Differences Between Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons (with  

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There are pictures going around online of this thing that happened where everybody in a junior high school wore costumes for Halloween but this one Jehovah's Witness kid wasn't allowed to. So all of his friends dressed up black suits and sunglasses with earpieces and pretended to be the Secret Service and they surrounded him and he got to be the President. It's one of the sweetest things I've ever seen on the internet. I'm a Gen Xer and I can't imagine my peers being so kind to another kid at that age; we were all jerks and I feel terrible about it now. It's only later that I thought about it and I thought maybe his parents were mad that he was involved in this and maybe he got punished later. Then I imagined that no matter what the punishment was, he probably had one of the best days of his life and there's nothing that his parents were going to do to him to take that away from him. The power of being a decent human being against religion

Thanks for having me on the channel Alyssa! 🔥

“You can’t live for your parents forever.” This really hits. I always felt guilty for having to shame others solely because they believed a different religion, were lgbt, had consensual safe intercourse before marriage, etc. Now I’m nondenominational, very out now as a queer person, respect other religions that are not inherently predatory, and hold a few other polarizing beliefs that keep my family from being as close to me as they once were. Yet now I have more peace and joy than I ever could when those beliefs were reinforced, and it has allowed me to form wonderful relationships and learn so much from those who I thought I never could be seen with.

As an exJW who's currently reading your book and finding it very helpful, even 3 years after leaving the organization, I really appreciate this interview

There was one JW kid in my high school and I remember him having to leave the room when we all watched Polar Express in history class

As a practicing Jew (born and raised) I’m so glad I found these channels - so incredibly interesting - I always thought all denominations of Christianity were basically the same - nope!

Alyssa, i am from Portugal, Southern Europe. A few days ago, 2 male mormon missionaries approchead me on the street. Apparently, they wanted to pet my sweet dog! I started talking about dogs (but i wonder when would they start talking about their faith and how would i say "No" to it in a very polite, delicate way in order no to make them fell bad withthemselves. I told them i was a former devout Catholic but that i was mentally exausted and didn't want to talk about religion. One of the boys was apparently very friendly but since the beginning of our conversation stand back away from 2 or 3 metters! I understood that his huge personnal space was a signal of being afraid and in a deffensive mode. Why? I do not know. The other boy was in my personnal space but his leg was fidgeting. After a while, his look was away from mine, numb, and blantely spoke to me in a hostile tone of voice when i asked for his help to express myself correctly in english. There i was trying to show empathy asking them things as:" Where are you from? What will you do after returning home?" but in my chore thinking if they were only talking to me in order to prepare the ground to talk about the book of Mormon. I recall that i asked them:" Are you sleeping and eating enough?". They avoided eye contact, looked to the void and their faces became apathic. Nevertheless, they did not tried to criticize the Catholic church because at the beginning of our encounter i told them i respected their church and that all people, Christians or not, should do the same towards orther religious belives (or the lack of it). Finally, They insisted in stating that through God i could live with my mother eternally (i had told them she was not between us anymore). And they ended up by giving me a little book. I kept out of respect for them... But i did not read it! It a strange encounter and i hope not to see them again because mormons hate Catholics! That is very narrowminded ti say the least!! 😮

I’m Mormon. My son was baptized when he was 14. His choice. No pressure from our family. And I thank channels like this for “sounding the alarm” about problems they experienced growing up in religious homes. It reaffirmed my views about raising a child in a home where their free will and autonomy is honored. It helped me to realize pressure can be felt even if they dont tell their parents.

Oh my gosh, Panda is one of my favorite content creators. Didn't know we'd be getting a face reveal! Awesome

I asked about the no windows in the Kingdom Hall. I was given a very practical answer. The hall is typically built by regular everyday community and congregation members. Most of us are not skilled in construction. Building a wall with a window is much more difficult than a solid wall. So it's more efficient and practical to skip the windows. The buildings go up quickly.

alyssa , just so u know you’re my favorite youtube channel at the moment ! literally was thinking this morning i can’t wait till you post a new video

thank you for this! i've been following your content for a while & one of my close friends recently re-joined JW and cut everyone in his life off. I've been looking for answers, this was helpful

Love both of you! Thank you both for your bravery and insight!

