Saksi Saksi Yehuwa (Jehovah's Witness)

Induk organisasi Jehovah's Witness adalah Watchtower Organization, yang berpusat di Brooklyn Amerika Serikat.

Berikut ini adalah sejarah singkat berdirinya WT.

A Short History of the Watchtower OrganizationA Short History of the Watchtower
Organization

Jehovah's Witnesses trace their origins to the nineteenth century Adventist
movement in America. That movement began with William Miller, a Baptist lay
preacher who, in the year 1816, began proclaiming that Christ would return in
1843. His predictions of the Second Coming or Second Advent captured the
imagination of thousands in Baptist and other mainline churches. Perhaps as many
as 50,000 followers put their trust in Miller's chronological calculations and
prepared to welcome the Lord, while, as the appointed time approached, others
watched nervously from a distance. Recalculations moved the promised second
advent from March, 1843 to March, 1844, and then to October of that year. Alas,
that date too passed uneventfully.

After the "Disappointment of 1844" Miller's following fell apart, with most of
those who had looked to him returning to their respective churches before his
death in 1849. But other disappointed followers kept the movement alive,
although in fragmented form. Their activities eventually led to the formation of
several sects under the broad heading of "Adventism" including the Advent
Christian Church, the Life and Advent Union, the Seventh-Day Adventists, and
various Second Adventist groups.

An interesting side-note: The Branch Davidians who died at Waco, Texas, under
the leadership of David Koresh also trace their roots to the same Millerite
source through a different line of descent. In 1935 the Seventh Day Adventist
Church expelled a Bulgarian immigrant named Victor Houteff, who had begun
teaching his own views on certain passages of the Revelation or Apocalypse, the
last book of the Bible. Houteff set up shop on the property at Waco. After first
referring to his tiny new sect as The Shepherd's Rod, Houteff and his people in
1942 incorporated and renamed themselves Davidian Seventh Day Adventists.
Houteff died in 1955, and in 1961 his wife Florence officially disbanded the
sect, but a few followers under the leadership of west Texas businessman
Benjamin Roden took over the real estate. Roden died in 1978, leaving behind his
wife Lois and his son George to lead the group. Then, in 1987, David Koresh took
over the leadership position, and the tragedy that followed is public knowledge.

Jehovah's Witnesses, likewise, trace their roots back to the Adventists. But
they do not often admit this to outsiders; nor do many Witnesses know the
details themselves. JWs are accustomed to defending themselves against the
charge that they are a new religious cult. They will often respond that theirs
is the most ancient religious group, older than Catholic and Protestant
churches. In fact, their book Jehovah's Witnesses in the Divine Purpose asserts
that "Jehovah's witnesses have a history almost 6,000 years long, beginning
while the first man, Adam, was still alive," that Adam's son Abel was "the first
of an unbroken line of Witnesses," and that "Jesus' disciples were all Jehovah's
witnesses [sic] too." (pp. 8-9)

An outsider listening to such claims quickly realizes, of course, that the sect
has simply appropriated unto itself all the characters named in the Bible as
faithful witnesses of God. By such extrapolation the denomination is able to
stretch its history back to the beginnings of the human family-at least in the
eyes of adherents who are willing to accept such arguments. But outside
observers generally dismiss this sort of rhetoric and instead reckon the
Witnesses as dating back only to Charles Taze Russell, who was born on February
16, 1852, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Originally raised a Presbyterian, Russell was 16 years old and a member of the
Congregational church in the year 1868, when he found himself losing faith. He
had begun to doubt not only church creeds and doctrines, but also God and the
Bible itself. At this critical juncture a chance encounter restored his faith
and placed him under the influence of Second Adventist preacher Jonas Wendell.
For some years after that Russell continued to study Scripture with and under
the influence of various Adventist laymen and clergy, notably Advent Christian
Church minister George Stetson and the Bible Examiner's publisher George Storrs.
He met locally on a regular basis with a small circle of friends to discuss the
Bible, and this informal study group came to regard him as their leader or
pastor.

In January, 1876, when he was 23 years old, Russell received a copy of The
Herald of the Morning, an Adventist magazine published by Nelson H. Barbour of
Rochester, New York. One of the distinguishing features of Barbour's group at
that time was their belief that Christ returned invisibly in 1874, and this
concept presented in The Herald captured Russell's attention. It meant that this
Adventist splinter group had not remained defeated, as others had, when Christ
failed to appear in 1874 as Adventist leaders had predicted; somehow this small
group had managed to hold onto the date by affirming that the Lord had indeed
returned at the appointed time, only invisibly.

Was this mere wishful thinking, coupled with a stubborn refusal to admit the
error of failed chronological calculations? Perhaps, but Barbour had some
arguments to offer in support of his assertions. In particular, he came up with
a basis for reinterpreting the Second Coming as an invisible event: In Benjamin
Wilson's Emphatic Diaglott translation of the New Testament the word rendered
coming in the King James Version at Matthew 24:27, 37, 39 is translated presence
instead. This served as the basis for Barbour's group to advocate, in addition
to their time calculations, an invisible presence of Christ.

