Does anybody have any information on recent growth in the jdub religion? Other than their own reports? Or, can you point me to the right post here? I searched but only found info from 5 years ago.
Jdub Growth In USA?
by freein2004 24 Replies latest watchtower scandals
-
-
Magnum
How can we know other than going by numbers provided by the org? I don't trust their numbers. It seems that the best gauge we can have is to share what we observe in our own areas and get a feel for what's going on.
I see zero growth in my area, maybe even decline.
-
-
nowwhat?
If you take out the born ins we would have negative growth. I don't think any new ones have come in 30-40 years. -
Ignoranceisbliss
This is my take.
I believe the Borgs numbers. They may stretch the truth but I don't think they are cooking the books.
There are NO middle class families joining. All growth is 1. Born in. 2. Foreign language. 3. Destitute. The median age of a dub is way older than the median age of the U.S. this will catch up with them soon. Within 5 years US growth will be zero or negative.
-
freein2004
A family member said to me they are growing so much. Their Southern Cali congregation had to split twice already.
I didn't refute this because I really don't know. But I was certain about 5-10 years ago they had to merge with another local congregation that was too small.
I was questioning them about all the kingdom halls that are supposedly needed in the USA. Apparently they think the halls will be used when Jehovah says that's it the work is over. He will ask everyone to meet at the kingdom halls.
So Jehovah is bleeding their wallets dry for kingdom halls because he isn't all powerful enough to keep track of all his faithful while he is in a mad rage wiping all the evildoers off the face of the planet.
I guess this is new light. It used to be the book study home where would take refuge.
-
dropoffyourkeylee
In the US in my region (midWest rural) there isn't any growth. Kids getting baptized, some foreign language growth (I hear) but besides that there are very few converts like in the pre '1995-or-so' days. I believe the increase on publishers that are being printed are due to:
1) making it easier to report time. 15 minutes at a time is allowed, and both parents can report time for their bible studies at home with kids. and
2) encouraging, reaching out to, former publishers who have gone inactive in service but still attend meetings for family reasons. There are many, many people in each congregation like that who have started reporting again, maybe just an hour or two.
The result is an increase in numbers of publishers, but I wouldn't call it growth.
-
Phizzy
I saw somewhere in an on-line article that they were claiming to still be the fastest growing religion in the U.S, claiming a growth of 4% + !!
This does not match with JWFacts carefully researched figures, nor with the personal experience of those posting above, do you think they are lying ?
-
Magnum
Phizzy, I said in my first post on this thread "I don't trust their numbers". If their numbers are wrong, I don't know whether it's an outright lie, or just a deceptive manipulation of info.
Think back to our study of the Proclaimer's book at our meetings in the 90's, I was extremely frustrated at the way the accounts didn't flow logically. The book just often didn't make sense. At that time, I thought it was just due to bad writing. I was going to write them a letter with constructive counsel to help them.
But then, some time later, I read an analysis of the book that indicated that it was deliberately written the way it was to cloud and confuse some issues in JW history. The Great Leaders included some of the bad things in JW history so that when people brought such things up, they could say "Oh, we've already discussed that; it's in the Proclaimer's book." Yet, they included these things in a way that the whole story couldn't be pieced together as it really happened. The story was not presented in a linear fashion.
The Great Leaders are very skilled at PR and info manipulation.
-
Phizzy
Too right Magnum, as a long time JW I identified when that Proclaimers book came out that it was written as a reply to charges levelled at them, but I saw that as legitimate to do.
More fool me.