Yes. They are the ultimate spin doctors. Numbers go up: Jehovah is blessing us, the end must be close! Numbers go down: love is cooling off, the end must be close! Heads they win, tails everyone else loses.
Ethnic language Congs. are closing here due to no young people!!!
by Witness 007 15 Replies latest jw experiences
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smiddy
Whatever the case, let's just say the Witnesses have been conditioned to have an answer for everything, true or untrue.
Well thats for sure ,
I can only hope the young people are using there intellect to reason the truth that is being spoken and distinguish what is not the truth.
smiddy
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Aussie Oz
The JWs will follow the pattern of small towns and localities throughout Australia (if not the world)
In the 1940s our little towns were full of life, few had cars and most rode a horse. Hell the farmers in my district did not transition from draft horse to tractor till into the 1960s
By the 1980s these little towns of 100 people were all but gone save for a pub and a store and ten years on most of that had gone as well. A drive through country australia reveals a host of ghost towns, populated by 10 people and no hotels or shops...they all got boarded up years ago as cars made travelling further faster the norm. Nobody needed to stay in these little places, there was no work, the farmers couldnt afford to employ them and so the towns died.
I feel its a pretty good analogy of religion too.
Our local town lost its minister last year and the church didn't replace him...the country is full of churches that are now homes as the only attendees in the towns are oldies who have been 'faithful' since they were born. Their children were less inclined and the grandchildren have no godly interest at all. The manse is rented out now and the church sees a travelling minister once a month.
Jehovah's Witnesses will go the same way in country australia. One day, vibrant congs in towns of 10,000 or less will be nothing more than a familiy or two of old originals or those who bought a cheap house in a dead town and can't move out. The kids will have gone to the city and got busy trying to make living and the grandkids will bail the religion at 14.
One day, the run down kingdom hall that was built by the locals long before quickbuilds and loans from the society were the norm will be host to a visiting speaker once or twice a month and the rest of the time the 'congregation' will be kept together by a handfull of old sisters valiantly following the watchtower study and going door to door for a couple of hours.
The ethnic congregations, although in larger cities are essentially, a small town in themselves. There may be only a few thousand of whatever ethnic group surrounded by tens of thousands of regular australians (if there is such a thing now) Even these ethnic groups will slowly die as its only the oldies that still dont speak english keeping them going. All the 'clubs' for ethnic groups have opened their doors to anyone for a dollar because they know if they dont change the 'club' will be gone in just a few years.
The difference is that the JWs wont change for a million dollars and there lays their demise.
Oz (sorry for the log post...i got all literary for a while)
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Julia Orwell
Hey Oz, I like that you got literary. I really enjoyed reading your little treatise on demographic changes. Urbanisation is a fact of the world since the industrial revolution, and it's continuing and will continue. The trend to urban movement happens in Witness rural congregations too: I live on the Gold Coast and we get young JWs and young families in from all over the place. Then the kids grow up with the temptations of the city lifestyle and out they go.
If you look at the trends in developed countries, the rate of JW growth is stagnating, and so many speak of an actual decline in JW numbers in the decades to come. I look forward to when the JWs becomes an historical curiosity with a few hanger-ons like the Worldwide Church of God.
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Pickler
Oz, you summed it up perfectly, the JWs wont change.
They already offer nothing to youth.
The Internet exposes their past lies to anyone who cares to look.
it will be a slow & steady decline - at least in developed countries.
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snare&racket
I want to move to Oz, live, procreate and die there.....leave my mark on the earth somwhere beautiful, exciting and open minded.
Byron Bay here I come....