Are Jehovah's Witnesses particularly anti-violence?
Upvote:3
Jehovah's Witnesses' pacifism is not predicated on their beliefs about government.
In other words, human violence of all kinds, whether government sponsored or not, are evil.
Jehovah's Witness believe literally
However, I say to you: Continue to love your enemies and to pray for those who persecute you,
Matthew 5:44
and
Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but yield place to the wrath; for it is written: "'Vengeance is mine; I will repay,' says Jehovah."
Romans 12:19
This is related to their views on government, in that human government cannot bring peace, and human violence cannot bring peace. In both cases, only the Kingdom of God is able to establish lasting peace, and we should not try to do it ourselves.
Peace on earth will come, not by human efforts, but by means of God’s Kingdom, a heavenly government ruled by Christ Jesus.
Upvote:4
Both. The article Why Don’t Jehovah’s Witnesses Go to War? on JW.org addresses this well.
On the one hand, they are "neutral" toward governments:
Jesus’ disciples obey his command to be “no part of the world” by remaining strictly neutral in political matters. (John 17:16) They do not protest against military actions or interfere with those who choose to serve in the armed forces.
From chapter 7 of their booklet Keep Yourselves in God's Love, entitled Value Life and Blood as God Does, they say:
Because Jesus’ followers are “no part of the world” but remain strictly neutral toward its politics and wars, they avoid personal and community bloodguilt. * (John 15:19; 17:16) And in imitation of Christ, they do not respond violently when others persecute them. Rather, they show love for their enemies, even praying for them.
You can read more about their rationale for political neutrality here.
And on the other hand, they abstain from violence out of a devotion to "the love ethic of Jesus" (quoting again from Why Don’t Jehovah’s Witnesses Go to War?):
Jesus commanded his disciples to “love one another.” (John 13:34, 35) They would thus form an international brotherhood in which no member would ever wage war against his brother or sister. ...
The Encyclopedia of Religion and War states: “The earliest followers of Jesus rejected war and military service,” recognizing those practices as “incompatible with the love ethic of Jesus and the injunction to love one’s enemies.” Likewise, German theologian Peter Meinhold said of those early disciples of Jesus: “Being a Christian and a soldier was considered irreconcilable.”
Similarly, in the Watchtower article "Is War Compatible with Christianity?" they say, "Is it reasonable to think that a Christian could love and pray for his enemies while waging war against them?" And it says in Value Life and Blood:
Those who value life as Jehovah does and who want to keep themselves in his love also avoid violence in all its forms. Says Psalm 11:5: “He hates anyone who loves violence.” That text is more than a statement about God’s personality; it is a guiding principle for life.
There are exceptions to their generally anti-violence stance. They believe that it is just for governments to administer capital punishment to murderers. They permit violent self-defense in the case of your life (or loved ones' lives) being threatened, though they oppose it if it's merely in defense of property.
More post
- 📝 Why did Aquinas place so much credence in Aristotle?
- 📝 Can a baby be baptized in a Catholic Church if the mother does not have papers proving she was baptized?
- 📝 How is the belief that Christians are both adopted and begotten sons of God reconciled?
- 📝 What are the differences between hamartiology from a Nazarene to a Calvinist perspective?
- 📝 Does Numbers 5:11-22 describe sanctioned abortion?
- 📝 What is the Biblical basis of the idea that men can be given authority to forgive sins?
- 📝 Why do Greek Orthodox venerate icons and Roman Catholic statues?
- 📝 What is the meaning of this excerpt from Foundation of the Christian Faith, by Karl Rahner?
- 📝 What passages of Scripture were used by the popes and crusaders to justify the Crusades?
- 📝 Does the Catholic Church have a policy on how altars are to be destroyed?
- 📝 What does the The Episcopal Church mean when it says it allows everyone to participate in Holy Communion?
- 📝 Morality of transacting with damaged currency note/bill
- 📝 The Apostle Paul and the doctrine of forgiveness?
