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A San Francisco venture capitalist who was once dubbed 'Silicon Valley's Party Animal' has been convicted of fraud totalling $19 million - and now faces up to 60 years in prison. Michael Brent Rothenberg, who was raised in a Jehovah's Witness family in Georgetown, Texas, used his dense network of successful Ivy League friends to set up his own VC fund in 2012 based on the strategy of throwing opulent parties. He rubbed shoulders with Mark Zuckerberg, rented out baseball stadiums for networking events, and threw all-day-and-night parties in a bid to attract investors and companies to invest in. This...

Following the filing of sexual abuse charges against nine members of Jehovah’s Witnesses congregations in October 2022 and February 2023, Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry announced Friday that she filed charges against five more men in the religious organization for sexual assault and exploitation of children. “The details of these crimes are sad and disturbing, facts which are made even more abhorrent because the defendants used their faith communities or their own families to gain access to victims,” Henry said in a statement. “Our office will never stop working to seek justice for those who have been victimized, and we...

A deadly rampage at a Jehovah's Witnesses hall in Hamburg has put scrutiny on how the gunman was in legal possession of a semi-automatic pistol despite Germany's tightened gun laws and a prior warning about his suspicious behaviour. The 35-year-old man, whose name was given as Philipp F in accordance with German privacy laws, killed six people and then himself when he opened fire on Thursday (Mar 9) evening. The exact motives were still unknown, but officials said the gunman had previously expressed his hatred for Jehovah's Witnesses. He had once been a member of their community and had grown...

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the deadly shooting at a Jehovah’s Witness centre in the German city of Hamburg. I’m Helen Sullivan, and I’ll be bringing you the latest. You can get in touch with me here. Six people are dead and several injured, local media says. The perpetrators are on the run. Police have said several people died in the shooting. “According to first indications, shots were fired in a church in Deelboege street in the Grossborstel district. Several people were seriously injured, some even fatally,” police wrote on Twitter. Bild is reporting that the shooting...

Just five hours after four people were injured in a dog attack in the North Sound, the animal was euthanized. It happened around 12:30 p.m., off Cemetery Road in Arlington. Police say four Jehovah’s Witnesses parked in front of a house and as soon as one of them - a 70-year-old woman - got out of the vehicle, a pit bull attacked her. “I just heard the screaming - I heard some screaming and I didn’t really pay much attention to it. I was on my phone and I just thought it was kids. It sounded like a little girl...

Russia's Supreme Court has accepted the government's request to designate Jehovah's Witnesses as an outlawed religious group, deeming it to be an extremist organisation. The justice ministry argued that the group had distributed pamphlets which incited hatred against other groups. Lawyers representing the group reject the claims and say they will appeal. The denomination says it has 175,000 members in Russia - a country where it was persecuted during the Stalin era. An estimated eight million people worldwide are part of the Christian-based movement, best known for going door-to-door looking for new converts.

By Joel Leyden Israel News AgencyRa'anana, Israel --- April 18, 2015 ... No, the Jews are not running to Pontius Pilate and the Romans have no crucifixions scheduled for this weekend. But someone forgot to fax the Jehovah's Witnesses that Jews do not live in Israel to become converts to Christianity. Ra'anana residents, municipal officials, a city Chief Rabbi and the Yad L'Achim anti-assimilation organization coordinated efforts to cancel a Jehovah's Witnesses baptism ceremony today. This is the second time that Yad L'Achim has succeeded in heading off the same baptism-of-Jews ceremony. It was first scheduled to be held in...

As many of you that visit this channel know, the Jehovah's Witness religion does not allow people to have freedom of thought and belief. If a person changes their viewpoint and questions the JW hierarchy and leadership then they will be sanctioned. If a member adopts an "unacceptable" opinion or conviction and dares to speak of it, then the local religious leaders (called Elders) will come after them, using an iron fist in a velvet glove to bring them back in line. If that fails, then they will cut the person off and ostracize them before everyone, announcing them from...

The clip, meant to stress the importance of paying attention in church and meetings, has been criticized for insinuating that not fully focusing during such gatherings can result in dying, even connecting the concept to the story of Noah’s Ark. JW.org has not yet responded to the backlash. A Jehovah's Witness promotional cartoon has been slammed for appearing to threaten children who don't pay attention in church with death. Viewers have dubbed the controversial animated clip, posted to YouTube by JW.org, as "stupid," "dumb" and "mind control." It begins with two youngsters attending a service with their parents. A little...

