Where do the so called Jehovah Witness fall into religion? Are they a cult? OR WHAT???

Answer 1

Are they a cult? that depends on who is writing the book...lol

Looked at from a negative perspective just about any religious group could be called a cult.

Jehovah Witness.. as a denomination has some practices that lean quite strongly towards cultism.

They publish false prohphesies. They claim that certain things are going to happen but then when those things don't come to pass they change their publications.

I have known a few Jehovah Witnesses. I donot remember alot about their specific beliefs.

Here is what my reference says about them.

"The Witnesses have little or no association with other denominations, nor with secular governments. They hold that world powers and political parties are the unwitting allies of Satan. They refuse to salute the flags of nations and to perform military service; they almost never vote.

"The belief grew from the International Bible Students Association founded in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1872 by Charles Taze Russell. A Successor to Russell, Joseph Franklin Rutherford, aimed to have Jehovah (Yahweh) reaffimed as the true God and to identify those who witness in his name as God's especially accedited followers. It was Rutherford's Successor, Nathan Homer Knorr, who directed a group of Witnesses to produce a new translation of the Bible. ..."

"The goal of their belief is the establishment of God's kingdom, the Theocracy (a form of government by God). They believe this will come about after Armegeddon, based on their interpretaion of the Biblical books of Daniel and Revelation, which they used to make apocaliptic calculations. Pastor Russell determined that 1874 would be the year of Christ's invisible return. He also figured that 1914 would be the year of Christ's second coming and the end of the Gentiles. Apperantly, making prophesies is not dine this way anymore, which isn't surprising considering the track record. ...

"Jehovah's Witnesses insist that Jesus Christ is God's agent...Their own version of the Bible is called New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures. ... Biblical scholars ahve disagreed sharply with ...distortions in the translations.
as far as hell and the inevitability of eternal life are concerned, Jehovah's Witnesses dismiss both. Many believe that death is the end; total extinction.

"...churches called Kingdom Halls. ... appointed members called Overseers or Elders. ...also Presiding Overseers and Service Overseers. ...administrative structure,...includes Districts, ..which form a Branch, Branches form a Zone, and so on."

Here is one thing I personally like about what I read reguarding their beliefs beacuse it is found in the Bible.

"Members are baptised by immersion and must adhere to a strong moral code."

Immersion is to be fully dunked or covered.
Here is more from the book I cited as a reference.

"WItnesses believe that ant blood that leave the body must be destroyed. ... In 1967, they stated that organ transplants are a form of cannibalism and are to be shunned. ...reversed in 1980 and left up to personal conscience,...
Only one day of celebration is acknowledged: Memorial of Christ's Death at the time of Passover. They believe that Jesus was born on October 2. Neither that date nor any so-called pagan holidays -Christmas, THanksgiving, Independance day, Halloween, birthdays -are celebrated. There is no sabbath; all days are reguarded as holy. All positions of authority are reserved for men. ...
If members decide to leave the witnesses or are disfellowshipped, ...entire families shunned their reletives completely. If a person has been a devout member, the effect of being excommunicated...can be devestating. ...psycholoical fallout. "

So there you have it, in a nut shell.

**All words in quotation marks are directly quoted from the book I cited as a reference.

Answer 2

Depends on how you see the current revisions; To A Large Extent they are a religion. But the flip side is that there is enough to say that they qualify as a Cult. However, the Transition between a Cult and a Self-Perpetruating religion for the J dubs ocurred by the 1950s. The element that kept them labelled as a cult was the continual date setting for the end of time; But many other groups did that, so its hard to see how that disqualified them, especially when the dates that the other groups used were ones that the J Dubs Used themselves for Decades anyways.
In many senses the group is still unstable, with doctrinal changes, and cutbacks in publications, loss in membership, the J Dubs have yet to re-establish themselves as what they once were pre-1975.
And please note, The are not Technically a Break from the Catholic Church; Just Check the History of Pastor Charles Taze Russell for that: His Material in STUDIES IN THE SCRIPTURES VOLS 1-6 ( Some Believe he wrote VOL.7) Are Clearly from the Seventh Day Adventist School of Thought, Which is From Murray;s 1818-1819 Volume Predicting the end in 1843[Later Changed to 1844 due to Persecution and some convenient Visions relating to the investigative Judgement] ( which owes its Chronology to Immanuel Swedenborg of the Previous Century, and was Solidified in THE NEW CHURCH ).

Answer 3

First of all, the correct title is "Jehovah's Witnesses."

