See also: Jehovah's Witnesses and governments

Throughout the history of Jehovah's Witnesses, their beliefs, doctrines and practices have engendered controversy and opposition from the local governments, communities, or religious groups. Jehovahs Witnesses have beliefs and practices that are commonly regarded as controversial; by mainstream Christians for their doctrines that differ from mainstream Christianity; by governments for their refusal to participate in patriotic activities; and by the general public for their beliefs about blood transfusions and their treatment of members... Jehovahs Witnesses have produced a large amount of literature. ... For other uses, see Watchtower (disambiguation). ... Cover of Awake! magazine Awake! is a general-interest magazine published by Jehovahs Witnesses. ... The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (NWT) is a modern-language translation of the Bible published by the Jehovahs Witnesses, specifically Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc. ... Aid to Bible Understanding (1969) was the first doctrinal and biblical encyclopedia of Jehovahs Witnesses. ... Main article: Persecution of Jehovahs Witnesses Nazi renunciation document Jehovahs Witnesses endured intense persecution under the Nazi regime between 1933 and 1945. ... Charles Russell in 1911 Charles Taze Russell (February 16, 1852 – October 31, 1916), known as Pastor Russell, was an American evangelist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania who founded what is known as the Bible Student movement. ... William Miller William Miller (1782 - 1849) was an American Baptist preacher, whose followers have been termed Millerites. ... Nelson H. Barbour, (1824-1905) a Millerite Adventist (see Millerites) born in Throopsville (misspelled Toupsville in a newspaper profile), a village near Auburn, New York. ... Elder Jonas Wendell (December 25, 1815 - August 14, 1873) of Edenboro, Pennsylvania, was a zealous Adventist preacher following in the spirit of William Miller. ... Joseph Franklin Rutherford 8 November 1869—8 January 1942, best known as Judge Rutherford, was the second president of the Watchtower Society, the legal entity used by Bible Students and subsequently Jehovahs Witnesses. ... Nathan Homer Knorr (April 23, 1905 - June 8, 1977) was the third president of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society doing so on January 13, 1942, replacing Joseph Franklin Rutherford, who had served in the position since 1916. ... Frederick William Franz - (12 September 1893–22 December 1992) served as President of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, the legal organization used to direct the work of Jehovahs Witnesses. ... Milton George Henschel (August 9, 1920 - March 22, 2003) was the person who succeded Frederick W. Franz as the president of Watchtower Society. ... Don A. Adams is the current president of the Watch Tower Society, the most important of the Legal instruments of Jehovahs Witnesses. ... Hayden C. Covington (January 19, 1911 - November 19, 1978) was legal counsel for the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society during one of its most difficult periods in the mid-20th century. ... Alexander Hugh Macmillan (June 2 1877-August 26, 1966), also referred to as A. H. Macmillan, was an important member of the Bible Students, later known as Jehovah’s Witnesses. ... Raymond Franz, circa 1980 Raymond Franz (born 1922) was a member of the Governing Body of Jehovahs Witnesses from 1971 until May 22, 1980[1], and served at the organizations world headquarters for fifteen years, from 1965 until 1980. ... James Penton, Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta; Canada. ... Letter from Olin R. Moyle sent to J.F. Rutherford OLIN R. MOYLE Counselor 117 Adams Street. ... Jehovahs Witnesses face legal or governmental opposition in many countries. ... Jehovahs Witnesses have beliefs and practices that are commonly regarded as controversial; by mainstream Christians for their doctrines that differ from mainstream Christianity; by governments for their refusal to participate in patriotic activities; and by the general public for their beliefs about blood transfusions and their treatment of members...

Persecution has been a recurrent experience of the Jehovah's Witnesses since its foundation. Ken Jubber writes that "Viewed globally, this persecution has been so persistent and of such an intensity that it would not be inaccurate to regard Jehovah's witnesses as the most persecuted group of Christians of the twentieth century". ^[1] Religious persecution is systematic mistreatment of an individual or group due to their religious affiliation. ...

Many Christian denominations consider their interpretation and doctrines to be heresy. Thus some religious leaders have accused Jehovah's Witnesses of being a cult. For other uses, see Heresy (disambiguation). ... This article does not discuss cult in its original meaning. ...

