"Special" campaigns a cause of JW malaise?

by sir82 26 Replies latest jw friends

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  sir82

  One of the principal problems the WTS has is, how do they motivate the rank & file witnesses to do more in the preaching work?

  Over the past 3-4 years, one thing they have tried is a series of "special" field service campaigns. Two or three times a year, there is a concerted effort made to cover all the congregation's territory with district convention invitations, Memorial invitations, "special" tracts, etc.

  But, in effect, with these special campaigns comes along a subliminal message that the Society expects, indeed demands, that it will be a colossal failure.

  For example, consider the campaign to invite the public to the district convention. Each JW is given a packet of 50 invitations to distribute.

  Let's pretend for a moment that 4% of the people who receive the invitation become temporarily insane and actually decide to attend. That would be 2 invitees per JW.

  So, at a typical DC, where maybe 8000 people were expected to attend, there would instead be 24,000 people (8000 JWs + 16,000 invitees). Traffic would be hideous, the convention site would be so overcrowded the fire department would have to be called out, the program would be cancelled due to building overcapacity, and all that "rich spiritual food" would not be delivered.

  Even a 4% success rate would cause such havoc that the program could not be carried out. For the convention to go on, the Society must hope that 99% or more of those invited promptly throw away the invitation.

  The Society sends out Wtnesses to engage in a "special campaign" which not only do they expect to be a colossal failure, but that must be a colossal failure.

  It takes all of 30 seconds for a reasonably intelligent person to figure this out, if only in his subconscious.

  So remind me again - why exactly is this a "life saving work"? And why is it so "urgent"?

  If the Society's message must have a 99% + failure rate, whence the motivation?
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  daniel-p

  I always felt they did those stupid campaigns to motivate themselves, not to actually accomplish anything. It was just a means to get people out in service.
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  Quirky1

  I agree Daniel...
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  Lost-In-Translation

  The goal is to motivate the publishers to go out in field service. The Governing Body already knows that the majority of the people who receive a special campaign tract will not be responsive. The true goal of the campaigns is to keep publishers busy. If you keep the workers busy they have less time to think or to question if what they are doing is worthwhile.

  Congregation territories have changed drastically during the last 20 years. Before all you had to worry about were Catholics, Protestants or some other Christian faith. Now territories are more diverse with people who believe in Judism, Islam, Hinduism, and a good number who are atheists. Most publishers just cannot handle trying to preach to so many different people. Going to a stranger's door to challenge their beliefs is not an easy thing. Even though the Reasoning book has sample presentations for people of different faiths - most publishers have no clue how to use those presentations. A tract campaign gives publishers an easy method of "witnessing." Knock on door - hand stranger a tract - leave. You see, preaching is easy!
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  slimboyfat

  The "special campaigns" are just to save money - a tract is cheaper than a brochure or a book.

  And yes it is becoming a joke.
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  insearchoftruth

  Do the publishers make a 'donation - wink wink' when they get their stack of tracts?
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  sir82

  Just to be clear - I also agree, the purpose of these not-so-special-after-all campaigns is to keep the R&F engaged in "busy work".

  The point is, the JW leadership doesn't seem to consider the inherent risk of JWs engaging in busy work that must fail in order to be "successful".

  The DC invitation campaign must be a spectacular failure, in order for the DCs to function. Ditto the Memorial.

  When that light bulb goes off over the head of the semi-intelligent JW, what then? Why bother to get out in "service" on a gloomy Saturday morning? Or a bright & beautiful Saturday morning, for that matter? If I must have at least a 99% failure rate to "succeed", why not guarantee a 100% failure rate by not showing up at all?

  JWs are increasingly unmotivated to actually do much more than go through the motions in their "life saving ministry work". This is a big change from 40, 30, even 20 years ago. Why? I contend a lack of forethought on the part of the guys who think up these "special" campaigns is part of the reason.

  If JWs are in malaise, unmotivated to share in the ministry, they will also be unmotivated to attend meetings, to contribute money, or do anything else expected of them.
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  SuspiciousMinds

  When I was still an active publisher, I loved these "special campaigns". It amounted to 3 or 4 weeks in a row where you were not expected to really talk to anyone, read a scripture, or get involved in a lengthy conversation. Because we had to "cover our territory". That's really the only way that success is measured during these campaigns.
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  sspo

  It has always been a joke.... out of the millions of tracts left, i doubt very much if anyone

  would go out of their way to attend a religious convention.

  It's been 3 years since i stopped attending meetings and i make sure i spread

  the truth about the JW's being a cult........but don't have to convince anyone since

  almost all the ones i talk to already know about their cultish ways.
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  willyloman

  Sir, you've nailed it with this brilliant analysis. And you are right that dubs parse this subconciously and even if cog diss kicks in, it's unsettling on some level. They cope just as you suggest, by blowing off FS if and when they can or more often just going thru the motions. FS is a form of self hypnosis for many dubs.