Although the idea appealed to young Charles Taze Russell, the reading public
apparently refused to 'buy' the story of an invisible Second Coming, with the
result that N. H. Barbour's publication The Herald of the Morning was failing
financially. In the summer of 1876 wealthy Russell paid Barbour's way to
Philadelphia and met with him to discuss both beliefs and finances. The upshot
was that Russell became the magazine's financial backer and was added to the
masthead as an Assistant Editor. He contributed articles for publication as well
as monetary gifts, and Russell's small study group similarly became affiliated
with Barbour's.

Russell and Barbour believed and taught that Christ's invisible return in 1874
would be followed soon afterward, in the spring of 1878 to be exact, by the
Rapture-the bodily snatching away of believers to heaven. When this expected
Rapture failed to occur on time in 1878, The Herald's editor, Mr. Barbour, came
up with "new light" on this and other doctrines. Russell, however, rejected some
of the new ideas and persuaded other members to oppose them. Finally, Russell
quit the staff of the Adventist magazine and started his own. He called it
Zion's Watch Tower and Herald of Christ's Presence and published its first issue
with the date July, 1879. In the beginning it had the same mailing list as The
Herald of the Morning and considerable space was devoted to refuting the latter
on points of disagreement, Russell having taken with him a copy of that
magazine's mailing list when he resigned as assistant editor.

At this point Charles Russell no longer wanted to consider himself an Adventist,
nor a Millerite. But, he continued to view Miller and Barbour as instruments
chosen by God to lead His people in the past. The formation of a distinct
denomination around Russell was a gradual development. His immediate break was,
not with Adventism, but with the person and policies of N. H. Barbour.
Nor were barriers immediately erected with respect to Protestantism in general.
New readers obtaining subscriptions to Zion's Watch Tower were often church
members who saw the magazine as a para-church ministry, not as an anti-church
alternative. Russell traveled about speaking from the pulpits of Protestant
churches as well as to gatherings of his own followers. In 1879, the year of his
marriage to Maria Frances Ackley and also the year he began publishing Zion's
Watch Tower, Russell organized some thirty study groups or congregations
scattered from Ohio to the New England coast. Each local "class" or ecclesia
came to recognize him as "Pastor," although geography and Russell's writing and
publishing activities prevented more than an occasional pastoral visit in
person.

Inevitably, Russell's increasingly divergent teachings forced his followers to
separate from other church bodies and to create a denomination of their own.
Beginning, as he did, in a small branch of Adventism that went to the extreme of
setting specific dates for the return of Christ and the Rapture, Russell went
farther out on a limb in 1882 by openly rejecting the doctrine of the Trinity.
His earlier mentor Nelson H. Barbour was a Trinitarian, as was The Herald of the
Morning's other assistant editor John H. Paton who joined Russell in leaving
Barbour to start Zion's Watch Tower. The writings of Barbour and Paton that
Russell had helped publish or distribute were Trinitarian in their theology. And
the Watch Tower itself was at first vague and noncommittal on the subject. It
was only after Paton broke with him in 1882, and ceased to be listed on the
masthead, that Russell began writing against the doctrine of the Trinity.
By the time of his death , Charles Taze Russell had traveled more than a million
miles and preached more than 30,000 sermons. He had authored works totaling some
50,000 printed pages, and nearly 20,000,000 copies of his books and booklets had
been sold.

Followers had been taught that Russell himself was the "faithful and wise
servant" of Matthew 24:45 and "the Laodicean Messenger," God's seventh and final
spokesman to the Christian church. But he lived to see the failure of various
dates he had predicted for the Rapture, and finally died on October 31, 1916,
more than two years after the world was supposed to have ended, according to his
calculations, in early October, 1914..

His disciples, however, saw the World War then raging as reason to believe "the
end" was still imminent. They buried Russell beneath a headstone identifying him
as "the Laodicean Messenger," and erected next to his grave a massive stone
pyramid emblazoned with the cross and crown symbol he was fond of and the name
"Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society." (The pyramid still stands off Cemetery
Lane in Ross, a northern Pittsburgh suburb, where it reportedly serves as the
focal point of an eerie scene each Halloween as modern-day Russellites encircle
it, holding hands, in a vigil commemorating the day of his death.)

According to instructions Russell left behind, his successor to the presidency
would share power with an editorial committee and with the Watch Tower
corporation's board of directors, whom Russell had appointed "for life." But
vice president Joseph Franklin ("Judge") Rutherford soon set about concentrating
all organizational authority in his own hands. A skilled lawyer who had served
as Russell's chief legal advisor, he combined legal prowess with what opponents
undoubtedly saw as a Machiavellian approach to internal corporate politics. Thus
he used a loophole in their appointment to unseat the majority of the Watch
Tower directors without calling a membership vote. And he even had a subordinate
summon the police into the Society's Brooklyn headquarters offices to break up
their board meeting and evict them from the premises. (Faith on the March by A.
H. Macmillan, pp. 78-80)

After securing the headquarters complex and the sect's corporate entities,
Rutherford turned his attention to the rest of the organization. By gradually
replacing locally elected elders with his own appointees, he managed to
transform a loose collection of semi-autonomous democratically-run congregations
into a tight-knit organizational machine run from his office. Some local
congregations broke away, forming such Russellite splinter groups as the Chicago
Bible Students, the Dawn Bible Students, and the Laymen's Home Missionary
Movement, all of which continue to this day. But most Bible Students remained
under his control, and Rutherford renamed them "Jehovah's Witnesses" in 1931, to
distinguish them from these other groups.

