His Holiness Pope Shenouda III speaks about the heresy of Jehovah’s Witnesses, explaining that it is not a single false idea but a collection of multiple heresies—Jewish, Arian, pagan, and even atheistic in nature. He warns that their danger lies in denying the essentials of Christian faith and corrupting Scripture through their own altered translation.

The nature and sources of their heresy
The Pope describes Jehovah’s Witnesses as a Jewish-based sect since they keep the Sabbath and believe Jerusalem will be the capital of a new world. They deny the divinity of Christ (Arian heresy) and the divinity of the Holy Spirit (Macedonian heresy). They also resemble atheists for saying that all religions come from Satan, and Sadducees because they deny the existence and immortality of souls.

Their beliefs about God and Christ
They claim the only true name of God is “Jehovah” and refuse to call themselves Christians. They teach that Christ is a created being — a “lesser god” through whom the greater God made the world — and that He only became the Son of God at baptism. They also identify Him as the Archangel Michael in human form. They teach that His body was destroyed after crucifixion and that He rose only spiritually.

Denial of resurrection and eternity
They reject the concept of eternal life, saying that the wicked will cease to exist rather than be punished, and that human souls perish at death. Thus they deny the intercession of saints because they think the saints are dead and unconscious.

Other false doctrines
Jehovah’s Witnesses deny the Trinity, the sacraments, priesthood, confession, Eucharist, and veneration of saints or icons. They reject the sign of the Cross and the Virgin’s perpetual virginity. They consider churches as satanic institutions and refuse allegiance to governments or national symbols.

Their corruption of Scripture
They use their own translation, The New World Bible, deliberately altering verses to support their doctrines. Pope Shenouda gives the example of how they changed Christ’s words to the thief on the cross, moving the comma to twist the meaning and deny conscious life after death.

The Church’s position toward them
The Pope warns believers not to welcome them or debate with them, citing Saint John’s instruction: “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house nor greet him.” He stresses that their conversations bring confusion and doubt.

Spiritual and theological essence
The core message is that Jehovah’s Witnesses deny the divinity of Christ, the Holy Spirit, and eternal life, undermining all Christian doctrine. The Pope reaffirms that Christ is the true incarnate God, risen bodily from the dead, and that true faith is the apostolic, Orthodox tradition grounded in Scripture and the Church—not in human reasoning or false translation.

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