JW DECREASE IN AMERICA of 1.07%

by DannyHaszard 60 Replies latest watchtower scandals

• 

  Mary

  Dozy said: Yeh , right. I'll nominate you for the Booker prize for 2006!

  Oh. Is that the best response you can come up with? I guess so, seeing as you've got no rebuttle for the fact that Witnesses are no better than people of other religions.

  "You're pathetic." Thanks for the summary - you ex-JW "Christians" are such delightful people. I just can't wait to leave & join in loving association with you.

  Ah yes. We're as delightful as the loving Christian message that the Organization wants their people to preach: Join Us Or Die.
• 

  bebu

  So the Mormons have 6 million members in the US alone (that's the same as the JWs worldwide) and are increasing at 1.74% growth rate a year.

  The JWs have just over 1 million members and they are now decreasing by just over 1 percent per year. (Q: Are these publishers, or are these memorial attenders? And how does one find out?) I guess Joseph Smith's getting a 50-year jump on CT Russell was quite important...

  Dozy, you say that the JW numbers reflect only sincere and active believers, because of the 'demands' the WTS makes on them. (As opposed to the churches who make absolutely no demands.)

  But you forget that there is a large number of people who are counted (many who who post and lurk here) who would leave in an instant if they didn't have friends and families as WT hostages.

  bebu
• 

  blondie

  bebu, memorial attenders around 16 million compared to 6 million JWs (publishers--people who turned time in once every 6 months).
• 

  Justitia Themis

  Dear Forum Members:

  Wow. What a heated discussion. As some of you know, I am an active, practicing JW. And I want to apologize for Dozy's behavior. As many of you have correctly pointed out, JW's have long bragged about our growth as evidence of Jehovah's holy spirit; nothing could be farther from the truth. I have been privately complaining about such nonsensical reasoning for at least 10 years! People would look at me as if I were crazy (apostate) when I would say, "What if we experience a decline? If growth is evidence of Jehovah's holy spirit, will a decline be evidence of losing Jehovah's spirit?" No one could ever imagine a decline.

  Regardless of how you massage the numbers, whether it is this year, next year, or the year after, we most likely will experience a decline in membership. We have only ourselves to blame. The next question to be faced is, "What do we do about it?" Continue business as usual? Blame everyone and everything but ourselves? Or, take a long, cold hard look at what we have become...issue apologies where they are deserved...make recompense where due.

  Dozy, there many good hearted, bruised individuals at this discussion board who have LEGITIMATE issues with the WTBTS. Your caustic responses bring no praise to Jehovah.
• 

  XJW4EVR

  In the last 6 years, I have only been called on English speaking J-Dubs twice. However, since I have moved, that may change.
• 

  ozziepost

  Justitia:

  I appreciate your sentiment; we don't really know that Dozy IS a JW - we'd only know that on a personal basis and i haven't seen anyone confirm it.

  Also remember that Dozy's not a good defender of the WTS, maybe a typical one, but not a good one; just uses the scattergun approach and doesn't back up what he/she says.

  Then again, no loyal dub would even be in that position, eh?

  All in all, I think Dozy may simply be someone here to 'yank our chain' - but still needs refuting

  Chheers, Ozzie
• 

  PoppyR

  Just like to add my two pence worth (cents!) and that's because I resented the comment about the UK and christian evangelism being dead, I live in the Uk and work with two very christian people who have spoken to me on many occasions about their beliefs, one regularly reads the bible at break time etc. In fact when I used to be a JW they put me to shame. I can find young Mormon boys in the town centre every single day trying to preach to people. It's a long time since I saw the JWs on my street.

  I drive past my local Catholic church (please how can you call Celtic a church!!!!!! It's a football game, how many of those people do you think are in church the next day!) And I see people pouring out on a Sunday, laughing, chatting, dressed in all kinds of weird clothes, all accepted and I smile wryly and remember how much catholic bashing we did and how we were sure all those churches were going to be turned into bingo halls before long...

  Actually in my town the congregations have gone from 4 to 3 (a 25% decrease!) and are showing NO increase, yet the other churches are exploding. Why? Because from what I see, those people leave the service feeling energised, spiritual, happy etc. I used to leave the KH feeling frustrated, flat, bored, tired and just relieved it was over. The same old tired songs, talks, Wts, over and over and over. I think nobody would argue that the membership is young and exciting, the people who are propping up the WT organisation are the middle aged die hards that were there 30 years ago.. It's only a matter of time.

  Poppy x
• 

  JT

  You are not doing real math.

  The JW numbers are the peak number of publishers from the 2004 Service year, not 2005. The 2005 numbers are an increase of 16,104 from 2004, or an increase of 1.56%, which is actually more than the majority of the churches listed. Don't rejoice just yet. ############## keep in mind the the new arrangement of 15Min Publishers counting time only gave the wt a one time bounce in numbers imagine a person is counted as a good jw if they have 15min and Not -if they have 14min per month smile
• 

  skeeter1

  Chip, chip, chip away goes the information war. Like an avalanche that starts with a few snow "pebbles" it can turn into every JW leaving the WTS.
• 

  lilybird

  On our street here a local Baptist Faith red bus comes every weekend to take children and youths to Sunday School. They called at our house to see if we had any young people who would like to attend and they would pick them up and then drive them home.. They are showing an interest in young ones and trying to cultivate a love of worshipping God in the youth. Which is more than you can say about JWS. You have to find your own way to meetings. They don't worry about organizing for others who don't have their own way there.