They also believed that after Armageddon, Jesus would rule the world from heaven with 144,000 вЂњfaithful Christians,вЂќ as specified in the Book of Revelation. JehovahвЂ™s Witnesses, however, expected that the Battle of Armageddon would be worldwide with Jesus leading a вЂњheavenly armyвЂќ to defeat the enemies of God. Armageddon specifically refers to Mount Megiddo in Israel where some Christians believe the final conflict between good and evil will take place.

The name вЂњJehovahвЂ™s WitnessesвЂќ was formally adopted in the 1930s.Д®arly JehovahвЂ™s Witnesses believed 1914 to be the beginning of the end of worldly governments that would culminate with the Battle of Armageddon. Russell died in 1916 without witnessing the return of Jesus Christ.Д«ut his group endured and grew. This вЂњGolden AgeвЂќ would see the Earth transformed to its original purity, with a вЂњrighteousвЂќ social system that would not have poverty or inequality. Russell and his followers looked forward to Jesus Christ establishing a вЂњmillenniumвЂќ or a thousand-year period of peace on Earth. These students understood вЂњ Jehovah,вЂќ a version of the Hebrew вЂњ Yaweh,вЂќ to be the name of God the Father himself.

The group was led by Charles Taze Russell, a religious seeker from a Presbyterian background. The story of JehovahвЂ™s Witnesses begins in the late 19th century near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with a group of students studying the Bible. Who are JehovahвЂ™s Witnesses, and why would the Russian, or any, government consider them to be a threat? Early history Russia, with a population of more than 150 million, has a total of 117,000 JehovahвЂ™s Witnesses вЂ“ one JehovahвЂ™s Witness per 850 people. There are over eight million JehovahвЂ™s Witnesses in 240 countries worldwide. The Russian government also has the legal authority to liquidate any property held by JehovahвЂ™s Witnesses as an organization. But, as of now, JehovahвЂ™s Witness gatherings and preaching are criminal offenses in Russia. As a last ditch effort, Russian JehovahвЂ™s Witnesses intend to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights. On Monday, July 17, the Russian Supreme Court rejected an appeal of an earlier ruling sanctioning JehovahвЂ™s Witnesses as an extremist group.

Jehovah witness beliefs on death