Religions have surprisingly diverse approaches to the issue of possible extraterrestrial life, David Weintraub found. Below, a quick survey adapted from his book "Religions and Extraterrestrial Life: How Will We Deal With It?" and interviews with the author.

Which Bible verses did the NIV delete? WHOLE Bible verses deleted in the NIV The following WHOLE verses have been removed in the NIV--whether in the text or footnotes.. here is but an example but there is over 40 IN ALL!!! The NIV also is a collaberator with the JWB or Jehovah's Witness "Bible". Matthew 12:47 -- removed in the footnotes Matthew 17:21 -- COMPLETELY removed [also deleted from the Jehovah's Witness "Bible"]. What are you NIV readers missing? KJV: "Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting." Matthew 18:11 -- COMPLETELY removed [also deleted from the...

Will they have to cover something like this under the Employee Benefit Program if that employee wasn't a JW, or could they say that they now have a religious exemption, too? I wonder what other can of worms the recent SCOTUS ruling will open up...

NASHVILLE (BP) -- The 100th anniversary of Jehovah's Witnesses' prediction that history would end in 1914 presents an opportunity for leading members of the group to faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior, a Southern Baptist expert on Christian sects and cults said. Christians' "first task" in sharing the Gospel with Jehovah's Witnesses is helping them "put [their official publications] away and then deal with the Bible alone," Robert Stewart, professor of philosophy and theology at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, told Baptist Press. "What we need is evidence -- evidence that the Watchtower Society [Jehovah's Witnesses' central organization] has...

Witnesses of Jehovah 1351. Are the Witnesses of Jehovah an offshoot of the Russellites? They are rather a continuation of the Russellites. The present leader of the Witnesses of Jehovah, who calls himself Judge Rutherford, is but the successor of Pastor Charles T. Russell, who founded the movement.1352. Russell was a pious, devout Christian, and a faithful follower of Christ. Pastor Russell was born in America in 1852. He was first a Congregationalist, then dabbled in Seventh Day Adventism, and finally set up for himself as a prophet announcing the Second Coming of Christ. His piety was not true...

Incensed that two Jehovah's Witnesses approached him in the front yard of his home, an Arkansas man allegedly had his wife retrieve his 9mm handgun from the residence and then fired 19 rounds at the pair’s vehicle, police report. John Baldwin, 35, was arrested for felony aggravated assault following the incident Saturday afternoon outside his Centerton home.

Jehovah Witnesses have long been frowned upon regarding their approach. Their mission is the study of the Bible to gain enlightenment and to spread the word of the Bible or the "good news." They also teach of a Armageddon, which they claim is nearer than most think. The religion is fairly new compared to others and is based on Bible teachings of Charles Taze Russell who formed a Bible study group in 1870 and later founded the Bible Student movement comprised of "witnesses." It is based on intense study of their own version of the Bible called the New World...

Jehovah’s Witnesses have received global media attention for their child protection policies, which put children at risk and serve to protect pedophiles. It has been estimated that Watchtower policies are responsible for thousands of children being harmed. To protect these policies, and the image of the organization, Watchtower has been forced to pay out vast sums of money in settlements. When a child reports a case of abuse, the correct response would be to report the accusation to the proper, trained authorities for them to investigate as a matter of urgency. However, the Watchtower instructs elders to handle such accusations...

"Unlike Jews and others targeted by the Nazis, the Witnesses were prisoners of conscience. They could have bought freedom by signing a declaration card that renounced their faith and pledged allegiance to Hitler. Few took the offer. Most stayed, and many died. Why Hitler bothered to single out such a minor group - and the tenacity with which the Witnesses resisted him - is what makes their story significant, says Michael Berenbaum, director of the Research Institute at the US Holocaust Museum in Washington. "The Jehovah's Witnesses were literally the only martyrs of the Holocaust," Mr. Berenbaum says."

As Easter approaches, think of this question: Does it make a difference which Jesus you believe in? The "Jesus" of the Marharishi of Transcendental Meditation is a Jesus who never suffered -- at odds with the cross. The "Jesus" of Guru Maharaj Ji supposedly merged with Krishna, Ram and Buddha -- at odds with the uniqueness of Jesus. The only difference between the Moonie "jesus" and the rest of us, said, Sun Myung Moon, is that Jesus had no original sin nature. The "Jesus" of Christian Science think of themselves as "Christian," yet they don't believe Jesus is God. The...

When I come by my friends house they are always there. They are polite to me but act like I'm interfering. Anyone here associated with them or been to their church? Thanks.