell. (Carmen 2005) Its current practicing members total an estimated 6.95 million people. Its current headquarters is in Brooklyn New York, where the governing body of elders is located. Although constantly under scrutiny by various other religions, Jehovah’s Witnesses have continued to grow over the past 200 years. (Willis 2006) For the purpose of this paper, I spoke in depth to Mr. Michael Campbell, an Elder of the Jehovah’s Witness Kingdom Hall located in Green Cove Springs, Florida. Mr. Campbell has been a Jehovah’s Witness for the past 35 years, and is a personal friend and neighbor to my family. There are approximately 75 members in the Green Cove Springs hall, being established in 2005. Being a friend, Mr. Campbell understands that my questioning of his religious practices is not to confirm or deny, interrogate or subrogate his beliefs or mine in any adversarial way. Actually he stated that it would give him a chance to “speak what he has been learning for the past 35 years from his family room recliner.” I...
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...Jehovah’s Witnesses and Race/Ethnic Groups Cynthia L. Mills College of Humanities/ETH125 Juancho A. Lim, PH.D. January 24, 2014 Jehovah’s Witnesses and Race/Ethnic Groups The Jehovah’s Witnesses have their own set of beliefs set forth for them by The Watchtower Organization. They are taught not to think for themselves but to submit to the Watchtower Society teachings. If they question any of the teachings they are considered weak in the faith. Disfellowshipping is another belief factor that they use to control their members. An individual can also be marked if they do something wrong. They do not believe in blood transfusions for themselves or their children. The saluting of the flag of any nation, saying the pledge of allegiance, taking notice of the national anthem in any way, running or holding public office, voting, or serving in the military is totally forbidden. The Jehovah’s Witnesses are not allowed to celebrate any holidays or birthdays, claiming that they all have pagan roots. They are not allowed to associate with non-Witnesses including family. They do not believe in the Trinity, or in Hell. They believe that Jesus Christ was crucified on a stake, not a cross. (Towerwatch Ministries, 1999-2013). The Jehovah’s Witnesses place a high value on moral living and teach that these standards must be upheld in order to be saved (The Watchtower, 2002). No gambling is allowed, which includes, the lottery, horse racing or bingo. They...
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...Jehovah’s Witnesses Cassandra Poe Hum 130 March 26, 2010 Sheila Farr Introduction “The Jehovah’s Witnesses are one of the world’s fastest growing religious groups. They are well known for their distinctive beliefs, door to door proselytism, political neutrality, and legal battles for religious freedom. However, as Rodney Stark and Laurence R Ianaccone have recently noted, research on the Jehovah’s Witness is surprisingly scarce. This paper seeks to assist non-Witness scholars interested in studying witness teachings, activities, and institutions. The Watchtower, Awake, and annual yearbooks and many other Witness publications are primary sources readily available in Witness congregations throughout the United States and the world. Most congregations also maintain archives of past publications in their libraries. Any researcher can use these and many other sources to document Witness statements, statistics, trends and organizational developments”.Wah (Dec. 2001), History of The Jehovah’s Witnesses The Jehovah’s Witnesses was begun by Charles Taze Russell in 1872. He was born on February 16, 1852, the son of Joseph L. and Anna Eliza Russell. He had difficulty in dealing with the doctrine of eternal hell fire and in his studies came to deny not only eternal punishment, but also the Trinity, and the deity of Christ and the Holy Spirit. When Russell was 18 years old he organized his first Bible class in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 1879 he started The Watchtower...
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...Report on Religious Field Research Assignment 2 December 7th , 2011 Religious understanding is a touchy subject. Many people are ignorant by choice to the principles, teachings, and interpretations of other religions because they feel as though the religion that they were raised in is the one true and correct religion and understanding. Personally, the religion that I have the most interest in learning about is the Jehovah’s Witness religion. I have a lot of question that are rooted in the understanding of my religion and the inconsistencies that I feel the Jehovah Witnesses as a whole possess. Needless to say, I learned quite a bit from my sit down and acute immersion in the Jehovah’s Witness religion. I chose to interview my friend Wyendi and her grandmother to get a well-rounded outlook and understanding ( at least partially) of the religion as a whole. This report will attempt to discuss the misconceptions that I had about the religion, analyze my prior understanding against my understanding now that I have spoken to a Jehovah Witness, discuss whether or not I believe that the misconceptions about the Jehovah Witness religion are common, and present one way that I think could minimize misconceptions that people may have about religions that are not their own. Based on my understanding of the Jehovah Witness religion I had about 6 key questions that I wanted to ask. The first question that I posed to my friend Wyendi and her grandmother dealt with their non-celebration...
