
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, June 20, 1993                   TAG: 9306200065
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: E6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES

One of the world's fastest-growing religious movements, claiming 4.5 million adherents in 229 countries. Beliefs include: Jehovah is the personal name of God and should be invoked whenever talking about the supreme deity.

The Witnesses' official translation of the Bible - the New World Translation - uses the name 7,000 times.

Jesus Christ is God's only begotten son, head of the Christian congregation and the model for Witnesses to follow. The doctrine of the Trinity

appears nowhere in the Bible, and because Jesus prayed to God, he cannot be the same person as God. Jesus is the same person as the archangel Michael. He is recognized as "a god" but not as the same person asJehovah. The Holy Spirit is not a separate person, but Jehovah's "invisible active force in the universe."

The doctrine of an immortal soul is not scriptural, either. The dead simply are dead until the resurrection. At that time, most of humankind - though not all - will be given a chance to accept Jehovah's perfect plan. Those who reject it will be annihilated, not sent to an eternal, burning damnation.

144,000 elect individuals from throughout history will rule with Christ in the presence of Jehovah. They will share with Christ responsibility for deciding which humans will be allowed eternal life on an Earth transformed into Paradise by those who survive Armageddon.

All earthly governments are wicked and corrupt, because Satan rules the Earth - before Christ's imposition of his perfect kingdom. Consequently, Witnesses are forbidden to vote, serve in the armed forces, pledge allegiance to the flag or otherwise participate in secular government.

The churches of Christendom likewise are corrupt. Jehovah's Witnesses do not use the word "church" but call their local assemblies "congregations" and their buildings "Kingdom Halls." Their organizational government is modeled after the apostolic theocracy with 12 men making up the Governing Body, based in New York.They serve for life and select successors for vacancies as they occur.

The Bible is the only infallible source of wisdom from God, "accurate not only in touch on such subjects as history, geography and botany, but it . . . accurately foretells the future. The Governing Body - while not

infallible - is considered a channel of divineinspiration and education for the modern day. That wisdom is imparted to the world through Watchtower Bible and Tract Society publications, notably The Watchtower magazine.

Witnesses are obliged by Scripture to actively attempt to convert the unbelieving. The celebration of holidays - Christmas and Easter, in particular -are proscribed as unscriptural.

Blood transfusions are forbidden as unscriptural.

Jesus returned invisibly to the realm above the Earth in 1914 as "king of God's heavenly government." Most of the 144,000 who are to rule with him were resurrected at that time to be with Jesus. The actual beginning of Jesus' reign over the Earth will begin before the "the generation of people living in 1914" has died.

by CNB