Meanwhile, he shifted the sect's emphasis from the individual "character
development" Russell had stressed to vigorous public witnessing work,
distributing the Society's literature from house to house. By 1927 this
door-to-door literature distribution had become an essential activity required
of all members. The literature consisted primarily of Rutherford's unremitting
series of attacks against government, against Prohibition, against "big
business," and against the Roman Catholic Church. He also forged a huge radio
network and took to the air waves, exploiting populist and anti-Catholic
sentiment to draw thousands of additional converts. His vitriolic attacks,
blaring from portable phonographs carried to people's doors and from the
loudspeakers of sound cars parked across from churches, also drew down upon the
Witnesses mob violence and government persecution in many parts of the world.
Like Russell, Rutherford tried his hand at prophecy and predicted that biblical
patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob would be resurrected in 1925 to rule as
princes over the earth. (Millions Now Living Will Never Die, 1920, pp. 89-90)
They failed to show up, of course, and Rutherford quit predicting dates. In
fact, referring to that prophetic failure he later admitted, "I made an ass of
myself." (The Watchtower, October 1, 1984, p. 24)

Vice President Nathan Homer Knorr inherited the presidency upon Rutherford's
death in 1942 but left doctrinal matters largely in the hands of Frederick W.
Franz, who joined the sect under Russell and had been serving at Brooklyn
headquarters since 1920. Lacking the personal magnetism and charisma of Russell
and Rutherford, Knorr focused followers' devotion on the 'Mother' organization
rather than on himself.

After decades of publishing books and booklets authored by its presidents
Russell and Rutherford, the Watchtower Society began producing literature that
was written anonymously. But it was not impersonal, since the organization
itself was virtually personified, and readers were directed to "show our respect
for Jehovah's organization, for she is our mother and the beloved wife of our
heavenly Father, Jehovah God." (The Watchtower, May 1, 1957, p. 285)
A superb administrator, Knorr shifted the sect's focus from dynamic leadership
to dynamic membership. He initiated training programs to transform members into
effective recruiters. Instead of carrying a portable phonograph from house to
house, playing recordings of "Judge" Rutherford's lectures at people's
doorsteps, the average Jehovah's Witness began receiving instruction on how to
speak persuasively. Men, women, and children learned to give sermons at the
doors on a variety of subjects.

Meanwhile Fred Franz worked behind the scenes to restore faith in the sect's
chronological calculations, a subject largely ignored following Rutherford's
prophetic failure in 1925. The revised chronology established Christ's invisible
return as having taken place in 1914 rather than 1874, and, during the 1960's,
the Society's publications began pointing to the year 1975 as the likely time
for Armageddon and the end of the world.

The prevailing belief among Jehovah's Witnesses today is that the Society never
predicted "the end" for 1975, but that some over-zealous members mistakenly read
this into the message. However, the official prediction is well documented. See,
for example, the article titled "Why Are You Looking Forward to 1975?" in The
Watchtower of August 15, 1968, pp. 494-501. Allowing for a small margin of
error, it concludes a lengthy discussion with this thought: "Are we to assume
from this study that the battle of Armageddon will be all over by the autumn of
1975, and the long-looked-for thousand-year reign of Christ will begin by then?
Possibly, but we wait to see how closely the seventh thousand-year period of
man's existence coincides with the sabbathlike thousand-year reign of Christ. .
. . It may involve only a difference of weeks or months, not years." (p. 499)
For several other quotes pointing specifically to 1975, see the book Index of
Watchtower Errors (by David A. Reed, Baker Book House, 1990) pages 106-110.
Knorr's training programs for proselytizing, plus Franz' apocalyptic projections
for 1975, combined to produce rapid growth in membership, the annual rate of
increase peaking at 13.5 percent in 1974. All of this pushed meeting attendance
at JW Kingdom Halls from around 100,000 in 1941 to just under 5 million in 1975.
Growth since then has been slower, but fairly steady in most years, with the
result that nearly 11.5 million gathered at Kingdom Halls in the spring of 1992
for the Witnesses' annual communion or "Memorial" service commemorating Christ's
death with unleavened bread and red wine.

During the 1970's changes took place at Watchtower headquarters in regard to
presidential power. First it became accepted in theory that the Christian Church
(which Jehovah's Witnesses see their organization as encompassing) should not be
under one-man rule, but rather should be governed by a body similar to the
twelve apostles. The 7-member board of directors of the Watch Tower Bible and
Tract Society of Pennsylvania had previously been portrayed as fulfilling this
role, but in 1971 an expanded Governing Body was created with a total of eleven
members, including the seven Directors. The aim was to demonstrate that the
leadership derived authority from an apostolic source, rather than from
Pennsylvania corporate law.

This new Governing Body was displayed as further evidence of the sect's being
the one true church, but in actuality Nathan Knorr continued to rule Jehovah's
Witnesses much as Russell and Rutherford had done before him. That is, until
1975, when Governing Body members began insisting on exercising the powers
granted to them in theory but that had never really been theirs in practice.
Over the objections of Fred Franz the Body that he had been instrumental in
creating actually began governing, so that when Nathan Knorr passed away in 1977
Franz inherited an emasculated presidency.