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...World Religions Report Beverly Ross HUM/130 Kenneth Dietz December 17, 2010 Credentials are important when you are choosing a religion. Jehovah’s Witnesses believe in the Bible as the guiding source based on worthy credentials. Their truths are based on the sacred writings of the Bible. For example Genesis 1:1 says: There is one almighty God and Creator who made all things. They believe in one creator who has a name, and that name is Jehovah. Jehovah’s Witnesses are members of a World Wide Christian Religion who share with others information about God and his son, Jesus Christ. They base their belief mainly on the principles found in the Holy Bible, and view first century Christianity as their source. Their founder is Charles Taze Russell whose background and study of the Bible led him to conclude that hellfire does not exist, God is not a Trinity, and that 1914 marked the second coming of Christ. Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that all scriptures are inspired of God and beneficial, but some people have even claimed that they are not even Christians. They believe that “There is not another name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must get saved, which is Jesus Christ”. That is quoted in Acts 4:12 of the Bible. They believe that God is greater than Jesus, and that Jesus himself acknowledged that: “The Father is greater that I am,” (John 14:28) they also believe that they should be like Jesus by making God’s name...
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...˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝˝ 2013 Yearbook of Jehovah’s Witnesses CONTENTS 2013 Yeartext A Letter From the Governing Body Highlights of the Past Year Preaching and Teaching Earth Wide Myanmar One Hundred Years Ago—1913 Grand Totals 2 4 9 ...
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...What you do not know about the beliefs of Jehovah’s Witnesses? Abstract Jehovah’s Witness (JW); who are they, what do Jehovah Witnesses represent, why do JW’s not celebrate birthdays, why do JW’s refuse blood transfusions? Many questions arise surrounding the Jehovah Witness beliefs and views on life which bring many misconceptions to people whom are not affiliated to Jehovah Witnesses. This report explores the beliefs, views, misconceptions and relationship of Jehovah Witness practices which I identified during the attendance of a Jehovah’s Witness meeting (which is commonly known in Baptist religious as Sunday service) as well as thorough research around JW’s practices which was conducted before the attendance of the JW meeting. Jehovah‘s Witnesses are followers of a Christian based religious movement. The denomination was founded in the USA towards the end of the 19th century, under the leadership of Charles Taze Russell. The headquarters of the movement is in New York. There are about 6.9 million active witnesses in 235 countries, including 1 million in the USA and 130,000 in the UK (bbc.com). Members of the JW practice are probably best known for their door to door evangelical work; witnessing from house to house, offering bible literature and recruiting and converting people to the truth. Jehovah Witnesses are highly motivated people and known for proselytizing the religion to people of other religions. Although the religion is Christian based, JW’s believe traditional...
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...It is really interesting to make a thorough search in what way the religions of the world are different from the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses. Because then we can find out, that the Christian religion of Jehovah’s Witnesses are really different in a big way from the religions of the world. This alone would not be so very interesting. But the interesting point is, that the Christian religion of Jehovah’s Witnesses are different in a positive way. For example: Every Jehovah’s Witness knows outstandingly what the Bible is telling all about. How’s that come to be? Before somebody can become a Witness of Almighty God Jehovah (Jehovah is the Name of God, according to the Bible), he or she must really study the Bible. To that point, that he or she knows and really understands the main Bible teachings. This is one big difference to most other religions. Jehovah’s Witnesses have really a good understanding of the teachings of the Bible. It is also amazing, that even the little ones among Jehovah’s Witnesses know the teachings of the Bible. But this is just one of the reasons, why Jehovah’s Witnesses are in a very positive way different from other religions. We have many different experiences; from the slamming of doors on us; to those who respectfully listen and converse with us. Quite often we find that we can really get people thinking about what they've been taught by their own religion. Some get upset that they've been paying into their religious system all their lives, and haven't...
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...and Ethnic Diversity Culture Diversity June 2, 2013 June 2, 2013 Religious Group Jehovah Witness The religious group Jehovah’s Witness was founded in the 1870s by Charles Taze Russell; he believed that hell did not exist. Jehovah’s Witness also believe in the end of times and Armageddon. Jehovah’s Witness reject the cross because to them the cross represents a fertility symbol; they do not wear crosses nor print the cross on their bibles. “Although Jehovah’s Witnesses identify themselves as comprising a Christian denomination, other groups regard them as a cult that stands outside orthodox Christianity.” (Sharpe, 2010, p. 1) There are other religious groups like the Roman Catholics that believe in forgiveness of sin with a church ritual through confession with help from a priest, the Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) believe that Jesus Christ is the savior of the world; he is the only way to return to the heavenly Father. Mormons believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for the sins of the world. Hinduism believe in reincarnation and Karma which tells a person’s destiny in the life they are living now and in the next life. The beliefs and views of the Jehovah’s Witness is not shared by everyone. “In the precedent-setting 1944 Prince v. Massachusetts decision, which involved a Jehovah's Witness, the court ruled that a child's welfare trumps the religious beliefs of the parents.” (Goodenow, 2009, p. 1) The Judge believed that the parents could...
