Jehovah’s Witnesses
Jehovah’s Witnesses move global conventions online amid COVID-19 pandemic
By Kathryn Post — July 9, 2020
(RNS) — Jehovah's Witnesses have moved their large-scale conventions, which have been held every year since 1897, online due to COVID-19.
Why some keep believing when Trumpian prophecy fails
By Mark Silk — March 23, 2020
(RNS) — Empirical evidence to the contrary doesn’t matter to true believers..
Jehovah’s Witnesses complete entire Bible in American Sign Language
By Adelle M. Banks — February 28, 2020
(RNS) — On Feb. 15, the last of the Bible's 66 books — the story of Job — was released in video on the Jehovah's Witnesses website, completing what a church spokesman said is the only complete Bible in ASL.
Russia’s human and religious rights record criticized at House hearing
By Adelle M. Banks — February 27, 2020
WASHINGTON (RNS) — Russia’s violations are spreading through the country and even across its borders, said a U.S. religious freedom policy expert.
Six-year prison sentence for Jehovah’s Witness in Russia sparks outcry
By Marc Bennetts — February 8, 2019
MOSCOW (RNS) — Dennis Christensen, a 46-year-old carpenter who has lived in Russia for more than two decades, was sentenced on Wednesday.
Putin disavows crackdown on Jehovah’s Witnesses, giving hope to detained
By Marc Bennetts — January 9, 2019
MOSCOW (RNS) — After the arrests of dozens of members of the group, the Russian president's comments seem to challenge a 2017 ruling by the country's Supreme Court marking the church as a terrorist organization.
Fires at Jehovah’s Witness halls in Washington state puzzle authorities
By Tracy Simmons — December 11, 2018
(RNS) — Blazes that were purposely set have damaged or destroyed five of the Olympia area's kingdom halls in the past nine months.
At the Olympics, thousands of missionaries compete for souls
By Madeline C. Mulkey — February 22, 2018
PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (RNS) — Teams of Christians — Baptists, Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses and more — aim to save souls at the Winter Games.
Ex-Mormons launch FaithLeaks to root out abuse and corruption in churches
By Yonat Shimron — January 10, 2018
(RNS) — The site is intended to allow people to anonymously submit documents that shed light on three main areas: congregational finances, church policies and procedures and documents related to sex abuse settlements.
RNS Best of 2017: No other artist mixed religion and sex like Prince
By Kimberly Winston — December 27, 2017
(RNS) For Prince, who died in April 2016, 'every song was either a prayer or foreplay.'
UN demands Tajikistan free detained Jehovah’s Witness
By Kimberly Winston — October 25, 2017
(RNS) — Daniil Islamov, an 18-year-old Jehovah's Witness, is being detained for refusing to join the military.
Persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia intensifies and targets children
By Lauren Markoe — June 1, 2017
(RNS) For weeks the Jehovah's Witnesses had not felt the full force of the ban on the group. Now more authorities are invoking it to halt worship and harass even the youngest Witnesses.
Since ban, persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses is ‘worse than ever’
By Lauren Markoe — May 18, 2017
(RNS) Russia has labeled the pacifist Jehovah's Witnesses 'extremist,' the same designation as al-Qaida and the Islamic State group.
Who are Jehovah’s Witnesses?
By The Conversation — May 6, 2017
Their biblical interpretations and missionary work have critics. But it is the group's political neutrality that has attracted the most suspicion. They do not vote in elections.
Religious liberty in Russia … and the US
By Mark Silk — April 21, 2017
From the Jehovah's Witnesses to recycled rubber playgrounds, there are no guarantees.
