Understand that Jehovah's Witnesses have many critics. This is primarily due to their worldwide evangelizing work, their "non negotiable" adherence to Bible standards, shunning ex members, and the fact that their teachings on certain subjects are "different" then what is taught in many "main stream" churches. As such, anyone who truly wants to understand Jehovah's Witnesses and their teachings has to do thorough research and make a clear distinction between facts, hearsay or outright lies.
Be patient with them and yourself. Jehovah's Witnesses believe that they have gone back to the pattern of worship of the first century Christians. They point to many beliefs, practices and traditions common in Christendom today and say that these have over time crept in from non Christian sources and have nothing to do with Christianity. As a result, they feel that over time the real message and true doctrines of the Bible have been lost. As such, their body of doctrine has undergone development since the 1870s and has been refined since then to exclude non Christian teachings and to try to match the beliefs, doctrines and values of early Christians. Therefore, it will take time to research and understand this faith.
Seek to understand... Similarities with Christian views. For example, the Witnesses believe in salvation through ransom by means of Jesus Christ. Like many other Christians they believe the Bible is the literal word of God. Differences with nominal Christian views. For example, the Witnesses do not believe in hell fire, the trinity, heavenly life for most Christians or that Jesus died on a cross but rather a simple wooden stake (in the original Koine Greek "stauros"). When it comes to the teaching of hell, the Witnesses believe that "God is love" and He, as a loving Father, would never do such a thing to his earthly children. They claim that it is a historical fact, that this teaching was grafted on to Christianity over 300 years after the death of Jesus and is apostles by devious church leaders who wanted to control people. The Witnesses also reject the Trinity as a non-Christian teaching which they believe cannot be supported by the Bible. And just like the hell doctrine, they claim it was "forcibly injected" into Christianity. Conversely, the Witnesses believe that when a person dies they are dead and await a resurrection by Jesus using God's holy spirit, and that he is the ultimate judge as to who will be resurrected or not. They cite Scriptures such as Acts 24:15, 1 Corinthians 15:12-21, Revelation 20:12,13 and many others as proof that the Bible teaches about a resurrection. They further reason that if there is no resurrection and all good people go to heaven, and all bad people go to hell, then who are all these mentioned in these Scriptures who will be resurrected? The Witnesses believe in the paradise earth which is mentioned in the Scriptures, for example in Revelation 21:1-5, that will soon replace the current system of things. Only about 18,000 of the current 8.3 million members believe they will go to heaven. The rest, they believe, will live on a paradise earth. The Witnesses believe that the whole message of "God's Kingdom" has been almost completely lost in the churches of Christendom over time. They cite the Lord's Prayer and Scriptures such as Luke 4:43, 16:16, Matthew 9:35, 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 and many others as proof and they teach that Jesus' whole life and ministry was centered around the proclamation of God's Kingdom and teaching people what it will do for humankind in the future. The Witnesses feel that God's Kingdom (Jehovah's' Kingdom) is God's ultimate solution for all the problems in this world and as such the Kingdom is one of the central doctrines of Jehovah's Witnesses. They are well known, and at times maligned, for declaring this message worldwide. Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society. The legal and administrative side of Jehovah's Witnesses is headquartered in Warwick, New York. The main goal of their non-profit societies is the publishing and distribution of religious literature, of which The Watchtower and Awake! magazines are most well known. Witnesses see their faith as closely associated with these organizations. Thus Witnesses will at times refer to themselves as "publishers". This term refers to their public preaching in general, as well as the literal distribution of religious literature. Witnesses will often use the term "the Society" or "faithful slave" when commenting on the administrative or religious direction received from headquarters. Funding. The whole Jehovah's Witness organization and local Kingdom Halls are totally funded by voluntary contributions both from Witnesses and non Witnesses who appreciate their worldwide work. They do not pass around a plate or envelope during their meetings. There is a contribution box usually in a corner somewhere and if anyone is inclined they can contribute something anonymously. Volunteers print the literature, volunteers deliver the literature and volunteers go from door to door to place the literature with those who are interested. They cite Jesus who in Matthew 10:8 said “you received free, give free”. While the Witnesses do not charge for any of their literature they do accept voluntary