A court in the town of Gorno-Altaisk is continuing hearings in a trial against Alexander Kalistratov, local leader of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Kalistratov is charged with disseminating banned literature which the Supreme Court of the Altay Republic (Russia) says incited religious enmity and hatred between the latter part of 2008 and 2009.
Jehovah’s Witnesses headed by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania, with headquarters in New York, has a little more than 200,000 members of the religious sect throughout Russia. Much of their literature has been banned because the government considers it to be extremist.
According to a press release by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania, “Kalistratov was accused of violating Article 282(1) of the Russian Federation Criminal Code (‘Inciting Hatred or Hostility, and the Debasing of Human Dignity’).”
Jehovah’s Witnesses “Declaration of Facts”
Jehovah’s Witnesses have been imprisoned for similar charges in other countries. Some reviewers of their literature say it is not uncommon for the Witness publications to contain commentary which may be deemed by particular governments and ethnic groups as inciting extremism and hatred. One example sent to Westmoreland Times is the 1934 Yearbook of Jehovah’s Witnesses which contains a “Declaration of Facts” with such wording as: “It has been the commercial Jews of the British-American empire that have built up and carried on Big Business as a means of exploiting and oppressing the peoples of many nations.” (Awake magazine, July 8, 1998, pages 13-14, a quote from the Watchtower Society’s 1933 declaration.) The declaration can also be read in the 1974 Yearbook.
The same magazine says: “German Witnesses were disappointed that the language of the ‘Declaration’ was not more explicit in tone.” You can view the pages here: page 13, page 14. An English translation of the entire “Declaration of Facts” can be viewed here.
Some have pointed out that the language in the Watchtower’s declaration appears to side with Germany’s government at the time of Hitler. Example: “Instead of being against the principles advocated by the government of Germany, we stand squarely for such principles.”
Additional information from the 1934 Yearbook of Jehovah’s Witnesses can be read here.
Divisions Among Jehovah’s Witnesses
The Jehovah’s Witness group has suffered several splits from many who no longer agree with the religious headquarters’ views on a variety of topics. In its early history, it has been estimated that around 75 percent of the membership left the organization. In Romania alone, between 30 and 300-thousand individuals formed the “Association of True Faith Jehovah’s Witnesses.”
In the United States, the Kingdom Witness Theocratic Bible Institute located in Pittsburgh was established, the Christian Witnesses of Jah, and others have formed due to doctrinal differences or major changes in official doctrinal statements by the Watchtower Society.
Possibly related:
Watch Tower puts new “spin” on its 1933 anti-Jewish remarks
1995 Project JW – Nazi Germany Connections
Cover-Ups in Watchtower History – Hidden Facts about Jehovah’s Witnesses
Jehovah’s Witness Recovery
Jehovah’s Witness Discussion Forum for Jehovah’s Witnesses
Here is a link from US Holocaust Museum’s website with other references about JWs. From the titles themselves you see a totally different picture than was painted here in this article.
http://www.ushmm.org/research/library/bibliography/?lang=en&content=jehovah
FOR MAURICE5000:
It is an insult to memorialize the handful of anti-societal trouble-seeking Jehovah’s Witnesses alongside the SIX MILLION Jewish Holocaust victims given that Jehovah’s Witnesses view the Jews much as did the Nazis.
The WatchTower Cult teaches its own version of “replacement theology”, which says that GOD rejected the Jews as His “chosen people”, and replaced them with today’s “Jehovah’s Witnesses”. In fact, the title “Jehovah’s Witnesses” was originally applied to the Jews by the Prophet Isaiah, and is even quoted on the wall at the entrance to the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C. The WatchTower Society, in calling its own members “Jehovah’s Witnesses” is attempting to steal that designation away from the Jews. The WatchTower Cult even teaches that all of the Bible’s promises of restoration for the Jewish people now belongs to the followers of the Cult.
There were only approximately 6000 Jehovah’s Witnesses in Germany during the 1930s-40s. While many of those 6000 German JWs were repeatedly arrested during the 1930s and 1940s, only a fraction were jailed or imprisoned for any significant length of time. Only about 200-300 German JWs lost their lives, and the majority of those died from any number of causes other than having been executed. Approximately 1000 JWs from other European countries lost their lives while incarcerated by the Nazis.
