Why is the attendance numbers taken twice during the meetings? (page 2)

bluebell

ok i understand now, yes they are just concerned about numbers, not people

truthsetsonefree

I always thought it a little crazy to view one event as two, but they actually view the two halves as two separate meetings. Isaac

thepackage

Why do they count the babies?????? I'd leave at half time all the time then get the "are you feeling ok" telephone calls after.

Flowerpetal

I've never heard of them stating they count babies. What I have heard is they count children who are paying attention.

It cracks me up now thinking of all the dirty looks i would get if i had to leave during the "half time" song. if someone didn't stay for the 2nd meeting, afterward everyone would sit around asking about them and gossiping. oh, what a loving brotherhood. lol they also count the people listening over the phones. did your congregations have that?

JH

they also count the people listening over the phones. did your congregations have that?

Yeah, I recall that.

If I was stuck home, I'd prefer listen to mass on TV

MadTiger

I would count who left for the second, to make the count easier.

I can honestly say I made no moral/value judgment on people as they left. I understand that people make a living in many ways, some of which may involve taking extra shifts/assignments, etc. Do I know that they are using the extra money to buy a nicer car, or for rice and beans? I don't know. Is the person ill? Suffering from gastrointestinal problems? I don't know?

If they had this mantra, I might still be in: Leave people alone.

Missanna

for real mad tiger! I just don't get why people have to be like that. even when i was the zealous young pioneer sister that i was i thought it was wrong to sit there and gossip about the people who were late for the meetings or who weren't there for the watchtower discussion. i knew a sister that was late every single meeting and people would say all sorts of mean things about her but what they didn't know was she had an abusive husband and a bratty 12 yr old girl that kicked and screamed everytime she would try to get her to go to the meetings which made her late. i think people are so bored with their own lives they have to focus on others. i agree with mad tiger : leave people alone!

metaspy

I used to take attendance for each meeting at my old cong.
I was told to count any 'soul' at the meeting.
To point out how specific my old elders were, they had me count a baby that was past due to be born.
I laughed when they first told me... (not a smart thing) but I did what they said, add one to my total.
I figured, what does it matter to me? 88 or 89, doesn't change anything in my life.

willyloman

With the WTS, numbers are either about control... or about damage control. Therefore, some of the numbers are precise, others are not.

Meeting attendance is very accurately monitored and turned into a report which the CO reviews when he visits. It tells him a lot about the congo if, for example, the average attendance for the Public Talk is 100 and then drops to 90 for the WT Study. This gives him a "management tool" to tell the elders to find out why 10 percent are leaving after the public talk and do something about it. A week or two later, the elders would give a talk about appreciating the food dispensed via the WT magazine at the study on Sundays. Ditto w the School and Service Meeting. And the books study. They make a big deal about the percentages. The CO views these numbers as an indicator of the "spirituality" of the congregation. Woe to the elders the 100 who come to the public talk on Sunday drops to 50-60 for one of the other meetings. This is a sure sign the elders are not doing their job and they will hear about it!

As for hours in service and the annual report showing growth or lack thereof, those numbers can be tweaked as necessary when there is a need for damage control. That's why they don't EVER complain when brothers over-report their f.s. hours but get concerned when someone under-reports (or doesn't report at all).

Why is the attendance numbers taken twice during the meetings?

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