contributions. It is reported that much of the funding which is collected in affluent countries is redistributed to poorer parts of the world to print literature and build Kingdom Halls. This way the Witnesses, without discrimination, offer all, even those in the poorest countries, the ability learn about God and have the same regular "spiritual food" that all Witnesses worldwide have. View of other religions. The Witnesses believe all religion outside their own, including the rest of Christendom have, to a greater or lesser degree, drifted away from God and His word the Bible. They feel this has occurred over many centuries and is well documented in the public domain. They add if someone does not research the matter, the drifting may seem minor or even indistinguishable. As such, they feel that these religions have now drifted so far that they are now part of a larger world-wide group of false religion the Bible calls "Babylon the Great." They cite such Scriptures as Revelation 14:8, 16:19, 17:5, 18:2,10,21 as proof. View of most holidays. Since the 1920s the Witnesses have rejected, as pagan, the celebration of Christmas. Witnesses also do not celebrate birthdays, Easter, Mothers day, Fathers day, Valentine's Day and most other holidays due to the pagan roots of these holidays. Witnesses do however commemorate the last supper of Jesus, that occurs around the time of the Jewish Passover. For this reason, they don't celebrate holidays. Emphasis on "Jehovah", which is the personal name of God. In the original manuscripts of the Bible God's name appears as YHWH some 6,828 times. The most commonly used equivalent in English is Jehovah. In other languages it is a similar sounding version. The Witnesses widely use that name because they claim it makes God real and "personal". In the Bible the name Jehovah is only used for Almighty God who is the Father and Creator of all things. The Son of God is called Jesus. This emphasis of God's name and the clear distinction between Father and Son explains, in part, their rejection of the trinity doctrine as unscriptural. View of the time of the end. From their start as International Bible Students led by Charles Taze Russell, the Witnesses focused on end-time prophesy. Originally identifying the period from 1874 to 1914 as the last days. Modern day Witnesses reject 1874 as significant but have retained 1914 as a marked year in both history and Scripture. Learning how their views on eschatology have changed over time and how they have continually searched for Bible understanding can help you understand this faith. Unique terminology. For example, the Witnesses refer to their places of worship as Kingdom Halls, not Churches. Witnesses refer to each other as "brother" and "sister." They colloquially refer to their faith as "the truth." What critics say and what Witness reply. Critics point out there is no dignified resignation from the faith that does not imply a person leaving is making a grave mistake and likely morally weak or wicked. Witnesses reply that any member can leave at any time or simply stop coming to their meetings. The Witnesses add that they have a responsibility to keep the congregation Scripturally clean and undefiled by the low moral standards for today's world. Critics further say those who are disfellowshipped (excommunicated) are shunned by those who remain in the faith. The Witnesses reply that such shunning is to help the disfellowshipped person to "come to their senses". Statistics show that actually many do come back and that a high percentage of those who are disfellowshipped are teenagers who "think they know better". The Witnesses add that rarely is anyone disfellowshipped for what they do. Rather the primary reason a Witness would be disfellowshipped is for their attitude about what they did. Other critics have pointed to loss of life for some Witnesses, including teens, who have refused medical treatment involving blood. Witnesses reply that there is no medical evidence which proves that refusing blood causes death or harm. Conversely, the Witnesses point to hundreds of studies which show blood transfusions lead to many complications and even death. In addition, they point out that ultimately all Witnesses (adults and teens) have to make their own personal decisions regarding refusal to take blood and are responsible to God about their decision. View of those outside the faith. The Witnesses believe the whole world is actually ruled by Satan, citing Bible verses such as 2 Corinthians 4:4 and Revelation 12:9. However, they are quick to point out that God has allowed this only for a short time due to the rebellion of both humans beings and certain spirit beings very early in human history and the challenge that this presented to God's rulership. That issue involves all sentient beings everywhere. Bible verses such as James 4:4 tend to cause Witnesses to limit their close association with those outside the faith, viewing them as "in the world" that is at "enmity with God." View of science. Where, in the eyes of many, science is in conflict with the Bible, the Witnesses will always side with the Bible. For example, the Witnesses accept the earth is billions of years old, but reject the theory of evolution as being flawed, inconsistent and actually unsupported by the fossil