Features of the Religion of Jehovah Witness - Coursework Example

Jehovah’s Witnesses Rachna Jalan Jehovah’s Witnesses An Introduction of the Religion The worldwide religion of Jehovah’s Witnesses has been d after its followers according to whom “Jehovah” is the name of the Almighty and the Creator of the universe. Initially known as the “Bible Students”, the members acquired their names as “Jehovah’s Witnesses” in 1931 (“Eschatology of Jehovah’s Witnesses”, 2006).The descriptive name signifies the followers’ witness pertaining to God-ship of Jehovah and his sacred words. They consider the Bible as the enthused Word of God and regard the New World Translation as today’s truest translation of the Bible. They are well-known for their pervasive preaching and circulating activities. The highly eminent religious magazines like The Watchtower and Awake are the results of their publications. The Watchtower which mainly deals with the issues discussed in the Bible is published twice a month and Awake which covers the general topics of day-to-day life is published monthly. Any kind of idol worship or religious symbols are banned by the Jehovah’s Witnesses. They reject blood donations and their research and development of bloodless surgery techniques have resulted in various bloodless treatment options. Inspired by the Bible the Jehovah’s Witnesses encourage singleness. Nationalism and social ceremonies and rituals are not entertained by the witnesses. However, they are allowed to pay taxes to the government. Their motive is to spread the good news of Jehovah’s Kingdom to the people through door-to-door preaching. The Jehovah’s Witnesses lay considerable emphasis on reading of the Bible and regular prayers to God. The religion claims of God’s earthly paradise with the promise of eternal life when the lost ones will be resurrected. The followers believe that they have been chosen by Jehovah to spread the good news to all as the period of “last days” are going on. Like most of the religions the Jehovah’s Witnesses consider premarital sex and abortion to be sinful. Any witness who is found guilty of indulging in any such heinous act is excommunicated or “disfellowshipped” by the congregation. Kingdom Hall - The Place of Worship The Jehovah Witnesses call their place of worship as the “Kingdom Hall”. It is the meeting place for members of the religion predominantly utilized for directions of Bible and devotion to God. This place of worship is purely functional in character. Scheduled meetings generally thrice a week including Sundays are held in each Kingdom Hall where the local groups assemble to offer their prayers to “Jehovah”. The members address each other as brothers and sisters. A visit to the Kingdom Hall reveals a place which is modest, clean and attractive apart from being practical. It is actually a hall with comfortable seating arrangements, a prominent stage with mike facilities, windows draped with rich curtains, provision of filtered drinking water and properly sanitized toilet. An annual Year-text or “theme scripture” can be distinctly viewed which is common for all the congregations of Jehovah’s Witnesses throughout the world. No religious symbols are exhibited inside the Kingdom Hall as theses are not supported by the Jehovah Witnesses. A formal dress-code is followed; suits and ties for men and modest dresses or skirts for women. Every meeting begins with a hymn called “Kingdom Song” followed with a prayer addressing “Jehovah”. Gatherings held in the Kingdom Hall encompass studies from the Bible and public talks. Specially prepared study articles are discussed during this seminar. A particular chapter from their religious magazine ‘Awake’ or ‘Watchtower’ is chosen for an intensive discussion. Chapters may include topics such as ‘blood-donation’, ‘political involvement’, in addition to the issues like the Bible, traits and divination of Christianity, family life, etc. One of the senior members recognized as elders conducts the discussion one paragraph at a time asking questions after each paragraph. The aspiring learners are provided opportunities to answer the questions and put forward their viewpoints. The meeting is concluded with the announcement of the next meeting followed by another song of prayer. Translators are ready to aid those having problem with English language. The Jehovah’s Witnesses assemble at the Kingdom Hall for preparation and prayer prior to their door-to-door activities of preaching. The members acquire the magazines of Awake and Watchtower at the Kingdom Hall for carrying out extensive preaching. Each witness picks up a particular area to be covered and submits the report of the previous activities. All these contribute to the worship of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. In order to meet the educational targets predominantly