Part III: In Defense of Catholocism; Exploring the Beliefs of the Jehovah's Witnesses from a Catholic Perspective

In this final installment of a three-part series, we shall defend the Catholic faith. Since a defense of Catholicism against every objection imaginable would simply be too large of a project to undertake, we will limit our scope to the concerns raised by Jehovah’s Witnesses

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As we ponder the questions of theology which divide us, it is vitally important that all Christians follow the guidance of Jesus found in the Gospel (John 13:34-35) “…love one another as I have loved you...by this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another”. 1

We must emulate Christ’s love for us in our approach to everyone. It was in this spirit of love that I first opened my front door to a Jehovah’s Witness over a year ago. Since then, we have met periodically to discuss our respective faiths in an effort to foster better understanding and mutual respect. It is in this same spirit of loving kindness, then, that I present this discussion.

After the first several meetings at my home in which my new friend and I compared the beliefs of our respective faiths, eventually I grew curious about the historical origins of the Jehovah's Witnesses. My friend was happy to share with me some very informative video documentaries produced by the Jehovah's Witnesses which available on demand.2 

Jehovah's Witnesses—Faith in Action, Part 1: Out of Darkness

Both my new friend and the speakers in the videos truly impressed me with the kindness in their gentle approach. They all seem quite genuine in their beliefs and are selflessly dedicated to spreading what they hold to be the biblical truth. Just as in the Gospel, by their love they have impressed me of their sincerity as Christians. Since this academic project primarily concerns the history of the Catholic Church, I've limited my comments to Part One of their Two part series, in which the early Christian (Catholic) Church is discussed.

The video began with a claim that the Jehovah's Witnesses trace their roots back over 6000 years. This struck me as a bit odd, since they are a movement of American origin, and even the Catholic Church has only been around for 2000 years. It turns out they simply included the Old Testament in their timeline. It was heartening to discover that while we have differing beliefs, the Jehovah's Witnesses with whom he shares his beliefs generally dispute little of Christian History, from the time of Adam and Eve all the way through the completion of Christ's life on earth.

There was, however, a curious statement by the film's narrator that "...after Adam and Eve sinned, human society came under the control of Satan". The narrator implies that Satan's control of human society began with the fall of Adam and Eve, was lifted for a time while Christ was on earth, but then Satan resumed control of the human race from the time of Christ's death until the Jehovah's Witnesses arrived to sort things out.

It would seem self-evident that in order for the People of Israel and the prophets of God who appear in the Old Testament to have done God's will, clearly they were not under the control of Satan. Tempted by Satan yes, but they clearly retained the free will that God gave them. It was the next part of the narration which struck me as such a tremendous misunderstanding, and motivated me to undertake this project. 

In the words of the narrator;  "...Jesus foretold that after the death of His apostles there would be a falling away from pure worship. That apostasy would be so extensive that genuine disciples would practically disappear 'until the conclusion of the system of things' (the video cited Matthew 13-40 and continued)...at the same time, a counterfeit form of Christianity would flourish. And so it happened" (images of Catholic Church then appeared in the video).

It is helpful to pause at this point, and with all due respect to the good intentions of all Bible-believing Christians who are not Catholic, we must ask them; do you deny scripture?

I ask this rather blunt question not out of disrespect, but out of love, for it is clearly an oversight for those who read the Bible to miss what Jesus had to say in Matthew 16:18-19 “And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of the netherworld will not prevail against it.” 3

It would seem that the theology of the Jehovah's Witnesses, as well-intentioned as it may be, runs counter to the very words of Christ. Satan has not prevailed against the Church Christ founded, and he never will.

Returning to our discussion of the Jehovah's Witness video, then, it is helpful to review Matthew 13-40 and the context around it. Note that the video only quotes a single phrase of the scripture, and not even the entire verse. This cited verse is referring back to the parable of the sower which Jesus has just finished sharing. 

Just prior to the parable of the sower we find the following words of an antecedent parable in Matthew 13:18; "Hear then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in his heart; this is what was sown along the path". 4

Could this help explain why some equally devout Christians have a completely different understanding of scripture than others? Did the founders of the Jehovah's Witnesses hear of the kingdom and not understand? Did the evil one then come and snatch away some of the truth that was sown in their hearts? 