In your intro you said that JWs tried to convert you by showing you verses from their translation of the Bible. A friend of mine, who is a Classics scholar deeply trained in Latin and ancient Greek, once told me that the most effective way to wrap up proselytizing conversations with Mormons and JWs was to pull out his Greek New Testament and ask those attempting to convert him to read the Greek and explain why each word in their translation was superior to any other. I'm wondering what the talking points are for those knocking doors when they encounter a person who knows how to read Greek, Aramaic, Hebrew, Latin, or other ancient languages related to Biblical scholarship

Only a minute in and I just realized, I don’t remember the first time I knocked on a door in the ministry either! I grew up JW but was able to quietly leave in my early twenties since I no longer lived in the same town as my parents.

Mormonism’s ceremonial ritual focus is so fascinating because I can see the magical roots ,, whereas JW doctrinal focus is harder to relate to as different except in the opposite sense of anti-ceremonial - without the Christmas trees and birthday parties . More an ascetic vibe like desert hermits vs Temple High Priests . Ironically these were opposed approaches way back as well. Temple Priests performing rituals vs Desert hermits studying scrolls in a cave waiting for the apocalypse

You should react to the banned mormon cartoon like panda did! Would love to see it from an ex-mo perspective!!

My grandfather was an active Methodist for most of his life. I always thought he was kind of preachy when he'd ask if i wanted to go to church: "it's going to be a super sermon!" I never went and he accepted that but he always asked. A year or so before he died at 92, he guiltily handed me a treatise he wrote for himself (dated from 10+ years before) on how through being a scientist he came to no longer believe in god. He didn't want to talk about it, he was ashamed, he never left the church, that was his entire social community. I just wished that he'd let me read that sooner because I always felt religion was a barrier between us. My grandmother never lost her faith but it was a very private thing for her so I never felt any pressure from her. It was very strange to read that document by my grandfather.

My father, a devout Catholic, looked forward to the Jehovah's Witnesses coming around in the Spring. He would brake out his Bible, set up a card table with lemonade and have a long conversation with them. He did not see anything wrong with their search for G-d, but he liked to argue with people respectfully to help them see how importance of that search. (Mom was a bit scandalized, since they always left with Questions on their interpretations . . . .)

Love that you got a Ground News sponsor! Perfect!

Thank you for the suggestion of Ground News aggregate. I've been looking for a different news aggregate and I am looking forward to trying out Ground News at your suggestion. ❤

i'm so happy to see another person promoting ground news!!! it didn't even register honestly that this is an early sponsorship for you but i've liked them so much ever since i got them initially promoted by another honesty-focused person, miniminuteman (milo rossi). says a lot about them that the people they sponsor are folks like an archaeologist and an ex-mormon who focuses heavily on history. glad you're getting cool sponsors like these. fine if they're not all this cool but i genuinely love ground news and am happy to see them sponsor another lovely author whose channel focuses on truth and PROVEN fact. super excited to see this interview, gonna click off comments so i focus :)

I've heard that kingdom halls don't have windows because it makes the construction cheaper and faster.

Panda's voice is unmistakable at this point. I wasn't even looking at the screen, but I listened and knew exactly who that was. XD Tell Tale is the same way.

This was a pleasant and informative conversation.