Kingdom Halls are planned and constructed accordingly. The Kingdom Hall is looked after by the members of the religion attending it. The funds required for its maintenance it comes out of the donations offered by the members of the congregations from all over the world. Donations are sent to the headquarters of Jehovah Witnesses across the globe. The fellow Jehovah Witnesses qualified in planning and construction jobs voluntarily enroll for the establishment of the Kingdom Hall. Financial aids are provided for the construction of the Kingdom Halls in less prosperous countries to enable the fellow Jehovah Witnesses to assemble and study. Local donations are made through the donation boxes in the Kingdom Hall for meeting the operating expenses. Interview Summary An interview with Mrs. K. Saha, one of the members of Jehovah’s Witnesses since the year 2000 reveals following information which throws a deeper insight on the beliefs of the followers (personal communication, November 1, 2006). They consider “Jehovah” to be the personal name of the Almighty who is the supreme Creator of the universe. He created Jesus Christ as the “Chief Agent of life” and the means of approach to Him in prayers. Mrs. Saha states that all the Jehovah’s Witnesses are dedicated to do God’s will. They seek guidance in all their activities from God. Jehovah’s name has been mentioned 7,000 times in the Bible. The witnesses too like everyone face innumerable problems of life like physical, emotional and economical and commit mistakes like everyone does. However, their devotional study of the Bible continuously helps them to learn from their experiences thereby combating all hassles of life. The member further states that the Bible is actually the divine Word of God and its regular reading provides peace of mind and strength to walk through the difficulties of life. Mrs. K. Saha who has joined the congregations since the last six years says, “Prior to joining the congregation my life had become all sinful. And then one day God sent his humble witnesses on my door to guide me back to the correct path from which I have deviated. It seemed as if I was a patient needing the treatment of the Almighty. This transformation has made me feel as if God is so close to me that He can hear all my prayers. Though the journey to the truth is full of challenges, it is not impossible. After all, true “Messiahs” have to undergo a lot of tests. Whenever we feel weak we ask help from Jehovah, the “Living Soul”. We have been chosen by him to spread the “good news”, the news of paradise earth with the prospect of living forever” (personal communication, November 1, 2006). The member believes that Jesus has been ruling as king since 1914 and the phase of purification has commenced. She is confident that the lost ones will be resurrected in the paradise earth.       According to Mrs. Saha the Jehovah’s Witnesses have to face constant struggles with the tribulations. Political and social functions are not encouraged though payment of taxes is made. She deeply believes that life is His gift it should therefore be utilized for meeting His purposes. Hence, she wishes to spread out the “Good News” of God’s Kingdom preaching as many as possible. The follower points out the very eschatology of Jehovah’s Witnesses stating that the period of the “last days” have begun characterized by wars, diseases, famines, earthquakes, terrorists’ attacks, etc. Besides, peace of mind and courage, Mrs. Saha also speaks of modesty and discipline as the treasures of her congregation.   Jehovah’s Witnesses verses Hinduism Jehovah’s Witnesses differ from Hinduism in that they reject idol worship, religious symbols and eternal torment in hell. Hinduism supports the immortality of the soul which is not accepted by the Jehovah’s Witnesses. The Hindu “Shastras” believe in “Rebirth” where a soul passes through a cycle of 84 lacs births. Each individual’s actions determine the form in which he will be reborn. Mankind is considered to be the most prestigious birth. The Jehovah’s Witnesses do not support rebirth. Rather they believe in the prospect of living forever in the paradise earth of God when their lost ones will be resurrected. Both the religions, however share one belief in common which is called the “Pralaya” by The Hindus and the “Armageddon” by the Jehovah’s Witnesses. The “Gita”, originally written in Sanskrit is the principle religious book of the Hindus which lays immense emphasis on “Karma” directing mankind to perform actions without worrying about the returns. The “Vedas” and the “Upanishads” have both emerged from Hinduism. The Hindus’ place of worship is the Temple and their prominent festivals are Diwali, Holi, Dusssehra, etc. Majority of the Hindu population is found in India. Since the ancient times, the Rishis and Munis are well-known for their