I ask this question, because nowhere in Matthew 13:40 does it say, as the narrator does, that "genuine disciples would practically disappear...". 

The carefully edited quote of only a part of Matthew 13:40  is misleading. It gives the impression that the whole section is a quote from scripture. It isn't. Only the words, "until the conclusion of the system of things" appear in the bible. The bible does not say that genuine disciples will practically disappear. 

What the Bible does say about genuine disciples and heresy is perhaps best conveyed by the very first Vicar of Christ, Saint Peter himself, who writes in 2 Peter 2:1-3; “There were also false teachers among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will introduce destructive heresies and even deny the Master who ransomed them, bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their licentious ways, and because of them the way of truth will be reviled. In their greed they will exploit you with fabrications, but from of old their condemnation has not been idle and their destruction does not sleep.” 5

Pope St Clement I (our fourth pope) was one of the ancient apostles, and himself was a disciple of Peter, wrote in the year 80 a.d.; “Our apostles too, were given to understand by our Lord Jesus Christ, that the office of Bishop would be given rise to intrigue. For this reason, equipped as they were with perfect foreknowledge, they appointed the men mentioned before, and afterward laid down a rule, once and for all, that when these men died, other approved men shall succeed in their sacred ministry.” 6

Sacred Scripture continued to be written through the first century, and both the Catholic Church and the Jehovah's Witnesses affirm the Bible. In fact, it was the early Catholic Church which assembled the Bible.  Had a universal apostasy occurred at the time the first disciples died off, surely such an event would have been recorded.

Though apostasy did indeed occur, apostasy was never universal, and genuine disciples did not dissapear. On the contrary, apostasy and heresy have been consistently identified and resisted by the genuine disciples who continue to lead the Catholic Church, and the Church herself has always remained faithful to the teachings of Christ, though individual Christians have all sinned. 

From the words of Peter, Paul, Clement and the writings of an unbroken line of successive popes which continues today, we can see that sound teaching and the authority to lead did indeed pass through successive generations of Catholic Church leaders. Jesus Himself promised that He would remain with us until the end of time, and He has, through His bride, the Catholic Church. 

Catholic teaching authority has always been clear, as evidenced first by the apostle Paul, who wrote in 1Timothy3:15 of the “…Church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of the truth”, and later in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. 7

The narrator and the imagery are then replaced by statements provided by two members of the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses, Geoffrey W Jackson followed by David H. Splane.  These men point to the infusion of the works of Plato and other Greek philosophers into Christian thinking as a cause for concern and an indication of the corruption of the early Church. 

I must admit, I too grew concerned when I discovered Greek Philosophy in the studies required of a future Catholic Priest, but I later came to appreciate the reason for it. Where Jackson and Splane err, is in failing to recognize the usefulness of logic in drawing people closer to Christ. Instead, they chalk up the motivation of the great theologians to the influence of Satan. Obviously we Catholics disagree.

The video next described the Bible being in Latin as a means to conceal it from the people. Again, there seems to be a misunderstanding. First, we should note that the original Old Testament biblical writings were actually in Hebrew and the New Testament writings were in Greek. The books which would become the Bible were assembled by early leaders of the Church and translated into Latin because it was the universal language of the time... not as a means to conceal it from the people. The first English language Catholic Bible actually preceded the King James Bible, though few are aware of this today. Remember too that prior to the invention of the printing press, that the very limited number of bibles which did exist were hand-copied by monks, and were precious. As the romance languages evolved from Latin roots, it was not practical to continuously update what might very well be a single copy of the Latin Vulgate Bible present in each parish Church with new vocabulary like publishers do so easily today.

Soon the video brought us to the Protestant Reformation, a turning point in our study of Church History. It was at this point that the theological forebears of the Jehovah's Witnesses actually departed from the Catholic Church. Again, the video errs when it almost seems to imply that the works of Ulrich Zwingli, Martin Luther and John Calvin were somehow connected to the recent translation of the Bible, as if all three of these men suddenly discovered previously concealed Biblical truths. In reality, all three of these men were quite familiar with the content of the Latin translation of the Bible. Luther and Zwingli, in fact, were Catholic Priests who's theological studies and celebration of the Mass were conducted in Latin.