Political and religious animosity against them has at times led to mob action and government oppression, in countries such as the Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in the United States, Canada and Nazi Germany. Ochlocracy (Greek: οχλοκρατια; Latin: ochlocratia) is government by mob or a disorganized mass of people. ... Main article: Persecution of Jehovahs Witnesses Throughout the history of Jehovahs Witnesses, their beliefs, doctrines and practices have engendered controversy and opposition from the local governments, communities, or religious groups. ... Main article: Persecution of Jehovahs Witnesses Nazi renunciation document Jehovahs Witnesses endured intense persecution under the Nazi regime between 1933 and 1945. ...

According to the eminent jurist Archibald Cox, in the United States, the Witnesses were "the principal victims of religious persecution... in the twentieth century... Although founded earlier, they began to attract attention and provoke repression in the 1930s, when their proselytizing and numbers rapidly increased" ^[2] Archibald Cox, Jr. ...

The religion's doctrine of political neutrality has led to the jailing of Witnesses who refused conscription (for example in Britain during World War II and afterwards during the period of compulsory national service). Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... National service is a common name for compulsory or voluntary military service programs. ...

During the world wars, Jehovah's Witnesses were also targeted in the United States, Canada and many other countries because they refused to serve in the military or help with war efforts. In Canada, Jehovah's Witnesses were interned in camps along with political dissidents and people of Japanese and Chinese descent.

The religion was banned at times in the Soviet Union, in Spain (partly due to Jehovah's Witnesses refusal to do military service), and currently is illegal in some countries, such as many Islamic states.

There has been opposition expressed by locals in some communities to the building of facilities such as Kingdom Halls or the holding of large conventions. This sort of opposition has derived from various motives, such as opposition to the religion, or civil concerns such as traffic congestion and noise.^{[citations needed]}

United States

Main article: Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in the United States

See also: Jehovah's Witnesses and civil liberties

The religious beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses forbade them from saluting the flag, reciting the pledge of allegiance, and joining the armed forces. Not surprisingly, due to those beliefs, they often became the victims of religious bigotry. Some states passed laws which made it illegal for them to distribute their literature and even went so far as to ban the children of Jehovah's Witnesses from attending public schools. Mob violence against Jehovah's Witnesses was not an uncommon occurrence. Nor was it uncommon for Jehovah's Witnesses to be murdered for their beliefs. Those responsible for the attacks were frequently never even prosecuted. Main article: Persecution of Jehovahs Witnesses Throughout the history of Jehovahs Witnesses, their beliefs, doctrines and practices have engendered controversy and opposition from the local governments, communities, or religious groups. ... Main article: United States Supreme Court cases involving the First Amendment Since the 1940s, the Jehovahs Witnesses have often invoked the First Amendments fredom of religion clauses to protect their ability to engage in the proselytizing that is central to their faith. ...

After a long and difficult litigation in state courts and lower federal courts, the Jehovah's Witnesses were able to convince the Supreme Court to issue a series of landmark First Amendment rulings that confirmed the Jehovah's Witnesses right to be excused from military service and the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance. The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C., (large image) The Supreme Court of the United States, located in Washington, D.C., is the highest court (see supreme court) in the United States; that is, it has ultimate judicial authority within the United States... The first ten Amendments to the U.S. Constitution make up the Bill of Rights. ... Internationally there have been numerous Supreme Court cases involving Jehovahs Witnesses. ... The Pledge of Allegiance is a promise or oath of allegiance to the United States and the its national flag. ...

Canada

Main article: Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in Canada

During both world wars, Jehovah's Witnesses suffered much persecution because of their evangelical fervour, abhorrence of patriotic exercises and conscientious objection to military service. Walter Tarnopolsky, Canadas leading legal authority on civil liberties, stated: The best testing of the standard of civil liberties in a society is the best way that society treats its dissenters and minorities. ...

