Church History · 1870s to 1879

Charles Taze Russell and the Jehovah's Witnesses

In the 1870s Charles Taze Russell led a Bible study group near Pittsburgh. In 1879 he began publishing Zion's Watch Tower, and in 1931 his successors took the name Jehovah's Witnesses. They are known for door to door ministry and for teaching that Jesus is God's Son but not God Almighty.

Read it in the Bible: Isaiah 43:10 John 1:1 John 20:28 Colossians 2:9

The Jehovah's Witnesses began with a Bible study group led by Charles Taze Russell in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, now part of Pittsburgh, in the early 1870s. In July 1879 Russell started a magazine called Zion's Watch Tower and Herald of Christ's Presence, known today as The Watchtower. His followers were called Bible Students. In 1931, under leader Joseph Rutherford, the main group adopted the name Jehovah's Witnesses from Isaiah 43:10. Today they report about 8.6 million active members. They believe in the Bible and honor Jesus as God's Son, but they reject the Trinity taught in the Nicene Creed.

Who Was Charles Taze Russell?

Russell was born in 1852 and grew up Presbyterian, working in his family's clothing business. As a teenager he struggled with the idea that God would torment people forever in hell. Around 1869 he heard an Adventist preacher and began studying the Bible with a group of friends. They concluded that many church teachings, like eternal torment, were not in the Bible.

In 1876 Russell met Nelson Barbour, an Adventist writer, and together they published a book on end times. They split over doctrine, and in 1879 Russell launched his own magazine. In 1881 his supporters formed Zion's Watch Tower Tract Society, legally incorporated in 1884, with Russell as president. He wrote a popular series of books called Studies in the Scriptures and taught that 1914 would mark a turning point in God's plan. Russell died in 1916.

How Did the Name Jehovah's Witnesses Begin?

After Russell's death, Joseph Franklin Rutherford became president of the Watch Tower Society in 1917. He centralized the organization and stressed door to door preaching. Many Bible Students disagreed and left to form their own groups. At a convention in Columbus, Ohio, in 1931, Rutherford proposed the name Jehovah's witnesses to set his group apart, based on this verse.

"You are My witnesses," declares Yahweh, "and My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may consider and believe Me and understand that I am He. Before Me no god was formed, and after Me none will come. Isaiah 43:10

Notice that The Owner's Manual reads Yahweh where Jehovah's Witnesses read Jehovah. Both come from the same four Hebrew letters, YHWH. Jehovah is an English form made by blending those letters with the vowels of Adonai, the Hebrew word for Lord. It shows up in English in Tyndale's Bible and in a few places in the King James. The Introduction to The Owner's Manual explains why TOM uses Yahweh instead.

What Do Jehovah's Witnesses Believe?

God: Jehovah alone is the one true God. They do not believe in the Trinity.
Jesus: Jesus is God's Son and the first thing God created. They teach that before coming to earth He was the archangel Michael. They believe He died for our sins and was raised as a spirit.
The Holy Spirit: They describe the Holy Spirit as God's active force, not a person.
The afterlife: They teach that the soul is not immortal and there is no hell of torment. A limited number of 144,000 will rule with Christ in heaven, and most faithful people will live forever on a paradise earth.
Living their faith: They preach door to door, refuse blood transfusions, stay out of politics and the military, and do not celebrate Christmas or birthdays. They observe the Memorial of Jesus' death once a year.

Since 1961 they have used their own complete Bible, the New World Translation.

How Do Jehovah's Witnesses Differ From the Nicene Creed?

The Nicene Creed of 325 and 381 says Jesus is "true God from true God," of the same being as the Father. Jehovah's Witnesses believe this idea came from later church tradition, not the Bible. Historic churches believe the creed simply sums up what the Bible says.

The best known example is John 1:1. The New World Translation reads that "the Word was a god." Witnesses point out that the Greek word for God there has no article. Most Greek scholars answer that this kind of grammar describes what the Word is, His nature, so the traditional translation is correct.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1

Other verses Christians point to include Thomas calling the risen Jesus "My Lord and my God!" in John 20:28, and Colossians 2:9, which says the fullness of the Deity dwells in Christ in bodily form. You can read more on the Council of Nicaea page on this site.

Why It Matters for You Today

Jehovah's Witnesses are some of the most dedicated Bible readers you will meet. Most Christians could learn from their zeal, their discipline and their willingness to knock on doors. If they come to your house, you can be kind, offer them something to drink and talk about Jesus.

Thomas replied, "My Lord and my God!" John 20:28

The heart of the conversation is who Jesus is. Open the Gospel of John together, read it slowly and let the text speak.

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Questions People Ask

When did the Jehovah's Witnesses start?

They trace their beginning to a Bible study led by Charles Taze Russell near Pittsburgh in the early 1870s. Russell began publishing Zion's Watch Tower in 1879. The name Jehovah's Witnesses was adopted in 1931.

Do Jehovah's Witnesses believe Jesus is God?

No. They believe Jesus is God's Son and His first creation, but not Almighty God. This differs from the Nicene Creed, which teaches that the Son is fully God with the Father.

Why do Jehovah's Witnesses use the name Jehovah?

Jehovah is an English form of God's personal name in the Hebrew Bible, YHWH. Witnesses believe God's name should be used, based on verses like Isaiah 43:10. Many modern scholars think it was pronounced Yahweh, which is what The Owner's Manual uses.

What Bible do Jehovah's Witnesses use?

They use the New World Translation, published by the Watch Tower Society. Its New Testament came out in 1950 and the full Bible in 1961. It uses the name Jehovah throughout.

Sources

← The Anglican Communion and the First Lambeth Conference Mary Baker Eddy and Christian Science →

See the whole Church History