The door-to-door preachers are not giving up

Press, 17 January 1979, Page 15

The door-to-door preachers are not giving up

Most New Zealanders know Jehovah’s Witnesses as the people armed with bags and Bibles who shatter an extended week-end sleep with a knock on the door. Patriots may view them as “traitors” because of their neutral stand which prohibits them from serving in the armed forces, joining political parties, voting in elections, saluting the flag, or standing for the national anthem.

5 Another controversial > aspect of the religion is 1 the refusal of Witnesses - to accept blood trans1 fusions as a form of medi5 cal treatment. Recently, 12,000 Jehoi vah’s Witnesses attended f an international con1 vention in Eden Park, i Auckland, which focused 1 public attention on this 1 comparatively minority religion. The branch overr seer of Jehovah’s Wit1 nesses in New Zealand, Mr John Wills, says the

motives and beliefs of the religion are often misunderstood. “The driving force behind our house-to-house work is not a desire to annoy people, but a love of fellow man and a natural inclination to warn them of the impending danger,” Mr Wills says. “We feel we are in the same position as someone who knows about an approaching hurricane or tidal wave. “People who have ad-

vance knowledge of such potential disasters — like the staff of Civil Defence and weather offices — are expected to warn the public about their approach so they can get into a safe situation.” Mr Wills says that the Witnesses firmly believe they are living in the last days of the earth’s political, commercial, social, and false religious systems; that all will soon be destroyed by Jehovah God in the global battle of Ar-

mageddon. “Only those who put faith in Jehovah God and his son, Jesus Christ, are foretold to survive this international disaster — just as Noah and his family were the only ones who survived the flood.” Those who survive Armageddon have the hope of living forever on a cleansed earth and witnessing the resurrection of the dead back to earthly life. “Since we are convinced everyone on earth is faced

with a life or death choice, we are motivated to call on people to warn them of the danger and help them reach out for everlasting life,” Mr Wills says. “Love of fellowman” also prompts the Witnesses in their refusal to take up arms in any and all wars. “Jesus told Christians to be no part of this world and its squabbles but to show love to one another and preach the good news of his Kingdom.”

Mr Wills says that some returned servicemen might feel bitter about the Witnesses not taking part in the World Wars but they failed to consider that no Jehovah’s Witnesses confronted them with guns on the opposing side of the battle lines.

“Thousands of German Witnesses were put in concentration camps by the Nazis because they refused to take up arms and more than 600 died rather than compromise

their neutrality.” Mr Wills says the Witnesses give their allegiance to God’s Kingdom and they do not believe any form of government on earth today can solve mankind’s problems. For this reason they will not support any political parties or hold state symbols like flags or anthems in any reverence.

“Because of our neutral stand many Witnesses have to put up a hard fight for their faith against severe persecution especially in countries governed by extreme Right-wing and Left-wing dictatorships.” The blood transfusion issue is an emotional one and the position of the Witnesses is little understood. They base their refusal to accept transfusions on a series of scriptures in the Bible — which they believe is “God’s Word” and follow implicitly. Mr Wills claims that no true Christian would seek to compromise a Biblical command just to save his life. However, Jehovah’s Witnesses do not “commit suicide” by refusing blood transfusions but they request alternative forms of treatment. “We have no objection to any non-blood substitutes or volume expanders such as dextran, saline solution, glucose saline, haemmaccel, Ringer’s lactose solution or any other bloodless alternative.” Mr Wills says that Jehovah’s Witnesses will never change their policy on political neutrality or blood transfusions. “And we will keep on knocking on doors until this old system has passed away.”