Panda face reveal? 🤯

such an awesome interview! Thank you and kudos to both Alyssa and Panda

I had lots of JW friends growing up, and the thing around holidays and birthday was really interesting, since each family handled it slightly differently. They all stood for the pledge of allegiance, to show respect for the country, but did not salute or say the pledge, as it was against their religion to pledge themselves to anyone or anything. One of my friends didn't even know what her birth date was. Another was actually allowed to have birthday parties when she was little, until i think around 2nd grade, at which point i think maybe she was also baptized, and that was her last birthday party. A third did not celebrate his birthday, but his mom would make whoopie pies or cupcakes, and bring in little hotwheels toys, and he would hand out a snack and a toy to all of his classmates and they called it a celebration of friendship, so that he also got a fun event at school since everyone else got cupcakes or whatever for their birthdays (I do not know whether it was on his actual birth date, or if it was a random day his mom and/or the teacher chose).

best collab ever

Per 14:28 ish, no this is not super common, to rush people to baptism. In many denominations, especially Protestant, baptism itself isn’t “saving”, but it’s the person’s own belief, with baptism being the public declaration/confirmation into the community. And for churches that baptize infants, there’s actually a whole course of “confirmation” one typically can’t start until tweens that takes a year or more. And probably still comes with a lot of pressure still. But no even in evangelism/outreach there’s almost the opposite, like you want to make sure the person really understands what and who they’re accepting and the consequences (I.e, following Jesus is awesome but also don’t expect your life to be easy and perfect always; actually kind of the opposite.) 14:30

Thank you for this. I would be interested to see an interview with other people. Rainn Wilson had something similar years ago on "Soul Pancake" and I really enjoyed learning about other religions (but I was also NOT brought up in religion... so it's morbid fascination)

I’ve seen both sides of the LDS-JW nonsense. Raised Norman, left ASAP had kids, one who said she wanted to be baptized (lived in a very very Mormon area) I asked why, she answered “because my friends are” I said when you get older and if you still want to you can. She didn’t want to, but her baby sister decided at 14 she wanted to get baptized, I let her get the lessons and she got baptized then all of the lovely people disappeared. She now views this as one of the worst decisions she has made. Fast forward a few years and started dating a JW who got no love at home because he didn’t believe in it. He became part of our family. They were together for five years, then broke up when she started college. He went down hill and ended up committing suicide some years later. The only pics that his younger bro has are some that my daughter gave him. His mother didn’t even acknowledge his death. So long story short. They both suck. Also, I’m pretty sure you’re not worried about how your kids will do not being raised “in the church” but just in case you have a short nugget of doubt, I raised five kids and they are all really good humans and all of them have happy and loving families. Sorry such a long comment, I’m not good at synopses

I was waiting for this video 👀👍

44:00 this reminded me of a saying we have in Poland about JW, "every four years there's the end of the world" (which rhymes nicely in Polish)

Love this guy, great dynamic! Would love tonsee you guys do more collabs

This was really fun! I enjoyed hearing how simultaneously similar & different some things are between the two religions.

Mormon chapels have windows, but the glass is not clear and there are usually curtains covering them. It let's the light in but you can't see through them.

I’m no longer religious but was raised Catholic. The process for incoming adults to be baptized into Catholicism takes at least six months, so the idea that someone could go from “just visiting” to baptized in 2-3 weeks is crazy to me!

This was so interesting to hear. I've never been religious but I've always found religion interesting.

Panda stated that JW's are NOT allowed to vote in political elections. However, in Australia where I reside, EVERY citizen MUST vote. It is technically illegal NOT to vote in such matters according to law. So I am curious what JW's would do in that situation. Would they honor their religious code by choosing not to vote even if it is against the law of the land?

Hi Alyssa! Great video!!! I’m an Ex Jw myself. And I’d love to interview for you! I’ve also studied with the LDS church as well!! Thank you. 🙏

As a (Baptist) Christian, hearing you guys talk about how Mormons and JWs talk about Jesus is…. wild. Like, sooo different. The whole spirit babies thing is the weirdest thing I’ve ever heard and Jesus being the first created thing sounds nothing like the Christianity I grew up with 😅 Super interesting conversation, thank you for sharing your experience!

