Young Baptism Candidates

Gordy

Had a visit today from my youngest daughter (17) a non-JW. Lives with her JW mother.my wife.

The circuit had their assembly last weekend. Her mother told her they had 12 baptised. I thought "not bad" considering at one assembly last year they had none.

Then my daughter said, the oldest one was 16 , the average age was 14. Of course all were children of JW's.

I can just hear it now "Isn't it wonderful brothers/sisters that these young ones are putting their trust in Jehovah."

I wonder how many of them will be still active JW's when they are 20+.

That's pretty typical throughout the UK, and probably the world, Gordy. The majority getting baptised these days are the kids of jws, some of whom yield to their parents blackmail to get baptised as soon as they get to secondary school. A lot seem to disappear by the time they are 20/21, or even younger, and then have to put up with the shunning that inevitably follows.

mama1119

Most of our baptism canditates were verrrrry young. I was only 13, so was my brother. Neither one of us is in the borg now..hhmmmmmmm......

Gadget

the average age was 14

I wonder how their parents would feel if they were getting married instead of getting baptised. My parents would have done everything they could to stop me marrying at such an age because they felt I was too young/emotionally immature to make a lifelong commitment to someone. They had no problem with me getting baptised though.

bubble

I was 18 when I was baptised and everyone was panicking because I was so old! Why don't they do as Jesus did and baptise at 30.

garybuss

That's what happens when they hermetically seal a group too tight, they stifle growth. That's what the Witnesses have done. Normal growth is by birth and by osmosis, or a gradual process of attraction, assimilation and absorption. Abnormal growth is by promotion. By isolating the group members or by requiring the appearance of having obeyed the directions to isolate, the group can't assimilate new members by natural attraction because natural attraction is accomplished by interaction.

By preventing interaction with non-members the Witness bosses have discouraged, if not eliminated, assimilated growth. They're putting all their money on birth and promotion. Growth by birth doesn't make up for the cast-aways or the walk-aways. Growth by birth and growth by promotion together don't seem to make up for the cast-aways or the walk-aways.

That leaves a double bind. One side of the bind says don't allow interaction with non-members because they may expose the members to rational thinking and the active Witness may become inactive. The other side of the bind says: "What we're doing now isn't working!". This rigid isolation is costing.

How will they deal with it? Will they tighten up more and accelerate the hemorrhage? Or will they try to diffuse and assimilate?

greendawn

Not many once they realise how restrictive and also how unloving the WTS is to its members, that is the way now for the dubs to show increases in the western world where people realised they are just another con.

south african beef

I was 18 when I was baptised - Twickenham 1980. Can't remember the date - oh, that's a sin isn't it? You are meant to have that date indelibly marked on your brain. Oh well. My brother got baptised much younger than me and yes I felt great pressure from my parents to get baptised. I'm obviously out of the org now but my brother is still very much in - so not all of the young kids that get baptised leave. Mind you, there is still hope I for my brother I suppose.