COVER SUBJECT
Who Are Jehovah’s Witnesses?
“I had known Mike for years. He is one of Jehovah’s Witnesses. But his religion always baffled me. Who is Jehovah? Why don’t Witnesses celebrate the holidays? Was Mike mixed up in a cult?”—Becky, California, U.S.A.
“When my neighbors started to study the Bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses, I wondered: ‘What does that name, Jehovah’s Witnesses, mean? What a strange name for a religion!’”—Zenon, Ontario, Canada.
“My wife and I thought that Jehovah’s Witnesses called to prey on our guilt feelings because we weren’t at church. And we figured that if the mainline churches didn’t have what we were looking for, a weird sect like Jehovah’s Witnesses couldn’t have it either.”—Kent, Washington, U.S.A.
“I honestly didn’t know who they were and what they stood for.”—Cecilie, Esbjerg, Denmark.
You have likely seen them preaching from door to door or in a public place, distributing Bible-based literature and offering free Bible studies. You may have received this magazine from one of them. Still, you may wonder who Jehovah’s Witnesses really are. Perhaps your thoughts are similar to one of those quoted above.
If you have such questions and concerns, where might you go for answers? How can you learn what Jehovah’s Witnesses really believe, how their ministry and places of worship are financed, and why they call at your home and approach you in public places?
“I read a lot about Jehovah’s Witnesses on the Internet,” says Cecilie, quoted earlier. “I heard some rumors, and I listened to a great deal of prejudiced talk. As a result, I formed a very negative view of Jehovah’s Witnesses.” Later, however, she spoke to Jehovah’s Witnesses directly and found satisfying answers to her questions.
Would you like to receive truthful answers to your questions about Jehovah’s Witnesses? We encourage you to turn to the most knowledgeable source—Jehovah’s Witnesses themselves, who publish this magazine. (Proverbs 14:15) We hope that the following articles will help you to see who we are and what we believe as well as to understand the work we do.