Franz also inherited an organization troubled by discontent over the obvious
failure of his prophecies of the world's end in the autumn of 1975. Even at
Brooklyn headquarters little groups meeting privately for Bible study were
beginning to question not only the 1914-based chronology that produced the 1975
deadline, but also the related teaching that the "heavenly calling" of believers
ended in 1935, with new converts after that date consigned to an earthly
paradise for their eternal reward.

The hitherto fast-growing sect actually began losing members for the first time
in decades, as people who had expected Armageddon in 1975 became disillusioned.
When membership loss grew into the hundreds of thousands-a fact masked by new
conversions in figures released by the Society, but reported in an investigative
article in the Los Angeles Times of January 30, 1982 (pp. 4-5)-president Franz
and the conservative majority on the Governing Body took action. In the spring
of 1980 they initiated a crack-down on dissidents, breaking up the independent
Bible study groups at headquarters, and forming "judicial committees" to have
those seen as ringleaders put on trial for "disloyalty" and "apostasy."
By the time this purge culminated in the forced resignation and subsequent
excommunication of the president's nephew and fellow Governing Body member
Raymond V. Franz (a development Time magazine found worthy of a full-page
article, Feb. 22, 1982, p. 66) a siege mentality took hold on the world-wide
organization. Even Witnesses who left quietly and voluntarily for personal
reasons were denounced as disloyal and were ordered shunned, former friends
forbidden to say as much as "a simple 'Hello'" to them.

Thus, although Frederick W. Franz served as the sect's chief theologian for some
fifty years-from the start of Knorr's presidency in 1942 until his own death on
December 22, 1992-the fact that he outlived his failed prophecies by more than
fifteen years required him to impose a mini-Inquisition on the membership in
order to keep his doctrinal and chronological framework in force for the
remainder of his lifetime.

Milton G. Henschel's selection as fifth Watchtower president on December 30,
1992, is truly significant for the 13 million now attending Kingdom Halls. At
first glance the choice of a staunch conservative for the post may seem to
guarantee a continuation of the status quo, with little change in the offing for
Jehovah's Witnesses. But a closer look reveals this appointment as the
conservative old guard's last stand-an indication that radical change in the
sect's leadership and doctrines is imminent.

At age 72 Henschel became the second-youngest member of the Governing Body, and
he was selected to lead by men several years older than he is. (Both the average
age and the median age at the time of Henschel's appointment calculated out to
about 82 years.) With members in their eighties known to sleep through meetings
and to vote on matters upon being awakened (See eyewitness Raymond Franz's
account in his book Crisis of Conscience, p. 40.) the Body is losing its ability
to provide purposeful and decisive leadership. Henschel was no doubt chosen in
part due to his having vitality others lacked. Obviously, these aging leaders
will not be able to hold the reigns of power much longer. The men who shared in
building the Watchtower into what it is today will soon leave it behind for
others to run.

In the decades following the death of founder Charles Taze Russell, his
successor J. F. Rutherford found himself forced to re-write many of the sect's
major doctrines. Much the same can be expected when JWs of a new generation
inherit the positions currently occupied by Milton Henschel and his fellow
elderly Governing Body members. When new leaders eventually take over, will they
drop the ban on blood transfusions? Only time will tell. But, even if they do,
it will make no difference for those who have already died, nor for those
Witnesses continuing to die while the teaching remains in place.

Adapted by Jehovah's Christian Witness, from the book "Worse Than Waco:
Jehovah's Witnesses Hide a Tragedy" copyright © 1993 by David A. Reed, P.O. Box
819, Assonet, MA 02702. For a more detailed account of Watchtower history see
the book "BLOOD ON THE ALTAR" by David A. Reed (Amherst, NY: Prometheus
Publishers, 1996).

Berikut adalah perbadingan doktrin antara Kristen Protetan (KP) dan Jehovah's witness (JW)

Religious Authority
(KP) Bible - NIV, KJV, NRSV, etc.
(JW) Bible - New World Translation

Bible Sections
(KP) "Old Testament" and "New Testament"
(JW) "Hebrew Scriptures" and "Christian Greek Scriptures"

God
(KP) Trinitarian God
(JW) Jehovah

Trinity
(KP) Affirmed
(JW) Rejected

Identity of Jesus Christ
(KP) Son of God, Word of God, God, second Person of the Trinity
(JW) Son of God, Word of God, God's first creation, Archangel Michael

Holy Spirit
(KP) God, Third Person of the Trinity
(JW) God's active force (impersonal)

Results of Fall
(KP) Physical death, tendency to sin
(JW) Physical and spiritual death entered the world

Free will
(KP) Free will to do good is seriously impaired
(JW) Free to do good or evil

Purpose of Christ's Incarnation
(KP) Teach about God, provide a model for right living, die sacrificially for human sin, reveal God directly to humanity
(JW) Teach about God, provide a model for right living, die sacrificially for human sin

Means of Christ's Execution
(KP) Crucifixion on a cross
(JW) Crucifixion on an upright stake (no crossbar)

Resurrection of Christ?
(KP) Yes
(JW) Yes

Salvation
(KP) Both faith and works; faith emphasized (in most denominations)
(JW) Both faith and works; works emphasized.

