Browse Nearby. [208][209], This judgment will be based on their actions after resurrection rather than past deeds. If children account for half of all baptisms, the effectivness of preaching is even worse than outlined above. [269][270][271], Witnesses are taught that association with "worldly" people presents a "danger" to their faith,[272] and are instructed to minimize social contact with non-members to better maintain their own standards of morality. Filter by rating. [32] During the course of his ministry, Russell disputed many beliefs of mainstream Christianity including immortality of the soul, hellfire, predestination, the fleshly return of Jesus Christ, the Trinity, and the burning up of the world. [411][416][417][418], The group's failure to report abuse allegations to authorities has also been criticized. ", "Book Review: New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures", "Messengers of Godly Peace Pronounced Happy", "Staying Awake with the "Faithful and Discreet Slave", "Ousted members say Jehovah's Witnesses' policy on abuse hides offenses", "Jehovah's Witnesses and Child Protection", "New evidence in Jehovah's Witness allegations", "Jehovah's Witnesses' Scripturally Based Position on Child Protection", "Jehovah's Witnesses destroyed documents showing child abuse allegations against church elder", "Witness leaders accused of shielding molesters", California Court of Appeal, First Appellate District, Division Three, "Former Jehovah's Witness Takes on Church Over Sex Abuse Allegations", "Jehovah's Witnesses let sex offender interrogate victims", "Decision: Manchester New Moston Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses", "Jehovah's Witnesses to join redress scheme", Bibliography of works on the Jehovah's Witnesses, Architecture of cathedrals and great churches, INFORM (Information Network Focus on Religious Movements), Academic study of new religious movements, Religious discrimination against Neopagans, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jehovah%27s_Witnesses&oldid=1150213210, Christian groups with annihilationist beliefs, Religious belief systems founded in the United States, Religious organizations established in 1870, Wikipedia articles needing page number citations from May 2022, Articles with Russian-language sources (ru), Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia indefinitely semi-protected pages, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Official website different in Wikidata and Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, "exists in a state of tension with the wider society;", "imposes tests of merit on would-be members;", "exercises stern discipline, regulating the declared beliefs and the life habits of members and prescribing and operating sanctions for those who deviate, including the possibility of expulsion;", "demands sustained and total commitment from its members, and the subordination, and perhaps even the exclusion of all other interests.". [94] In 2001 Newsday listed the Watch Tower Society as one of New York's forty richest corporations, with revenues exceeding $950million. This continued to be the case in 2014, as shown in the graph from Religious Switching and Intermarriage. TERMS OF USE [113] It appoints all branch committee members and traveling overseers, after they have been recommended by local branches, with traveling overseers supervising circuits of congregations within their jurisdictions. [217] Witnesses are assigned to a congregation in whose "territory" they usually reside and attend weekly services they refer to as "meetings" as scheduled by congregation elders. Detroit, MI: St. James Press, 2003. Jehovah's Witnesses and supplies for your entire family, . [131] The Watch Tower Society has produced over 227million copies of the New World Translation in whole or in part in over 185 languages. There has been a significant increase in older age groups, showing that Jehovah's Witnesses are ageing, without being replaced at the same rate by younger converts. Jehovah's Witnesses have an active presence in most countries, but do not form a large part of the population of any country. [241], The family structure is patriarchal. [315][316], The 2008 US Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life survey found a low retention rate among members of the denomination: about 37% of people raised in the group continued to identify themselves as Jehovah's Witnesses. [167], Jehovah's Witnesses emphasize the use of God's name, and they prefer the form Jehovaha vocalization of God's name based on the Tetragrammaton. Jehovah's Witnesses Overview Beliefs Practices People Opposition v t e Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society publications have made a series of predictions about Christ's Second Coming and the advent of God's Kingdom, each of which has gone unfulfilled. (See 2016 Calendar and 2014 Annual Report.). Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. It is a research tool for publications in various languages produced by Jehovah's Witnesses. [319], Sociologist James A. Beckford, in his 1975 study of Jehovah's Witnesses, classified the group's organizational structure as Totalizing, characterized by an assertive leadership, specific and narrow objectives, control over competing demands on members' time and energy, and control over the quality of new members. Africa has about half the rate of Witnesses of Europe, which follows on from Africa being fairly evenly split between Muslims and Christians. [260] Members who disassociate (formally resign) are described in Watch Tower Society literature as wicked and are also shunned. Free shipping for many products! Publishers were growing at an average rate of 5.63% per annum for the 15 years between 1981 and 1995. [52] Russell died October 31, 1916, at the age of 64 while returning from a ministerial speaking tour. Start your review today. This article summarizes our basic beliefs. This shows 1,522,202 stopped publishing. Many people are curious about who Jehovahs Witnesses are. [78][79], Worldwide membership of Jehovah's Witnesses reached 113,624 in 5,323 congregations by the time of Rutherford's death in January 1942. [3] A leadership dispute after Russell's death resulted in several groups breaking away, with Joseph Franklin Rutherford retaining control of the Watch Tower Society and its properties. | In 1919, he instituted the appointment of a director in each congregation, and a year later all members were instructed to report their weekly preaching activity to the Brooklyn headquarters. [196][197] The kingdom is viewed as the means by which God will accomplish his original purpose for the earth, transforming it into a paradise without sickness or death. [40], From 1879, Watch Tower supporters gathered as autonomous congregations to study the Bible topically. Jehovah's Witnesses hold meetings for worship twice each week. ", "Jehovah's Witnesses Official Media Web Site: Our History and Organization: Membership", "Advent Christian Church-Religious GroupsThe Association of Religion Data Archives", "PEW Forum on Religion and Public Life. PRIVACY POLICY Learn more about us and our beliefs. Congregations are generally organized geographically, and members are directed to attend the Kingdom Hall to which their neighborhood has been assigned, resulting in an ethnic mix generally representative of local population, though congregations based on language and ethnicity have also been formed.[6][7][8]. In 2011, when that group of children were the age of baptism, there were 263,161 people baptised. [249] Extreme physical abuse, willful non-support of one's family, and what the denomination terms "absolute endangerment of spirituality" are accepted as grounds for legal separation. Publishers includes baptized Witnesses of Jehovah as well as unbaptized ones who qualify to be Kingdom preachers. Watchtower 2011 Aug 15 p.22 It was announced that, starting in September 2014, appointments would be made by traveling overseers. These are the most recent statistics by continent, based on active members, or "publishers" as reported by the Watch Tower Society of Pennsylvania. Show all. | Congregation reports are tabulated, and the totals are sent to the local branch office. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for RARE JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES PROGRAM "MINT" NOT PRINTED BY WATCHTOWER EDMONTON at the best online prices at eBay! The Witnesses' literature defines the "world" as "the mass of mankind apart from Jehovah's approved servants" and teach that it is morally contaminated and ruled by Satan. Penton, professor emeritus of history at University of Lethbridge and a former member of the group, examines the history of Jehovah's Witnesses, and their doctrines. [352], In the United States, legal challenges by Jehovah's Witnesses prompted a series of state and federal court rulings that reinforced judicial protections for civil liberties. [203] They consider all other present-day religions to be false, identifying them with "Babylon the Great", or the "harlot", of Revelation17,[204] and believe that they will soon be destroyed by the United Nations, which they believe is represented in scripture by the scarlet-colored wild beast of Revelation chapter 17. 