South Park never misses 😂😂

Alyssa Nobody else. Has gotten me to watch a 90¶min video! Well done

to whom ever see it: praise the gods, praise them all

This was such an interesting exchange! My experience with religion is a lot different to what either of you described. I was born and raised in a typical middle class Mexican family, and like the majority of the population in my country, we are Roman Catholic. However, as Panda rightly pointed out, for most people in my social circle, religious denomination is not a major aspect of our lives. Affiliation to the Catholic church serves more of a social/traditional role, in which newborns get baptised, then they're sent to Catechism around 8 or 9 to have their first Eucharist and so on, but for most families, all this is done just by pure inertia. It simply is expected that you do these things, just as you're expected to take your children to get their vaccines, make a party for their birthday or set up a Christmas tree in December. Other Christian denominations that put more emphasis on doctrine and especially preaching are frowned upon by most people in my social circle, and are deemed as cults. That was the view I had of JW, Evangelists, etc., and I didn't even know about Mormons until much later in life. For me, being Catholic is more of an integral part of my national identity as Mexican, alongside veneration of our Lady of Guadeloupe (patron saint of Mexico) and celebrating the Day of the Dead by putting up an altar for our deceased relatives on the 1st and 2nd of November - the latter being something that the Catholic church does not endorse, but we don't care. My family on my father's side was a bit more religious. My late grandma used to pray a full rosary every evening at 8 pm, and whenever we visited her, I used to sit down to pray with her and she'd guide me through it - how to hold it, how to keep count of the beads, etc. No one ever forced me, I simply did it because for me it was a nice bonding time with her. As an adult with a degree in Biological Sciences, one would think I would be an Atheist now, but in reality, I'm more of an agnostic. My drift away from Catholicism was more natural for someone who was not raised to be devout in the first place, and whose family maintained a careful balance of tradition, love, critical thinking and scientific education. In recent years, I've become curious about the history of religion, and have learned that, at least in the West, most of what we understand as Christianity are only the surviving institutionalised versions. Those same patriarchal, hierarchical institutions that through the centuries viciously hunted down every heresy, i.e., alternative versions of Christianity that understood the Gospels as guiding texts (metaphors, moral codes and the like) in the pursuit of a higher knowledge (these are sometimes grouped under the modern umbrella term of 'Gnostics,' even though no historical religious movement ever called themselves that). For such groups, e.g. the so-called Cathars, there was a very clear distinction between faith and belief, whereas all modern denominations conflate the two, which is so useful if your goal is to hijack religion as a means of control and power. That is what I hear from both of you, faith and belief inextricably liked together, and to a non-believer, all these recounts sound equally ridiculous. Also, that is how I maintain my faith, to answer Panda's question at 1:17:00; I am able to maintain my faith because it does not require belief. I KNOW there was no Adam, no original sin, no great flood, etc. I do not know if there ever was a real historical Jesus, and the best part is that I don't NEED to believe that there was to very consciously and willingly choose to have faith that we are all divine sparks with the potential to find our own way to [insert preferred term, e.g., God, Paradise, Heaven, Salvation, Higher realm of existence...]. In a way, after learning what I've learned, I feel a bit nostalgic that the only spiritual legacy that we still have in "the West" are these bigoted, conservative institutions that often cherry-pick or downright twist scripture for their own benefit, whereas versions of Christianity that resembled Buddhism, Hinduism and other Eastern spiritual traditions were hunted down to extinction.

I love this top on you!

This is like meeting up with you collage friend the day after doing psychadelics together and describing what you both saw while tripping

OMG MY TWO FAVORITE EX RELIGON CONTENT CREATORS COLLABING??? YIPPEEEE

A week after finding your channel, I ran into a group of mormons in my home town. They offered to send missionaries to my home. I kind of want to say yes just to feed them a proper meal. Learning about religions is fun to me so I'd like to hear what they'd have to say anyway. Would that be a good idea or would you recommend not to?

I’ve always had trouble with JW members argue with me and put pressure on me. The LDS missionaries have always been respectful and kind. I am a believer in the Protestant Christian God as a progressive. I definitely have only had excellent experiences with members of the LDS church.

