Preferred Name
Elena Sorchiotti
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Date of Graduation
Summer 2016
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Department of History
Advisor(s)
Gabrielle Lanier
Abstract
The present thesis aims to reveal the stance of the religious organization of Jehovah’s Witnesses, the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, towards the oppression and persecution of its members - examined in the accompanying website - perpetrated by the Nazi regime in Germany, from 1933 to 1944. Unlike the majority of Christian denominations, Jehovah’s Witnesses from all around the world took a firm stand against Hitler’s political agenda and against the actions carried out by the Nazi authorities. Through the use of diplomatic means, publication of articles, special campaigns, and letters addressed to government officials, the world headquarters of the religious organization publicly denounced the Nazi regime and helped support the Jehovah’s Witnesses who, in Germany, were under attack for their beliefs and preaching activity.
As religious denominations first welcomed, then silently feared Hitler’s regime, the religious group of Jehovah’s Witnesses stood out for its public and fearless denunciation of the crimes committed by the Nazis.
Recommended Citation
Sorchiotti, Elena, "The Watch Tower Bible and Tract society: How Jehovah’s Witnesses denounced and resisted the Nazi regime" (2016). Masters Theses, 2010-2019. 460.
https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/master201019/460
