Part 1

I am 82 years old and became one of Jehovah’s witnesses in 1951.  During my life I have seen much criticism of Jehovah’s witnesses and have personally experienced a fair amount myself. I therefore feel that I am fully qualified to speak, not as an official representative of the Jehovah’s witnesses, but as an individual who knows from personal experience what it is like to be a witness and be the target of this uncalled for criticism.

Other articles on this site such as, “why I am not an Evolutionist” describe in detail why I felt that the religion that I was raised in left a vacuum in my life. Many will say that the Salvation Army does good by its charitable work and I will not deny that fact, but would like to point out that one does not need a religion to do welfare  work. Even well-meaning atheists can do that. The religion that one belongs to has the primary responsibility to teach one about God.

I Begin Studying the Bible

When I first began to study with Jehovah’s witnesses I was a very suspicious person. Why? Because I was aware, that there were many misleading ideas around. For example many books were being published raising questions about the lost Atlantis, the presence of U.F.O’s and many other controversial subjects. The fact that there were so many religions also made me wary and I prayed long and hard, asking God to help me to always be open-minded and reasonable in my search for the truth. Realizing that it is a human tendency to avoid unpleasant things I also asked God to help me to accept what I saw was right even if what I was hearing was hard for me to swallow.

Because of my suspicious nature I accepted nothing without proof. When the witnesses referred to “Young’s Analytical Concordance” I asked “why Young’s” and went and purchased “Cruden’s Concordance” only to find out later that whereas Cruden’s helped me to find scriptures, “Young’s” gave the original Hebrew and Greek meanings of the words and organized them according to the Hebrew and Greek original. I finally ended up purchasing “Young’s” and “Strong’s Comprehensive Concordance” in addition to “Crudens”. I soon found out that the witnesses were honest and truthful and everything that they told me, was backed up with evidence either from the Bible or other secular authorities. After studying the Bible for 6 months with Jehovah’s witnesses I found out to my surprise that I even knew more about Salvation Army teachings than I had previously known. My knowledge and faith in the Bible had grown tremendously.

My first Encounter with Criticism

My first real taste of criticism was also an eye-opener to me, and helped me to understand how much I had learned in the 6 months studying with Jehovah’s witnesses. It came about in this way. One day while visiting my grandmother, I found my aunt there visiting. She wore the Salvation Army uniform and was regarded as a soldier in the army and had given my grandmother a tract calling Jehovah’s witnesses, Satan’s witnesses. I was shocked as everything that the witnesses so far had shown me, had been backed up with scripture and in their hands I found that the Bible never contradicted itself. In the 6 months of study I had found no contradictions in either their teachings nor in the Bible itself.  I asked my aunt where she had got hold of the tracts, only to find that the Salvation Army was actually distributing them in their kingdom hall. I told my cousin about what had happened and we decided to get to the bottom of the matter. The two of us decided to visit the Salvation Army officer in charge to find out why they were distributing the tract. We visited the major at the Salvation Army kingdom hall together.  During our discussion I was surprised to find that in my six months study I had now come to know more about the Bible than the major did. He did not appear to know what Jehovah’s witnesses taught and even had to consult the tract that I had brought with us in his attempt to justify the distribution.

Refuting the Criticism

By the way, at that time I was not one of Jehovah’s witnesses but only studying with them. As the tract claimed that Jehovah’s witnesses did not believe in the trinity doctrine, the major seized upon this point. Now up to that time, most persons and including myself had never heard of the trinity doctrine. I had noticed that they sometimes referred to Jesus as God when at our army meetings, but never ever heard the term trinity mentioned. I had found the idea of Jesus being referred to as God  puzzling but had not pursued the matter, feeling that as experts they knew better. However at this time, it was different now. The trinity doctrine had been discussed in the book that I was studying. The book was entitled “Let God be True” and quoted literally hundreds of scriptures to support its teaching. The book also discussed most of the scriptures that religions used to support the doctrine, comparing them with other scriptures so that one could understand how these scriptures actually applied.  Even though I was a novice by witness standards, I now understood the real meaning of these so-called proof texts. Just to give a sample of how the trinity doctrine contradicted other Bible teachings. I will consider just a few sample facts. To the claim that Jesus was God, one could ask the questions “when Jesus died did that mean that God had died”? The Bible actually teaches that God is immortal and cannot die. (Psalm 102:25.26) Furthermore, where was the trinity, while Jesus was dead in the grave for three days”. Was Jesus fooling us when he said “Father forgive them because they know not what they do?“ and also at (Mat 26:39) “And he went forward a little, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass away from me: nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt” Does this sound like Jesus believed that he was God? At (John 17:3) he said “this is life eternal that they may know thee the only true God.“ Furthermore, who resurrected Jesus?  Did he resurrect himself?  When Jesus discussed the time of the end here is how a number of different translations other than the translation used by Jehovah’s witnesses rendered Mat 24:36
(ASV) But of that day and hour knoweth no one, not even the angels of heaven, neither the Son, but the Father only.
(BBE) But of that day and hour no one has knowledge, not even the angels in heaven, or the Son, but the Father only.
(CEV) No one knows the day or hour. The angels in heaven don’t know, and the Son himself doesn’t know. Only the Father knows.
(DRB) But of that day and hour no one knoweth: no, not the angels of heaven, but the Father alone.
(ESV) “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.
(GNB) “No one knows, however, when that day and hour will come—neither the angels in heaven nor the Son; the Father alone knows.
(KJV) But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

The Reasonableness of the Bible

These translations were made by people who basically believe in the trinity doctrine and yet were forced to translate the text so that it revealed Christ as inferior to his father Jehovah.

