Change in membership rolls Norway

by InquiryMan 13 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

• 

  InquiryMan

  The Watchtower Society in Norway has voluntarily and on their own initiative reduced their membership rolls in order to fit to the world wide practice of witnesses when it comes to membership enrollment.

  Now, they only incluce baptized members, not children and non-baptized publishers in the number they report to the authorities. As a registered faith community, JWs, alike with all other registered religious and philosophical communities, receive support from the government. that is calculated on basis of the number of members... In times past they included children, thus making the membership into some 15,000, whereas now they report just slightly above 11,000. The money paid is a sort of repayment of taxes paid by inhabitants, as Norway has a state church. They give away several hundreds of thousands dollars by doing this.

  I do not think one can play the greedy card against them in this case.

  When a person gets baptized or DA or are DF they will get a certificate of enrollment or closure of enrollment.
• 

  Mythbuster

  http://www.willyfautre.org/publications/2009/0314%20Article%20Odessa.pdf

  Norway, a European Non-EU Country

  In Norway, about 420 faith communities have been registered in addition to the state church. Denominations with congregations in various regions either register as one entity under one name or let their congregations register separately. Some communities choose to have one central registration, e.g., the Roman Catholic Church or the Methodist Church. Others let each local congregation take care of their own registration: for example, the Muslim communities and the Pentecostal congregations. The Norwegian Humanist Association is also registered as a belief system. Every community has official membership records.

  In Norway, a registered faith community has the right to receive governmental funding but must apply for this to regional authorities every year before 1 April. The amounts allotted to faith communities depend on their membership. In the year 2000, the state gave each community 30 EUR per member. The state grants must be used for "religious purposes". The communities must record their expenses and submit their accounting to the County Governor every year before 1 March. The accounting must be signed by the community board or a registered accountant. Abuses can be sanctioned by the loss of the benefits from the financing system.
• 

  InquiryMan

  Thanks for the excellent explanation in english you provided ;-)

  The amount is now risen to NOK 357 a year. That is roughly 45 Euros or slightly less or close to 60 dollars.
• 

  blondie

  How are you sure that there wasn't some outside influence for this choice? The WTS stopped charging for the publications in 1990 shortly after Jimmy Swaggart's loss in court. How many jws knew about that; but I'm sure that the legal staff in the WTS saw the handwriting on the wall.

  Jimmy Swaggart

  In 1988, Jimmy Swaggart was taken to court in the case Swaggart Ministries v. California Board of Equalization. This regarded paying tax on profit derived from sales of religious material. (http://www.oyez.org/cases/1980-1989/1989/1989_88_1374/argument/ April 6th 2007) Realising a ruling against Swaggart could result the sale of Watchtower publications being taxed the Watchtower Society filed a Brief of Amicus Curiae (friend of the court) for United States Supreme Court Docket # 88-1374. This was to support Jimmy Swaggart Ministries. With the decision looking likely to go against Swaggart, the Watchtower Society initiated the 'voluntary donation' arrangement in the United States before the ruling. Click Here to view a copy of the Amicus Curiae that the Watchtower submitted for the Jimmy Swaggart case.

  http://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/politics.php
• 

  carla

  marking
• 

  wobble

  You are right, as usual dear Blondie, I am sure, the WT never gives up the chance to snatch a buck without reason.

  Even if it is a decision based on realising that a religion that styles itself "the truth" ought to be honest, is it not disgusting that they used to count children ??? just to grab the money !

  Their should be no such thing as a "JW child" or "RC child" or "Islamic child" , children did not choose their parents or what religion their parents are, wait until the child is an adult and they can decide what label they want.

  Children are humans with rights, and what religion their parents are should not affect the child's rights, especially their right to choose a life-saving blood transfusion. (Sorry slightly off topic rant here!)

  The WT was just plain greedy in counting children in their number.

  I wonder if there will now be more subtle pressure on Norwegian JW youngsters to get baptised so that the Congo. can get the money ?
• 

  yknot

  marking

  I have a feeling we haven't heard (in my best Paul Harvey impression) 'The Rest of the Story'......

  Pre-emptive?
• 

  InquiryMan

  Of course we do not know if they have any hidden motives. But according to law all are allowed to include children in their membership basis.. So definitely the witnesses have not done anything wrong in doing that....
• 

  MMXIV

  The WTS goes to considerable lengths to ensure it does not have to pay any more tax than absolutely necessary. It has gone to court in numerous countries to protect their tax exempt status. It moves it's printing operations around the world where possible to avoid paying tax.

  Is it likely they voluntarily gave up an element of this tax credit system without being told to? Never.

  So if I read it right then there is a financial incentive for each congregation to not disfellowship it's members. Baptised witnesses who are not df'd or ds'd but become inactive will still attract the subsidy unless they join another religion.

  If 1000 JW's fade, become inactive yet do not get a closure of enrolement, over the next 10 years that's worth $600,000. If I was the DO for Norway I'd be telling the elders to not chase up anyone that became inactive, whether they committed a sin or not.

  mmxiv
• 

  InquiryMan

  It is kind of interesting how much you put an American way of thinking into the Scandinavian tax model... Religions are not taxated here. If the Wathctower society had been threatened with some sort of of taxation it sure would have been in the news a long time ago.... Media here very easily pick up JW related news... Even the new understanding of 1914 and civil service made its way into the newspapers weeks before the Watchtower was published.