In 1984, Canada released a number of previously classified documents which revealed that in the forties, "able bodied young Jehovah's Witnesses" were sent to "camps," and "entire families who practiced the religion were imprisoned." ^[3]

Sallot and Yaffee wrote that "Recently declassified wartime documents suggest it [World War II] was also a time of officially sanctioned religious bigotry, political intolerance and the suppression of ideas. The federal government described Jehovah's Witnesses as subversive and offensive 'religious zealots'... in secret reports given to special parliamentarian committees in 1942." The report on Jehovah's Witnesses concluded that, "probably no other organization is so offensive in its methods, working as it does under the guise of Christianity. The documents prepared by the justice department were presented to a special house of commons committee by the government of William, Lyon, McKenzie King in an attempt to justify the outlawing of the organizations during the second world war." ^[4]

Nazi Germany

Main article: Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in Nazi Germany

Jehovah's Witnesses in Germany were persecuted between 1933 and 1945. They were scorned by the name Ernste Bibelforscher (Earnest Bible Students) at that time, because Jehovah's Witnesses would not give allegiance to the Nazi party, and refused to serve in the military, they were detained, put in concentration camps, or imprisoned during the Holocaust. Unlike Jews, homosexuals and Gypsies who were persecuted for racial, political and social reasons, Jehovah's Witnesses were persecuted on religious ideological grounds. The Nazi government gave detained Jehovah's Witnesses the option if they were to renounce their faith, submit to the state authority, and support the German military they would be free to leave prison or the camps. Approximately 12,000^[5] Jehovah's Witnesses were sent to concentration camps where they were forced to wear a purple triangle that specifically identified them as Jehovah's Witnesses. In the end, about 2,000 of their members who were incarcerated perished under the Nazi system.^[6] Main article: Persecution of Jehovahs Witnesses Nazi renunciation document Jehovahs Witnesses endured intense persecution under the Nazi regime between 1933 and 1945. ... Year 1933 (MCMXXXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... Nazism in history Nazi ideology Nazism and race Outside Germany Related subjects Lists Politics Portal         Nazism or National Socialism (German: Nationalsozialismus), refers primarily to the ideology and practices of the Nazi Party (National Socialist German Workers Party, German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP) under Adolf Hitler. ... It has been suggested that Internment be merged into this article or section. ... “Shoah” redirects here. ... Homosexuality is a sexual orientation characterized by esthetic attraction, romantic love, or sexual desire exclusively for another of the same sex. ... Languages Romani, languages of native region Religions Christianity, Islam Related ethnic groups South Asians (Desi) The Roma (singular Rom; sometimes Rroma, Rrom) or Romanies are an ethnic group living in many communities all over the world. ... The purple triangle was a Nazi concentration camp badge used by the Nazis to identify religious prisoners, the Jehovahs Witnesses (Bibelforscher). ...

This number is in doubt however. The actual number which died in the camps the Watchtower Society has presented over the years has, in fact, varied widely ^[7][8] but 635 is the most specific ^[9]. And though still tragic, that would be a tenth of one percent of how many Jews were killed there. See also [3]. All lost their employment, many were sent to regular prisons. Very few signed the renouncement documents.

Soviet Union

Main article: Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in the Soviet Union

Jehovah's Witnesses were one of the most persecuted religious groups in the Soviet Union. This included arrests and deportations; some were put in concentration camps. Most of them lived in the former Romanian territory of Moldavia in the Ukraine and in the Irkutsk region of Siberia.^{[citation needed]} Gulag ( , Russian: ) was the government body responsible for administering prison camps across the former Soviet Union. ... Irkutsks location Kazansky Church in Irkutsk Irkutsk (Russian: ) is one of the largest cities in Siberia. ... This article is about Siberia as a whole. ...

The Soviet Jehovah's Witnesses received their religious literature from Brooklyn illegally since its importation into the Soviet Union was strictly forbidden. In fact, literature from Brooklyn arrived regularly, in good shape and in large quantities through unofficial and well-organized channels, not only in many cities, including Siberia, but even in the penal camps of Potma. This fact distressed the camp authorities.

Other countries

France

The installation of meeting places is sometimes met by local opposition. As an example, in 1995 the inhabitants of the village of Remomeix (resp. Deyvillers) in the Vosges département of France opposed the installation of Kingdom Halls.^[10][11] Reasons given were the fear of aggressive prozelytizing of minors, and the large size of the installations. In both cases, the number of Jehovah's Witnesses attending the Hall would have well exceeded the total population of the village. Kingdom Hall is the name of meeting places for Jehovahs Witnesses. ... Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full 1995 Gregorian calendar). ... Vosges is a French department, named after the Vosges mountain range. ... The départements (or departments) are administrative units of France, roughly analogous to British counties. ...

