The Kingdom Hall near our house was full of cars and jammed full from what we saw driving by. I think you might have just witnessed a select environment. I think it was the normal guilt ridden attendance of each year. Personally, as a Witness and as a former Witness, I still don't get it.
Went to Memorial - where was everybody?
by Bonnie_Clyde 27 Replies latest jw friends
-
-
love11
Well... after 12 years I went back for the grand finale! It seemed like hardly anyone was there. I remember Sunday meetings at the kh had the usual attendance of 95- 112 people. Tonight the attendance was 159! For a memorial it was a pretty weak demonstration compared to Sunday morning at ANY catholic church in the world.
I noticed things that I just didn't pick up on when I was little. Like the fact that...no one had a look of success, happiness, you know that light inside you that makes you beam like sunshine and everyone takes notice of you. No one else had that. Everyone looked old and worn out. The women had long hair and long dresses. The men had business suits on. It was mostly filled with couples and old people. I wondered if the couples were alone because all of their children left.
By the way, I went to get more material to finish my anthropology paper.
Something strange happened, afterwards alot of people came up to me, and they have to know I am still disfellowshipped. But they acted like they couldn't care less. Well...most did. But also, I saw an old friend there and she knew where I lived. How did she know that!!! I moved to Chicago and moved back. Also, I have an unlisted number (which I forgot was unlisted until I looked in the phone book). She said she lives 3 streets away from me, so maybe she saw me outside. I don't know, but I was walking on air and not one of them could make me hang my head low. yay!
But to answer your question- Yes attendance did seem low. But what do I know, I've been away for 12 years so I was expecting the old circus.
-
aniron
My non-JW daughter went to the Memorial with her JW mother last night.
The last time I attended a Memorial was 7 years ago. Then the KH was full, main area could seat about 200. None of the extra area was used, even though the KH was designed to seat up to 350. When built about 20 years ago great "growth" was expected.
Last night according to my daughter the main area was only about two-thirds full. Which is about 134 people. Considering that when I attended the Sunday meetings would get on average 132. But I have heard that even that meeting attendance had dropped to about 90-100.
Also the KH is shared with another congregation, which has suffered and even bigger dropped in meeting attendance lately. I wonder if they decided to combine the Memorial. Because it used to be as soon as one cong finished the other came in. But probably pride would not allow it.Also it would mess up the WT figures.
-
Gill
Well funnily enough, we decided to go easter egg shopping for the children at memorial time, ready for sundays 'pagan' ritual and we noticed that my husbands family had not gone!
How strange!
-
fokyc
I went, as usual had to wait for KH to be opened, lucky it wasn't raining!
More than usual there, but that is not surprising is it?
Probably the most famous KH in the world, at the moment!!
fokyc
-
avidbiblereader
I went with my one daughter and son in law to be in September, my wife made the bread and we went to my 86 year old fathers house and had our memorial of Christ death and partook as Christ said we should.
abr
-
truthsearcher
The meeting we attended was down 20%, despite the first time attenders.
-
AK - Jeff
My foot last crossed the threshhold of the KH in the fall of 2003. I did not go, but I passed the KH perhaps a half hour before the event. Normally the parking lot would be getting pretty full by then [I think it might have actually been about 7:10, so twenty minutes early], but there were maybe 8 or 10 cars in the lot by then.
They were parking the cars in tight clusters, to make all the room possible for parking. But unless there was a mass influx, I would say they had a less than staggering attendence.
Jeff
-
Tuesday
That was last night, I thought it was super Wednesday or something like that. Oh well, sounds like a rip-roaring, good time. I always thought that everyone just had a special dose of self-righteoussness reserved for memorial night. Fun, fun, fun, maybe I'll go next year; then again I'll probably just hear from everyone here that it happened the night before.
-
Honesty
I went on Sunday night... Nisan 14.
Monday night I relaxed at home and posted a few thought-provoking questions on a pro JW discussion bored.
Gotta go now to see how many JW's logged in and called me an Apostate opposer...
C Ya