During that same time period, there were more Jehovah’s Witnesses arrested and jailed in the United States than in Germany. In fact, from 1941 until 1945, approximately 4500 American Jehovah’s Witnesses “elected” to go to prison rather than serve in the U.S. Military and go fight against those same Nazis who were committing those atrocities. Approximately 3000 of those 4500 American JWs were even offered “conscientious objector” status, in which they were offered “non-combatant” work as a substitute, but 99% of those JWs refused to even help that much.
It is additionally an insult to SINGLE OUT for memorialization the Jehovah’s Witnesses alongside the FIVE MILLION Non-Jewish Holocaust victims given that Jehovah’s Witnesses view some of those fellow victims (Homosexuals, Gypsies, etc. ) much as did the Nazis.
The following SUMMARIES OF NEARLY 1500 JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES CRIMINAL and CIVIL COURT CASES will provide the BEST and MOST ACCURATE info about Jehovah’s Witnesses, their beliefs, and how they ACTUALLY practice such day to day.
The following website summarizes over 900 court cases and lawsuits affecting children of Jehovah’s Witness Parents, including 400 cases where the JW Parents refused to consent to life-saving blood transfusions for their dying children, as well as nearly 400 CRIMINAL cases — most involving MURDERS:
DIVORCE, BLOOD TRANSFUSIONS, AND OTHER LEGAL ISSUES AFFECTING CHILDREN OF JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES
jwdivorces.bravehost.com
The following website summarizes over 500 lawsuits filed by Jehovah’s Witnesses against their Employers, incidents involving problem JW Employees, and other secret JW “history” court cases:
EMPLOYMENT ISSUES UNIQUE TO JEHOVAH’S WITNESS EMPLOYEES
jwemployees.bravehost.com
As a 15 year Zealous Person for Jehovah (and elder) here is my story.
http://exjehovahswitnessforum.yuku.com/topic/922
6 Million Jews
3 Million Poles
400,000 Gypsies
50,000-100,000 Homosexuals
150,000 Disabled Germans
Nobody ever mentions that Hitler rounded up all the Masons many of them Catholics and had them killed.The only Masons who survived didn’t have their name on the rolls at the Grand lodge in Berlin. I think it was over 30,000 Masons that were murdered- they never got imprisoned, but killed outright, as Hitler feared them.
Many leaders of various resistance groups compromised,individuals maintained integrity.
The Jehovah’s Witnesses leader Joseph Rutherford also initially sought favor with Hitler,but when Hitler double-crossed him he drove his own followers to be martyrs.
Millions of Slavs, Russians, Socialist, Catholics, Protestants.
MORE Facts
http://www.randytv.com/Hitler/watchtower_hitler.htm Watchtower and the Nazis.
http://www.bible.ca/jw-penton-3rdreich.htm
http://newsblaze.com/story/20090625053844zzzz.nb/topstory.html
Google: Jehovah Witnesses Rutherford Hitler
The Watchtower has quite a propaganda mill churning away on what pacifist, sterling integrity keepers they were in WWII, and how they were targeted for extermination by the Nazis.
What really went on is they were raising hell with ALL the governments, calling the British and American allied forces fascist.
In Nazi Germany the Watchtower president Joseph Rutherford was a rabid anti-Semite and at first rejoiced at Hitler’s table, but was double-crossed by the Fuhrer and then flaunted his own German JW followers as pawns.
Lifelong Jehovah’s Witnesses dissident speaks out on JW belief system .
A) They are at your door to recruit you for their watchtower society corporation,they will say that “we are just here to share a message from the Bible” this is deception right off.
B) Their ‘message’ creed is a false Gospel that Jesus had his second coming in 1914.The problem with this is it’s not just a cute fairy tale,Jesus warned of the false prophets who would claim “..look he is here in the wilderness,or see here he is at the temple.”
C) Their anti-blood transfusion ban against *whole blood* has killed thousands.
