Hello everyone,
allow me to thank you for your comments, quite on target.
I would leke to add that the reason for digging more on the subject
was from an older article published by the Society ...48 years ago!
Please take note ot the Society's Governing Body remarks made concerning
» ...our brothers and sisters are trying to show faith without any works? ».
** yb74 pp. 254-255 Is Your Faith Dead or Alive?
James said, “Faith, if it does not have works, is dead in itself.” (Jas. 2:17) Having now read the Yearbook, can you say that Jehovah’s Christian witnesses world wide have faith that led them into action? Their faith is certainly not a lifeless thing. All true Christians must show that their faith is a live faith, because “faith without works is dead.” (Jas. 2:26) One’s faith must show up through work in some way. How? Look at the results with 193,990 persons being baptized last year. Jehovah’s witnesses were doing what Christ Jesus directed his disciples to do, make more disciples! So their faith shown by works has been productive.
It is very interesting to note that in the last seven years 949,842 persons were baptized; and in the last 26 years, 2,084,398. These figures say something to us. At the close of the year 1966 there were 1,118,665 publishers who were sharing in the Kingdom service, and since then there have been another 949,842 persons baptized. So today, if we make allowance for those who have died, which normally runs to about one percent per year, still we should have nearly two million persons who could be preaching the good news.
The Yearbook report shows there was a peak in publishers of 1,758,429 out in the field in 1973. So that is approximately 250,000 short of two million. Think of James’ words again: “Of what benefit is it, my brothers, if a certain one says he has faith but he does not have works?” (Jas. 2:14) Remember, he is talking to those who have dedicated their lives to God and are baptized. He is addressing his words to “my brothers.” Are we to assume that about 250,000 of our brothers and sisters are trying to show faith without any works? It is something to ponder over.
The Society’s records show that 2,084,398 persons were baptized in the last 26 years. Add to that the publishers who were in the field service the previous year, 1947, namely, 207,552, and that gives you a total of 2,291,950 persons. Allowing for the death of about 225,000 persons, at the usual rate of one percent each year, are we to say that since 1947 there have been over three hundred thousand brothers and sisters who have gone out in the field service at some time or other since their dedication and baptism and are now trying to show Jehovah and others their faith without works? James says: “Faith divorced from deeds is lifeless as a corpse.”—Jas. 2:26, NE.
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Conclusion : The reasons... starting with death of many member/year, maby
dissociated, many disfellowshipped and other fadaed...(including the inactves)
the real facts of life shows that hundreds of thousands baptizedJehovah's
Witnesseare...missing and no longer « active publishers » in their congregation.
And the period I did choose, was the last 4 years , from 201/ to 2021 included
It is also very ironical that the Society's Governing Body added..48 years ago
the comment : « It is something to ponder over. »
Greetings to eveyone,
JC MacHislopp
PS Many thanks to Atlantis for stepping in to help me.