Question With Boldness, Speak Without Fear

Where do Jehovah's Witnesses get the claim that there are over 30,000 denominations (I've seen JWs claim as much as 60,000!)

I never really cared about the denominations, because they don't mean anything to me. I see no vital differences in most. Its all the body of Christ. But the number seemed unreasonably out of range because it just doesn't seem like there's enough people to make up that many denominations especially when taking into consideration the extremely large number of people who claim to be Catholic, Baptist, Methodist, etc, some of the largest 'denominations'.

So I wanted to see how this could be.

I found a reference to 33,000 denominations WORLDWIDE, in a World Christian Encyclopedia comparing various denominations and churches (of which Jehovah's Witnesses are included in), and when used elsewhere, often times is the quote of a quote of a quote....

So I looked at how they got this conclusion.... I found that most of these "denominations" are simply the same denomination in different languages/ethnicity. The same was true of multiple other "denominations" where each COUNTRY was counted as it's own denomination.

(more to follow)

I have seen an alarming number of comments from Jehovah's Witnesses (surrounding the Christian practice of celebrating Jesus' resurrection) that this is not something to do, under a pagan name or otherwise. For example, some comments I have seen are,

-- "Jesus said to commemorate his death, not his resurrection"

-- "Its important because it shows Jehovah will resurrect those faithful"

-- "Where does Jesus say to celebrate his resurrection?"

I could go on but this is the basic gist. This indicates to me that JWs really do not understand why the resurrection of Jesus was so important. Is it really just "proof God will resurrect the faithful"? While definitely part of it, was there more to it than that? What does the resurrection of Jesus mean to you as a Christian and what scriptures influenced your view?

The Jesus centered Easter, and the bunnies and egg hunts of children, have always seemed vastly different to me, obviously because they are. Somewhere in time they all got lumped under the same name but that's really where the similarities end. I've never heard anyone associate bunnies or eggs with true Christian worship, or make it a requirement in church, in fact, I've never seen them associated at all. Some churches even have the same objections to the spring festival (bunnies and eggs) of easter that JWs have....

I began thinking about this the other day listening to our pastors sermon. The Christian observance of "Easter" is ALSO called Resurrection Sunday. But they don't talk about that.... Since the only thing they share is the name, if it WASN'T called "Easter" do you think Jehovah's Witnesses would still complain?

I think they would, because they seem to object to the whole idea of recognizing Jesus' resurrection, as evidenced by repeated comments of "where does Jesus say to celebrate his resurrection" that I see a lot of JWs make.

Interested to see what other Christians think. Is 'paganism' just a weak argument, a wrapping they can use to dismiss larger concepts?

Where are they? I just got home from "Easter" services at my church. Now the Jehovah's Witnesses have been telling me for weeks that Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus with bunnies and colored eggs. But they were conspicuously missing from the worship service... There wasn't even a mention of them... There was a sermon, hymns as usual, centering around Jesus' resurrection, why it matters etc etc.... But no bunnies, no eggs? I like Spring, bunnies are cute, and I love birds and eggs and flowers.... All heralds of Spring, but I'm not sure what it has to do with Jesus... Should I feel cheated? Am I missing something? After all the JWs say that they're there. Where'd they go? Did they all get diverted to your church?

Come to think of it, last Christmas, Santa Claus and his reindeer didn't turn up at the church either!!!! Whats going on here???!!!

I saw an accusation from a Jehovah's Witness that "other so-called Christians do not observe the Memorial of Christ "

I've never been to a church that didn't, so on what grounds do they make this charge?

Its not called the "Memorial" and we don't reject the bread and wine, so its not the "same" but Christ's death is absolutely and broadly recognized.

Are they just nitpicking or do they really think they are the only ones who observe Christ's death?

Why do Jehovah's Witnesses make a big deal about the Lords Supper saying that because it "replaced" the Passover you should ONLY do it once a year.

They even deride Christians for doing it more often, monthly or even weekly.

Basically my question is, who cares if its once a year or once a month? You are honoring Jesus and remembering his death - isn't that whats important , not how often? Is this just another example of legalistic "straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel"

Neither Jesus nor his followers ever said "you must only do this once a year!"

Scriptures say;

1 Cor. 11:26 "For as OFTEN as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes" and in the gospels Jesus simply says "do this in remembrance of me"

In fact the rest of Corinthians 11, specifically verse 17 onward, it certainly sounds like they commemorate the Lords Supper much more than once a year, but every time they come together as a church.

So on what basis do Jehovah's Witnesses insist that it MUST only be once a year, and deride others who do it more often?

That is a paraphrase of course, let me explain;

A comment given by a Jehovah's Witness regarding good works stated that if JWs helped the poor and hungry of the world, then they would be just like false religion "whose food halls and other charities makes them friends of the world, and looked fondly upon" and then they wouldn't be hated enough therby living up to Jn 15:18.

