Jehova's Witnesses

[Bioture]

What does Jehova's Witnesses want? Who are they? What is their beliefs? Why do they try to reach immigrants using the gospel? How do I refuse them?

Firstly, I would like to address the fact that Jehova's Witnesses are not associated with christianity or the united church of christ. They call themselves "christians" because they think that they are the only true christians but have completely cut themselves off from the worldwide christian church that has existed for the past two millenia. Jehova's witnesses is a religious movement started in the late 19th century by a Charles Russel. They are religious people who believes in God, but in many different ways than christians. They have their own translation of the bible that came into print in 1950 (new world translation) which is not recognized by any denomination of christianity.

They visit your house (or ask to visit) because in many foreign cultures it isn't polite to refuse such an offer. The whole point of visiting isn't to spread the true word of God, but to get people to join their organization. They seem sincere, friendly, etc. They're very well prepared to have a extended and drawn out discussion about your beliefs even when you tell them the mistakes in their rhetoric. Interestingly enough, their teaching is NOT based on the bible. They have their OWN bible (new world translation) where they fuck around with many key verses to reflect their own teachings. Not only is this personal depiction, this is an entirely different book - protestants, methodists, catholics, orthodox, have their own depictions, but all these denominations can teach their branch of christianity using one version of the bible (NIV, KJV, etc).

The literature they spread is equally disassociated with the worldwide church of christ - Watchtower and Awake (or the watchtower society) speaks the true word of God. Only the bible speaks the true word of God. There is no human depiction of it that is entirely true or accurate. Other bullshit teachings include:

- Christians are passive.
- The world is about to end.
- bible prohibits political elections, birthdays, other holdays (halloween, labor day, etc), and giving blood
- Salvation depends on being a Jehova's Witness.
- God is some sort of angry avenger and we should fear him. This actually plays on the phrase "God fearing" which means something entirely different.
- Jesus is not God. (The father, the son, and the holy ghost are supposed to be one.)

I'm just here to educate. The next time Jehovas Witnesses come to visit you, ask them this: Are you reaching out with love, or are you trying to religion to scare me into becoming a member?

[pv=nrt]

I am confused, aren't you strongly anti-christian?

second, don't anwser the door. That's why they make windows.

[Ilya]

they dont celebrate birthdays

one of my friends is a jehova's witness. dude is an ok guy

[Bioture]

I am confused, aren't you strongly anti-christian?

second, don't anwser the door. That's why they make windows.

No no i'm just trying to make the distinction between christianity and jehovas witnesses.

Although it is admirable they come to your house as friends and etc. There needs to be the distinction.

[Ace]

Actually another thing they believe is that there were 144000 called to go to heaven, since creating there religion more then 144000 people have died thus any one who becomes a witness now is not going to heave according to the original beliefs. Ask them if they are going to heaven.....

[Xog]

edited

[NaiLed]

I know this is slightly off-topic, but I thought I'd post it anyway.

This is from a TV programme on Channel 4 called "Who Wrote The Bible?"

The answer to 'Who wrote the Bible?' turns out to be complex. For a start, the Bible isn't a single book, but contains 66 separate books which were collected over something like 1,200 years. Christians and Jews have usually been careful to say that the scriptures weren't delivered from a passing cloud, but were, they believe, written, edited and compiled by human beings under the inspiration of God. Even so, what Robert Beckford discovers on his biblical road trip is much more complex than anything he learned in Sunday school.

Take the Five Books of Moses, which open the Bible and include the world-famous stories of the creation, the Garden of Eden and Noah's flood. Known in Hebrew, the language they were written in, as the Torah, these books contain the foundations of Judaism and Christianity. It turns out that the Books of Moses weren't written by Moses at all, but by four anonymous writers, each with his own particular view to promote. These writings were only brought together when an Israelite king found them useful to promote his political agenda, many centuries after the time of Moses. Says Beckford: 'King Hezekiah turned the Bible into a party political manifesto for monotheism. He definitely knew something about spin.'

The same goes for the four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Beckford dives down into the ancient catacombs beneath a church in Rome to discover why Mark, the first Gospel writer, started to write about Jesus in the first place – as an encouragement to the first generation of Christians, who were facing persecution. He discovers that although the Gospel writers seem to be giving us direct reportage from the life of Jesus, each of them actually had his own spin on the story. While Matthew was keen to show how Jewish Jesus was, for the Jewish wing of the early church, Luke pushed the Roman angle. He packaged the teaching and miracles of Jesus to show that even civilised Roman citizens could believe in him.

http://www.channel4.com/culture/micr...not/bible.html

It is als interesting to note that 80% of Americans believe that the Bible is the word of God.

[Subjugation]

Other bullshit teachings include:

- The world is about to end.
- God is some sort of angry avenger and we should fear him. This actually plays on the phrase "God fearing" which means something entirely different.
- The father, the son, and the holy ghost are supposed to be one.