John Calvin

The Jehovah's Witnesses trace their theological origins to a Baptist Minister in Hartford CT named Henry Grew who caught the attention of a Methodist minister named George Stores. It was Grew who developed a peculiar way of interpreting scripture. He held that scripture was the best interpreter of scripture. Using this method, he soon came to discount the Trinity, hellfire and the immortality of the soul. Stores came to interpret Ezekiel 18:4 (...the soul that sins shall die) as literally meaning that the fallen soul ceases to exist rather than it goes to hell for all eternity.

Before defending the Church teachings on these topics, let us first turn to Ulrich Zwingli, the fallen-away Catholic Priest  who is responsible for much of Baptist thought. It was Zwingli's thought which preceded Reverend Henry Grew in the theology of the Baptist tradition. History tells us that Father Zwingli departed from the teachings of the Catholic Church in his teaching of a view he called "freedom of the Christian", and he was not a man who took his vow of celibacy seriously, for he is reported to have seduced a woman. His weakness for sin may have included not only the desire for extramarital sex in violation of his vows, but perhaps also an inclination toward dishonesty (one must wonder if he ever intended to adhere to his vows). He may also have succumbed to the sin of pride, abusing the of power of his office to engage in seduction and throwing off the bonds of obedience to the magisterium when it suited him. 8

Zwingli worked towards separation from any interpretation of scripture by any church hierarchy and is credited with the idea of Sola Scriptura, which holds that scripture alone conveys the word of God, and not any subsequent interpretation of it. As a Catholic priest, Father Zwingli likely knew full well the irony that it was the early leaders of the Catholic Church who actually assembled and selected the various books which would later become known as The Bible.

Father Zwingli may not have begun his efforts with a genuinely altruistic desire for “Freedom of the Christian” (AKA: God-given free will) or with a genuinely held belief that each man is free to interpret scripture for himself. Father Zwingli may instead simply have sought to justify his own sins of fornication and the breaking of his vows of celibacy and obedience by twisting Christian teaching to suit his own ends. Surrounded as Zwingli was by like-minded priests (many of whom ignored their own vows of chastity and obedience) he evidently found validation among them.

John Calvin's ideas of pre-destiny too, had a significant influence on the Jehovah's Witnesses, though indirectly. It was a young Protestant layman in Pennsylvania named Charles Russell, who's childhood was touched by the death of two siblings and his mother at an early age. He would later witness the carnage of the civil war as some of it's bloodiest battles were conducted not far from his home. 

Thus death would have a profound effect on the young Russell, who would write; “A god that would use his power to create human beings whom he foreknew and pre-destinated should be eternally tormented, could be neither wise, just nor loving. His standard would be lower than that of many men."

Charles Russell

In the case at least of Charles Russell we do not seem to find a man who left the Catholic truth behind. In the young Russell we find an apparently innocent, beneficent young man, born protestant, who rightly objected to the idea of God taking the lives of his family and pre-destining men to hell. Rather than question the doctrine of pre-destiny, however, Russell instead questioned the existence of hell. Calvinist belief in pre-destiny had permeated much of Protestant Christian thought at the time. It was far more palatable, then, to adopt Reverend Grew's opinion that sinful souls simply died rather than that they were tossed into eternal fire.

Later, Russell, his father and a handful of other men would undertake a five year study of the bible which would lead them to major conclusions challenging the major religions of the day. In addition to the ideas already mentioned, their other conclusions included the idea that there is one God whom they call Jehovah, and that He is not part of a trinity. Russell never professed to be divinely inspired. He simply arrived at these conclusions by studying scripture.

Rather than debate each of the many theological points raised then, it is far simpler to re-affirm the moral authority of the Catholic Church, the Church founded by Jesus Christ Himself.