D) once they recruit you they will “love bomb” you in cult fashion to also recruit your family & friends or cut them off.
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Danny Haszard Jehovah’s Witness X 33 years http://www.dannyhaszard.com
55 reasons Jehovah’s Witnesses will never be reformed
by Frank J. Toth
1. Teaching that true Christianity is an organization instead of a way of life
2. Claiming salvation is dependent upon belonging to the JW denomination
3. Claiming that the organization speaks for and is controlled by Jehovah, thereby equating the organization with God himself
4. Centralizing authority in an organization instead of letting Christ be the head of each Christian
5. Claiming that the “faithful and discreet slave” is the “anointed class” rather than each individual Christian who shows himself or herself to be responsible and obedient to Christ
6. Teaching that the early Christians were led by a governing body
7. Teaching that Jesus appointed the “anointed remnant” as his true church in 1919
8. Viewing the so-called “anointed” class (actually, the governing body) as God’s channel and prophet
9. Placing WT literature above the Bible
10. Frequently taking Bible texts out of context in order to build support for the organization’s man-made teachings and procedures
11. Teaching that Jesus returned in 1914 and is “invisibly present” since then
12. Teaching that Jerusalem was destroyed in 607 BCE when no historical records confirm this and the actual date is believed by nearly all historians to be 587 BCE
13. Falsifying the fact that Charles Russell predicted for 1914 the end of the world, not Christ’s return
14. Lying about a so-called “increase” in earthquakes, warfare, famines, persecution, etc., since 1914
15. Contradictorily condemning military organizations and frowning upon JWs who choose alternative service in lieu of military service while the headquarters organization at the same time owns stock in a military product organization (REGI)
16. Taking a conflicting stand with regard to the United Nations, claiming that it is the “wild beast” of Revelation that leads all nations in a fight against God and Christ at Armageddon, but signing on as an NGO member and publishing articles that present the UN in a favorable light
17. Teaching that it’s wrong to celebrate birthdays and all holidays
18. Teaching that Abraham and the faithful men and women of old are not among the holy ones who will rule with Christ in his Kingdom
19. Interpreting Jewish restoration prophecies as fulfilled in “the anointed remnant”
20. Teaching that the Scriptures are directly addressed only to “the remnant of anointed ones”
21. Teaching that only the “anointed” must be born again
22. Teaching that the “great crowd” are not begotten or anointed by the Holy Spirit
23. Teaching that the “great crowd” are God’s grandchildren and not his sons and daughters
24. Teaching that the “great crowd” are not members of the bride of Christ
25. Teaching that Jesus is not the mediator between God and the “great crowd” of Revelation chapter 7
26. Teaching that the resurrection of the “anointed” precedes the resurrection of the “other sheep” and that it has already begun
27. Teaching that only “anointed” JWs will receive immortality in the resurrection
28. Inviting only the “anointed” to partake at the memorial
29. Claiming that spiritual food comes from the “anointed” class whereas nearly all the writers of WT publications are members of the “other sheep” class
30. Creating a climate of fear by authoritarianism
31. Controlling what individual JWs may read of Bible-related publications that are not produced by the WT Society
32. Arrogantly pretending that the JW organization maintains higher standards than any other religion and proclaiming publicly that all other churches are members of Babylon the Great
33. Forbidding attendance and participation at other churches
34. Class distinctions such as “governing body,” “anointed remnant” and “great crowd of other sheep”
35. Class distinctions such as publishers, auxiliary pioneers, regular pioneers, special pioneers, circuit overseers, district overseers, Bethelites, Governing Body, etc.