People tend to call a "cult" any religion that is not their own. Early Christianity was called a "sect." (Acts 24:14) The literal Greek word there is "heresy" (King James Version).

So what people call a religion largely depends on whether they like it or not. People who don't like Jehovah's Witnesses may call it a cult. People who objectively examine the beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses may recognize that it is not a cult, but a religion.

In addition, Webster's dictionary defines a cult, first of all, as "formal religious veneration: WORSHIP," and secondly as "a system of religious beliefs and ritual." Under these definitions, every religion is a "cult."

But it is the third definition that the word popularly means: "a religion regarded as unorthodox or spurious."

That makes it a subjective matter, not an objective one, going back to whether you like a religion or not. But that's your opinion, it has nothing to do objectively with whether a religion is a cult or not.

"Orthodox" means "right practice." A religion that follows the "right practice" as outlined in the Bible is not a cult.

To be honest and objective, one has to measure the beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses by the Bible, God's Word, not by the opinions of people who, for one reason or another, don't like Jehovah's Witnesses.

Many people just parrot what they have heard from others about Jehovah's Witnesses, without really examining the religion for themselves, from the Bible. (Acts 17:11) But the latter course is the only way to truly tell what a belief system is.

To Lazarillo: Osiyo! Dtohitsu?
"Squatinisesdi, Yehowa, eladi gaisvi."

Answer 4

Jehovah's Witnesses are not a cult. I used to believe this at one time to until I studied with them in the Bible. I was baptized in Aug 1996. My Wife and I are both Jehovah's Witnesses. Jesus is our King of God's Kingdom and the head of the Christian Congregation. Please do not believe the lies that's said about Jehovah's Witnesses. Study with Jehovah's Witnesses and then make a honest decision. Our leader is the Christ. Jehovah is God Almighty.

Answer 5

As a JW myself - I have to say it annoys me when I read answers from others that are TOTALLY untrue!

I'm not being rude here but if you are going to answer questions on us maybe you should accquire the correct facts first!

Last time I checked - A religion that follows the Bible NOT man, and a religion who worship only god can not be considered to be a cult.

To the person who mentioned "fear of holidays" you will actually find on looking up holidays that they all come from pagan origins - take easter for example - what have bunnies and easter eggs got to do with the death of Jesus?
Nothing! Easter is a celebraton the Goddness of Fertility Eastera - the eggs are to celebrate new life - the bunnies chosen because of their fast reproduction. So how can we be a cult when we avoid these pagan orgins?
The same with Christmas - what have candles. holly and trees got do with birth Jesus? Nothing! It comes from the winter solstice - people thought the sun was dying so they lit candles and brought evergreens into the house thinking it would revive the sun.

We don't just blindly follow a "cult", each individual JW has looked into every aspect of our beliefs and anyone can walk away anytime! Its free will!

Comparing us to the propaganda of Hitler is extremely offensive - JW died because they wouldn't give into him! Hitler perscueted us the same as Jews!

I will probably get load thumbs down for this but I'm only defending my faith. To be honest I find it offensive that you say "so called Jehovah witness" we don't say "so called catholics or protestants"



FOR THE RECORD - ALL OF MY EXTENDED FAMILY ARE NOT JW AND WE HANG OUT WITH THEM ALL THE TIME!
WHATS MORE MY BROTHER AND SISTER DECIDED THEY DIDN'T WANT TO ANYMORE - MY SISTER STILL LIVES AT HOME AND MY BROTHER VISITS WHEN HE LIKES!!
SERIOUSLY GUYS GET THE FACTS FIRST - THIS IS RIDICULOUS!

Answer 6

In many ways history repeats itself. Consider that about 4000 years ago, when the Israelites sought to separated themselves from the rest of the world's religions, specifically those of Egypt, they were thought to be unusual and strange in their beliefs in one God. There were those who were highly educated in the religious arts who thought they were following a false course. They were producing their own holy scriptures and not relying on the teachings of the people among whom they had grown from a small family to a great crowd.

Nearly 2000 years ago, a segment of Jews separated themselves from the rest, relying on the teachings of an uneducated ex-carpenter from a lower class position in the Jewish Society. His followers were also uneducated and from a lower class, such as Peter, a failed fisherman and Matthew, a hated tax collector. They were creating their own scriptures to match their beliefs, instead of relying on the Holy Torah, which the Israelites had relied in for hundreds of years. They were going door to door telling their fellow brethren that their traditional rituals, beliefs, and holiday observances, also dating back hundreds of years, were no longer valid.

