The religious organization Jehovah's Witnesses operates in more than two hundred countries around the world and has more than five million followers (according to other sources, the number of members in 2011 exceeded seven million). In Russia, there are about one hundred and sixty thousand. Some religious scholars consider Jehovah's Witnesses a sect, while others consider it a Protestant religious organization.
In 1870, Charles Tez Russell created a Bible study group in Pittsburgh, which was renamed Jehovah's Witnesses (or Watchtower Society, Bibles, and Brochures) in 1931. The organization’s ecclesiastical governing council is now located in the Brooklyn New York area.
The name of the organization is based on words taken from the book of the prophet Isaiah, where Jehovah calls his followers witnesses. The translation of the book was made by the participants of the organization.
Religious scholars have different opinions regarding Jehovah's Witnesses. Some scholars classify the organization as a Protestant trend of the Adventist trend, others as a pseudo-Christian trend, and others as sectarianism.
The members of the organization consider their destiny testimonies (stories) about God, whose name is Jehovah, and the missionary propaganda of their beliefs. Although the Jehovahists do not consider themselves to be either a separate religion or an organized church.
They are convinced that Jehovah is God, whose son is Christ. He gave his life as an atonement for the pious Jehovah's Witnesses and rose from the dead like an immortal spirit. Members of the organization believe in the second coming of Christ to Earth and his unconditional victory over Satan. But they do not recognize the afterlife and, relying on their own interpretations of the Bible, claim that sinners cease to exist at all, and only 144, 000 are chosen to go to heaven, who will rule earthly affairs together with Christ after Armageddon.
Members of the organization believe that obey only laws that do not contradict God. They do not recognize military service and do not accept blood transfusions, do not give honors to the national flag and anthem, and are not members of any public organizations.
They become members of the organization through baptism, which is carried out with complete immersion. After this, the convert should devote himself to the ministry of testimony, which consists in the propaganda and distribution of Bible brochures from the Watchtower publishing house on the streets and in the houses. In addition to baptism, the organization has special rituals for marriage and burial.
Jehovah's Witnesses gather once a week in the so-called “Kingdom Halls" to study the Bible. There are no special clergymen in the organization. Local communities are run by Jehovah's servants who have been trained in the organization’s preaching schools.
In a number of countries, until recently, Jehovah's Witnesses were banned: in Spain, Romania, Greece, the Dominican Republic, as well as in almost all Muslim countries.
Related article
Why Jehovah's Witnesses is not Christian