If anyone is interested in evolution-friendly Christian ideas about how sin and Eden can be understood without a literal reading, some interesting books are Finding Ourselves After Darwin, Adam and the Genome, and really anything by Dr. Swamidass. There are scholars, both scientists and theologians and historians who are exploring ways to make it work. Although I’d like to share the same sentiment as heard before back- I walked away from fundamentalism, but not from my faith. That being said, I’m incredibly sympathetic to those who either were harmed by church directly or who are unconvinced with it generally. Just know that sympathetic, intellectual discussions do exist on the other side, they’re just not the loudest in the room.

this was great. i find it interesting these various types of religious sects ... ive never been apart of them. but i found that fascinating. thx for sharing.

It's really interesting hearing from a JW, we don't have many mormons in the UK and none in my area but we do have some JWs and I knew one as a kid, a woman my mum worked with who had grown up JW. She was really interesting because growing up I knew a lot of CofE people but you could know them for years without ever knowing they're religious and for the most part they were pretty liberal I had never been around someone from a stricter religion before. It was interesting to see her try to reconcile her religion and families beliefs and her own more liberal and caring nature. Like she had never had a birthday, but she was a loving mother and she didn't want her kids to miss out so she did give them birthdays in secret from her parents. Her husband ended up leaving her (affair on his end I think) and if I remember properly that's what lead to her leaving the church entirely because she realised that they weren't there for her when she needed them so why should she be scared of losing them. As an act of rebellion she got her kids names tattooed on her. I don't remember or know all the details because this was maybe 10+ years ago and I was maybe 13 but I liked her, she was very patient with my curiosity about her religion, I hope she's doing well.

to be fair as a catholic, i've always thought it was whack that the symbol of the faith is literally a torture device

It’s so interesting that they talk to you about other religions. I have a friend who grew up in a religion similar to jehovas witness’ where they don’t celebrate anything and he said something similar to what you said. I grew up in catholic school and we were just told that this is the “right way” and it was kinda common knowledge that every other religion was wrong but you don’t actually learn about the other religions at all. I was 18 and in college when I actually found out that being Muslim is a RELIGION.

Great episode! Thank you!!!!

It hit so hard when he said that JWs have no concept of you having a legitimate reason for leaving, they always have to think you were led astray or were mistreated or abused. I’m ex orthodox Jewish and it’s exactly the same. I would love to compare notes with you guys. Judaism doesn’t have the same emphasis on conversion but in many other ways there is a lot of overlap in the teachings and society.

Omg the moormons vs. the witnesses 🤣 I'm gonna make a cup of tea for this, yerba mate it has the highest devil juice content.

My first boyfriend was a JW. He was 23, I was turning 18. We dated in secret for 9 months and then he ghosted me even though we worked together and then he went to his eldership and told them about us. I couldn't stop thinking about a bench full of old white guys hearing the nitty gritty of our relationship. Now he's an inactive polygamist with a bad drug habit. This isn't a JW thing though, this was just a him thing.

Hi Alyssa I’m a 23 year old hispanic woman who grew up in a very Mormon region of Arizona and I was wondering if you could some day cover all the ways in which mormonism negatively affects way more people than just mormons. I know the discourse obviously mostly focuses on exmo experience but wow, could I go on and on about all the ways simply living in a mormon area and going to schools with high mormon populations negatively affected me and my friends/family in unimaginable of ways such as beauty standards, forced modesty (in 100 degree arizona weather woohoo), racism, homophobia, etc. without even being part of the darn religion! If you need someone to interview, I’m just your average 23 year old girl but I would love to give a direct testament to everything I’ve said. Anyways awesome video as always 💞💞

As an Ex-JW, who was raised in the cult, I have eaten up ex-Mormon information/content on RU-vid. It’s a way to find people who have somewhat of a parallel experience but not necessarily get into the nitty gritty of my experience.

I used to work in the pediatric ICU. When JW kids needed blood transfusions, the parents gave up rights to their kid so that a foster/ medical caregiver would allow a blood transfusion.