36. Prohibiting women from serving in any meaningful role in the congregation while expecting them to do the bulk of the work in “field service”
37. Constantly prodding the membership by means of literature, meetings and conventions to do ever more and more in the service of the organization, promoting an atmosphere where many feel their best is never good enough
38. Setting dates for Armageddon and thereby urging the membership to abandon normal living, this often resulting in the ruination of health and family life, as well as creating employment and financial hardships
39. Teachings that lead the members to believe righteousness and salvation can be earned by devoted and loyal support of the organization’s slavish programs
40. Keeping meeting attendance and field service records as a gauge of an individual’s spirituality
41. Organizationally requiring no blood transfusions instead of letting it be a matter of conscience, thereby cruelly informing all members that they will be shunned by the organization if they accept a transfusion that might restore health following a life-threatening accident or illness
42. Allowing their own infants and children to die instead of allowing doctors to give them necessary blood transfusions
43. Teaching that the “congregation” of Matthew 18:17 is the body of elders
44. Holding heresy trials and disciplinary hearings in secrecy from the rest of the congregation
45. Withholding information that would be helpful to persons who have been accused of wrongdoing
46. Conducting heresy trials of members who have doubts or who think differently upon the Scriptures
47. Defining apostasy as against the organization instead of against God
48. Being quick to disfellowship instead of making efforts to restore persons who have done something wrong
49. Unnecessarily and abusively shunning members even for minor infractions such as smoking or not complying with the whimsical directives of elders, thereby causing personal and family turmoil that often results in immense guilt, shame, fear, depression, bitterness, hatred, murder and suicide
50. Prohibiting fellowship with disassociated persons who show no inclination toward causing dissension
51. Showing favoritism by advising innocent victims to “leave it to Jehovah” instead of the elders taking decisive action to deal with some members who have been accused of harmful wrongdoing.
52. Ignoring or minimizing clear evidence of child molestation and other abuses simply because only one witness is available to testify against the member accused of such serious wrongdoing
53. Covering over and hiding damaging facts about the JW organization
54. In many cases, neglecting the care of their own sick and elderly members who no longer have the strength and energy to attend all the meetings and to be regular in “field service” as they did for most of their lives
55. Blatantly lying to the public by declaring to news media that members may leave the organization at any time, of their own free will and without any repercussions from the organization
Balanced information on Jehovah’s Witnesses from a non-witness source can be found in a number of places, including Knocking.org – http://www.knocking.org – What is happening with Jehovah’s Witnesses in Easter Europe can be read regularly at http://www.jw-media.org
Much of the hype in the comments above give an unbalanced view of Jehovah’s Witnesses from people who have gone a little bit off, taking things to extremes and presenting a view that is not reflective of the reality of Jehovah’s Witnesses. BBC also has accurate and balanced information on Jehovah’s Witnesses.
The Watchtower is one grand religious Ponzi scheme. The governing body (their Vatican) sits at the top of the pyramid and receives the perks and benefits of being a top insider. To keep the masses in the game , they promise paradise to the rank and file if they obey the governing body. Watchtower reminds me of the religious version of Amway.
http://www.cultwatch.com/jw.html
YES!Disgruntled & bitter EX-Jehovah’s Witnesses are just like disgruntled EX-Scientologist
NaaturalP, The documentary “Knocking” was a farce. It was anything but a balanced viewpoint. If you feel that there are only a few “people who have gone a little bit off” and are taking things to the extreme, how do you explain that JW’s have the highest turnover rate of any religion in the United States? Nearly two-thirds of those who become members will leave.
There is something deeply wrong with an organization that claims to be Christian and breaks apart families, shunning even their own children. This form of shunning called “Disfellowshipping” is nothing more than psychological brutality meted out to keep the rank and file in line with fear and has led some to commit suicide. Jehovah’s Witnesses will only treat you with love and respect if you go along 100% with their distortions. If you persist in asking questions or challenging their doctrine, you are expelled, losing all friends and family members, never able to speak to them again, not even to say “hello.” Even minor children have been forced to leave home and live on the streets because they no longer agreed with the convoluted and highly extrapolated teachings of their faith.
Jehovah’s Witnesses kill families. Jehovah’s Witnesses kill their own children by disallowing blood transfusions. Thousands of people have died because they refuse emergency blood transfusion that might otherwise save their lives and the lives of their innocent children.
This group must stop ruining lives. If not, they will fade away into history as just another cult. People are learning about Jehovah’s Witnesses from people like us who were raised in the religion and could no longer live with the psychological dissonance.
They do not express the love that Jesus taught