This is no different than the what I was taught in Catholic and Pentecostal churches. You mention Jehovah's Witnesses try and use fear to enlist you...how is that any different than Christianity in general?

Jesus preached love under the thinly veiled guise of fear of a miserable afterlife as a tool to recruit followers.

[Bioture]

This is no different than the what I was taught in Catholic and Pentecostal churches. You mention Jehovah's Witnesses try and use fear to enlist you...how is that any different than Christianity in general?

Jesus preached love under the thinly veiled guise of fear of a miserable afterlife as a tool to recruit followers.

Perhaps its vague, but I was trying to say that they believe that the world is ending imminently. If you briefly skim the New World Translation bible's revelation chapter, you'll see what I mean.

And you're supposed to reach out with love, and not "do this or go to hell". Contrary to the common misconception, "hell" is just an eternity without God - it has nothing to do with punishing people who wont take certain pieces of literature or join a certain organization. Regardless of what society has done with religion and how religion has become a tool (this I agree with, for the most part) no where in the bible does it say, "use fear to recruit." Rather it has always been to share the love of God, and the acceptance of everyone - sinners and saints alike.

You edited the 3rd point i was trying to make. They do NOT acknowledge that god is triune. They teach you that Jesus is SEPERATE from God and the holy spirit.

[Squeezer]

my aunt's a jehova's witness, and the 144,000 thing is right, except they believe that the only way they can get into heaven is if they lead a better life than someone already in heaven. That way they replace them.

[Kolar]

My family would probably be consider Christian, historically. We celibrate Christmas as it were a normal holliday in the spirt of kindness and because we believe it is special to be with family (and why not with the free day off?). We do not believe in extreme values like burning gay people alive or that they're evil (okay maybe I was a little extreme there on burning) or preaching about a person who was killed 2,004 or so years ago because he challenged Roman rule of Israel and talk about him like he just got me free beer. I'm not going to allow my own beliefs to be aligned with a religion, one of which I see greatly consisting of people who would stand for a chunk of their belief structure to be based around intolerence, being ignorant of the progessiveness of any society, being ignorant about the obscurity of their species in this universe and basiclly without question can pass judgement on anything and everything; considering their moral and ethical stand point be to moderate if not right. That's what I see, and I would rather not be a part of it.


My aunt did convert from this, i'm not sure if she was more religious but as a family this is what we believed. I'm not experienced enough with the beliefs of people who are Jehova's Witnesses, nor do I have a sense on what their general population believes. My cousin who is 9 now has lived with my aunt after my uncle and her both broke up. He was calling us all non-christian for celebrating pagan holidays such as Christmas. Talking with her older daughter who is in her 20s, she said it hasn't been easy to deal with someone who has decided to live and change their life style like this. She told me there are a lot of daily things you must strictly follow, though she isn't part of this, she's a Catholic I believe. I'm not going to right out say it's a cult and offend anyone here but I dont think you have to alter your daily life to believe in anything or to be part of a community.

It's fine if they want to live their lives they way they want but it shouldn't be controlled around faith, especially if this faith is know to hold little and less tolerance to daily human things. I feel sorry for the two younger children, they probably aren't going to find anything useful and I believe being forced from a semi-Cristian belief structure to a new age one at their age could be of serious harm to their spiritual and mental state. From the outlandish shit I get from one of them at family events, they probably will for the rest of their days be at odds with Christians and non-Crristians if they are not allowed to remove themselves from this in the future.

[Subjugation]

And you're supposed to reach out with love, and not "do this or go to hell". Contrary to the common misconception, "hell" is just an eternity without God

I'm not sure what version of the bible you're referring to, but hell is often associated with physical pain. Wailing, gnashing of teeth, unbelievers being thrown into a lake of burning sulpher, etc.

I mean, if Christianity was honest about offering legitimate peace and salvation, there'd be no need to terrorize people with an eternal punishment---real peace and salvation sells itself.

[Ace]

Another point would be how many times the religons has had major changes implimented to face the entire structe of what the religon is an how they operate. My father-in-law really loves it when the some into his neighboorhood he waits for them and invites them in to show them some of the flaws in what they choose to follow.

[Benno]

I'm not sure what version of the bible you're referring to, but hell is often associated with physical pain. Wailing, gnashing of teeth, unbelievers being thrown into a lake of burning sulpher, etc.

I mean, if Christianity was honest about offering legitimate peace and salvation, there'd be no need to terrorize people with an eternal punishment---real peace and salvation sells itself.

Untrue, simply becuase without any point of refrence, peace and salvation -- or a new car, box of crackers, camera, lifestyle, anything -- would have no value. It wouldn't make sense for the bible or anything else ment to persuade not to present the opposite idea/lifestyle/product as negative or lacking.

[Pandagirl!]

It is als interesting to note that 80% of Americans believe that the Bible is the word of God.

It was inspired by God, or "God breathed" as it said in like New King James Version.