Jehovah's Witnesses - Once Again the Fastest Growing Faith in the U.S. (page 6)

aniron

2010 yearbook gives growth at 2.5%

2009 average - 7,046,419

2010 average - 7,224,930

I cannot believe how upset some people that post here are that JWs are GROWING. The fact is they are whether you like it or not! The publisher figures in the YB are conservative- there are AT LEAST 7.5 million witnesses. There are so many who cannot or just do not report that if ALL were included it could be over 8 million!

I did not fake my fs reports. And even after I stopped going to meetings I still was preaching and placing literature, just NOT REPORTING it! So I was still a publisher for years without being counted in the figures.

I knew several in my cong who went out in service and did not report - they were NOT counted in the figures but I worked door to door with them and knew they had at least as many hours as when we worked together and I saw them place magazines and we made rvs together. I tried getting these ones to hand in fs reports ( I wanted the number of pubs to increase) but I kept being told:" Jehovah knows what I am doing- I don't need to fill out a time slip.' This must have been a problem elsewhere too as we had local needs parts at the hall and at the CA explaining why we should report our time and mentioning that there was a gap between the number of publishers record cards AND the number who were handing in fs reports.

The yb figures are conservative. The CO reports to the branch how many publishers are active in the cong. But the number of fs reports is LESS than the number reported by the CO! The wts goes by FS reports!

Example- I was discussing this with a Bethel brother back in the late 80's who told me that it was announced at Bethel there were 2.9 million witnesses! I was so excited!

But when I later got the yb the peak figure showed 2.65 million. I was so dissapointed.

I asked the brother to explain this to me. He said it is because the 2.9 million was the number reported in the congs by the CO's whereas the figure in the yb was the number of publishers who REPORTED their fs- there were over 200,000 worldwide who were preaching but not reporting that year, thus were not counted as publishers.

People here may not like the fact that jws are increasing but that does not change the fact that they are. Some here may wish to comfort themselves by saying most witnesses fake their reports or that the wts is making them up but you are only fooling yourselves. The figures are real!

But what is the big deal? Witnesses are not growing as fast as they were years ago anyway.

I do not get how some who post here are reacting! "They must be faking their fs reports!" "The wts is making the figures up" or 'How can they be increasing?"

I do not understand these reactions at all.

Those who think they will see the collapse of jws in our lifetime will be very dissapointed-it is not going to happen regardless of how much you or I would like to see it.

Gayle

factfinder. . . At least then, the non-reporting JWs, aren't the elders, MS, pioneers or aux. pio., & really not the so loyal to be unquestioningly obedient to anything the GBs says. Maybe they are the ones that would take a blood transfusion, talk to family member DF'd. But if an elder calls them, and pleads with them if they in fact preached at least 10 min. to anyone, then the elder, on his own, will put them down & report them as a pub. for the cong. numbers sake. It's their numbers, numbers, numbers.

just n from bethel

ANNOUNCEMENT: The governing body would like to say one word to all the the new members of Jehovahs Witnesses in the United States:

GRACIAS

factfinder

@Gayle- yes those who feel no need to report are not the pioneers, elders, etc.

But really, the elders are not allowed to fill in reports for pubs unless the pub lets them know they went out in service and what they did. When I was sick and it was close to when we had to hand in our reports I called an elder and told him it over the phone- then he put it down on my card and I got counted.

I would mention to elders in my cong about certain ones who did'nt report but whom worked out in service with me. I was told they cannot make a report for someone else- they have to hear it direct from the publisher.

An elder who studied with me was the cong secretary and he would not put hours down for some sisters who were in our fs group who did not turn in their fs slips.

Yes, Gayle, those who don't report (except in banned countries) are usually "low-hour " publishers and may not be that loyal to the gb.

But the point I was trying to make in my post was that even if some did fake their fs reports there are really more publishers who DO preach but do not get included in the yb statistics since they do not report!

Thus there really are 7.5 million witnesses or more, as discouraging as this is to many who post here.

@just in from bethel- that is funny! And true!

wasblind

" Witnesses only count PUBLISHERS. If you do not turn in your fs reports you are NOT counted as a witness "

Hello there Factfinder,

I remember all to well how we were, constantly reminded

to turn in our reports, and yes I would make up time just to

get it out of the way, I find that scince I left the JW's I can talk freely about anything

relating to Christ without doin' it to count time, it is now truly done freely and from the heart

My spirituality is no longer measured by field service reports

Yea, I cheated on my fieldservice report, I call it theocratic warfare

mrsjones5

Does jehovah actually look at field service reports?

wasblind

Good question Mrs Jones

To sum it all up field service reports are the only way to salvation not Jesus

Git yo time in gurl !!!!!

davidl7

Alanv "I am a little confused here. The Watchtower has recently published it's worldwide report, and the figure they gave for USA was 2%

In fact the actual figure was 1.7% but they rounded the figure up.

David could you explain how they get to the 4.37% figure."

The NCC figure for 2010 was 1,114,000; in their 2011 yearbook it increased to 1,167,000...that's about a 4.37% increase.

just n from bethel

Here's the new Watchtower logo to motivate all those in the US to keep this growth going (with a subliminal message about which territory to pursue):

Jehovah's Witnesses - Once Again the Fastest Growing Faith in the U.S.

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