what is the difference between an orthodox christian and a Jehovah's witness?

Question

what is the difference between an orthodox christian and a Jehovah's witness?I s their alot of difference?

Answer 1

The terms "orthodox" and "orthodoxy" literally mean "correct" and "that which is correct", so the terms must be capitalized to deflect some offense (in other words, the 'Christian Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses' considers itself to be correct, and would likely object to "correctness" dichotomized opposite themselves). That being said, so-called "Orthodoxy" is usually associated with Trinitarianism (and other determinations of Roman Emperor Constantine's ecumenical counsels in the fourth century after Christ).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthodoxy

Besides their rejection of trinitarianism, Jehovah's Witnesses are relatively unique among self-described Christians in that they understand the Scriptures to teach that God's Kingdom by Christ Jesus is a real government which will soon replace all earthly governments.
(Daniel 2:44) God of heaven will set up a kingdom... It will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, and it itself will stand to times indefinite

That Kingdom will rule over the vast majority of mankind, most of whom will have been raised from the dead after Armageddon.
(John 11:23,24) Jesus said to her: “Your brother will rise.” Martha said to him: “I know he will rise in the resurrection on the last day.”
(Acts 24:15) There is going to be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous.

Until that resurrection, there is no suffering in "hell", or the grave. Sometime after the resurrection, death and "hell" will themselves be destroyed.
(Ecclesiastes 9:5) For the living are conscious that they will die; but as for the dead, they are conscious of nothing at all
(Ecclesiastes 9:10) there is no work nor devising nor knowledge nor wisdom in Sheol ["hell"]
(Revelation 20:14) And death and Hades ["hell"] were hurled into the lake of fire

While a limitted number of humans will be resurrected to heaven to share in ruling over mankind, the vast majority (literally more than 99.9%) of Jehovah's Witnesses expect an EARTHLY hope, the same hope given to Adam and Eve.
(Genesis 1:28) God blessed them and God said to them: “Be fruitful and become many and fill THE EARTH and subdue it [caps added]
(Genesis 2:17) You must not eat from it, for in the day you eat from it you will positively die [so never eating from that tree means never dying]

Interestingly, the Scriptures are full of references to this earthly hope.
(Psalms 37:11) 'the meek will possess the earth'
(Proverbs 2:21) 'upright will reside in the earth'
(Isaiah 45:18) 'God formed the earth to be inhabited'
(Matthew 5:5) 'the mild will inherit the earth'
(Revelation 21:3) The tent of God is with mankind

Learn more:
http://watchtower.org/e/lmn/index.htm?article=article_10.htm
http://watchtower.org/e/rq/index.htm?article=article_06.htm
http://jw-media.org/beliefs/trueworship.htm
http://watchtower.org/e/jt/
http://watchtower.org/e/dg/index.htm?article=article_11.htm

Answer 2

If the name Jehovah is so important, then why is it never used in the entire Greek New Testament? If men edited out the name of God, "YHWH" when they copied the New Testament, as only the Watchtower organization claims, then how can we have any confidence in any of the New Testament? Should we discard the New Testament or the Watchtower organization as unreliable?
Since the Watchtower organization claims "apostolic succession" who was it that "passed the torch of God's Spirit" to C. T. Russel when he founded the organization? What was the name of this individual?
The Jehovah's Witness "gospel" is quite different than that of the Bible, so different in fact that Charles T. Russel (founder of the JW's) had to re-write vast portions of the Bible. The fact of his doing this in spite of having no training in either the Greek or Hebrew Languages is in itself amazing, if we believe it! But the current leadership of the movement has rejected the teachings of Mr. Russell, and his successor. Since the Jehovah's Witness organization currently rejects most of the teachings of its founder Charles Taze Russell (who was president of the organization from 1879-1916), and since they also reject "Judge" Joseph Franklin Rutherford, who succeeded Russell as president from 1916 - 1942, how can we be sure that in 25 more years, Jehovah's Witnesses won't also reject the current president, Milton G. Henschel (1992 - present), as they did Russell and Rutherford? In short their rejection of the foundation of their group is a sure sign that the group will not stand long. They have repeatedly predicted a date for the end of the world, and each date has been wrong. Well true Christians are not so concerned with the date th world will end as we are with leading people to salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ!

Answer 3

Very much so.

For one, Jehovah's Witnesses do not believe in the Trinity, or that Jesus is also god-they worship Jehovah and Jehovah alone.

There are quite a few key facets of the Religion of Jehovah's Witnesses that differ from Orthodox Christianity.

In short...they're two very different religions.

Answer 4

Delsydebothom: The name Jehovah's Witnesses was ADOPTED in 1931 by the group formerly known only as Bible Students, which came together in the late 1800's. (sorry I don't remember the year) They took the name based on Isaiah 43:10, where Jehovah told the then faithful nation of Israel "You are my Witnesses says Jehovah, even my servant whom I have chosen." Jesus himself was called, in the book of Revelation a "faithful WITNESS".

And yes, we do do differ greatly from Orthodox christians.

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Just to set the record straight, Dudank, respectfully. Witnesses never have been tasked with preaching 8 hours daily. I have rent to pay and food to buy... oh yeah and shoes. I must have shoes.

Answer 5

More differences than anyone could list on here!
It would be better to think of them as two different religions. In fact, I don't know if there is really any defining dogma or doctrine that both groups hold in common. If you want to know the differences, just make a list of everything that Orthodox Christians believe and everything that JW's believe.

Answer 6

For what the Orthodox Christians believe you can check on their own website http://www.goarch.org/en/ourfaith/.

Some of the major differances include the JW seeming to embrace the Arian Christian teaching that Jesus was "of similar essence" to God not "of one essence". Also, the JW believe that ONLY their translations of the Bible are accurate even though the founder of the movement admitted to no knowledge of the Greek or Hebrew languages. The Orthodox churches will still have services that USE the Koine (biblical) Greek and also (in some areas) Aramaic-language services.

So, in short, LOTS of differances there

Answer 7

Jehovah's witness knock on my door every saturday morning...

orthodox christian's do not

Answer 8

Yes; the Orthodox have a complete line of Apostolic Succession back to the Apostles, all seven Sacraments, and are Trinitarian. Though Catholics such as myself believe them to be technically schismatic, their churches still date back to the times of the Apostles. Jehovah's Witnesses were founded in 1931. A little over 19 hundred years too late to have anything to do with the Church Jesus founded.

Answer 9

Orthodox church is a sister-church of Catholic church; it's different only in several traditional questions and has a different service. I quote: "Based on the numbers of adherents, Eastern Orthodoxy is the second largest Christian communion in the world after the Roman Catholic Church. The most common estimates of the number of Eastern Orthodox Christians worldwide range between 150-350 million individuals."

Jehowa's witnesses are a small group of people who bother other people in buses and on the streets because their task is to spend 8 hours daily in persuading other people to join them. They despise the sign of cross and don't practice holy secrets.

P.S. With all the respect to the answerer below - Jehowa's witnesses in my country told me that themselves, more than once. Maybe you have different organization in different countries, but in my country they say it's their "duty" to "witness" about Yehowa's name 8 hours daily. Also they are always reproaching me because I wear a cross on a chain on my neck and told me that it's a "damned sign". I am telling only what I saw and heard myself, for I live in a multiconfessional family myself, so I don't want to offend anyone.

Answer 10

Orthodox do not try to convert people.