By Valentine Obienyem—
I am sure my brother and classmate, Barr. Arinze, will be rudely awakened by this piece. Each time I mention Jehovah’s Witnesses in my writings, he is quick to overwhelm me with all manner of literature explaining the subjects I have raised from their own perspective. He will trace me to my Facebook post for a knock-out blow.
I have often praised Awake!” as one of the best-researched publications I have come across. My problem with the organisation, however, is its tendency to bend certain passages of Scripture to fit its doctrinal convictions.
As a young man and an undergraduate in Lagos, my doors were open every Sunday to members of the sect who frequently visited me for theological exchanges. Those encounters helped sharpen my biblical knowledge considerably. Had I not engaged them, I might not have discovered some of the peculiar ways in which their Bible translation differs from traditional Christian translations, particularly in passages concerning the nature and divinity of Christ.
Some prominent examples are worth mentioning. In John 1:1, the JW Bible renders the passage as “the Word was a god” rather than the traditional “the Word was God”, thereby distinguishing Christ from God Almighty. In Colossians 1:15–17, it inserts the word “other” several times to support the argument that Christ was the first being created by God and that all other things were created through him. In Philippians 2:6, its rendering also differs from the traditional understanding of Christ’s equality with God. These are not merely questions of vocabulary; they touch the very foundations of Christian theology.
It is quite interesting that, as we move from debating the Watchtower’s interpretation of Scripture to celebrating All Saints’ Day on the Church’s liturgical calendar, we encounter questions about heaven, salvation and the destiny of the faithful. I cannot help appreciating how those rigorous Sunday morning intellectual exchanges in Lagos m, besides the seminary training, also helped to lay the foundation for my lifelong engagement with theology, history, philosophy and the search for truth.
Today’s first reading at Mass brought the Jehovah’s Witnesses to mind. It is taken from the Book of Revelation, where John describes his vision of those who stand before God’s throne. The passage first mentions 144,000 people who were sealed, but goes further to describe a great multitude, which no one could count, drawn from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb (Revelation 7:4, 9).
Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that exactly 144,000 people are destined for heaven. They interpret this number literally, teaching that these people are specially chosen to reign with Jesus Christ as kings and priests in heaven (Revelation 14:1–3; 20:6). The vast majority of faithful Christians, whom they associate with the great crowd in Revelation 7:9, will instead enjoy everlasting life on a restored paradise earth. This contrasts with the traditional Catholic understanding that all the redeemed are called to eternal communion with God.
This is one of the theological positions that particularly amuses me. Jehovah’s Witnesses also reject the doctrine of the Trinity, maintaining that Jesus is not God Almighty but a separate being whom they identify with Michael the Archangel before his earthly existence. They regard the Holy Spirit as God’s active force rather than a divine person. They teach that Jesus died on an upright stake rather than a cross; reject Christmas, Easter, and birthday celebrations; and prohibit blood transfusions based on their interpretation of biblical injunctions against consuming blood. They do not believe in eternal torment in hell, teaching instead that the dead are unconscious until the resurrection, while the irredeemably wicked will be permanently destroyed. They also maintain strict political neutrality and reject military service.
But the significance of today’s celebration goes beyond theological disagreements. The multitude John saw in his vision is drawn from every nation, tribe, people, and language. Heaven is not the exclusive preserve of a particular race, nationality or religious group. The celebration of All Saints reminds us that holiness is a universal calling and that the invitation to eternal life is open to all who respond to God’s grace.
The officiating priest at Mass today, Fr. Angelo Obiakor, made this point particularly forcefully in his homily. He reminded us that no matter the magnitude of our sins, we must never despair of God’s mercy, provided we repent and allow ourselves to be cleansed. He challenged the congregation to identify the sins and weaknesses they considered insurmountable and proceeded to show that there were saints in heaven who had once struggled with even greater failings.
In his words, if you tell him the sin you commit, he would point to a saint in heaven who had committed even worse sins before conversion. If your struggle is sexual immorality, have you reached the level of St. Augustine before his conversion? Consider Augustine’s extraordinary past and the transformation that followed his encounter with God. If your sin involves using your official position, your pen or your professional skills to steal public money, remember St Matthew, who was a tax collector before becoming an Apostle. The point was not to excuse wrongdoing but to demonstrate that no sinner should consider himself beyond redemption. These saints allowed themselves to be washed clean by the blood of the Lamb; we, too, can also become saints.
The two principal readings at Mass were also interesting in their relationship to the Johannine tradition. The first came from the Book of Revelation, while the second was from the First Letter of John. Both are traditionally associated with St John, the beloved disciple. The first offered us a vision of heaven and the multitude gathered before God’s throne; the second reminded us of the extraordinary privilege of being called children of God. The priest drew attention to the intimacy between God and His people, recalling the biblical assurance that God knows us even before our birth.
The Gospel reading, Fr. Angelo fired on, was from Matthew 5:1–12, the Beatitudes. Here, Jesus offers another way of understanding what it means to become children of our heavenly Father. Blessed are the poor in spirit, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers and those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. These are not merely beautiful expressions to be admired; they are dispositions to be cultivated. The Beatitudes show us the qualities that should characterise those who aspire to holiness.
And so, from my Sunday morning arguments with Jehovah’s Witnesses in Lagos to today’s celebration of All Saints accompanied by Fr. Angelo’s thoughtful sermon, one lesson stands out: the saints were not people who never sinned; they were people who, having encountered God’s grace, allowed themselves to be transformed. That, perhaps, is the most important lesson of All Saints’ Day.