- 📝 Existence of Hell in Christianity
- 📝 Early Christian Reaction to Muhammad
- 📝 When did Christmas (the birth of Christ) first begin as a Christian celebration?
- 📝 Is it ok to pray different prayers in conjunction to one another?
- 📝 Was 30 the canonical age for Catholic priesthood in the 1700s?
- 📝 Was Jesus an adherent to 'Sola Scriptura'?
- 📝 How do one know that the Bible is absolutely true and is not a "make believe" fiction?
- 📝 What is the largest database of denominations of Christianity?
- 📝 Were Adam and Eve meant to live forever; had they not disobeyed God?
- 📝 What type of angel was the Morning Star?
- 📝 Was the Covenant made with the Church or does 'Everlasting' mean something other than 'eternal?'
- 📝 What's the right terminology here for what God's allowing something, but not blessing it?
- 📝 Is there a word for the beliefs of Baptists?
- 📝 Why do Protestants trust what Paul and Luke wrote 100%?
- 📝 What is the meaning of "Advocata Nostra" according to Catholic Tradition & Teaching?
- 📝 Do they use icons in the Roman Catholic Church?
- 📝 Are Naaman's actions considered an exception to God's laws?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Are Jehovah's Witnesses particularly anti-violence?
- 📝 Are Jehovah's Witnesses allowed to marry outside the faith?
- 📝 How do Jehovah's Witnesses respond to the charge that they are false prophets (because their end-of-the-world predictions didn't come true)?
- 📝 How many witnesses are there who physically saw and/or touched the golden plates from which the Book of Mormon was reportedly translated?
- 📝 Do Jehovah's Witnesses have membership fees or how are they funded?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for the belief held by Jehovah's Witnesses that Jehovah and Jesus Christ are separate entities?
- 📝 Do Jehovah's Witnesses believe the 144 000 are from Israel?
- 📝 How comparable are the concepts of the Teaching Magisterium in the Catholic Church and the Jehovah's Witnesses view of their Watch Tower society?
- 📝 What are the differences between most Christian Bibles and Jehovah’s Witnesses Bible?
- 📝 If most of the Jehovah's Witnesses today are not a part of the 144,000, then what exactly are they?
- 📝 Who are the leaders of the Jehovah's Witnesses church?
- 📝 Who are the two witnesses in the book of Revelation?
- 📝 What are the main differences between Jehovah's Witnesses and Biblical Unitarians?
- 📝 What are Jehovah's Witnesses beliefs on how those who died before Jesus, or before JWs existed, will gain salvation?
- 📝 To what extent are Jehovah’s Witnesses to exercise political neutrality in matters of employment?
- 📝 Why do Jehovah's Witnesses believe that angels are doing the talking between God and mankind?
- 📝 What are the current guidelines for Jehovah's Witnesses regarding blood use in medical treatment?
- 📝 Are Jehovah's Witnesses Protestants?
- 📝 Are Jehovah's Witnesses expected to follow their church's doctrines?
- 📝 Jehovah's Witnesses teach Jesus was created and he's "a god" according to John 1:1 in their NWT. Yet the Bible teaches all men are sinners?
- 📝 According to Jehovah’s Witnesses who are the two messengers at Malachi 3:1?
- 📝 According to Latter-day Saints, what are the strongest arguments for the credibility of the 3 & 8 witnesses to the golden plates?
- 📝 What are the differences between Catholics and the Jehovah's Witnesses
- 📝 Are there published testimonies from Jehovah's Witnesses about their experiences with the presence of the Holy Spirit?
- 📝 Do Jehovah's Witnesses allow remarriage after a divorce? Are there any consequences for the congregation member?
- 📝 What have been the justifications by organised Christian groups on why around 500 witnesses are convincing when Legion can control thousands?
- 📝 What major translations of the Bible are in the Public Domain?
- 📝 Why are Matthew, Mark, and Luke called the synoptic gospels?
- 📝 Why are there so many translations of the Bible?
- 📝 Why are there different divisions of the Ten Commandments?