They also state that had Jesus fixed all the poverty and hunger while he was on earth, he would have been aiding Satan's cause, because Satan rules the world. (citing 1 John 5:19, 2 Cor.4:4 John 14:30)

We also shouldn't try to help the poor and hungry because the only thing that will solve it is the Kingdom of Heaven (and they cite Daniel 2:44; 7:13,14, Matthew 6:10) and because "you will always have the poor with you" we shouldn't help them. Help is only for spiritual brothers and sisters.

I don't think anyone would argue that Satan influences the world, and that the only thing that will bring lasting eternal change is the coming of God's kingdom...

But can we REALLY conclude from scripture that that means Jesus wants his followers to say "sorry, starving homeless person.... help is just for my brothers in Christ. YOU are part of Satan's world, and the poor will always be with you, and if I helped you people would like me, and I need to be hated..."

When I read the bible, I see that we are supposed to help everyone, "especially" (not only) brothers and sisters in the faith.

I have three ducklings, and while they grow I'm busy planning out and building their habitat. One of the things I want to include for their enrichment is a pond.

Most of the information I'm reading is confusing and contradictory. So I'm looking for people with first hand experience.

The pond would be stagnant as its too far out to reach power to. What are some other things I can do with it to help with cleanliness and create a habitat they will enjoy? Are there fish that do well in still water?

Former Witnesses, do you observe this in your JW family members?

The Holy Spirit has really been working in my mother in very drastic ways. She is still a Jehovah's Witness and shockingly said she wants to come see me sing in the church's choir and so she will be coming to our Palm Sunday service/musical worship.

I gave her the date and time, and she wrote it on the calendar, getting strangely nervous. She asked if she should just walk in, if there was a dress code, if there was special seating etc etc (yes no no)

Finally, she asked "They're not going to like.... come after me with torches and pitchforks, or burn me at the stake, you know, 'cause I'm a Witness?"

I kind of chuckled because I thought she was joking, and then realized she was completely serious. Maybe not about literal burning and pitchforks, but she REALLY expected some kind of outrage that she had walked in, or that there was some kind of JW alarm that would alert the congregation....

I assured her that all were welcome, and no one is ever turned away, and she was actually relieved.

I can't help but wonder if this is just a fluke, or common of all JWs. Is this just part of the persecution complex, or is there something else at play here?

I just recently came across a Jehovah's Witness answer which states that "Only those who are of the heavenly class are baptized with holy spirit" and everyone else lives on earth.

I was aware that you believe only 144,000 go to heaven and the rest live on a paradise earth, but I was not aware you believe these 144,000 are the only ones who have the Holy Spirit.

Is this accurate, or did this individual misunderstand?

If this IS accurate, HOW on earth can your religion claim ANY truth, since the Holy Spirit is what gives Christians understanding? Also, (unless this has also been replaced with new light) since by your own organizations admission, you don't keep track of "anointed ones" its safe to say you don't know if they are involved in writing Watchtower articles, so how do you get the "proper understanding" and how can you claim to be led by the Holy Spirit at all?

Its a small matter, and not on a diabolical topic, don't misunderstand. But I would like some input from brothers and sisters in Christ....

I am being pressured by my motherinlaw to lie to my husband. We are experiencing hard times, my husband just transferred to a new job after being laid off, and we've been playing "catch up" with our bills since having to pay property taxes all at once in january....

My husband does not want to accept money from family, and I understand... Its tight, but we're ok... Well meaning family members want to help, either by paying for bills that are outstanding, or overpaying for things we sell from our farm...but when I explain that this would make my husband uncomfortable the response is "hide it and don't tell him"

I know some people may view this as a small matter and not worth feeling guilty over, but the idea weighs on my conscience and to me is a lie of omission. I would be doing something he has specifically asked me not to do. I know pride is wrong, but I would never want my husband to feel devalued, or disrespected. But neither do I want my mother in law and other family members to feel unappreciated or rejected, or that I am accusing them.

I just can't seem to think of a good way to explain it. What is a tactful way to be kind to both, to honor my husbands wishes and be respectful to his mother?

Regarding the name you've translated as 'Jehovah', I think even you can agree that "Jehovah" does not appear anywhere in the original manuscripts. Instead that is your best guess at how YHWH would have been pronounced. What appears in the manuscripts is Y-H-W-H, not J-E-H-O-V-A-H.

My bible has several footnotes in it that tells me wherever they have written LORD in capital letters, that is where the divine name YHWH is in the originals. Full disclosure and there is no mystery while reading the bible where and what was there...

So why are you better than other Christians who write LORD? You accuse other Christians of removing God's divine name, and insinuate a grand conspiracy when we've simply done the exact same thing you have -- represented the four consonants as something pronounceable, but not technically literally true. After all, anything that is not YHWH is a substitution. So again; why are you better and on what grounds can you accuse "Christendom" of faulty translation in this regard?