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...In the health care world there are many factors like religion that play a role in the type of care a patient receives. In class we were given a story about how an eight year old boy died from refusing a blood transfusion because he was a Jehovah's witness. In our Clinical Ethics book we had to read a case in Delaware about how a three year old boys Christian Scientist parents refused chemotherapy for the boy. In the story about the boy, he was sick with leukemia and had a seventy percent survival rate of the next five years if he accepted the blood transfusion. Also, they boys legal guardian was his aunt who was a Jehovah's witness. This is what caused a controversy because the boys original parents said that the boy had been wrongly influenced by the aunt and should receive the transplant. To me this raises a couple of concerns; why was the boy in the custody of the aunt in the first place? Does this mean that there was already family issues beside this? Do they let the boy make such a big decision? When we were first talking about this in class my first opinion was they shouldn't let the boy make such a big decision on his own being so young and on the basis of being a Jehovah's witness. But after a woman made a comment about the boys quality of life not being well from the leukemia, that maybe he did not want to live his life being hospitalized and sick all the time made my opinion really torn about this issue. I mean if I was a eight years old and I did not have a hopeful...
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...Bates. The interviewee name is will be stated as Amber. The purpose of this interview was to inform myself of a religion that is not of my own. The religion being discussed is Jehovah Witnesses. The following questions were asked during the interview, 1. Were you born into this religion? 2. If you converted, what was your previous religion? 3. Why did you choose this religion to convert too? 4. What do you think about other religions? 4. Why do you refer to God as Jehovah and not by the name of God? 7. How do you personal respond to individuals who claim that Jehovah’s Witnesses is a cult? 8. What are your thoughts and beliefs on afterlife? 9. Is it true that Jehovah Witness is not allowed to receive blood transfusions? 10. What is the most fulfilling thing about being a Jehovah Witness? The interview started off with introductions of both parties. I then preceded with the interview questions. I asked Amber “Was she born into this religion”? In response to my question she stated that yes, she was in fact born into this religion. In fact so we’re both of her parents. After asking this question, question number two or three were not needed to be asked. But also in response to question one, Amber stated that throughout her family’s history, including her ancestors, everyone was a Jehovah Witnesses. I then asked Amber questions four, “Why do you refer to God as Jehovah and not by the name of God”? Amber’s response was, “Jehovah-Jireh” is one of the many different names of God...
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...encourages faith in God’s now-reigning King, Jesus Christ, whose shed blood opens the way for mankind to gain eternal life. The Watchtower, published by Jehovah’s Witnesses continuously since 1879, is non-political. It adheres to the Bible as its authority.” [ (The Watchtower Announcing Jehovah's Kingdom, 2007) ] Selling Religion Door to Door What do we truly know about Jehovah’s Witnesses? We have all avoided the door when we see them on the doorstep, but what do we know about their beliefs? Are their beliefs similar or different from our own? Why are they on the doorstep? What are they selling? These are the questions I have asked myself many times. This is also one of the reasons I chose to learn more about this religion. I have known a few Jehovah’s Witnesses in my life, and they both had drastically different ways of practicing the religion. Not all Jehovah’s Witnesses conform to the strict rules. In my journey to learn more, I found that more and more followers are becoming disassociated with the group; which puts the future of this organized religion in jeopardy. Charles Taze Russell was a follower and teacher of the Adventist movement of the late 19th century. The Adventists were a group that under the direction of William Miller, believed the second coming of Christ was going to occur in 1843 or 1844. [ (Jehovah's Witness, 2009) ] When this did not happen, the group was divided....
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...they can relate to or that they believe is morally correct. Religion has become one of the top organizations to create structure and balance in ones’ life. Religion can be found across the entire world; some religions are practiced in multiple parts of the world. In this paper it will analyze two monotheist religions, first by describing some of the things they share in common and their differences. In addition each religion’s history, rituals, doctrines, and beliefs will be examined. Jehovah witnesses are a smaller group of people who believes in Christianity but does not believe in the same traditions, rituals and doctrines as other Christians like non-denominational Christians. This group was founded in 1852-1916 by a man name C.T. Russell. Russell, thought the teachings of Christianity was unreal and fictitious. When he read the bible he didn’t believe in the “Trinity”. The “Trinity” is as a form of polytheism where Jesus came in three different forms. Witnesses do not acknowledge the...
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...Jehovah's Witnesses is a group[->0] with more than seven million members throughout the world. They believe God[->1] is about to end the present system of life in the world, with its crime, violence, sickness and death, and replace it with his Kingdom which will bring about peace for all humans who live by Bible[->2] standards. Most of the religion's beliefs are based on the Bible and these beliefs were taught by Charles Taze Russell, a preacher who started a Bible study group in Pennsylvania[->3], USA[->4] in 1876, and later started publishing a religious magazine called The Watchtower[->5]. Many of those beliefs, especially about who God is and what his plans are for humans and the earth, are different to what is taught in mainstream Christian churches. Jehovah's Witnesses believe that only 144,000 people will go to heaven and that the remaining people who obey God will live forever[->6] on a paradise[->7] Earth[->8]. They do not believe that God is a Trinity[->9], and teach that when people die, they remain in their grave until Jesus Christ[->10] resurrects them after God's Kingdom, or government, is ruling over earth. Witnesses are best known for preaching[->11] their beliefs from door-to-door and in other public places, and offering their magazines, The Watchtower and Awake! They are also well known for refusing to join armies and refusing blood transfusions. In 1870 a young clothing shop owner named Charles Taze Russell heard an Adventist[->12] preacher explain that...
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