This is just a mere fraction of the number of scriptures that could be used. Every single proof text that the churches use can be better understood when harmonized with other scriptures. Consider just one example. Jesus said on one occasion “If you see me you see the father” Now if I made that statement to someone would they understand by those words that I was saying that I was my own father? No! common sense tells us that that could not be and that such a conclusion would be unreasonable. Why? Just as an ambassador represents his country, Jesus, acting as his father’s representative, could say, “if you want to see my father, see me.” Remember they had asked him to show them the father who was invisible and far too glorious for humans to gaze upon,  so it made sense for Jesus to say “if you see me you see the father” Which understanding is more reasonable? That Jesus was his own father and therefore God himself or that as God’s son he was authorized to completely represent his father?  (Prov 8:22-30) spoke of God creating someone at the beginning of his creation and who served as a master worker with God.  (Colossians 1:15) also identified Jesus as God’s first born and even referred to him as being the image of the invisible God. an image is a reflection. Does that not square up with  the idea that “if you see me you see the father” So Jesus while on earth and as God’s son reflected the invisible God in a practical way. More importantly which understanding harmonizes with other scriptures in the Bible. The trinity doctrine is supported by almost all the religions in Christendom. If it is wrong it means that their church members are giving worship to a false God which fundamentally is idolatry in God’s eyes, and so it is very important to know the truth. Knowledge brings responsibility and this means that if one knows, that someone is unknowingly taking a course that can lead to his destruction, one has a moral obligation to help and warn his neighbor. Of course the neighbor can choose not to listen but then he has no grounds for complaint if he loses his life. Is this not what happened to the many Jews that did not accept the warnings that Jesus gave them in the first century of our common era.

Be Wise and Give a Listen

At Luke 21 Jesus had warned the Jews to flee out of Jerusalem when they saw the city surrounded by armies. They may have reasoned that this was nonsense, because how can you leave a city that is surrounded . In 66 C.E. the Romans surrounded Jerusalem but then withdrew for some unexplained reason as explained by the ancient Jewish historian Josephus. However the Romans came back in 70 C.E. and this time they completely destroyed Jerusalem and its temple. Even to this day the temple has never been rebuilt, however those Jews that listened to Jesus and became Christians escaped the holocaust because, in obedience to Jesus they fled to the mountains when the Romans withdrew for a short time. God had created a window of opportunity for them to escape. The principle is the same and Jehovah’s witnesses feel that it is their moral responsibility to give everybody at least a reasonable opportunity to hear the truth. Furthermore it is God’s will that people should be warned of the danger and know the truth, and if Jehovah’s witnesses don’t do this then who will? This warning work also clears God’s name of any reproach, that could result from people losing their lives without being given a fair chance.

What About the Witness Bible?

Just to show how important it is to Jehovah’s witnesses, to help people get accurate knowledge consider this. Most Christians will readily agree that no one has the right to add or subtract from the Bible because it is God’s word. In the 1950′s and before the Society had produced their New world Translation of the Holy Scriptures, most witnesses used whatever Bible translation the people used to preach their message. At that time I was using the King James Bible of 1611 otherwise known as the Authorized version of the Bible. Young’s concordance showed that the Name of God, Jehovah appeared about 6823 times in the original Hebrew text. The King James version used it only 4 times. At all the other places it either used LORD or GOD to represent God’s name. Today, Jehovah’s witnesses use their own Bible translation, the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures in their work. This translation is far more accurate, and uses the name of God wherever it appears in the Hebrew text. I have proved the accuracy of the translation to myself by comparing it with secular authorities like Vines Expository dictionary and other translations. Yet many people criticize and accuse the witnesses of having their own Bible. This accusation implies that witnesses have no right to translate the Bible. What these persons do not  realize is that their own churches have been translating and using their own Bibles for hundreds of years. Yet these churches do not correct this misunderstanding with their flocks, preferring to permit the witnesses to be accused by their members of doing what their own churches have been doing all the time. Jehovah’s witnesses do not need to translate the Bible to favor their teachings because they have proved their case over and over from the official church produced Bibles. However, why should they continue to use translations that bend the truth in their personal study when they can use a translation that is more accurate. Generally every correction in the NW translation can be found in another Bible translation, that is a non-witness publication.  To prove that official translations are bent to support official doctrine consider these facts. Most official Bible translations have been produced by the churches. The American Standard Version uses the name of God Jehovah 6823 times in its text, which is every time that it appears in the Hebrew. By contrast the King James version of 1611 uses it only 4 times.  why the difference? The Revised Standard Version (1971) states in its preface the reason why it follows the King James version:- “For two reasons the Committee has returned to the more familiar usage of the King James Version: (1) the word ‘Jehovah’ does not accurately represent any form of the Name ever used in Hebrew; and (2) the use of any proper name for the one and only God, as though there were other gods from whom he had to be distinguished, was discontinued in Judaism before the Christian era and is entirely inappropriate for the universal faith of the Christian Church.”