I'm proud to say I'm 8 weeks from 18 and will be leaving the jw religion as soon as I'm able! Thank you both for these videos, they give me the comfort of knowing that I'm going to be ok and I'm not alone

What is also fascinating is that mormons and Jehovah's witnesses are both American made.

Thank you for this Alyssa I’m currently a practicing JW because of fear of not being able to see my family if I leave. Stumbling upon your channel and experiences with Mormonism made me question my own faith and see the similarities 😭 I now know that true life is one where we can choose who we want to be 😊Thank you Alyssa, love your channel keep it up girl 😍

I NEVER thought you two would accualy collab,but i'm so happy you did.

I love that you have to specify that the JW art is not generated by AI. It reminds me of the South Park episode about S*****ology where they flash "THIS IS WHAT THEY ACTUALLY BELIEVE"

Just a tip in case your analytics show people ditching part way through: When you ask your guest where people can find them quite a bit into the interview, it sounds like you're about to wrap up. People who are listening while doing other things might pop back to the window to click onto the next thing when they start to hear that.

My daughter married an ex-JW. It was so great getting to experience his 1st Christmas. Our family has many traditions with the day, and I think he was overwhelmed and also sad that he missed out his whole life. He also started growing a beard soon after I first met him. I didn't realize how telling that was until this video.

A few years ago I was canvassing for an election... and knocked on the door of a jehovas witness. Felt like a role reversal. He told me they're not allowed to vote (which I found utterly baffling).

I follow both of you - I’m an ex JW and it’s a first time when I finally see Panda’s face - such a handsome guy! Thank you for your great sense of humour! I also binged watched Alyssa’s videos in the last couple of weeks - thank you for your service, girl !

Alyssa, I've noticed soon after you started doing pieces here that the Mormon church has purchased ads right after. Like with your shorts many times there's something about the Mormon church or the book of Mormon etc. Here I am, 10 minutes into your interview, and there's already a Book of Mormon ad. I find it funny that they're worried about what you're doing it's great. GOOD JOB.

As a theologian, this is a fascinating comparison of religions. I only remember one kid in all my schooling that was JW and wouldn't stand for the pledge. We never made him feel "left out" in any conscious way. Thought it was a bit odd not to celebrate the birth and death of Jesus, but I've heard of stranger "Christian" things. Thank you for this, Alyssa & Panda!

congrats on the sponsorship alyssa!!

My two favorite Heathens in one video?? I feel blessed

Many years ago when I was a Mormon missionary we relished getting into arguments with Jehovah Witnesses. They were tough! I've been out of Mormonism more than 30 years, by the way.

As someone who grew up Catholic (but I don't really believe anymore), it blows my mind that other religions think that Catholics workship false idols. That was something that I remember getting taught not to do, but never thought that what I was doing was that. Great video and super interesting for a religion-nut like me! (And yes, can confirm that while I owned a Bible, and still do, I've never read it nor have my parents who are still practicing Catholics 😅)

I am an Exmo and have never heard of Panda. I am a fast fan. Such a pleasant individual. I am heading over and subscribing for sure!

I used to feel so sorry the Jehovah’s Witness kids I went to school with. They’d leave the room when we sang happy birthday to classmates, leave the room for the Pledge of Allegiance, and every once in a while they’d appear at our front door, inappropriately dressed up, wanting to give us The Watchtower. I had a great-uncle who was JW until he needed a blood transfusion, upon which he returned to the Baptist church in lieu of dying.

When I was in a rehabilitation place, the Jehovah's Witnesses tried teaching me. I was so vulnerable because I had just left the LDS church. I had to have a nurse tell them to stop visiting me. I did really like their magazines though. The only thing they said that made sense was that the Bible wasn't added onto.

Ex JW here. So... A cross is worshipping an idol, but singing hymns to Joseph Smith is OK?

Interesting that Mormon doctrine bashes Catholicism so much yet BYU plays Notre Dame in football from time to time and has asked for more games. Could it be the 💵?

