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The practices of Jehovah's Witnesses are based on the biblical interpretations of Charles Taze Russell, founder of the Bible Student movement, and successive presidents of the Watch Tower Society, Joseph Franklin Rutherford and Nathan Homer Knorr. Since 1976 they have also been based on decisions made at closed meetings of the religion's Governing Body.〔.〕〔''Keep Yourselves in God’s Love'', Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, 2008, page 43, "The Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses represents the slave class. ... elders today receive instructions and counsel from the Governing Body, either directly or through its representatives, such as traveling overseers."〕 Instructions regarding activities and acceptable behavior are disseminated through ''The Watchtower'' magazine and other official publications, and at conventions and congregation meetings. Jehovah's Witnesses endeavor to remain "separate from the world", which is regarded as a place of moral contamination and under the control of Satan, refusing any political and military activity and limiting social contact with non-Witnesses.〔.〕 Members practice a strict moral code, which forbids premarital and homosexual sex, adultery, smoking, drunkenness and drug abuse, and blood transfusions.〔.〕 Discipline within congregations is maintained by a system of judicial committees, which have the power to expel members who breach organizational rules and demand their shunning by other Witnesses.〔.〕 The threat of shunning also serves to deter other members from dissident behavior.〔.〕〔"Make Wise Use of Your Christian Freedom", ''The Watchtower'', June 1, 1992, page 18.〕 Members are expected to participate regularly in evangelizing work and attend all congregation meetings, as well as regular large-scale conventions, which are highly structured and based on material from Watch Tower Society publications.〔.〕 ==Worship== Meetings for worship and study are held at Kingdom Halls, and are open to the public. Witnesses are assigned to a congregation in which "territory" they reside and are expected to attend weekly meetings as scheduled by the Watch Tower Society and congregation elders. The meetings are largely devoted to study of the Bible and Witness doctrines; traditions of mysticism, glossolalia, creed recitation or periods of silent meditation common in other Christian denominations are absent.〔.〕 During meetings and in other formal circumstances, Witnesses refer to one another as "Brother" and "Sister". Sociologist Andrew Holden claims meetings create an atmosphere of uniformity for Witnesses, intensify their sense of belonging to a religious community, and reinforce the plausibility of the organization's belief system.〔 He says they are also important in helping new converts adopt a different way of life.〔 According to ''The Watchtower'', one role of the frequency and length of meetings is to protect Witnesses from becoming "involved in the affairs of the world."〔"What Do You Do with Your Time?", ''The Watchtower'', February 1, 1950, page 38, "By setting and meeting the goal never to miss any of the meetings that the Lord provides for His people, the Christian is protected against becoming involved in the affairs of this world. He doesn’t have time for it!"〕〔"Exert Yourselves Vigorously!", ''The Watchtower'', April 1, 1972, page 206, "They do much private Bible study, attend five weekly congregation meetings and spend much time each month in preaching the good news of God’s kingdom and making disciples of people, besides providing support for themselves and their families. ... Being busy serves as a protection from many of the temptations and snares of the world, the flesh and the Devil."〕 The form and content of the meetings is established by the religion's Brooklyn headquarters, generally involving a consideration of the same subject matter worldwide each week.〔 Two meetings each week are divided into five distinct sections, lasting a total of about four hours. Meetings are opened and closed with hymns and brief prayers delivered from the platform. Witnesses are urged to prepare for all meetings by studying Watch Tower literature from which the content is drawn and looking up the scriptures cited in the articles.〔"Benefit Fully From the Service Meetings", ''Our Kingdom Ministry'', January 1989, page 7.〕 Kingdom Halls are typically functional in character, and contain no religious symbols.〔 Each year, Witnesses from several congregations, which form a "circuit", gather for two one-day assemblies; several circuits meet once a year for a three-day "regional convention", and every few years the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses hold "international conventions" in selected cities around the world. These larger gatherings are usually held at rented stadiums or auditoriums. Their most important and solemn event is the celebration of the "Lord's Evening Meal", or "Memorial of Christ's Death". 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Jehovah's Witnesses practices」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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