Second Chance After Death?
(KP) No
(JW) Yes

Afterlife
(KP) Souls of wicked sent to Hell, believers go to Heaven for eternity
(JW) Souls of wicked are annhilated, a select few Witnesses go to Heaven, other Witnesses enjoy a paradise earth for eternity

Hell
(KP) Place (or state of being) of eternal torment and distance from God.
(JW) Exists in the sense of a place of the dead (Jesus went there), but hellfire does not exist; idea was invented by Satan to turn people from Jehovah.

Place of Worship
(KP) Church
(JW) Kingdom Hall

Meaning of Sacraments
(KP) Symbolic acts commanded by Christ (some Protestant); means of grace if received ith faith (Catholic, Orthodox, and some Protestant).
(JW) Symbolic acts commanded by Christ

Number of Sacraments
(KP) Two: Baptism and Lord's Supper (seven in Catholicism)
(JW) Two: Baptism and Lord's Supper

Symbols
(KP) Cross, fish & others
(JW) The watchtower

Holidays
(KP) Easter, Christmas, saint's days, several others
(JW) Memorial of Christ's Death only

Involvement in Politics
(KP) Full
(JW) Minimal

Blood Transfusions
(KP) Accepted
(JW) Rejected

Cukup banyak perbedaannya.
Tapi saya tetap milih Kristen Katolik saja

cinzano wrote:

Cukup banyak perbedaannya.
Tapi saya tetap milih Kristen Katolik saja

Lho, kalau itu sepertinya singada lawan om, he he he he.

ternyata ajaran aliran mereka baru muncul akhir abad 19. [Only mods are allowed to see this image]

berani-beraninya mereka menyalahkan ajaran yang telah ada dan bertahan lebih dari 2000thn, dengan mendatangi rumah kami dan mengkotbahi kami.
Gggrrrrrrr[Only mods are allowed to see this image]

Joan86 wrote:

ternyata ajaran aliran mereka baru muncul akhir abad 19. [Only mods are allowed to see this image]

berani-beraninya mereka menyalahkan ajaran yang telah ada dan bertahan lebih dari 2000thn, dengan mendatangi rumah kami dan mengkotbahi kami.
Gggrrrrrrr[Only mods are allowed to see this image]

Sis, dimana mana berlaku seperti itu.
Anda ikut bela diri kan? Nah, biasanya kalau di karate, yang sabuk putih atau sabuk kuning, justru petentengan. Sementara yang sabuk hitam, justru berjalan dengan santun.

Begitu juga dalam militer, yang baru pratu, petentengannya lebih dari jendral, sementara yang jendral justru santun.

Ibarat anak ABG, masih cari perhatian biar terlihat, he he heh e.

bruce wrote:

Joan86 wrote:

ternyata ajaran aliran mereka baru muncul akhir abad 19.

berani-beraninya mereka menyalahkan ajaran yang telah ada dan bertahan lebih dari 2000thn, dengan mendatangi rumah kami dan mengkotbahi kami.
Gggrrrrrrr

Sis, dimana mana berlaku seperti itu.
Anda ikut bela diri kan? Nah, biasanya kalau di karate, yang sabuk putih atau sabuk kuning, justru petentengan. Sementara yang sabuk hitam, justru berjalan dengan santun.

Begitu juga dalam militer, yang baru pratu, petentengannya lebih dari jendral, sementara yang jendral justru santun.

Ibarat anak ABG, masih cari perhatian biar terlihat, he he heh e.

[Only mods are allowed to see this image]

waduuuh, klo yg sabuk putih dan kuning itu brani petentengan sm si Joan sih, pasti bakalan dihajar habis-habisan bro....
wakakakakakakakkk... [Only mods are allowed to see this image]

eh bro Bruce, sy ada pertanyaan lebih lanjut ttg prinsip ajarannya SSY ini..
dikatakan bhw mereka ini menolak konsep Trinitas, tp dlm keterangan yg anda sampaikan diatas, mereka mengakui bhw Jesus itu benar Anak Allah, Firman Allah, dan ciptaan pertama Allah..

Quote :

Identity of Jesus Christ
(KP) Son of God, Word of God, God, second Person of the Trinity
(JW) Son of God, Word of God, God's first creation, Archangel Michael

sebab dulu ketika sy berdiskusi dgn umat SSY, mereka sptnya tidak mengakui ke-Tuhan-an Yesus Kristus, mereka hanya menganggap Yesus itu manusia biasa yg memiliki 'keistimewaan' krn Tuhan/Jehovah berperan aktif dlm tindakan2Nya.. mungkin anggapan mereka Yesus ini layaknya seorang Nabi terpilih lah bro..
benar nda bro..?? sebab sy sendiri jg masih bingung ttg bagaimana konsep ke-Tuhanan mereka...
[Only mods are allowed to see this image]
klo bisa tolong diberi penjelasan sedikit mengenai masalah ini donk, bro Bruce kan sudah banyak berdiskusi dgn mereka, pasti anda banyak mengetahui ttg konsep2 ajaran mereka ini bro..
Syalom, [Only mods are allowed to see this image]

nothingman wrote:

eh bro Bruce, sy ada pertanyaan lebih lanjut ttg prinsip ajarannya SSY ini..
dikatakan bhw mereka ini menolak konsep Trinitas, tp dlm keterangan yg anda sampaikan diatas, mereka mengakui bhw Jesus itu benar Anak Allah, Firman Allah, dan ciptaan pertama Allah..

