jw"facts" - Perhaps I did not express myself clearly regarding the method of counting numbers...Actually both the WCC and WT are both accurate....however, as I was attempting to point out, throughout the years the WCC US number included both Alaska and Hawaii. In the past the JW Yearbook did not include Hawaii and Alaska in their US figures, as they were counted separately. This explained why the WCC US number seemed higher to some, since they did not realize that the WCC number included all 50 states, while the JW Yearbook listed them separately...that is all I was trying to say. I think it is better that the JW Yearbook is including all 50 states in their count.
You may not think that the method of counting members matters - but I think it is crucial to understand how church members are counted. Many who have studied the Witnesses and have been involved in conducting surveys on the religious landscape, point out that the WT method of counting members is extremely conservative. Witnesses only count those that actively preach and report their preaching activity. They just don't count anyone that regulary attend their Bible meetings. This is unlike other churches, which count inactive members, in some cases dead members, members that have left, etc....I think that information is crucial to know, especially for a statisician. Surveys involving the religious landscape in many countries always show a number that is at least double the official membership number published by the Witnesses. The complaint I read from professional statisticians and sociologists is NOT that the Witnesses overcount their members, but that they UNDERCOUNT their members. But that may be based on the fact that the Witnesses do not use the same generous method of counting even inactive or dead members as the churches do. One group seeking "honesty in numbers" is now using a different method of counting members and will refrain from counting members that have passed away or are no longer active in their church. That group is the 7th Day Adventists...they should be commended for modifying their statistics, which according to the auditor will result in a lower membership number...but even then, the 7th Day Adventists will be using a more "generous method" of counting members. See:
I have read some who hold the point of view that the Witnesses growth has slow down, thanks to the Internet. But I don't really buy into their argument...it is true growth has slow down, but unlike, other groups, it has continued to grow. Other groups have not only slowed down, but are in decline. Recent news reports, point out that young people are leaving the Evangelical churches in droves....did the Internet do that...or could it be some other variables causing the decline...what about the mainline churches...they have declined dramatically in the last 2 decades...can you blame just the Internet on that...or are there other causes for that? Christendom in Europe has gone down the tubes, if the news and reports published with the last 5 years are to be believed.... an yet biblical Christianity (aka Witnesses) have at least maintained or grow in most European...unlike the churches in Europe, the Christian Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses are not on the verge of extinction...And as I pointed out earlier, Witnesses use perhaps the most conservative method of counting their members...but still show some growth.
I am certainly not deluded. My conclusion is based on an extensive study of the Bible and I firmly believe that Bible teaches that Jesus only found 1 Christian congregation that were to be witnesses of both Jesus and Jehovah. The book of Acts does not show the existence of several churches. The letters by the apostles warned against secretarianism and taught that their would be 1 faith...the NT warned against false teachings and agains those teaching another Christ. I get very happy when I hear of new ones coming into the Truth, joining the ranks of the true followers of Jesus. I visited a different congregation and spoke to a new family attending the congregation. They were Catholic, but then joined the Pentecostals. From the Pentecostals they learned from the Bible that you cannot pray to statues and that the Pope is not infallible. Then they became 7th Day Adventists. The couple explained to me that due to personal Bible reading, they came to the conclusion that the soul dies, and when comparing Bible encyclopedias, they also came to the conclusion that hell is mainly the grave, and the word translated hellfire is really Gehenna, which they now understood Jesus used as a symbol for eternal death...so they joined the Adventists. Further Bible reading lead them to believe that Jesus is really the Son of God and not part of a Trinity...now they are regularly meeting with the Witnesses and have left the Adventist Church...see that Truth from the Bible is not taught in all churches...and many are now finding the Truth...I would not be surprised if in the very near future the growth percentage of the Witnesses will grow dramatically as all those who are joining us become baptized and start sharing with us fully in sharing and preaching the good news of God's Kingdom.