Jehovah's Witnesses

This article is about the denomination. For the related corporation, see Christian Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses, Inc.

Jehovah's Witnesses
ClassificationRestorationist
OrientationPremillennialist[1]
ScriptureBible (Protestant canon)
TheologyNontrinitarian
GovernanceGoverning Body
StructureHierarchical[2]
RegionWorldwide
HeadquartersWarwick, New York, US
FounderCharles Taze Russell (Bible Student movement)[3]
Joseph Franklin Rutherford[4]
Origin1870s
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US
Branched fromBible Student movement, Adventism[5]
SeparationsJehovah's Witnesses splinter groups
Congregations118,117 (2023)[6]
Members8.6 million (2023)[en 1][6]
Missionaries4,091 (2021)[7]
PublicationsJehovah's Witnesses publications
Official websitejw.org
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Jehovah's Witnesses
Overview
Organizational structure
History
Demographics
Literature
Places
People
Watch Tower presidents
Formative influences
Notable former members
Notable scholars
Criticism
Opposition

Jehovah's Witnesses is a nontrinitarian, millenarian, restorationist Christian denomination.[8] In 2023, the group reported approximately 8.6 million members involved in evangelism, with around 20.5 million attending the annual Memorial of Christ's death.[6][en 1] Jehovah's Witnesses believe that the destruction of the present world system at Armageddon is imminent, and the establishment of God's kingdom over earth is the only solution to all of humanity's problems.[9]

The group emerged in the United States from the Bible Student movement founded in the late 1870s by Charles Taze Russell, who also co-founded Zion's Watch Tower Tract Society in 1881 to organize and print the movement's publications.[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.[10] Rutherford made significant organizational and doctrinal changes,[11] including adoption of the name Jehovah's witnesses[en 2] in 1931 to distinguish the group from other Bible Student groups and symbolize a break with the legacy of Russell's traditions.[13][14]

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. They consider the use of God's name vital for proper worship. They reject Trinitarianism, inherent immortality of the soul, and hellfire, which they consider unscriptural doctrines. They do not observe Christmas, Easter, birthdays, or other holidays and customs they consider to have pagan origins incompatible with Christianity.[15] They prefer to use their own Bible translation, the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures.[16][17] Adherents commonly call their body of beliefs "The Truth" and consider themselves to be "in the Truth".[18] They consider human society morally corrupt and under the influence of Satan, and most limit their social interaction with non-Witnesses.[19]

The denomination is directed by a group of elders known as the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses, which establishes all doctrines.[20][21] Congregational disciplinary actions include formal expulsion and shunning, for what they consider serious offenses.[22][23] Baptized people who formally leave are considered disassociated and are also shunned. Members are not allowed to socialize with a shunned individual. Shunned individuals may eventually be reinstated if deemed repentant. Former members may experience significant mental distress as a result of being shunned,[24] and some seek reinstatement to keep contact with their friends and family.[25]

The group's position on conscientious objection to military service and refusal to salute state symbols (like national anthems and flags) has brought it into conflict with some governments.[26] Some Jehovah's Witnesses have been persecuted, and their activities banned or restricted in some countries. Persistent legal challenges by Jehovah's Witnesses have influenced legislation related to civil rights in several countries.[27] The organization has been criticized regarding biblical translation, doctrines, and alleged coercion of its members. The Watch Tower Society has made various unfulfilled predictions about major biblical events, such as Jesus' Second Coming, the advent of God's kingdom, and Armageddon. Their policies for handling cases of child sexual abuse have been the subject of various formal inquiries.

  1. ^ Chryssides 2008, p. 93.
  2. ^ Cobb v. Brede (California Superior Court, San Mateo County February 22, 2012).
  3. ^ a b Stanley I. Kutler, ed. (2003). "Jehovah's Witnesses". Dictionary of American History (3rd ed.). New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. ISBN 978-0-684-80533-7.
  4. ^ Rogerson 1969, p. 55
  5. ^ Bergman 1995, p. 33.
  6. ^ a b c "2023 Grand Totals". Watchtower Bible and Tract Society. 2023. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference missionaries was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Sources for descriptors:
  9. ^ "Jehovah's Witness". Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 2007. ISBN 978-1-59339-293-2.
  10. ^ Michael Hill, ed. (1972). "The Embryonic State of a Religious Sect's Development: The Jehovah's Witnesses". Sociological Yearbook of Religion in Britain (5): 11–12.
  11. ^ Leo P. Chall (1978). "Sociological Abstracts". Sociology of Religion. 26 (1–3): 193.
  12. ^ "Bearers of the Fear-inspiring Name". The Watchtower. Watch Tower Society. November 1, 1961. p. 654.
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference Rogerson 1969 55 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ Cite error: The named reference Beckford 1975 30 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ Franz 2007, pp. 274–275.
  16. ^ Edwards, Linda (2001). A Brief Guide to Beliefs. Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press. p. 438. ISBN 978-0-664-22259-8.
  17. ^ Chryssides 2008, p. 100.
  18. ^ Singelenberg, Richard (1989). "It Separated the Wheat From the Chaff: The 1975 Prophecy and its Impact Among Dutch Jehovah's Witnesses". Sociological Analysis. 50 (Spring 1989): 23–40. doi:10.2307/3710916. JSTOR 3710916.
  19. ^ Penton 1997, p. 280–283.
  20. ^ Beckford 1975, p. 221: "Doctrine has always emanated from the Society's elite in Brooklyn and has never emerged from discussion among, or suggestion from, rank-and-file Witnesses."
  21. ^ Penton 1997, pp. 58, 61–62.
  22. ^ Chryssides, George D. (1999). Exploring New Religions. London: Continuum. p. 5. ISBN 978-0-8264-5959-6.
  23. ^ Chryssides 2016a, pp. 139–140.
  24. ^ Ransom, Heather; Monk, Rebecca; Heim, Derek (2021). "Grieving the Living: The Social Death of Former Jehovah's Witnesses". Journal of Religion and Health. 61 (3): 2458–2480. doi:10.1007/s10943-020-01156-8. PMC 9142413. PMID 33469793.
  25. ^ Grendele, Windy; Bapir-Tardy, Savin; Flax, Maya (2023). "Experiencing Religious Shunning: Insights into the Journey From Being a Member to Leaving the Jehovah's Witnesses Community". Pastoral Psychology. 73 (1): 43–61. doi:10.1007/s11089-023-01074-y. S2CID 259447164.
  26. ^ Knox 2018, pp. 3–4.
  27. ^ Botting 1993, pp. 1–13.


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