Quote :

Identity of Jesus Christ
(KP) Son of God, Word of God, God, second Person of the Trinity
(JW) Son of God, Word of God, God's first creation, Archangel Michael

sebab dulu ketika sy berdiskusi dgn umat SSY, mereka sptnya tidak mengakui ke-Tuhan-an Yesus Kristus, mereka hanya menganggap Yesus itu manusia biasa yg memiliki 'keistimewaan' krn Tuhan/Jehovah berperan aktif dlm tindakan2Nya.. mungkin anggapan mereka Yesus ini layaknya seorang Nabi terpilih lah bro..
benar nda bro..?? sebab sy sendiri jg masih bingung ttg bagaimana konsep ke-Tuhanan mereka...
[Only mods are allowed to see this image]
klo bisa tolong diberi penjelasan sedikit mengenai masalah ini donk, bro Bruce kan sudah banyak berdiskusi dgn mereka, pasti anda banyak mengetahui ttg konsep2 ajaran mereka ini bro..
Syalom, [Only mods are allowed to see this image]

Mereka tetap mengakui Jesus sebagai tuhan, bro, bukan Tuhan.
Jesus menurut mereka adalah ciptaan pertama Yehuwa.
Dan..... seluruh jagad raya ini diciptakan Yehuwa MELALUI Jesus.

Tetapi.... Jesus bagi ssy bukanlah Allah, ia diciptakan, ia punya kuasa, karena DIBERI KUASA oleh yehuwa, tetapi tidak mahakuasa.

Ini yang menyebabkan mereka harus menggeser tanda baca (koma) di Yohanes 1:1

Mereka harus tetap mengakui Jesus sebagai sosok terpenting dalam ajaran mereka, karena alkitab yang mereka gunakan juga menyatakan itu. Tetapi, seperti juga orang yang mencari Tritunggal dalam kata kata tertulis di Alkitab, mereka menolak Jesus sebagai Tuhan. Nah, dalam ayat ayat Alkitab yang menyiratkan KeAllahan Jesus, oleh mereka telah diedit.

Itu sebabnya, he he he he

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Mereka tetap mengakui Jesus sebagai tuhan, bro, bukan Tuhan.
Jesus menurut mereka adalah ciptaan pertama Yehuwa.
Dan..... seluruh jagad raya ini diciptakan Yehuwa MELALUI Jesus.

Tetapi.... Jesus bagi ssy bukanlah Allah, ia diciptakan, ia punya kuasa, karena DIBERI KUASA oleh yehuwa, tetapi tidak mahakuasa.

itu dia yg bikin sy bingung bro Bruce.. sebab dlm Alkitab mereka atau dr majalah2 atau selebaran yg mereka berikan itu, mereka menyebut Yesus sbg 'Tuan', bukan Tuhan.. mungkin dlm bhs inggrisnya disamakan dgn kata 'Lord' but not 'God'..
dulu mereka udah keburu diusir sm istri sy sih bro, jd sy kehilangan kesempatan utk mengetahui lebih jauh ttg ajaran mereka tsb...

Berarti prinsip keTuhan-an mereka ini Unitarian ya bro..?
Thx ats penjelasannya.. [Only mods are allowed to see this image]

Yup, mereka termasuk unitarian.

Karenanya, mereka lebih mudah masuk ke lingkungan Islam, dengan menyatakan bahwa IIsa AS bukan Allah, mereka sudah mampu memecah tembok tebal antara Kristen dan Islam.

Cuma, anehnya, mengapa ssy masih lebih suka mengabar ke orang Kristen./Katolik dibanding ke Islam? Ini pernah saya tanyakan, tetapi mereka sangkal dengan mengatakan tidak juga, karena mereka juga mengabar ke Islam.

bruce wrote:

Yup, mereka termasuk unitarian.

Karenanya, mereka lebih mudah masuk ke lingkungan Islam, dengan menyatakan bahwa IIsa AS bukan Allah, mereka sudah mampu memecah tembok tebal antara Kristen dan Islam.

Cuma, anehnya, mengapa ssy masih lebih suka mengabar ke orang Kristen./Katolik dibanding ke Islam? Ini pernah saya tanyakan, tetapi mereka sangkal dengan mengatakan tidak juga, karena mereka juga mengabar ke Islam.

Oooh, berarti mereka ini termasuk aliran/sektenya Nestorian itu yg dianut ol Waraqah sodara sepupunya Khadijah itu bro..
tetep aj bro, bagi penganut Islam selama mereka (SSY) ini nda mengikuti ajaran Muhammad dan mengakuinya sbg 'satu-satunya' utusan Awloh, maka mereka ini jg dibilang Kapiiiirrr...
hehehehehehe [Only mods are allowed to see this image]

bruce wrote:

Yup, mereka termasuk unitarian.

Karenanya, mereka lebih mudah masuk ke lingkungan Islam, dengan menyatakan bahwa IIsa AS bukan Allah, mereka sudah mampu memecah tembok tebal antara Kristen dan Islam.

Cuma, anehnya, mengapa ssy masih lebih suka mengabar ke orang Kristen./Katolik dibanding ke Islam? Ini pernah saya tanyakan, tetapi mereka sangkal dengan mengatakan tidak juga, karena mereka juga mengabar ke Islam.

