I have been pondering over the WT study last Sunday. The title, when I first read it, told me that I was going to hear a lot of the same crap I had to put up with during the 2014 International Convention. While some of it was there, the subliminal message given on the magazine was far from what the title implied to me. Before I get some flame over it, the title was "100 years of the kingdom". May be I did not quote it 100% accurately but you get the idea.
My take away message from the study was this. Preaching is changing. It was different in the past and it had to change. Some people may not have liked it or had a hard time adjusting. Using portable devices in the past meant you did not have to speak as much (hint! hint!). Now we do but with the new resources (namely iPads) you may not have to explain as much once again. With every change came progress and so we can expect the same this time around. Don't stand on the way of progress.
While this does not change the general idea of preaching, it does put a new tone to the concept as most JWs have come to know it. That it is imperative that we go house to house, looking for people to deliver the message. This much has been communicated over the years. Two principal reasons have been given to justify the house to house approach..
1) That if you had an urgent warning for people in your community you would go look for them at their home. This has been compared to the approach authorities take when a natural disaster is expected. Even though everyone knows who JWs are and our message has been spread in over 200 countries, we still need to to go the home to make sure everyone is aware. This, by the way, was an illustration delivered at the 2014 assembly
2) That this is the way the first century congregation did it and by this we follow their example
As I was walking thru the local flea market last night, I stumbled upon the ever present witnessing cart, located next to a plethora of books and magazines. Two sisters were seating there, cuddling themselves in a corner to avoid the chill from the persistent wind. One of the last recommendations regarding public witnessing carts is that we need to make an effort to make sure it does not look "commercial". That we do not present the appearance that we are selling something. Renting a flea market stand to seat next to the rest of the vendors, in my opinion, does not help at all. It sure makes it fun. Plenty of taco and corn stands nearby. A sure way to satisfy your need for "antojitos" (a slang Spanish term for "cravings") while counting hours.
Another one of the later instructions received from the "mother" was in part a reminder on how to count the magazines that we deliver electronically. That's right, you are now able to count magazines you send over email or social media.
Does this mean we are now entitled to simply seat at our computer and sip coffee while we place magazines all over the internet? Not so fast... The organization is giving you options but is not saying, and don't you go around saying, that we are moving the entire preaching campaign to the cloud. I am sure they wish they could but that would stumble a lot of people, specially the older folks that are not only computer illiterate, but also hold the preaching tradition dear.
So why did I call this OP "Manufacturing Consent"? It was the title of an old documentary. I am not sure if I have seen the original but I do remember seeing one version a few years after 9-11. There, it was explained how the media and other venues were used to gather public support for the ongoing war efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. While I am not here to debate wether this actually happened or not, the core concept is there.
As the older generations begin to pass away and the millennial generation begin to take over this cult, it is only natural that they will begin pushing some of the resources available to the edge, to the point were they will go from being alternatives to becoming the mainstream tool to preach. All it will take is enough youngsters to report success in converting people over social media. With the numbers of converts coming from traditional preaching on the decrease, the scale is already on its way to the other side. Eventually, it will come to the point where the org may choose to, not announce an end to the house to house preaching, but to put so little value to it that the masses of JWs will be demanding so. If not directly, by means of communicating their desire to the org, but also by means of supporting or not supporting the field activity. If enough people quit showing up at the field meeting, eventually there will be no need to have one.