We can close our defense of Catholicism with this;

Biblical Foundation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church

The teaching authority (known as the Magisterium) of the Catholic Church is rooted in the Gospel of Matthew 16:6 in which Jesus first cautions his disciples to “Look out and beware of the leaven (teachings) of the Pharisees and the Saducees.” 8

The authority of the Catholic Church is then solidified further in Matthew 16:18-19 which reads “And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of the netherworld will not prevail against it.”  9

The Gospel of John also records some of Jesus’ last words to his disciples in chapter 14:16-18; “…I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you always, the Spirit of truth, which the world cannot accept, because it neither sees nor knows it. But you know it, because it remains with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you”. 10

Thus Jesus shared His plan for catechizing the rest of the world. His plan was spoken quite clearly in his final words, reflected in Matthew 28:19 “Go therefore, and make disciples of all men, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age”.  11        

Those books which would come to make up the New Testament were largely written within 100 years of Jesus’ birth by eyewitnesses or apostles of those eyewitness. Just as Jesus cautioned, there were indeed writings (“leaven of the Pharisees”) which were not included in the bible, either because they were less reliable sources or in some cases contained incorrect teachings.  Bishops had been appointed by the early apostles, and successors to those first Bishops followed. It was some of our earliest Bishops, only a few generations removed from Christ himself, who discerned at the Council of Trent which of the books were divinely inspired and would become the complete canon of the Catholic Church.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church, excerpts

77     “In order that the full and living Gospel might always be preserved in the Church the apostles left bishops as their successors. They gave them ‘their own position of teaching authority.’” Indeed, “the apostolic preaching, which is expressed in a special way in the inspired books, was to be preserved in a continuous line of succession until the end of time.”

78      This living transmission, accomplished in the Holy Spirit, is called Tradition, since it is distinct from Sacred Scripture, though closely connected to it. Through Tradition, “the Church, in her doctrine, life, and worship perpetuates and transmits to every generation all that she herself is, all that she believes.” “The sayings of the holy Fathers are a witness to the life-giving presence of this Tradition, showing how its riches are poured out in the practice and life of the Church, in her belief and her prayer.”

79      The Father’s self-communication made through his Word in the Holy Spirit, remains present and active in the Church: “God, who spoke in the past, continues to converse with the Spouse of his beloved Son. And the Holy Spirit, through whom the living voice of the Gospel rings out in the Church—and through her in the world—leads believers to the full truth, and makes the Word of Christ dwell in them in all its richness.”

105     God is the author of Sacred Scripture. “The divinely revealed realities, which are contained and presented in the text of Sacred Scripture, have been written down under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.”

“For Holy Mother Church, relying on the faith of the apostolic age, accepts as sacred and canonical the books of the Old and the New Testaments, whole and entire, with all their parts, on the grounds that, written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, they have God as their author and have been handed on as such to the Church herself.”

1. John 13:34-35. The Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version. Second Catholic Vers. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2001. Print.

2. Jehovah's Witnesses - Faith in Action, Part 1: Out of Darkness. Prod. Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc. Jehovah's Witnesses - Faith in Action, Part 1: Out of Darkness. Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc., n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2016.

3. Matthew 16: 18-19. The Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version. Second Catholic Vers. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2001. Print.

4. Matthew 13:40. The Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version. Second Catholic Vers. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2001. Print.

5.  2 Peter 2:1-3 The Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version. Second Catholic Vers. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2001. Print.

6. Ciresi, Sal. "Pope St. Clement of Rome." CatholicHerald.Com [Arlington VA] 23 Aug. 2001: n. pag. The Arlington Catholic Herald. Roman Catholic Diocese of Arlington VA, 23 Aug. 2001. Web. 23 Apr. 2016.

7. 1 Timothy 3:15 The Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version. Second Catholic Vers. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2001. Print.

8. 2. Vidmar, John, OP. "The Fifth Age of the Church; Reformation and Renaissance." The Catholic Church Through the Ages. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist, 2014. 204. Print.

8. Matthew 16:6 The Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version. Second Catholic Vers. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2001. Print.

9. Matthew 16:18-19 The Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version. Second Catholic Vers. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2001. Print.

10 John 14:16-18 The Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version. Second Catholic Vers. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2001. Print.

11. Matthew 28:19 The Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version. Second Catholic Vers. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2001. Print

12. "Catechism of the Catholic Church - The Transmission of Divine Revelation." Catechism of the Catholic Church - The Transmission of Divine Revelation. Vatican Archives, n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2016.