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Karena bagi SSY jauh lebih mudah mengconvert Kristen daripada Islam

cinzano wrote:

bruce wrote:

Yup, mereka termasuk unitarian.

Karenanya, mereka lebih mudah masuk ke lingkungan Islam, dengan menyatakan bahwa IIsa AS bukan Allah, mereka sudah mampu memecah tembok tebal antara Kristen dan Islam.

Cuma, anehnya, mengapa ssy masih lebih suka mengabar ke orang Kristen./Katolik dibanding ke Islam? Ini pernah saya tanyakan, tetapi mereka sangkal dengan mengatakan tidak juga, karena mereka juga mengabar ke Islam.

[Only mods are allowed to see this image]

Karena bagi SSY jauh lebih mudah mengconvert Kristen daripada Islam

Dan pasti lebih 'aman', karena mereka tidak akan mendapat serangan fisik walaupun mereka menghina Tuhan umat Kristen. Beda kalau mereka 'salah ucap' tentang Tuhan umat Islam. Seperti di Probolinggo itu dulu, walau mereka menyangkal dengan mengatakan bahwa pelaku bukanlah ssy.

sy mohon diberikan penjelasan lebih lanjut dr bro Bruce..

bagaimana pandangam mereka thd penebusan Yesus di kayu salib bro..? dan bagamana pandangan mereka thd perayaan Ekaristi/PK..?
bro Bruce, pernah bilang klo yg akan masuk surga itu cm 9000 orang doang, trus yg lainnya pd kemana ? apakah masuk neraka semua ? bagaimana pandangan mereka ttg keselamatan..?

Ok, itu aj dulu dan sebelulmnya sy ucapkan trima kasih ya bro...
Syalom, [Only mods are allowed to see this image]

nothingman wrote:

sy mohon diberikan penjelasan lebih lanjut dr bro Bruce..

bagaimana pandangam mereka thd penebusan Yesus di kayu salib bro..? dan bagamana pandangan mereka thd perayaan Ekaristi/PK..?
bro Bruce, pernah bilang klo yg akan masuk surga itu cm 9000 orang doang, trus yg lainnya pd kemana ? apakah masuk neraka semua ? bagaimana pandangan mereka ttg keselamatan..?

Ok, itu aj dulu dan sebelulmnya sy ucapkan trima kasih ya bro...
Syalom, [Only mods are allowed to see this image]

Jesus wafat di salib sebagai penebus, bro, itu tidak disangkal oleh mereka. Tetapi tidak menjamin keselamatan mereka, karena mereka masih harus menjalani hidup sesuai arahan WT.
Ekaristi juga bersifat simbolik bagi mereka, seperti juga saudara saudara Protestan kita.
Yang masuk surga 144.000 orang bro, tempatnya sekarang tersisa sekitar 9000 lagi.
Kalau selama hidup di dunia sekarang ini patuh pada ajaran yehuwa, maka punya peluang dibangkitkan saat Jesus datang, dan hidup lagi di bumi ini.

bruce wrote:

Jesus wafat di salib sebagai penebus, bro, itu tidak disangkal oleh mereka. Tetapi tidak menjamin keselamatan mereka, karena mereka masih harus menjalani hidup sesuai arahan WT.
Ekaristi juga bersifat simbolik bagi mereka, seperti juga saudara saudara Protestan kita.
Yang masuk surga 144.000 orang bro, tempatnya sekarang tersisa sekitar 9000 lagi.
Kalau selama hidup di dunia sekarang ini patuh pada ajaran yehuwa, maka punya peluang dibangkitkan saat Jesus datang, dan hidup lagi di bumi ini.

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Loh, trus apa makna penebusan Yesus itu bagi mereka klo nda bisa menjamin keselamatan..??
klo bagi kita penganut Katolik kan jelas bahwa Yesus telah menjamin keselamatan jiwa kita kelak, walaupun ntinya kita perbuatan2 kita selama hidup didunia jg tetap akan diadili dan dimasukkan dlm api penyucian, tp pd akhirnya jiwa2 kita akan diselamatkan dan akan bersatu dlm kerajaanNya, dan hidup kekal utk selamanya disana.. (mohon sekalian dikoreksi bila pemahaman sy ini salah ya bro).

trus apa artinya pemahaman mereka bahwa yg masuk dlm kerajaan Allah itu cm 9000 orang dan yg lainnya akan hidup lg didunia/bumi ketika Yesus datang yg kedua kalinya..??
apakah maksudnya mereka percaya thdp konsep Reinkarnasi spt pd keyakinan Hindu itu ya bro..??

thx ats info yg sudah diberikan ya bro..
Syalom, [Only mods are allowed to see this image]

nothingman wrote:

bruce wrote:

Jesus wafat di salib sebagai penebus, bro, itu tidak disangkal oleh mereka. Tetapi tidak menjamin keselamatan mereka, karena mereka masih harus menjalani hidup sesuai arahan WT.
Ekaristi juga bersifat simbolik bagi mereka, seperti juga saudara saudara Protestan kita.
Yang masuk surga 144.000 orang bro, tempatnya sekarang tersisa sekitar 9000 lagi.
Kalau selama hidup di dunia sekarang ini patuh pada ajaran yehuwa, maka punya peluang dibangkitkan saat Jesus datang, dan hidup lagi di bumi ini.