Thus they admit that they have dropped the use of God’s name because they considered it inappropriate, and prefer to follow Jewish traditions. If that is not an open admission that they translate to suit their own opinions then what is. They have admittedly followed the example of the adherents of Judaism, of whom Jesus said: “You have made the word of God invalid because of your tradition.”—Matt. 15:6.(NW)

Now on reflection we can see how weak this excuse is because even the name Jesus is not the way the Greeks or Hebrews pronounced it . It is a well known fact that every language has its own unique pronunciation of a name. The Bible was not written in English and  even the King James although using the name four times, used the popular English equivalent which is Jehovah. It is not the pronunciation of the name that is important but rather the fact that one uses the name with respect. Imagine if we excluded the name of Jesus just because the English pronunciation of the name was different to the original Greek in which Jesus name appeared. Would this help us in our understanding of the Bible? What is more, is it not presumptuous of them to take God’s name out of the Bible.  What a cheek? How do you think God would view persons who thought so much of themselves that they had no hesitation in taking his name out of his word.

It Will Soon Be Pay-Back Time

Jehovah’s witnesses well know that God has got a reckoning with the religions responsible for this outrage. If you doubt this see my article on this site regarding “Babylon the Great” However their flocks, who do not know better because of the deception of their leaders, need to be helped to know what is actually going on. They need to “Face the Facts.” Jehovah’s witnesses are doing their utmost to see to that. That is why it is necessary for all and even honest clergymen to open their eyes to the system they belong to and make haste to get out of her. Take a look at the history of religion, notice how they have kept their flocks in ignorance while leading them to slaughter in the wars of the nations, or for one political cause or the other and making them feel that they were doing the will of God.

I worked with a famous trumpet player in times past. We were doing a show and he found out that I was a witness. He said to me ” I hear that you are religious,” I answered “yes” He said I would like to ask you a question that no clergyman has ever been able to answer” I said “OK I’ll give it a try” Whereupon he told me that during the second world war he was in the British army band. They found that he was a crack shot with a rifle so he was transferred and became a sniper. He told me that he focused his telescopic sight on the German’s face and blew it away. He said that this tormented him and so he went and asked his vicar how this could be right when the Bible said that “thou shalt not kill.”His vicar told him not to worry because their cause was just.  He said that He could not accept that. What was my an answer? I explained that he was correct and that he was guilty of blood guilt as far as God was concerned, but the Bible showed that God had a special arrangement to cover persons who were in this position.  His clergymen had misled him by involving him in the wars, whereas Jesus had said that his kingdom was no part of the world, and clergy on both sides of the conflict had urged their flocks to fight for their respective countries. Because he had killed without accurate knowledge,  God had a special arrangement to handle cases like this. This special arrangement was prefigured in the law given to the nation of Israel. The law provided protection for the person that shed blood accidentally.  Cities of refuge were provided so that the one who killed by accident could escape the executioner. I explained the details to the man. I must have given him some comfort because he read one of our publications during the tour. I had to count the bars rest for him while he read three chapters of the book on the show. After the show finished, we went our various ways. I would like to have followed him up but could not. Can you see how important it is to search for accurate knowledge of the Bible and not just trust anybody with your life.

Persecution of Witnesses fulfill Prophecy

What I was seeing first hand was the very thing that Jesus had predicted would occur. Just as his early disciples were persecuted by their former religion, so the churches are opposing Jehovah’s witnesses and the work that they are doing. They are behaving like the unfaithful slave mentioned in Jesus parable of the two servants mentioned in Matt 24:44-50. The unfaithful servant is depicted as beating his fellow servants. Like the unfaithful slave in the parable, the clergy of Christendom have failed to educate their flocks and because the witnesses do what they know they should have been doing, they resent this and try to put the people off by their criticism and opposition.  If it was possible for fishermen like the apostles to see that Jesus fulfilled prophecy in the first century then why not the clergy of that time. In the same way, if the religious clergy today had done their job then there would have been no need for Jehovah’s witnesses to do this work. If they had obeyed Jesus’ command mentioned in Matt 28:19,20, to make disciples and teach them, then their flocks would have had accurate knowledge, but through ignorance, the flocks have been allowed to remain ignorant. Jehovah’s witnesses are trying to equip people with the knowledge that God intended them to have. This knowledge could result in the saving of lives when God eventually takes action. Many do not believe that God is going to take action and this is also because of the neglect of church leaders. True, people are not forced to accept the message, but Jehovah’ witnesses are then clean of blood guilt because these persons have been warned and given a chance to check the information. That is why the clergy add to their sin in God’s eyes by their criticism of Jehovah’s witnesses and so prejudicing the people against the witnesses. In this way people are not being permitted to decide for themselves whether the message is true or false. When I continue to the part 2, I will show how Jesus laid down the principle of “How the Bible should be studied.”

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