Malawi

The savagery of the attackers in Malawi was such that thousands of Witnesses of all ages and both sexes were physically brutalized by police and citizens alike.^[12]

Singapore

Jehovah's Witnesses males are currently imprisoned in Singapore for refusal to participate in the compulsory National Service.^[13] At one point of time, Jehovah's Witnesses reported police razzias and other mistreats on individuals. National Service (NS) is the name given to the compulsory conscription in Singapore of all male Singaporean citizens and second-generation permanent residents upon reaching the age of 18. ...

References

External links

• Holocaust Learning Center - Jehovah's Witnesses: Persecution
• Awake!' 'July 8,1998 - Jehovah's Witnesses' Website
• Timeline of the Bible Students / Jehovah's Witnesses in Germany
• Yadvashem - Shoah Resource Centre - Jehovah's Witnesses
• The "Bibelforscher" in the Third Reich (An Examination of the Conflict between Jehovah's Witnesses and the Nazis)

See also

• Knocking, a documentary on Jehovah's Witnesses featuring a Jewish concentration camp survivor, Joseph Kempler
• Forum 18 - Religious repression news
• Teacher's Guide to the Holocaust
• US Holocaust Museum

Knocking is a 2006 documentary directed by Joel Engardio and Tom Shepard that focuses on the civil liberties fought for by Jehovahs Witnesses. ...

Additional reading

• Persecution and Resistance of Jehovah's Witnesses During the Nazi Regime Edited by Hans Hesse ISBN 3861087502
• UNBROKEN WILL: The Story of Leopold Engleitner, born 1905, Bernhard Rammerstorfer, Grammaton Press.
• Persecution and Resistance of Jehovah's Witnesses During the Nazi Regime 1933-1945, Hans Hesse (Ed.), Edition Temmen.
• FACING THE LION: Memoirs of a Young Girl in Nazi Europe, Simone Arnold Liebster, Grammaton Press.
• CRUCIBLE OF TERROR: A Story of Survival Through the Nazi Storm, Max Liebster, Grammaton Press.
• The Nazi State and the New Religions : Five Case Studies in Non-Conformity, Christine E. King, Edwin Mellen Press, 1982.
• Detlev Garbe: Zwischen Widerstand und Martyrium, 1999, ISBN 3-486-56404-8
• "Jehovah's Witnesses and the Third Reich: Sectarian Politics Under Persecution", M. James Penton, University of Toronto Press, 2004. ISBN 0-8020-8678-0
• Manfred Gebhard: Geschichte der Zeugen Jehovas. Mit Schwerpunkt der deutschen Geschichte, 1999, ISBN 3-89811-217-9
• Hans Hesse: Am mutigsten waren immer wieder die Zeugen Jehovas, Edition Temmen, 2000, ISBN 3-86108-724-3
• Hans Hesse, Jürgen Harder: ...und wenn ich lebenslang in einem KZ bleiben müßte... Die Zeuginnen Jehovas in den Frauenkonzentrationslagern Moringen, Lichtenburg und Ravensbrück, 2001, ISBN 3-88474-935-8
• Michael H. Kater: Die Ernsten Bibelforscher im Dritten Reich; in: Vierteljahreshefte für Zeitgeschichte 17. Jg. 1969 Heft 2
• Bernhard Rammerstorfer: Nein statt Ja und Amen. Leopold Engleitner: Er ging einen anderen Weg, Linz 1999, ISBN 3-9500718-6-5
• Paul Johnson, A History of Christianity , ISBN 0-689-10728-5
• Judith Tydor Baumel, Walter Laqueur:The Holocaust Encyclopedia, ISBN 0-300-08432-3
• Michael Berenbaum,The World Must Know: The History of the Holocaust as Told in United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, ISBN 0-316-09134-0

Bernhard Rammerstorfer (*1968 in Austria) is an author and film producer. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... A History of Christianity is a historical study of the Christian Religion written by British journalist and author Paul Johnson. ...