The belief system of the Jehovah’s Witnesses is one that is somewhat alien to most people. For many, they are the people who knock on doors and try to get people to convert to their way of thinking and they just find it irritating. However, there is a strong belief system behind those knocks on the door.
It is a form of Christianity, although there are many aspects of standard Christianity that they do not agree with. They believe in God and they refer to God as Jehovah. They have their own Bible, based on the Bible used by Christians all over the world but there are some differences.
One main difference is that while Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God and therefore is God, Witnesses do not accept this. They see Jesus as a saviour, but do not accept the concept of the Trinity. They do not accept the concept of the Cross either.
Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that the end of the world is coming soon. They do believe in a heaven, although they do not believe that all of their followers will get to go there when the end does come. Only 144,000 people are able to go on to eternal life in heaven.
This particular religion has a system of elders rather than an organised clergy. Elders do not earn a salary and it is claimed that their activities are supported by anonymous donations. Direction for the Witnesses comes from the Governing Body, a small group of committed Witnesses based at the church’s headquarters.
There are some aspects of the religion that many people are aware of. For example, the belief that it is wrong to have a blood transfusion. This means that if people become ill with a serious disease such as leukaemia, treatment might be limited because blood transfusions are not permitted. The same applies if people need an operation. The reason given for this is that it would displease God.
Members of the church are also actively discouraged from taking part in politics and there is a strong emphasis on not having anything to do with any other religions. This means that members will try to avoid attending weddings and baptisms at other churches where possible and if members decide to leave the Jehovah’s Witnesses, others are encouraged to cut them out of their lives. While this religion does try to give the impression that it is welcoming, it may be that it is only to the point where others agree with them.