Quick, read it before it gets deleted. Its been posted obsessively multiple times. I'm just wondering if this is a legitimate member of your group, or someone maliciously masquerading....

/question/index?qid=20160...

We all know what they think of "Paradise", we see the answers about learning various languages, sitting with Lions, I saw one woman say she wanted to fly. (???) etc etc, but do they ever talk about what the actual event of Armageddon will be like, and the immediate aftermath?

The carnage and destruction? Fixing the earth, how do you think you'll do that? Cleaning up billions of dead bodies. Will your children understand it and be ok with it? Will they be afraid, and cry, or will they be happy to see what their God Jehovah does to people who don't believe the Watchtower? How will you clear out trash and rubbish? Destroyed vehicles? Collapsed buildings? Can you get the blood out of the water, or will God give you knew water to drink? How long exactly will you be working to make the earth a paradise? Will the Watchtower organization continue giving you "spiritual food"? How will they get you your magazines? Will they be in charge?

I know, you only have the basics of what Armageddon will be. But you only have the basics of what paradise would be as well, and your imaginations seem very vivid on that. so can you apply it to Armageddon and post-Armageddon.

What do they think it will be like?

I was raised as a Jehovah's Witnesses where I was consistently told that it was wrong for a woman to pray in the presence of a man. I left the JWs and have been a Christian for several years now but I find I stil have "issues" with some aspects of how I was trained.

The one that is most pressing is causing trouble between my husband and I, something that grieves me very much. My husband was raised in a house where everyone prayed before a meal, sometimes the parents, sometimes himself, and sometimes his younger sister. He has asked me repeatedly to pray before we take our meals, but I cannot bring myself to do it. It may sound strange to people who have never been Jehovah's witnesses, but even years after leaving, on some things there are nagging discomforts when going against "the organization"

It upsets him when I refuse to pray before our meals, I know this. But I can not shake the feeling of "you are just a mere woman and you have no right to pray in his presence" I would like to get to the point where I can honor this small request of his, but I would like some non-Witness, Christian perspective, and scriptures that will help me work through this decision.

Thank you for your time.

I am genuinely confused here.

Galations posted a question in regards to this article:

http://www.fox19.com/story/19231069/religious-grou...

Jehovah's Witnesses say they should be allowed to build an assembly hall in an area designated for economic pursuits because of what they will bring to the economy.

What I cannot see is how exactly Jehovah's Witnesses are a benefit to the economy? the assembly halls are usually built with little or no outside contracts, instead being built with free labor and donated materials. So there is not really an economical contribution. Unless things have changed since I was at my last Kingdom Hall building project, food is provided by us sisters, so its not like the workers will be flooding the food vendors in the area.

And what about once the assembly hall is built? Assemblies are an all day thing, so its not like JWs will go shopping or something while they're there.

Am I missing something here?

The only thing that I could see possibly adding to anyone's economic growth is if some people go out to eat for lunch those few days or stay in a hotel. But still, is that really enough "contribution" to the economy to justify building in a location set aside for that specific purpose?

Is this another situation like their "charity"? Where they think that just because they hand out their magazines that means there are benefiting everyone and everything, even the economy?

Also, if they are denied again, do you think they will miss the point and claim they are being persecuted?

Jehovah's Witnesses claim that Christian bibles removed God's name as part of some grand conspiracy. Isn't anything NOT the original YHWH a "substitution" making their own use of the word 'Jehovah' a substitution?

WHY do Christian bibles use words like LORD in place of YHWH, and what does this have to do with how the word "Jehovah" was developed?

Is it true that Jehovah's Witnesses merely "restored" God's name, and are there any places where the name was added inappropriately?

No matter what facts they are presented with, Jehovah's Witnesses still insist that they, and they alone, are the only ones who do the preaching work set out by Jesus and therefore are the only real Christians in the world.

What will it take to finally put this myth to rest?

What does the bible say about how we should preach, what examples are given, and is knocking on doors the only acceptable way to preach?

How do mainstream non-JW denominations carry out preaching work? And why to JWs insist that their way is the only right way?

We have a female rat, very cuddly and curious. When she is in her cage, she is either playing a strange through the bars game of tag with our cat, scaling the side of the cage, or building piles out of her bedding and jumping in them (lol).

The person who sold us the rat recommended putting things in her cage she can interact with...We have tried various play things, in addition to toys, she has ramps and ladders and an exercise wheel, but she still seems bored. Do you think she's content with running around and playing with the cat, or is she not interested in what we've given her and thats all she thinks there is to do???

Any other rat owners here who can tell me what you've found succesful?

Should we get another female rat as a play mate?

She seems to like hanging off of things so maybe I will try some climbing ropes? My husband is also working on building a maze for her to explore....

We also tried one of those exercise balla so she could run around the floor without getting hurt or stepped on but she absolutely hated it. Can't really say I blame her, I don't think I would want to be stuffed in a ball either....

Any ideas or experience is appreciated....