It was during his college days that Emmanuel*, a 28-year-old member of the Jehovah's Witnesses (JW) in Kochi, was drawn towards the teachings of the community. He had grown up listening to his family talk about the faith and decided to join after attending conventions that he found to be peaceful, with members caring for one another. Emmanuel’s classmates and friends had found the ways of life of Jehovah's Witnesses rather curious, and would ask him questions, but it was more or less accepted everywhere and he was not too worried about unwanted attention.
Not until that fatal Sunday in October when multiple blasts at a convention of the Jehovah's Witnesses in Kalamassery of Kochi killed four people, and a man, proclaiming to be a former member of the community, came forward and said he had carried out the explosions. Dominic Martin, the accused, said he did it because he found their teachings ‘anti-national’ and disturbing the secular nature of Kerala.
Emmanuel was present at the convention centre when the blasts took place, had witnessed the fire and smoke and stayed back to help out the older and weaker members stuck inside the hall. He could not understand why Dominic would throw a term like 'anti-national' at a community that merely followed a way of life, without disturbing anyone else's beliefs. "We hold meetings twice a week in every congregation across the state. These meetings are open to everyone, there is no secret agenda about it. The Jehovah's Witnesses have been around for more than a hundred years (since 1905 in India); if there were any such ‘anti-national’ preaching happening in these open-for-all meetings, wouldn't it have come out by now?” he asked.
Who are the Jehovah’s Witnesses
The JWs are a community that identify as Christians and follow the teachings of the Bible but they differ from mainstream Christians in many ways. For one, they do not believe in the concept of the Holy Trinity. They are known for their rigorous discipline, simple lifestyle, and the belief in an impending apocalyptic event. Their other rules include refusing blood transfusion and not celebrating Christmas or birthdays.
In many countries, the Jehovah’s Witnesses are known for their door to door visits, spreading messages about their beliefs. Their origin can be traced back to a Bible study group of the late 18th century by Charles Taze Russell, a Unitarian pastor from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. After Russell's death, a division within the study group led to the emergence of various factions, including the Witnesses, in the early 1930s.
India has nearly 57,000 of the 8,699,048 followers spread across 240 countries in the world. There are 947 congregations, out of which 200 are in Kerala and 11 in Bengaluru. An office was set up in 1926 in Mumbai, and legal registration came in 1978.
Jehovah’s Witnesses and the National Flag
One of the main ‘issues’ that Dominic raised about the community was its refusal to sing the national anthem. The Jehovah’s Witnesses do acknowledge the rightful authority of the government and pay their taxes. But they abstain from participating in elections, military service, singing the national anthem and flag salutes because they believe that would compromise their fundamental allegiance to God. Joshua David, National Spokesperson of the Jehovah's Witnesses said, “We respect the national flag, the national anthem. Jehovah’s Witnesses give sacred devotion to Jehovah and that’s been our priority. JWs are the most law-abiding citizens.”
This trait of the community had come into focus before, in the mid 1980s, when the Bijoe Emmanuel case, involving three children of a family of Jehova’s Witnesses in Kerala, made headlines. The father of the kids had approached the Supreme Court against their expulsion from school, for not singing the national anthem. The court ruled in their favour, appreciating the father's contention that the children had paid every respect to the anthem, standing for it and not showing any signs of disrespect. They could not join the singing because the community forbade them from singing in praise of any entity other than Jehovah (God), the father said, which was accepted by the court.
Dominic brought up this practice of teaching children not to sing the anthem as a major reason for calling the teachings of the community anti-national. Other rumours that spread about the JWs were that they would not take government jobs or become teachers. The group's political neutrality also garnered a lot of skepticism.
Joshua said, “You will never see the witnesses taking to the streets or demonstrating against the government. Even in the aftermath of the recent incidents, we remain composed. We place our trust in the government to provide us with support.”
Emmanuel pointed out that there are many teachers and government employees within their community, and a lot of what Dominic said was simply not facts.
How one becomes a member
Seven members of Emmanuel’s family are members of the community. He had grown up hearing the teachings, but it was left to him to join the community when he was old enough to decide. “No child is forced into the faith. The parents convey the teachings but when a person decides to join the community, they are not taken based on their parents’ beliefs. A few chosen members will ask questions of them. And they need to be convinced that the person has not been forced to join. Once they are convinced, the person would have a 'snanam' (a function akin to the baptism ceremony of mainstream Christians) in the next convention, and be officially part of the Jehovah's Witnesses," Emmanuel said.