meditations giving up materialistic life in order to attain “Moksha” (salvation) that will bring them closest to God. According to the Hindu mythology the course of life of every human being is divided into four distinct phases through which each individual is expected to travel. These are Brahmacharya, training under teacher; Grihasthya, marrying and entering family life; Vanaprastha, abandoning materialism and other attractions; and Sanyasa, meditating to attain salvation with the prospect of meeting God. Hinduism teaches its followers to serve their nation which is absolutely rejected by the Jehovah’s Witnesses who only consider the Almighty to be the Ruler of His entire kingdom of earth. The witnesses are therefore barred from participating in any kind of political affairs. This is why the Jehovah’s Witnesses are never found as government employees, soldiers or voters. The religion of the Jehovah’s Witnesses does not encourage a number of social functions and ceremonies such as Birthdays. The Hindus on the other hand, celebrate innumerable rituals throughout the year. They celebrate with great pomp the birthday of Lord Krishna known as Janmashtami. The Jehovah’s Witnesses commemorate the yearly Memorial which is celebrated on the same day by the followers throughout the world. The current era has been named as the “Last Days” by the Bible and the “Kalyug” by the Gita. Premarital sex, extramarital affair and abortion are considered to be sins in both the religions. In order to qualify for being one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, Baptism is mandatory. Also, in the case of a witness found accused for a severe misdeed, the individual is excommunicated or “disfellowshipped”. After death, the Jehovah’s Witnesses are buried unlike the Hindus who are cremated. In both the religions the husband is the final authority in every family who is supposed to consult his wife in all major decisions. Conclusion We therefore conclude that the Jehovah’s Witnesses belong to that form of Christianity which speaks of the powers of Jehovah, the Supreme Creator of the universe. Jesus is His first creation through whom He created everything else. The religion assures of God’s earthly paradise with a promise of eternal life when the lost ones will be resurrected. In all their activities they seek guidance from God. Reading of the Bible is a must with the prospect of coming closer to God. In order to qualify for being a Jehovah’s Witness the individual needs to be baptized. Gambling, homosexuality, premarital sex, abortion, and other such atrocious acts are considered as evils and any follower found indulgent in any of such sins is disfellowshipped. Idol worship, blood donation, nationalism and social rituals and ceremonies are discouraged. The death anniversary of Jesus is conducted by the members on a common date throughout the world as “Memorial”. The demographic structure reveals Jehovah at the supreme position with Jesus following His place. The next position is that of the Governing Body who directs the elders in the congregations followed by the ministerial servants. The Jehovah’s Witnesses bear modesty and humbleness in their grooming and behavior. Indecent dressing is discouraged. The task of preaching is considered to be one of the acts of worship. Marriages are monogamous. A Jehovah’s Witness is expected to marry within their religion only. In case a Jehovah’s witness wishes to marry someone outside the religion, the latter is expected to be transformed into Jehovah’s Witness. Being a non-profit association, the Jehovah Witnesses meet the expenses of publications, maintenance of Kingdom Halls and other miscellaneous expenses through donations. Donations are provided by the Jehovah’s Witnesses from all across the world especially from the prosperous countries of the West to the fellow witnesses in financially challenged countries. Donation boxes labeled for different purposes are even kept in the Kingdom Halls. Many of the rich followers have donated their places for the establishment of Kingdom Halls. The Jehovah’s Witnesses also participate voluntarily in all possible activities to serve their religion. The Watchtower, Awake and all other magazines of the witnesses are published in innumerable languages to overcome the global barriers. In the light of the above, we can thus conclude that attending meetings, daily readings, extensive preaching and regular prayers are the key methods of worshipping God. They consider the Kingdom Hall to be the place of their worship. To them life is God’s gift and hence it must be utilized to accomplish his purposes. References Eschatology of Jehovah’s Witnesses. (2006). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved Nov 2, 2006, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eschatology_of_Jehovah%27s_Witnesses Read More