Reports are coming from Witnesses that, once again, the number of Memorial Partakers has risen considerably this past year, 2016. While confirmation is still to come on the exact numbers, the current explanations given for this increase surely causes a dilemma.
Imagine the Roman Catholic Church publishing each year the number of members who it felt were mistaken about what they believed in, that this same number of members was likely suffering from problems such as pride or even mental disorders or something along this line. This number, by the way, was in the thousands too and growing annually. What would you conclude, therefore about the Catholic Church and its admission?
For one thing, why so many unsound members? What kind of religion produces thousands of people like this? How does the Church know that these people have a mistaken view and what causes it? Is this a professional opinion, and if not, how could they even say such a thing about people?
Next, how would I know if I bumped into one of these "questionable" Catholics? Should I feel comfortable if one of these was talking to me right now? Should I believe what that person tells me about their religion? If they are mistaken about their own religious hope, these should avoid trying to recruit other members, right? Maybe the Church should do something to make sure these people with these misunderstandings are never in a teaching or educational position when it comes to preaching the gospel to others?
Well, as you might have guessed by now, I am not really talking about The Catholic Church. I am talking about Jehovah's Witnesses.
Every year now, it seems, the number of partakers at the Memorial increases by several thousand. If the current count is right, a jump of about 8 or 9000 has occurred since the late 1990s.
Jehovah's Witnesses say that many of these new partakers are likely just mistaken, that they may be suffering from some type of pride of even a mental problem. In other words, each time this number increases, the JWs are publishing an official count of people among them who are questionable.
Just think, there are thousands and thousands of Jehovah's Witnesses who, according to this explanation on what is causing or behind the increase, aren't really following the true leading of the Holy Spirit, aren't hoping in something real, and may even have mental problems. And this growing number of questionable Jehovah's Witnesses is published every year!
It is like saying: "Here is this year's official count of Jehovah's Witnesses you shouldn't trust when they tell you about their hope!" And the number is in the thousands--and increasing! What kind of a religion is this that it not only admits to producing this kind of member, but that some of the largest percentages of growth are experienced in the growing size of this group?!
If this number doesn't really represent those who are truly anointed, what is it saying about these thousands and thousands of additional ones? And what about these going out into the public to teach the world "life saving truths"?
Would you trust a Jew who was known to be mistaken about some of the most vital parts of their personal beliefs to give you an accurate view of the Jewish religion? Would you trust the person anymore if they were Catholic or Hindu or Baptist to offer the same about theirs? Or course not! So just think, there are thousands of Jehovah's Witnesses who are just as mistaken, and their number increases each year. Should you be receiving a witness from these mistaken people?
If they aren't mistaken, then why say they might be? If they are, or just some are, why is your religion producing such a large increase in this type of person?