Past experience leads me to respect the JWs more than the Mormons. I was in Rhodesia/Zimbabwe over 1978-83. It was noticeable that many poor Africans, often from Malawi, were JWs. By contrast, Mormon Missionaries were only interested in converting Europeans. I put this down to (1) racism and (2) money - a 10% tithe of an African subsistence farmer was nothing, because they had no money.

The crossover I didn’t know I wanted but now know I needed 😂

I just bought your book I am so excited to read it I am so happy that there is a book like this to help after you have left the Mormon church thanks so much ❤

CLICKED SO FAST I love your videos. I was never a Mormon, I was SDA and your videos are so relatable!!!

I've had Mormons knock on my door, and I've had JW's knock on my door. The Mormons, for all the wackiness, were always a joy to talk to once I made it clear I didn't want to join the church. Really pleasant people. I never was able to get to that point with the JW's, because there's no acceptance of "I don't want to join your church".

Hi! 😊 I'm from Argentina and my mom is an inactive JW, she still believes in it even though she hasn't been to a meeting in almost 20 years, but every time you ask her about her faith/JW she defends it with her heart. As a child, I never went to jw's "church" because she left before she had me, but my brothers, who grew up when she was deeply immersed in religion, talk about how boring the meetings were and the things my mom banned (like certain cartoons that were "evil"). This whole thing is crazy to me because she's never been that strict and she's certainly never been really holy, so the way she defends a religion that goes against her way of life, even years after leaving, is really revealing for me about the brainwashing that exists in this type of religions.

I'm so excited to learn more about the differences and similarities between these two religions. I'm quote interested in this type of stuff. And I also love all of your videos!

This was so interesting. I was raised JW. I’m 69 years old and physically have been out since I was 22 and mentally/totally out at 38. I follow a number of XJW and X Mormon channels. This has been the best side by side comparison of the two I’ve heard. Thank you both for doing this.

JWs are discouraged from higher education and full time jobs, especially women. It keeps them more docile and dependent. i wish Panda talked about that more. I think that's why JWs are so popular in Africa and Latin America where 'worldly pursuits' are frowned on and humilty is seen as an asset even though the Watchtower owns huge amounts of real estate in Brooklyn Heights which is a very valuable part of NYC.

These longer videos are SOOO AWESOME!! Thank you

Hope this sheds some light on the Yahweh/Jehovah mystery. In the Old Testament, the name of the God of the Hebrews was Yahweh, which literally meant "I am" (as in God is existence itself). There was a belief that to give name to a thing gives power over that thing, hence the chapter in Genesis where Adam names all the animals, giving humans dominion over all the animals over the earth. Therefore it was considered sacrilege to say the name of God, a belief that persists to this day (so never say Yahweh to an Orthodox Jew). To prevent the sacred name of God from being accidently pronounced by someone reading the scripture, the Hebrew scriptures left out the vowels of Yahweh (YHWH). Over time, the vowels from the word "Adonai"(which means literally "Lord") were used, which resulted in the word appearing as "YaHoWah. As is typical with a lot of German languages, that the Hebrew scriptures were translated into, he Y became J and the W became V. Therefore the Sacred Name of God appeared as Jehovah. Ironically, Hebrew doesn't have an equivalent to the letter J.

On the bit about the Bishops and Elders having the sessions with members that have sinned via pre-marital activities: my brain just can't help but think that maybe the ones that do the more in-depth, detailed questioning somehow get off on it

I'm not really catholic anymore but i still feel very defensive of the religion when other christians critique it. do you think thats normal?

oooooo i’ve been waiting for this collab to happen!

IS THIS A FACE RECEAL FROM EXJW PANDA????

In Spanish the JW’s are humorously called “testiculos de Jeovah.” As for history, JWs don’t really like to talk about the predictions for 1878, 1881, 1914, 1918 and 1925. 1914, in particular, the “established truth that the final end of the kingdoms of this world, and the full establishment of the Kingdom of God, will be accomplished at the end of A.D. 1914"