Many who join the Witnesses do so because they find traditional church settings challenging, often due to corruption within the system. In Jehovah's Witnesses congregations, there are no designated clergy; instead, each member is considered a minister. According to Edgar Royston Pike's book published in 1954, Jehovah's Witnesses offer a spiritual haven for those seeking faith without the distractions of church disputes over ceremonial details.
The two weekly meetings are held in places of worship called Kingdom Halls. They resemble small conference centers and lack religious symbols. Inside, one finds rows of chairs and a simple podium for speakers. Meetings begin with a short song and prayer, followed by opening remarks from an elder person on the weekly theme. Witnesses then share their interpretations of a chosen Bible verse and discuss its practical application in their lives.
A thesis by Justus D Solomon, a student at the United Theological College in 1959, noted that Witnesses in Bengaluru held their meetings twice a week at a missionary bungalow known as the Kingdom Hall on 19G Lavelle Road.
Read: Jehovah’s Witnesses suspends prayer hall meets in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka
Community practices
Satish said that they do not believe in idol worship and are not supposed to indulge in anything that could malign the body, such as drinking or smoking. They do not observe Christmas because of the discrepancies they find between what is written in the Bible and what is practiced in the world. He said that even though many celebrate Christmas in December, the writings in the Bible about the shepherd still grazing his sheep made it unlikely that Jesus was born in Bethlehem at a time of extreme winter when the temperature fell below zero.
Community members also believe in leading a simple lifestyle, neither their clothes nor their abodes looking grand. “We choose to wear clothes that are not fancy and build houses with the bare necessities,” Binoy said.
One of the more unusual practices is Jehovah’s Witnesses refusing blood transfusion even in dire situations. “We avoid taking blood not only in obedience to God but also out of respect for him as the Giver of life,” states jw.org.
According to Joshua, this is a highly personal decision. He said, “The Bible is very clear. It commands us to abstain from blood. Each member decides for oneself based on his Bible trained conscience whether one will accept blood transfusion or not.” He also added that advancements in medical science now offer alternatives to blood-based interventions, making it possible to undergo surgeries without the need for transfusions.
Michael*, a 50-year-old lifelong member of the Jehovah's Witnesses in Bengaluru, has never undergone surgery. He staunchly upholds the belief that ingesting blood, in any form, is prohibited by the Bible. Should he ever require a surgical procedure involving a blood transfusion, he will adamantly refuse it, he said.
Satish told us that the reason for refusing blood transfusions came from not wanting to risk transmission of previous illnesses, and not out of a concern for “purity of blood”.
Marriage and birthdays
Though they place a lot of importance on marriage and death, they don't celebrate the birth of a child. Unlike other Christian denominations, babies are not baptised within the faith. Jehovah's Witnesses distinguish themselves from other Christian groups by not considering baptism and other rites of passage as sacraments.
They celebrate marriages as the Bible mentions the union of Adam and Eve by Jehovah. But they do that only for the union of a heterosexual couple, not one of queer partners. Queer relationships are strictly prohibited, and may lead to disfellowship. Michael said, "We follow the Bible, and it states that those who practice homosexuality will not inherit God’s Kingdom."
Famous Jehovah’s Witnesses
While a few celebrities have embraced the faith, many who were raised as Witnesses eventually chose different paths. A notable case is singer Michael Jackson, who was expelled from the Jehovah's Witnesses community in 1987 due to objections over the perceived "occult" theme in his music video for the hit song 'Thriller'. In the music video, Michael Jackson transforms into a zombie.
Tennis player Serena Williams hails from a family of Jehovah's Witnesses and has publicly attributed her tennis victories to Jehovah. Reports indicated that she had been baptised as a Jehovah's Witnesses. Her sister, Venus Williams, is also an active follower of the faith, and their mother, Oracene, converted in the 1980s.
Dwight D Eisenhower, the 34th US president, was raised in a Witnesses household. A Watchtower article titled "Conspiracy Against Jehovah’s Name?" mentions that President Eisenhower sought a delicate way to clarify his family's affiliation, as Jehovah's Witnesses abstain from saluting the flag or participating in armed service.
* Names changed