1) Denial of Self One thing you learn early on when you are born from Jehovah's. 1 star. The total number of average publishers has generally increased each year. Christian African countries have high Witness density levels, similar to Latin America. A common example given is a baptized Witness who dates a non-Witness; see, Raymond Franz cites numerous examples. Magazine. [244][245] Marrying a non-believer, or endorsing such a union, is strongly discouraged and carries religious sanctions. See details of the global preaching work of Jehovahs Witnesses from September2021 to August2022. These reports encourage us, just as similar reports encouraged the early Christians.Acts 2:41; 4:4; 15:3. [395][396][397] Some publications also claimed that God has used Jehovah's Witnesses and the International Bible Students as a modern-day prophet. [334], In 1940, one year following Canada's entry into World War II, the denomination was banned under the War Measures Act. The Scripture is there given in support of the statement, and therefore the individual when he looks up the Scripture and thereby verifies the statement,search[es] the Scripture to see whether these things were so. [69][72][73][74], On July 26, 1931, at a convention in Columbus, Ohio, Rutherford introduced the new name Jehovah's witnesses based on Isaiah 43:10: "'Ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me.'" Strikingly, the number of baptisms gravitates around double publisher growth, meaning that for every two people baptised one publisher leaves. He organized large international assemblies, instituted new training programs for members, and expanded missionary activity and branch offices throughout the world. Whilst average figures are more accurate, as dicussed elsewhere, peak figures are still insightful. Since January 2018, it has comprised eight members,[104] all of whom profess to be of the "anointed" class with a hope of heavenly lifebased in the Watch Tower Society's Warwick headquarters. [14][15][16], Jehovah's Witnesses are known for their door-to-door preaching, distributing literature such as The Watchtower and Awake!, and for refusing military service and blood transfusions. An Ancient Manuscript Supports Gods Name. [5] According to the Watch Tower Society, more than 25,600 members have died from COVID-19. Donations have no relevance as to whether a person is counted as a Witness or has any particular assignment or privilege in our organization. 2 stars. [241] Suicide is considered to be "self-murder" and a sin against God. Long term figures show a dramatic decrease in percentage growth rates when comparing the early 1970's with the 21st century. First to Review. Participation is voluntary. Accounting for less than 1 percent of American adults, one-third of their members leave the group, and two-fifths join from another religion." [425][426], The Australian Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse found that "there was no evidence before the Royal Commission of the Jehovah's Witness organisation having or not having reported to police any of the 1,006 alleged Kingdom Ministry 2002 Oct p.8 https://assetsnffrgf-a.akamaihd.net/assets/m/502016131/univ/art/502016131_univ_sqr_xl.jpg. . Many who do not attend our meetings benefit from our free home Bible study program. [288], They do not work in industries associated with the military, do not serve in the armed services,[289] and refuse national military service, which in some countries may result in their arrest and imprisonment. How Many of Jehovahs Witnesses Are There Worldwide? The following statistical information has been used in the estimation of some figures above: Despite growth coming to a virtual standstill, Watchtower continues to spin the figures as an indication of Jehovah's blessing. (King James Version, KJV) which was adopted by resolution. 1 Jehovah's Witnesses do not practice infant baptism,[123] and previous baptisms performed by other denominations are not considered valid. Nearly 5.7 million home Bible studies with Jehovah's Witnesses were reported,[1] including Bible studies conducted by Witness parents with their children.[3][4]. 0. [14][15][16] In 1932, Rutherford eliminated the system of locally elected elders and in 1938, introduced what he called a "theocratic" (literally, God-ruled) organizational system, under which appointments in congregations worldwide were made from the Brooklyn headquarters. Therefore, over 1.3 million Jehovah's Witnesses were disfellowshipped during the 30 year period from 1991 to 2020. The term was first suggested in 1935 by Joseph Franklin Rutherford, then president of the Watch Tower Society, for a building in Hawaii. This is an authorized Web site of Jehovah's Witnesses. Phone number (781) 233-1333. [26] Reproof is a lesser form of discipline given formally by a judicial committee to a baptized Witness who is considered repentant of serious sin; the reproved person temporarily loses conspicuous privileges of service, but suffers no restriction of social or spiritual fellowship. Jehovah's Witnesses have received criticism from mainstream Christianity, members of the medical community, former members and commentators regarding their beliefs and practices. 25,600 members have died from COVID-19 many who do not practice infant baptism, [ ]..., over 1.3 million Jehovah 's Witnesses were disfellowshipped during the 30 year period from 1991 to 2020 non-believer or. Baptism, [ 123 ] and previous baptisms performed by other denominations are not valid! 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