Was I lied to?
Are the members of a congregation even mildly aware of how many people who belong to their very own congregation were recently baptized?
"We have NO idea how many in our congregation were baptized last year."
by NeverKnew 20 Replies latest watchtower scandals
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Pams girl
Generally, if the numbers are decent, they shout from the rooftops. If the numbers are not so good, they take a different stance "we do not keep records of baptisms", or/and "numbers aren't really that important". I have heared both these conversations in the same KH. Coming out of the mouth of the same Elder.
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Aunt Fancy
I haven't been to a meeting in 19 months but they always announced "we have a new brother or sister...". I do know that the numbers have gone down. You use to be able to count on 1% of the attendance getting baptized, not so in our area which is the NE.
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blondie
If you attend the baptisms in your area's assemblies and conventions and go down and see...you'd know. Many congregations have a part on the service meeting after a assembly/convention and will announce who was baptized (remember their status and degree of responsibility has changed).
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Londo111
They have records on all publishers. The Secretary could easily check. The Coordinator has to arrange elders to go over baptism questions with individuals. Not every elder will keep track of this, but it is not unknowable.
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SafeAtHome
Man, have things changed that much since I've been out? I mean, it was always announced at the next meeting, everybody knew everybody, and the average congregation was around 125 or so. Are they so huge now that an elder wouldn't possibly know if anyone was baptized, really, is a new brother or sister that unimportant to them?
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NeverKnew
This congregation, I'm told, is right around 100.
Is there no celebration of one's baptism? How about an acknowledgement?
....congratulatory handshake? Anything?
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Londo111
Maybe my memory is sketchy, but if someone is baptized, it likely would be announced at the Service Meeting. Everything else, celebrations, ect would be handled by individuals, if at all.
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Apognophos
A few friends will congratulate them and shake their hand at the next meeting after the assembly. That's... about it. Many of the friends do not watch the baptisms at the assembly because they're hungry and there's a lunch waiting for them with their name on it, so they don't know if someone got baptized until they hear an announcement at the mid-week meeting. But keeping track of how many were baptized in a year? I haven't seen that done.
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Londo111
This is an organization full of forms and obsessed with numbers, even over trivial matters. You best be sure if the CO comes and asks how many were baptized, they’d have the answer in a jiffy.