[Only mods are allowed to see this image]

Loh, trus apa makna penebusan Yesus itu bagi mereka klo nda bisa menjamin keselamatan..??
klo bagi kita penganut Katolik kan jelas bahwa Yesus telah menjamin keselamatan jiwa kita kelak, walaupun ntinya kita perbuatan2 kita selama hidup didunia jg tetap akan diadili dan dimasukkan dlm api penyucian, tp pd akhirnya jiwa2 kita akan diselamatkan dan akan bersatu dlm kerajaanNya, dan hidup kekal utk selamanya disana.. (mohon sekalian dikoreksi bila pemahaman sy ini salah ya bro).

trus apa artinya pemahaman mereka bahwa yg masuk dlm kerajaan Allah itu cm 9000 orang dan yg lainnya akan hidup lg didunia/bumi ketika Yesus datang yg kedua kalinya..??
apakah maksudnya mereka percaya thdp konsep Reinkarnasi spt pd keyakinan Hindu itu ya bro..??

thx ats info yg sudah diberikan ya bro..
Syalom, [Only mods are allowed to see this image]

Sepintas saya pernah membaca2 majalah mereka. "Menara"

Saya kog sementara menyimpulkan bahwa mereka menitik-beratkan pada perbuatan.
Tetapi iman kepada Kristus tidak ditampilkan.

Karena mereka tidak menganggap Kristus sebagai Tuhan ya ....

Ya, bagi mereka, Jesus datang memberi ajaran, maka manusia harus menjalani ajaran Jesus itu yang direpresentasikan oleh bimbingan Watch Tower Org.

Mereka tidak percaya reinkarnasi seperti Hindu, tetapi mirip Kristen, bahwa manusia yang dibangkitkan diberi bumi baru, tubuh baru, di dunia ini. Dimana mereka masih bisa makan, kawin mawin, dan berkarya dalam kerajaan 1000 tahun dengan Jesus sebagai raja nya.

Yang di surga bertugas melayani yehuwa, tidak bisa kawin mawin lagi.

Ajaran mereka yang paling penting dan harus dijalankan adalah mengabar, dari rumah ke rumah. Setiap anggota diberi wilayah garapan yang harus dicover. Per minggu setiap anggota diberi quota berapa lama mereka harus mengabar. Kalau quota itu tidak terpenuhi, mereka bisa ditegur, atau kalau parah kurangnya bisa ditinjau kesehatan moralnya hingga ke rumah mereka oleh pengawas.

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Mereka tidak percaya reinkarnasi seperti Hindu, tetapi mirip Kristen, bahwa manusia yang dibangkitkan diberi bumi baru, tubuh baru, di dunia ini. Dimana mereka masih bisa makan, kawin mawin, dan berkarya dalam kerajaan 1000 tahun dengan Jesus sebagai raja nya.

Yang di surga bertugas melayani yehuwa, tidak bisa kawin mawin lagi.

waaaaah... makin aneh ajaran mereka ini.. [Only mods are allowed to see this image]
jd menurut keyakinan mereka kerajaan Yesus adlh ada dibumi ini ya bro..?
setelah hari kiamat kelak, bumi ini akan dibentuk ulang dan disanalah mereka akan hidup bersama dgn Yesus sbg rajanya..
klo gtu bener ini sangat mirip dgn keyakinan Hindu bro..
Ooh iya sy blum terusin lg diskusi kita ttg ajaran Hindu, di trit sebelah ya..? [Only mods are allowed to see this image]
sy minta maaf bro, sy blum sempat terusin lg diskusi kita itu, kemarin2 kan lg sibuk gawean trus kebetulan jg ada bro Lancah, jd sy fokuskan diskusi ttg masalah pernikahan dlm Islam dgn beliau.. tp krn bro Lancah sampai saat ini blum kasih tanggapan balik, jd diskusi kita ttg ajaran2 Hindu akan sy teruskan kembali.. bro Bruce masih berminat nda..?
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Syalom,

Quote :

jd menurut keyakinan mereka kerajaan Yesus adlh ada dibumi ini ya bro..?
setelah hari kiamat kelak, bumi ini akan dibentuk ulang dan disanalah mereka akan hidup bersama dgn Yesus sbg rajanya..
klo gtu bener ini sangat mirip dgn keyakinan Hindu bro..

Saya gak tahu persis ajaran Hindu, bro.
Tetapi kalau ajaran mereka kira kira seperti itu. Bahwa manusia yang mati akan tetap mati, hingga saat akhir jaman. Yang kalau dianggap layak, maka akan dibangkitkan, dan hidup di bumi yang sudah dipulihkan. Bumi, menurut ssy tidak akan pernah hancur, tidak akan ada kekuatan yang bisa menghancurkan bumi, karena akan dijaga oleh yehuwa. Jadi setelah kerajaan iblis dihancurkan, bumi kembai subur seperti di jaman eden dulu, manusia hidup damai di bumi ini. Karena mereka tidak mengenal neraka seperti kita, bagi mereka hukuman terhadap dosa adalah maut yang diartikan mati. Mati dalam pengertian tidak dibangkitkan.

Untuk ajran Hindu, silahkan kalau anda sempat, bro. Toh manfaatnya hanya untuk pengetahuan saja toh. Jadi kalau sementara anda sibuk, di pending dulu juga tidak masalah.