Consider that even amidst Bucharest’s urban landscape, stands a testament to faith and resilience: the Sala Regatului A Martorilor lui Iehova. This is more than just a building. It is a symbol of a community’s enduring spirit.
The Jehovah’s Witnesses Association of Romania uses the name Sala Regatului A Martorilor lui Iehova for their operations. Their branch office is here in Bucharest. Officially recognized as a religious denomination in Romania, they are one of eighteen. The 2011 census counted almost 50,000 adherents making them the country’s tenth-largest denomination. Elders appointed by the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses supervise each congregation. The magazines “The Watchtower” and “Awake!” are published in Romanian.
The story of the Sala Regatului A Martorilor lui Iehova in Romania began with humble Bible Student groups. Hungarian missionaries in Transylvania founded them. Two emigrants returned from the United States to Târgu Mureș in 1911 converting local Hungarians. They published “The Watchtower” in Hungarian in 1914. The first Romanian version came out two years later. Ioan B. Sima was sent from the United States in 1920 to organize the community. It was divided into four groups in the 1930s. After Transylvania united with Romania in 1918, the headquarters moved to Cluj. The first Watch Tower Society was set up there two years later. The society coordinated activities for Hungary, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and Albania.
The Romanian government imposed bans on the group’s operations during the interwar period. The first came in 1926. Authorities considered the group a deviation from mainstream Christianity. “The Watchtower” was banned. Pressure eased in the early 1930s and the headquarters moved to Bucharest. Orthodox Ukrainians and Serbs were converted. Romanian Seventh-day Adventists followed in Moldavia as well as inroads into Dobruja, Oltenia and Muntenia. Legalization came again in 1933. The following ban came in 1937 as King Carol II’s rule slid into authoritarianism.
Jehovah’s Witnesses faced persecution during World War II under the Ion Antonescu regime because of their conscientious objection. The leadership withdrew to Northern Transylvania. Some Witnesses from Northern Transylvania were interned in a prison camp in Bor, Serbia.
After the war, the Witnesses reverted to their 1933 status. They registered as a legal entity in July 1945. Their operations were banned again in 1948. The Communist regime excluded them from its list of official religious communities. The Bucharest office closed in August 1949. Its buildings and equipment were seized. The group presented critiques of ecclesiastical, social and political institutions. This was considered subversive. Their opposition to military service was also unacceptable. Close ties to the United States proved problematic. Members were accused of espionage. At the time of the ban, the group had some 15,000 members.
Officials maintained surveillance. They subjected members to harassment and discrimination. The media was employed against the Witnesses. Repression diminished somewhat in 1975. The Governing Body tried to negotiate with the Romanian government but their communications were unanswered. One method of gaining new converts involved members traveling in pairs by train. They started conversations on religious topics. “The Watchtower” was sent into Romania in English. Witnesses translated it.
After the Romanian Revolution of 1989, Jehovah’s Witnesses received legal status on April 9, 1990. That year, their first congresses took place at Brașov and Bucharest. Since its legalization, opposition has come from the Orthodox Church. In July 1996, the Orthodox Church influenced the authorities to cancel an international convention. In 2003, the Culture Ministry granted the group official recognition.
As of 2012, there were an estimated 300 Kingdom Halls serving some 500 congregations. The 2011 census found almost 50,000 adherents.
Today, the Sala Regatului A Martorilor lui Iehova stands as a beacon. It represents not only a place of worship. It also embodies the story of a community that has faced adversity. It is a place where faith has triumphed. Their story continues to unfold within the heart of Bucharest.