To people with advanced educations in the religious arts, such as Saul fo Tarsus, it was clear they were a cult of lower class individuals lacking any education, let alone one in the religious arts, and they were being brainwashed into believing that the Messiah had come. To the Jews of the time, this could not be true, as he had not destroyed their enemies, as prophecy foretold, leaving only the Israelites, God’s Blessed People on the Earth.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saul_of_Tarsus

Today, Jehovah’s Witnesses face much the same problem. They started out as a small group of individuals who had no advanced education in the religious arts, but saw something wrong with what was happening with Christianity. Their paths were by no means straight or easy. They made mistakes along the way and had to deal with the what their former brethren thought about their efforts. Like Saul fo Tarsus, there are those who think they are a cult, trying to tell people that the traditional rituals, beliefs, and observances, dating back hundreds of years, are no longer valid. If they ever were.

I wonder, is there anything significant in that this is the third time?

Answer 7

" A faithful witness is one that will not lie, but a false witness launches forth mere lies" --Proverbs 14:5

"You alone, Jehovah, are the God above all other gods in supreme charge of all the earth." --Psalms 83:18

"...Jesus Christ, 'the Faithful Witness'..." --Revelation 1:5a

Jesus [said]..., "... 'Hear O Israel! Jehovah our God is the one and only God. And you must love him with all your heart, and soul, and mind, and strength. The second is: 'You must love others as much as yourself.' No other commandments are greater than these." Mark 12:28-31; Luke 10:25-27

Jesus was reiterating:

“Listen, O Israel: Jehovah our God is one Jehovah. And you must love Jehovah your God with all your heart ... soul and ... vital force. And these words that I am commanding you today must prove to be on your heart; ... you must inculcate them in your son ... speak of them when you sit in your house ... when you walk on the road ... when you lie down, and when you get up." --Deuteronomy 6:4-7

“YOU are my witnesses,” is the utterance of Jehovah, “even my servant whom I have chosen," ...
"YOU are my witnesses, ... that I am God." --Isaiah 43:10,12

Jehovah God named his Own people.
Christ himself is His foremost Witness.
Christ's followers, therefore, must be Jehovah's Witnesses.

Should You Believe Everything You Hear? :
- Propaganda Can Be Deadly
- The Manipulation of Information
- Do Not Be a Victim of Propaganda!
> Is the Work of Jehovah's Witnesses Propagandistic?
http://watchtower.org/e/20000622/article_01.htm

For those interested in knowinfg the truth about Jehovah's Witnesses, the following links will take you to accurate information about us:

JW-Media Site Map
http://www.jw-media.org/sitemap.htm
Jehovah's Witnesses...
- Who Are They?--What Do They Believe?
http://watchtower.org/e/jt/index.htm

You might wish to compare the facts at the above 2 sites,
with the facts about cults:

Secret Societies--How Great the Threat? :
- Why All the Secrecy?
- Secrecy in the Name of the Lord
http://watchtower.org/library/w/1997/6/1/article_01.htm

Can You Identify the True Religion? :
- Are all religions pleasing to God, or is just one?
- Why are there so many religions that claim to be Christian? - How can you identify true Christians?
http://watchtower.org/library/rq/article_13.htm

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Answer 8

They could be considered a cult. Witnesses attend meetings several days a week. They circulate a lot of literature. They are not allowed to receive blood transfusions, and they are discouraged from associating with anyone in the rest of society, even family members. This last point really makes them seem like a cult.

Answer 9

In the United States, the JWs, like the Rastafarians, Krishna, Mormons and Adventists, are officially recognized as a religion. In other countries, however, they are very soundly classified as a cult.

The reason for this is that psychological studies have shown the Watchtower Society (the legal body behind the JWs) uses control tactics with its members that are VERY similar to Nazi control tactics used by the Hitler, the SS and the Gestapo during the Holocaust. The mass suicides of 1879 and 1914 further complicate this matter. Because they are only allowed to befriend their own faith, they are taught to rarely engage in casual conversation with other Christians unless it is in an effort to convert them to JWism. Add the required door-to-door preaching, the radical doctrines (blood abstinance, fear of holidays), the majority American membership and the conveniently-modified Bible, and that paints for one pretty scary picture for other countries.

Answer 10

Jehovah's Witnesses are probably the closest to being
true Christians in the world today...
Those who resent being lessor Christians , resent the
JW's who are their betters...
The greatest detractors of the Witnesses, are the farthest
from being Christians...
I am an atheist...