evidence. Witnesses believe the first Homo sapiens were Adam and Eve and that the whole world was flooded in 2370 BCE. View of blood. Based on Bible verses such as Acts 15:29 that command Christians to "abstain from blood" Jehovah's Witnesses refuse blood transfusions and medical treatments that involve the use of whole blood, red cells, white cells, platelets or plasma. Other fractions of blood have been designated as a "conscience matter." When Jehovah's Witnesses refuse blood transfusions, it would be incorrect to assume the average Witness sees this as a life and death choice. Nearly all published material by the Witnesses on the subject highlight the risks of blood transfusions while pointing out the benefits of non-blood alternatives. Thus when someone outside the faith reads an account of a Witness dying after refusing a blood transfusion they may be shocked and may assume that it was due to a lack of a transfusion. However, there are now a significant amount of studies which show that in most instances this is not the case. Those studies show that other factors were likely involved or that the case was hopeless to start with. The Witnesses are used to news media coverage which is bias against the faith. But in a surprising turn of evens, when it comes to transfusions, there is a growing body of evidence which actually suggests that the Witnesses are right in not accepting blood transfusions. All kinds of studies done around the world point to the same conclusion. It may be hard to believe by some, but there are now many hospitals worldwide which have already gone "bloodless" and many more will soon follow. And that is whole hospitals not just a few departments. Not only that but leading surgeons and specialists from around the world are touting "bloodless" operations, trauma care (even extreme trauma) and other treatments as the "gold standard" treatment of the future due to significantly lower mortality rates, faster recovery and much lower chance of infection. One of the leaders in this new approach to medical treatment is the famous John Hopkins institute in the USA. Updates to their doctrine. Witnesses feel that the true light from the Bible was almost extinguished in the middle ages (dark ages). Witnesses by and large are proud of the fact that their doctrine has changed and developed over time and is relevant based on an ever clearer understanding of Scripture. Witnesses are usually the first ones to admit that occasionally minor changes are made to their doctrine. They claim that this is done to have the clearest possible understanding of Scripture based on continued research and study of the Bible.
Research common misconceptions about the Witnesses. There are many Kingdom Halls with windows, despite what some have claimed. If they do not have windows it is usually due to vandalism or being situated in a rough neighborhood. The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures is a Bible produced and used most often by the Witnesses. Critics have pointed to aspects of apparent anti-Divinity of Christ in this translation and other differences from translations such as the King James Version and other versions. However, some scholars have praised the translation for overcoming centuries of accumulated layers of church sponsored bias (forcing the translation to support certain church doctrines) and for sticking closely to the meaning of the original languages the Bible was written in. For example, one such scholar is Jason David BeDuhn, Ph.D. (not a Jehovah's Witness) who is an historian of religion and culture and currently Professor of Religious Studies at Northern Arizona University. BeDuhn holds a B.A. in Religious studies from the University of Illinois, Urbana, an M.T.S. in New Testament and Christian Origins from Harvard Divinity School, and a Ph.D. in the Comparative Study of Religions from Indiana University, Bloomington. In his scholarly book called Truth in Translation: Accuracy and Bias in English Translations of the New Testament Beduhn made a thorough study of various translations of the Bible. By means of a side-by-side examination of various Scriptures in various translations he makes a rather convincing argument that the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures published by the Witnesses is "surprisingly" probably the most accurate translation of the Bible that exists today. Witnesses are not taught salvation can be earned by preaching. They believe, like most other Christians, salvation is a free gift bestowed upon the faithful. Nevertheless, they feel that works must accompany faith, otherwise the faith is dead. They cite James 2:17 as a bases for their preaching and teaching activity. Witnesses do believe that only a total of 144,000 humans from various centuries will gain heavenly life to be "kings and priests of God", but this does not imply that millions of Witnesses feel they are all vying for this opportunity. Instead most Witnesses view their reward as everlasting life on a paradise earth. They cite Scriptures such as Psalms 37:11 and Matthew 5:5 as proof that the majority of faithful servants of God will inherit life on earth. Witnesses accept modern medicine and they work hard to get the best possible medical treatment.
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