"Refusing to bow to the god of war" - a summary of the stand made by members of the International Bible Students Association (IBSA) during World War One with a look at its long term consequences.
How did a peace message lead to a worldwide brotherhood of over 8 million people who transcend national barriers, and who are determined not to fight at risk of losing popularity, liberty and even life itself?
The Bible Student movement started in the late 1870s in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA, when Charles Taze Russell, a young businessman of Irish/Scottish descent, ploughed his money into the magazine now known as the Watchtower.(1) Russell thought Christianity had become corrupted and sought to re-establish original truths. However, he never claimed to have received divine messages, only to believe what could be ascertained by reading the Bible itself.(2)
Russell attempted to balance the New Testament's obvious aversion to fighting and war with its respect for the law and order of secular governments. In 1904 he advised readers that, in the event of war they should request non-combatant work. Further, if refused and put on the front line, Bible Students should fire their guns in the air rather than at their fellow man.(3) In September 1915, Russell emphasised a stronger stand. He discouraged acceptance of the army uniform, acknowledging that acceptance would appear to the authorities to be an act of compromise. Addressing the question of 'what would happen if a Christian refused to perform military service and was shot as a result?’ he commented that "we cannot tell how great the influence would be for peace ... if a few hundred of the Lord’s faithful were to follow the course of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and refuse to bow down to the god of war."(4)
In Britain c.450 readers responded to this call and determined to follow the scriptural command to 'obey God as rule rather than men' whenever the demands of state contradicted those of Christ.(5) One of these was Charles Herbert Senior, who had earlier toured Britain presenting the Photo- Drama of Creation, which was strong in its condemnation of war, particularly religion's role in supporting it. Persisting in his stand, on 6 June 1916 Senior found himself alongside other conscientious objectors on the Quayside at Boulogne, France, where he was ordered to unload Army supplies. Senior refused saying “my Christian principles will not allow me to do any work for this war.” Believing the supplies to be munitions, he later explained that he considered there was "no difference in principle in unloading shells … and putting that shell into a gun to be fired for the killing of men. It was all part of the same process." The other men also refused orders, which led to a Field General Court Martial under the serious charge of ‘refusing to obey a superior officer in the face of the enemy.’ Ultimately this led to the infamous 'death sentence’ (immediately commuted) episode of 24 June 1916. In total 35 COs received the sentence, eight of whom were International Bible Students. Their experience was shared internationally in the Watch Tower magazine.(6)
At this time, in the eyes of the British press, public and government the b
te noire was undoubtedly the No Conscription Fellowship. Elsewhere, Bible Students took on the mantle. In Canada, for instance, when IBSA made a stand prior to conscription the authorities became suspicious, for "in the popular imagination, the degree of organisation possessed by the Bible Students, rather than lending credence to their claims, took on a sinister aspect."(7) Consequently, the Ontario based London Press noted that "the military authorities regard the International Bible Students' Association as an insidious enemy within the gates, which needs watching."(8)
Life also became difficult for IBSA members in America when State control was deemed necessary, via Selective Service and the Espionage Act, to ensure the nation's involvement resulted in victory. Political and religious groups that bucked the trend were swiftly identified and suppressed. The IBSA stood out especially as a result of a book it published. As Philip Jenkins noted:
"In 1918, when federal and state authorities were deeply concerned about pro-German subversion and sabotage across the United States, much of their activity focused on suppressing one densely packed theological rant, namely The Finished Mystery."(9)
Accused of hindering the draft and violating the Espionage Act, Joseph Franklin Rutherford (the next IBSA President following Russell's death), and his fellow governing body members received 20 year prison sentences at the hands of Judge Harland B. Howe, who considered these seven Bible Students "a greater danger than a division of the German Army".(10) Post-war the sentences were recognised as a miscarriage of justice, but meanwhile it made martyrs of these men who then sent a resolution to the Washington Arms Conference on 27 November 1921 making it clear that IBSA would not be involved in any future war “in any form.”(11) In 1931 they sent a further resolution to numerous world leaders stating that “our faith forbids ... us from engaging in war or in any other enterprise that would work harm or injury to mankind.” It also made rulers aware of the new name they had taken on … Jehovah’s Witnesses.(12)
To conclude, it should be noted the international resistance of the IBSA in the Great War, though imperfect, was led by their church hierarchy and supported valiantly by rank and file members. While latitude was given for a variety of stands made by members, no toleration was given to those few choosing to ignore the Biblical standard set by the Prince of Peace. i.e. the few who willingly joined combatant services did so at the forfeiture of their membership.
Subsequently, Jehovah's Witnesses achieved notoriety for their uncompromising resistance as conscientious objectors in Nazi Germany, Soviet Russia, Britain, Greece, Armenia, South Korea and Eritrea. In so doing, they helped shape human rights legislation benefiting conscientious objectors of all varieties. Today they are said to represent over 90% of all imprisoned conscientious objectors throughout the world.(13) Like them or not, few doubt their sincerity in keeping their promise to avoid involvement in wars "in any form."
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