Jehovah’s Witnesses release first complete Bible in Ossetian

September 6, 2010
VLADIKAVKAZ, Russia—Saturday August 21, 2010, will be a day long remembered by the Ossetian people who attended the 2010 “Remain Close to Jehovah!” District Convention of Jehovah’s Witnesses that was held in Vladikavkaz, Ossetia, where the first complete translation of the Bible into Ossetian was announced. Many of the almost 2,000 in attendance could not hold back tears of joy when they received their free, personal copy of the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures in Ossetian. Previously, only parts of the Holy Scriptures had been translated into that language.

The literary value of this translation is realized by noting that in February 2009 the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) included Ossetian on its list of disappearing languages. The translators feel that the Bible will be of great help to many in Ossetia who desire to see their language continue to be spoken by future generations. Of greater importance is that the translation into modern-day Ossetian will contribute to a deeper understanding of the excelling wisdom of that ancient book.

To date, more than 165,000,000 copies of the New World Translation have been printed, the whole or in part, in 83 languages.
http://www.jw-media.org/rus/20100906.htm

Link to Ossetian: http://www.watchtower.org/oss/index.html


Recommended reading:

• Translating "the Word was a god," 1700 Years Ago nwtandcoptic.blogspot.com/2008/09/translating-word-was-god-1700-years-ago.html
• Have Jehovah’s Witnesses Changed the Bible to Fit Their Beliefs? www.jw.org/en/jehovahs-witnesses/faq/changed-bible-beliefs
• Is the New World Translation Accurate? www.jw.org/en/jehovahs-witnesses/faq/new-world-translation-accurate

Verses that seem to prove the Trinity

These explicitly declare that 'the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost are one God', eternally! This surely should call to mind the popular Shield of the Trinity diagram!

They read:

1. And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God. And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end. Amen.
2. And he hath brought to pass the redemption of the world, whereby he that is found guiltless before him at the judgment day hath it given unto him to dwell in the presence of God in his kingdom, to sing ceaseless praises with the choirs above, unto the Father, and unto the Son, and unto the Holy Ghost, which are one God, in a state of happiness which hath no end.
3. Which Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are one God, infinite and eternal, without end. Amen.

Fantastic! These should end the debate here and now. Excellent!

But where are these scriptures from? Surprisingly, the first two are from the Book of Mormon: 2 Nephi 31:21 and Mormon 7:7 respectively, and the third is from the Mormon scripture Doctrine and Covenants at 20:28.

Yet, "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) identify the Trinity (or Godhead) as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, but with a different intention than the Nicene faith. They regard these three as individual members of a heavenly triumvirate, completely united with one another in purpose—each member of the Godhead being a distinct being of physical form (God the Father, Jesus Christ) or spiritual form (The Holy Ghost.)"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity#Non-orthodox_Trinitarianism

Confirming this, a Mormon apostle even declared: "We declare it is self-evident from the scriptures that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are separate persons, three divine beings." (Jeffrey R. Holland, “The Only True God and Jesus Christ Whom He Hath Sent,” Ensign, Nov 2007, 40–42 link)

So, Trinitarianism rightly rejects Mormonism, but the most explicit expressions of Trinitarianism are Mormon, and Mormonism rightly rejects Trinitarianism.

As my friend Solomon Landers said,

Strange that to find an explicit declaration of the Trinity in a holy book, one has to go, not to the Bible, but to a "heretical" scripture.

Coptic John 1:1 and the New World Translation

This is a video made from the audio version and printed edition of the November 1, 2008 issue of The Watchtower, pages 24-25, Was the Word “God” or “a god”?. Both (the printed and audio editions) are published by the publishing arm of Jehovah's Witnesses. This video, however, was done by one of Jehovah's Witnesses and not by the said publishing arm.



Download article in PDF on Google Drive.

Recommended reading:

• Translating "the Word was a god," 1700 Years Ago nwtandcoptic.blogspot.com/2008/09/translating-word-was-god-1700-years-ago.html
• Jesus in Coptic John 1:1 and 18 www.agreatcloud.com/database/coptic.php
• Have Jehovah’s Witnesses Changed the Bible to Fit Their Beliefs? www.jw.org/en/jehovahs-witnesses/faq/changed-bible-beliefs
• Is the New World Translation Accurate? www.jw.org/en/jehovahs-witnesses/faq/new-world-translation-accurate
• An Early Coptic Translation and John 1:1c Prepared by Solomon Landers inthenameofwhowhat.blogspot.com/2008/05/early-coptic-translation-and-john-11c.html