Does the catholic Church recognize the baptism of the Jehovah Witnesses Church?
A. 1. The Catholic Church does not recognize the baptism of the Jehovah Witnesses Church. This decision is based on the lack of proper form and intention on the part of the ministers. It appears that the Jehovah’s Witnesses are fundamentalists, Unitarians. The Divinity of Christ is explicitly denied, as is the existence of the Holy Spirit as a person. In the ceremony of baptism there is a discourse. It is really a symbol of dedication rather than baptism. The person enters the water, but his name is not called out. No words or formula are pronounced while the person is submerged or immersed in the water. If matter and form are valid, the intention of the minister is to baptize the person into the Jehovah’s Witness sect, thereby not intending that the person be baptized in the name of the triune God. This is evident since the Divinity of Christ and the personality of the Holy Spirit are denied. These latter refer simply to a power exerted by Jehovah, who alone is God.
